The gray snow in the sky has stopped falling, and the snow on the ground has also disappeared, but the surroundings are still hazy, like purple haze, and visibility is not very high.
Charles looked up at the hazy purple sky. He never thought that there would be a day when he would come up again.
"So this is what the surface looks like, Captain. Have you really lived in a place like this before? It doesn't feel as good as down there." said the fishman squatting on the ground with a cigarette in his mouth.
"This place is not my world, at least not now." Charles crossed his arms and waited patiently for the huge airship to stop in the giant pit fortress.
Dipper flicked the burnt cigarette butt onto the ground, "Captain, I think it's faster to explore with this airship."
"Nonsense, of course I know, but the problem is that there isn't one. The factory has already started to speed up the construction, but if we really want to build it, we have to transport the materials first. We should think about how to deal with the troubles that may come later." Charles raised his foot and walked down the stairs.
Charles had no time to waste. The serious situation made him immediately start assigning exploration locations to all explorers.
In order to make it easier for other explorers to understand, Charles directly divided it according to the method of the Explorer Association.
Just like a big pie, each person is responsible for a small piece of it.
Now the people of Earth Sea know nothing about the surface of the earth. If they want to explore, they must find out all the surrounding environment, both dangerous and safe.
After all, it is unrealistic to rely on the first group of people to find the darkness easily. They are just here to explore the way.
The direction Charles chose was the one where Pope Ledger had pulled the God of Light.
If there is anyone who is most likely to know what happened to the God of Light, it must be him. It is always the fastest way to find him first to get clues.
After the explorers quickly chose their direction, they immediately began to prepare various supplies.
There is no water on the surface, so they can't sail the boat, and the airship is not available now. The only things they can use are cars, including Charles and his companions.
Four cars with supplies were quickly distributed to the Narwhal's crew.
The sailors lifted the whale oil barrels and poured them into the tanks. The sailors of other explorers did the same thing. The air above the fortress was filled with a pungent smell of whale oil.
"I hate riding in a car. I feel like vomiting when I do." Sailor Norden complained in a low voice with a frown on his face.
Charles reached out and patted him on the shoulder. "Our ship is being modified. Please be patient. We can only make do with this for now."
Charles' words made everyone look over.
"Captain, can the Narwhal really come up?" Odric asked in surprise.
"You can, but the modification will take time. Stop talking nonsense and get in the car. Except for Odrick, everyone else will be divided into three groups, with eight hours each," Charles opened the car door and got in.
"Captain, but we... have never driven a car."
"If you haven't driven before, just practice. This place is very empty anyway, so just keep your distance from each other."
Learning to drive is difficult, mostly because when driving in a city, you need to understand traffic laws and regulations to avoid hitting people.
But if you don't consider these, driving is a very simple thing. It's nothing more than an accelerator, a brake, and a steering wheel. It's no different from driving a boat.
What's more, in this uninhabited Gobi Desert, these novices can't find anyone to hit even if they want to.
Soon, with the huge pit as the center, the wheel marks spread crookedly in all directions.
Charles, who was sitting in the passenger seat, frowned as he looked at the strange scenery outside.
After coming to this world, he always had a question in his mind, that is, what exactly is the purple color in the sky and where does it come from
According to the people in the Giant Pit Fortress, this purple light has always been in the sky and has never been extinguished.
The blind vampire Odric was not on fire, and the light did not kill the people of Earthsea, so this means that the light was not the sun, but light that was reflected by some kind of reflection.
But it is very uncertain at the moment. After all, he is not even sure whether this is the Earth. It is possible that the star of this planet is emitting purple light.
Just as he was thinking about this question, the mountain that he had seen before slowly appeared in front of him.
"Captain! What should we do next?" Dipper, who was driving in the front, stuck his head out of the car window and asked. With his enhanced body, he had learned to drive easily.
"Find a way to go around, our target is over there." Charles said.
As the saying goes, "A horse dies before it is seen." By the time they reached the foot of the mountain, two hours had passed.
As the car took them around the mountain, Charles saw the marks left by the God of Light and the chains that the Pope used to pull the God of Light.
But Pope Ledger, who was supposed to be lying inside, was missing. He disappeared without a trace.
Hearing Charles' order, Dipper immediately jumped out of the car and carefully observed the traces. "Captain, there is only one child's footprint here, and there are no other traces around."
"The Pope can fly. If he really leaves, he won't leave any mark."
Looking at the traces in front of him, Charles thought of a question, that is, where could the emotionally broken Pope go
Charles was already surprised that the God he believed in all his life died suddenly and he didn't commit suicide on the spot. Now he can still run and move
And Ancha Island did not receive any report, which means he did not return to the Earth Sea.
"Captain... maybe... he was killed by... something on the surface..." the first mate Bandage reminded Charles.
However, Charles disagreed with this possibility. "With his strength, it's impossible. Even if there is something on the surface that can kill him, it can't be so silent. There should be traces of battle and enemy footprints."
Charles looked at the vast Gobi Desert and pointed to the deep traces left by the God of Light. "Everyone get in the car and follow the traces to see where Ledger dragged the God of Light from."
The car started up quickly and drove along the skid track. This drive lasted for two full days.
When he saw that there was no end in sight, even Charles couldn't help but be shocked by Ledger's perseverance.
He actually relied on his physical strength to drag the God of Light to that position. Maybe if he was given more time, the God of Light could really return to the Earthsea.
In the early morning of the third day, Charles let go of the steering wheel, put Lily from his shoulder into his arms, leaned directly on the passenger seat, and began to close his eyes and rest.
However, before he could take a nap, the car braked suddenly and woke him up. "Captain! Look outside, there's a giant! A giant as big as a mountain!"
(End of this chapter)