“Doctor,” Fatty said in a voice that only he and the Doctor could hear.
“Hmm?” Jiang Cheng raised his head.
“Can you stop rubbing the oil on your hands onto my body?”
“Tsk,” Jiang Cheng pulled back his hands, which were already much cleaner. “So stingy.”
“Come over here and look!” The biker woman shouted. She stood beside a large wooden rack. The group walked over and realised the rack had many baskets, which came with lids. However, the lids had been removed and dropped on the ground. The baskets contained bundles of firewood. They also found cloth-like material in one basket.
“These should be used to make torches,” Jiang Cheng concluded. He pulled out a few sticks and tied the cloth around them. Then, he dipped the stick into the vessel with the oil. A torch was thus made. They even found a few flints under the vessel.
“What is this?” Fatty, with his sharp eyes, found a rather sizeable regular stone propped up against the wooden rack. Due to their similarity in colours, the travellers didn’t notice it at first.
Fatty tried to move it but it didn’t budge. Jiang Cheng and the young master noticed this. They tried to help him. However, due to the angle, they failed as well.
“Move.” The Loli girl appeared behind them. They turned and saw the tall man. The man’s face reddened being stared at by the three. As the three moved away, he took their spot. It didn’t appear like he used much force to move the stone. As the stone was moved, a gust of strong wind gushed into the space.
This was a small window. It was rectangular and worked as a kind of vantage spot. It faced the sea.
After their exploration, the sky outside had darkened.
The travellers lit up a few more torches for the lighting and to ward away the cold. After all, it was very cold. Everyone subconsciously huddled together. Only the aged woman stayed alone to the side. Her face hid in the dark. Fatty wanted to call her over, but before he could do so, Jiang Cheng smacked his face, silencing him.
The temperature continued to plummet.
“Should… we light that thing?” The climber woman said through chattering teeth. She was an athletic person but even so, the chill was unbearable. It was worse for the others.
“Yes,” Jiang Cheng was the first to agree. The others looked at him with envy because…
“Fatty,” Jiang Cheng narrowed his eyes with comfort and whispered, “Hug me tighter. I still feel the wind.” He was fully embraced by Fatty. The Loli girl was enjoying the same treatment. The tall man doted on her like a butler.
In the end, the young master stood up. He worked the kinks out in his body, pulled over a burning torch and walked to the vessel with the oil. As everyone blocked their eyes or turned their heads away, a roaring flame surged up. The room was instantly lit up.
The lighthouse… came on.
Accompanying the flame was a curious fragrance. After a whole day of working and no food and water, the travellers were captivated by the scent.
“What smell… is this?” The biker woman opened her mouth greedily.
Fatty swallowed. “Could this be ambergris? I hear the thing is very magical.”
The young master shook his head, “Ambergris doesn’t smell . Plus…. The colour of the wax doesn’t fit. Ambergris residue is slightly yellow or even black.”
As the temperature rose, Jiang Cheng slipped away from Fatty’s arms. As he stood up, he glanced out the window. The next second, he froze. Through the small window, he saw that the previously dark and empty sea had lit up. Buildings of different heights were arranged neatly. Spots of light moved around. A city… appeared on the sea!
“How… can this be?” The biker woman moved to the window, and her face paled.
The climber woman swallowed nervously and whispered, “Is this a mirage?” Then, as if to convince herself, she continued, “Mirages not only appear in deserts but also the sea…” Then, she paused. Her eyes widened. This was because she saw the light spots leave the city, form a line, and slowly move towards the lighthouse.
The city on the sea couldn’t be seen that clearly, but it wasn’t far from where they were. Despite the line being disorderly, it didn’t take long for them to complete ⅓ of its journey.
“One will stay behind to guard the lighthouse. The rest will go down.” At this moment, it was the Loli girl who gave the orders.
“I’ll stay,” The biker woman immediately volunteered herself.
The rest didn’t hesitate. They grabbed the torches and went down the stairs. Technically, two people stayed behind. The aged woman hadn’t moved from her spot. She didn’t even move to the window to check out the city. One person staying behind was also to keep an eye on this woman. The biker woman astutely left her be.
It felt like they had taken a long time to get up the stairs, but it took much less time to get down. At least before the light spots arrived, the travellers managed to work together to close the building door. Then, they extinguished the torches and split up to hide in the dark.
Fatty stayed with the Doctor. The Loli girl went off with the tall man. The remaining young master and the climber woman paired off.
The three groups formed a triangle. Fatty and Jiang Cheng hid behind a broken pillar. Through the gap, they could see the front door clearly.
The rustling approached and eventually stopped before the door.
Then, there was knocking. It was heavy and dim. The thing that knocked on the door was very strong. No one moved as six pairs of eyes stared at the door.
“Is someone there?” A human voice began. The voice was mixed with heavy breathing, and the pronunciation was not clear.
“We’re from Black Stone Town,” The human voice continued, “We saw the light at the lighthouse.”