Under the Ice Wall
The ice wall stretched before them like a chasm, with cliffs standing on either side.
Looking up, the light blue color of the top of the ice wall almost overlaps with the sky, and the height becomes difficult to distinguish, creating the illusion that the land under your feet is completely surrounded, leaving only an exit in front.
There are no traces of artificial excavation on it, and its current appearance has been formed by the erosion of time.
When we walked to the Holy Gate, the wind was even stronger than before, perhaps because of the narrow terrain. The air was filled with a mixture of ice particles and snow.
It's not real-time snowfall, but the cold wind blows the nearby snow everywhere.
Ding Can raised his camel-colored leather gloves, and they stayed in the air for only a moment before snowflakes fell on his palms.
This was the first time she had seen a snowflake with such a perfect shape. Even the hexagonal ice edges on it had very clear lines. Moreover, after staying in her palm for a while, it showed no signs of melting.
As for what Yin Jiu had just heard, that the ice wall was closing...
Xia Jialian raised his hand and touched the current edge of the ice wall. It seemed that it could really absorb the snow particles floating in the air.
In just the short time he stayed there, he saw a new layer covering the surface.
At this speed, it won't take a few days for the entire ice wall to close. No wonder the priest gave the people of the Bingmi tribe an early warning.
"Is there some climatological principle behind this? How does it close in the winter and open again when the weather gets warmer?" Gao Wenwen tried kicking the ice a few times. It was no different from a brick wall, and might even be stiffer.
Shi Yan looked into the distance and saw the sea nearby.
The estimated distance should be about one kilometer, and the hull of the ship on the shore can be vaguely seen.
However, even though I was so close, I couldn't smell the unique fishy smell of the sea. Perhaps it was due to the extremely low temperature.
"It's hard to imagine there's a place in the ocean where life could be found."
Most of the soil here is permafrost, and the ice is so thick that you can hardly see the existence of soil underneath.
Sometimes people would have the illusion that this is not the real living world.
There wasn't much else to see, so they returned to the Bingxi tribe's gathering area.
In the afternoon, they visited their neighbors and learned that this group actually lived a relatively comfortable life apart from the harsh cold conditions.
They are self-sufficient, relying on catching fish in the sea for meat, and some roots such as potatoes and radishes that can grow in cold conditions as vegetable supplies.
The living conditions are not very good, but they are enough for the ethnic group to reproduce and thrive, and without too much external social interaction, they can maintain a happy mood.
There is no nightlife here, and when it gets dark, the residents return to their homes.
Several people sat around the fireplace, thinking about some of the difficulties they might encounter in this copy.
Taking this as a starting point, you can first pick a few different props in the prop store as alternatives.
Gao Wenwen took out the mobile phone that had been in his arms, poked it twice, and found that it had been turned off without him noticing.
It seems that even if there is a system in place, it is still subject to the drawbacks that can be caused by the natural environment.
After roasting by the brazier for a while, I finally succeeded in restarting.
He felt relieved only after seeing that the phone didn't lag at all.
"The most worrying thing here is that the temperature is too low and the human body cannot function normally." Shi Yan browsed the screen of her mobile phone and stopped at several props that can maintain temperature for a long time.
Ding Can pulled a mat and found a place to sit next to the brazier, thinking of the ice wall he had touched earlier.
Water has a soft nature, and the phrase "gentle as water" is often used to describe a person's character.
But water comes in many forms, and once it changes, the impact it may have on people is completely unpredictable.
For example, this extremely hard ice layer can be comparable to a sharp blade.
If you really encounter such a situation, the best thing to do is to avoid external injuries first. Otherwise, under the combined attack of blood loss and low temperature, your life energy will be consumed faster.
With worries about the unknown situation, everyone slept uneasily that night, so after hearing the horn sound at midnight, they all woke up as quickly as possible.
"What happened?" Shi Yan put on the outer robe covering her body.
The brazier continued to burn with a warm yellow light. Xia Jialian lit the kerosene lamp and heard the rustling of the wind outside through the small door. "I'll go out and take a look."
Putting his felt hat on, he pushed open the door and noticed that lights in the igloos on the main street were constantly lighting up.
Across from him, Yin Jiu kicked the door open with a bang. Seeing Xia Jialian's puzzled look, he said anxiously, "Hurry up and pack up! This is the alarm that the ice wall is about to close. Everyone needs to leave!"
Fortunately, the temperature here is low, and people don’t wear too thick clothes when sleeping, which saves time for temporary packing to a certain extent.
Several people went out with the small bags they had packed earlier, and saw that almost everyone outside had a kerosene lamp.
Some children also clung to their adults' thighs and walked in the cold air. No one dared to take their sleeping children out in such low temperatures. The family gathered together and spontaneously formed a long and narrow team.
From the small pieces of facial features that were revealed, Ding Can noticed that the expressions on these people's faces seemed to be not very good.
Logically speaking, they migrate every year and should be accustomed to this behavior. Why would they react like this?
The light emitted by one lamp is not very strong, but when so many lamps are gathered together, they form a long and obvious light strip on the main street.
In the darkness of the night, it seemed that just walking together like this could relieve a lot of the tension in my heart.
Everyone's footsteps were unusually heavy, and intermittent conversations reached my ears, but were scattered by the wind and were completely inaudible.
Ding Can turned his head and said, "Yin Jiu, is your aunt at the front of the team?"
"That should be the case. During the migration, the priests are supposed to lead the way." Yin Jiu was obviously notified at the last minute. He glanced ahead a few times, but couldn't see clearly because of the crowds of people.
He was walking with a few other people, wrapped up tightly, with only a pair of brown eyes showing.
He changed the way the strap of the original cross-body bag was worn, turning it into a backpack style. After taking the lamp, one hand was still free.
"Have there been many such situations in the past, where everyone has to leave at short notice?"
As Ding Can was talking, he felt some moisture accumulating in his mask in the short while.
Yin Jiu quickly replied, "Very rarely. There was one incident more than twenty years ago, but I wasn't even born then. I heard about it from my aunt when I was a kid. Many of our clan members died because of it."
At that time, Meng Qi had not yet taken over the position of priest. It was one morning.
Due to the climate, the Bingxi people do not spend much time outdoors. They usually sleep until almost noon and then go back into the house before dark.
During the few days since he noticed the unusual movements of the ice wall, the priest basically did not rest and kept a close eye on it.
Through hundreds of years of experience, people have learned that the closing of ice walls follows certain patterns, but if these patterns suddenly break down at certain moments, it proves that the climate has changed dramatically.
When living by the glacier, one must always maintain a sense of awe for nature, and any situation that is different from the usual must be taken seriously.
Therefore, when the priest discovered the problem, he immediately notified all the tribesmen.
No one would delay at this time, just like now, pack up your luggage as quickly as possible and prepare to set off.
But after setting out to sea, they encountered unprecedented storms and many people died during the migration and remained under the glacier forever.
"What if the ice wall closes? What if we don't go out to sea and can only survive in the area between the ice wall and the coastline?" Gao Wenwen expressed his doubts.
"Of course not," Yin Jiu retorted, "In the depths of winter, the temperature inside and outside the Holy Gate is not enough to support human habitation. There is absolutely no room for life along the coastline."
"If we stay there and wait until the sea freezes over, even the way out to sea will be blocked."
Xia Jialian tried to inquire, "In fact, the traditional customs of many tribes have changed over the years to adapt to local conditions. Why have you never considered leaving here?"
Yin Jiu's eyes widened: "How can you say that? The Holy Gate can bring us good luck."
In the Bingxi tribe's beliefs, the Holy Gate is an existence that is capable of protecting the tribe's peace. The annual crossing of the gate by the tribe is not just an activity to avoid the cold and survive.
They even feel that the action of passing through the door is like the gods adding a layer of protection for themselves, to bless them with a smooth year ahead.
"If it really works so well, why did so many people die and get injured back then?"
Gao Wenwen muttered softly, thinking that these people were too superstitious. If they could really protect their people, that kind of thing wouldn't have happened more than 20 years ago.
"But you absolutely cannot say that. The reason those people got into trouble was entirely because they failed to cope better with the sea voyage. It has nothing to do with the Holy Gate."
Seeing how they disrespected the gods, Yin Jiu felt as if he had heard something extraordinary.
He hissed, "No, that might be related. Perhaps the evacuation wasn't quick enough, affecting the original closure process of the Holy Gate, so some people were punished accordingly."
We have no right to interfere with other people's beliefs, so the topic ended there.
The residential area has been left behind, and the long line is approaching the Holy Gate.
Even though there were other people in front of him to block his view, Ding Can still felt that the wind was so strong that he could hardly open his eyes. The front of the team had already reached the Holy Gate.
With the help of the light, she could see that the distance between the ice walls was indeed much narrower than when she came here during the day.
There is only a dozen meters left. If this sign is not observed tonight, when the tribesmen wake up according to their normal schedule tomorrow, they will be trapped and the only way out is freezing to death.
As we got closer, even taking a step became much more difficult.
Ding Can held Shi Yan's arm, and the two walked forward hand in hand, only a few meters away from the ice wall.
She could clearly see the people who had already passed the wall. This place was in the wind's outlet, but looking at their hair and clothes, the wind speed over there was almost zero.
Just get through this last little stretch.
As he was thinking this, Ding Can suddenly saw several people in front of him making dodging gestures to the side, and then there was a very loud shattering sound.
"Be careful! There are icicles!" Those who were crossing the wall in front issued a louder warning at the same time.
Ding Can subconsciously looked up when he heard this and noticed that there were ice blocks falling straight down from the top of the ice wall.
At a height of dozens of stories, even some small broken ice cubes can easily smash a hole in the human body.
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