Chapter 311 Giant Stairs

In a silent tacit understanding, the people took their seats one after another and grasped the side of the ship.

As if it was the start of some kind of tacit competition, the oarsmen of the two teams exerted their strength almost simultaneously, slowly pushing the hull away from the lake shore, sliding heavily towards the lake, and heading in different directions.

The shape of the opponent's ship blurred and disappeared in the thick fog, and the sound of the oars cutting through the water also disappeared.

Although the usual relationship is not much better, this feeling of isolation is still quite uncomfortable, as if the only connection with human society has been cut off, and the line has been cut off and thrown into an unpredictable and treacherous realm.

The lighthouse shrunk to the size of a hole behind it. After losing its position as a ship, it was pulled upwards and swayed blindly from side to side.

Until the light source that guided the return journey also became a flickering noise, and finally the contrasting object that could be used to judge the position disappeared, and they began to have the illusion of paddling in the water.

The water waves kept stirring, but it felt like the boat was stuck in place, no closer to the outlines of the lake, and no further away from the light spots of the lighthouse.

Green stopped the paddlers, who were speeding up their movements involuntarily, and pointed to the clear, dark water of the lake—it would be best if they didn't attract any attention.

Even the shuddering sound of the waves disappeared from the perception along with the lake shore, leaving only the slight stirring of the paddle, and the occasional sound from far away, which sounded like loose stalactites falling from the cave roof, or something entering the water. The sound of silence.

Lighting was also severely restricted, with all open flames extinguished before departure, except for one oil lamp that was kept to a minimum.

Tense faces, restless faces, expressionless faces, gathered in the light that was not enough to illuminate the bow and stern of the hull at the same time, waiting for the lake's answer to the explorer.

The lake was silent.

"Have you told them about the possibility?" Kraft asked in a voice close to a whisper.

"There are experienced people here." Green looked into every pair of eyes. He was quite satisfied with the current situation. It was good to be able to keep quiet while knowing what he might have to face.

Fear is not a problem. Appropriate fear will stimulate the spirit and keep people in a relatively excited state, which is the same as being nervous before an exam.

"No, I'm not talking about that." Based on Kraft's memory, he certainly remembered that the people on the Qingqing ship were all old faces from before. "I mean over there, that Theodore, do they know the situation?"

The priest's attitude was very calm: "I have informed you of the situation here, including any necessary information and preparations that need to be made."

"As I said before, Father Theodore is a smart man and can listen more or less. As for the rest, faith and wisdom will help him overcome difficulties, just like we did. I have done my duty. ”

It sounds like the informing process was not that smooth, and Father Green was not a completely temperamental saint.

There seemed to be a low laughter, but perhaps it was associated with his own uncertain fate, and it disappeared as if it had never appeared.

The ship moved on.

The time was already long, and the two oarsmen felt their arms aching, so they handed over their positions to others and retracted into the belly of the boat.

The waters were calmer than expected, and they gradually became accustomed to traveling in the fog, and began to dare to lean out of the boat to observe the water and things beyond.

The constant navigation changes the sense of time and distance. When you suddenly look up, those silhouettes with only black shadows seem to have suddenly become closer without realizing it, becoming visually larger and more incredible.

As long as they don't change direction, they should pass right by one of them.

They are roughly in the shape of a column that is slightly thinner in the middle, perhaps holding up the top of the underground world. The base at the lower end is broad and strong, almost like an island rising from the bottom of the lake. The parts that look like artificial features are also concentrated here, like termites in an abandoned area. A mud nest built under the huge pillars of the temple.

As the ship got closer, the boat entered shallower water, and the lake bed moved closer to the water, lifting the reef out of the water.

Stones of different shapes pierce the fog and suddenly appear in unexpected places. Sometimes they are heading straight ahead and almost hit them head-on.

The team had to light torches to increase their visibility. The thickened ship should be able to withstand the impact, but they didn't want to actually try.

After passing by it several times, most people found that the stone took on a shape they had never seen or heard before, which did not appear in nature they knew and could not be explained by human creation.

These reefs are composed of rough-shaped prisms that fit closely together. They are like being inserted into the water one by one and broken at different heights. The cross-sections all have hexagonal edges.

It is easy to think of the dense hexagonal patterns carved into the sewers, reminding them that they are in the midst of its incomprehensible archetype, close to the source of the nightmare.

"It's just a special landform." When passing by again, the professor quickly grabbed a loose piece and broke it off.

"It is indeed rare. It only exists in some places where there have been volcanic activities. A friend of mine who is in the maritime business said that he was lucky enough to see this kind of terrain near the coastal volcano in the ice field."

I don’t know if Captain William has ever seen it, but he must have seen it now.

He passed the stone around so that they could examine its cracked surface, which was no different from an ordinary cracked, weathered stone.

"Some scholars believe that this requires the rapid cooling of magma when it encounters water, which is the same as the formation of rocks by fire and splashing water, but the cracking is more regular due to special conditions."

Explanation, an explanation that sounds reasonable.

The monks were somewhat reassured, and their awe of the unknown turned into a sense of novelty.

They seemed to have not figured it out for the time being. Knowing the formation principle did not change the situation. Instead, it further explained that those who carved the pattern in the sewer with a sharp tool might have seen such a scene before they fell into madness.

High temperature, melting, solidification.

Sometimes it is not just geological movement that can cause this effect. This is more like the content in the murals of the royal tombs. Falling objects fall from the sky, and the earth melts and collapses wherever they go, turning into a sea of ​​fire.

[This makes sense]

The ruins are so large that they look like the reflection of the city, and the deep activities are so strong that they cause earthquakes.

But there are still some questions. Why must it be a hexagon? He can understand those lost ancestors who regard the naturally formed crack patterns on the rocks of the place where they fell as symbols of divine revelation and new totems.

But why are those who return so obsessed with carving such large geometric patterns, just because they have arrived here and witnessed something?

Then they should also carve what they witnessed, right? For example, some strange creatures twisted by moon debris or black liquid.

Kraft still had doubts, but his thoughts didn't last long.

The reefs ahead were getting denser and denser, affecting the minds of everyone on the boat. The oarsmen who were controlling the boats were tense, trying to slow down and avoid the obstacles that were coming head-on.

From time to time, there was a rough scraping feeling coming from below, which meant that the shore was very close. Through the clear water, you can look down and see the underwater scene.

Countless tightly spliced ​​hexagonal jointed rocks rose up layer by layer like steps until they were higher than the lake, supporting a group of unfamiliar buildings in front of them.

It crawled at the foot of the giant pillar, collapsed and dilapidated, and was as deformed and twisted as its builders.

Thick fog freely entered and exited the empty doors and windows of the building. There were no residents or even any signs of life, like a snail shell on the beach after the tide receded, and the contents had been abandoned.