Su Bai couldn’t stand it anymore in the dead of night—she wrapped herself in an extra layer of blankets.
Beside her, Ye Shu still wore only a thin shirt, making Su Bai itch with envy.
Even after awakening her fire ability, she was still deathly afraid of the cold.
Whenever she recalled her previous life—the vivid memory of nearly freezing to death in an ice pit—Su Bai’s body would tremble uncontrollably. And now, this cursed dungeon brought an apocalyptic, world-wide cold snap—there was nowhere to run!
Soundproofing had been installed in the room, but Su Bai could still hear the howling wind outside.
She was just about to shrink back under the covers when the sharp thud-thud of ice chunks hitting the windows startled her.
She knew that sound all too well.
It was the same as when the plane crashed.
Panic seized her heart.
If all they faced was a snowstorm, it might be bearable—but now there was hail as well… Fortunately, Ye Shu had replaced the windows with bullet-proof glass ahead of time.
Bang! Bang!
All night, hail mingled with blizzards beat down.
Many people were fated to lose sleep through that endless night.
Everyone had assumed the storm would let up by morning, but instead, it only intensified.
Day five of the game.
Ye Shu was jolted awake by the endless pings and dings of group chats.
She rolled over, grabbed her phone.
Today’s temperature: minus ten degrees.
The internet was flooded with rumors of apocalypse.
"LoveLife": This is the first time someone from the south’s seen snow, and not only am I not anxious—why am I a little excited?
"YearsGoBy": Me too! I’ve always wanted to see snow!
(With an attached photo of a snowman.)
"Pei Changsheng": Is that really the point? With snow this heavy, should I be hoarding supplies like in those post-apocalyptic novels? Reinforcing my house?
"You’reAFool": Guy above, you’ve read too many webnovels. Chill, it’s just some snow. Even my work gave us the day off. I hope this lasts! My brother-in-law works for the weather bureau—he says this is just a cold spell. Give it a couple days and things’ll warm right back up. Trust the authorities, don’t spread rumors.
"99PoundsRebel": If the meteorological folks say so, I’m at ease. My daughter was talking as if it’s the end times, ran into the storm last night and bought crates of instant noodles and pickle packs. Looks like we’ll be eating noodles for a month.
"CabbageChewsPig": Instant noodles? Even my dog wouldn't eat that.
Most people still had no sense of crisis, leaving joking comments, some even running outside in the blizzard, having snowball fights and building snowmen.
The hail stopped, the snow eased up, temperatures hovered around minus ten.
Ye Shu’s ice ability had leveled up to three—it handled the cold easily. Still, to avoid suspicion, she dutifully wrapped herself in a cotton jacket.
Downstairs in the community compound, the open grass was covered in snow, children playing, unaware of the looming calamity.
"It’s moving faster than I thought."
Ye Shu withdrew her hand from the snow—already up to an adult’s calf.
At this rate, would it eventually swallow the tenth floor?
Ye Shu stood and headed toward the stairwell. As she entered the elevator, she nearly collided with another woman.
"Hey there! We meet again."
The woman flashed a practiced smile.
She seemed familiar… where had Ye Shu seen her before?
Her mind whirred, and finally she remembered—the woman from the shelter who introduced herself so eagerly.
Zhang Yaoyao.
The one who claimed to have transmigrated and been reborn within the book.
Someone who seemed to know her awfully well.
Ye Shu wanted nothing at all to do with Zhang Yaoyao. Without so much as a glance, she ducked into the elevator and pressed her floor.
"We’ve at least met twice—isn’t it rude not to even look at me?"
Zhang Yaoyao muttered to herself.
……
Volunteers were being recruited in Sunshine Compound to clear snow and run errands for supplies.
As a resident, Ye Shu had to pitch in.
Su Bai dreaded the cold—she would have gladly hibernated through the end of the game. Pang Pangzi, ever willing, volunteered to shovel snow and returned with bags of instant noodles and a case of near-expiration food.
The nearest shop had little left, so Pang Pangzi just bought it all.
A grown man couldn’t just live off others for free, after all.
Besides, shoveling snow wasn’t hard as long as you had the equipment; it just needed manpower.
They finished clearing in the afternoon. By nightfall, the snowstorm returned.
Hail fell once more.
Freshly cleared roads were once again chaotic and impassable.
……
That night, the dinner table was laden with hotpot ingredients: live, lively fish, dewy vegetables and fruits, sweet potato vermicelli, beef, lamb, seafood, and a massive lobster.
Su Bai attacked her food with chopsticks, a lobster in one hand, a beer in the other, her mouth full: "Ye Shu, that’s not fair. You had all this food stashed away and had us living on instant noodles for days! You know I hate that bland, tasteless stuff."
Maybe it was her imagination, but Su Bai thought these ingredients tasted even better than the ones that got air-freighted to the Su family home!
It had the same edge as some of the food from the game store.
"Boss, this is hands-down the best meal I’ve ever had."
Pang Pangzi had never been one to obsess over food—tonight he couldn’t even lift his head from his bowl.
Ye Shu just smiled quietly.
The storage wasn’t large—half the space was filled with military supplies—so she could only stock simple foods: steamed bread, bottled water, crackers, candies.
She’d exchanged her game points for these before entering—compact but expensive.
That deluxe hotpot set cost 399 points, but it was worth it; after all, it contributed to the character’s health stats once inside.
The health stat had stuck at 100 for days now.
Apparently, in this dungeon, health would not plummet drastically.
The three of them feasted.
……
Day six of the game.
Snow still hadn’t stopped.
The temperature kept dropping.
Minus fifteen.
Su Bai curled under the covers, shivering to her bones.
She ran her fire ability at full tilt just to stave off the chill—for once, she was glad she had this power.
By the next morning, the snow they cleared had already reached previous levels.
Online, the previous chatty excitement had vanished. Everyone was waiting and worrying—when would this cold snap ever end?
"ChaoShanCarWholesale a11": I’m trapped in my country home—the snow caved in our roof last night, thank god a neighbor took us in. Never thought string beans with pork could taste so good.
"FlowersBloomFall": I have a feeling this snow won’t stop in just a few days.
"ConanConandoyle": A blizzard is coming and the cold’s only begun. I’m a reborn soul, v me 50—I’ll tell all about my previous life.
"DuskToDawn": Liar! Give my money back!
"WisteriaFalls": Urgently seeking a heater, I’m in xx Compound!
"Tourist1357": Friendly tip: start stockpiling food and supplies quickly—this snow won’t let up for a month. The talk about it ending in a few days is just smokescreen to keep order…
Moments later, that tourist’s account had vanished.
Thanks to the perpetual snow, prices for grain and oil surged. Suppliers seized the chance to profit.
That night, hailstorm as scheduled—hailstones the size of eggs. No one dared step outside.
Since the very first snowfall, Beautiful had monopolized the heater—sprawled on the sofa, curled up in her spot, purring contentedly.