Chapter 105 The Storm That Was Raised

This time, the wind in this desert seemed more turbulent than ever before.

Disordered gusts swept across the sand dunes covered with jagged rocks, raising sand and dust that swirled and danced dozens of meters in the air. In the distance, huge ochre "barriers" gradually rose into the sky – a greater storm was brewing within them, as if accumulating the power to sweep across the world.

Yet all this ceaseless wind and sand stopped abruptly several meters away from Vanna and the giant, the swirling dust around them resembling the eye of a storm.

Vanna noticed the changes in her surroundings immediately. She looked in astonishment at the turbulent sand and dust in the distance, especially the ochre sandstorm in the far distance, rising from the earth like a pillar reaching to the heavens. Having never seen such a sight, she immediately felt uneasy: "What is that?"

The old giant, clad in tattered cloth robes, lowered his head and looked gently into Vanna's eyes: "It is a storm, traveler, a storm you have stirred up with your own hands."

"A storm I stirred up?" Vanna was taken aback, looking at the giant in astonishment. "When did I..."

"Not yet, but soon – time has begun to flow again, traveler, it is flowing in all directions. Do you feel it? This world is changing… After such a long period of stasis, this dust-covered, imprisoned stone is finally beginning to roll again."

Vanna listened to the giant's obscure words in a daze. She gleaned something from the vague phrases, but before she could ask, the giant waved his hand: "Don't ask too much, traveler. This place is finally approaching its end. The more you understand it at this time, the more inextricably linked you will become to it. I don't want you to become another person wandering in this desert."

Vanna finally saw something different in the giant's words and the dim, fiery glow in his eyes.

This "god who lost his memory" had come to say goodbye.

"Come with me, traveler," the giant beckoned to her. "Walk with me one last time, and bring this journey to a close."

Vanna paused slightly, and quickly followed the giant's pace as she asked, "Where are you taking me? What exactly is happening here?"

"We are returning to that 'big pit'," the giant slowed his pace and lowered his head slightly. "I am beginning to remember some things. There is something I have been searching for there… perhaps something you want as well."

In the sudden swirling sand, Vanna and the giant's figures disappeared into the depths of the sand sea.

…

The sun had almost completely set below the horizon – in the vast, boundless sea, only that enormous "glowing geometric form" remained, floating silently on the surface, its endless "sunlight" spreading out gently, extending to infinity along the slightly undulating waves.

Light Breeze Port, once illuminated by this "sunlight", had disappeared beneath the waves. In its place now stood an astonishing and magnificent phantom – countless wisps of formless material, like strands of hair, rising from the sea, intertwining and interweaving between heaven and earth, transforming into the projection of a tree even larger than a city-state.

This tree, suspended between reality and illusion, continued to grow, as if still drawing nourishment from the vanished Light Breeze Port. With every passing moment, it became more real, moving from the illusory towards the tangible. With every gust of wind, every surge of the waves, its trunk appeared clearer, its magnificent canopy more solid. Now, it stood in the sunlit sea, obscuring the sky and the sun, dwarfing even the magnificent Cathedral Ark in the distance to the size of a "small boat."

The Truth Academy fleet had been ordered to withdraw from the projection range of Xilandis. Now the Ark and its escorting fleet were hovering on the sea outside the phantom of the giant tree.

But within the tree’s projected range, on the sea beneath its towering canopy, a sailing ship burning with blazing ghost flames was heading straight for the "trunk."

The translucent spirit sails were raised, and an invisible force propelled the Vanishing Sail, driving it towards the distant World Tree, a towering giant that reached towards the heavens. In the burning flames, the massive ghost ship emitted a low, unsettling creak from every part of its body, as if it were facing tremendous pressure, fighting against a repelling force.

As the Vanishing Sail entered within twelve nautical miles of the trunk, the expected "resistance" appeared.

The waves surged, gradually forming a storm, as wave after wave came surging from the direction of Xilandis, violently pounding against the prow of the Vanishing Sail, even flooding the deck at times. Howls and rumbles came from the direction of the giant tree, each resounding as if to shatter the ghost ship advancing through the waves.

And within this surging power was a tangible sense of resistance and… anger.

Xilandis did not like this ship, this ghost that had once been built using her branches for its keel, and reborn on the spine of Sasroka.

She felt confused, angry, and even afraid.

But the raging waves and the roar of the World Tree outside the cabin had little effect on the stability within the ship.

Duncan walked down the steps, through the dim, long corridors, the sloping, ancient staircases, through the warehouses with inverted lighting, and the creaking cabins, step by step towards the deepest part of the ship.

He carried the lantern that emitted a ghostly green glow in one hand, and the "square wood" obtained from the Prand City-State in the other.

He could feel the piece of wood in his hand emitting a slight heat and vibration. This "sample" cut from the original keel material of the Vanishing Sail seemed to sense something, and was becoming increasingly restless.

Agatha's voice came from the shadows beside him: "The storm outside is strong. Xilandis is preventing the Vanishing Sail from approaching."

"I can hardly hear anything down here," Duncan simply smiled. "Looks like the soundproofing down here is pretty good."

"Alice has tied His Eminence Luen to a pillar with ropes, saying she's afraid the old gentleman will be thrown about – His Eminence Luen is in poor condition and couldn't resist… I tried to persuade her, but Alice wouldn't listen. She says it's common sense at sea, and that she's an old sailor on the ship…"

"…As long as she's happy," Duncan didn't stop. "Are the ropes happy?"

"…They should be pretty happy. It's not often you get to tie a Pope to a ship."

"That's good then."

Duncan said lightly, and then pushed open the last door leading to the hold.

The shattered hull structure of the Vanishing Sail appeared before him.

No matter how turbulent the storm raged on the surface, this "lower hold," half-submerged in the subspace, was as quiet as ever – the shattered hull structure still floated silently in the void, the chaotic streamers from the subspace flowed disorderly through the huge cracks in the hull, as it had been a century ago, and as it was today, a century later.

Duncan slowly came to the middle of this broken cabin, standing beside the largest crack.

Agatha's figure rose from beside him, and she spoke with a hint of caution: "Are you sure this will work?"

Duncan lowered his head, gazing at the crack beneath his feet, and the streamers within it.

"The original keel of the Vanishing Sail was made of Xilandis' branches. Later, Sasroka's spine replaced that keel, and with the authority of the 'King of Dreams', the Vanishing Sail, which had been swallowed by the subspace, was reshaped once more through 'illusion to reality'. Therefore, in a sense – the Vanishing Sail is another Xilandis."

He slowly bent down and placed the piece of wood on the ground in front of him.

"Memory and dreams, Sasroka wanders in the realm of illusion and reality. He created Xilandis in his dreams, and in his dreams he reconstructed the Vanishing Sail. He extracted everything from his memories, but the only problem is, he doesn't remember himself – he doesn't even know he can dream."

Duncan gently touched the surface of the piece of wood with his finger.

A cluster of ghostly green flames leaped and rose from one corner of the wood, consuming the entire piece almost instantly. In the swift spirit flames, it took on the same ghostly, illusory, and transparent texture as Duncan's current body.

"Sasroka is the original 'Dreamless One' – the most heretical doctrines actually contain the simplest truths."

Duncan stood up and kicked the burning piece of wood towards the rift leading to the subspace.

It tumbled from the edge of the hull, disappearing almost instantly into that dim, chaotic space, disappearing into the rising and falling, disordered streamers.

A strange creaking sound began to come from afar.

"So the key to entering the depths of Xilandis' dream is not to awaken Xilandis – Xilandis is already awake, she doesn't need to be awakened.

"What we need to awaken is Sasroka, this spine that is soaked in the subspace.

"We need to establish communication between Sasroka and Xilandis – after a long period of time, to make this 'Dreamless One' realize his dream."

The strange creaking sound gradually reached its peak, and then suddenly, ghostly green flames began to surge and rise from the gaps in the shattered hull!

The spirit fire flowed swiftly throughout the cabin. Wherever the flames reached, the huge cracks began to heal and disappear at a speed visible to the naked eye. The broken hull began to be gradually repaired, and the hull structure of the Vanishing Sail became complete!

Before the largest crack healed, Duncan caught a glimpse of the scene beneath the crack in the corner of his eye.

That was the true "hull" structure of the Vanishing Sail, the true lower hold that encased the keel.

The huge, desolate spine of the ancient god was submerged in the subspace, floating and sailing in the chaotic void.

Emerald green new branches grew sinuously from the gaps in the skeleton, spreading to every part of the spine along with the flames.

"Now, the two keels are united."

Duncan said softly.

In front of him, the last crack in the bottom of the Vanishing Sail slowly healed.

He raised his head and called out in his heart, "Sasroka."

The goat-headed voice rang out, "I'm here, Captain."

"Full sails, full speed, we're going to find your little sapling."

"Aye captain!"

(End of Chapter)