CH 10

Chapter 10 Arctic World(10)

“The snow’s stopped! The snow has stopped! The sun is out!”

“Why are you shouting so early in the morning? Holy crap! The snow has stopped?!”

“What’s going on? Does it mean the disaster is over? Did someone skilled clear the level for us in advance?”

…

At that moment, surviving players from all corners of the world were actively discussing the weather changes.

Many even believed that a skilled player had discovered a legendary hidden quest, happily anticipating receiving a completion notification soon.

However, some people also sensed the underlying crisis.

“It’s going to melt,” Qian Yue muttered.

As the saying goes, it doesn’t feel cold when it snows, but when it melts, it gets even colder. The temperature is likely to drop further.

Moreover, considering the heavy snowfall earlier, once the snow starts to melt, the snow layer can easily collapse. If the snow melts too quickly, it could potentially cause flooding!

“We must leave here immediately.”

Without hesitation, Qian Yue turned around to pack her belongings.

The previously used straw mats that had been lying in the snow cave were already soaked, so Qian Yue simply gave up on them.

She put the shovel in her backpack and held the ice axe as a weapon in her hand.

Qian Yue also dug out the vitamin C and mental suppressants that had been hidden in the snow. There were quite a few miscellaneous items.

After drinking several bottles to restore her already healthy state to full, she used a rope to tie the excess items together and hung them jingling on her waist.

The whole process took less than ten minutes, and Qian Yue decisively descended from the mountain.

Just a few minutes after she set off, there was suddenly some movement on the mountaintop behind her.

Qian Yue sensed something and turned her head, watching as a clump of snow slowly slid down the slope from the mountaintop.

Then, with a loud “crash,” it collapsed and destroyed the snow cave she had dug.

Although she had anticipated that something like this might happen, when she actually saw the snow cave collapse in that instant, Qian Yue’s heart trembled.

If she had been even a little later, she would have been buried under the heavy snow by now.

The snow cave was no longer suitable for staying, so Qian Yue planned to go to the village to the west, return Uncle Xie’s shovel, and see if she could find a place to stay for a couple of days.

To put it mildly, Qian Yue believed that with the remaining supplies in her backpack, she had more than enough to survive until completing the level.

“I’m not participating in the subsequent games anyway, and the leftover items are of no use to me. I can support Uncle Xie depending on the situation when the time comes.”

Qian Yue made her calculations well, thinking that it was just a matter of changing her base and continuing to pass the days and sleep. However, she didn’t expect that during the few days she had been away from the crowd, the towns, and villages had already changed dramatically!

“Hand over everything you have!”

The wooden door was smashed open with a loud bang as three to five thugs rushed in without hesitation, immediately ransacking the house.

“You, go search for the attic!”

“Chop up the chairs and tables and take them back for firewood!”

The room was filled with the sound of crashing and smashing.

The child hiding in the corner was terrified, about to cry out, but the young mother preemptively covered the child’s mouth.

With each loud noise coming from the room, the woman’s body trembled, and the child seemed to sense the mother’s fear, instinctively clinging tightly to her.

I wish Daddy was here… if only Daddy were here…

“They’re hiding here!”

A sharp sound pierced through their eardrums!

In the next second, the child was snatched away!

“Mommy!!”

“My child!” The woman instinctively tried to get up and snatch the child back, but she was violently kicked away. “Ah!”

To feed her child, she had gone without food for a day or two, and the kick made her see stars, but her maternal instinct suddenly made her clear-headed!

“Give my child back to me!”

The woman lunged forward with all her might, tackling the person down. The child reached out to her, and she hurriedly tried to grab hold, but before she could touch the child’s hand, she suddenly felt intense pain!

“You ungrateful wretch, I spared you earlier, but you don’t know how to appreciate it!”

“Ugly skin and bones.”

“Hit harder!”

“Mommy! Daddy! You bunch of villains…”

“My child… oompf…”

The cries of the child echoed in her ears. The woman instinctively wanted to say something, but only a stifled groan came out. In the end, she could only watch helplessly as the child was forcefully taken away.

In the last moment of losing consciousness, she faintly heard these beasts seem to be saying something about eating the child…

“Get him!”

In the empty street, a group of people ran.

The person in front ran swiftly, while those behind chased relentlessly, all for the sake of a corn cob.

The young boy had little clothing on his body, thin as bamboo. He ran and ate at the same time, but eventually, he was surrounded in a narrow alley.

“Damn it, this guy finished all the food!”

“Beat him!”

Fists rained down on him like raindrops, but the young boy never made a sound. In the midst of the brawl, someone kicked him in the stomach. He vomited with a cry, and in the end, he stared with lifeless eyes, not moving an inch.

“He’s dead.”

The leader kicked him again, confirming that he was truly dead before grumbling and leaving.

On the snowy ground, the young boy lay there with wide-open eyes, surrounded by the filth he had vomited up before he could digest it.

The air was filled with a foul smell.

At this moment, a small beggar, around seven or eight years old, quietly emerged from a corner.

Once the group of people had completely left, he couldn’t wait any longer and ran over to the dead boy, grabbing a handful of snow and wolfing it down…

…

Qian Yue was sure someone was tailing her.

This is the outskirts, about a few hundred meters away from the village, with only a few scattered pine and cypress trees in sight.

But surprisingly, there were several people “strolling” not far from her.

On such a cold day, think she’s blind?

Qian Yue’s expression slightly tensed; she had made a mistake.

After the player’s inventory was full, the backpack would appear bulging, and coupled with the long string hanging from her waist, it was no wonder people would see her as an easy target.

Going back to the village was not an option for now.

She slowed down her pace while discreetly observing the reactions of the people around her.

Those people seemed unrelated at first glance, but in reality, they were slowly tightening the encirclement. If Qian Yue’s guess was right, they probably had accomplices in the village. The whole village had turned into a den of bandits…

It’s now!

Qian Yue kicked the nearby pine tree, causing the snow on its branches to fall on the people around her. She seized the opportunity and ran in the opposite direction!

“She’s running! Chase her!”

Someone shouted from behind, and indeed, all the “bystanders” turned around and chased after her!

Without hesitation, Qian Yue took out two pieces of firewood from her bag and threw them backward with force. “Stop chasing! I’ll throw the food to you!”

Two shadows flashed in the sky and landed in different directions.

Although the onlookers couldn’t see clearly what it was, they couldn’t help but hesitate after hearing her words.

Two individuals even subconsciously ran toward the spot where the objects disappeared. While the others did not follow, they unconsciously slowed down their pace.

A moment later…

“Damn, we’ve been tricked!”

They angrily stood up, intending to continue the pursuit, but when they turned around, they realized Qian Yue had vanished without a trace.

Qian Yue did not stop until she had run a long distance.

It was now 02:25:39, and the sun was already shining brightly.

Although it was somewhat illogical, the rate of snow melting was increasing. Qian Yue could clearly feel the water underfoot as she walked.

Looking at the unchanging scenery before her, Qian Yue unexpectedly had a feeling of being lost in the vastness of the world, not knowing where home was.

She definitely couldn’t go back to the village. The population there was too small, making it easy for outsiders to be noticed.

In the wilderness, as the ice and snow melt, only the forest is suited for habitation. It provides natural shelter and abundant food.

However, Qian Yue believes that many players would have thought of this, so she has no plans to go there.

“…Oh well, let’s leave it to fate.”

Qian Yue took a bottle of mental suppressants and forcefully turned it upside down on the ground. The test tube spun several times on the snowy ground before finally coming to a wobbly stop.

Forest.

Qian Yue stubbornly turned it again.

Still forest.

“What’s going on?”

Refusing to accept this, she turned the tube in the opposite direction of the forest. She looked over, but all she saw was a

snowy plain.

“You’ve got to be kidding me!”

She resentfully put away the suppressant and continued in the direction she had chosen.

“…Hopefully I can find a place to stay before nightfall.” She did not want to sleep on the streets.