The nearby space heater buzzed softly, continuously outputting precious heat to combat the extreme cold.
Lin Yu and Li Hao lay side by side on the ground, which was covered with insulation mats.
Wrapped in thick sleeping bags, they were exhausted from the significant effort it took to set up the tent and install the heater.
The inside of the tent was relatively warm, but silence and boredom began to seep in, just like the cold.
“How are we going to spend the next few days?”
Li Hao stared at the top of the tent, his voice muffled.
“Are we just going to lie here like this? There’s no internet, no games, and not even a decent toilet…”
“We have no choice,” Lin Yu said with his eyes closed, his tone flat.
“We lie here for one week and then make a run for it. During the Second Phase, the School will no longer directly provide water and food. Instead, they’ll drop those things along with kerosene and firearms at certain locations for us to fight over. By then, staying put won’t do us any good.”
“Wait,” Li Hao suddenly propped himself up and looked at Lin Yu, his eyes brightening in the dim tent.
“If it’s just a lack of water, food, and kerosene…”
The two made eye contact, instantly understanding each other’s meaning.
Li Hao’s Divine Sense was “Creation.”
Simply producing water, high-calorie food, and kerosene — it wasn’t a problem at all for his ability.
The question now was, did they really want to spend an extra week lying in the tent?
“So…”
Li Hao’s voice carried a hint of helplessness.
“Should we… lie here for another week? Maybe… even hang around until the Third Phase starts to see what happens?”
After a moment of thought, Lin Yu replied, “Don’t think that far ahead.”
He rolled over, turning his back to Li Hao.
“We’ll see when the time comes. Since there’s nothing to do anyway, instead of rotting in the tent, we might as well go for a walk and adapt to the environment. If we’re lucky, we might actually run into a penguin and shake its hand.”
“Sigh…”
Li Hao let out a long sigh, his face written with 100 expressions of reluctance.
However, the space inside the tent was simply too small, and boredom eventually triumphed over laziness.
Like a clumsy penguin, he squirmed in his sleeping bag for a long time before struggling to climb out.
He put on his heavy cold-weather gear and donned his goggles and mask, which were frozen stiff.
Lin Yu also slowly began to get dressed.
The two of them checked each other’s equipment for any air leaks, an essential point emphasized in the Survival Manual.
When they pulled back the tent flap, the polar chill rushed in, forming a sharp contrast with the warmth inside.
Taking their first step, their boots sank into the soft snow with a crunch.
Before them was a world of pure white.
The other tents of the King Club were scattered across the snowy plains like red mushrooms.
Further away were the colorful camps of other clubs.
The traces of human activity appeared so minuscule on this ancient ice field, yet they were remarkably tenacious.
The two did not go far, only pacing slowly around the edge of the camp.
Li Hao looked at everything with curiosity, while Lin Yu’s gaze lingered more on the bottomless ice crevices and the silent, beast-like ice shelves in the distance.
Just then, Li Hao suddenly tapped Lin Yu’s arm and pointed toward a distant snow slope.
“Look! Is that…?”
Following the direction he pointed, several small things in “black suits” were waddling in a line.
They were curiously observing the uninvited guests who had suddenly intruded into their world.
“That was easy,” Lin Yu said, somewhat surprised.
This white desert was not entirely devoid of life.
In that instant, the entire world before his eyes seemed to be rewritten by an invisible force.
The glaring white snow field faded into a dull gray, the azure sky turned to lead, and the only vivid colors remaining were the penguins “frozen” in place in their comical poses.
They became the only colored silhouettes in this black-and-white silent film.
‘It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a penguin,’ No.
2’s voice rang out in his mind, tinged with a hint of nostalgia.
‘The last time I saw one… let me think…’
‘It was on the kids’ channel, Penguins of Madagascar.’
‘What are you doing?’
Lin Yu asked coldly in his consciousness, already somewhat numb to this sudden “special effect.”
‘Can’t Star Platinum tell? I stopped time,’ No.
2’s voice was filled with unabashed, childish pride.
‘I remember you said in the Mediterranean Sea that you “slowed down time within a range,” not paused it,’ Lin Yu said, accurately calling out his exaggeration.
‘Tsk, you have a good memory.’
No.
2 sounded like he had lost interest, his tone immediately dropping.
‘Fine, fine. This time, on top of the “slowing down” effect, I added an extra black-and-white filter lighting package. Exclusive special effects — how do they feel?’
‘So, what exactly do you want?’
‘Fine, let’s talk business.’
No.
2’s tone suddenly became a bit more serious, but it still carried that uncomfortable, forced depth.
‘This is a rare trip, isn’t it? The eyes are the best viewfinder, but memories… they are the world’s most unreliable memory card. No matter how clear the image, it will fade and blur over time…’
‘I don’t have time to listen to you pretend to be a literary youth,’ Lin Yu interrupted coldly.
‘I’m giving you a benefit!’
No.
2 immediately switched to a salesman’s enthusiastic tone.
‘Five chips! For just five chips, I’ll give you five chances to use a time-stop-like ability. It’s a great deal, isn’t it?’
‘Stop with the sales pitch.’
Lin Yu’s consciousness was as firm as ice.
‘That’s five uses of Star Platinum: The World! Aren’t you even a little tempted?’
No.
2 emphasized with exaggeration.
Lin Yu shook his head, not wavering in the slightest.
‘Fine, human desire always needs a spark,’ No.
2’s tone suddenly became mysterious.
He manifested an ancient Bronze Pocket Watch out of thin air.
‘This pocket watch comes with one free trial. From the moment you press the button until you press it again, the time in between will belong entirely to you. I hope you enjoy the sensation.’
The moment the pocket watch appeared, the black-and-white filter abruptly vanished.
The world’s colors and sounds rushed back — the wind and snow howled, the heater buzzed, and Li Hao’s breathing became clear again.
The penguins seemed to have paused only for a brief moment before resuming their waddling, completely unaware of the mental confrontation that had just occurred.
“What’s wrong? Mesmerized by the penguins?”
Li Hao waved a hand in front of him, looking confusedly at the suddenly stunned Lin Yu.
“It’s nothing.”
Lin Yu withdrew his gaze and unconsciously reached up to touch his inner jacket pocket.
Through the thick cold-weather gear and fleece lining, there was indeed something there — the cold, flat outline of a circular object was pressed clearly against his chest.
No.
2’s gift had been forced into his reality through some incomprehensible method.
Suppressing the shock in his heart, he pulled his attention back and tightened the collar of his coat, gesturing with his chin toward the group of curious onlookers.
“Should we go and try to shake hands with a penguin?”
“Huh?”
Li Hao froze for a second, his face then showing an expression that was both eager and a bit cowardly.
“Is that okay? They won’t bite, will they? In the documentaries I’ve seen, a penguin’s beak looks pretty hard…”
“Probably not,” Lin Yu said, taking the first step.
He carefully trudged through the deep snow toward the group of Emperor Penguins.
Seeing the two large “red objects” approaching, the penguins did not flee in panic.
They simply huddled closer together, tilting their heads and observing them with round, black eyes.
They let out short, trumpet-like calls, as if they were communicating.
As the distance closed, their appearance became clearer.
Their black-and-white feathers looked like a crisp tuxedo, their chests were snowy white, and the orange-yellow ear patches and beaks looked exceptionally vibrant against the monotonous background of ice and snow.
They stood slightly leaned back, possessing a natural, adorable dignity.
Lin Yu stopped about 5 meters away from them.
He slowly and cautiously squatted down, trying not to alarm them, making himself appear less imposing.
A bolder penguin flapped its small wings, waddling forward a few steps to stare curiously at Lin Yu’s hand.
Li Hao followed Lin Yu’s example and squatted beside him.
‘Do you think it’s wondering if this thing is edible?’
The penguin tilted its head for a long time.
It didn’t reach out its flipper for a “handshake,” but instead used its hard, smooth beak to gently and tentatively peck at Lin Yu’s hand.
“Hey! It touched you!”
Li Hao whispered excitedly.