Xiao Bai thought of something happy and giggled.
"What are you grinning about?"
Zhang Chen asked.
"Nothing, I was just thinking about delicious food!"
Xiao Bai replied with a smile.
The journey ahead was exceptionally smooth, and they soon arrived at the mountain range near the Arctic Circle.
The mountains here formed a continuous range, soaring into the clouds, making them difficult to traverse.
Er Pang and Ao Xue stopped about ten kilometers from the snow-capped mountains.
"How do we proceed from here?"
Zhang Chen asked Xu Linna.
"Hmm..."
Xu Linna operated her wristband, and her expression froze for a moment, as if she were interacting with the operating system on her wristband.
This expression was identical to how others operated their rings.
A moment later, Xu Linna came back to her senses and pointed towards a vast expanse of white in the distance.
"We go in this direction. There's a space teleportation device left by the Progressive Faction here to cross the Arctic snow mountains. I might be able to restore its operation!"
Xu Linna said calmly.
"Alright, let's head this way!"
With Zhang Chen's command, Er Pang and Ao Xue advanced once more.
An hour later, they reached the location Xu Linna had indicated.
There used to be a camp here, but most of the buildings had been destroyed by the harsh winds. The remaining structures were frozen like ice sculptures, reflecting crystal-clear rays of light in the sun.
Zhang Chen checked the time; it was past 7 PM.
At this time, it should have been dark in other regions.
However, the sun was still above the horizon, neither high nor low, as if it had been at this altitude for the past hour and remained so now!
"No need to look. Water Blue Star has no axial tilt, so the temperature in all regions is almost constant. Similarly, the sun in the Arctic always stays like this; it neither sets nor rises, much like humanity's current situation, forever struggling to survive!"
"It's a pity that the sun's lifespan is equivalent to eternity for us, but human lifespan is negligible in the grand sweep of history!"
"There isn't much time left for humanity!"
Xu Linna, sensing Zhang Chen's confusion, answered first.
As she spoke, she took out a protective suit from her wristband, put it on, and then walked with clumsy steps towards the ruins of a building.
Fearing that Xu Linna might escape, Zhang Chen flashed after her, smiling.
"Is there anything I can help you with? Let me lend a hand!"
"I can manage it myself!" Xu Linna slowly walked to a machine covered in frost, wiped it with thick insulated gloves, revealing an interface.
Then she inserted a small disc into the interface.
Zhang Chen activated his absolute vision, observing the energy flow of the disc.
He saw a powerful surge of energy flowing from Xu Linna's body into the machine.
Instantly, the frost frozen on and inside the machine began to vaporize, evaporating into the air, then turning into snowflakes and gently drifting down.
Energy continued to flow into the machine, with streams of energy tracing their way along the internal circuitry. After activating various components, they converged before a broken metal door in the distance.
*Buzz!*
Countless energy structures exploded simultaneously, dazzling Zhang Chen.
Some of them he recognized as the energy configurations for opening a teleportation gate, but the way positions and even spacetime were represented was too complex for Zhang Chen to discern.
Moreover, the energy surged into the teleportation gate so quickly that he had no time to observe it closely.
What followed was a continuous input of pure energy to ensure the normal operation of the teleportation gate.
"Alright, it's successful!"
"We need to hurry; this teleportation device is damaged and won't last long!"
Xu Linna said anxiously.
"Okay, let's go!"
Zhang Chen put his arm around Xu Linna and entered the teleportation gate with her.
Following them, Zhang Wenwen, with Xiao Bai, and Er Pang and Ao Xue in their smaller forms, also passed through the teleportation gate...
On the other side...
At Lloyd's resting place, the True God Sect's branch camp.
Over a dozen natives clad in AI combat armor appeared at the edge of the camp.
Xu Ruina, leading the cleaners and an army of infected, and Xiao Guanghan, with Han Shuang, Fan Yiyi, and the elite forces of the True God Sect, blocked the path of the natives.
Katerina, as the last line of defense, hid on Lloyd's back with her son Zhang Mo.
With Zhang Chen and Mo Ran, who could command Lloyd, absent, it wouldn't attack proactively, only retaliating if harmed.
Therefore, hiding on Lloyd's back was their final barrier.
"Captain Tang, according to information from the Ice Plains Prison, Xu Linna was brought here, but the signal cut off after this point. We have reason to believe Xu Linna is still here!"
The communicator reported to a person whose left arm of the armor was inscribed with dense small dots.
"Hmm, Xu Linna is cunning. She might also be deliberately trying to provoke a conflict between us and the轮回者 (Reincarnators)."
"Don't act rashly. Analysts, continue to analyze the current enemy intelligence for me!"
Captain Tang stood at the front of the formation, commanding, and did not rush to attack.
While the natives were not attacking, Xu Ruina stealthily deployed zombie bio-warriors and various infected mutated creatures into the dense forest, slowly flanking the natives.
As a surprise force, they would create an unexpected effect if a fight broke out.
The natives took less than a minute to obtain detailed information.
"Captain Tang, the personal data for Xiao Guanghan, Fan Yiyi, and Han Shuang has been sent to you. Also, this semi-infected individual... might be troublesome!"
The analyst stated.
"Hmm? Just a strange wailer, what's troublesome about that?"
Captain Tang frowned slightly and asked.
"Our database has no information on her!"
The analyst replied.
"No information? How is that possible? Before the ultimate apocalypse, the entire world was within our calculations!"
"Everyone, including the infected and mutated creatures, should have been within our control and plans!"
"What do you mean our database has no record of this person? Did she just appear out of thin air?"
Captain Tang questioned with a stern face.
"Well... even if something appears out of thin air in this world, it would be reflected in the database..."
"The only explanation for this phenomenon is that she was created by us. Only insiders can generate new existences in the world by bypassing the database!"
The analyst further explained.
"Created by someone within our ranks? Who has such authority that even I am unaware of it?"
Captain Tang looked at Xu Ruina's face again with a serious expression, and his face changed dramatically!
"It's... it's her?!"