173: Chapter 173 Blizzard Trekking - Railway Lost Gold

The train arrived in Irkutsk on the afternoon of the next day.

Li Xin climbed down from his sleeper berth, his bones stiff all over. The hard sleeper carriage's bed frame was rigid, creaking every time he turned over. He had slept for less than five hours, waking up several times in between.

There weren't many people on the platform, and the air was even colder than in Krasnoyarsk. The white mist from his breath dispersed before his eyes, vanishing within a few seconds.

He shouldered his bag and walked toward the exit. After leaving the station, he stood in the square for a while.

A man wearing an old padded jacket walked over, holding a piece of cardboard with his name written on it. It was in Russian, and the spelling was correct.

"Are you Li?" the man asked in Russian.

"Yes."

"My name is Andrei. Chen sent me."

Andrei was around forty, thin, with wrinkles on his face and an unshaven beard. His eyes were small but bright. He looked Li Xin up and down, then turned and walked away.

"The car is over there."

He followed him to the parking lot. It was an old off-road vehicle, its body covered in mud, with a dent in the bumper. Andrei opened the driver's side door and sat in; Li Xin got into the passenger seat.

The car started and drove out of the parking lot.

"Where to?" Andrei asked.

"Lake Baikal. The west bank."

Andrei glanced at him through the rearview mirror.

"There's no one there. What are you going there for?"

"Just bored, going to see the scenery," Li Xin joked.

Andrei didn't ask again and turned on some music. It was a Russian song with a low, mournful tune that sounded like a sigh.

The road grew narrower. Once they left the city, the asphalt road turned into a gravel road. The trees on both sides became denser, mostly pine trees with dark brown trunks and canopies that blotted out the sky.

After driving for nearly three hours, they arrived at a village.

The village was at the foot of the mountain, consisting of dozens of households living in wooden houses. The roofs were covered in snow, and smoke rose from the chimneys. At the entrance to the village stood an old pine tree with a thick trunk and icicles hanging from its canopy.

Andrei parked the car in front of a wooden house.

"Stay here tonight. I'll take you into the mountains tomorrow morning."

"Alright."

Li Xin got out of the car and followed him into the house.

The wooden house wasn't big, but it was warm. The stove was burning, and the kettle on the tin stove cover was gurgling. An animal pelt hung on the wall; it was unclear what animal it was from. Chopped firewood was stacked in the corner.

An Old Lady walked out from the inner room, wearing an old scarf, her face deeply wrinkled. She glanced at Li Xin, said nothing, and turned into the kitchen.

Andrei sat down at the table and lit a cigarette.

"Which route are you planning to take?"

Li Xin took a map out of his backpack and spread it on the table. Several points were marked on the map.

Andrei looked down at it for a while, then traced a line on the map with his finger.

"No one takes this route in the winter. The snow is deep, and it's easy to get lost."

"I have a compass," Li Xin said.

"A compass is useless. There's an iron mine here, and the magnetic declination is large."

Li Xin frowned.

"Then what should I do?"

Andrei flicked the ash from his cigarette. "I'll take you to the mountain pass. For the rest of the way, follow the ridgeline. There are no trees on the ridge, so you won't get lost."

"Alright."

The Old Lady brought out the meal. It was a stew with potatoes, carrots, and a few pieces of meat, served with black bread. Li Xin ate two bowls, crumbling the bread into the soup, and finished it all.

After the meal, Andrei went out. Li Xin sat at the table and continued to study the map.

"AI System, has the location of the abandoned railway been confirmed?"

[Confirmed. Approximately 120 kilometers from Irkutsk, in the mountainous region on the west bank of Lake Baikal. Estimated 29 tons. Confirmed ownerless, full Extraction possible.]

"How long will the Extraction take?"

[29 tons, 50 tons/hour, estimated 35 minutes.]

He closed the map and lay down on the bed. The bed board was hard, and the pillow smelled musty. Closing his eyes, he went over tomorrow's route in his mind.

Before dawn, Andrei came to knock on the door.

"Get up, time to go."

Li Xin rolled over and sat up. It was still dark outside the window, and the wind was howling.

After washing up and getting dressed, the Old Lady brought breakfast. Li Xin ate a few bites and drank a cup of hot tea.

When he stepped outside, the sky was just beginning to lighten. The air was cold, making his nose ache as he breathed it in.

He got into the car, and Andrei started the engine. The car drove out of the village and headed into the mountains.

The road grew worse, full of gravel, potholes, and snow. The car swayed from side to side, and the steering wheel shook in Andrei's hands. He wasn't driving fast, but he was steady.

After driving for nearly two hours, they reached a mountain pass. Andrei parked the car in an open area and turned off the engine.

"We're here. Go up from here; cross that ridgeline, and you'll find the old railway site."

Li Xin got out of the car. The wind was strong, whipping his clothes and making them snap.

He took the compass out of his backpack and glanced at it. The needle was swinging wildly; it was indeed inaccurate.

"Thank you," he said to Andrei.

Andrei nodded, pulled something from his pocket, and handed it over.

"This is for you."

It was an old-fashioned compass with a brass casing and scratches on the glass face.

"Military-grade compass, not affected by magnetic interference."

Li Xin took it and looked at it; the needle was steady.

"How much?"

"No money needed." Andrei lit a cigarette. "If you're a friend of Chen, you're my friend."

Li Xin pocketed the compass.

"Take care."

Andrei waved, got back into the car, made a U-turn, and drove away.

Li Xin turned and headed up the mountain.

The slope wasn't steep, but the snow was deep, sinking up to his calves with every step, forcing him to pull his feet out. He hadn't walked even a hundred meters before his back was already sweating.

The wind was getting stronger. It wasn't blowing from any one direction; it was blowing from all sides. The snow was whipped up, stinging his face.

He stopped and put on his windproof mask, leaving only his eyes exposed.

He continued to walk upward.

When he reached the mountainside, the weather changed.

Clouds rolled in from the west—not in patches, but as a single, massive, grayish-white mass, hanging so low it felt like it was about to crush his head. The wind grew even stronger, making it hard to stand.

He squatted down, bracing himself with his hands on the ground.

The snow began to fall. It wasn't drifting; it was pelting down. The snowflakes were like sand, hitting his windproof mask with a rustling sound.

Visibility dropped lower and lower. He couldn't see clearly more than a few meters away.

"AI System, navigation."

[Approximately 12 kilometers ahead, along the abandoned railway line. Maintain current direction.]

He stood up and kept walking.

The wind was too strong; he couldn't walk fast. He had to stomp firmly with every step to keep his balance. The snow was up to his knees.

One hour passed, then two. He didn't know the time; even looking at his watch was difficult, as the face was covered in snow.

His legs were sore. He was panting heavily.

But he didn't stop.

The system maintained a constant temperature, and his body felt like it was in the low twenties. He wasn't cold. But he could feel the wind tearing at his clothes and the snow pelting his face.

He walked for another hour.

The AI System displayed a line of text.

[Entered the abandoned railway area. Currently about 3 kilometers from the Extraction point. Suggest following the railway line.]

Li Xin stopped and looked around.

He couldn't see anything. Everything was a vast expanse of white.

He squatted down and pressed his hand against the ground. The snow was deep, and his hand sank into it.

"AI System, confirm the location."

[Location locked. 12 meters underground, buried during the railway construction period. Estimated 25 tons. Extraction possible.]

"Start."

[Extraction initiated. 29 tons, estimated time 35 minutes.]

The progress bar began to jump.

He squatted in the snow, staring at the system panel.

The wind was howling. The snow was pelting down.

The progress jumped to 11 percent.

A sound came from the distance. It wasn't the wind; it was a howl. Wolves.

Several of them, coming from the west, howling one after another.

[Wolf pack, approximately 800 meters away. Moving southward.]

Li Xin didn't move.

The progress jumped to 23 percent.

The howling grew closer.

He glanced in that direction. In the curtain of snow, there were several dark shadows. Not trees, but animals. They were walking with their heads down in the snow.

Green eyes. Flashing on and off.

[Wolf pack is about 400 meters away. They have detected signs of human activity and are observing.]

Li Xin slowly squatted down. His hand remained pressed on the ground, not letting go.

The progress jumped to 36 percent.

The wolf pack stopped. They stood in the snow, watching this way. The green eyes were very conspicuous in the snowy curtain.

He held his breath.

The progress jumped to 42 percent.

The leader of the pack let out a howl. Short and muffled.

The wolf pack turned and headed south. The dark shadows moved further and further away, disappearing into the snowy curtain.

The progress jumped to 58 percent.

Thirty minutes later, the progress bar was full.

[Extraction complete. Railway Gold Relics, 29 tons. Accumulated gold: 4364.4057 tons.]

He stood up. His legs were numb, and he couldn't stand steadily, so he held his knees and rested for a few seconds.

He cleared away the traces on the ground—footprints, handprints, and snow pits.

Then he turned and walked back along the path he had come from.

The wind was still blowing. The snow was still falling.

He wasn't walking fast.

Going down the mountain was faster than going up, but the snow was deep, making it difficult to walk. He stepped into empty air several times and almost fell.

After walking for nearly two hours, he reached the mountain pass.

Andrei's car wasn't there. There was only snow and wind in the open area.

He stood by the side of the road and waited for over ten minutes.

There were headlights in the distance. A truck drove over, not moving fast.

He waved his hand.

The truck stopped. The driver was a middle-aged man with a stubbly beard, wearing an old military overcoat.

"Where are you going?"

"Irkutsk."

"Get in."

He climbed into the passenger seat and closed the door. It was warm inside the car, but the smell of diesel was choking.

The driver didn't speak, and neither did he.

By the time they reached Irkutsk, it was already dark.

Li Xin got out of the car and stood by the roadside. His phone vibrated.

Chen Hu sent a message: "Boss, everything is arranged in Magadan. A guide will meet you at the airport."

He replied with one word: "Alright."

He opened the system panel and took a look.

4364 tons.

Including these 29 tons from Lake Baikal, he was still over six hundred tons short of 5000 tons.

Magadan, Natalka Gold Mine.

He closed the panel and walked toward the train station.