229: Chapter 229 The Comatose Sister

Lu Cheng glanced around.

These guards did not have strong Source Power fluctuations; they were roughly around the Source Gathering Realm.

The strongest among them barely approached the Middle to Late Stage of the Source Gathering Realm.

No wonder the Military District initially rated this rift as low-risk.

From the robots near the entrance to these guards at Snow Rock Fortress, the overall threat was indeed not high.

At least by Military District standards, there was no General-level threat here, nor were there any obviously high-ranked exotic beasts guarding it.

But the problem was that a civilization existed within this rift.

Once it involved civilization, settlements, Systems, and resource distribution, the exploration difficulty would rise directly.

Often, trouble comes from people.

Yi Luo was held in Lu Cheng's arms; she tried hard to raise her little hand and waved toward the city wall.

"Uncle Ward!"

"It's me!"

"This big brother saved me!"

On the wall, an uncle with gray hair and a beard froze for a moment.

He was sturdy, wearing thick gray padded armor, with several cracks on his Face left by the wind and frost.

He looked down and stared at Yi Luo for a few seconds; his expression visibly softened.

"Yi Luo?"

"You're still alive?"

Yi Luo nodded vigorously.

"Yes!"

"I'm back!"

The guards on the wall looked at each other.

Someone whispered a few words.

A moment later, the gates of Snow Rock Fortress slowly opened.

The door was thick, pieced together from black rock, old armor plates, and frozen animal bones.

It made a dull sound as the hinges turned.

Lu Cheng carried Yi Luo into the fortress.

After entering, the wind and snow lessened significantly.

The buildings inside the fortress were low and dense, mostly built along the mountainside and windbreak walls.

On the outer wall of every house, a type of light blue energy stone was embedded.

The energy stones were connected to thin metal pipes that extended all the way to the center of the fortress.

In the central area, there was a high tower.

At the top of the high tower hung a huge blue crystal core, which rotated slowly, releasing a faint light to the surroundings.

As soon as Lu Cheng walked in, he felt the air temperature rise a bit.

Although it was still cold, at least it wasn't cold enough to make breathing painful.

Yi Luo followed Lu Cheng's gaze and explained in a low voice:

"That's the central hub."

"Every house has a heating stone."

"After paying, the central hub will supply energy to the house."

"The house will warm up."

Lu Cheng nodded.

This thing looked a bit like central heating.

It's just that the energy source changed from a boiler to the crystal hub.

The streets inside the fortress were very narrow.

The ground was paved with gravel and metal plates.

People were setting up stalls on the roadside, selling dried meat, blue crystal fragments, animal skins, and old parts.

Everyone had a gem embedded in the center of their forehead, but the color and brightness varied greatly.

The gem on Yi Luo's forehead was light blue and looked quite clear when it lit up.

Some people's gems were already cloudy, with tiny cracks even appearing on the edges.

Their eyes were very wary when they looked at Lu Cheng.

Outsiders.

This identity was clearly not welcomed in Snow Rock Fortress.

Uncle Ward walked down from the city defense stairs.

Up close, he was taller than Lu Cheng had imagined, with broad shoulders, thick palms, and the chill of long-term city guarding on him.

He first glanced at Yi Luo, confirming she had no obvious external injuries, before turning to look at Lu Cheng.

"Outsider?"

Lu Cheng put Yi Luo down on the ground.

"Yes."

Ward's eyes grew even more wary.

Lu Cheng didn't beat around the bush and asked directly:

"Have you seen any outsiders like me?"

Ward's expression stiffened.

This reaction was subtle, but Lu Cheng saw it clearly.

He immediately shook his head.

"No... no."

Lu Cheng didn't expose him immediately.

Ward's reaction had already explained a lot.

Su Wan and the others had been here.

As for why Ward was hiding it, it wasn't clear yet.

Perhaps he was afraid.

Or perhaps there were rules within the fortress about not talking about outsiders casually.

Lu Cheng looked at Ward, his tone peaceful.

"I was swept into this world because of a space-time rift."

"I want to leave here."

"Do you know where else there might be similar rifts?"

Ward's brows furrowed even deeper.

He looked around.

Quite a few people on both sides of the street had stopped and were looking over.

Ward lowered his voice.

"This isn't the place to talk."

He turned and walked toward a guard rest hut nearby.

Lu Cheng followed him in.

The room was small.

Weapons and leather armor hung on the walls, and a blue crystal lamp sat on the table.

Ward closed the door, and the sound inside the room immediately quieted down.

"I've been guarding the city in Snow Rock Fortress since I was a child."

"I don't know much about things outside."

"I haven't seen the rifts you mentioned."

"But there are a few highly respected Elders in the fortress."

"If you want to get out... you can go find them."

Lu Cheng looked at him.

"Where are those Elders?"

Ward hesitated for a moment.

"The Elder Council."

"However, the Elders won't see outsiders casually."

"Especially since the fortress hasn't been peaceful lately."

"Why isn't it peaceful?"

Ward didn't answer this question.

He just looked at Yi Luo.

"Yi Luo."

"Go back and see your sister first."

"There will be a Cold Raid in two days."

"If your family can't afford the heating, it will be the same as always."

Yi Luo lowered her head and nodded slightly.

"I know, Uncle Ward."

She clutched the corner of her clothes, her voice very small.

"I'll go back to see my sister first."

After speaking, she looked up at Lu Cheng.

"Big Brother, can you come back with me?"

Lu Cheng nodded.

"Sure."

After leaving the guard hut, Lu Cheng didn't leave immediately.

He asked Yi Luo:

"What does 'same as always' mean?"

Yi Luo's footsteps paused.

She didn't seem to want to talk about it, but eventually answered in a low voice.

"When the Cold Raid comes, it's very cold at night."

"If the house doesn't have heating, you basically can't make it to the next morning."

"The central hub heating requires blue crystals."

"It's collected per head."

"However many people are in a family, you have to pay that many portions."

Lu Cheng frowned.

"Then what happens if you don't have money?"

Yi Luo said it very calmly.

"Some people will sneak into others' houses for warmth."

"There are no patrols during the night of a Cold Raid."

"As long as you aren't discovered, you can hide for the night."

"If you are discovered, you have to pay a fine."

"If you don't have money to pay, you go to the mines to do hard labor to pay off the debt."

She said it nonchalantly.

But Lu Cheng could tell she must have experienced this many times.

A little girl, secretly hiding in someone else's house on the night of a Cold Raid, just to live until the next day.

The rules of this place were colder than the wind and snow.

Lu Cheng thought about it.

"Heating is collected per head?"

"Yes."

"Then the more people living in one room, the lower the total consumption should be."

"Why is it still calculated separately?"

Yi Luo shook her head.

"The central hub calculates it that way."

"The Elder Council says that more people make the heating stones bear a heavier burden."

"Everyone's breathing consumes the power of the heating stone."

Lu Cheng didn't speak.

He didn't understand the central System here yet.

Perhaps there really was a special mechanism.

Perhaps it was just an excuse for some people to collect resources.

Snow Rock Fortress had existed for so long; the System must have its own operational logic.

But this logic wasn't necessarily fair.

Yi Luo led Lu Cheng through a few narrow streets to the west side of the fortress.

It was clearly more dilapidated than the central district.

The houses were small, and the walls had many traces of repairs.

Many houses' heating stones were dim.

Some people were curled up at their doorways, wrapped in animal skins, staring blankly at the central high tower.

Yi Luo's home was at the very end.

It was a small hut half-embedded into the rock wall.

The door was made of old metal plates, with animal skins blocking the gaps at the edges.

Yi Luo opened the door, and a gust of cold air surged out from inside.

The room was very dark.

Only a blue crystal fragment in the corner emitted a faint light.

After Lu Cheng walked in, the first thing he saw were two sealed pods.

The pods were old-era equipment, with silver-white shells and many scratches and repair marks on the surface.

One of the pods was empty.

In the other pod lay a blue-haired woman.

She looked to be in her early twenties.

She also had a gem embedded in the center of her forehead, but the color was much deeper than Yi Luo's.

The patterns on her Face were more complex blue designs, extending from the corners of her eyes to the side of her neck.

She and Yi Luo didn't look very much alike.

Yi Luo's features were softer, like an ordinary child in the fortress.

This woman carried a cold and hard aura; even while unconscious, there was still a strong sense of sharpness in her brows and eyes.

"Sister!"

Yi Luo immediately ran over.

She took out a few blue crystal fragments from her pocket and carefully inserted them into the energy slot of the pod.

Hum.

The pod vibrated gently.

A thin layer of blue gas was released inside.

The woman's tightly furrowed brows slowly relaxed, and her breathing stabilized a bit.

Yi Luo lay against the edge of the pod, finally relaxing.

"Sister, I'm back."

"I found the blue crystals."

"I didn't die out there."

Lu Cheng stood to the side, looking at the broken characters on the pod.

These characters were not modern Dragon language.

They were very similar to the markings on the abandoned robots outside.

They should belong to this wasteland civilization, or an even older predecessor.

"What happened to her?"

Yi Luo raised her hand and wiped her Face.

"My sister's name is Yi Ning."

"She used to be the most powerful huntress in the fortress."

"She could go to the ruined city alone to bring back blue crystals."

"She could also kill mutants."

"Many people in the fortress had been cared for by her."

"Later, during one excursion, my sister led a team to the old city area to the north."

"She was seriously injured when she returned."

"Her gem cracked."

"She can't wake up."

Lu Cheng looked at Yi Ning's forehead.

That gem indeed had a tiny crack.

The crack wasn't deep, but it was constantly absorbing the energy inside her body.

This pod hadn't healed her.

It was just keeping her alive.

Yi Luo's voice lowered.

"The Elder said that my sister needs to keep using blue crystals to maintain [her condition]."

"Only when we find a better gem will she have a chance to wake up."

"But good gems are very expensive."

"I can only go outside to find them."

Lu Cheng looked at her.

A seven or eight-year-old girl, following an exploration team alone to the ruined city to find blue crystals.

This fact alone showed just how high the survival pressure in Snow Rock Fortress was.

Lu Cheng raised his hand, and a wisp of Source Power emerged from his palm.

The crystal slot on Yi Ning's pod lit up slightly.

It could absorb his Source Power.

Before Lu Cheng could continue, footsteps suddenly came from outside the room.

The door was pushed open.

A man walked in.

He looked to be twenty-seven or twenty-eight, not tall, but very sturdy.

The patterns on his Face were white, and the gem on his forehead was also grayish-white.

He was wearing a well-maintained leather armor, with a short blade hanging at his waist, and two young people following behind him.

As soon as Yi Luo saw him, her expression changed immediately.

She rushed over to stand in front of Lu Cheng and the pod, like an enraged little beast.

"Walker!"

"Why are you here!"

Walker glanced at her, a smile appearing on his Face.

"Yi Luo, you're back."

"I thought you died out there."

Yi Luo gritted her teeth.

"Get out!"

Walker didn't move.

His gaze passed over Yi Luo, looked at Yi Ning in the pod, and then looked at Lu Cheng.

"Outsider?"

"You've got guts, daring to enter someone else's house just after arriving at Snow Rock Fortress."

Lu Cheng didn't speak.

He was observing Walker.

Middle Stage of the Source Gathering Realm.

His Qi and blood were a bit stronger than the city wall guards.

But that was about it.

Seeing Lu Cheng didn't reply, Walker's expression darkened a bit.

He turned to look at Yi Luo.

"I just came to see your sister."

"The two days you were gone, I was the one taking care of her."

Yi Luo's voice suddenly rose.

"Get lost!"

"Who needs your care!"

Walker laughed.

"You little thing, you're still so rude."

"If Yi Ning had listened to me back then, she wouldn't have to lie here."

"I'm willing to take you sisters in; that's already giving you plenty of Face."

Yi Luo was trembling with anger.

"My sister won't go with you!"

Walker stepped closer.

"Then let her wake up and say it herself."

"If she can't wake up, then this matter will be handled according to the fortress rules."

Yi Luo's Face turned pale.

"What do you mean?"

Walker took out a folded note from his pocket, unfolded it, and waved it.

The paper had a blue stamp on it.

Lu Cheng couldn't read the text, but he could feel a trace of central hub energy fluctuation in the stamp.

Walker spoke slowly:

"Yi Ning has no one to care for her."

"Yi Luo has been missing for more than forty-eight hours."

"According to the fortress care regulations, those who are seriously ill can be taken over and cared for by those who are capable."

"I have already applied to the central hub agency."

"The application has been approved."

Yi Luo froze completely.

These two days she was trapped under the abandoned highway, and Walker took advantage of this time to submit the application.

Once the procedure took effect, Yi Ning's pod, heating qualifications, and even future treatment decisions would fall into Walker's hands.

Yi Luo lunged forward, trying to grab the paper.

Walker raised his hand and pushed her away.

Yi Luo fell to the ground, her palm scraped, causing a Hemorrhage.

"Yi Luo!"

Lu Cheng reached out to help her up.

Yi Luo's eyes were red.

"You're lying!"

"I didn't die!"

"I'm back!"

Walker put away the note.

"It's too late even if you're back."

"The central hub has already agreed."

"From today on, Yi Ning will be cared for by me."

"You can stay if you want."

He looked down at Yi Luo, his smile filled with obvious malice.

"Be more obedient in the future."

"Once your sister is with me, your life won't be that hard."

Yi Luo clenched her fists.

"In your dreams!"

The smile on Walker's Face slowly disappeared.

"I gave you a chance."

"Take the pod away."

The two people behind him immediately stepped forward.

Yi Luo rushed over to stop them.

"Who dares to touch my sister!"

Walker grabbed at Yi Luo's shoulder.

"Get lost."

As soon as his hand reached out, a hand reached out from the side.

Slap!

A crisp slapping sound rang out in the room.

Walker flew sideways, hit the door frame, and fell into the snow outside.

The white patterns on his Face were even struck until they lit up.

The room went quiet instantly.

The two young people who came with Walker froze in place, their hands still hanging in mid-air.

Lu Cheng stood beside Yi Luo, his tone very calm.

"Get lost."

Walker covered his Face and crawled up from the snow.

Half of his Face swelled up rapidly, and blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.

He looked at Lu Cheng, his eyes full of resentment.

"Outsider."

"You dare to use force in Snow Rock Fortress?"

Lu Cheng looked up at him.

"I can use force again."

Walker subconsciously stepped back half a step.

He hadn't reacted at all to that slap just now.

This showed that the gap in strength between the two was huge.

But this was Snow Rock Fortress.

No matter how strong an outsider was, they had to be governed by the fortress rules.

Walker gritted his teeth, pointing at Lu Cheng.

"You just wait."

"I'm going to find the Law Enforcement Team right now."

"Breaking into a private residence, attacking a fortress resident."

"And the care rights for Yi Ning."

"This isn't over."

After speaking, he turned and left with the two people.