227: Chapter 227 The Northwest, the Commander's Promise

As the shuttle pierced through the clouds, the scenery outside the window had completely changed.

The grey-white clouds hung low, and the land was vast and desolate.

In the distance, the continuous snow-capped mountains stood like silent giants, stretching across the edge of the world.

As the shuttle began its descent, Lu Cheng felt a wave of biting cold rushing towards him.

"This place in the Northwest..."

Lu Cheng looked out the window and couldn't help but rub his hands together.

"It's really cold."

Snow Spirit, however, was quite excited.

It lay on Lu Cheng's shoulder, its two tails swaying gently, its eyes sparkling.

"Daddy!"

"It's so comfortable here!"

Lu Cheng glanced at it.

"You might be comfortable, but I'm about to become a frozen fish."

Snow Spirit reached out its little paw and gently patted his face.

"Don't be afraid, Daddy. Snow Spirit can warm you up."

After saying this, a bit of ice-blue fox fire emerged from its body.

The shuttle landed.

The moment the cabin door opened, the cold wind poured in directly.

As soon as Lu Cheng stepped off the shuttle, his military boots crunched on the frozen ground with a click.

Neat rows of soldiers stood on both sides of the shuttle pad.

Everyone was wearing thick, dark grey cold-weather combat suits, with the Silver Wolf emblem of the Cold Wind Defense Line hanging on their chests.

In the distance stood towering alloy walls.

The walls were covered with artillery turrets, Source Power machine guns, and large-scale early warning arrays.

Beyond that lay the endless white wasteland.

"Student Lu Cheng?"

A middle-aged military officer walked over quickly and saluted him.

"Chen Feng, from the Seventh Reception Team of the Cold Wind Defense Line."

"I am ordered to escort you into the camp."

Lu Cheng returned the salute; his movements weren't standard, but his attitude was respectful.

"Thank you for the trouble."

Chen Feng glanced at Lu Cheng.

To be honest, he had seen Lu Cheng in the files.

But seeing him in person, he still felt a bit dazed.

He was too young.

However, the Military District had strict rules.

Since his superiors had ordered him to pick him up, he wouldn't ask any questions.

"The vehicle is ready."

"Commander Li and Division Commander He Sui are waiting for you in the main tent."

Lu Cheng nodded, held Snow Spirit, and got into the military off-road vehicle.

The convoy drove into the interior of the Cold Wind Defense Line.

Along the way, he could see many soldiers patrolling.

Transport vehicles were moving ammunition, and medics were pushing stretchers out of the medical area.

There were also Martial Artists who had just come down from the front line, their bodies still covered in blood-frost that hadn't melted.

Ten minutes later, the convoy stopped deep inside the military camp.

Lu Cheng was led into a large command tent.

The tent looked ordinary from the outside, but inside, it was filled with high-level Source Arrays and projection equipment.

A three-dimensional map of the Cold Wind Defense Line hovered in the center.

The Northern Wasteland Zone was marked in red.

The rift entrance hung at the deepest part of the map, like an unstable ice-blue eye.

As soon as Lu Cheng entered, he saw two familiar faces.

One was sitting on the side, draped in a military cloak, his face still quite pale.

Division Commander He Sui.

The other was standing in the corner, still blindfolded, quiet in black clothes.

Shen Guhong.

As soon as Lu Cheng saw him, he felt a bit more at ease.

"Teacher Shen."

Shen Guhong nodded slightly.

"You're here."

Lu Cheng smiled and said:

"You're quite fast."

Shen Guhong said indifferently:

"I was already there when you were at the Tang Family, but you resolved the matter before I needed to step in."

Division Commander He Sui chuckled.

"Lu Cheng, we meet again."

Lu Cheng looked at him.

"General He, last time you said you wanted me to come to the Military District for a visit, but I didn't expect it to be arranged so quickly?"

Division Commander He Sui shrugged.

"I would have liked to invite you slowly."

"But the situation won't wait."

At the head of the table, a middle-aged man with a scar on his face looked up.

He was tall and sturdy, sitting there like a silent mountain.

The scar ran diagonally from his left eyebrow to his jaw, making his face look particularly fierce.

This man was Li Lishu.

One of the powerful commanders of the Northwest Cold Wind Defense Line.

War Emperor Realm.

Lu Cheng had read his file on the way.

He only had a son in his forties.

Li Chenzhou.

This time, the initial assessment of the rift was low-risk, and the First Exploration Team had brought back a relatively safe report.

Li Lishu wanted his son to go in and earn some military merit, and to hone his skills along the way.

Who knew that after the Second Exploration Team went in, they never came out.

This matter didn't sound good when spoken of.

But the Military District was never a greenhouse.

Li Chenzhou was his son, but he was also a Martial Artist of the young generation in the Military District.

If one enters, one must bear the risks.

Li Lishu did not hide this fact.

He looked at Lu Cheng, his voice heavy.

"Lu Cheng."

"Thank you for coming to the Northwest."

Lu Cheng said:

"Commander Li, you are too kind."

Li Lishu looked at him and got straight to the point.

"I know you are very strong."

"And I know there is a risk in inviting you."

"But the situation with this rift is special."

"Ordinary students might not be able to reach the second layer area."

"Division Commander He Sui suggested that I invite you."

Lu Cheng glanced at Division Commander He Sui.

Division Commander He Sui smiled.

"I said before, someone like you is wasted in the Academy."

"Of course, I didn't expect that the first time I invited you, we would run into such a mess."

Lu Cheng withdrew his gaze and looked at Li Lishu.

"Commander Li, is the rescue target Li Chenzhou?"

Li Lishu nodded.

"And all members of the Second Exploration Team."

"Save as many as you can."

"I want to see them alive."

He paused here.

"If they have already been corrupted..."

The air in the tent dropped a few degrees.

Li Lishu's eyes darkened slightly.

"Bring back the intelligence."

Lu Cheng did not respond to this.

On the border battlefield, sometimes saving people and dealing with corrupted bodies are separated by only a thin line.

Li Lishu continued:

"As a personal request."

"If you can rescue Li Chenzhou, I owe you three favors."

Lu Cheng's eyes flickered.

Three favors from a War Emperor Realm expert carried immense weight.

Li Lishu added:

"Unconditionally."

"As long as it does not violate the bottom line of the Dragon Kingdom, I will act."

"At the same time, you will gain my friendship."

When he said this, there was no falsehood.

The promises of people in the Military District are valuable.

"If you fail."

"The Military District will also compensate Navigator Academy."

"The Northwest Military District will remember your risk in entering the rift."

Lu Cheng looked at Li Lishu.

He could feel that this commander was trying his best to suppress his emotions.

His son was missing inside.

His life or death was uncertain, but he could not lose control, because he was a father, and also a commander.

Lu Cheng suddenly understood a bit why Mei Wushuang wanted to pull the Military District in.

If people like this stood on their side, it would be more useful than ten wavering noble families.

Lu Cheng said:

"I have a few questions."

Li Lishu nodded.

"Ask."

"What was the last information transmitted back from the rift?"

Division Commander He Sui raised his hand and projected a fragmented image into the air.

The image shook violently.

Ice field.

Snowstorm.

Several figures were running.

In the distance, a huge black shadow seemed to sweep past in the snow fog.

Afterwards, there was a female voice.

Su Wan's voice.

"The spatial structure here is problematic."

"The map from the First Exploration Team is invalid."

"Something is luring us to go deeper."

The image flashed.

Li Chenzhou's voice rang out.

"Everyone, tighten the formation!"

"Don't go near those ice sculptures!"

The next second, harsh static noise came from the screen.

Finally, only a blurry voice remained.

"Under the snow... there is someone."

The image ended.

Lu Cheng looked at the snowy static in the air, his brows furrowing slightly.

"Second question."

"How much longer can the rift entrance remain stable now?"

A staff officer replied:

"According to the current fluctuations, it can remain stable for about seventy-two hours."

"After seventy-two hours, the entrance may shift, or even close completely."

Lu Cheng nodded.

"Third question."

"What can I bring in?"

Li Lishu said:

"Personnel from the Meridian Opening Realm to the Hua Hai Realm, you can choose anyone you want."

"Supplies are unlimited."

"Source Tools are unlimited."

"However, the more people there are, the greater the rift fluctuations will be."

"Our suggestion is to enter as a small team."

Lu Cheng touched his chin.

Too many people would be troublesome.

He had twelve mechanical Puppets.

And Snow Spirit, the Hundred Shadow Killing Formation, and the Ten Thousand Souls Prison Suppression.

If he really encountered danger, the more people he brought, the more worries he would have.

"I will go in alone."

Everyone in the tent looked at him.

A Military District staff officer couldn't help but say:

"Student Lu, this is too risky."

Lu Cheng said:

"The spatial conditions inside the rift are unstable; although it sounds harsh, I don't want to waste time taking care of them..."

Li Lishu looked at Shen Guhong.

Shen Guhong spoke:

"Let it be as he says..."

"He is harder to kill than you imagine."

Li Lishu was silent for a few seconds, then finally nodded.

"Good."

"Depart in ten minutes."

Lu Cheng stood up.

"Let's go now."

Li Lishu frowned.

"Don't you need to rest?"

Lu Cheng shook his head.

"Time waits for no one."

"They have been missing for two days."

"If Li Chenzhou is still alive, every minute of delay increases the danger."

Li Lishu looked at Lu Cheng, his eyes showing a noticeable flicker for the first time.

A moment later, he stood up.

"I will personally escort you to the rift entrance."

The military convoy drove out of the camp.

Heading north all the way.

The closer they got to the Northern Wasteland Zone, the heavier the snowstorm became.

The sky ahead looked like an ice-blue wound had ripped open.

A large number of military soldiers had set up a blockade array outside.

Source Power artillery turrets were all aimed at the direction of the rift.

Battle King-level experts were scattered around to prevent beast tides from rushing out nearby.

When Lu Cheng got out of the car, the snow layer under his feet had already submerged his shoes.

In the distance, the spatial rift hovered in the center of an ice field.

It was about three meters high, with ice-blue light flickering at the edges.

The inside of the rift was unclear.

Like a mirror covered by wind and snow.

Lu Cheng walked a few steps closer, and Seeking Good Fortune and Avoiding Bad Luck immediately reacted.

Both danger and fortune were present.

Lu Cheng stopped.

"This feeling again."

Li Lishu walked to his side.

"Is there anything else you need?"

Lu Cheng shook his head, "Nothing else."

Shen Guhong walked in front of Lu Cheng, raised his hand, and handed him a small black stone.

"This is my Sword Intent stone."

"If you encounter a danger you truly cannot solve, crush it."

"I will try to cut open a gap from the outside."

Lu Cheng took the black stone. "Rest assured!"

Lu Cheng took a step forward and looked at the people behind him.

Li Lishu suddenly stood up straight.

He gave Lu Cheng a standard military salute.

All the soldiers around stood straight at the same time.

In the wind and snow, rows of soldiers saluted in silence.

Lu Cheng was stunned for a moment.

Li Lishu's voice was steady.

"Lu Cheng."

"The Northwest Military District awaits your return."

Lu Cheng looked at the scarred commander in front of him.

He was no longer joking.

He held Snow Spirit securely and returned the salute seriously.

"I will try my best to bring them out."

Li Lishu said:

"I'm counting on you."

Lu Cheng turned around and looked at the ice-blue rift.

The cold wind howled.

The edges of the rift contracted gently like a living thing.

Lu Cheng took a deep breath and said softly:

"Let's go."

Snow Spirit lay on his shoulder.

"Ying."

The next second, Lu Cheng stepped into the rift.

The world before his eyes twisted suddenly.

The sound of the wind disappeared.

The Military District, Li Lishu, Division Commander He Sui, and Shen Guhong were all swallowed by the ice-blue light.

Like an invisible hand, it dragged Lu Cheng from reality into another world.

After a brief moment of weightlessness, a crunch came from under his feet.

Lu Cheng stepped onto the ice.

He opened his eyes.

What he saw was an endless expanse of ice and snow.

The grey-white sky hung low, and the snowstorm swept across the wasteland.

In the distance, there were broken icebergs, like the skeletons of dead giants.

The air was terrifyingly cold.

Every breath felt like ice needles piercing into his lungs.

Lu Cheng immediately circulated his Source Power, with Water and Fire energies protecting his body simultaneously.

He turned back immediately.

Behind him was empty.

The rift entrance that should have been there had disappeared completely.

There was only an ice field covered by wind and snow.

Lu Cheng frowned.

"The entrance is gone."

He crouched down and touched the ground.

There were traces of people stepping on the ice surface.

There were also remnants of several extinguished campfires.

Not far away, there was half a package of military compressed rations.

And a broken signal beacon covered in frost.

Someone had lived here for a short time.

It was very likely the Second Exploration Team.

He stood up slowly, looked into the depths of the snowstorm, and narrowed his eyes.

"It's here."

"First question."

"Which way did they go?"