6: Chapter 6 Black Alert! Extreme Cold Ice Storm? Perfect for testing the new car!

Having solved the issue of complete thermal insulation inside the cabin, Lu Chen's mood lightened considerably.

He walked to the front of the cabin and pulled an old military hand-cranked radio from a hidden compartment beneath the dashboard.

This was one of the relics left behind by the previous City Lord.

Its casing was rusted and the antenna was partially snapped, but it could still barely pick up the public frequencies drifting across the Pale Shoals.

Lu Chen gripped the hand crank and began to turn it with a steady, powerful motion.

The creaking sound of mechanical friction echoed through the quiet cabin.

As the internal capacitor filled with a weak current, static and crackling began to emanate from the radio's speaker.

Lin Wan was squatting at the foot of the bed, using tweezers to gently loosen the soil around the cabbage seedlings.

Hearing the noise, she looked up, her eyes showing unease.

In the wasteland, radio broadcasts usually only brought bad news.

"Zzzt... This is... zzzt... Black Rock City-State... Public Announcement..."

A female voice struggled through the static interference, sounding out within the cabin.

The voice was intermittent and devoid of emotion.

"Warning... Attention all wanderers and micro-vehicles... Meteorological observation station data is abnormal... It is predicted that within forty-eight hours, an ultra-large cyclone influenced by geomagnetic anomalies will sweep across the Pale Shoals, Ash Rift Valley, and Rustwind Wasteland..."

"Alert Level: Black! Repeat, Alert Level: Black!"

When the words 'Extreme Cold Ice Storm' came through the speakers, the tweezers in Lin Wan's hand dropped onto the nutrient substrate with a clatter.

Her cheeks turned deathly pale instantly, even her lips lost their color, and her body trembled uncontrollably.

Lu Chen's brow furrowed.

The original owner's memories flooded his mind like a tide, making him instantly understand the terrifying meaning behind those four words.

On this Blue Star shrouded in the Frost Calamity, minus sixty degrees Celsius was just the daily norm.

But the [Extreme Cold Ice Storm] that erupted irregularly every few months or even years was the true Great Purge.

It was a horrific storm laced with the ultimate cold air from the stratosphere.

In areas where the ice storm descended, temperatures would plummet like a cliff within a few short hours, approaching minus one hundred degrees or even lower!

Wind speeds would reach level fourteen or higher, whipping up hailstones the size of fists.

In such an environment, a human body exposed to the elements wouldn't even have time to feel the cold.

Blood would freeze instantly, and the person would shatter on the spot!

Even micro-vehicles equipped with a Primary Source-Fire Engine had to find a sturdy harbor before the ice storm arrived.

Otherwise, they would be overturned by the gale, and their treads would be frozen solid by the extreme cold.

Ultimately, they would turn into frozen steel coffins.

Click.

Lu Chen stopped cranking, and the radio fell silent.

"City Lord... we're dead." Lin Wan's voice was filled with despair and a sob. "An Extreme Cold Ice Storm... I experienced one once in a Mobile City. It was doomsday! Even in cities with medium-sized geothermal engines, thousands of people in the outer slums froze to death overnight! With just this micro-vehicle... we can't withstand it! The temperature will freeze the sheet metal until it's brittle, and the storm will tear this car to pieces!"

"Shut up."

Lu Chen bluntly interrupted Lin Wan's breakdown.

"On my vehicle, despair is the most useless emotion. As long as my tech tree is still running, Polaris is the sturdiest fortress on this wasteland."

His deep black eyes showed no panic; instead, they glinted with a mechanical light of calculation due to the impending extreme challenge.

To others, the Extreme Cold Ice Storm was a total disaster.

But for a construction maniac like him, who had just locked in the cabin temperature, it was a perfectly timed stress test!

Lu Chen's brain calculated rapidly.

The cabin's thermal insulation was already upgraded; the internal temperature was safe.

But the problem lay in mobility.

He could hunker down in one place, but staying stationary during an ice storm was fatal.

The pressure from snow accumulation and glaciers would freeze the treads completely to the ground.

Once the ice storm ended, if they encountered large mutant beasts or raiders, the immobile Polaris would become a sitting duck.

The chassis and treads had to maintain the vitality to start up immediately.

Lu Chen decisively summoned the system interface, locking his gaze on the second node of the [Power Engine Lv1] branch.

[Power Engine Lv1 (Node 2): Track Anti-Cold Lubrication System]

[Node Description: Generates a set of micro constant-temperature circulation pipelines within the vehicle chassis and tread transmission gears. Injects special anti-freeze, anti-coagulation lubricant. Ensures that at extreme temperatures of minus eighty degrees, the tread gears do not freeze or jam, maintaining 100% traction and mobility at all times.]

[Unlock Cost: 50 Truth Points.]

Currently, his account balance had 100 Truth Points remaining.

"System, invest 50 points to unlock the Track Anti-Cold Lubrication System!"

Lu Chen made a prompt decision.

On the wasteland, speed and mobility were life.

A tank that couldn't move was just a scrap metal target.

[Ding! 50 Truth Points deducted. [Power Engine Lv1 (Node 2)] unlocked.]

[Reshaping pipelines... Injecting special anti-freeze oil...]

Vroom! Vroom! Vroom!

Accompanied by the system prompt, a rhythmic low-frequency vibration suddenly came from the bottom of Polaris.

It was a modification on a microscopic level, invisible to the naked eye.

If someone were lying under the car to observe at this moment, they would be shocked to find that on those tread rollers and drive gears, which were covered in ice and rusted stiff, hair-thin pipelines were rapidly spreading.

These pipelines were directly connected to the Primary Efficiency Boiler inside the cabin, drawing an extremely small but vital amount of heat energy.

Simultaneously, a translucent special lubricant, emitting a pungent smell of engine oil, was pumped under high pressure into every gap of the hinges and bearings.

Click... Clatter clatter...

An extremely satisfying sound of mechanical engagement came from beneath the vehicle.

The treads, which had been tight and groaning due to the cold, were now completely loosened and lubricated, every joint becoming incredibly smooth.

Sitting in the driver's seat, Lu Chen clearly caught the subtle feedback from the steering wheel.

The control lever, which had been as heavy as iron, could now be easily moved with just one finger.

He tentatively stepped on the accelerator pedal.

Polaris was like a beast that had broken its chains, showing no lag or slipping.

The treads bit fiercely into the ice, and the massive metal body completed an incredibly smooth steering adjustment in the wind and snow!

"Perfect."

Lu Chen patted the steering wheel with satisfaction.

The mobility issue was completely resolved!

Watching Lu Chen's calm and composed operations and hearing the smooth mechanical sounds from beneath the vehicle, Lin Wan, who had been pale with fright, was stunned once again.

She didn't understand mechanics, but she could sense that this broken car, which had been teetering and about to fall apart just moments ago, now exuded a mountain-like aura of stability.

Extreme Cold Ice Storm?

In the face of this man's logic and incredible methods, the term 'Extreme Cold Ice Storm' no longer seemed so terrifying.