This is a vast white world. Except for the flat land covered with solid ice under your feet, there are towering snow-capped mountains all around. The starship is parked on the ice between the snow-capped mountains.
After the headcount was counted and everyone had assembled, the starship door slowly closed.
Lan Yu already knew the content of this mission. They would start from here, cross several glaciers, and reach the location where the interstellar beasts appeared on the satellite map. After completing the mission, they would turn back and return on the starship.
Following Lu Rankong's command, the mecha soldiers from the four battalions gathered together and moved forward along the glacial canyon.
Underfoot was hard ice that had accumulated for thousands of years. The ice surface was smooth and extremely difficult to walk on. Although there was no hurricane, the wind was strong enough to make people stagger. The soldiers held each other's hands and walked forward in a line with difficulty.
Chen Yutan and Lin Zhu led the long team at the front, while Lu Rankong and Lan Yu walked at the end.
"Are you cold?" Lu Rankong asked Lan Yu beside him. His voice was slightly distorted through the cold-proof hood on his head.
"It's not cold. This cold-proof clothing is very effective." Lan Yu said.
"What about your hands? Are they stiff?"
Lan Yu stretched out her hand and clenched her fingers. "It's just a little bit, not serious."
Lu Rankong took off the cold-weather bag he was carrying and said, "Come, put the woolen cover you knitted on the gun handle."
Lan Yu handed him the ion gun on her shoulder, and after he put it on, she put it back on and continued to carry it on her back.
"Is the safety on?" Lu Rankong asked him.
Lan Yu took out the gun and checked it again, "It's open..."
"Well, although we are still far from the location of the interstellar beast shown in the image, we must be prepared for emergencies."
Lan Yu looked around as he walked, marveling at the magnificent glacier scenery. A gust of wind blew and he almost lost his balance, and was held tightly by Lu Rankong.
After walking for about ten minutes, the team left the flat ice surface and stepped into a deep valley.
This is a canyon formed between two snow-capped mountains. As soon as you step in, the strong wind disappears without a trace. Everyone felt relieved and quickened their pace.
The canyon was very long. After walking for more than half an hour, the team stopped in front.
"Yu Qin, what's wrong?" Lu Rankong asked on the intercom.
Chen Yuqin replied, "We are only halfway to our destination. It's still early, so let's take a break while there's no wind. We've been walking for almost an hour."
Lu Rankong looked at Lan Yu and said, "Okay, then rest here for ten minutes."
Lan Yu saw a large rock covered with snow on the left side of the canyon, so he went over to sit down. Lu Rankong also came over to sit beside him, handed him a kettle, and said, "Drink some water..."
Lan Yu took the kettle, opened the valve, inserted the special straw into the cold-proof hood, drank two sips, and then handed it back to Lu Rankong.
As he moved, his arm brushed against the boulder behind him, and the snow on it fell down. Lan Yu tried to pat the snow off her shoulders, but discovered that other colors were faintly visible on the stones.
He brushed away the snow on the surface and saw some dark red spots on the stone. The spots were shaped like a little finger, protruding from the surface of the stone and shining, as if a layer of silver powder had been sprinkled on them. He couldn't help but poke Lu Rankong beside him and said, "Look at this stone, it looks so weird."
Lu Rankong turned his head and took a look, then said nonchalantly, "Oh, this, this is not a stone, it's an ice thorn worm."
"What? Bugs?" Lan Yu jumped up as if she had been electrocuted, and patted her back desperately, asking repeatedly: "Look at my back, look at my back, see if there are any bugs on it."
"No, no, there are no bugs. Don't panic." Lu Rankong quickly put the kettle away. "It's okay. These are dead. They are insect corpses."
Lan Yu saw some soldiers in front of him turning their heads after hearing the noise, so he quickly pretended nothing happened and walked to the other side of the empty snow and sat down again.
Lu Rankong also came over and sat down, explaining to him: "This is called an ice thorn worm, a creature unique to the planet Weiya. It needs a special substance called S2G in the air to survive. This substance is only found in very deep soil, so they have been living underground. Later, a jump point was opened above this planet, causing atmospheric changes, and some of the S2G underground evaporated into the air, and they all came to the ground."
"As a result, the jump point was closed, and the special substance in the air disappeared. These ice thorn insects died before they could return to the underground. So don't be afraid, they are all dead."
Lan Yu leaned close to him and whispered, "The scary thing about insects is not whether they are dead or alive."
"What does that mean?" Lu Rankong asked.
"Because it's a bug. Dead or alive, it's still a bug."
"Well, okay."
After a few seconds of silence, Lu Rankong asked, "Butterflies are also insects, are you afraid of them?"
“Don’t be afraid…”
"This ice thorn insect looks just like a butterfly. What are you afraid of?"
"How does this look like a butterfly? It doesn't even have wings..." Lan Yu said.
Lu Rankong said confidently: "Like a little butterfly. This is what butterflies look like when they are young."
"It's called a caterpillar, okay? Caterpillars and butterflies are totally different things." Lan Yu frowned in disgust, "I get goose bumps when I hear these three words."
Lu Rankong asked again: "Where is Ladybug? Are you scared?"
"Don't be afraid, ladybugs are so cute."
"Then this ice thorn insect is about the same color as a ladybug, and has cute little red spots on its body. Why are you afraid of it?"
"It's nothing like a ladybug, it's weird and it's flashing."
Lu Rankong thought for a moment and asked, "Are you afraid of fireflies too?"
Lan Yu said: "Don't be afraid, I like fireflies the most. I go to take pictures in the summer and when I'm out in the wild, I love to watch fireflies."
Lu Rankong looked at him and asked in confusion: "Fireflies also flash, why aren't you afraid?"
Lan Yu was about to answer but closed her mouth again. She suddenly had a bad feeling in her heart and asked cautiously: "Why do you keep entangled in this question? Is it important whether I am afraid of ice thorn insects?"
Sure enough, after a moment of silence, Lu Rankong said, "Because there are these ice thorn insects everywhere in front of us. Of course, they are insect corpses, and they are all dead."
Lan Yu was stunned for a moment and asked, "Are they all buried under the snow? I don't mind if they are buried and cannot be seen."
Lu Rankong shook his head and said, "The section ahead is not covered with ice and snow."
"What if you don't look at the ground but only look to the sides?"
“The same is true on the mountain walls on both sides.”
Lan Yu swallowed hard, "Do you feel anything when you step on it?"
Lu Rankong nodded slowly, "You may feel it a little, but they are all frozen to death, so just treat them as pebbles to step on."
After resting for ten minutes, the soldiers started to move forward again. As they went deeper into the canyon, Lan Yu discovered that just as Lu Rankong had said, the front section of the road was not covered by ice and snow due to geographical reasons. Whether it was the mountain walls on both sides or at the foot, a whole piece of rock was exposed.
It was covered with the corpses of ice thorn insects, with bumps like little finger joints, and red spots on the insects' bodies flashing like fireflies. The black rocks and the ice thorn insects make the canyon look colorful yet extremely strange.
Lan Yu followed Lu Rankong stiffly, taking mechanical steps, trying her best to ignore the uneven ground under her feet and the crackling sound like stones breaking.
"It won't be long after we walk out of here to reach the jump station. Once we've dealt with those little cuties, we can return." Lu Rankong comforted.
Seeing that Lan Yu didn't say anything, he said, "Want to hear a story? I'll tell you a story."
"What story?" Lan Yu stared straight ahead, not allowing himself to pay attention to the mountain walls on both sides and the road under his feet, not even giving them a slightest sidelong glance.
"There was a little boy who had been afraid of kittens since he was a child. One night, his father fell ill suddenly, and he had to cross mountains and hills to see a doctor. He met all kinds of kittens along the way. There were kittens on the cliffs, branches, and in the grass. He was very scared, but he found that these kittens could not beat him. From then on, he was no longer afraid of kittens." Lu Rankong racked his brains and spoke dryly.
Lan Yu walked away and said, "Being afraid is not because you can't win. Besides, I can't relate to your story. Groups of kittens are really cute."
Lu Rankong said: "Then let me tell you another one."
He cleared his throat and said, "There was a little boy who was afraid of bugs since he was a child. One night, his father had an emergency, and he had to climb over the mountain to get a doctor. There were bugs all along the way, on the mountain walls, branches, and grass—"
"Don't say any more, or I'll shut your mouth." Lan Yu interrupted quickly, her voice a little sharp.
Lu Rankong asked: "Don't you think this story is very encouraging and makes you less afraid of the current situation?"
"No, not encouraging at all, don't remind me that it's everywhere!" Lan Yu said angrily.
"Then let me change the story."
"I don't want to hear your story."
"Then I'll listen to you..."
"I don't want to talk about it either..."
Lan Yu had been arguing with him in a low voice, and when she came to her senses, she found that she had walked out of the canyon unknowingly.
Lu Rankong smiled at him through the cold-proof hood and said, "Look, you came out fine, didn't you?"
Lan Yu bumped him with her shoulder, then ran to the side and rubbed the soles of her boots on the clean snow, urging him, "Quick, rub the soles of your boots on the snow, wipe them clean, don't leave any traces."
Lu Rankong had no choice but to join in and rub the soles of his shoes with snow until Lan Yu checked and confirmed that they were clean.
The rest of the road was relatively easy to walk on, it was an open snowfield. After walking for more than half an hour, several buildings appeared in front of us.
These buildings were buried under the snow. If it weren't for the pointed roofs showing, Lan Yu wouldn't have known that they had arrived at the jump station.
Lu Rankong issued an order to everyone on the intercom: "Everyone, pay attention. Battalion 1 and Battalion 4 will search the periphery. Battalion 2 and Battalion 3 will search the interior of the warp station. Act quickly and start executing."
All the soldiers dispersed. Chen Yutan and Lin Zhu took some to check the surrounding snow-capped mountains, and the rest entered the jump station.
The entire jump station has been buried in the snow, and only half of the door is exposed. You can easily step over it.
The sky was still clear and blue, there was no wind and no snow, and there was silence all around, with only the rustling footsteps and brief conversations of the soldiers.
A soldier brushed away the snow on the top of the gate, and a few big words appeared below: Weiya Star Jump Point Control Station.
Lan Yu took off the ion gun from his shoulder, held it in his hand, and together with Lu Rankong, walked across the gate of the jump station and began to check the buildings behind.
Lu Rankong made a gesture to him, and the two of them quickly separated, taking their respective soldiers to the left and right sides.
Lan Yu went to the building on the right. It was very big, with an area of nearly a thousand square meters, but it only had one floor. The roof and walls that emerged from the snow were made of special materials. They looked smooth and solid, without any gaps or windows.
I guess this is the main control room of the jump station.
The soldiers dispersed under the leadership of the team leader and checked along the building. Lan Yu found the location of the gate and stood on the snow looking down.
Only the upper half of the door was exposed, and it looked like it had not been opened for a long time. The information lock was intact, and there was no sign of damage by external force.
Soon, the soldiers who had been inspecting came back one after another.
"Colonel K, Team One did not find any Star Beasts."
"Report, Team Two found no trace of the Star Beast."
"Report, Team Three did not find any signs of interstellar beasts."
Lan Yu relaxed and said into the intercom: "The Second Battalion's inspection of the main control room found no abnormalities. No abnormalities were found."
"The first battalion did not find any abnormalities in the area behind the jump station." It was Lin Zhu's voice.
Chen Yutan also said: "The Fourth Battalion did not find any abnormalities on the left and right sides of the jump station."
"The Third Battalion did not find any abnormalities in the dormitory area." Lu Rankong added.
"Do you think the information could be wrong? We haven't found any interstellar beasts along the way. We checked everywhere but still couldn't find any." Lin Zhu's voice was slightly puzzled.
Chen Yuqin said: "Whether it is present or not, it is always good to check it once to make sure. Only then will you feel relieved if there is nothing wrong."
Lan Yu remained silent until Lu Rankong seemed to think deeply for a while before saying, "Since the images sent back show that there are interstellar beasts in this area, it proves that there are indeed interstellar beasts in this area. This is a jump station, and we must not be careless. So, let's stay here for one night and see what happens, and make a decision tomorrow."
"Okay..." Everyone agreed to the proposal.
The soldiers gathered at the house in the dormitory area, took out snow shovels and other tools, dug away the snow around the gate, and prepared to enter.
Because of the strong wind and snow on Weiya Star, all buildings are only one-story high. Fortunately, the area is large and can accommodate so many soldiers.
Lan Yu stood in a corner, listening to Lu Rankong and Chen Yuqin talking in a low voice beside her. Lin Zhu was opposite him, looking at the woolen gun handle sheaths on his and Lu Rankong's shoulders, as well as the dangling ball of yarn pendant, with a dazed look on his face.
After the snow in front of the gate was dug away, an engineer swiftly opened the information lock and everyone entered the room.
"Everyone is tired, so take a good rest. If there is nothing unusual, we will return tomorrow." Lu Rankong said while standing in the aisle.
The soldiers cheered.
There are about thirty rooms on this dormitory floor, and each room is not very big, but everyone just wants a place to shelter from the wind and sit against the wall for the night.
"You go and rest first. I'll go to the main control area to check. If the power system can be started, we won't have to endure the cold."
After Lu Rankong finished talking to Lan Yu, he took several engineers out of the dormitory building.
Lan Yu pushed open a door on the left and went in.
There were only two empty iron beds in the room and nothing else. The temperature was probably only a few degrees higher than outside, like an ice cave.
However, just as he placed the ion gun and military bag on his shoulders in the corner, the lights in the dim room came on, the walls in the corners made a slight buzzing sound, and heat spread rapidly.
Cheers from the soldiers could be heard outside the door again. Lan Yu knew that it was Lu Rankong who started the power system in the main control area.
The room quickly became warm. Lan Yu took off her cold-proof hood and breathed a long sigh of relief.
Although this thing is not heavy, it is still a bit stuffy and quite uncomfortable.
After a while, the door was pushed open and Lu Rankong walked in. "Are you tired? Do you want to take a rest?"
"Not tired, I'm fine." Lan Yu said.
Lu Rankong opened the two people's military supply bags, took out two vacuum bags from them, and unscrewed the valves on them. The vacuum bag expanded rapidly, turning into two sleeping bags made of the same fabric as the cold-weather suit.
There were two single beds in the room, one against the wall on the left and one on the right. After he put the sleeping bag on them, he moved one of the beds so that the two beds were placed together.
While he was dragging the bed, Lan Yu took out the small bag of warmth-insulating food that she had prepared, took out a piece of chocolate from it, tore it open, broke off a large piece and fed it to Lu Rankong.
"Are you still carrying this? Not bad..." Lu Rankong was tidying up his sleeping bag while chewing chocolate. After swallowing it all, he said to Lan Yu, "It's very sweet. I want to eat some more."
Lan Yu had just put the rest of her hand into her mouth, and when she heard the words, she reached for her bag again to take out another piece. Lu Rankong held his hand, gently pulled it into his arms, and kissed him.
"I just eat it like this..." he said vaguely.
"Do you want to go to the hall—" The door was pushed open, and Lin Zhu's voice stopped abruptly, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry."
The door slammed again.
"Someone saw us..." Lan Yu said with difficulty.
"I saw it, so what's the big deal..."
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