Chapter 338

The north wind howled, snow blinding Shen Mengsan’s eyes, while the snowmobile hummed across the snow-covered ground.

The sound was especially jarring in this desolate wilderness.

Branches occasionally flew through the air, striking the speeding snowmobile and the two men, Shen Mengsan and Hong Liu.

But now, Shen Mengsan and Hong Liu were racing against Death itself, so they paid no heed to the flying branches.

Unless they were truly unlucky and got knocked unconscious by a direct hit, the snowmobile could not stop.

“Captain, are you okay? Put me down—just leave me and go faster…”

At this point, Hong Liu had already given up hope of surviving this disaster.

He didn’t want to drag Shen Mengsan down with him, so he spoke out involuntarily.

He knew the snowmobile was slower with two riders; if Shen Mengsan abandoned him, he still had a chance to survive.

Shen Mengsan frowned slightly, gave his left arm a small shake, and thought to himself, “These branches hit hard.”

Then he scolded, “What are you thinking? Hold on tight—I don’t want to carry guilt for the rest of my life.”

“Captain, have we gotten lost?”

Shen Mengsan’s nature would never let him abandon Hong Liu; after another ten minutes, Hong Liu asked desperately again.

But the moment he opened his mouth, a freezing gust slammed straight into his lungs and shot up to his skull!

“Don’t worry, kid. With my experience, even if we’re lost, I’ll get you back safely.”

Above them, the drone wobbled erratically, following Shen Mengsan and Hong Liu, as if one more strong gust would tear it from the sky…

Fortunately, this drone came from China’s top drone company.

It was a special configuration model, designed with contingency scenarios in mind—its wind resistance was top-tier, so it hadn’t been blown away.

Meanwhile, viewers in the livestream chat were erupting in horrified commentary…

“Holy shit, this blizzard’s insane—just watching it on stream terrifies me. How the hell are the rescue team members supposed to survive out there?”

“Will Xiao Shen be okay? I’m most worried about Xiao Shen—just now, from the livestream video, I saw his area was completely swallowed by the blizzard.”

“Don’t worry—that’s Xiao Shen! Don’t forget, he chose to stay behind on purpose. He wouldn’t do it without confidence.”

“Even so, the production team reported this blizzard is over level ten—it’s said to freeze livestock solid!”

“Now that you mention it, I’m getting nervous too. Pray Xiao Shen and the rescue team make it out alive.”

“Hey, shouldn’t we be paying attention to Captain Shen and his team right now?”

“Yeah! Captain Shen looks lost—please let them be okay!”

“Yeah! Who can save Captain Shen and his partner?”

“This is bullshit—didn’t the production team have any emergency measures?”

“Exactly! Use them now if you’ve got any!”

“What emergency measures? This blizzard came out of nowhere. Even the best measures can’t handle a storm this severe!”

…

…

“Riiip!”

“Clang!”

“Ugh!”

Inside his tent, Xiao Yi huddled tightly as occasional sounds of tearing and crashing echoed from outside.

Sometimes, small creatures shrieked in terror.

Every time he heard them, Xiao Yi immediately checked whether his tent had been torn.

After scanning his surroundings and confirming it wasn’t his tent’s fault, he exhaled in quiet relief.

Xiao Yi’s mind was now in a state of extreme tension.

After all, even with his system, he dared not risk his tent being ripped open in this violent weather.

In such a brutal environment, absolute safety was impossible.

Honestly, since first arriving in the wilderness, Xiao Yi hadn’t felt this tense in a long time.

This intense fear and tension made him cautious—but also strangely exhilarated.

It made him wonder: did he have a touch of madness buried in his subconscious?

“What are you scared of, little thing? Don’t you see I’m right here?”

Watching the lynx cowering beside him, Xiao Yi patted its tiny head with a wry chuckle.

The lynx felt the pain on its head but showed no strong reaction—it was still paralyzed by fear.

Then it looked up at Xiao Yi, snuggled deeper into his arms, and finally fell silent.

Clearly, the little creature sensed the warmth in his embrace—and that warmth was its only sense of safety.

“Damn it, how long is this damn blizzard going to last?”

Even Xiao Yi couldn’t help cursing under his breath.

…

…

“Captain, look—over there, is that a cave?”

Though the blizzard hadn’t yet reached Shen Mengsan and Hong Liu’s position, the fierce wind had already made it impossible for them to open their eyes.

So Hong Liu’s voice carried uncertainty.

He didn’t know if what he’d seen was real—or just a hallucination from extreme cold.

“Where?”

Hearing this, Shen Mengsan immediately asked.

Before visibility dropped, he remembered a low hill ahead.

Though he didn’t know how far away it was now, that hill was his last hope of saving Hong Liu.

He hoped to get them both to the leeward side of the hill—it would greatly increase their chances of survival.

But as the wind grew stronger, his heart sank to the bottom.

In the blizzard’s grip, his visibility was now abysmal.

They might have already veered off course toward that hill entirely.

Just like how he’d originally followed Xiao Qin’s group—

But lost them due to worsening visibility.

Even so, Shen Mengsan clung to that hill as their final lifeline, firmly believing he hadn’t taken a wrong path.

And he had to believe his route was correct.

In moments like this, a person needed faith and confidence to give themselves hope and purpose to live.

Otherwise, not just Hong Liu—he himself might collapse.

Hearing Hong Liu shout about the cave, Shen Mengsan’s heart leapt with excitement—but he showed none of it.

“To the left, I saw a narrow entrance—I think it might be a bear den.”

Hong Liu spoke firmly now, determined to gamble that he hadn’t hallucinated.

No one was stupid. As a veteran of wilderness rescue, Hong Liu knew their situation all too well.

He’d long since prepared himself for death—or rather, had already given up on himself.

But if he could live, he didn’t want to die. And he especially didn’t want to drag his captain down with him.

For Shen Mengsan, Hong Liu felt genuine respect and gratitude.

He even felt guilt—had it not been for him, Shen Mengsan would never be in this death trap.

“Over there—exact spot? Let’s go!”

At that moment, Shen Mengsan gritted his teeth, steeling himself.

He knew now they had to gamble with their lives—he had to trust Hong Liu, because they might have no other choice.

“About a thousand meters back, left and behind us—we just passed it!”

“Boom! Boom!”

Hearing Shen Mengsan’s question, Hong Liu didn’t hesitate—he answered quickly.

Then, silently, he prayed: if they failed to find it, this might be their grave.