192: Winter arrives suddenly

The wind was strong, slamming against the windows with a clattering sound.

Thick frost covered the glass, and the snow outside was falling densely, merging into a single sheet.

Shen Xiaochuan suddenly opened his eyes and sat up in bed all at once.

He wasn't woken up by the noise; he was woken up by the cold.

That kind of cold burrowed from his skin into his bones, making it impossible to sleep.

The lights in the room weren't on; there was only a little light filtering in from outside.

He reached for the work clothes by the bed; the fabric was ice-cold.

When he put them on, the copper gear hanging from his cuff brushed against the back of his hand, feeling as cold as if it had just been fished out of water.

He walked to the window and wiped a clear spot on the glass with his hand.

Skydome City outside was very quiet; there was no one on the streets, and the patrolling guards were nowhere to be seen.

The distant mountains were no longer visible, completely covered by the heavy snow.

He looked down at the thermometer in the corner—minus forty-two degrees.

"So low?" He frowned.

He opened the drawer, took out his portable terminal, turned it on, and immediately opened the Blue Star Global Bulletin Board.

The screen lit up, and red text scrolled across it:

[Server-wide Announcement] The US S-rank Legacy mission has failed! The Epic-level Boss 'Snow Mountain Behemoth' has descended upon the Blue Star Domain combat zone!

Disaster effects are as follows: Global temperature has dropped to minus 90 degrees; Snow Monster-type beasts have had their stats increased by 20%; the Boss will attack all living beings; this catastrophe is a permanent environmental change and is irreversible.

The message flashed three times and then disappeared.

Shen Xiaochuan didn't turn off the screen; he clicked into the Deity Leaderboard instead.

The names in the top ten scrolled by one by one; Thor's name was still blank.

He refreshed it three times, but the result was the same.

"Dead," he said in a low voice. "Really dead."

He leaned against the wall, his fingers tapping on the edge of the terminal.

He had accepted an S-rank mission once, and it took him three months in the desert to complete it.

Did the US just rush in to die without any preparation?

That was a Deity capable of summoning Thor's Hammer, and just like that, gone?

He remembered when he completed his mission, the System gave him a "Special Exemption," so he didn't lose health or damage his Divinity.

Why didn't others have this kind of luck?

Was it because his "plus 1 faith points per second" passive triggered some hidden mechanism?

It was useless to think about these things now.

People were dead, the Boss was out, and the cold wave had arrived—this was reality.

He walked to the door and grabbed the coat from the hanger to put it on.

The zipper got stuck halfway, so he gave it a hard tug, tearing a hole in the fabric.

Forget it, leave it for now.

He pushed open the door, and the cold wind rushed into his face.

The snow in the courtyard was already ankle-deep, crunching as he stepped on it.

He looked up at the sky; it was still snowing, and the wind had grown stronger.

The lights were on over at the Main Hall, and there was light in the kitchen window too.

He could have taken the teleportation array to the Industrial Zone, but fearing the System might be unstable, he decided to walk and see the situation for himself.

Just as he walked out of the courtyard, a gust of wind almost blew him over.

He steadied himself, wrapped his coat tighter, and walked forward with his head down.

Passing by the kitchen, he saw that the door wasn't closed properly and heard movement inside.

He stopped and pushed the door open to enter.

"Who is it?" The person inside was startled, and the spoon in her hand dropped into the pot.

It was Lilith.

She was wearing a thick apron with her hair tied back, and her face was a bit flushed, as if she had just returned.

Steam was rising from the pot; she was cooking porridge.

"Why are you cooking at this hour?" Shen Xiaochuan asked.

"I'm not afraid. You took me in, gave me a place to live, gave me work to do, and even let me learn Divine Power.

I don't have the ability to help with big things, so I just want everyone to be able to eat a hot meal in the morning.

Back in the village, the thing I feared most in winter was not having hot food, so I wanted to cook some porridge."

After she finished speaking, she lowered her head and continued to stir the pot.

The porridge was almost ready, and the fragrance of rice mixed with the scent of wild vegetables wafted out.

Shen Xiaochuan didn't speak.

He walked to the stove and reached out to test the fire.

The flame was stable; she had used Thunder Crystal powder.

This kind of fuel was very expensive and generally only used for forging and power generation.

"Did you start this fire all by yourself?"

"Yes. I was afraid the fire wouldn't be strong enough, so I added Thunder Crystal powder; it should be able to burn for two hours."

Shen Xiaochuan nodded. "That's enough, stop burning it.

Just put the lid on to keep it warm.

Come with me to the Main Hall now, and come back after eating breakfast."

"But... I still have to prepare for the others..."

"I will arrange for the others," he interrupted her. "You are not a servant now; you are a member of the Divine Kingdom.

I don't need anyone to risk their life to repay my kindness."

Lilith looked up, her eyes a bit moist, but she didn't cry.

She silently turned off the fire and took off her apron.

The two of them walked toward the Main Hall together.

The wind and snow were even heavier; the newly fallen snow was swirled by the wind, stinging when it hit their faces.

Lilith walked half a step behind him, holding onto the wall, walking unsteadily.

"What's wrong with your leg?" Shen Xiaochuan asked.

"I fell while carrying firewood the day before yesterday, it's nothing."

Shen Xiaochuan stopped, took off his coat, and handed it to her. "Put this on."

"No need, you wear it, you still need to patrol."

"I'm resistant to the cold," he said. "You aren't."

He draped the coat directly over her, and continued walking, wearing only his work clothes.

Lilith didn't push it away again; she wrapped herself in the coat and followed.

Arriving at the Main Hall dining room, Shen Xiaochuan had an attendant bring two bowls of hot porridge and a plate of grilled meat pies.

He sat down and signaled for Lilith to sit as well.

"Eat," he said.

Lilith lowered her head and took a sip of porridge, her hands still shaking.

Shen Xiaochuan saw that her fingernails were turning black; it was frostbite.

"In the future, don't get up before dawn," he said. "The Divine Kingdom won't collapse just because of one missed breakfast.

But if people collapse, that is a real loss."

"I understand," she said softly.

"I am not a harsh person," Shen Xiaochuan said, looking at the porridge. "But I also don't like senseless sacrifices.

You can cook porridge because you are still alive. If you freeze to death, this pot will never boil again."

Lilith didn't speak, but nodded.

Shen Xiaochuan ate a few bites and put down his spoon.

He glanced at the timekeeper on the wall—4:17 AM.

Logically, it should be time for the shift change in the Industrial Zone.

But he hadn't seen a single person on his way here.

"Has there been any abnormality with the power System tonight?" he asked.

"I'm not sure... I don't have the authority to check."

Shen Xiaochuan took out his terminal and pulled up the monitoring for the Industrial Zone.

The substation data was normal, the main cable voltage was stable, but the signals for two peripheral nodes were weak.

He noted down the numbers and decided to go see for himself.

He stood up. "I'm going to the Industrial Zone.

Finish eating and go back to your room to rest; don't go out again."

"You're going alone? That's too dangerous..."

"I am more resistant to the cold than you," he smiled. "Besides, I'm not going to fight; I'm just checking the lines."

He put on his hat and didn't put his coat back on.

Before leaving, he looked back at Lilith. "Remember what I said.

Starting tomorrow, do not go out unless necessary.

Especially for someone like you without combat ability, don't try to tough it out."

Lilith sat at the table and nodded gently.

Shen Xiaochuan pushed open the door, and the wind and snow immediately poured in.

He walked out and closed the door behind him.

The snow outside was already up to his calves, and he had to use force to pull his feet out with every step.

He walked along the main road; the wind blew from the side, carrying shards of ice that stung his face like needles.

His exhaled breath immediately turned into ice, hanging from his eyebrows and eyelashes.

He squinted to look ahead.

There were still a few lights in the Industrial Zone, their dim yellow glow in the snow like sparks about to go out.

He knew that as long as the power didn't cut out, the city could hold on.

But if something went wrong with the substations, heating, lighting, and defense would all be paralyzed.

He quickened his pace, his footsteps crunching in the accumulated snow.

He thought to himself: First check Substation No. 1, then check the junction boxes along the main cable, and finally go to the backup energy storage of the Forging Workshop.

If he found ice or aging lines, he would call people to fix them immediately.

The wind grew stronger, blowing so hard he couldn't stand steady.

He bent over, protecting the terminal with one hand and holding onto a stone pier with the other as he moved forward.

The lining of his clothes began to frost over, sticking to his back and feeling very cold.

He knew that in this kind of weather, ordinary people couldn't go out at all.

Even with warm gear, they would get frostbite if they stayed out too long.

But he was a Deity, supported by his talents; his body temperature was higher than an ordinary person's, and his Divine Power could protect his heart and pulse.

But even so, he felt it was difficult.

This snow had come too fast and too fiercely, as if it wanted to bury the entire world.

And all of this was because those people in the US opened a door they shouldn't have touched.

He gritted his teeth and continued to walk forward.

The streetlights flickered on and off, as if they were about to lose power.

He stared at that bit of light ahead, approaching step by step.

The gate to the Industrial Zone was right in front of him.

The iron gate was half-open, swaying in the wind.

He reached out and pushed it open, the door hinges emitting a harsh sound.

He stepped inside and looked back once toward the direction of the Main Hall.

The lights there had already blurred into a yellow shadow, as if swallowed by the snow.

He turned his head and walked toward the substation.

The terminal showed that the voltage at Node No. 1 was slowly dropping.

He lifted his foot and stepped into the deeper snow.