Chapter 143: Encountering a Ghost Ship

In this damned place, every ship and airplane that passes by encounters bizarre phenomena.
Who in their right mind would ever come here?

Gu Xiangnan had originally not believed it.
However, after his recent firsthand experience, he was forced to believe these legends.

Then who could the newcomers be?

Out on the open sea, pirates frequently roamed.
Once ordinary vessels crossed paths with them, both wealth and lives were rarely spared.
At this moment, Gu Xiangnan also grew vigilant, not daring to lower his guard in the slightest.

Seeing this, Han Fei immediately issued an order: "Hear my command, all soldiers! Enter a state of combat readiness at once!"
The Undead Legion responded swiftly, locking and loading, standing by in strict formation.

Amidst the night, the sea was pitch black.
Only the vague silhouette of a ship could be dimly made out.
The vessel was not traveling fast, rocking unsteadily as it headed toward Gu Xiangnan's ship.

As the distance closed, Gu Xiangnan finally saw the true face of that vessel clearly.

The ship was pitch black.
It was rusted over, mottled and decayed everywhere.
English letters were painted along the hull.
Taoyao read them aloud: "Carroll A. Deering."

She whipped out her phone and searched rapidly, letting out a startled cry shortly after: "My Lord, this is a ghost ship!"

"A ghost ship?"
Gu Xiangnan had never heard of it: "What does that mean?"

"In 1921, the Carroll A. Deering ran aground at Diamond Shoals while passing through the Death Triangle."
"When the maritime rescue team arrived to provide assistance, there wasn't a single soul left on board the Carroll A. Deering."
"The navigation equipment and ship's logbook, along with the crew and two lifeboats, had all vanished. What's more, the ship was extremely tidy, with no traces of any struggle whatsoever!"
Taoyao read the information she had found online to everyone.

Gu Xiangnan raised a question:
"Since that was an event from 1921, why is this ship still drifting on the sea today?"

Taoyao shrugged and replied:
"Well, I don't know that either. Otherwise, why would it be called a 'ghost ship'?"

As the ghost ship gradually drew closer, a thick, foul, fishy stench assaulted them, so strong it was nauseating.
Everyone present had their nerves stretched to the limit, their hearts pounding wildly.

Just what was on that ship?

Gu Xiangnan took a deep breath, stepped back a few paces, then sprinted twice across the deck and leaped up.
His right foot landed on the gunwale of the ghost ship.
And miraculously!
He boarded the vessel just that easily!

Upon seeing this, Taoyao was taken aback and exclaimed: "My Lord, don't go over there! It's dangerous up there!"
No sooner had she finished speaking than she heard Gu Xiangnan shout from the ghost ship:
"Hurry up and come on up to see this!"

Taoyao and Han Fei did not hesitate, quickly flying up onto the ship.
The wood on the deck, corroded by seawater and time, was so fragile that a gentle touch caused it to crumble into powder.

Gu Xiangnan's voice drifted from deep within the cabin: "Come inside and take a look!"

Taoyao and Han Fei exchanged glances, and with hearts full of doubt, they walked into the cabin.
The interior was dim and chilling, the air suffused with an eerie sensation.
Something felt terribly wrong!

The three of them navigated through the cabin, ultimately arriving in a spacious dining hall.
The hall was completely deserted, yet a long banquet table was set with lavish food: steaks, bread, pies...
Everything looked as though it had just been freshly prepared, waiting for guests to arrive.

Although the food wasn't steaming hot, none of it had rotted or spoiled.

Taoyao's heart skipped a beat.
This was getting a bit spooky!

"My Lord! What... what on earth is going on here?"
Taoyao's voice trembled slightly.

Han Fei, however, remained quite calm. "What are you afraid of? At worst, there are ghosts! I brought an entire legion of the undead, and I didn't see you being scared then!"
"That's true!" Taoyao's logic snapped back into place.
She had just fought alongside tens of thousands of ghosts earlier today!

Gu Xiangnan casually seated himself at the dining table and picked up a knife and fork.
He prepared to cut the steak on his plate:
"Let me taste what a hundred-year-old steak tastes like!"

"My Lord, you really are something else. You must be starving!" Taoyao teased.

Gu Xiangnan slashed down with his knife.
It didn't cut through!
Could it be... overcooked?

He cut again...
Using brute force...
He hacked away with all his might, but still failed to slice through it.

Seeing this, Han Fei swung his sword downward, and the steak finally split into two halves.
Gu Xiangnan picked it up to take a look, his astonishment profound:
"Isn't this plastic?"

"Huh?" Taoyao leaned in closer too. "Right, isn't this plastic?"

Han Fei leaned in to look as well: "What's plastic? We don't have this sort of thing in the Great Song."

Gu Xiangnan pondered for a moment, then slowly analyzed:
"Before boarding the ship, we subconsciously assumed that this vessel had been drifting on the sea for a hundred years."
Taoyao nodded repeatedly.

"From the exterior, it truly looks dilapidated, with traces of rust and corrosion everywhere."
"Yet once I boarded and entered the cabin, I discovered that the interior isn't all that worn down. The saline vapor in the marine air would normally corrode objects."
"Look, all the tables and chairs in this cabin are completely undamaged."
"And look at the food on this table—it must all be made of plastic."

Gu Xiangnan had Han Fei cleave open some of the other dishes.
Sure enough.
They were all made of plastic.

Taoyao asked in confusion: "My Lord, what does this prove?"
"It proves that the ghost ship is a fake!" Gu Xiangnan stated his conclusion.

A fake?
Taoyao's hair stood on end instantly.
"Why go to such lengths? Could it just be to scare people?"

Gu Xiangnan shook his head helplessly. "I don't know that either."

Since it was fake, there was no need to search further.
Out of caution, they still searched the ship anyway.
True to expectation, they found nothing at all.

The three of them returned to their own small boat.
The ghost ship rocked amidst the wind and waves, eventually drifting slowly toward the boundary line of the Death Triangle.
Then, the ghost ship abruptly stopped.
Right at the spot where Gu Xiangnan's boat had been lifted high by the gigantic waves.

Gu Xiangnan was quite curious; what would happen to this ghost ship next?

"Brrr-brrr-brrr~~~"
At that moment, the sound of a ship's engine echoed from afar.
It seemed the Death Triangle was quite a lively place!

This time, the vessel was traveling at a very fast speed.
Before long, it arrived right before them.
Human figures were swaying on board; clearly, it was not an empty ship.

Gu Xiangnan and the others grew vigilant once more.
The sword in Han Fei's grip was raised, ready to strike.

Someone on the approaching ship shouted:
"Comrade Gu Xiangnan, we are on your side."
The opposing party stated their stance directly.

Another person walked out from the cabin.
It was Yun Lengyue!

"Fifth Senior Sister!" Gu Xiangnan cried out in pleasant surprise.
"Xiaonan!" Yun Lengyue waved at him.

Gu Xiangnan boarded Yun Lengyue's ship, and the two of them entered a cabin to speak in private.
"Fifth Senior Sister, why are you here?"

With no outsiders present, Gu Xiangnan smiled and pulled Yun Lengyue into his arms.
He spoke with a glib tongue: "Oh, I get it. Did you miss me?"

After a long separation, the two of them engaged in affectionate banter for quite a while before finally parting.
Yun Lengyue said:
"Xiaonan, I am currently on a mission, and I happened to cross paths with you."

Gu Xiangnan was somewhat surprised: "This is the Death Triangle. What kind of mission could there be here?"

Yun Lengyue hesitated for a moment, as if she had made up her mind about something.
She spoke up:
"Beneath this Death Triangle, there is something mysterious."