The Great Devil Sasroka.

A faint sense of familiarity surfaced in Duncan's mind, and he quickly recalled that he had indeed heard the term before—during a casual conversation with Morris long ago.

"I remember... it's the name of the 'chief god' described in the elves' unique ancient belief system," he said slowly, lost in thought. "This devil god possesses the ability to control dreams and wandering souls, and according to your legends, this great devil is even related to the opening of this 'Deep Sea Era'—"

"Yes, Captain Duncan," Talan Eler nodded. "According to the descriptions in those ancient legends, the world was originally a dream, created by the Great Devil Sasroka in a half-dreaming state. The elves were the inhabitants born in the dream, and our innate mission is to serve Sasroka in the dream, extending His slumber as much as possible to prevent the entire world from facing its end when the Great Devil awakens."

Lucrezia, who was listening attentively, interjected, "But Sasroka is destined to wake up—that's also part of the legend." As a knowledgeable person, she had obviously learned about these ancient and bizarre "heretical legends" of the elves, which were completely different from the mainstream beliefs of today.

"That's right, the Great Devil is destined to awaken, and His awakening means the end of the world," Talan Eler nodded again and continued, "Most... less mainstream belief systems have similar 'end of the world prophecies,' but in most cases, they are just warnings, deterrents to believers, used to enhance their own persuasiveness and control over believers. The elf legends are not like this. In the elf legends, this 'end of the world' has already happened.

"According to the legends, the end of the world began with a nightmare. The Great Devil saw a great flood in the nightmare, so the elves' long-term appeasement lost its effect. He woke up in shock, and the flood leaked from His dream into the real world, turning into a vast ocean..."

"After that, the Great Devil Sasroka disappeared due to awakening, and the elves could no longer return to that peaceful dream world, so they could only survive in the vast ocean after the flood—this is the elf version of the myth explaining the 'Deep Sea Era.'"

Talan Eler's narration of this legend was not much different from what Morris had said at the time, except for some additional details. After the elf scholar finished speaking, Duncan showed a thoughtful expression.

After a few seconds, he broke the silence in a deep voice: "Your creation myths and doomsday prophecies revolve around the element of 'dream.'"

"Yes, in elven culture, 'dream' has always been a large concept," Talan Eler nodded. "We believe that there are two worlds, inside and outside the dream, and both worlds really exist and can affect each other. A person's falling asleep and waking up is the process of traveling between the two worlds—or, to put it more traditionally, the 'Journey to No Home.'"

He paused, organized his words, and continued, "Speaking of which, let me mention a digression—there is also a special congenital disease among the elves called 'Dreamless.'"

Duncan frowned: "Dreamless?"

"Literally, people who are congenitally unable to dream," Talan Eler explained. "Dreaming is the instinct of mortals. In our opinion, dreaming is as uncontrollable and unavoidable as death. Of course, some people dream more, some dream less, and some even think they don't dream—but research has shown that these people's dreams are too short or have too little impact, so they can't remember their dreams at all after waking up. They still dream..."

"But 'Dreamless' is completely different from the above situation—they really don't dream."

"The sleep of the Dreamless is pale. After they fall asleep, there is only emptiness and chaos. Their consciousness seems to 'jump' directly over the entire sleep process, and no skilled psychiatrist or priest can find traces of their dreams."

"This situation of not dreaming at all only occurs within the elven race, with an 'incidence' rate of about one in ten thousand, congenitally carried, and incurable."

Hearing this, Duncan couldn't help but sigh: "...In a race that values 'dreams' extremely, Dreamless people must be treated specially."

"Yes, in the eyes of most elves, the pale and empty sleep of Dreamless people is dangerous, strange, and even terrifying. And in history, there have indeed been many unfair treatments against 'Dreamless' people, but that was mostly before the era of the old city-states," Talan Eler waved his hand. "Now we don't specifically target or discriminate against Dreamless people, but as you said, the influence of traditional culture is still there, and they will be subject to some... special treatment more or less."

Duncan listened to these unique cultural and legendary contents within the elves that were difficult for other races to understand, pondered for a moment after the great scholar finished speaking, and slowly said: "But in the many legends and records about dreams, there is no mention of the 'Dream of the Nameless.'"

"One possible explanation is that the 'Dream of the Nameless' is just what those cultists call it, and the corresponding thing has another name in elven culture," Talan Eler said. "This situation is very common—the elven cultural system is ancient and profound, and some things that are spread out are often misunderstood and processed by other races. We can't ask a race with an average lifespan of less than a hundred years to understand whether a container with a history of seven thousand years is for holding wine or fetching water."

Lucrezia had been thinking silently by the side. Hearing the great scholar's words at this time, she suddenly raised her head and said, "If it has 'another name,' could the so-called Dream of the Nameless refer to the dream created by the Great Devil Sasroka in elven legends?"

"The Old World?" Talan Eler frowned, but quickly shook his head. "The dream created by Sasroka is just a legend. There is no evidence to prove that it really existed. Even if it did exist, in this 'Deep Sea Era,' it must have been broken and dissipated..."

"But you and another elf far away in Pland were indeed simultaneously plunged into a huge and bizarre 'dream,'" Duncan reminded. "Have you forgotten that boundless forest?"

"...I did think of it," Talan Eler hesitated, his wording still very cautious. "We can make such a bold assumption... but we must verify it with sufficient evidence. If that dream is really the legendary 'Dream of Sasroka,' the 'Origin World'..."

"It's not just the elven society that will be shaken," Lucrezia said lightly. "The entire academic world will be shaken."

"That's right, the entire world," Talan Eler looked particularly solemn. "This means that among countless speculations and contradictory historical records, a 'record' about the history before the Great Annihilation has finally been verified. Even if we still can't break through the historical black wall that stands ten thousand years ago, a crack has appeared on that wall, allowing us to glimpse the fleeting light and shadows before the Deep Sea Era."

Duncan naturally thought of these things, but he did not interrupt, but silently pondered. After a long time, he asked with a hint of curiosity: "Are there any more detailed legends about that 'Great Devil Sasroka'?"

"'Legends' are mostly vague and contradictory, even for a race like the elves with stable and complete inheritance, this situation is unavoidable," Talan Eler said slowly. "In most legends, Sasroka is described as a giant dressed as a shepherd, holding a staff that can measure the world, but some stories describe Him as a huge male goat. The *Bran-Maer Epic* stored in the Mocha City-State says that He has no form and will transform into any appearance according to the imagination of the visitors, a 'reflection' of the most majestic and awe-inspiring posture in the minds of mortals..."

"But no matter which legend it is, there is one thing in common: Sasroka lives at the foot of the world tree 'Silantis,' and the giant tree 'Silantis' is the first plant born in the entire world—Sasroka created it in a dream to be his home. Because of loneliness, He shook the branches of Silantis violently, causing the dust, fruits, and branches on the tree to fall off, and those that fell became various things in the world."

"The dust falling from the world tree turned into mountains and minerals, the branches and leaves of Silantis turned into various birds and animals, flowers, birds, fish, and insects, and the fruits of Silantis turned into the first elves. Dust will not rot, so mountains and minerals are eternally uncorrupted. The branches, leaves, and fruits begin to rot after falling to the ground, so mortal beings have a cycle of life and death."

Talan Eler paused here, picked up the tea that the doll Luni had placed on the table, took a sip, and continued: "This is the process of the Great Devil creating various things in the dream, and after this initial 'creation' is completed, Sasroka began to patrol His world—"

"He walked around Silantis, using his eyes to define the rules of all things in the world. He can circle the world tree once a year, so Silantis withered and flourished in cycles of years, and thus the mortal world had distinct seasons. He returned to the foot of Silantis on the last day of each year, and the elves needed to dress up and travel on this day to show Sasroka their most proud skills and creations. If the Great Devil feels that those things are good, they will continue to stay in this dream world He created, and the world will continue to exist."

After that, Talan Eler finally breathed a long sigh of relief.

"That's all, Captain Duncan."

(End of this chapter)