The mission location has been confirmed, and all the tools are ready, but the only thing missing is that the leader of Group Three has not yet returned.

Lu Yuan frowned as he looked at the people in the three groups.

"Can't we start working now? Do we have to wait for Liu Dafa to come back before we can start? What if he doesn't come back for three days? Are we going to have to wait for another three days?"

Several people, all relatives of Liu Dafa, tried to persuade him for a long time, but none of them agreed to start the project.

"Are you guys waiting for the New Year's Eve dinner?! Do you have to wait until everyone's here before you can eat?"

Zhou Tong couldn't stand it any longer and stepped forward, asking in an unfriendly tone.

The other party remained stubborn and refused to budge.

"We have to wait for Second Aunt and Dafa to come back, otherwise, what if they have a way to take us away?"

Lu Yuan was so angry he almost laughed.

"You guys are dreaming! There's still a chance to leave! If there were a chance, would I need to take on this deadly mission?"

After saying that, Lu Yuan stared intently at them: "Give me a straight answer, are you going to do it or not?"

The other party didn't seem to be afraid of Lu Yuan at all and insisted on waiting for Liu Dafa to return.

"Fine! Since you insist on waiting, I'll grant your wish!"

After saying that, Lu Yuan shouted at Xi Wen, "Take some men and tie them up! Keep an eye on them! I'll settle accounts with you guys later!"

The group immediately panicked: "What are you doing? You're sabotaging the team's cooperation!"

"Heh! I'm sabotaging the cooperation? I'm not going to wait here like an idiot with you guys! Tie me up!"

Xiwen had been waiting impatiently for a long time. With a wave of his hand, several people rushed forward and tied up all the leaders who were not cooperating.

"Is there anyone in your three groups who disagrees?"

The three groups lost their leader and their faces showed panic.

"Since no one disagrees, let's get to work! Everyone, every single one of us! Proceed according to plan!"

After saying that, Lu Yuan ignored them and began to issue the tasks.

Without a leader, the third group was directly merged into Lu Yuan's seventh group.

Ropes were securely fastened to the boulders at the edge of the pit, and the team members fastened their waist buckles to the ropes in turn and began to slide down into the valley.

Lu Yuan was the first to go, so he landed at the bottom of the pit. The snow under his feet was soft and fluffy, so he didn't dare to put any force on it. He slowly tied the skis on his back to his feet and then began to help the people above.

The first team all landed on the fan blades. Because the snow was too thick, Lu Yuan had to lead his men to clear the surrounding area and look for a ladder.

Along the smooth edge of the pit, Lu Yuan secured his body tightly with the hook and continued to move forward. With each movement, Lu Yuan was afraid that the ice on the edge of the pit would be knocked down.

Suddenly, a strong gust of wind came from nowhere, causing Lu Yuan's body to sway back and forth.

"Holy crap! What the hell is going on?"

Lu Yuan gritted his teeth, gripping the iron hook tightly. He looked down and saw only darkness; he couldn't see the bottom at all. Lu Yuan swallowed hard.

"Damn it! No wonder nobody wants to do this mission!"

The people above stared intently at Lu Yuan, not daring to even breathe loudly.

The wind swept around the pit, creating a strong whirlwind, and Lu Yuan felt his body swaying uncontrollably.

After waiting for about ten minutes, Lu Yuan could barely feel his arm anymore. With a sudden burst of strength, he used his body like a nimble monkey to hook the iron hook towards another place.

"Click"

The iron hook slammed into another piece of ice, pulling down a large chunk of ice that smashed onto Lu Yuan's head.

"Phew! Thank goodness it wasn't a rock. If it had been, I probably would have fallen!"

Thinking of this, Lu Yuan gritted his teeth again and began to move to the side.

Xiao Shan, standing at the edge of the pit, had tears in her eyes and dared not breathe, afraid of accidentally disturbing Lu Yuan.

Finally, Lu Yuan used his agile body to swing back and forth, and the iron hook finally caught on a steel bar.

"Found it!"

Lu Yuan was overjoyed, and then used his hand to brush the snow off the steel staircase.

Looking down by the light of his headlamp, Lu Yuan saw that the ladder was intact, but the melted ice and snow had frozen on it, making it a bit slippery. He had to carefully break the ice before he dared to go down, otherwise he might accidentally fall to the bottom of the valley.

The ladder was very long, and Lu Yuan didn't know how far he had climbed before finally finding solid ground beneath his feet.

To make sure he had reached the bottom of the valley, he looked down and saw a faint blue light beneath his feet—a sight only visible when light shines through a thick layer of ice.

"Ice this thick? Damn, if it all melted, it would probably take at least several hundred people to move it!"

Thinking of this, Lu Yuan's heart sank, but after a moment he shouted loudly to the people above, "I've arrived! Throw down the rope!"

Soon, cheers erupted from above.

Han Wen tied several short ropes together and then threw them down.

Lu Yuan tugged at the rope to make sure there was no danger before instructing his men to descend.

Group 1, Group 2, Group 3...

Lu Yuan only breathed a sigh of relief after the ice surface nearby was covered with people.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!