Chapter 49: The Ice and Snow World part 1
The hovercar drove for an hour and a half to reach the outskirts of Planet Aps. After Mu Qingzhou swiped his ID card and showed the mission information, they were allowed to leave the barrier wall.
Zhu Ran was registered as accompanying personnel and was also successfully cleared.
Stepping out of the city gates, the view was filled with endless wind, sand, and dust. The remains of metallic buildings lay on the parched earth, occasionally reflecting the stinging sunlight.
Away from the temperature-controlled facilities of the urban area, the temperature in the outskirts returned to nature, dropping instantly. The perceived temperature reached about 5°C.
A gust of sand blew by, making Zhu Ran unable to open his eyes as the cold invaded from all sides.
Having lived in the central city area where the temperature was a constant 20°C and spending his days soaking in the sun, Zhu Ran had almost forgotten it was currently the winter of January.
He was dressed a bit thin, and the exposed skin brushed by the cold air immediately broke out in goosebumps.
Zhu Ran was about to expand his spiritual power to isolate the outside world when Mu Qingzhou wove a spiritual power net for him first.
The sand and cold wind were blocked, and Zhu Ran opened his eyes that had been squinting from the wind.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
With that, Mu Qingzhou draped a white sweater coat over Zhu Ran.
“It’s my coat, I haven’t worn it. You wear it.”
“Aren’t you cold?”
Mu Qingzhou was currently only wearing a white shirt, looking quite cold and thin.
“I have an ice-type ability; I’m not afraid of the cold.” Mu Qingzhou shook his head. “I’m not sensitive to temperature either, don’t worry about me.”
Seeing that Mu Qingzhou truly wasn’t forcing himself, Zhu Ran put on the sweater.
Mu Qingzhou’s sweater had no scent, only a faint frost-like chill that matched his temperament.
Following the map provided by the mission, Mu Qingzhou led Zhu Ran to the place where the mutated plants grew.
On the way, they occasionally encountered a few ferocious mutated beasts, all of which were frozen into ice sculptures by Mu Qingzhou. The sculptures were crystal clear and looked exceptionally piercing under the sunlight.
“Careful, the path here is a bit difficult.”
“Give me your hand, it’s a bit steep here.”
“Are you tired? Want to rest for a bit?”
…
Along the way, Mu Qingzhou was very attentive to Zhu Ran.
Zhu Ran felt like he was being treated as a fragile item, which he wasn’t quite used to.
Soon, the two arrived at a plain covered in black thorns.
The view was a sea of deep black, overlapping and layered. Looking closely, one could see the blackness breathing faintly—rising and falling, which was a bit terrifying.
Amidst this blackness, a few hanging, cup-shaped brown flowers bloomed occasionally.
The buds were about the size of three to five people, and the stamens were glowing, flickering, making them look like flower-shaped street lamps.
A breeze blew by, and a scent of rust mixed with woody notes gradually spread, adding a sense of ancient, eerie mystery to the entire area.
“These are Black Thorns, A-rank mutated plants. They proactively attack any life form that steps into their territory. Their attack power can instantly turn mechas of the same rank into scrap metal.”
“The brown flowers are Midnight Lights, A-rank mutated plants…”
“You can’t use fire to clear these two types of mutated plants; fire will make them lose control. The best way is to use low temperatures to reduce their activity…”
After Mu Qingzhou finished his explanation, he walked to Zhu Ran’s side.
“Excuse me.”
He reached out, encircling Zhu Ran’s waist and pulling him closer to himself.
Mu Qingzhou was 186cm tall. Although he appeared to have a cold aura, he had muscle where muscle should be, and his entire body was filled with a sense of power.
The unguarded Zhu Ran was thus brought in front of him in a hugging posture.
Zhu Ran wasn’t used to being in such close contact with Mu Qingzhou; he was more familiar with Z.
So he frowned and pushed Mu Qingzhou, signaling him to let go.
Mu Qingzhou had no intention of letting go. Instead, sensing Zhu Ran’s resistance, he held him a bit tighter.
Mu Qingzhou explained: “I need to have physical contact with you so you won’t be hurt by my ability.”
Physical contact doesn’t require hugging and pulling…
Zhu Ran was about to say these words, but suddenly, a wave of cold spiritual power expanded. An indescribable frost-like aura spread outward from Mu Qingzhou and Zhu Ran at the center.
Accompanied by “crack, crack” sounds, a beautiful surface of ice gradually covered the ground that was filled with Black Thorns.
Frost rose, and the temperature plummeted.
Crystal clear ice stretched for several kilometers. Cold white mist spread from their feet until the entire range of vision turned into a sheet of icy blue, only then did the frost aura weaken.
The Black Thorns were frozen. Their original faint breathing weakened until they entered a state of slumber.
The Midnight Lights were also enveloped in shells made of ice. Their state froze at the moment they were dimly lit, making the entire ice cover look transparent.
In the next moment, under the winter sunlight, hexagonal snowflakes descended.
They fell one by one onto the frozen world, making a faint “ting ting” sound, which was very pleasant to hear.
All of Zhu Ran’s attention was captured by the sight before him.
The combination of clean, transparent frost and black thorns created a huge visual impact. The few dimly lit Midnight Lights added a touch of dreamlike beauty to the scene.
Flickering, they lit up the entire ice surface so it reflected a shimmering light.
It was beautiful.
Thinking this, Zhu Ran said it aloud: “So beautiful.”
Hearing Zhu Ran’s involuntary praise, waves of warm sweetness brushed through Mu Qingzhou’s heart.
He looked sideways, his gaze focused on Zhu Ran’s face.
Zhu Ran’s eyes were bright, a joyful smile hung on his face, and what Zhu Ran was staring at was a scene personally created by Mu Qingzhou.
Zhu Ran liked the ice and snow world he had created.
This realization made Mu Qingzhou feel satisfied.
The hand encircling Zhu Ran’s waist let go. Mu Qingzhou actually wanted to hold him longer, but he was worried Zhu Ran would be unhappy, so he released him.
However, Zhu Ran, immersed in this beautiful scenery, didn’t notice immediately that the other’s hand had been lowered.
In his state of having just been held, half of his body was leaning against Mu Qingzhou’s chest.
He looked back, his eyes full of brilliant stars: “Mu Qingzhou, you’re so amazing!”
Mu Qingzhou nodded lightly, his black eyes dyed with warmth.
“It’s alright.”
As long as you like it.
“The thorns and Midnight Lights are all frozen and won’t be dangerous. You can go play on the ice for a bit.”
“I’ll wait for you right here.”
After saying that, Mu Qingzhou turned his head and coughed lightly twice, then looked back at Zhu Ran with his usual expression.
Hearing this, Zhu Ran carefully stepped onto the ice.
He first stomped his feet twice, making faint thudding sounds. Zhu Ran could feel the ice was very hard and solid, allowing him to be as reckless as he wanted on the surface.
Zhu Ran’s shoes weren’t very slip-resistant, which actually made it convenient for him to skate on the ice.
Thinking this, Zhu Ran exerted force with his legs and slid back and forth through the ice and snow.
His emerald-green eyes reflected a layer of light icy blue. The corners of his eyes turned up with joy, and a bright smile hung on his lips.
Zhu Ran’s mood was as passionate and joyful as a blooming rose.
Mu Qingzhou watched Zhu Ran from the side, with only Zhu Ran’s figure in his black eyes.
He squeezed the hand that had just held Zhu Ran’s waist.
The waist was very thin, very warm, and… a bit fragrant.
It was worth rejecting his family’s arrangements and stubbornly coming to this remote planet.
Mu Qingzhou’s acceptance of this mission to clear mutated plants was calculated.
Black Thorns and Midnight Lights required low temperatures to be cleared, which was perfect for him to display his ability and also allowed him to silently give Zhu Ran a small gift with his power.
Although he was a bit exhausted now and his spiritual sea hurt a little, it was all worth it.
Zhu Ran really liked this gift.
Zhu Ran also praised him for being amazing.
Mu Qingzhou’s heart, which had been frozen and indifferent for years, had been broken through and entwined by streaks of vital green.
A small bud was forming on a green branch, just waiting for the flowers to bloom, looking forward to the arrival of spring.
Zhu Ran played on the ice for half an hour before returning satisfied.
He walked to Mu Qingzhou, looking at him with a beaming smile: “I’m done. Thank you for your ice and snow world.”
Because of the exercise, Zhu Ran’s cheeks were flushed, sweat hung at his temples, and the temperature of his exhaled breath was also slightly high.
Mu Qingzhou only felt a warm current mixed with fragrance approaching him, dyeing his world with a pleasant scent, which was very alluring.
His expression dazed slightly, and he looked a bit unnatural.
After a moment, Mu Qingzhou replied: “You’re welcome.”
Mu Qingzhou reached out and made a few gestures toward the ice surface. A piece of frozen thorn and a piece of frozen Midnight Light fell onto the ice with a “crack.”
He collected them into his spatial device and said to Zhu Ran: “I’ll give them to you after we register them back at the base.”
“Okay. Thank you.”
“No need to be formal with me.”
After that, Mu Qingzhou took holographic images of the scene and uploaded them to the mission terminal. The [Clear A-rank Mutated Plants] mission changed from ‘Accepted’ to ‘Completed’.
The mission was completed in less than an afternoon.
Most of their time was actually spent on the road back and forth. The mutated plants were wiped out by a single ability of Mu Qingzhou’s—very efficient.
“Cough…”
On the way back to the city, Mu Qingzhou kept coughing softly.
Zhu Ran said with concern: “Are you sick?”
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