Chapter 152: The System Told Me to Keep Heading South

At 8:30 p. m., a Dongfeng Mengshi smashed through the final layer of snow and stopped before the convoy.

At this point, the convoy had already adjusted all directions.

Without any nonsense, Han Dong immediately checked Tang Tang's condition; seeing she had not yet fully escaped danger, the group swiftly moved her to the back of the Mengshi.

"Make sure all tire chains are properly installed, keep pace, don't fall behind, get in the vehicle." Cheng Da had no affection for people who wasted their lives out in this hellish weather.

Fuck, you're not Master Qin—you can't even protect yourselves, yet you dare come onto the Xinjiang-Tibet Highway in winter? You're playing with your own lives.

Soon, Zhou Sihai dragged Fang Chengbao, the pickup towed the Range Rover, the Land Cruiser and G-Wagon followed behind, moving slowly toward Dahongliutan at ten kilometers per hour.

Qin Yun sat in the backseat of the G-Wagon, next to the chattering Xia Xiaoxing.

As soon as they got in, Xia Xiaoxing didn't stop talking, babbling nonstop, her eyes brimming with excitement. Xia Xiaochuan watched this with envy, thinking: Fuck, you don't even talk this much with your own brother, yet you're so chatty with a stranger.

When the car reached the Qitai Daban pass, Xia Xiaoxing suddenly realized something, slammed her hand hard on the front seat backrest, and exclaimed joyfully: "Big Brother Qin, let me introduce you—this is my brother, Xia Xiaochuan."

Xia Xiaochuan, eyes glistening with tears, quickly greeted: "Big Brother Qin, hello, thank you so much this time."

"Hello, you two really do look alike," Qin Yun scanned their faces, "but why on earth did you come to the Xinjiang-Tibet Highway this season? Normally, the entire route shuts down soon after. You could've waited a few more days—you wouldn't have gotten stranded here."

Xia Xiaochuan glanced at Xia Xiaoxing: "You'll have to ask her. I was sent by my dad to keep an eye on her—she insisted on joining the convoy for a self-drive trek across the Xinjiang-Tibet Highway."

Xia Xiaoxing's face flushed red, then she snapped: "Pay me back!"

"…."

Amid laughter and chatter, Xia Xiaoxing curiously asked: "Big Brother Qin, are you from Beijing?"

"Didn't you check your Moments?" Qin Yun shook his head. "After returning from Beijing, I picked up my car in Qinghai and kept traveling. When I got Zhong Li's call, I was already in Xinjiang—do you really think I could've gotten here that fast otherwise?"

"Oh!"

Xia Xiaoxing felt relieved—if not for Qin Yun, they might not have survived, and Tang Tang's condition could've reached an irreversible point. Just thinking about it was terrifying.

"Didn't you say you were going back to Quzhou to start working? Why are you out here again?"

Xia Xiaochuan immediately complained: "Big Brother Qin, you don't know—her job's already arranged, but she flat-out refuses to go, insists on waiting until after the New Year to start. She calls it 'appreciating our country's magnificent landscapes.' When we get back, Mom's righteous iron fist won't spare her."

Without this incident, with Dad and me around, we could've smoothed it over.

But nearly dying? That's not something you can brush off. Thinking of it, Xia Xiaoxing's heart sank, her face instantly drooping.

"Brother, can we drive back slowly?"

Qin Yun silently shook his head, looking ahead at the vehicles.

But he didn't see the vehicles—instead, the system panel dropped down.

【Publish check-in task: Host must hike from Qitai Daban to Shiquanhe (only allowed to carry: backpack, clothing, sleeping bag, water bottle, dagger, food, bamboo flute, and livestreaming gear; snowboard permitted). Complete by 12:00 noon, December 20 by drinking water from Shiquanhe.】

Three hours later, nearing midnight, under the lead of the Dongfeng Mengshi, the convoy finally arrived safely at Dahongliutan Military Station.

Qin Yun parked the vehicle; Sui Yang had already organized everything orderly.

Aside from Tang Tang needing medical attention, everyone else only needed accommodation—soldiers at the station handled it naturally, clearly used to such situations.

"Do you encounter this kind of thing often here?"

Sui Yang nodded: "Pretty much once a month. This is the plateau—problems happen easily. Our role is to provide support and relay services."

He sighed bitterly: "Originally, the station was meant to supply food, lodging, fuel, and medical aid to passing troops. But gradually, its functions expanded. Now it not only handles medical rescue and transport for plateau soldiers and civilians, but also serves as the main transportation and communication hub for vehicles and explorers."

"Do you know what people call our station?"

Qin Yun shook his head: "What do they call it?"

"They call us the Lighthouse of Life," Sui Yang said. "Because the station sits at high altitude, with harsh climate and sparse vegetation—it's practically a lifeless zone. Yet we offer hope to travelers, so they call us the Lighthouse of Life."

"Haha, that's a fitting name."

After everyone was settled, Qin Yun returned to his assigned room. It had originally been for military families—not spartan, with a bed, blankets, and very warm.

But…

He reactivated the system panel, stared at the check-in task, and frowned deeply.

From Qitai Daban to Shiquanhe, traveling the Yezhi Route is over five hundred kilometers; even the straight-line distance is three hundred kilometers.

Today is December 8—he had only twelve days. Twelve days to cover five hundred kilometers was as hard as surviving in a desert. He had to walk at least fifty kilometers daily, or he'd never make it.

Without a time limit, it would've been no challenge for him. The winter Xinjiang-Tibet Highway meant high altitude, extreme day-night temperature swings, and water scarcity—but none of that affected him. Only extreme weather like blizzards or hail posed real threats.

His gaze finally settled on the task's note: Only backpack, clothing, sleeping bag, water bottle, dagger, food, bamboo flute, and livestreaming gear permitted; snowboard allowed.

He could use the snowboard to quickly reach Tian Shuihai Military Station from Qitai Daban—but after that…

"Will I fail?"

Since the system appeared, he'd completed every check-in task without issue.

Was this the one he'd finally fail?

If he failed, what would the system do? Success brought skill rewards—would failure deduct skills?

He'd enjoyed the benefits of those skills—if it took away even one crucial one, who could bear it?

"No. I can't fail. I must complete it, no matter what."

The night passed without incident.

At six a. m. the next day, the station's bugle calls and training shouts rang out, piercingly loud.

The convoy members, who'd finally gotten a decent night's sleep, buried their heads under blankets but couldn't block the noise—eventually, they grudgingly got up.

After a night's rest, Tang Tang's condition improved further; her pulmonary edema symptoms had largely receded, but pneumonia wouldn't heal easily. With the crude conditions here, she must be rushed to a proper hospital.

But Xiang Nian's Range Rover and Su Wan's Fang Chengbao were both broken—if they towed them, progress would be far too slow.

After discussion, they decided: Zhou Sihai and Song Shanhe would drive ahead to escort Tang Tang to the hospital; Su Wan, Xia Xiaochuan, Xia Xiaoxing, and Xiang Nian would follow slowly behind, then have all vehicles shipped by road later.

After finalizing plans, everyone thanked Qin Yun and the soldiers at the station again, then hurriedly left Dahongliutan.

"You're shipping all your cars to Shanghai?"

Qin Yun asked Xia Xiaoxing.

Xia Xiaoxing nodded: "Yeah, Big Brother Qin—we shipped ours ahead when we came too."

Qin Yun thought for a moment, slipped the car key into Xia Xiaoxing's hand: "Then please help me ship my car back—I'll pick it up in Shanghai later."

"Huh?" Xia Xiaoxing blinked, her voice rising involuntarily. "Big Brother Qin, aren't you continuing to drive yourself?"

Xia Xiao Chuan and Su Wan nearby also turned to look.

Qin Yun smiled: "The new Xizang route is perfect for live streaming, so I plan to hike across it."

At these words, Xia Xiaoxing's jaw nearly dropped; Xia Xiao Chuan and Su Wan both showed expressions of shock.

"Big Brother Qin, you're not joking, are you?" Xia Xiaoxing asked quickly.

"I never joke about live streaming, and hiking across isn't that hard." Qin Yun finished speaking, walked to the trunk, and began preparing: he stuffed a few pairs of underwear into his clothes, then added a sleeping bag, water bottle, dagger, and drone.

Seeing Qin Yun wasn't joking, Xia Xiaoxing's restless heart instantly stirred, her eyes filled with longing.

But after glancing at Xia Xiao Chuan, the longing she'd just felt collapsed immediately; she could only sigh inwardly.

At that moment, He Guang walked out from inside and shook his head at Su Wan: "It still needs to be towed to the city for repair."

Qin Yun looked up at them, slung his backpack over his shoulder: "Let me take a look—if it's not a major issue, I should be able to fix it."

"Brother Qin knows how to repair cars?" He Guang's expression clearly betrayed disbelief.

Qin Yun smiled, thinking to himself: Vehicle Maintenance Skill was one of the first skills I ever acquired.

He turned to Xia Xiaoxing: "Then I'm counting on you for my car."

"Yeah, don't worry, Big Brother Qin—leave it to me."

Xia Xiaoxing agreed.

He Guang leaned over, still skeptical: "Brother Qin, that Fang Chengbao shows no visible damage on the outside, and the dashboard has no warning lights—how can you possibly fix it under these conditions?"

In his understanding, you had to know the problem before you could repair it.

But for Qin Yun, a Master-level Vehicle Maintenance Skill user, there were plenty of ways to detect a vehicle's faults.

"We'll see soon enough."

Seeing his confident demeanor, He Guang remained doubtful; Su Wan, however, was delighted—if her car could be repaired, that would be perfect; otherwise, she'd have to tow it herself and risk being scammed.

"Big Brother Qin, thank you."

Qin Yun waved his hand and stepped toward the Fang Chengbao.

From the surface alone, nothing could be seen—but according to He Guang, the car had shut down suddenly without warning: the ignition button yielded no lights, no sound, no response, the entire dashboard went black, as if the battery had been completely removed.

Under these conditions, Qin Yun quickly identified several possible causes.

He asked He Guang to bring tools and began inspecting; after eliminating several possibilities, he removed the underbody protective plate and, upon seeing the interior, smiled.

"Found the problem."

"Where? Where?" He Guang leaned in, but still saw nothing but darkness inside the plate.

Qin Yun pointed to a main negative ground wire on the chassis: "This Fang Chengbao's high-voltage battery doesn't directly power the whole vehicle—it must first convert high voltage to 12V via a DCDC converter. Extreme cold caused metal contraction, and bumps loosened the screw, creating a poor connection and cutting off power—so the entire 12V system went completely dormant."

As he spoke, he casually tightened the screw; the previously contracted, loose spot immediately resealed.

"Miss Su, hold the ignition button for fifteen seconds to reboot the entire vehicle."

"Got it!"

Su Wan opened the door, pressed the ignition button, her heart tense with anxiety.

He Guang understood every word Qin Yun said, but had never heard of DCDC before. Still, he now grasped that the Fang Chengbao's failure was simply due to a disconnected ground wire.

As time passed, the fifteen seconds vanished in an instant.

The next moment, the dashboard lit up—the car powered on. Seeing this, Su Wan cried out in delight and immediately started the motor and engine.

With a low rumble, the car's two major components sprang to life; the Fang Chengbao, dormant for over a day, awoke once more.

Xia Xiaoxing gazed at Qin Yun in awe: "Big Brother Qin, you're incredible—you actually fixed it!"

Qin Yun waved his hand, acting nonchalant: "Piece of cake. Alright, Xia Xiaoxing, get ready—I need you to drive me to Qitai Daban, then I'll start streaming."

As he spoke, Sui Yang and Cheng Da walked over.

Upon learning Qin Yun planned to stream while hiking to Shiquanhe, the two exchanged glances.

Especially Sui Yang—he simply couldn't understand. This was a high-altitude death zone; hiking across meant facing unpredictable dangers.

He even thought this was irresponsible toward himself.

Until Cheng Da leaned close to his ear and whispered that Qin Yun could earn over a million from this single livestream—then he instantly understood.