This time I accepted the silence more favorably, scanning the images that formed the structure of the path. It was obvious that they were not created by the gods, but by the elves of the Silver Forest. The Filth destroyed the elves and the forest itself, but the magic of the road was able to survive. It is likely that the travel songs activated certain images embedded in them by the elves. So, I could just try to pick up a song that I already knew, and the caravans would be the necessary mental amplifier that would give out the right emotions.

“Hasup, you said that Sanagar is your hometown.”

"Yes, it is.” - He nodded.

"Do you miss it?"

“Yes, I do. My wife and daughter are waiting for me at home. This time I'm bringing her a dowry, so if the gods are kind, we'll be able to have a wedding soon.” - Caravan master smiled to himself.

"Then think about your home.” - I ordered, choosing the right song.

"About home?"

“Yes. This Path leads you to home.”

With these words, I started playing a song that I had heard while still alive. It was a dream world, so after a few seconds there was music in the air, and then a voice. This was the song 'Doroga' by the band 'Lyube'.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qe_nUCmgPS8

Fascinated by the unusual music, the caravans fell into a numbness. The camels were moving along calmly, but the area around us was rushing by at an incredible speed. Dunes were replaced by plains, which were replaced by dunes again. But beyond that, there were ghostly images of the Silver Forest. Huge trees, blooming meadows, crystal rivers - all these beauties appeared for a moment in the form of mirages, only to disappear immediately, leaving the impression of a fleeting miracle.

Five minutes later, an incredible glowing shroud grew ahead of us, rising from the sands to the sky. A few seconds later, we reached a magnificent structure that was located right next to this ghostly wall. The song ended, and the bewildered caravans looked around, trying to understand what had happened.

"My God, it is a Travel Song!" - The merchant screamed. - "O great magician, your power is immense! Even in the most wonderful stories, Travel Songs shortened the journey to hours, not to minutes.”

“Is it Sanagar?” – I clarified. I did not see any buildings in front of me. Even behind the glowing veil, only the same desert was visible.

"Yes, it is." - The merchant calmed down a little, sending the caravan forward. – “This passage through the Great Wall leads to Sanagar. The gods created this miracle to protect the outside world from the merciless desert sun. Thanks to you, o great one, we were able to reach our goal much faster. I will tell stories about this while drinking wine to your health. After all, thanks to you, the travel song has returned to this world. I memorized every word, every note. Now my way to home will always be fast and fun.

I just chuckled at this, carefully examining the arch of the gate, behind which the streets of the city and people scurrying back and forth were visible. The passage through this structure was extremely ordinary. I didn't even feel any spatial distortion. Here we are walking under the scorching sun of the desert, and after a dozen meters we find ourselves in the streets of the city, and a rather cool breeze hits us in the face.

"Where is the temple?" - I asked from merchant, looking at the solid three-story stone houses and the cobblestone street.

"Don't worry, sir. I will personally escort you to the temple.” - The merchant bustled.

He sent the caravan with his employees, and he jumped to the ground and quickly trotted forward, pointing the way. I fly down a little lower, but I preferred to keep flying above the ground rather than shuffling my feet like a pathetic mortal. I get used to good things quickly, and during this time I'm used to moving around with levitation.

While we were walking, the merchant gave a short tour, telling about the most important shops and attractions. A little, because after a couple of hundred meters we came to a large white building decorated with gold.

"This is the temple of the Weak Gods.” - The caravan master pointed at him.

"Weak?" - I was surprised to hear such an epithet for the first time in relation to the revered gods.

"You'd better ask the priests about the gods. Who am I to discuss such high matters?” - The merchant immediately apologized.

“Goodbye, Hasup.” - I nodded and went to the entrance to the temple. Hasup remained standing still, politely bowing to me after.

The temple was empty, which is quite consistent with the characteristic 'weak' in relation to the gods to whom it was dedicated. What fool would go to pray to weak gods? When I descended to the mortal earth and went forward to the altar, I saw a man dressed in gold-adorned garments. He heard my footsteps, turned around, and shuddered, staring at me with an alarmed expression.

"How can I help you?" - He asked me.

"My name is Freddy Krueger. I'd like to ask you a few questions about the history of this place. They say that you are the most enlightened person in this area.”

"Well, I'm just a humble priest of the Weak Gods.” - The man looked down. – “My name is Kerbhol. Please come to the inner chambers of the temple, where we will not be disturbed.”

“You aren’t suffering from crowd here.” - I chuckled, following the priest.

“Unfortunately, God-fearing is not a popular trait among the local population. And it is only thanks to the Weak Gods that we can live in this world without experiencing all horrors that have befallen on other lands.”

With these words, we entered a small alcove filled with unearthly light. Here divine power poured out from a large cut topaz set into the wall. Two benches were set up around the edges of the room. I sat down on one of them, and the priest sat in front of me.

"How do you like this place?" - He asked, watching me closely.

“Pretty cute. This divine energy is invigorating and refreshing.” - I smiled, absorbing free power.

"Please forgive me.” - The priest bowed his head. - "Your eyes made me suspect that you were infected by the Filth. But if you feel good here, there is nothing to worry about. So, what did you want to ask me?”

Heh, he thinks himself as verifier here. The free-flowing energy of Order could only harm the weakest creatures of Chaos. Of course, Filth was not Chaos, but they had a lot in common, so there was no question about the source of the infection.

"I'm interested about the history of this place before the Filth came here.” - I asked the priest. After my question, he had an empty expression on his face.

“To be honest, this is the first time I have been asked a question that I simply have nothing to answer.” - He admitted after a long pause. - "All our scriptures begin after the moment when the Righteous God saw the Original Filth in these lands and decided to get rid of it. As you understand, the word 'original' means that it has always existed here. Of course, I've heard stories about how the gods created this world and planted the seed of filth, but these stories don't belong to the canon, so I can't guarantee that they have anything to do with reality.”

I was not happy with this revelation. Nasty Being put information about this part of the path into my mind, according to which I was supposed to get to the Silver Forest, and from there to reach the Crystal Mountains, where to look for a further way in the dungeons of the dwarves. But there were no forests or mountains in the area, plus my internal compass was inside the 'magnetic anomaly', constantly pointing to different places.

“Have you heard anything about the Crystal Mountains or about underground dwarves?” - I tried again.

“Crystal Mountains? No. There are not so far away crystal hills, but the height of the highest of these hills does not exceed one and a half hundred meters. And from the underground inhabitants there are only zugs. These vile creatures devour all living things, so you can only move outside the city under the protection of magicians. To be honest, I only read about the existence of mountains in books. For many thousands of kilometers around, there are only plains, wastelands, and hills.”

This news was very sad.

"Can you tell you the story you know about this world?" - I made one last attempt to get useful information.

“If am I correct, you are only interested in the ancient history? Since time immemorial, this place has been ruled by the Filth, which has spread its unholy tentacles for many thousands of kilometers. But on one of days a Righteous God, whose name we are not worthy to know, saw the Filth and decided to eradicate it. To do this, he created a Great Fiery Sun, which he placed forever directly over the source of the Filth. The rays of this sun burned all Filth, driving it underground. But at the same time, this merciless light destroyed all life on a huge territory, turning it into a desert. This desert grew with every hour, and when it reached the inhabited lands, people prayed to the Weak Gods, and they in response to these prayers created a Great Wall that separated the desert from other lands. Since then, people have been living in cities on the border with the desert, using caravan paths to move between populated areas.

Mdaa. The story was instructive, but it didn't make much sense. However, it set two directions for future searches. I could look for the mountains I needed in the desert or beyond it.

When priest saw a heavy thought on my face, he decided to give advice.

"Although people speak of my wisdom, I am only an ordinary priest of the Weak Gods. But I know that brother Senan, who lives in a monastery two weeks away, has spent his entire life researching history and ancient scrolls. It is possible that he can help you in your search.”