Arcane Journey

Chapter 216 Water Elemental Plane

Here is the ocean without water.

This is the realm of currents and waves.

This is the bottomless deep sea.

This is the Elemental Plane of Water, an ocean with no bottom or surface, a utterly liquid environment of shimmering light.

It is one of the most benign of the Inner Planes, as long as travelers can work out breathing.

The eternal oceans of the Elemental Plane of Water come in many varieties, ranging from icy to scalding, salty to freshwater.

They are in perpetual motion, propelled by ocean currents and tides.

The long-term residential areas of the plane are built near some floating objects floating in this endless water, and these residential areas also drift with the tide.

The Elemental Plane of Water has the following properties:
normal gravity.

normal time.

Unlimited size.

variable form.

The element of water dominates.

Enhanced Magic: Spells and spell-like abilities that use or create water gain persistence and magnification (like using persistent and amplifying spells, but without occupying a high-level spell slot). 'Waterbreathing' spells will therefore last 4 hours per level instead of 2 hours.Spells and spell-like abilities that have been maximized and magnified are no longer affected by this benefit.

Impeded Magic: Spells and spell-like abilities with the description fire are impeded, and this includes spells in the fire domain.These spells and spell-like abilities can still be used, but only with a successful Spellcraft check.

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The Elemental Plane of Water is akin to heaven when you're basking in soothing green waters, provided you find a way to breathe, of course.

After Brian and Myrcella have experienced the demonic and tyrannical Fire Elemental Plane, the cramped and claustrophobic Earth Elemental Plane, and the ethereal and boundless Air Elemental Plane, they finally get the gentle embrace of the Water Elemental here.

In reality, the boundless turquoise sea, the gentle embrace of the sea—all this is appearance.

Because the elemental plane of water is no safer for an outsider than other elemental planes.

Such as being suddenly rushed by a series of boiling steam streams, getting caught in a vortex, being hit by a cluster of lightning elements, accidentally being captured by sea people, or being attacked by water monsters, etc., all kinds of dangers are of great concern to travelers. Deadly enough.

At this moment, Brian was already familiar with leading Myrcella, hiding in a coral reef.

The water elemental plane is like this. As far as the eye can see, it is all water. There is no water surface or bottom. Occasionally, there are coral reefs stretching from the depths along the hidden reefs, stretching out slender branches, and growing deeper and deeper forever. .

Although this is similar to the underwater world, their actions have not been affected by the spells of underwater breathing and water isolation.

With a straight face, Brian took out a cup of water from the source of the material world, used it as a spell-casting material, and quickly recited a spell.

In an instant, the summoning circle emitted a bright water-blue streamer, wrapped in a vortex as thick as a bucket, and appeared in front of the two of them.

In just a moment, an elegant goddess-like existence rose from the light of the vortex magic circle. She was naked, wearing only a flowing white gauze, which made people think of flowing waves involuntarily.

This is a sea nymph, a reclusive fey of the elemental plane of water.

They are similar to the tritons and share a common ancestry, but unlike their cousins, they never permanently inhabit the physical world.

Legend has it that sea nymphs are beautiful women who drown men with kisses, but in reality they are very shy.

Nereids are nearly impossible to spot underwater, as their shimmering bodies appear transparent.

Only on rare occasions, a sea nymph emerges from the water and takes on a more frozen appearance, resembling a pale elf wearing a distinctive veil.

"Summoner, I am the sect of the Moist Path, Athenasila the Tidesbringer."

The sea nymph's voice sounded like the gentle waves of the sea, "Need some help, summoner from the material world?"

"The Moist Path Sect?" Brian frowned and asked, "So, you are an envoy from the City of Glazed Glass."

"That's right, Summoner, do you need me to guide you to the City of Glazed Glass?" The voice of the sea fairy was like gentle waves passing by.

"I'm very sorry." Brian was disappointed, and he gave her an apologetic look, "The place I need to go is the 'Pearl Fortress', sorry to bother you."

"In that case, I will bid farewell, traveler from the material world." The fairy in the sea nodded slightly, turned into a tidal wave, and disappeared in place.

"This is already the fourth time." Looking at the disappearing sea nymph, Brian said gloomily.

After subduing the Ogre Lord, he and Myrcella did not waste any time, and immediately passed through the elemental vortex hidden in the 'Pale Sea' of the Earth Elemental Plane to the Water Elemental Plane.

Among the four elemental planes, the water elemental plane is the most familiar to Brian, and naturally he knows many water elves living here.

He thought this would be the easiest time for him to conquer.

Who would have thought that through the monster summoning technique, he has summoned four times in a row, but he failed to summon the sea fairy from the 'Pearl Fortress'.

After all, without the guidance of local residents like the sea fairy, it is obviously impossible for them to reach the coral castle quickly.

"I have already said that your luck today is not so bad." Myrcella suppressed a smile and comforted softly: "Let me do it."

"That's the only way to go." Brian, who was defeated by 'luck', chose to compromise quite depressingly.

Myrcella pursed her lips and smiled, took the spell-casting materials, and chanted the spell with a soft and sweet voice.

In a moment, a vortex wrapped in the light of the magic circle rose, and a sea fairy holding a trident gracefully spun up from the vortex.

Like the sea fairy who had just left, the other party only wore a white gauze scarf that flowed like waves on her chest, making her alluring capital looming with the waves.

Every sea fairy will be wrapped in a meerschaum white refined gauze to bind their essence.

If the veil is destroyed, the sea fairy will rapidly age and die within 1 hour.

Cruel travelers will force sea nymphs into their service by stealing their veils.

In this regard, the sea fairy can only do whatever she can in order to get back the item.

"Beautiful lady, I am the messenger from the 'Net of Foam' Pearl Fortress." The voice of the sea fairy was like gentle waves, "Excuse me, is there anything I can do for you?"

Myrcella flicked her long brown-red hair hanging down her side face, glanced at Brian with a little satisfaction, and said with a smile, "Please take us to the Pearl Fortress."

"No problem, please follow me." The sea fairy nodded slightly, and a strong blue flash burst out from the trident in her hand.

Immediately afterwards, a turbulent wave wrapped Brian and Myrcella, and disappeared without a trace, only the ripples and the rising foam, silently telling what happened just now.

When Brian opened his eyes, what he saw in front of him was a boundless cave, in which stood a gorgeous coral reef palace.

This is formed by a colorful natural coral reef.

Because it is full of colorful fish, flawless pearls, swaying coral shells, exotic things brought by the water from afar, and the elemental vortex that rotates day and night above the palace, this Pearl Fortress is also called For: net of foam.

Pearl Fortress is home to the largest genie kingdom and the Coral Throne.

In this huge coral palace, the great Patricia king of the water djinn, the guardian of the empire, the pearl of the sea, the father of the waves, the prince of the sea, the emir of all ocean currents, etc., ruled wisely.

Built on a free-floating coral reef, the fortress is adorned with various towers and halls carved from living shells and studded with bright night pearls.

About 200 water elves whose strength has reached the legendary realm live here, all of them are nobles.

Each genie also has a team of personal servants, resulting in a population of about 10000 non-marids in the fortress.

It is said that the palace of King Patricia was full of intrigue and espionage, as each genie believed himself best suited to sit on the Coral Throne.

So, assassinations were common, as were palace coups and exile.

Alone, the genies are the strongest of the genies, but their strong will and high degree of individualism prevent them from being united under a single leader for long.

After saying goodbye to the sea nymph, Brian and Myrcella strolled through a fair in Pearl Fort.

As the center of the genie kingdom, traders, travelers and exiles from all over the world gather here.

Its inhabitants are mainly aquatic races from the Material Plane, including merfolk, water elves, kuo-toa, lizardfolk, lokagin, and sahuagin.

It is governed by a council of long-term residents, in which no two members of the same race are allowed.

Brian didn't stay here too long, he walked through the trade market, and brought Myrcella to a gorgeous water elf aristocratic mansion with ease.

"I need to meet your master, His Excellency Kestor Bright Eye." He said to a sahuagin guarding the door, "Please inform me."

"Hey! It turned out to be two material guys." The sahuayu guard was surprised, and then said, "I'm very sorry, my master refuses to receive any guests, please go back."

"Tell your master, we are the Ten Thousand Deaths from Sigil." Brian stared at the sahuagin and said in a slightly cold tone, "Believe me, you only need to mention the three words 'All Deaths', He will definitely come to see me, after all, you don't want your salary to be owed five years in a row, right?"

"You... how do you know?" The sahuagin's dark green eyes stared like two eggs, and its mouth full of sharp teeth was wide enough to stuff a half-ripe watermelon.

"Your Excellency, please wait a moment, I'll go back as soon as I go." After finishing speaking, he rushed into the mansion, splashing waves of rippling waves.

"You also know about the 'Meeting of All Deaths' in Sigil City?" Seeing the sahuagin leaving, Myrcella couldn't help expressing her doubts.

"The Ten Thousand Deaths is one of the fifteen factions in Sigil." Brian said with a smile, "Any traveler who has been deeply involved in foreign planes will know this knowledge."

Hearing such a perfunctory explanation, Myrcella showed an expression of guessing whether I believe it or not.

Brian didn't bother to care whether she believed it or not. After all, she was confused about some things, so it was better not to say them.

Soon, the sahuagin ran back happily.

"Your Excellency, my master is really willing to see you." He said with a slightly respectful expression:

"Do you know that my master has been very depressed since he came back from Sigil five years ago, and he couldn't even arouse any interest in the 'Waving Ceremony' that he once loved to attend."

"He will become interested soon." Brian replied with a smile, and then followed the sahuagin's footsteps and walked deep into the mansion.

In the reception hall made of coral reefs, the walls, floors and ceilings are all tightly spliced ​​with transparent glass. Outside the glass that isolates the water flow, all kinds of marine life swim around.

On his way up the ledge, Brian encounters painted crabs, clams, and starfish one after another, among the black seaweed and the bones of drowned sailors.

The glass walls on both sides were dark green, pale sharks darted through the water, eels and octopus slithered among rocks and shipwrecks, and schools of herring and cod were seen in the high arched windows.

It looks like a colorful underwater world, and even the Duchess next to her is nostalgic for the scenery in front of her, amazed.

It can be seen from this that the water giant is the only intelligent giant with artistic cells.

It is said that they would even go out to find skilled slaves, or kidnap mortal artists, entertainers, and storytellers to their palaces.

Obviously, this rumor is true.

The genie who appeared in front of Brian was wearing an elaborate vest and colorful pants. He was huge and fishy, ​​and he looked very strange.

"Material guy, what do you want from me." The water giant spirit sitting on the high platform said with a gloomy expression, "Don't try to persuade me anymore, because I have completely given up and have no interest in anything."

"Everything is dead, there is no 'life' at all, and life is supposed to be filled with joy and positive feelings. But in fact, existence is silent, dead, full of pain and intertwined with sorrow. It turns out that the multiverse Just another shadow of a wonderful existence. This multiverse - the Prime, Deep, and Outer planes are all places where the living exist after death, so sad."

"So, you also think that everyone in the multiverse is a member of the Ten Thousand Deaths Society." Brian looked at the brainwashed water giant and said with a smile, "It's just that most people haven't realized this yet. It's just a little bit, isn't it?"

Hearing Brian's words, Myrcella recalled some experiences she had encountered in Sigil City, and looked at him with a strange expression.

"Isn't it, material guy?" The water dwarf looked lifeless, and his voice seemed to beat the waves on the beach.

"What is death? It is a sword piercing the heart, a trident piercing the lungs, a scimitar cutting the throat, being forgotten by the whole world, and disappearing forever in the water."

"I can no longer find the meaning of life and the value of my own existence." The voice of the water dwarf was like the last crash of the silent waves.

"Because no matter how much effort and dedication I have made, I will never escape the conclusion that everything is dead, so what's the point of living? What's the value? Don't you think so, materialist?"

"It's really meaningless, it's just for living."

Brian was silent for a moment, meeting the shadowed eyes of the water djinn, "But at least I know the value of a person's existence. Do you want to know what the greatest value of your life is?"

"Oh, then tell me, what is the value of my existence?" The water djinn raised a little interest and looked at Brian curiously.

Brian exchanged glances with the female lord beside him, beckoning her to wait patiently, and then began to tell a story to the water djinn:
One day, an apprentice wizard asked his mentor: "Teacher, what is the greatest value in life?"

The instructor said: "Go to the backyard and move a big rock and sell it in the market. If someone asks the price, you don't talk, just hold out two fingers. If he bargains with you, don't sell it. Take it back, teacher." Tell you what is the greatest value in your life."

Early the next morning, the wizard apprentice took a big stone and went to the market to sell it.

There were people coming and going in the market, and the common people were very curious. Someone came over and asked, "How much is the stone?" The apprentice wizard held out two fingers, and the man said, "Two copper coins?"

The wizard apprentice shook his head, and the man said, "Then 20 copper coins? Okay, okay! I just took it back to press the old altar of sauerkraut."

Hearing this, the wizard apprentice couldn't help thinking to himself: "Someone offered 20 copper coins to buy a piece of broken stone. There are plenty of them on our mountain!"

Therefore, the wizard apprentice did not sell, and went to see the teacher cheerfully: "Teacher, today there is a person who is willing to offer 20 copper coins to buy my stone. Teacher, can you tell me now, what is the greatest value of my life?"

The instructor said: "Well, don't worry, you can take this stone to the gate of the temple to sell it tomorrow morning. If someone asks the price, you still hold out two fingers. If he counters the price, you don't want to sell it, but take it back. , let's talk again."

The next morning, in front of the gate of a certain temple, a group of curious believers watched and whispered:
"An ordinary stone, what's the value of setting up a stall here?"

"Since this stone is placed here, it must have its value, but we don't know it yet." At this time, a person rushed out from the crowd and shouted at the wizard apprentice: "Little wizard, you stone how much?"

The wizard apprentice was silent, and stretched out two fingers. The devout believer said, "2 silver coins?" The wizard apprentice shook his head, and the believer said, "200 silver coins is 200 silver coins. .”

Hearing this, the wizard apprentice took a step back, very surprised!

He still obeyed his teacher's instructions, and carried the stone back to the mountain: "Teacher, someone offered 200 silver coins to buy my stone today. This time, you have to tell me what is the greatest value of my life, right?"

The instructor laughed and said, "You take this stone to the wizarding assembly tomorrow to sell it. As usual, if someone counters the price, you will take it back. This time, the teacher will definitely tell you what the greatest value of your life is."

Early in the morning of the third day, the wizard apprentice came to the wizard gathering place with the big stone in his arms. There were still some people watching, and some people talked: "What kind of stone is this? Where was it unearthed? Where was it discovered? ? What is it for?”

Finally, a wizard came to ask the price: "Little wizard, how much is your stone?" The wizard apprentice remained silent and held out two fingers.

"200 gold coins?"

The wizard apprentice opened his eyes wide, opened his mouth wide, and yelled in surprise: "Ah?!"

The wizard thought that his bid was too low, so he immediately corrected him and said, "No! No! No! I was wrong, I want to give you 2000 gold coins!"

"2000 gold coins!"

Hearing this, the wizard apprentice immediately picked up the stone, rushed back to the mountain to meet the teacher, and said out of breath: "Teacher, teacher, there is a wizard who is willing to bid 2000 gold coins for our stone! Now you can always tell me, my life What is the greatest value?"

The mentor touched the head of the wizard apprentice and said lovingly: "My child, the greatest value of your life is like this stone. If you put yourself on the market, you are only worth 20 copper coins. If you put yourself on the market, you are only worth 200 copper coins. Near the temple, you are worth 2000 silver coins, if you put yourself in the wizard assembly, you are worth [-] gold coins! Different platforms, different positioning, the value of life will be completely different!"

After a long silence, the water djinn raised his head, with a few clear eyes, looking at Brian, his voice was like the waves that were about to rise:
"Material man, I seem to understand the story you told, but I don't seem to understand it. Are you telling me that it is because I stay in the Pearl Fortress and live a life of reciprocation that I think my life is meaningless? , there is no value in living, is that so?"

"That's right, that's it."

Bryan nodded slightly, "So if you want to get out of the shadow of death and make your life valuable, I suggest you go to the material world with me, and you will understand the true meaning of life."

"Really?" The water djinn's voice was as thick as a huge wave hitting a cliff.

"Every word I said is true." Brian replied calmly.

"You just need to go to the material world with me for a day. For you elemental giants, a day is just a blink of an eye. , you will understand everything."

"it is good!"

The water giant sat up straight, nodded and said: "I promise you, I will accompany you to the material world to find out what the meaning of life is."

Seeing the water djinn nodding, Brian smiled at the female lord beside him, and secretly heaved a sigh of relief.

After all, as long as the other party nods in agreement, their task of traveling the elemental world is considered complete.

With the gathering of the four legendary giant spirits, the tentative grand plan has taken the most critical step.

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(End of this chapter)