The workers of Pulisi's convoy held torches and approached the shore, where the deep cliffs had been replaced by rippling sea water.
High tides transform Storm Point from a reef area into a deep-water harbor.
The wooden boat that ran aground on the shore was lifted into the water and loaded with cargo.
The ships parked outside the bay were like fireflies, heading towards the high tide's Storm Point.
Many ships docked at the shore, and merchants traveling to and from the ice-free port of Vina and the surrounding islands would buy the cargo of the fleet and send it to other places in exchange for profits.
There are also some ferry boats coming. Most of them are local residents, and they are paid to pick up passengers who are going to the Vina Free Harbor or other places to the "Port Island".
Lu Li paid two people four shillings and boarded the wooden boat.
The wooden boat quickly filled up with mothers holding children, couples, and hunters. Because of the night, the other passengers did not recognize Lu Li.
The boatman lifted the oar, pushed the wooden boat away from the shore, and slid towards the "port island".
The water reflected distorted and broken reflections of light. Looking around, there were many firefly-like light spots in the night sky on the edge of the bay moving towards the storm corner.
Storm Point is more lively at night than during the day.
Port Island is on the outer ring of the inner ring of Cape Storm, with bridges, but on the outermost edge of the core group of pillars.
The gods have protected this bay, and the strange fog and beings in the sea cannot enter.
"See the brightest island? That's where the church is."
Mother introduces Storm Cape to curious child.
The child clumsily closed his eyes and prayed, and his actions led his mother and some passengers to thank God for protecting people.
Pusius looked at this with envy. He also wanted to try it, but he knew that being a weirdo, he would get into trouble if he did so.
After half an hour of peaceful sailing, they landed on the port island.
Apart from the wooden cabins where various shipping companies sell tickets, there are no other buildings, and most of them are stone pillars in the open space.
Then comes the long wait.
Ships have to load cargo before coming to the port island to accept passengers.
Strictly speaking, passengers are not the main business of these shipping companies. This is more like an unspoken rule among ships: the crew makes a fortune by transporting passengers, and the company's upper management turns a blind eye.
This is more like a transfer of labor conflicts: paying crew members less but allowing them to earn extra money.
In this regard, the Vina Freeze Port has indeed recast its old "glory".
As time went by, more and more passengers from each convoy landed on the port island, and hundreds of people gradually gathered.
Some wooden boats carry local vendors selling food to the island.
Roasted monster meat, sizzling and oily fish cakes, hot water with rising white mist, these things can really make people's stomach growl on a cold and humid night.
The hawker quickly came to Lu Li and the others with the scent.
Lu Li didn't ask for anything, they brought food.
The disappointed vendor who was about to leave saw the expensive cans Catalina took out from the suitcase, and his eyes lit up: "Do you need purified water? Clean and odorless purified water."
Purified water, that is, distilled water.
Even though it is distilled water, it still contains contamination.
"It ranks third in the Terminas Association standards!" The vendor who saw their hesitation said quickly.
The Terminas Association, located in the ice-free port of Wiener, sets standards for various food brands.
Level 3 is the lowest, but it is much better than many water that cannot even enter the standard.
Lu Li bought some distilled water to fill their water bladders.
Several more vendors arrived one after another, but they arrived a little late, and the aroma of food had already filled the sky over the harbor island.
Amid the gentle chatter around them, the passengers waited for the arrival of the distant ship.
"Mom, it's shining there, is it a star..."
A little girl not far away asked her mother.
Lu Li, who was quietly eating the cold minced meat in the can, raised his eyes and saw that it was a stone pillar, shining like a star for some reason.
Not long after, a panicked figure ran into the crowd in the open space, pointed behind him and shouted in fear: "The bridge is broken!"
Panic spread among the crowd, and some people ran to the bridge to confirm and found that they had indeed been torn off from the other side and were floating on the sea.
It wasn't just the port island that had its bridges broken, many bridges in the core of Storm Point were broken, and the stone pillars turned into isolated islands.
"what happened!"
"What's going on..."
"Mother"
A panicked crowd crowded in front of the ticket cabin, but the locals inside were relatively calm and told them: the flashing lights meant an invasion.
A curse appeared on that island.
He asked people to calm down and the curse would not affect this place after the bridge was disconnected.
Knowing that the bridge was disconnected was a form of protection, the panicked crowd became much quieter.
"Doesn't the gods care about this?"
Back in the clearing, Lu Li asked Catalina.
"They can't detect it." Catalina shook her head and said, "Some pollutants are difficult to detect. For example, items carrying pollution curses, or ignorant people infected with the curse."
It's impossible for a town to completely block weirdness, even the most hostile to weirdness, Wiener Freeze Port.
To a certain extent, congeners are also a type of pollutants, but they are less harmful.
The emergence of the curse brings some troubles to these passengers.
The ships loaded their cargo, but did not come to the port island to receive passengers as usual.
Catalina went to the ticket office to inquire about the news and brought back bad news.
"No ship wants to take us."
"Why." Lu Li asked.
"Outbreaks of infection scare them."
If the infection is brought to the ship, they are not the only ones causing trouble, and the cargo ship may no longer be able to do business in the ice-free port of Vina.
Without their source of income, their families will starve to death.
"Not even more money?" Lu Li asked.
"The problem is we can't contact the ship."
Lu Li remembered something and asked if there was a ship from the Fourteenth Shipping Company.
Catalina went to ask, but unfortunately the shipping company belonging to Lu Li was not here.
Lu Li looked around. There was some sea breeze on the port island, but if it didn't rain, he could barely rest for a night.
But can I leave tomorrow?
While I was thinking, a ship's cry, thicker, deeper and deeper than any ship, sounded like a whale from the darkness.
The sound of the boat sounded familiar to Lu Li, and he looked out at the bay quietly.
A huge outline slowly appeared at the edge of the darkness. The first person to see it screamed and ran away, and panic spread like a plague.
Only Lu Li and Catalina Pusius, who had a hard time standing, stood there.
Lu Li raised his eyes and saw the rusty giant ship docked at the edge of the port island, as if it was humming in response.
It's here to pick itself up.
"What... what..."
Pusius folded his tail and crawled, almost exposing his belly in fear.
"A whale." Things from the past will always make people remember, and even Lu Li's expression seemed to be much softer: "Do you still want to follow me?"
"Of course..." Pusius stammered.
"You really want to board it? Board a..."
The sudden change made Catalina unable to think coherently.
"Um."
Lu Li nodded lightly and stepped onto the back of the "whale", followed by Catalina and Pusius who hesitated to follow.
The sound of the boat that seemed to become lighter penetrated the night sky, and everyone watched in shock as the giant ship sailed into the surging darkness.
