Chapter 180 Go To Frost

Han Shuang.

Lawrence instantly thought of the words "Martha" had told him before—he couldn't tell whether the Martha at that time was his hallucination or the "sense of presence" emanating from the "Martha" in front of him, but one thing he was sure of was that he should go to Han Shuang.

But how to get there?

"We've been searching here for a long time," Lawrence frowned. "Since we left the city-state port that night, the White Oak has never found that city-state again—we went back the way we came, and there was only a sea."

"You won't find it like this," Martha shook her head with a smile. "Lawrence, Han Shuang is hiding from you."

"Hiding from me?" Lawrence was stunned. "Why?"

Martha didn't speak, but pointed to the ghost flames quietly burning on Lawrence's body.

Lawrence instantly understood, he looked down at his spirit-like arm, and said thoughtfully: "So... we weren't hindered when we left the city-state port before... it wasn't that we left there, but that the city-state moved away from the White Oak?"

He looked up, his expression a little subtle: "Then what should I do? The current White Oak is closer to the Ship of the Lost than when it left the port. If that city-state has been consciously moving away from me, how can I find it?"

"I'll find it," Martha said calmly and briefly.

"You find it?" Lawrence didn't react for a moment. "Can you find it?"

"Of course, in the past many years, I and my ship have always been a part of this sea area. Even if I leave this huge group now, it won't realize it in a short time—and on the other hand, the Black Oak's current way of existence is closer to the White Oak's 'reflection'. I haven't directly established contact with the Ship of the Lost, at least not yet. Han Shuang won't hide from me...

...It's not as 'smart' as you think."

Lawrence nodded, half understanding, but still a little confused: "But that's only if you can get close to it. What about me and the White Oak? As long as we show up, it will definitely 'run away'..."

Martha smiled.

She took a half step forward and gently pressed her hand on Lawrence's chest, with a meaningful expression on her face, and whispered: "It's very simple, let's switch positions—here, the boundary between the main body and the reflection is not so clear."

Lawrence was stunned, and subconsciously wanted to ask what she meant, but before he could open his mouth, he felt a slight push from his chest.

The force was very gentle, but it made him feel dizzy instantly. He only felt like he was falling on his back. In the instant before losing consciousness, he felt someone supporting his body from behind, and Martha's gentle voice rang in his ear: "Take a nap, my love—the next is an incredible journey."

Lawrence fell into a drowsy sleep, but he felt that he had only slept for a moment, and then he suddenly opened his eyes, and subconsciously shouted: "Martha!"

But what came into his ears was the voice of the first mate, Gus: "Captain, you're awake?"

Lawrence finally woke up completely. He struggled to support his body, gasping for breath because he had woken up suddenly from his sleep, and then looked around, realizing that he was lying on the bed in the captain's room—the first mate, Gus, was standing aside with a worried expression on his face, and there were several sailors nearby.

And in a more corner of the place, he also saw a familiar figure—it was Anomaly 077, the mummy was taking advantage of people not paying attention to compare a noose on his neck, but after realizing Lawrence's gaze, he instantly put away the rope and pretended nothing happened.

"Where am I..." Lawrence gasped for breath, rubbing his forehead and muttering. For a moment, he couldn't tell whether he was in a dream or in reality. The things that happened not long ago rose and fell in his memory like illusions.

"You have returned to the White Oak, and the 'Sailor' brought you back," the first mate said immediately, and pointed to the mummy not far away, "You have been in a coma for...

...several hours."

"I remember... I remember going to explore the Black Oak, and I saw Martha on it... Did these things really happen?" Lawrence rubbed his forehead hard, then raised his eyes, "Where's the Black Oak? Where is it now?"

"Your memory is fine, you did go to that ship, and the 'Sailor' also told us that you saw Ms. Martha on it," the first mate, Gus, reached out to help Lawrence up, but his face became a little strange when he said halfway, "As for where that ship is now... Captain, the situation is a bit strange now, I don't know how to explain it to you..."

"Strange?" Lawrence frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Our ship has lost control now. The rudder and propeller are not working. The White Oak is drifting like a ghost ship. As for the Black Oak... I'll take you to see it."

Listening to the first mate's worried words, the expression on Lawrence's face instantly became serious. He pushed away the hand that was helping him and followed the sailors out the door.

At the same time, he also noticed the changes in himself and others. The faintly burning spirit flame had disappeared at some point, and everyone's bodies had returned to a living state. The surrounding floor and walls no longer showed the fiery burning state like the Ship of the Lost—everything here seemed to have returned to normal.

The first mate noticed the captain's gaze and explained: "The flames subsided a few hours ago, not long after you came back."

Lawrence nodded silently. Compared to the faded ghost flames, he was more concerned about what had happened that would make his always steady first mate show such a hesitant and at a loss expression.

Soon, he and the sailors left the cabin together and came to the deck of the White Oak.

In just an instant, he realized the... strangeness in the surrounding environment.

Damp, cold, as if soaked in sea water, the sky was completely devoid of light, only strange shadow-like clumps floated in the sky, there was no wind around, but there was a cold flow touching every inch of skin, and from time to time you could see strange turbulence marks appearing nearby, just like tiny bubbles appeared in the air.

Lawrence looked around in astonishment at the discordant environment, and vaguely realized what was happening. When the first mate, Gus, took him to the edge of the ship, he further confirmed his guess.

"The Black Oak is there."

The first mate stood at the edge of the ship and pointed to the sea directly below.

Lawrence lowered his head and saw the "sea" slowly undulating, and the ripples stirred up by the White Oak's voyage slowly spread around with a distorted and strange texture. On the sea like a distorted mirror, he saw the "reflection" of the White Oak.

It was a black warship wrapped in thick fog and shadows, with a few ghost-like lights lit on the ship. It was "reflected" below the White Oak, riding the wind and waves.

At this moment, Lawrence finally understood what Martha meant when she said goodbye.

Now, the White Oak is the reflection of the Black Oak.

"Captain..." The first mate, Gus, noticed the change in Lawrence's face. Years of following experience made him keenly judge that the old captain might already know what was going on. "What's going on? Why is our reflection in the sea turning into the Black Oak? And the ship's loss of control..."

"We are not out of control—we are just following the Black Oak," Lawrence took a light breath, with a faint smile on his face, "Let everyone have a good rest and recharge their batteries, we are going to a place where we can solve all the problems."

"A place where we can solve all the problems?" The first mate blinked in confusion. "Where are we going?"

"We are going to Han Shuang."

Night was gradually enveloping the city-state.

Two figures were quickly passing through the streets that were already under curfew.

One figure was particularly tall and burly, wearing a black long coat reminiscent of nightfall, while the other figure was...

...particularly short. Although he was wearing a thick winter coat, it was still possible to see the rather thin figure under the winter coat.

A gust of cold wind blew, and the thin and short figure sneezed solidly: "...Achoo!"

Duncan lowered his head and looked at Shirley, who was rubbing her nose: "I told you to put on a scarf, but you refused to wear it—the nights in Han Shuang are much colder than in Prund."

"It's so cold..." Shirley tightened her clothes subconsciously. Although the clothes were enough to resist the surrounding temperature, she still felt the cold wind biting. Having been born and raised in Prund since she was a child, she was obviously not very adaptable to the climate in Han Shuang. "I kind of regret coming out..."

Duncan looked at the girl with a smile: "Didn't you say that you would do anything as long as you didn't have to do homework?"

When Shirley heard this, she immediately raised her neck and said stubbornly in the cold wind: "Yes, I said it!"

"Your mouth is the toughest thing on your whole body," Duncan sighed helplessly, then raised his head and looked at the alley in the distance, "Let's go, I don't want to deal with the night watch guards."

Shirley quickly stumbled after Duncan's footsteps, and couldn't help but ask curiously as she tried to move forward: "What are we going to do?"

"Confirm someone's condition," Duncan said casually as he walked forward.

"Someone's condition?" Shirley raised her face and looked at the burly captain beside her. "Who?"

"The Gatekeeper, Agatha," Duncan said lightly.

His gaze then crossed the night and focused on the end of the street ahead.

A small cluster of faint green flames was burning in his vision, flickering on and off, as if through a thick curtain.