The conversation between Daniel and the others gave Gwen some uncontrollable associations.
Ever since he learned that the concept of "Upper Narrators" and related beliefs were born in Sandbox No. 1, he had been thinking about the nature of the gods in this world and the process of the creation of various concepts related to the gods. He was most concerned about two questions:
First, how did the gods of this world come about? Second, what was the role of the "commandment system" around these gods in the entire belief system?
In this world, many beliefs and the corresponding concepts of gods originated from the Eternal Slate. According to Gwen's judgment, the Eternal Slate should only be a "guiding medium" for the mortals in the world. It came from the Godslaying Fleet, and for some unknown reason, it carried the breath of the destroyed gods. The mortals in this world could not read the battle report of the Godslaying Fleet from the ancient metal like he could, but could only sense the residual power of the gods. Since the power of the gods often meant the knowledge of the gods, the mortals who first came into contact with the Eternal Slate indirectly understood the knowledge of the gods.
The knowledge of the gods had an irresistible eroding and assimilating effect on the minds of mortals.
Based on this foundation, many religious beliefs in the world were stimulated and gradually developed. This was obviously different from the "upper-level narrator's belief" that appeared out of nowhere in Sandbox No. 1.
Gawain had always been puzzled by this. In the real history of this world, many religions were created after the mortal civilization of this era came into contact with the information fragments left behind by the ancient gods. Then, the mortals worshipped and worshipped according to their own understanding of the information. In the process, they formed a religious system that belonged to this era of civilization and received feedback from the gods. During this process, what were the positions of the ancient gods? What were their states?
Perhaps it was a bold guess that they were revived in the new civilization. Because the customs, history, and even the main race of the civilization were very different in each civilization, these revived gods had long become completely different individuals from the ancient gods. But with the information carried by the Eternal Slate as a "basic guide," these "revived gods" must be inextricably linked to the ancient "primordial gods."
Did the gods know this? Do they care about this?
Perhaps leaving their own information fragments in the Eternal Slate was a means of self-preservation that they deliberately left behind when they were on the brink of destruction? Some kind of method that isn't a method, some kind of "resurrection" with huge flaws?
If the above conjectures were true, what was the "commandment system" that was built around the gods and played an important role in the practice of faith?
The system of commandments could also be regarded as the "dogma" and "rules" of various religions. It was the integration of a series of rules used to regulate the daily behavior of believers. In this world where gods actually existed, rules and commandments were not only a kind of restriction on behavior but also meant the acquisition of divine power, the effect of prayer, and even closely related to "divine punishment." Every mortal who believed in a specific god had to carefully follow the numerous commandments in order to maintain their connection with the god. From this point of view, the commandments system seemed to be a restriction formed by the gods.
But if the gods in this world were really born from faith, or were resurrected from faith, then the system of commandments … was it really just a "one-way restriction" of the gods on humans?
The team of Eternal Sleepers began to explore the phantom town. Led by Selena, Daniel, and other archbishops, the team of ten began to explore the quiet square first. Gwen followed them silently, his mind full of thoughts.
In the belief of the "Upper Narrators," there was a "rule" that "Do not stay on the street on the day the bell rings, or you will be 'deleted.'" This was a very typical "commandment." According to the clues revealed by Archbishop Yuri, the origin of this commandment was most likely due to the "periodic reset" operation in the early days of the operation of Sandbox No. 1.
An ordinary technical operation had evolved into a part of the later rules and commandments in the closed Sandbox No. 1. The residents in the sandbox had completely forgotten the original reason for this "rule," or they did not know the real reason for this rule at all. But since it was part of the "dogma," they would follow it devoutly.
Even though Sandbox No. 1 no longer had the operation of resetting every ten days …
Two priests wearing owl masks had finished exploring the nearby streets. They returned to Daniel and bowed. "We found nothing, Archbishop. This place now looks just like an ordinary deserted town."
Daniel nodded. Archbishop Yuri, who was next to him, said, "The situation in the nearby houses is the same. Everything has returned to 'normal.' This time, there is no bell ringing, and there is no sudden light."
"Normal …" Archbishop Magnum, who was tall and red-haired, muttered, "In this kind of place, the more normal it is, the weirder it is."
Archbishop Yuri frowned slightly and said as if he was talking to himself, "I have a feeling that this town seems to have its own mind. This mind tried to influence us last time and tried to break through the blockade, but it failed. So this time, it chose to seal itself and the 'truth' deep in this town, and it will not reveal any information to us …"
"Are you saying that this town is' alive '?" Archbishop Magnum looked up and suddenly showed an interested look. "Then if I give it a Psionic Storm, will it jump up?"
Yuri glanced at the grumpy archbishop and said, "You can try."
Magnum was stunned for a moment and shrugged. "… It's boring."
Gwen listened to the conversation of the Eternal Sleepers and walked to the center of the small square.
This was where the small church used to be, but now, the church had disappeared, leaving only a slightly potholed, old stone floor and a few puddles on the ground.
He stopped beside one of the puddles and glanced at it casually.
The surface of the water reflected a seemingly normal scene: the empty square, the extinguished street lamps, the dark houses, and Gawain's calm and indifferent face.
The "mirror" in the dream world often had a special meaning, so Gwen was also a little curious about the possible reflection in the water. However, after looking at it for a few seconds, he did not see any "classic" phenomena such as himself blinking strangely in the reflection or the appearance of an extra figure.
This made him smile and shake his head. He felt that he was thinking too much. The supernatural scenes he saw in his previous life had entered his mind.
But just as he was about to shift his gaze away, the reflection in the water actually changed.
In the small town in the reflection, the street lights suddenly began to light up, and the dark houses were suddenly filled with warm and soft lights!
Gwen was a little stunned. Almost at the same time when the town in the reflection in the water changed, he heard a melodious bell that seemed to come from the horizon suddenly ring in the small town!
The sudden ringing of the bell made him raise his head and look around. Daniel and the others who were near him also reacted in the same way. Obviously, Gawain was not the only one who heard the ringing of the bell.
"It's the bell …" Selena frowned, and the light of the lantern in her hand was faintly brighter. "I still don't know where it came from …"
"You just said that there was no bell ringing," Yuri said with a hint of self-mockery in his tone. At the same time, there was a hint of confusion. "But there was only the bell ringing, and no lights were turned on. This is different from last time."
Just as he said, in the quiet town, only the strange and melodious bell sound rang. The surrounding street lights and houses did not light up with warm and soft lights like last time.
However, Gwen's eyes swept across the puddles in the square. He clearly saw that in the small town in the reflection, the lights were lighting up one by one, and they were quickly spreading toward them!
All of a sudden, he seemed to have guessed what the malicious mind hidden in this town wanted to do. However, before he could warn them, he saw Archbishop Yuri, who was still speaking just now, vanish into thin air before him.
The next to disappear were the high-ranking priests wearing the owl masks, who did not seem to have reacted, followed by Daniel and Archbishop Magnum, who had just reacted and wanted to cast spells to protect their minds. Finally, it was Selena Geerfen, who raised the lantern as if to dispel the darkness and illuminate the hidden mind nearby.
Everyone disappeared in front of Gwen in a short moment, as if they had been "deleted."
They had been deleted because they had violated the commandment of "Do not stay on the street on the day the bell rings." They had been deleted by the "rules of the gods" that the Church of the Upper Narraters believed in!
Gwen stood quietly in the middle of the square, looking at the empty town with a calm expression.
He was actually a little flustered.
He did not seem to be affected, but … he was not sure if he had been "deleted" as well.
After all, he still did not know the nature of this "deletion," and he could not find an additional observer to confirm his current state.
However, these changes in his mentality did not affect Gwen's next actions. He quickly calmed himself down, and in a clear and calm state, he first weakened the "strength" of his connection to the mental network, confirming that he was still in a state where he could interrupt the network connection at any time and return to the real world.
This seemed to mean that he was not affected by the strange power of the town, and his mind was still free to come and go in the network.
Then, he began to try to sense Daniel's mental frequency, trying to use a certain "secret port" to establish a connection with him.
Daniel had disappeared with the other clerics, but Gwen did not think that this strange town could "wipe out" so many powerful Extraordinaries so easily. After all, it was only a projection of Sandbox No. 1. Even if it did have some strange power, it should be limited.
Back when they were secretly modifying the mental network, Gwen and Daniel had considered what to do in case of an accident where the main ports of the network were blocked or blocked. For this reason, they had set up a large number of secret ports and unmonitored "dark lines" in the depths of the network for emergency communication.
However, Gwen's original assumption was that the Pope of Eternal Sleep and the Supreme Episcopal Council had detected the invasion of "extraterrestrial wanderers" and blocked the network. He did not expect that these secret links would come in handy in such a situation.
His consciousness settled, his spirit condensed, and a secret mental connection was established in an instant. Gwen soon sensed a familiar wave from the depths of his consciousness, and heard Daniel's voice in his mind. "My Lord, how is the situation on your side?"
Gawain heaved a sigh of relief.
"I'm not affected," Gwen said in a low voice after calming down. "Where are you now?"
Hearing that Gwen was not affected, Daniel did not seem to be surprised at all, as if this was how an extraterrestrial wanderer should behave. Then he reported the situation around him. "My Lord, I don't know where this is. It's dark around me. I can only see a vague fog rolling. It seems to have blocked my senses and blocked my mind."
Gawain furrowed his brows slightly. From Daniel's description, he could not tell what kind of state the other party was in.
But there was one thing he was sure of — he did not seem to be affected by the strange power of this phantom town.
Daniel was currently in a dark and hazy environment, surrounded by fog that blocked his perception. Gawain, on the other hand, could see the normal Mirage Town, and his mind could sense his surroundings as usual. He could leave this place at any time. The two situations were clearly different.
Why was he not affected?
Was it because Sandbox No. 1 could not recognize the soul of an "extraterrestrial wanderer"? Or was it because he did not use the standard port of the Eternal Sleep but used the "loophole port" to access the mental network?
Gwen briefly analyzed, but now was not the time to dwell on this matter. He could only temporarily put down this question and began to think of a way to help Daniel out.
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