Gate of the Abyss Ghost

So this was... a passage formed by Lesser Evil Spirits?

Jain swallowed.

Something churned endlessly within the pitch-black hexagonal gate. It resembled both boiling oil and a bog wrapped around countless wriggling worms. No matter how he looked at it, it did not resemble an opening that people could pass through.

He knew he could never bring himself to set foot inside it.

"Tree Boat, secure the passage!" the Duke ordered decisively.

The Wind Song immediately extended six long branches, bracing each corner of the force field.

"The magic supply has been switched successfully. The force field spell is now being maintained by the Tree Boat," the mage reported. "We have at most five hours to explore the Black Barrier Zone. Otherwise, the Tree Boat will exhaust all its magic and may wither on the spot."

"Five hours?" Aurora gave a low snort. "It is not much, but enough for us to glimpse the world beyond the wall. Have the first ship enter the passage at once. Everything proceeds according to plan!"

"Yes, ma'am!"

Under the Elves' control, the Wind Song Tree Boat transformed again. The dock split in two, and the floor of one half cracked open to let seawater pour in, forming an inner canal. The Gardenia, the warship at the front of the line, was tugged into the canal by vines, becoming like a mother-and-child ship docked within the Tree Boat.

The commander immediately understood the advantages of doing this.

Having the Tree Boat's vines push through the black wall was far easier than having the crew sail in themselves—after all, no one knew what lay beyond the wall, and the Duke did not wish to waste the Empire's elite in a place like this.

That was also why they had chosen a new-model warship instead of