At a glance · Great River
- Inhabitants
- River People
- Region
- Tomb of Ariel
- Novel
- Chapter 923 Secret of the Estuary (Mentioned)
Article contents
The Great river (or River of Time) is the river that flows endlessly from the future into the past. Because it existed outside time, it is said to contain a dreadful secret hidden at its estuary.[1]
So, when the dome came, it attracted many to seek shelter and seek its truth. They are few capable that dare to approach the river, but none returned.[1]
The Great River was not a sphere like Earth, and it didn't revolve around a star. Instead, there are seven artificial suns around the river and there seemed to be some sort of curvature to it.[2]
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Description
Third Nightmare
The Great River was limited from west and east — from dusk and dawn, as the River People called these directions. There was an edge instead of the shore. A colossal and unceasing waterfall where the waters of time spilled into the abyss and disappeared into the boundless darkness.[3]
The edges are bottomless dark abyss. It was as though the river flowed through nothing, suspended in the void by the power of the Demon of Dread. Sailing close to the edge was dangerous, as the currents would have pulled ships toward the abyss with ferocious force.[3]
From afar the Great River looked like a colorful ribbon, painted in lilac, azure, and crimson, creating a circle with seven small motes of light moving through the darkness. The ribbon's surface twisted like a Möbius strip, creating a beautiful sight.[4]
Lilac, azure, and crimson were the three regions of the Great River — dawn, day, and dusk, and the seven little motes of light were the seven suns. The Great River's surface was never interrupted, twisted on itself, flowing endlessly. The entirety of the Great River was an infinite loop.[4]
Real Version
The waters of the Great River were growing thinner and thinner until the Great River simply ceased. There was not even a great waterfall where its water ended, just a gradual termination. The shallows changed as the shallows grew vast, and then, they became ubiquitous. Its surface shifted from one where islands of empty darkness interrupting the surface of the still water like pustules existed, into a reversed state where it was the small islands of water that broke the vast expanse of empty darkness, separated by a great distance. At the end, there remained only a patch of shallow water that seemed to be the last, beyond which stretched an endless and dark vastness, described as a great abyss of dark nothingness.[5]
The Great River had contained danger, with many terrifying Nightmare Creatures and the most terrifying abominations of the Great River dwelling in its depths, but later even those horrors were nowhere to be found, leaving travel in relative peace. Ultimately, the Great River had been overcome by time, since time was the ultimate killer that destroyed everything, in the end even the Great River had eventually fallen to its ruthless cruelty, despite being the River of Time.[5]
Nature
The Great River was a time loop similar to Aletheia's Island, but also different. It was a bizarre place where time and space were one and the same. It flowed from the future into the past, allowing those who traveled it to travel across time. To reach a new revolution, one had to travel to the Estuary, the Source, and cross the boundary between the past and the future. If one sailed past Verge and braved the Source, they would be sent to different places on the first day after entering the Nightmare.[6]
For example, Sunny would find himself on a flotsam, Nephis would be stranded on the Black Turtle's corpse, Cassie would return to Fallen Grace, and Jet and Effie would return to the River Nomads' harsh lives.[6]
The method of starting a new revolution would involve returning to the past, erasing the previous cycle's memory, restoring the soul, and eradicating any signs of past travel on the Great River.[6]
Known Human Cities
- Main article: Cities of the Great River
The cities of the Great River are akin to flotillas, consisting of city-ships that migrate sometimes but mostly stay in place. The Great River's depth is deep enough for anchors to not reach its bottom, so they had to find other ways to resist the current. There are various ways to make a city-ship resist the current, from mundane ones to magical.[7]
Locations
From afar the following were noticeable:
- The colossal whirlpool where Aletheia's Island was located was hidden.[8]
- A speck on the crimson layer of the Great River was Fallen Grace.[8]
- City on the lilac layer was Twilight.[8]
- There was a stretch of the river shrouded in boiling clouds, which gave birth to immense cyclones. It was the area of the river that corresponded to the end days of the Doom War and the cyclones were the time storms it created.[8]
- The Estuary was inside the spot where the Great River's surface was obscured by impenetrable mist, covering a significant length of the river. The flow of time near it appeared restless from a distance. It was also the source of the Great River.[8] (Refer to Source of Great River)
Concept of Time
- Main articles: Tomb of Ariel § Concept of Time, and River People § Background
Resources
The Great River has limited building materials, so it was challenging to maintain a city, but River People have learned to utilize every available resource.[9]
Hunting Corrupted monsters is unpredictable and can lead to a Great one or even more dreadful creatures. The fishermen were stronger before, with elders leading them. The harrowing creatures rarely come down the river, but when they do, they know it in advance and the city usually gathers to battle them.[9]
Background
The Great River created from the Stone Titan's blood was contained within the Tomb of Ariel. Ariel wished to forget the truth and hid that secret at its Estuary.[10][11]
The Great River was meant to reach a point before time existed before the gods were born, and therefore outside their control.[8]
Trivia
- The great river was first mentioned in the rune description of the Memory [Stifled Scream].[1]
- Because of the Defilement, the peaceful waters of the Great River became plagued by the Corrupted.[12]
- The floor of the Great River is so deep that no one has ever managed to reach it.[7]
Theme Song
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Chapter 923 Secret of the Estuary
- ↑ Chapter 1335 After the Storm
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Chapter 1352 Nearing the Edge
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Chapter 1486 Colorful Ribbon
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Chapter 2930 City of Bones
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Chapter 1488 The First Plague
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Chapter 1305 House of Parting
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 Chapter 1487 The Source
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Chapter 1304 Fishing in the Great River
- ↑ Chapter 1247 Fear Itself
- ↑ Chapter 1249 Titanic Ship
- ↑ Chapter 1293 Defilement
Sources & history
Great River · Shadow Slave Wiki
Source revision 41885
Adapted from Fandom. CC-BY-SA
Images: sources & credits
- Mask-wallpaper 2 2.jpg
Retrieved 2026-11-04 · Article version 1