Ashes Of Deep Sea - Chapter 16

Chapter 16: Journeying Across the Spirit World

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

The door closed behind Duncan, blocking off the blank gaze of the goat head.

However, he could still clearly sense the Lost Home, sensing every minor movement in every corner of this ghost ship. Through this sense that felt like an extension of his own body, he saw that the sails of the Lost Home were adjusting their angles in the ocean breeze. The black wheel at the stern bridge turned slightly, causing the Lost Home to stabilize itself further on the ocean.

Just as he had expected, the goat head had temporarily taken the helm. He began carrying out his responsibilities as the first mate cautiously and conscientiously. Nevertheless, Duncan could still take over the ship himself at any time.

The Lost Home was less nimble and moving slower than when he was steering the ship. However, Duncan’s current main objective was to dissipate the fog on the nautical chart further. He did not have a clear destination and course in the first place, so he was also not concerned about this effect.

After ascertaining that the goat head was not pulling off anything funny and the goth doll below deck was obediently in her room, Duncan heaved a sigh of relief. He then looked around the room that was not too big.

This was his private bedroom as the captain. It was also the most comfortable and elegant room in the Lost Home. Aside from a soft bed, a sizeable classic wardrobe and a rack with various strange trinkets stood against the wall facing the door. Facing the bed was a dark brown desk. However, there were no books on the desk, only a few display items, and writing and drawing apparatus.

There was a window next to the desk. He could see far out into the ocean. There were also a few hooks on the wall next to the window. Duncan’s pirate sword and flintlock gun that he was carrying before this hung from the hooks.

Duncan came to the desk and placed the longsword and the flintlock gun somewhere he could easily reach them. He then opened a drawer in the table and inspected the gunpowder and lead bullets inside the wooden box.

A small brass compass was placed next to the lead bullets and gunpowder sack. Duncan picked up the compass and saw the needle of the compass spinning randomly within its glass case. It was as though a formless, chaotic field was leading it. There was a line of characters carved into the bottom of the compass.

“We have all lost our homes.”

Duncan casually toyed around with the compass in his hands. He watched as the compass needle turned around like it was drunk.

He had already inspected these items many times. During his initial exploration, he had already discovered this room and the things inside it, including the line of characters that the true Captain Duncan should have left behind.

After reviewing the information Duncan currently possessed, he sighed and then placed the compass on the table. He then lifted his right hand and rubbed his fingertips together.

A cluster of small, green flames was lit at his fingertips. Under the light of the flame, half of Duncan’s palm immediately appeared transparent and illusory, as though he was a spirit. However, while he was consciously controlling it, this flame did not spread everywhere like before, instead remaining above his fingertip like a candle flame.

After the flame stabilized, Duncan brought his other hand close to it to feel its warmth. He then took a quill pen from the table and brought the end of the pen to the flame.

He could not sense any heat, nor was the quill pen set on fire. Only a slight shade of green spread over the quill pen, causing it to glow faintly.

Duncan did not sense any feedback from the quill pen. This was completely different from when he used the flame to touch the nautical chart and the wheel.

Duncan committed this new experience to memory. This spirit fire had no temperature and could not ignite anything. It was highly likely that it only reacted to the abnormalities on the Lost Home and would react to ordinary objects.

How would the flames react to abnormalities from outside of the Lost Home?

Duncan pondered about this. For a moment, the silhouette of the goth doll, Alice, surfaced in his mind. She was an abnormality from outside of the Lost Home.

Would she be affected by the spirit fire?

However, he merely contemplated it briefly before casting this unbridled thought aside.

Even though Alice was non-human and was the cursed Abnormality 099, she could speak, move about, and had her own individual body of thought. Now, she was also a crew member of the Lost Home. Duncan had already come to view her as a human subconsciously.

He could not accept testing his flames on a live human. After all, he wasn’t sure what profound effect his flames would have on the affected abnormality and whether it would cause them harm.

Next, Duncan tested the flame out a few more times. While he inspected the nature of the flame, he ascertained whether the various items in the bedroom had supernatural characteristics.

His gaze finally landed on the little brass compass with the message on it.

The brass compass was lying on the table. The needle under the glass case was randomly spinning. As Duncan maintained his flames and looked at the compass with a mischievous gaze, he did not know whether he was seeing things. The needle seemed to freeze for a second suddenly.

It then continued randomly spinning as though nothing had happened.

Duncan was speechless.

This item definitely reacted to his gaze just now!

He was initially apprehensive about this compass. After all, there was a message left behind by the true Captain Duncan. He was very worried that the deceased ghost captain had left behind some of his power or some trap to ward off burglars, so he had not tested his flames on the compass. However, after he saw the compass reacting, he suddenly made up his mind.

Duncan reached out his hand and picked up the compass. A cold touch reached his fingertips. After sweeping a glance at the needle that was still randomly spinning, he immediately placed the item in his right hand that was maintaining the spirit fire. He then slowly clenched his fist.

The green flames instantly flowed like burning grease, seeping through the spaces between his fingers. A faint fire ignited rapidly on the surface of the compass. In the fire, there seemed to be countless phantoms rising and dissipating. The next moment, the randomly spinning needle suddenly halted and pointed to some location on the vast ocean.

Duncan felt his heart stir. In an instant, he could sense the feedback from the compass. He was confident that this was indeed an abnormal item that the spirit fire could control. Yet, before he could analyze the feedback further, a force of attraction suddenly appeared and attacked him!

Duncan felt himself losing balance. The next moment, his vision blurred. The furnishing in the captain’s bedroom turned into nothingness. Even the walls and the ceiling disintegrated in an instant like snowflakes. Amidst the scattered light and shadows, endless darkness filled his vision.

He stood dumbfounded in the center of the darkness. The alarm bells in his mind went off. His first reaction was to reach for his flintlock gun and sword. He discovered that only the brass compass was left with him the next moment. He was still grasping it in his hand.

Duncan blinked. From his perspective, countless, wispy strands of light seemed to emanate from the brass compass.

These light strands spread out into the darkness and weaved together a web that seemed to expand infinitely. In the interweaving light, countless starry lights appeared. Some of them were scattered, while some of them merged into rivers. The intertwined web of light was as brilliant as a galaxy.

Duncan looked at the strange phenomenon before him in confusion. He was very cautious and somewhat uneasy. Nevertheless, he did not feel as though he was in danger.

Instead, amidst the darkness, the web of light, and the starlight, he felt a long-lost peace of mind.

A strange sensation suddenly swept over him. His gaze could not help but be drawn to a cluster of starlight in the web of light. He looked towards the cluster and felt the starlight was about to fall entirely into the darkness.

He subconsciously reached out to the starlight.

Right then, a tremendous attractive force swept over him. Duncan felt as though his soul flew up. He charged uncontrollably towards the starlight, about to fall into the darkness. The dense web of light woven by the compass swiftly retreated from his gaze. The galaxies coalesced from starlight around him and suddenly began to spin and change.

As he flew forwards at tremendous speeds, he subconsciously looked at his right hand, grasping the compass. However, unbeknownst when the compass had disappeared without a trace. At the same time, just as he was about to touch the faint starlight, a shadow suddenly coalesced from the darkness in the corner of his eye.

The shadow seemed to emerge naturally as though it had always been by his side. It followed him as he flew towards the faint light.

Duncan could only vaguely distinguish that the shadow seemed to be a bird with outstretched wings. Before he could make out any further details, his vision went dark.

He felt the weight of the real world spread throughout his limbs, followed by the stench of rotting limbs and the harsh sound of heavy iron chains dragging on the floor.