去寒霜。

Lawrence instantly thought of what "Martha" had told him before—he could no longer distinguish whether the Martha from that time was his hallucination or the "presence" emanating from the "Martha" before him, but one thing was certain: he should go to Frost.

But how to get there?

"We've been searching for a long time," Lawrence couldn't help but frown. "Since leaving the city-state harbor that night, the White Oak has never been able to find that city-state again—we returned along the original route, and there was only a sea."

"You won't find it by searching like this," Martha said, shaking her head with a smile. "Lawrence, Frost is hiding from you."

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

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

Lawrence instantly understood. He looked down at his spectral arm, his tone thoughtful. "So... we weren't stopped at all when we left the city-state harbor... it wasn't that we sailed away from there, but that the city-state moved away from the White Oak?"

He raised his head, his expression becoming somewhat subtle. "Then what should we do? The White Oak is now closer to the Ghost Ship than when it left the harbor. If that city-state is consciously moving away from me, how can I find it?"

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

"You go find it?" Lawrence didn't react for a moment. "You can find it?"

"Of course I can. For many years, my ship and I have always been a part of this sea. Even if I break away from this vast cluster now, it won't realize it in a short time—and on the other hand, the Black Oak's current way of existing is closer to the White Oak's 'reflection.' I haven't directly established a connection with the Ghost Ship, at least not yet. Frost won't hide from me...

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

Lawrence nodded, half understanding, but was still somewhat puzzled. "But then only you can get close to it. What about me and the White Oak? As soon as we appear, it will definitely 'run away' again..."

Martha smiled.

She stepped forward, gently placed her hand on Lawrence's chest, and with a meaningful expression on her face, whispered, "It's simple, let's switch places—here, the boundary between the main body and the reflection isn't so clear."

Lawrence was stunned. He subconsciously wanted to ask the meaning of her words, but before he could open his mouth, he felt a slight push on his chest.

The force was gentle, but it made him feel dizzy. He only felt himself falling backward, and in the instant before losing consciousness, he felt someone supporting him from behind. Martha's gentle voice rang in his ear: "Take a nap, my love—the next part will be an incredible journey."

Lawrence fell into a daze, but he felt as if he had only slept for a moment before suddenly opening his eyes and calling out, "Martha!"

However, it was the voice of First Mate Gus that entered his ears: "Captain, you're awake?"

Lawrence finally woke up completely. He struggled to sit up, panting heavily from waking up suddenly from his sleep, and then looked around, realizing that he was lying on the bed in the captain's cabin—First Mate Gus was standing beside him with a worried expression, and there were several sailors nearby.

And in a more cornered place, he also saw a familiar figure—it was Anomaly 077. The corpse was taking advantage of the others' inattention to gesture with a noose around his neck, but after realizing Lawrence's gaze, he instantly put away the rope and pretended that nothing had happened.

"Where am I..." Lawrence gasped for breath, rubbing his forehead as he muttered, unable to distinguish whether he was in a dream or in reality. The things that had happened not long ago rose and fell in his memory like illusions.

"You've returned to the White Oak, and 'Sailor' brought you back," the first mate said immediately, pointing to the corpse not far away. "You've been unconscious 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 vigorously, then raised his eyes. "Where's the Black Oak? Where is it now?"

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

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

"Our ship has lost control. The rudder and propeller are useless. 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 first mate's hand and followed the sailors out the door.

At the same time, he also noticed the changes in himself and the others. The faintly burning spirit flames had extinguished at some point, and everyone's bodies had now returned to a living state. The surrounding floors and walls no longer had the flame-burning state like the Ghost Ship—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 already extinguished ghost flames, he was now more concerned about what had happened that would make his always calm first mate reveal such a hesitant and overwhelmed expression.

Soon, he and the sailors left the cabin 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 seawater. The sky was completely devoid of light, with only eerie shadow-like masses floating in the sky. There was no wind, but there was a cold flowing sensation touching every inch of skin. From time to time, strange turbulent traces could be seen nearby, as if tiny bubbles were rising in the air.

Lawrence felt the surrounding discordant environment in surprise, and vaguely realized what was happening. And when First Mate Gus brought 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, pointing to the sea directly below.

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

It was a black ship wrapped in thick fog and shadows, with a few ghostly 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 by those words when she left.

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

"Captain..." First Mate Gus noticed the change in Lawrence's expression. Years of following him allowed him to keenly judge that the old captain probably already knew what was going on. "What's going on? Why has our reflection in the sea turned into the Black Oak? And the ship's loss of control..."

"We're not out of control—we're just following the Black Oak," Lawrence breathed a sigh of relief, a faint smile on his face. "Let everyone rest well and recharge their batteries. We're going to a place that can solve all problems."

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

"We're going to Frost."

Night was gradually enveloping the city-state.

Two figures were quickly crossing the streets and alleys that were already under curfew.

One figure was particularly tall and burly, wearing a black long trench coat that was reminiscent of nightfall. The other figure seemed particularly short. Although wearing a thick winter coat, one could still see the rather thin figure under the winter coat.

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

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

"So cold..." Shirley tightened her clothes subconsciously. Although these clothes were enough to withstand the surrounding temperature, she still felt the cold wind piercing her bones. Having been born and raised in Pland since she was a child, she was obviously not very accustomed to the climate of Frost. "I'm a little regretful about coming out..."

Duncan looked at the girl with a smile that wasn't quite a smile: "Didn't you say that as long as you don't have to do homework, you'll do anything?"

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

"The mouth is the hardest part of your whole body," Duncan sighed helplessly, then raised his head and looked at the distant alley. "Let's go, I don't want to deal with the night watch guardians."

Shirley quickly followed Duncan's steps with her short legs, and couldn't help but ask curiously as she struggled forward: "What exactly are we going to do?"

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

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

"The gatekeeper, Agatha," Duncan said lightly.

His gaze passed over the night and focused on the end of the street ahead.

A small, faint green flame was burning in his vision, flickering on and off, as if separated by a thick curtain.