Chapter 260: Frequency of the Blizzard (120,000 Bonus Chapter—Thanks Again to That One Glimmer)

"His brother? Where is he?"

Sun Kai's gaze turned to the ice valley behind him: "He died on the last day, covering our group. Did you see the tear on the nanoceramic viewport of Unit-01's head? His brother, Chen Lie, was ripped out by a weird entity. In the end, Chen Wei piloted this mech alone and protected the rest of us."

After speaking, he looked at Lin Xian with deep meaning: "He's just like this—cold to everyone, and he hates psychics. Word is, after the Awakening Day, his whole family was slaughtered by a gang of psychic bandits. Now his brother's gone too. Plus, after he linked his mind to Unit-01's neural sync system, he suffered mental trauma. Don't take it personally—he's rude, but you risked your lives to come help. I apologize on his behalf."

Lin Xian fell silent for a moment, then sighed: "Commander Sun, you're too kind. We didn't really help much. Looks like we need another plan."

"Piloting a mech with neural sync alone?!" Kiki exclaimed in shock: "He didn't die?!"

"He's just lucky…" Sun Kai nodded.

Kiki said to Sun Kai: "By the way, you said Leader Yu's group has an escape plan—what is it? Are we just waiting for Xilan City's rescue?"

Shi Di spoke up: "They're planning to have this mech fire some kind of signal to lure the monsters, then use a self-destruct to kill or severely wound that black worm and give us a chance to escape. I don't know the details—they already had a rough direction before you arrived."

"Quantum dot nanoclusters," Sun Kai said. "It's an experimental device Unit-01 was testing to attract monsters. Supposedly, these nanoparticles can form an entangled state with the 'mother quantum well' in the monster nests—too complex for me to understand."

Lin Xian looked at him, thinking: You just explained the principle in such convoluted terms—how can you say you don't understand?

"But there's another plan," Sun Kai continued. "Proposed by Chen Wei. He and his brother were both Level 5 Coherence Coefficient pilots. Now his brother's dead, and there's still one Level 3 Coherence Coefficient pilot left in the team. Chen Wei wants to take him and try forcibly activating Unit-01 to carve a path for all of us."

"As for rescue… In this situation, communication's cut off. In the blizzard, you can't even tell direction. Even that flying psychic might not make it to Xilan City. So it's just a backup. The key is our own escape."

Lin Xian nodded: "Relying solely on rescue won't work. Too many weird entities have gathered in this valley—even with rescue, the odds are slim."

Kiki caught a key detail and turned to Sun Kai: "Activate the mech? You mean this mech can still be activated?!"

Sun Kai immediately felt awkward: "I don't really know the tech issues with this mech. But since they proposed this plan, maybe… it's possible?"

He then said to Shi Di and Lin Xian: "You two talk. I'll go report the recon findings."

With that, he left.

"Holy shit, this thing can be activated?!" Shi Di, watching Sun Kai's reaction, suddenly looked enlightened and turned to stare at the giant steel giant.

"It's not that simple," Lin Xian said. "If it were, the first plan would've been this—not self-destructing the mech."

Shi Di opened his mouth, then closed it. After a long pause, he sighed deeply and stared at the snowstorm.

"This is a mess. I thought Dragon Mountain No. had already reached Xilan City—I figured even if I died here, it wouldn't be so bad. But now the whole damn convoy's still stuck. Fuck, I should've stayed home!"

Lin Xian looked at him: "No matter what, you'd still come. You'll never be a cold, selfish man."

"Exactly," Kiki smiled. "At Yubei Airport, when that Federation guy Taylor was about to shoot us survivors, you rushed out without even knowing the situation. Shi Brother, admit it—you're a good person."

"Good person…"

Shi Di grimaced, annoyed: "Cursed bastard—I'm responsible for so many lives. What am I supposed to do?"

"There are other options, Shi Brother. I'll go with Kiki to check out that mech."

"Alright," Shi Di turned. "Go ahead. I'll check the front line. We'll regroup before nightfall and discuss further."

"Mm."

Lin Xian immediately led Kiki toward the giant mech.

The Star Army soldiers and technicians around them didn't stop them—they were all on the same boat. Other survivors had already gathered, curious, some even touching the mech. No one interfered.

"The closer we get, the bigger it feels."

At the mech's arm, Kiki used her psychic ability to create a large shield against the snowstorm, letting them clearly see the industrial beauty of the metal lines on the mechanical limb.

"Humans built this weapon. Such a civilization… how could it lose to these beasts of darkness?" Lin Xian reached out and touched the cold finger armor plate, murmuring softly.

"The allure of machinery… is mesmerizing."

Lin Xian slowly opened his eyes. At that moment, the Mechanical Heart activated.

*Clang!

The moment the Mechanical Heart touched the steel giant in the snowstorm, a silent, colossal vibration echoed through the depths of the Trakama Ice Valley, through the frigid vortex of heaven and earth!

Lin Xian didn't scan blueprints—he knew he had no time to analyze this massive machine. He let the Mechanical Heart spread across Unit-01, using his own perception to replace scanning, attempting to envelop the entire mech.

The advantage: he could instantly *feel* this industrial giant without expending much energy, understanding its flaws through his current mechanical knowledge.

*Hummmmm~*

The Mechanical Heart became a celestial viewpoint, flowing from the hidden foldable high-frequency blade chain on Unit-01's wrist, past the six cylindrical ultra-capacitors behind the plasma cannon, over the shoulder armor, through the multi-faceted jointed torso over a hundred meters tall. The niobium-titanium superconducting ring in the chest reactor pulsed orange-yellow. As his perception sank into the magnetorheological fluid transmission chamber of the knee joint, time collapsed into fluid. He saw hydraulic rods tracing Möbius strips in four-dimensional space; every friction of the nano-bearings birthed new parallel universes. In his perception, Unit-01 stood whole and complete beneath the aurora of the ice valley.

"Huh~"

Under the blizzard, Lin Xian exhaled a long plume of frost.

When he passed through the neural sync cockpit, he learned the mech's official name: Pangu.

At that moment, an overwhelming, earth-shaking grandeur surged through him. His understanding of machinery reached a higher plane of thought.

Kiki, shielding him from the snowstorm with her psychic power, watched him open his eyes and blurted: "So fast? What did you find?"

Lin Xian said gravely: "The main external structure is mostly intact except for the tear on the left arm and the head's nanoceramic viewport. But I noticed the tear damaged part of the internal mainframe. That's probably a major problem."

Kiki asked: "You mean the main control system is broken?"

Lin Xian nodded, analyzing: "To scare off the monster horde, Unit-01 activated its nuclear core. When we arrived, I wondered why Chen Wei had to link to the main control system. Now I see—it was to manually control subsystems like exhaust and bridge power, which normally rely on the AI."

"So they still dare to activate this mech?!" Kiki gasped. "Even if we had five more Level 5 Coherence pilots, it wouldn't help! All those subsystems rely on manual control? Chen Wei would have a brain hemorrhage before he even got the mech standing."

Lin Xian fell into thought. He couldn't imagine how Chen Wei had managed to pilot this mech alone. Thousands of sensors and controllers, integrated into dozens of control units, all normally overseen by AI. Even neural sync was complex enough—how could manual control demand such insane mental and willpower loads?

"So… you really can't fix it?" Kiki asked.

Lin Xian smiled bitterly and shook his head: "Impossible. Even with enough time, I could only repair mechanical damage—maybe fix the left arm's tear. But the AI mainframe? I can't rebuild that."

"Then what now?" Kiki frowned. "Our people are waiting. If we wait till night, they'll run into trouble."

Lin Xian looked at Kiki's worried face and felt a quiet surprise—this girl actually cares about the whole convoy's safety now…

"Don't panic. Even if we can't fix the mech, there are other options. Before we met Leader Yu, I already told you I probably couldn't fix this thing."

Kiki looked at Lin Xian: "So you have another plan?"

"Yes… but…"

Lin Xian glanced at his watch, thought for a moment, then gestured to Kiki: "Quick—I need your help."

…

It was 3: 0 PM. The blizzard intensified. The defensive line around Unit-01 formed a narrow arc. Besides Shi Di's support group, entire convoys had poured out—people originally heading for Xilan City, now trapped.

On the Dragon Mountain No. all-terrain train, Shi Di and his men were preparing ammunition. Ning Jing counted the survivors, her face grim as she walked over.

"Shi, we have to break out before nightfall. Dragon Mountain No. has so many people—only Lu Yong's watching them. If a monster tide hits, they're done."

Shi Di locked a belt of ammo into the drum, paused, then said: "Leader Yu and Commander Sun are still discussing a plan. They'll call everyone soon. We'll make a push before nightfall. But without this mech to scare off that black worm, we've got nothing."

"Didn't Fatty say the armed squad went down into the valley looking for another way out?" Ning Jing asked anxiously.

"That's even worse than waiting for rescue."

Shi Di shook his head: "The valley's full of ravines—no vehicle can pass. Even if there's a path, we can't march through this blizzard on foot. Without these vehicles, we won't survive five miles."

Ning Jing sighed, then turned to Abai:

"Abai, can you still sense the monster aura on us?"

Abai sat in the corner, looked up, and whispered: "After we touched the monsters… we all carry some now."

Ning Jing looked down at herself, eyes sharp: "What did Lin Team Leader say? He's a mechanical psychic—can he help?"

"Heh."

Shi Di suddenly stood up: "He's got a plan. That kid's saved tens of thousands. This won't stop him. But…"

He turned serious to Ning Jing: "Whether Dragon Mountain No. escapes this blizzard might depend on him. So tonight, no matter what, we must ensure Lin Brother gets out safely. Only then will both trains have a chance."

"You all heard that, right?!"

He scanned the others. Everyone's expression hardened. They all nodded without hesitation.

In the snowstorm, Lin Xian stood alone beneath Unit-01 Pangu, staring up at the massive nuclear turbine engine, feeling its heat drive away the cold. He felt as if he might be swallowed by the beautiful vortex.

"Handsome, having trouble?"

A sharp voice rang out. Lin Xian turned and saw Qian Dele, wrapped in a sable fur coat, studying him with interest.

Lin Xian glanced behind him, then back at Qian Dele, surprised: "You moved fast. When did you get behind me?"

"Just now."

Qian Dele's eyes swept over Lin Xian, then slowly took in Unit-01: "Everyone thinks only this giant thing can save us. Do you think the same?"

"It's normal. With such a weapon behind you, anyone would want to lean on it."

"Lean on it? Hah—freezing to death!"

Qian Dele tightened his coat, looking at Unit-01 calmly: "But after all this running, this is the first human weapon that makes those ugly monsters hesitate. The Emperor Project… makes us survivors feel humanity isn't so small after all."

Lin Xian said directly: "Do you know about the Dark Mark?"

Qian Dele looked at him, puzzled, waiting.

"We discovered that Dark Weird Entities communicate and hunt using a language or method—they leave invisible marks on prey. These marks turn us into beacons in the dark, drawing other hunters."

"Interesting," Qian Dele said, intrigued. "So these monsters are pretty organized."

"Huh?" Lin Xian was startled—he'd never heard anyone focus on this point before. He found himself drawn into discussion.

"Your first thought was this?"

Qian Dele's gaze was proud. He spoke with nostalgia: "Before the apocalypse, my favorite hobbies were shopping and hunting. As a licensed professional hunter, I had a rule: if I wanted a target, no other hunter could take it."

"Why?" Lin Xian asked.

"Why? " Qian Dele smiled faintly at Lin Xian. "Hunters enjoy the hunt itself—not the kill. Like fishermen—they love the act of catching fish. If they just wanted to eat fish, they'd buy one from the supermarket. Besides… I don't even like meat."

"Fishermen love to fish, love to feed fish—but hate eating fish." Lin Xian recalled his college days, skipping class to fish—fully equipped, looking impressive, always coming back empty. His dorm mates used to tease him by forcing him to eat fish…

"Hehehe~" Qian Dele chuckled. "Hunters never share their prey. So your Dark Mark… doesn't sound like hunter-prey. It sounds more like…"

"A bounty?"

Lin Xian's expression turned grim: "I've always believed the Dark Weird Entities don't just want to eat us—they want us to vanish."

"So when I heard that giant black worm won't come near here, I was confused. Before, monsters charged without fear. Why is this worm afraid? Just because Unit-01 killed one of its kind?"

Qian Dele frowned: "Monsters have survival instincts. That's normal."

Lin Xian lowered his head, busily crafting something, then looked up at the massive Unit-01 mech and replied coolly, "Maybe."

Qian Dele crossed his arms, gazing deeply at Lin Xian, then turned to look behind him and said, "Let's go. Deputy Chief Yu invited several team leaders from our convoys to discuss an escape plan. Even though you're only two people, I think you should still attend."

With that, he turned and left.

Lin Xian glanced at the time on his watch, his expression grim. At that moment, a slender figure descended from the snowstorm, enveloped in an invisible psychic barrier. Kiki's face was flushed red from the cold as she landed and spoke to Lin Xian.

"Done."

"Let's go. Time's running short." Lin Xian nodded, and the two hurried toward the command tent.

As they entered the command tent, warmth rushed over them. Inside, Shi Di, Xiang Ningjing, Qian Dele, Sun Kai, and the leaders of five other convoys had gathered, along with members of the Emperor Project team including Yu Yuheng. Over thirty people filled the tent. The atmosphere was heavy—everyone sensed danger drawing near.

The frequency of the snow demon raids was increasing. They might hold out for one night, but not necessarily two. Everyone knew: before nightfall, they had to take a gamble.

Lin Xian and Kiki entered. All eyes turned toward them. Shi Di and Xiang Ningjing nodded in greeting. Captain Sun also offered a silent nod. Lin Xian and Kiki slipped through the crowd to a corner.

At that moment, Lin Xian noticed the pilot named Chen Wei sitting on a work chair not far behind Yu Yuheng, clad in a military overcoat, his face stern. Wires from sensors and IV tubes coiled around one arm—he appeared to be undergoing treatment.

Yu Yuheng, seeing everyone had arrived, called on Sun Kai and began speaking directly.

"It's 15: 0. Sunset is in two hours and forty minutes, plus or minus ten minutes. I've called you here to urgently discuss our escape plan."

Sun Kai stepped forward and said, "All of you came to support us in our predicament. I'll state this first: no matter which plan we choose, my Armed Company will lead the vanguard."

"Hey!"

Shi Di cut him off sharply, waving his hand boldly: "No need. Unity matters most. We must act based on reality. My armored train is the thickest—it should lead. Use armor first. Don't make other units take the front line!"

"Exactly! What's the worst that can happen? I'll just die."

"Talking like this makes us sound afraid of death…"

Other convoy leaders chimed in. They'd all chosen to come here—none were selfish. Though only two days had passed, they'd bonded quickly. At a moment like this, no one cared about such things.

"Let's get back to the plan," Qian Dele interrupted, arms crossed, voice loud. "We're getting ahead of ourselves."

Yu Yuheng adjusted his glasses, his expression serious.

"We've prepared two plans: a frontal breakout, and abandoning our position to retreat through the ice valley's rear."

"Let's hear the second one first."

Yu Yuheng looked at Sun Kai, who nodded and addressed the group: "We scouted the ice valley floor three times and found an ice tunnel—about three kilometers long—that leads directly to a gentle slope on the northern side. I observed it: from there, we can reach the snow plains near Yazehu, then circle around. The only problem is vehicles. If we use this plan, we can only take small snowmobiles. We must abandon all heavy vehicles and head west toward Xilan City."

"Our Emperor Project team still has over a dozen small snowmobiles—all fully enclosed, effectively light travel. We've tested the route three times and encountered no anomalies. It's the most discreet evacuation option we have."

Yu Yuheng added, "The advantage of a light evacuation is speed and higher safety from anomalies. The only risk is encountering anomalies once we enter other zones. In that case, it becomes a gamble."

"What about the frontal breakout?" Xiang Ningjing asked.

Yu Yuheng said directly: "Here's the frontal breakout plan."

This device is called a Quantum Dot Nanocluster Resonance Generator, a form of energy we discovered based on the cold dark fundamental particles of the Dark Invasion; we currently believe the emitted nanoparticles can induce resonance in the perception systems of the Strange Beings—in simple terms, simulating the monsters' method of communication to attract them. This was originally one of the experimental projects of our Emperor Plan, and it has been proven effective in prior operations: after we fired these nanoparticles at the target Strange Being, Chen Wei and his brother, while piloting Unit-01, immediately encountered a large-scale attack by Strange Beings as soon as they entered the night. So we repaired the device overnight and prepared an autonomous program, designed to attract the Snow Witches or that black worm.

"This device is called a Quantum Dot Nanocluster Resonance Generator. It's based on a form of energy we discovered from the cold-dark base particles of the Dark Invasion. We believe the emitted nanoprobes can induce resonance in the anomalies' perception systems—in other words, mimic monster communication to lure them. This was originally one of our Emperor Project experiments. Previous operations confirmed its effectiveness: after firing these nanoprobes at a target anomaly, Chen Wei and his brother, piloting Unit-01, were immediately attacked by a large-scale anomaly surge during nightfall. We've since repaired the device and programmed an autonomous system to attract snow demons or that black worm."

Kiki, standing in the corner, frowned. She whispered to Lin Xian: "Hey, doesn't his description sound less like luring anomalies and more like he's tagging himself with a Dark Mark?"

"It's definitely a Dark Mark," Lin Xian replied grimly. "Too bad I didn't bring the Hell Black Chrysanthemum…"

"What does that mean?!" Hearing Yu Yu's explanation, Shi Di, standing at the front, immediately frowned: "I don't understand—so we're attracting those monsters? Then where do we run?"

"What does that mean?!" Shi Di, standing at the front, frowned. "I didn't understand. If we lure the monsters, where do we run?"

"I'm explaining the technical principle first," Yu Yuheng said. "This device hasn't been tested unmanned. Its feasibility is still uncertain, so we've prepared multiple contingencies."

Kiki whispered to Lin Xian: "I knew it. I thought they'd used an unmanned device to lure the monsters. Now it's clear—Chen Wei and his brother were marked during combat. This plan won't work."

"Wait. Let him finish," Lin Xian murmured.

Yu Yuheng signaled a technician to bring forward a glass container holding a green liquid, with a small device mounted above it.

"This is blood from the dead black worm. We extracted a portion still biologically active. The device above is a volatile emitter. Over the past two days, you've all noticed the black worm won't approach here. Our hypothesis matches yours: this is our second contingency—to carry the worm's blood and replicate its deterrent effect, adding another layer of safety to our breakout."

"Finally, the third contingency."

Yu Yuheng stepped forward, holding a second glass container. "We manufactured two of these devices. So for this breakout, we split into two groups."

"Split into two groups?" Qian Dele frowned.

"Correct," Yu Yuheng said, eyes resolute. "If the first and second contingencies fail, splitting into two groups ensures at least one team avoids the black worm."

"In other words, half of us might survive!"

At this, everyone paled.

"Damn. That sounds brutal," said a convoy leader wearing a thick hat, visibly shaken.

Yu Yuheng shrugged. "There's no better option. Both the resonance generator and the worm's blood remain theoretical. If they work, both teams might survive. As a researcher, I must act pragmatically. Splitting up increases survival odds."

His words plunged many into silence. In the escape, whoever encountered the black worm would almost certainly be wiped out. Survival in this blizzard was nearly impossible.

"Is there no other plan? What about reinforcements from Xilan City?" someone asked.

"I advise against relying on reinforcements," Yu Yuheng said calmly. "Xilan City is over a thousand kilometers away. Even flight-capable adepts struggle to survive in this extreme cold and blizzard. Even if they avoid anomalies and get lost, can they even find their way? And even if they arrive, can they hold back a massive anomaly tide?"

"Our Emperor Project's Armed Company had strong firepower and several Assaulters. Now we're down to fewer than twenty men. Less than three hours remain until nightfall. Waiting for rescue is worse than acting. After nightfall, our survival rate plummets. You all know this."

He looked at Qian Dele. "I know that adept is your subordinate. But I'm sorry—we can't just wait."

"I believe my partner will reach Xilan City," Qian Dele said, hands tucked in his sleeves, voice calm. "But he won't make it here before nightfall."

"Then it seems breakout is our only option," Shi Di said, arms crossed. He turned to Sun Kai. "Captain Sun, forget the ice valley route. Abandoning heavy firepower and armor—even if we escape the valley, we won't get far."

"Agreed," Xiang Ningjing added. "Your team's small-scale movement might work, but when our main force moves, the anomalies will follow immediately. We'll be buried in the valley with no chance to fight back."

The covert retreat had never been seriously considered. For these survivors, armor and firepower were their only sense of security.

Besides, though none knew the term "Dark Mark," they all understood: how could monsters possibly fall for a decoy?

Sun Kai nodded. He understood their concerns. He said:

"Then we proceed with the breakout. Two routes: straight north, or a western detour. Choose your path. Our Armed Company will…"

"There's another plan!"

Before Sun Kai finished, a loud voice cut him off from behind.

Everyone turned. Chen Wei stood up, walked forward, and declared sternly: "There's another plan. One that lets everyone survive."

Yu Yuheng stepped forward immediately, blocking him with a firm tone: "Chen Wei, I've told you—your plan is technically unfeasible."

"What's unfeasible?"

Chen Wei pulled forward a young technician from the team. "Xiao Yang is a Level-3 Coherent Coefficient pilot. I've piloted Unit-01 alone before. With Xiao Yang handling signal relay, we can operate it."

Yu Yuheng shouted back: "You survived those 46 minutes only because the blizzard didn't fry your brain inside the cockpit, and because the auxiliary mainframe kept weapons online. You're alive because you're lucky!"

"If we're going to sacrifice the mech, let me do it. I'll take that damn worm down with me. Two deaths are better than two teams gambling their lives!"

He locked eyes with Yu Yuheng, voice steady: "I know the Emperor Project sees me as valuable. But don't you know the Phoenix Society's highest principle?"

Yu Yuheng's face shifted under his gaze. He trembled, adjusted his glasses, and shouted hysterically: "I've told you—it's a technical issue, not an asset calculation! Doing this will only…"

Chen Wei grabbed Yu Yuheng's collar, gritted his teeth, and spoke slowly: "I'm not afraid of death. I'm afraid of dying uselessly."

The tent fell icy silent.

"Enough. Stop arguing."

A light female voice interrupted. Everyone turned. Kiki, standing in the corner, arms crossed, spoke to Chen Wei:

"You're rude, but you've got guts. I admire that. But I have to tell you—he's right. Your plan is just Rexue. It'll only get you killed."

Chen Wei glared at Kiki: "What did you say?!"

"I said you'll die pointlessly." Kiki met his gaze without flinching, speaking quickly and confidently: "Technically, this mech has two problems besides the damaged AI core: extreme cold. It's been offline over 24 hours. Except the power core, every engine, drive, and joint hinge must be rebooted—and de-iced. Starting it now is orders of magnitude harder than keeping it running during combat."

"Put bluntly: even if you two get in, within an hour you won't be able to stand. Your brains will be cooked by millions of neural feedback glitches. Add all the other issues. You've piloted this thing—you know its difficulty. Are you sure adding someone with zero experience solves anything?"

Kiki's words left Chen Wei speechless. He opened his mouth, then looked at Yu Yuheng.

Yu Yuheng pulled free, adjusted his glasses: "I've told you repeatedly: I reject your plan purely on technical grounds. No one understands this mech better than I do. You two will die pointlessly—and waste our time."

"And you," he added, turning to Kiki, "don't get too smug. Your plan is just theoretical."

Just as everyone thought the argument was over, Kiki suddenly turned her spearhead on Yu Yuheng—leaving everyone confused.

"Me?" Yu Yuheng blinked.

All eyes turned to Kiki. Yu Yuheng's plan had seemed logical—three contingencies, brutal but viable.

Kiki sighed at Yu Yuheng's question: "You've rarely faced anomalies directly, have you? Never experienced real danger?"

Yu Yuheng bristled: "Are you questioning my experience?"

"It's not about experience. It's about common sense."

Kiki raised a finger: "Whether it's a lure device or worm blood—you ignored the most basic fact. These monsters have eyes, noses, ears. They lock onto us in darkness. They're intelligent. We've faced them countless times in nightfall—either we flee, die, or kill them. But have you ever seen one miss?"

Yu Yuheng froze. Chen Wei narrowed his eyes.

"And your split-team plan? That's even worse. We barely hold our position with everyone together. Why would splitting up improve survival? How many snow demons and snow beasts are out there? Tens of thousands? Hundreds of thousands? Millions? Against them, we're nothing. Split into two teams? Twenty? It won't matter. You'll just die faster."

Kiki continued, voice sharp: "And there's another dead black worm three kilometers away. How do you know there's only one underground?"

At this, Yu Yuheng fell silent. Shi Di, Qian Dele, and others paled. These were convoy leaders—they instantly grasped the flaw.

"So you're saying we just wait for rescue?" Chen Wei snapped. Kiki's words doused every hope. Before even moving, they were already defeated. To a soldier, this was unbearable.

"Kiki, Lin Brother," Shi Di had noticed Lin Xian and Kiki standing quietly at the edge. Now that Kiki had dismissed every plan, he leaned forward urgently: "Do you have another idea?"

"Of course we do," Kiki said.

Lin Xian, seeing Kiki had dismantled both Yu Yuheng's and Chen Wei's plans, stepped forward and said to Yu Yuheng: "Director Yu, we all recognize one thing: as Phoenix Society officials, you put your own safety last and stood before us survivors to face hardship. Your courage and conviction are worthy of respect."

Yu Yuheng, still stung by Kiki's criticism, looked uneasy. Hearing Lin Xian's words, his tone softened: "If you have a better plan, just say it. No flattery needed. She's right—I'm just a technician. I lack experience…"

Lin Xian nodded, checked the time, and stepped forward, voice firm:

"The plan is simple. We all break out together before nightfall."

The tent fell utterly silent. Everyone stared at Lin Xian, stunned.

What kind of plan was that?

What is this plan?

Chen Wei's eyes flashed with anger—he had assumed Lin Xian stepped forward with some well-planned strategy, but this was it?

Just charge straight out? That's obvious—why would everyone be hiding here if they could just run out?

Even Shi Di, who always supported Lin Xian, was now baffled. He stared at Lin Xian, puzzled, and said, "Uh… Lin Brother, that's it?"

"Not quite," Lin Xian said, no time for riddles. His expression turned serious and decisive.

"First, I want to remind you all: haven't you forgotten something important? It's daytime—15: 0."

Lin Xian glanced at his watch and continued: "All the snow wraiths emerge from the snowpack and can't endure prolonged exposure to sunlight. They become more active during heavy blizzards, which clearly shows light is dangerous to aberrations—including that giant worm. It surfaced twice, each time retreating underground quickly. Wherever its body was exposed to light, our firepower tore chunks of flesh off it. Doesn't that prove something?"

"We know that," Qian Dele crossed his arms, smug. "At night, these monsters aren't this quiet."

"And then?" Yu Yu frowned at Lin Xian.

Seeing everyone still confused, Lin Xian stepped forward, took Yu Yu's mobile terminal, and handed it straight to Kiki.

"Kid."

"Got it," Kiki responded instantly, perfectly in sync.

At that moment, a screen behind Yu Yu projected a temporary terrain curvature map.

Lin Xian pointed to one location: "We're near the Tela Kama Ice Valley, close to Yazehu. The extreme cold causes cold air to cling to the ground—that's an inversion layer. Combined with the midday veil of frigid vortex clouds, sunlight is weak. But after the inversion layer dissipates in the afternoon, the sun's oblique rays, plus snow's diffuse reflection, make this the brightest period of the day."

"To be more precise…" Lin Xian checked his watch again. "It's between 16: 0 and 17: 0. That's when we break out—highest chance of success."

"Hmph."

Chen Wei grew impatient: "This is pure nonsense. The clouds overhead blot out the sky—do you expect the sun to obey you?"

Yu Yu's expression darkened: "The blizzard is fierce. Weather conditions are unpredictable. I understand your point, but sunlight—"

"I can handle the light," Lin Xian cut him off.

Everyone stared in shock.

"Lin Captain," Sun Kai stared at him, bewildered. "What do you mean?"

Before anyone could react, Lin Xian spun and unleashed a gravitational lens into the tent's main hall.

Hum!

Instantly, a tiny spatial vortex appeared inside the tent. Light twisted and layered. All computer screens flickered with interference—curved snowflake patterns surged toward the distortion.

Whoosh—the next instant, everything returned to normal.

"I can briefly alter the light in the sky. My ability can do that."

Lin Xian's words detonated like a bomb. Chen Wei and Yu Yu's faces changed instantly—eyes wide with astonishment.

"Wait—you can control the weather?"

"Not that extreme," Lin Xian said, avoiding deeper explanation. "I just amplify light. It's useless normally, but since these monsters come out during the day, it's suddenly useful." He feigned modesty—he didn't fully understand his gravitational lens himself.

"Also, there's another critical point you've all overlooked. Before we came here, no snow wraiths appeared anywhere near Yazehu. Yet now they've gathered here in huge numbers. The reason might be tied to this mech or some high-level aberration. But if we flee, they'll keep chasing us. We can't reach Xilan City in two hours. Even if we escape, without extraction, we won't survive their pursuit."

"But my Infinite and Shi Brother's Longshan No. are parked on the North Line track, about a hundred kilometers from here. The entire convoy is ready to provide covering fire. If we reach our target, we'll get heavy support. With a two-way rendezvous, we stand a chance of holding out until nightfall and reaching Xilan City."

"Wait!"

Yu Yu, stunned and confused, stared at Lin Xian: "The storm has jammed all signals here—how the hell did you contact a convoy a hundred kilometers away?!"

"Yeah," Shi Di muttered from the crowd. "How the hell did he even reach Longshan No. ? I didn't know."

Xiang Ningjing beside him suddenly realized something—her face lit up.

"Who said I couldn't connect?" Lin Xian pulled out his communicator in front of everyone.

"Hey, Chen Laoshi—has Fire Brother cleared the path yet?" He pressed the comm button, linking to the Infinite.

"Krk… zzzzz…"

Then, through the static, Chen Sixuan's voice rang out clearly inside the silent tent!

Tap-tap-tap!

Lin Xian waved his hand, producing a signal pillar in plain view. He held it up, weighing it in his palm. "I'm cautious. When I came to find Shi Brother, I feared getting lost—I planted a signal pillar every few hundred meters."

He turned to Yu Yu, still frozen in shock: "Commander Yu, I need to report something. My last signal tower was two kilometers away. I didn't have time to pre-deploy it because of the aberration surge, so I just used the Hyper-Frequency Relay on the Initial Unit to create a bridge system—redirected the signal."

Yu Yu's glasses slipped down his nose. He opened his mouth, speechless: "You… you… when…?"

Lin Xian glanced at Kiki. Yu Yu followed his gaze. Kiki smiled, eyes half-lidded: "Don't worry—I didn't peek at your secrets~"

"Good kid!" Shi Di boomed with approval. "So you had backup all along! Hahahaha!"

Qian Dele stared at Lin Xian with awe, then gave him a thumbs-up: "This guy? Definitely not ordinary."

"This plan's solid," a convoy elder said, excited.

"Definitely worth trying!" Others began to agree.

Sun Kai looked at Lin Xian, his breath quickening. The entire team was assembling for a breakout—terrain, weather, daylight conditions—all accounted for. Most crucially, the extraction problem, which had been unsolvable, was now fixed. Nothing was perfect, but Lin Xian's plan was the only one that could keep them alive.

In that moment, the entire tent erupted with energy. A real, desperate hope—wild and fierce—began to surge through every heart.

Outside the Tela Kama Ice Valley, fierce winds and snow raged. Across the snowfield, gray signal pillars stood planted every few hundred meters, their green lights pulsing like breath—electronic beacons in a white ocean, transmitting the storm's frequency.

(End of Chapter)