178: Chapter 178 Polar Night Investigation: Lurking at -60℃

The sky was pitch black; there was no moon, no stars, only the biting cold wind and snow filling the sky.

Li Xin walked north along the route he had scouted during the day, moving slowly. His feet felt as if they were nailed to the ground; he would place them down, ensure they were secure and stable, and only then would he dare to take the next step.

After struggling for nearly two hours, he finally reached the vicinity of the location.

Before him lay a low-lying area, surrounded on three sides by gentle earthen slopes. The low shrubs on the slopes were bowed under the weight of the thick snow, looking incredibly bleak.

He found an excellent hiding spot at the foot of the slope. It was beneath a protruding boulder where the rock face naturally recessed inward, forming a natural bunker just large enough for one person to hide in.

Li Xin looked around for a moment, then muttered in his mind.

"AI System, confirm the location."

[Location locked. This is the south side of the Kupol mining area and the west side of the Dvoinoye mining area. Within the extractable range, 312 tons of gold can be extracted from the two gold mines. Extraction rate: 50 tons/hour; estimated time: 6.2 hours.]

"Good, start Extraction."

[Received... Extraction started. Countdown: 6:14:59.]

The progress bar began to jump.

Li Xin leaned against the rock wall and took a sleeping bag out of his space, spreading it on the ground. He then took out a bottle of red wine and a glass, beginning to sip slowly, ignoring the freezing blizzard outside.

Afterward, he took out some roasted camel meat. He bit down, tore off a piece, and savored the rich flavor. Taking another sip of wine, it was truly wonderful.

"AI System, what is the temperature?"

[Current air temperature is fifty-eight degrees below zero. The system's constant temperature function is operating normally; the perceived temperature is twenty-two degrees.]

Li Xin nodded. It was freezing cold outside, but he didn't feel cold even in his thin clothes. The system's constant temperature function was truly useful.

The wind and snow gradually intensified. Although he didn't feel cold, the wind was uncomfortable. After thinking for a moment, he took a tent out of his space and set it up quickly. The tent was specially made, white, and blended perfectly with the surroundings; it wouldn't be noticed unless looked at carefully.

He laid out a moisture-proof mat and sleeping bag inside, placing his wine glass and energy bars within reach.

He crawled into the tent and zipped it up.

The wind was blocked outside, and the noise subsided a bit.

"AI System, is there anyone around?"

[Scanning... No human activity within a three-kilometer radius. There is a heat signal in the direction of the mining area, about 11 kilometers away.]

"Any sign of a Patrol Team?" Li Xin nodded and asked again.

[None for now. It is recommended to remain silent and pay attention to system notifications at all times.]

Li Xin waited quietly like this, and an hour passed in the blink of an eye.

Suddenly, movement drifted from the distance—not the howling cold wind, but the sound of vehicles.

There was more than one; they were moving slowly toward him from the direction of the mining area.

Headlights lit up in the snow curtain—two, no, three. Off-road vehicles, driving slowly.

The vehicles stopped at the bottom of the slope. The doors opened, and seven or eight people got out, wearing camouflage uniforms and carrying guns.

Voices drifted to his ears. They were keeping their voices low, but in the deep, quiet night, every word could be heard clearly.

"Search this area more thoroughly. The captain said there was an abnormal signal nearby; someone might be active here."

"Damn it~ Who would come here in the middle of the night? You'd freeze to death. The captain is just messing with us while he sits in the office warming himself by the fire."

"Stop talking nonsense. Just search if you're told to. Didn't they say at the meeting yesterday that there have been strangers active here lately? Their movements are suspicious; they might be foreign spies."

"Spies? Are you kidding me? In this godforsaken place, what could a spy do? Come here to drink the northwest wind, freeze, and starve?"

"Who knows? Anyway, the higher-ups told us to search, so we search. Don't blather on all day; be careful or you'll get in trouble when we get back."

"Alright, alright!"

Afterward, beams of flashlight light swung wildly across the snow.

Li Xin huddled in the tent, not moving an inch. The tent was specially designed for snowy weather and had strong camouflage properties; it was hard to spot from the outside, as it was custom-made.

The footsteps grew closer, crunching on the snow.

The flashlight beam swept past the side of the tent.

"Are there any footprints here?"

"No, the snow is flat; there are no traces of human activity."

"How about your side? Did you find anything?"

"Nothing on our side either. Let's go, let's check other places. I'm freezing to death; my hands are about to fall off. Let's finish the patrol early so we can go back."

"Wait, let me use the thermal imager to Scan."

Li Xin's heart tightened slightly—thermal imaging.

He slowly lay down and pulled the sleeping bag over himself. The sleeping bag was made of special materials and could insulate heat. He had it custom-made back home, spending hundreds of thousands.

"Nothing. Let's go."

The footsteps faded away.

He waited until the sounds were gone before exhaling.

The progress jumped to eleven percent.

"AI System, they used thermal imaging."

[Detected. Both the tent and the sleeping bag have thermal insulation coatings; your body heat signal has been masked. I can also control the temperature to match the surrounding environment. I have also processed the footprints you left earlier. Rest assured, it is very safe.]

"Phew... That's good." Li Xin finally put his mind at ease.

Not long after, more sounds came from the distance—this time, snowmobiles. It sounded like several of them, driving over from another direction.

Headlights lit up in the snow curtain—four of them, in a line. They weren't moving fast, but they were steady.

The snowmobiles stopped at the bottom of the slope. Five or six people got off, wearing white camouflage suits and carrying guns. Their equipment was better than the previous group.

Someone was speaking into a walkie-talkie, but the voice was low and couldn't be heard clearly.

The flashlight beams swept back and forth across the snow. One beam swept past the side of the tent and paused for a moment.

Li Xin held his breath, and the beam moved away again.

Footsteps slowly came up from below the slope, getting closer and closer.

He huddled in the tent, keeping his breathing extremely light.

Boots crunched heavily on the snow. A gun butt knocked against a rock with a clatter.

Someone walked past him, less than two meters away, but didn't notice him.

Another person walked over, even closer to him, and the flashlight beam swept past the edge of the tent.

"Sergeant, there seems to be something here."

"What thing?"

"Don't know, looks like a rock."

"What's so interesting about a rock? Why are you making such a fuss? Let's go. Aren't you cold? Wouldn't it be better to go back and have a little drink?"

"Hehe~ Alright. You have to let me have a couple of sips of the vodka you're hiding later."

"In your dreams. I can't even bear to drink it myself."

The footsteps faded away. Li Xin waited until the sounds were gone before exhaling.

The progress jumped to twenty-three percent.

The snowmobiles didn't leave; they parked at the bottom of the slope with their engines still running, the chugging sound very loud in the night.

Someone was talking; this time the voice was louder.

"Sergeant, have you searched that side?"

"Searched it, nothing."

"How about here? This low-lying area?"

"Nothing either. The snow is flat; no one has been here."

"Then what about the signal? The instrument can't be wrong."

"Maybe an animal, a Polar Bear or something."

"A Polar Bear? Can the instrument detect a Polar Bear?"

"Don't know. Anyway, there's no one. If there were someone, they should have left footprints. Look, there's nothing here. Let's go, I'm freezing to death. Let's go back and have a drink to warm up."

"Wait, let me Scan one more time."

The flashlight beam swept again, passing by the side of the tent, even closer this time.

Li Xin lay flat on his sleeping bag, not moving at all.

"Nothing. Let's go, don't dilly-dally."

The engine noise increased, and the snowmobiles drove away.

Li Xin was completely relieved and felt secretly fortunate.

"The camouflage mastery skill given by the system isn't bad. Even right under their noses, they didn't discover me."

The progress jumped to thirty-six percent.

The sky began to brighten. It wasn't sunrise, but that grayish-white light of the polar night, seeping out from the east, very faint.

He took a sip of water; the water was icy, and it felt cool in his stomach. He took out an energy bar, tore it open, and took a bite. It was sweet and cloying. He chewed slowly.

"AI System, how much longer?"

[Current progress is forty-one percent. Estimated time remaining is 3.7 hours.]

There were footsteps in the distance—not a Patrol Team, but one person. They were walking up from below the slope, moving very slowly.

Li Xin huddled in the tent, not moving, complaining incessantly in his mind: "Is there no end to this? Someone else is coming..."

Unfortunately, complaining was useless. The footsteps grew closer, crunching on the snow.

A person walked past the tent, wearing an old military overcoat and a fur hat, carrying a plastic bucket in their hand. It wasn't a soldier, but a local; who knows what they were out for.

The person walked very slowly, stopped, and looked around.

Then they squatted down and lit a cigarette.

The glow of the fire flickered in the snow.

Li Xin held his breath.

The person finished smoking, stood up, and muttered to themselves: "This godforsaken weather, it's so cold. Sixty degrees below zero, can a living person stay here? It's truly suffering!"

Then they continued walking up the mountain, their footsteps fading into the distance.

The progress jumped to fifty-eight percent.

"AI System, that person just said sixty degrees below zero."

[Yes, the current air temperature is fifty-nine point three degrees below zero. The system's constant temperature is normal.]

"Good."

The day had brightened. The grayish-white light shone on the snow, not blindingly bright.

There was the sound of an airplane in the distance—a transport plane flying very high, its sound muffled.

After a while, it flew toward the south.

The progress jumped to seventy-four percent.

"AI System, are there any Patrol Teams around?"

[Scanning. There is a heat signal about fifteen kilometers to the east. It is moving north, but the distance is quite far, so it will not affect the Extraction.]

"Good, keep monitoring. Remember to remind me if you find anything; you just forgot a moment ago."

[Sorry, I cannot remember...]

"..." Li Xin was speechless and felt a sense of defeat.

The progress jumped to eighty-nine percent.

He stared at the progress bar, counting second by second.

Ninety-two percent, ninety-five, ninety-eight.

[Ding... Extraction complete. Kupol mining area 192 tons, Dvoinoye mining area 120 tons. Total 312 tons. Cumulative gold: 5315.2057 tons.]

[System entering cooling state. Countdown: 11:59:59.]

He closed the panel and didn't move.

He sat in the tent, waiting for nearly an hour.

The day was completely bright now, with grayish-white light shining on the snow.

He stood up and stored the tent in his space. He cleared the traces on the ground. Footprints, handprints, and the indentations made by the tent were all filled in with snow.

Then he went down the other side of the slope, took a wide detour, and walked south.

After walking for nearly two hours, he arrived at the place where the vehicle was parked.

Victor was sleeping in the car; hearing the car door sound, he opened his eyes.

"You're back? Did anything happen?"

"No, let's go."

Victor sat up and rubbed his face.

"You go out in the middle of the night and come back at dawn every time. What exactly are you doing over there?"

Li Xin just smiled and didn't answer.

Victor glanced at him and started the engine.

"Forget it, I won't ask. After all, you pay enough."

The car drove on the snow; the wilderness outside the window was gray and hazy.

Li Xin leaned back against the seat and closed his eyes.

312 tons. Obtained.

Cumulative 5315 tons.

"Victor, let's go back to town."

"Alright, where are you going next?"

"Rest for two days, then go south to take a look."

Victor glanced at him.

"South? Are you going to that mining area too? But there aren't any mines there."

"Not going to the mining area. I'm just looking around; I was just curious about the mining area."

Victor didn't ask again.

When they arrived in town, Li Xin got out of the car.

"Thank you, you've worked hard these past few days."

Victor waved his hand and responded with a smile.

"It's nothing. You're Chen's friend, so you're my friend. And the pay you give is very generous. Come find me if you come again."

"Alright, goodbye!"

Victor turned around and drove away.

Li Xin walked into the hotel and went upstairs.

He lay on the bed.

He opened the system panel.

5315 tons.

He stared at the number for a few seconds.

He closed the panel.

The phone vibrated. Chen Hu sent a message: "Boss, where to next?"

Li Xin thought for a moment and replied with one word: "Rest."

He put the phone on the nightstand.

He closed the curtains.

He closed his eyes.

Outside the window, the wind was howling.

He soon fell asleep.