Although we were lucky to temporarily escape the underwater creatures, our situation remained dire. Just escaping had drained a significant amount of my strength, and I already felt weak, let alone dragging Qi Xinxin, a burden, along with me.
Fortunately, just as I was about to collapse, a piece of wreckage from our ship floated towards us with the current. The three of us desperately clung to it, managing to stay afloat.
When we first set sail, the sunlight on the sea had turned the ocean a golden yellow, appearing warm and inviting. However, now submerged in the icy water, we could only feel a bone-chilling cold, the kind that pulls one into the abyss of death.
I watched as Qi Qiaoqiao's lips turned a pale purple. If we continued to drift at sea like this, we were doomed! My eyes scanned the vast expanse of blue water, seeing no sign of land. Despair washed over me; where on earth could we possibly go!
But fate seemed to enjoy playing games with us. Just as I was preparing to bid farewell to life, a turning point suddenly arrived. Qi Xinxin had resigned herself to her fate, but then she saw something and shouted my name, urging me to look back.
In this situation, could a piece of land magically appear out of nowhere? I turned my head in the direction Qi Xinxin was pointing. Through a thick fog, the silhouette of a large ship suddenly emerged! I stared in disbelief. Were there others here in the mist besides me and the company people?
At that moment, alongside my surprise, there was a hint of suspicion. We had been clinging to the wreckage in the water for nearly half an hour. If we remained in the water any longer, we would inevitably succumb to hypothermia and die.
Even though the sudden appearance of a large ship was strange, we had no other options. We had to venture towards it, even if it was a ghost ship! The two sisters had lost all their strength, but with my encouragement, the three of us swam towards the large ship.
Perhaps it was an illusion, but the ship seemed two stories high to me. Yet, as we got closer, its actual size was only slightly larger than our own vessel. We were now approaching the ship, and before I could get a clear look, a person suddenly stood up on deck and gestured towards us, seemingly holding a gun.
"Don't shoot, we're people, please save us!" Qi Qiaoqiao, panicked, shouted towards the person on the ship.
"Come over slowly, or I'll shoot you!" I heard a hoarse, low male voice, like sandpaper scraping against a wall, making one feel utterly uncomfortable.
We slowly approached as the man instructed. It seemed we were likely to be saved. But… something felt off? I frowned, thinking about the two sisters beside me, who were simply overjoyed and hadn't noticed.
"Show me your hands, come closer slowly, or I'll shoot!" the man suddenly spoke again, and it was as if I had been jolted awake, a sudden realization dawning on me. Wasn't this man on the ship the same person I had been holding a gun on earlier?! Although the man's voice was unpleasant, the familiar sensation immediately linked it to the previous scene.
"Yes, slowly approach," the two sisters were still filled with delight, while my hands and feet had gone cold. What on earth was happening?! I couldn't figure it out for the life of me, but there was no doubt that if we boarded this ship, we likely wouldn't be able to get off.
Fortunately, the thick fog still obscured our movements, so the people on the ship wouldn't see our subtle actions. I quickly signaled to the two sisters, telling them to slow down, and my mind raced, trying to devise a way to escape.
If this were an illusion, it felt too real. The man's voice was right by my ear, clear and distinct. But if it wasn't an illusion, then this situation was beyond my comprehension. Did such a thing as reincarnation truly exist in this world? What I had done to the company people was now happening to me. It was a deeply ironic twist of fate.
We had no retreat. Lingering in the sea was just waiting to die. It was better to fight the people on the ship. Even if they were demons or monsters, I would tear off a piece of them before I died! I hardened my resolve. Even if I died, I refused to perish in the sea like this!
Just as I made up my mind, a gust of wind suddenly swept in, and some of the thick fog was blown away…