The great demon Saslokar.
A vague sense of familiarity emerged in Duncan's mind, and he quickly recalled that he had indeed heard of this term - he heard it from an early chat with Morris.
"I remember... this is the name of the 'main god' described in the ancient belief system unique to elves," he said slowly while thinking, "This demon god has the ability to control dreams and wandering souls, and in In your legends, this great devil is even related to the beginning of the current 'Deep Sea Age'——"
"Yes, Captain Duncan," Taran El nodded, "According to those ancient legends, the world was originally a dream, created by the great demon Saslokar in a half-dream and half-awake state. They are residents born in dreams, and our innate mission is to serve Saslokar in dreams and prolong his sleep as much as possible to prevent the entire world from ushering in the end of the world due to the awakening of the great devil."
Lucretia listened carefully on the side. As a knowledgeable person, she obviously also understood these ancient and weird "heretical legends" of elves that were completely different from today's mainstream beliefs. At this time, she couldn't help but interjected: "But Saslokar was destined to wake up – this is also part of the legend.”
"Yes, the Great Demon God is destined to awaken, and his awakening means the end of the world," Taran Ayre nodded again and continued, "There are similar beliefs in most... less mainstream belief systems. 'Prophecies about the end of the world', but in most cases they are just a warning and a deterrent to believers, used to enhance their own persuasion and control over believers. This is not the case in the legends of elves. , this 'end of the world' has already happened.
"According to legend, the end of the world began with a nightmare. The great demon saw a great flood coming because of the nightmare, so the elves' long-term comfort was ineffective. He woke up, and the flood leaked from his dream into the real world, transforming into Make a vast ocean...
"After that, the great demon Sasloka disappeared due to his 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 elves' version of the myth. An Explanation of the 'Age of the Deep'."
Taran Ayre's narration of this legend was not much different from what Morris had said at the time, except that he added some details. After the elf scholar finished speaking, Duncan showed a thoughtful expression. Thinking expression.
After a few seconds, he broke the silence with a deep voice: "Your creation myths and doomsday prophecies all revolve around the element of 'dream'."
"Yes, in the elven culture, 'dream' has always been a very important concept," Taran Ayre nodded. "We believe that the dream and the outside of the dream are two worlds, and both worlds are the same. They are real and can influence each other. When people fall asleep and wake up, they are a process of traveling between two worlds - or to use a more traditional saying, it is a 'journey to nowhere'."
At this point, he paused, organized his words and continued: "Speaking of which, let me make another digression - there is a special congenital disease among elves called 'dreamless'."
Duncan frowned: "Dreamless?"
"Literally, people who are congenitally unable to dream," Taran El explained, "Dreaming is the instinct of mortals. In our view, dreaming is as uncontrollable and unavoidable as death. Of course, some people have more dreams. , some people have few dreams, and some people even think that they cannot dream - but research has proved that these people's dreams are just too short-lived or have too little impact, so that they can't remember their dreams at all after waking up, but they still have dreams. of……
"The 'dreamless' are completely different from the above - they really don't dream.
"The sleep of dreamless people is pale. After they fall asleep, there is only nothingness and chaos. Their consciousness seems to jump directly over the entire sleep process, and no skilled psychiatrist or priest can detect traces of their dreams. .
"This complete inability to dream only occurs in the elves. There is about one in 10,000 chance of 'getting sick'. It is congenital and cannot be cured."
When Duncan heard this, he couldn't help but sigh: "...In a race that attaches great importance to 'dreams', dreamless people will definitely be treated specially."
"Yes, in the eyes of most elves, the pale and empty sleep of dreamless people is dangerous, weird, and even scary. In history, there have indeed been many unfair treatments against 'dreamless people'. But that was mostly the situation before the old city-state era," Taran Ayre waved his hand, "Now we do not specifically target or discriminate against dreamless people, but as you said, the influence of traditional culture still exists. Now, they will be treated more or less...specially."
Duncan listened to the unique culture and legends within the elves that were difficult for foreigners to understand. After the scholar finished speaking, he thought for a moment and slowly said: "But among the many legends and records about dreams, only There is no 'Dream of the Nameless'."
"One possible explanation is that the 'Dream of the Nameless One' is just the name of the cultists, and the thing corresponding to it has another name in the elven culture," Taran Ayre said, "This situation is very common—— The cultural system of elves is ancient and difficult, and some of the things that have been passed down are often misunderstood and processed by foreigners. We cannot ask a race with an average life span of less than a hundred years to understand the meaning of a container with a history of seven thousand years. The one who serves wine or the one who draws water.”
Lucretia had been thinking silently beside her. When she heard the great scholar's words, she suddenly raised her head and said, "If it has another name, could the so-called Dream of the Unknown refer to it?" Is it the dream created by the great demon Saslokar in the elven legend?"
"Old World?" Taran El frowned, but quickly shook his head, "The dream created by Saslokar is just a legend, and there is no real evidence to prove that it really existed, even if it did. , in today's 'deep sea era', it must have been broken and dissipated..."
"But you and another elf far away in Purland did fall into a huge and weird 'dream' at the same time," Duncan reminded, "Have you forgotten the boundless forest?"
"...I did think of it," Taran Ayre hesitated, still speaking carefully, "We can make such a bold assumption...but it must be verified with sufficient evidence. If that dream is really the legendary one, "Saslokar's Dream', if it is the 'origin world'..."
"It's not just the elf society that will be shaken," Lucretia said lightly, "the entire academic world will be shaken."
"Yes, the whole world," Talan Ayre looked extremely solemn, "This means that among countless speculations and conflicting historical records, there is finally a 'record' about the history before the Great Annihilation that has been verified. Even if we still can't break through the black wall of history that was erected 10,000 years ago, a crack has appeared in that wall, allowing us to get a glimpse of the past before the deep sea era."
Of course Duncan also thought about this, but he did not interrupt, but thought silently. After a long time, he spoke with a trace of curiosity: "Is there anything more detailed about the 'Great Demon God Sasloka'? A legend?"
"'Legends' are mostly vague and contradictory. Even a race like the elves with a stable and complete heritage cannot avoid this situation," Taran Ayre said slowly. "In most legends, Sars Lorca 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 billy goat, stored in the "Epic of Bran Mar" in the city-state of Moko It is said that He has no form and can change into any shape according to the imagination of those who see him. He is the 'reflection' of the most majestic and awe-inspiring posture in the hearts of mortals...
"But no matter which kind of legend they are in, there is one thing in common: Sasloka lives at the foot of the world's giant tree 'Silantis', and the giant tree 'Silantis' was the first birth of the entire world. Plant - Saslokar created it in a dream as his home, and because of his loneliness, He violently shook the branches of Silantis, causing the dust, fruits, branches and leaves on the tree to fall off one after another. , it changes into various things in the world.
"The dust that fell off the World Tree turned into mountains, rivers, and minerals. The branches and leaves of Silantes turned into various birds and beasts, flowers, birds, fish, and insects. The fruits of Silantes transformed into the original elves. The dust will not corrupt, so Mountains, rivers, and minerals are eternal, but branches, leaves, and fruits begin to rot after they fall to the ground, so there is a cycle of life and death for all living beings in this world.”
Taran Ayre took a break after speaking here, took a sip of tea from the puppet Runi on the table, and continued: "This is the process of the great devil creating various things in dreams, and here After the initial 'creation' was completed, Saslokar began to patrol his world——
"He walked around Silantes, using his own eyes to determine the rules of all things in the world. He could circle the World Tree once a year, so Silantes prospered and prospered in a yearly cycle, and thus made the world exist. In the clear season, He returns to the feet of Sirandis on the last day of each year. The elves need to dress up and go out on this day to show Saslokar their most proud skills and creations. If the great devil feels that those things are good , will continue to stay in this dream world created by Him, and the world will continue to exist."
After that, Taran El finally exhaled a long breath.
"That's all, Captain Duncan."
(End of chapter)
