Chapter 97

Turned off the livestream, plugged in the equipment, and Qin Yun began figuring out how to survive this night.

Glanced at the thermometer—the temperature had dropped to minus thirty degrees; Earth had truly become increasingly strange. He had checked historical data—previously, during late October to early November, temperatures never exceeded minus eighteen degrees.

But now it reached this low—absurd.

Yet although the temperature was frigid, as long as there was no rain, it posed little impact on dry climbing. Modern technology ensures insulation gear retains heat effectively; so long as sufficient energy intake is maintained, there's no danger from the cold.

Setting up camp was impossible—no place to drive in pegs. At this altitude, he could only crawl into his sleeping bag and lean against the rock face, trying to avoid the wind.

But it was still too early to sleep; the drone was charging, and his phone had no signal. Qin Yun took out his stove and began melting snow for water. Though he couldn't cook anything, the snow at this altitude held virtually no surviving bacteria—no risk of diarrhea.

As the snowwater boiled, he tossed in the pre-packaged, rock-hard noodles, then dumped in dried meat, sausage, shiitake mushrooms, and other ingredients all at once.

Soon, the aroma spread, and Qin Yun's appetite surged.

In this extreme environment, even a hot meal was a luxury—but Qin Yun was eating steaming hot noodles. Only now, with the livestream off, would netizens think he was just camping.

But he'd taken several photos, planning to post them on his Moments after leaving.

After finishing the hot meal and chewing through two energy bars, Qin Yun packed up and sat quietly on the rock face, gazing at the distant scene.

The cold wind cut like a blade; the daytime's sternness had been replaced by solemnity.

The setting sun had long vanished beyond the horizon; now the north face glowed under moonlight and starlight.

Everything around him seemed eternal—this had been its form before Qin Yun arrived, and now that he was here, it remained unchanged.

Silence. Eternity. Grandeur.

Qin Yun was like an observer—unremarkable, yet impossible to ignore.

The scene here was cruel—so cruel it was beyond human reach. Qin Yun suddenly realized what he was experiencing was something most people could never know. A deeper longing rose within him.

That longing deepened, gradually becoming clear.

With all the abilities granted by the system, why should he settle for whatever came his way? Why not face the challenge head-on?

The thought flashed through his mind. Qin Yun crawled into his sleeping bag, sheltering from wind and frost. The night passed silently.

The next day, before six, the sky suddenly brightened. Qin Yun emerged from his sleeping bag, stiff all over—he hadn't slept well. He woke nearly every half-hour.

Either from beastly roars, howling winds, or rocks striking the "eaves"—the entire night had been noisy.

He turned on the livestream, secured the drone, and began heating water and cooking.

"Qin Ye, you're up early."

"Glad to see you're still alive—I'm relieved."

"I worried all night and barely slept, so I ate a ton of barbecue and drank beer."

"Good morning, Qin Ye."

Qin Yun waved from the side: "Friends, good morning. I'm Qin Yun, a temporary climbing enthusiast, currently at Camp C2 on the north face of Yaomei Peak. The ground here is narrow—only enough space for me to move. No camping possible. Last night, I didn't sleep well."

After saying that, he poured the hot water into the cup and took a slow sip; a wave of warmth instantly spread through his belly, and his whole body seemed to warm up.

"Comfortable!"

After drinking, the livestream viewer count surpassed twenty thousand—an absurd number for this hour.

Han Sisi, at base camp, had woken before five today and had been glued to Qin Yun's homepage. The moment the livestream started, she entered immediately.

Seeing Qin Yun in good condition, drinking hot water, she felt somewhat reassured.

She'd truly feared something dangerous might have happened last night—after all, Qin Yun now carried her responsibility. If anything went wrong, she didn't know how she'd face it.

Seeing over twenty thousand viewers, she immediately sent ten Carnival gifts, exploding the chat.

As comments multiplied, Qin Yun packed up and began moving.

"The weather is excellent today. No snow fell yesterday—this greatly benefits my next moves."

After saying that, he shifted sideways and leaped up, his whole body soaring into the air, and drove the ice axe heavily into the ice wall, hanging directly onto it.

Qin Yun began his new day's north face challenge. Everyone in the livestream perked up—they knew the highlights were about to begin.

Once climbing truly began, Qin Yun spoke less.

He wasn't a god—he was still human. Though his skills were master-level, they weren't supernatural. One misstep could still mean disaster.

In this place, one misstep meant you'd be a good man again in eighteen years.

So even though he looked effortless, every step was taken with extreme caution, moving at a glacial pace.

Moreover, he had no protection—only ice axe and crampons for anchoring. Difficulty skyrocketed.

Over an hour passed quietly. The livestream viewer count had unknowingly reached over one hundred thousand. Every time it rose by ten thousand, Han Sisi sent ten Carnival gifts—so far, she'd sent ninety.

That's 270,000 RMB.

She treated money like it meant nothing. For an ordinary person, that's two years' income without eating or drinking.

"What does Miss Han do? How is she so rich?"

"Truly beautiful and wealthy—please adopt me."

"Wahhh, so jealous. Why doesn't Qin Ye just throw himself into her arms?"

"How can someone be so perfect—tall, great physique, top-tier looks, and rich? Damn it, Qin Yun, how come you eat so well?"

'Huuu—!'

At that moment, the livestream suddenly heard a violent wind roar. The drone lurched violently—its first instability since the climb began.

Qin Yun pressed himself tightly against the ice wall, motionless.

This sudden gale arrived unexpectedly, with terrifying speed and force—as if it had targeted him directly.

Had he not been fully focused, he might have been swept away.

At the same time, Qin Yun suddenly noticed white flakes falling into his field of vision. His heart sank.

"Damn it, it's snowing."

Even he couldn't stop himself from cursing aloud in the livestream—clearly, the situation was dire.

"Shit, it's snowing. The wind's getting worse. What do we do now?"

This weather condition can no longer continue, but going back is even harder.

Then what do we do? Qin is stuck—neither up nor down.

Han Wei's heart tightened, and her entire body visibly tensed.

Su Huan, curled up in bed, sat straight up at the sight, her bare white skin and prominent curves suddenly exposed, yet she paid no attention, her eyes fixed rigidly on the screen, hands gripping her phone so tightly her knuckles turned white.

Qin Yun felt the snowstorm rising; even his current mental fortitude sank a little.

The snowstorm here is nothing like the one on Mount Zhufeng—near eighty to ninety-degree ice walls, and when the storm hits, difficulty multiplies by more than tenfold.

Even Qin Yun would struggle to move forward.

Retreat—or not?

Qin Yun's heart wavered.

Moments later, his voice echoed in the livestream.

"Brothers, under these conditions, I must press forward. Though returning to Camp C2 seems safer, it's easy to go up but hard to come down—I have no choice."

Saying this, he continued climbing upward.

The drone wobbled backward a short distance, capturing Qin Yun's entire figure, which in the snowstorm seemed to grow increasingly indistinct.

The brutal weather conditions were laid bare in the livestream.

For someone with no protection at all to be scaling the north face of Yaomei Peak using only two ice axes—no one would believe it.

The number of viewers in the livestream surged rapidly; by 9:30 PM, it had reached over two hundred thousand.

In a short time, Qin Yun had replenished his energy several times; simply hanging on the ice wall placed a massive burden on his body.

5300… 5400… 5500…

Suddenly, Qin Yun spotted a patch of green—a green object hanging in a crack. He leaned closer and his expression subtly changed: it was a broken ice axe, with a deformed thermos hanging from it.

On one side of the thermos, he saw a character—'Han'.

As the camera zoomed in, all viewers in the livestream saw this, and everyone who knew the context instantly erupted.

"Holy shit—is this stuff from that Korean beauty's sister?"

"No doubt about it—how could it be such a coincidence?"

Han Wei recognized the thermos, instantly clapped a hand over her mouth, tears streaming down her face.

This thermos was the one she had given to Han Xue.

Qin Yun reached out, took the thermos off the ice axe, and hung it on his backpack—the meaning was obvious.

He pressed on.

Facing the snowstorm, he finally reached 5600 meters at 11:00 AM—this spot, without doubt, was where Han Wei's sister Han Xue had disappeared.

Han Xue, who had lost a limb due to an ice avalanche, now suffered psychological trauma, judging from Han Wei's words.

He stabilized his body, scanned the surroundings, and quickly found a pair of gloves frozen into the ice. He reached out, touched them, then spoke into the camera, his voice low and heavy.

"Han Wei, I'm at the site where your sister had her accident."

The livestream fell silent, save for the howling wind and snow; every viewer and fan was moved.

Until Qin Yun's voice sounded again.

"I'll take a panoramic photo of Yaomei Peak in a moment!"

Qin Yun lifted his head, gazing at the summit.

From 5600 meters to 6250 meters—another 650 meters. This final stretch is the most treacherous part of Yaomei Peak's north face—the Ice Blade Ridge, crossing ice cliffs and the summit snow basin, each step a dance with death.

He ordered the drone to pull back, then farther still, and captured a panoramic photo of Yaomei Peak!

"Han Wei, the photo is taken!"

Han Wei's task was now complete; next came his own mission.

Conquer this Eastern Devil's Wall, complete the system's check-in task, and claim the reward.

"Alright, now I'm going for the summit."

Qin Yun's gaze sharpened again; he turned and set off once more toward the sharp summit, so close at hand.