Chapter 237: The Scouts

Chapter 237: The Scouts

A smile spread across Fatty Xu’s chubby face after reading Zhang Yi's warning. It felt good to be cared about, but he didn’t take the message too seriously. After all, Xu’s Town had always been a quiet, insignificant village on the outskirts of Tianhai City. The property prices were low, and the people of Xu’s Town held little status in the eyes of city folk. “If anyone’s planning something, it would be to target Zhang’s villa, not our humble town,” Fatty Xu thought as he tossed his phone aside and returned to flipping through his manga.

Meanwhile, 27 kilometers west of Xu’s Town, two figures emerged from the snow-covered buildings in what was once a newly developed area of Tianhai City. It was an unusual pair: a towering man, over two meters tall, with the build of a bear, and a slender, nimble woman dressed in minimal clothing. They were clad in white, making them nearly invisible against the snow unless closely observed.

The woman’s scant attire—a form-fitting white leather outfit—highlighted her curvaceous figure. Despite the severe cold, where temperatures dipped below minus sixty degrees, she wore no hat or scarf yet seemed entirely unfazed by the freezing weather. Beside her, the giant man carried a rifle wrapped in white cloth. His every step left deep imprints in the snow, and he found the trek exhausting.

“This snow... I wonder how long it’ll keep falling! If it goes on for a few more months, the whole world might get buried,” Liu Ziyang grumbled, looking up at the snowy sky, his square-jawed face etched with frustration.

The woman, Xishan Base Second Lieutenant Xie Huanhuan, smiled softly and said, “The snow won’t fall forever. The water molecules in the air have nearly all condensed. Without more evaporation from other regions, how could there be more snow?” She caught a snowflake in her pale hand, adding, “I’ve heard that even the equator is now down to minus twenty degrees. So, the cold will persist, but the snowfall will gradually lessen. This might be the last bit of mercy the world receives.”

Liu Ziyang scratched his head, clearly not understanding Xie Huanhuan’s poetic language. She, however, paid him no mind and walked over to a sled tied to the side of the road. She mounted the sled with effortless grace, her light frame barely pressing into the snow.

She pulled out a small palm-sized device from a pouch at her waist. This was their communication link with Xishan Base. Their mission was to survey the surrounding areas of the base.

“Original Hai Xiang Road, Dong Yixin City inspection complete,” Xie Huanhuan reported into the device, which now had several marked locations displayed on it.

“Where to next?” Liu Ziyang asked.

“Our survey was originally limited to Xishan District, but we’ve been given orders to conduct a special search in one more area,” Xie Huanhuan replied.

“Special search?” Liu Ziyang’s curiosity was piqued. Xie Huanhuan’s role was superior to his, as she determined their route.

“It’s a special task from the higher-ups, but no specific details were given. It doesn’t seem to be anything too important, though. As usual, we’ll just check it out and report back.”

Xie Huanhuan suddenly stood on the sled, shading her eyes as she looked into the distance. There, a large river gleamed under the cold light.

“The place we’re heading to is by the river. We just need to follow it, and we’ll find it!” she said.

The extreme cold had damaged many communication towers worldwide, making most positioning devices unreliable. Even if they could see a location on a map, the maps were outdated, from before the apocalypse, and still needed to be verified manually.

“Let’s go! One last stop, and then we can head back,” Xie Huanhuan said, sitting back down on the sled.

Liu Ziyang whistled to the Alaskan Malamutes leading the sled, then pushed it until it gained speed before hopping onto the back. Given his massive size, only these large sled dogs could pull him.

...

Over an hour later, Xie Huanhuan and Liu Ziyang arrived at Xu’s Town. The sight before them left them both astonished as they approached the snowy expanse. Their original destination had been Cloud Manor by the river. Still, as they followed the river, they came upon a village entirely made of ice and snow, with a massive snow fortress dominating the center.

Compelled by curiosity, they decided to investigate.

As the sled neared Xu’s Town, the village’s sled dogs quickly sounded the alarm.

“Woof, woof!” The barking started with one dog and quickly spread throughout the village, alerting everyone.

The entire village was immediately on high alert. Ever since their failed assault on Cloud Manor, where Zhang Yi single-handedly wiped out a hundred of their men, the villagers had lived in constant fear. Even though Zhang Yi had promised not to harm Xu’s Town in the future, the villagers were still terrified of him. Any unusual sound now made them worry that Zhang Yi might be coming to attack them again.

As a result, the villagers grabbed their weapons and gathered their dogs, ready to defend themselves. Upon seeing so many people, Xie Huanhuan and Liu Ziyang couldn’t help but be surprised.

“Who would’ve thought there were so many survivors here?”

“Not only have they survived the cold and hunger, but they’ve also maintained the village—it’s incredible!”

Their curiosity about the village grew.

The villagers, however, were wary and blocked their path. A group leader holding a hunting rifle coldly asked, “Who are you? What do you want in Xu’s Town?”

Liu Ziyang frowned his right hand already on the safety of his rifle. But Xie Huanhuan stepped forward with a gentle smile, saying, “I’m Second Lieutenant Xie Huanhuan of the Tianhai Military Subdistrict. I’m here on behalf of the government to search for and assist survivors of the snow disaster. There’s no need to be alarmed!” She pulled out her identification and showed it to the villagers, fully aware that these people likely still held out hope for the government. Showing her credentials could avoid a lot of unnecessary trouble.