Chapter 326: Ignorance Is Bliss
Some time later, Sigurd, Fu Hua, and Senti arrived at the so-called Deep Sea Altar.
The initial setup work had already been completed, and the remaining tasks were mostly routine: checking the central system's daily update modules and monitoring the functioning of the Hall of Heroic Spirits and the Hall of True Words. Repetitive mechanical work—tedious and dull. So when they were reminded of this curious location, it became the perfect excuse for a leisurely outing.
What they hadn't expected… was that Zhuge Kongming would tag along.
As Sigurd observed the strange altar suspended underwater yet surrounded by breathable air, he spoke to Zhuge Kongming beside him in a casual tone:
"You came along because you're worried I'd get some dangerous power here and go rogue?"
"Your Majesty, please don't treat me like a fool."
Zhuge Kongming rolled her eyes while fanning herself lazily.
"With your capabilities—and the unfathomable power of the two immortals beside you—whether or not there's anything here doesn't matter in the slightest. To ants like us, lions and elephants are equally untouchable."
Seriously, if someone with that kind of power wanted to do anything to this nation, would they need some unknown force from a sunken altar to pull it off? If His Majesty ever decided to act, it would be utterly unstoppable.
Just then, mid-flourish, her fan suddenly disappeared.
"Huh? You got a new fan? It's so pretty! Give it to me!"
Senti stood off to the side with the feather fan in her hands, imitating Zhuge Kongming's motions as she fanned herself, her face lighting up like she'd just gotten a fun new toy. She had done this several times before—every time she got her hands on a fan, she'd lose interest after playing with it for a bit, then toss it away somewhere and forget all about it.
But that was fine. Zhuge Kongming always had a new one anyway—so why not just take hers?
"Senti—"
Thunk!
Fu Hua chopped her lightly on the head with a hand.
Senti's smile froze, her expression crumpling like a scolded child.
"Okay, okay, I'll give it back! It's not even that big a deal, geez…"
Muttering under her breath, Senti shoved the fan back into Zhuge Kongming's hands while sneaking anxious glances at Fu Hua's expression, worried she was about to get hit with another long lecture.
Seeing her trying to shrink away to the side like a scolded puppy, Fu Hua could only sigh and shake her head with a helpless smile. She turned to Kongming.
"Sorry about that. Senti can be a bit mischievous. I'll talk to her properly once we're back."
"No need to apologize. It's just a fan. If it's been noticed by an immortal, it's my honor—please let her have it."
Kongming was silent for a moment but quickly recovered, beaming as she presented the fan to Senti with both hands.
She understood how to read a room.
Senti crossed her arms and tilted her head, staring longingly at the fan, clearly conflicted.
If she took it, the old timer would definitely start lecturing her again. But if she didn't… her hands were itching. It was right there in front of her. She really wanted to play with it.
She sneaked another look at Fu Hua—who was just standing there smiling calmly.
Slowly, tentatively, Senti reached out her hand.
"Senti—"
"Fine! I won't take it, okay!?"
Senti puffed her cheeks and turned away in a sulk.
Fu Hua opened her mouth as if to say something but ended up letting out a sigh instead. This child… what was she supposed to do with her?
Zhuge Kongming looked around awkwardly, then quietly moved to withdraw the fan. It was a nice gesture, but not worth causing friction between two immortals.
Then—another hand snatched the fan away.
Sigurd fanned himself with it as all eyes turned toward him. Facing the altar, he spoke:
"This altar… is far more interesting than I expected."
"Oh?" Zhuge Kongming seized the chance to steer the conversation away from the fan.
"What did Your Majesty discover?"
Sigurd spoke calmly under everyone's watchful gaze, uttering a single word:
"World Anchor."
Zhuge Kongming blinked in confusion.
Senti tilted her head and rubbed her chin, also looking puzzled.
Only Fu Hua furrowed her brows, her expression turning serious.
"You're saying… this place is a World Anchor? Like the one Durandal was connected to?"
"It's a similar structure," Sigurd replied, still fanning himself.
"Durandal's was the core of her bubble universe—formed by the collective will of civilization in a desperate bid to survive. This altar likely has the same origin. And honestly, that's not surprising. Isn't every bubble world the result of a failed final battle between civilization and the Honkai? But failure doesn't mean the civilization was weak. Even your original radiant civilization fell once, didn't it?"
His voice was calm, composed, without arrogance—just a quiet statement of fact.
Fu Hua nodded in agreement.
To fall to the Honkai was no true measure of a civilization's strength. She had spoken with Su before—many worlds far more advanced than the previous civilization still failed and became mere bubble universes in the end. So it was entirely reasonable that this world, too, had once seen brilliance—creating a World Anchor to prolong its existence.
Zhuge Kongming, on the other hand, was starting to feel lost.
Why had they suddenly mentioned Durandal? And why did it feel like this Durandal wasn't the new Empress Durandal she knew? Still, from the strange terms floating around in their conversation, she could tell something was very off. So, her eyes flicked about shrewdly, and she asked in a crisp tone:
"May I ask... what exactly is a 'World Anchor'? And what is a 'bubble universe'?"
Sigurd paused his fanning. He looked at her quietly for a moment, then replied:
"The truth is cruel. Are you sure you want to know?"
After a brief hesitation, Zhuge Kongming answered firmly:
"...I beg Your Majesty to enlighten me."
Sigurd tapped her lightly on the head with the folded fan, but instead of answering directly, he suddenly changed the subject.
"So, if it's not for the altar's power, then you came just to persuade me to stay. Why are you so insistent? Durandal is already crowned the new empress. With your capabilities, can't you keep this nation stable without me?"
"We can." Zhuge Kongming nodded, then added frankly:
"Once we got used to the new systems, we were confident we could govern for the next ten years. But what about the decade after that? Or the next century? Your Majesty, you're the one who started this transformation. We may be able to hold the current situation, but the tide of change you've set in motion is like a river—endlessly rushing forward. We can't predict where it will end up."
She looked directly at Sigurd, voice unwavering.
"Only you know the road ahead. Only you know how it should go. Without you here… we are deeply uneasy."
Sigurd gave a calm reply:
"And what is so hard about it?"
"The difficulty… lies in countless tangled issues. To name just one—right now, our bureaucrats exist solely as evaluators and supervisors of the central system. They're forbidden from interfering with policy implementation. That's already a complete break from the old ways, where officials held near-absolute authority over life and death among the people. This model is utterly unprecedented. Yes, the results are impressive—but problems are also piling up. We have no idea how it will evolve in the future… Your Majesty, we simply don't have the capacity to guarantee success."
Sigurd stopped fanning and turned away slightly.
"Then there's no point in answering your question. Even if I told you, it would be meaningless."
Just like that, he brought the conversation back to her original question—only to shut it down entirely.
Sigurd resumed gently waving the fan, but said nothing more.
People like Zhuge Kongming—capable as they were—still operated within the framework of a feudal dynasty. Talking to them about things like the Imaginary Tree, the Sea Of Quanta, the Honkai, or the nature of worlds would be laborious and pointless. These truths wouldn't serve any use in their hands.
Better to let them focus on governing their land. If they could secure peace for the next century or two, that was enough.
Because, ultimately, this was a dead world—adrift in the Sea Of Quanta, a hollow bubble of reality. At any moment, a ripple could tear it apart.
Even if the world continued existing, the forces that sustained it would keep leaking into the surrounding void, making true growth impossible. No matter how society reformed, the fundamental limitations of the world would erase any chance at a brighter future.
This civilization might experience occasional surges of strength, but its trajectory was always downward—growing ever weaker, with no hope of transcendence.
So, perhaps… it was better to let them live on in peace, never knowing the truth.
To let them believe in a future, even if none truly existed.
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