In the image, Sethlin tilted her head in surprise.
“What is ‘cheering’ anyway...? Never mind, I didn’t mean to rush you. The divine tree itself takes at least a hundred years to fully mature. Originally, I expected that if you could plant the first sapling within three years, that would already be very efficient, so there’s no need to hurry. The reason I’m contacting you suddenly this time is because I’ve discovered some things that concern me, and I wanted to give you a heads-up.”
“Things that concern you? What kind of things? Are they related to the Ten Thousand Demons Mountains?”
Without immediately answering or directly addressing the priestess’s question, Sethlin thought for a moment and then asked in return.
“Violet, I’ve already learned about your situation through Theresa’s perspective. When you were communicating with those demons today, how much did they tell you?”
Demons?
Oh, she must be referring to Minchen and Chief Vanessa.
“A lot, actually. If I were to explain it all in detail, it would take quite some time. How about you get straight to the point, Sethlin?”
“Is that so... alright then. Listen, Violet, the barrier between your world and another world is being weakened. Although this process is relatively slow and has only just begun, it will still take some time to be fully realized. However, the chain reactions from this change have already caused many abnormal phenomena in that area. You must have noticed them, right?”
“Abnormal phenomena?”
The priestess was slightly surprised. She then turned to look at the torrential rain pouring down from the pitch-black night sky and immediately understood.
“You’re not suggesting that this endless sudden downpour is one of them, are you?”
“That’s just one aspect of it. More changes are likely happening quietly in places you can’t see yet, such as the flow of magical energy in the earth’s veins and abnormal fluctuations in climate and temperature. You should see these soon. Although my true form isn’t there and I can’t make an accurate judgment for now, I know that the Ten Thousand Demons Mountains region is indeed very close to another world in terms of spatial coordinates. You must take this seriously.”
Another world, huh? Violet had indeed learned quite a bit about this recently. Not long ago, Minchen seemed to have said something similar, mentioning that abnormal weather like this torrential rain could be a sign of some impending change...
Reflecting on the various information she gathered during the day, the priestess asked the wise deity the question that had been troubling her.
“Thanks for the reminder. By the way, Sethlin, just how many worlds are there outside of ours? And how do they exist in relation to each other? This barrier between worlds seems awfully fragile, doesn’t it?”
The Goddess of Life pondered for a moment and nodded.
“That’s a very good question. To be honest, even the gods of the Age of Deities couldn’t fully decipher and understand everything about the cosmos. But one thing is certain: our world is not alone. At least a few other worlds with life have been confirmed, and they are connected to ours in some way. For instance, you know about the Aibus.”
“In fact, the Aibus isn’t truly located beneath our world. Back in the era before the sealing of Westphalia, before the formation of the Sky Island, the vast, bottomless expanse beyond our lands was collectively known as the 【Edge of the World】.”
Realizing this might be hard to grasp, Sethlin picked up a square wooden box from beside her, whose purpose was unclear, and pointed to the upward-facing side.
“Look, if we consider our world to be one side of this box, then the 【Edge of the World】 is these meaningless parts extending beyond the box. And the Aibus’s world would be here.”
As she spoke, the goddess turned the wooden box, bringing an adjacent side to the top.
“See? This is the Aibus, a world adjacent to but different from ours. And by analogy...”
Sethlin rotated the box continuously, showing each of its six sides to Violet, finally returning to the initial side.
“Our relationship with other worlds is like this. Though we are connected in some form, it’s very difficult to reach them directly. Of course, the actual structure of the worlds isn’t as simple as this wooden box, but it’s a useful metaphor.”
“Hmm, I see...”
Violet tapped her finger thoughtfully on the armrest, then leaned back lazily, not caring as she crossed her long, smooth legs under her white robe. She tried to add,
“So, there are four other worlds connected to ours like the Aibus? Do you know what kind of worlds they are, Sethlin?”
“No, it’s actually far more than four, Violet. First, you need to understand that was just an analogy. According to what the gods have understood, the worlds connected to ours aren’t just linked to us, they also connect to many other different worlds.”
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“For instance, the Aibus isn’t just one of the sides of our six-sided structure. It also serves as a side for other, possibly multiple, six-sided structures. Many of these might be desolate and uninhabited, but we can’t guarantee that none of them are teeming with life.”
“Worlds intersect and extend in this manner, which is why even in the Age of the Gods, we couldn’t fully understand everything about the cosmos. Besides, during your absence, I’ve been reflecting on some information...”
Sethlin’s tone suddenly became low and serious.
“The catastrophic disaster that almost wiped out the gods most likely came from outside our world. After all, while traveling between worlds is extremely difficult, it’s not entirely impossible. It’s probable that the gods initially went to other worlds to fight against something and then perished there.”
“The evidence is that nowadays, the boundaries of our world are mostly sealed, which was unheard of in that era. Perhaps it was done to block out something from the outside.”
“Is that true...?” The priestess raised her eyebrows in surprise.
“Are there beings more powerful than the gods, who possess divine realms almost synonymous with the concept itself? Then why didn’t they appear in those past days?”
“I don’t know... this is just my speculation. As far as I know, the gods, or rather the supreme gods, are already at the top of all individual existences. The divine realm of a supreme god can almost be considered a completely independent world, capable of destroying all life in the world on its own if no other gods interfere.”
Sethlin furrowed her brow, stating as if to herself, “The gods of order tend to be stable and rarely leave this world to go to others. Only the chaotic gods of disorder, who are unpredictable and even enjoy destruction, invade other worlds for no reason, spreading insane beliefs. So my knowledge of other worlds is not extensive. I’ve only descended as an avatar a few times in recent years, mainly to the Aibus.”
“Destruction believes that it was the ‘malice of the world’ that destroyed the gods. But while the world is indeed powerful, it’s not invincible against the gods. This malice must have a vessel, so it will definitely manifest in the form of an individual or certain individuals.”
“Violet, in your opinion, what form is most likely to take?”