Volume 2: Winter’s End
After a long time, Ye Qian finally settled back down. He turned his head to glance at Shu Xun, who was already sound asleep in the glove, before taking out a white rock tree seedling from his pocket to continue processing, preparing to craft a bow and arrow.
Outside, the surroundings were indistinguishably black and white, with only a faint blue light lingering and not dissipating. Over time, it gave off a drowsy and dreamlike sensation. The entire world seemed to have fallen into a prolonged slumber, with no awakening in sight.
Shu Xun and Ye Qian both anticipated that they would stay here for a while, especially after reading the notes and realizing that there was a fifteen-day interval between the two blue lights. The first time it took about ten days for the temperature to warm up. If the appearance of the blue light follows a pattern, they might have to stay in this mansion for another ten days.
However, reality turned out to be more dire than the two had expected. Even after ten days, there was no sign of the outside temperature warming up. Their food had run out three days ago, and the remaining Baiyan branches were also dwindling. If they continued to stay, the fire source would face the crisis of running out. They were not like Qing Mo and couldn’t find the reason why Qing Mo could survive in the freezing winter temperatures. Once they fell into temperatures below minus eighty degrees, even inside the mansion, they would quickly be in danger of freezing to death without a heat source.
In the mansion, Shu Xun sat quietly by the fire, wrapped in a towel serving as a small blanket. The warm yellow light of the fire made people feel a bit more comfortable, but Shu Xun still sneezed. Although the sound was very soft, in the silent mansion, it seemed particularly clear.
Ye Qian lowered his head to look at the little bundle of fur sitting beside the fire with a towel wrapped around it. The little one had an indifferent look as if saying, “That sneeze has nothing to do with me.” Ye Qian then glanced outside at the icy blue world, his eyes showing the unchanging indifference.
In the live broadcast room:
“Heartbroken for the little one. God Ye has a powerful mental strength. Even without eating, he can survive for six or seven days. But the little one is so small, and its energy needs constant replenishment. Will three days be the limit?”
“I just checked the official live broadcast data. Most game worlds are in an ice crisis, and the death toll has reached half. It’s been less than twenty days since the game started!”
“I finally understand. Under the bleak winter, both food and temperature are equally important. One cannot be lacking.”
“I’m afraid the little one will collapse any second now.”
“Shu Xun looks so calm, probably not wanting to influence Ye Qian’s judgment because of himself. Ah, how can he be so considerate.”
In the glow of the fire, Ye Qian’s expression remained unchanged as he bowed his head to work on the arrows in his hands. His movements seemed unruffled. Shu Xun, wrapped in a small towel serving as a makeshift blanket, quietly yawned. Extended periods without eating meant a lack of energy replenishment, resulting in fatigue. So, these past few days, Shu Xun had been in a constant state of drowsiness. After a few more yawns, Shu Xun’s little head began to…
Finally, with a snap, he collapsed onto the ground, snoring softly under the small blanket.
In the live broadcast room:
“…”
“I was really startled when Shu Xun fell down!”
“Hey hey hey, he fell asleep instantly. How many people were as confused as me when the snoring started?”
“Little Dumpling is just too stubborn. If he had quietly left some food behind at that time, even a few Baiyan nuts, he wouldn’t be constantly sleeping now.”
“Upstairs! That’s why you can never become Ye Qian’s teammate. Shu Xun defines himself as a teammate, not as an underage little one.”
“That’s why we feel so sorry for Shu Xun.”
“What is Ye Qian doing? Planning to improve something again?”
“It seems like he wants to improve the little blanket that Shu Xun took out. My thrifty God Ye!”
In ten days, the audience not only witnessed Ye Qian crafting weapons but also saw some mind-boggling things that shattered their preconceptions. They realized that Ye Qian, this millennia-old poker-faced and aloof deity, had an unknown side. For instance, when Shu Xun was awake, Ye Qian always handled weapons with a cold demeanor. Yet, after Shu Xun fell asleep, he would quietly take off the little socks made by Shu Xun and, with a needle and thread box and collected fabrics and other insulation materials, improve the socks.
The next day, when Shu Xun woke up, he would happily dance around the fire for a while and then thank Ye Qian with chubby hands. Ye Qian’s reaction remained consistently impassive. However, after Shu Xun fell asleep again, Ye Qian would quietly bring over the scarf Shu Xun was wrapped in and continue the improvements.
In this solemn atmosphere, Ye Qian gradually improved all of Shu Xun’s belongings. It wasn’t much, just one item per day. In the end, even the gloves were completely transformed into a comfortable small sleeping bag, filled with soft down. Shu Xun received a surprise every day, bringing joy to his low-energy days.
Now, Ye Qian reached out and gently placed the deeply asleep Shu Xun back into the small sleeping bag. Ye Qian’s hands, which could easily tear apart prey, exhibited an inexplicable gentleness when handling the little bundle. At least, Shu Xun’s regular snoring did not cease.
In Ye Qian’s magical hands, the towel was successfully transformed into an exquisite little blanket, neatly folded and placed by Shu Xun’s pillow. Shu Xun slept deeply, but his complexion lacked the usual healthy redness; instead, it was a pale color devoid of vitality. The two chubby claws lightly gripped the edge of the sleeping bag, which was faintly undulated with Shu Xun’s almost imperceptible breath.
Ye Qian lowered his head, observed for a while, and then extended his index finger, quietly approaching Shu Xun’s exposed little head. The movement was slow as if Ye Qian was hesitating.
The live broadcast room fell silent for a moment, followed by a wave of confusion. The audience clearly didn’t understand what Ye Qian was about to do. Then, amid the audience’s perplexity and anticipation, Ye Qian’s index finger gently touched the vermilion cinnabar mole on Shu Xun’s forehead.
“I can’t believe Ye Qian would be so… so… creepy!”
“To be honest, I’ve wanted to touch that red spot for a long time.”
“Ye Qian can’t think that by pressing it, Little Dumpling will activate some strange function, right?”
“Haha, the person above me has a point!”
“Can I say I also thought the same? But Little Dumpling is still snoring. Obviously, nothing happened. What kind of race did Little Dumpling actually awaken?”
“Guess God Ye was just testing if Little Dumpling had a fever. Haha, but why does the action look so amusing?”
Long fingers gently touched Shu Xun’s forehead. Soon, Shu Xun seemed to sense something unusual, turned his small body, and shifted to a side position. At the same time, unconsciously, he extended his chubby claws to rub his own forehead.
Ye Qian had already withdrawn his hand, glanced at his fingertips, and sat up straight again with a serious expression. It seemed like the earlier act of discreetly poking Little Dumpling’s forehead had nothing to do with him. He continued to sit calmly for a while, his gaze indifferent, and no one could discern any emotions from his expression.
Time silently passed, and as another day was about to end, the blue light outside showed no signs of dimming. Ye Qian stood up, walked to the window for a moment of observation, then turned to glance at the small sleeping bag near the fire. Ultimately, he returned to the side of the campfire, picked up the crafted bow and quiver, put the hood of his clothes on his head, and headed towards the main door of the mansion.
“Ye Qian, what are you going to do! Come back quickly! That temperature is something no living being can endure.”
“There’s no food left in the mansion; Ye Qian clearly wants to go out hunting.”
“But at this temperature, there won’t be any animals outside.”
“I have a bad feeling. In these past few days, I’ve seen too many players die from venturing outside to find food due to shortages, including god-level players.”
“I bet, in this low temperature, except for those with special talents, no one can survive outside for more than half an hour.”
In the live stream, the atmosphere shifted from warmth to tension due to Ye Qian’s adventurous actions. Actually, since the shortage of food and the lack of a decrease in external temperature, people’s moods have become heavy. However, because of the casual interactions between Shu Xun and Ye Qian, this weight had been turned into warmth. Now, even a subtle movement could trigger the viewers’ nerves, leaving them uneasy.
Inside the mansion, Ye Qian gripped the large door with both hands, exerting force. With a sound of ice cracking, the frozen door opened, revealing a slit. The biting cold rushed in as the door opened slightly. Ye Qian moved quickly and almost slipped out when the door was wide enough, then, promptly, the door closed gently.
The snow underfoot seemed to have turned into fine solid dust, losing its ability to melt. Stepping on the white snow, Ye Qian headed towards the nearby Baiyan forest.
Ye Qian’s movements were swift. Within a few breaths, he had already reached the edge of the Baiyan forest. Soon, the body of the white wolf appeared in his field of vision. The corpse was already stiff, maintaining the posture it had in death under the extremely low temperature. Without casting a glance, Ye Qian sped past and headed towards the depths of the jungle. As an awakened one with wolf lineage, he obviously wouldn’t eat wolf meat—a choice shared by the majority of awakened ones, or rather, it was an instinct.
In the mansion, Shu Xun was still buried in the small sleeping bag, sleeping soundly. However, the curled-up body indicated that he didn’t feel particularly warm, even beside the campfire. It seemed that the temperature couldn’t penetrate his body, a clear sign of impending energy depletion. If left undisturbed, he might continue sleeping like this.
In his dream, Shu Xun felt like he was experiencing another home dream—warm, comfortable, with family, food, green mountains, and clear waters. Everything felt frighteningly real, yet his rational mind screamed that this couldn’t be true. Even in his subconsciousness, Shu Xun vividly realized that this could very well be a hallucination before death. He also became aware that his own energy had reached a critical point.
Amid his daze, a warm, fragrant object suddenly entered his mouth. Shu Xun opened his eyes to see the steadfast Ye Qian, still dressed in black but emitting an aura of chilling cold. At this moment, Ye Qian was offering him the roasted meat of Baiyan nuts.
Shu Xun crawled out of the sleeping bag, feeling a bit weak and lethargic. His brain was heavy as if he had just had a dream, yet he couldn’t recall the content. The puzzled Shu Xun was quickly drawn to the food, extending his chubby paws to take the Baiyan nut and devour it without hesitation.
“The outside has warmed up. We’ll set out soon, and within a day, we’ll reach Baiyan Town. We can finally have a good meal,” Ye Qian’s voice echoed overhead.
Shu Xun, while nibbling on the nut meat, suddenly stopped. He looked at Ye Qian’s outstretched palm, where only a few small Baiyan nuts lay. Shu Xun counted them and found only six.
