Chapter 156 The Isle of Ashes

The towering silhouettes of the *Vanishing Sail* and the *Brilliant Star* pierced through the heavy fog at the world's end, sailing into a tranquil sea of solidified existence. Their destination was clearly visible—a desolate land covered in ash, floating upon the ocean.

Aside from that seemingly barren patch of land, there were no other distinguishing features in the entire sea. Only clusters of floating ash drifted on the mirror-like surface, reflecting the chaotic sky. Those ash clusters looked like…fallen clouds.

The *Vanishing Sail* navigated a narrow channel of ash clusters, slowly approaching the distant, desolate island. The sea outside the ship reflected the clouds and mist, its surface like a mirror. For a moment, Duncan felt as if the ship was sailing through the clear sky—the floating mist and ash gathered around the two ships like clouds, while some dark-colored ash resembled islands floating in the sky. The *Vanishing Sail*'s passage didn't create any ripples on the sea, merely disturbing the nearby ash clusters and fog, causing them to break apart and reform.

Shirley leaned on the ship's railing, marveling at the scene with A Gou. Although she had witnessed many incredible sights aboard the *Vanishing Sail*, she was invariably captivated by these wonders each time they reached a new destination.

"A Gou… I've been feeling lately that a limited vocabulary is really a problem," Shirley muttered softly, her voice low as if afraid of being overheard by the captain, yet not using the symbiotic connection, as if hoping someone would hear her grumbling. "All I can think of is 'wow,' but this is so much more beautiful…"

"Want me to add a couple of books?" A Gou gently shook his head. "Or maybe you should finish those books you've been hiding under your bed?"

Shirley was immediately alarmed and quickly pressed down on A Gou's head. "Shhh—"

Duncan overheard Shirley and A Gou's muttering, but he didn't pay attention to it. His focus was entirely on the approaching land ahead—he could now see many details of the island.

Flat, barren, devoid of life. It was a small, isolated island. As the final resting place of a "god," it wasn't as grand as the Leviathan Queen's temple, nor as spectacular as Navigator II's crystal cluster graveyard. The island didn't even have a structure that could be called a building. All that could be seen were ash and dust, and some rising smoke.

With a strange feeling, Duncan had the *Vanishing Sail* anchor near the island and then boarded a small boat to land on it.

This was a node of fire, but the embers were clearly fading from this land—now, only ubiquitous, warm ash could be seen, and dark red burn marks stretched through the ash, seemingly fading away every second.

The soft, loose touch of ash and a warm temperature emanated from beneath his feet. Duncan and his group landed on an open beach on the edge of the desolate island and cautiously moved towards the island's interior.

There were no paths on the island, only fine ash covering everything. Everyone walked carefully to avoid tripping over the rubble or anything else hidden beneath the ash—no one wanted to fall into the ash, especially when they were unsure of its properties.

"I feel like ash is already in my shoes… ahhh, it's all over my skirt too…" Shirley couldn't help but grumble after walking a short distance. "I'm going to take a good bath when I get back. This ash is everywhere!"

"…This place must have been covered in flames, only the complete burning would leave such a scene," Lucrezia's voice came from the back of the group. The witch elegantly walked through the ash, a gorgeous parasol appearing in her hand. A wisp of wind swirled around the parasol, preventing any ash from sticking to her. She gazed into the distance. "Some smoke columns can still be seen in the distance. The fire there may not be completely extinguished, but for the entire island… they are just sparks."

Nina glanced at the witch, who maintained her elegant demeanor even in this place, and couldn't help but exclaim with envy, "Magic is so convenient…"

"Envious? It's the result of staying up all night for a century," Lucrezia smiled at Nina, then turned to Duncan, raising her parasol. "Do you need one? I have a spare—it can help you stay clean and breathe easily."

Duncan looked at the ash on his body, then glanced at Lucrezia's fairytale-like lavender parasol. His eyes twitched. "No need."

"I can change it to black for you," Lucrezia said seriously. "If you wish, it can even have a skull pattern on the handle."

Before Duncan could speak, the image of the captain walking down the road with a dark, gothic-style parasol flashed through Shirley's mind, nearly scaring her.

Duncan glared at Lucrezia with a straight face and silently ignited the flames on his body.

His body transformed into a spirit in the flames, floating above the ash, and said in a low voice, "I have my own way."

Lucrezia shrugged, secretly curling the corners of her lips when her father wasn't looking. Shirley, on the other hand, seemed to suddenly realize something and clapped her hands. "Oh, right, I seem to have my own way too…"

Before she finished speaking, a series of cracking sounds came from within her body. Then, black smoke enveloped her entire body, and jagged bone fragments spread and grew from within her, instantly transforming her into a tall, dark demon form—using the twelve skeletal limbs behind her to support her body and walk above the ash.

"This is much better, and the view is better too," Shirley's slightly mature and hoarse voice came from above. She used the long ends of her limbs to poke at the ash piles on the ground and couldn't help but mutter, "...I don't know why, but I just don't like the ash here. It's not that I dislike being dirty, it's just that it always feels strange when it gets on me…uncomfortable."

Hearing Shirley's muttering, Nina, who was walking beside Duncan, frowned and tugged at Duncan's sleeve. "I have the same feeling. This ash feels very uncomfortable when it gets on me… I can't breathe, and I can't walk, like I'm being entangled by something."

Duncan immediately stopped. He had found Shirley's actions amusing just now, but now his expression turned serious.

"Do you guys feel this way?" He immediately turned around, looking at the others in the group.

"No," Alice shook her head first. The doll even lowered her head to check her body, moving her joints. "I just feel like ash has gotten into my joints, it's itchy. I'm going to take a good bath when I get back."

"I have a similar feeling to Shirley and Nina," Morris said in a deep voice. "The environment here is not right… unlike the domains of the Storm Goddess and the God of Wisdom. There seems to be something 'active' deep within this ash, influencing us."

He paused, seeming to carefully assess something, then shook his head. "But I don't sense any direct malice. It seems to be just part of the 'environment' here."

Duncan frowned upon hearing this and turned to another direction. "Vanna, what about you?"

There was no response.

There was only endless ash, but Duncan was sure that Vanna had been standing there just a moment ago—he even thought he had seen her fleeting phantom, that phantom having been standing there silently until just now.

Everything went silent for a moment. Nina looked at the empty space in shock, and a question almost instinctively arose in her mind: Who is Vanna?

But just as the question was about to form, flickering flames appeared before her eyes. Then, a flood of information poured into her mind as if awakening from numb hibernation—

The youngest judge of Prand… powerful strength and firm belief… beautiful silver hair… always meticulous when she first got on the ship, but after getting familiar with everyone, she turned out to be cheerful, optimistic, and friendly… she seemed to resent that she "can't get married off"… very tall…

Nina raised her head with a trace of confusion. The countless pieces of information swirling in her mind reorganized, occasionally outlining Vanna's appearance before her eyes, but then turning into a pile of blurry fragments in an instant. She saw an invisible wind blowing across the desolate island, and the light ash was swept up by the wind. In the wind, there was a vague, tall figure—

That figure was walking towards the center of the island, as if walking in a parallel space, without looking back, like a traveler who had forgotten everything and was trudging through a long journey.

Nina woke up in horror and suddenly pointed to the rapidly dissipating figure in the wind and ash. "There! Vanna went that way! I just saw her go that way!"

Everyone seemed to awaken with a start, looking at each other in surprise and uncertainty. The fragmented memories of Vanna and the illusion that had appeared in the wind just now made it difficult for everyone to distinguish between reality and illusion, and at this moment, the captain's steady and majestic voice suddenly broke the "quagmire" that seemed to be constantly sinking, the entanglement of reality and illusion, and the rapid decline of perception—

"Everyone, get back on the ship!"

Emerald flames suddenly spread out, burning out a stable area on this ash-covered open space. Morris looked up and saw a rotating flame portal opening beside Duncan, and Ai's figure was hovering above the gate.

"The 'ash' here is the history that has been burned away," Duncan said quickly. "You all get back to the ship immediately."

"What about you?" Nina paused, instinctively asking.

"...I have to bring Vanna back," Duncan said, looking up at the endless ash in the distance. "And by the way, find Tarrou Jin."

(End of Chapter)