The Allied nations called an emergency session for the Nth time. Russian President Pris slammed his hand on the table. "Gentlemen! Taihao’s modernized forces are nearly upon Moscow! Say something, won't you? Don't just stand there pretending indifference, or you'll be next!"

Joe Bush said, "Old Pris, it's not like we haven't sent troops to help you. It's just that we genuinely cannot hold back their massive army. I suggest you pull your forces back, focus on protecting the area west of the Ural Mountains. Overextended lines are a serious disadvantage for us."

The British Prime Minister chimed in, "Joe is right. All of us have done our utmost for you, both with money and men. We all know that once Taihao takes Russia, Britain, France, and Italy are next in line. We have no choice but to fight hard. But since we can't resist on a massive front, we must focus on concentrated strikes—like that battle in Vietnam, didn't that cost Taihao dearly? Though, of course, we lost in the end."

The French President added, "Fortunately, Taihao didn't deploy that Magneto King this time, or I doubt we would have made it to this day."

President Pris of Russia grew slightly irate. "You want me to surrender? My Siberian Plain is millions of square kilometers of fertile land! How can I accept that?"

Joe Bush stood up and pointed at the electronic map on the massive screen. "If we don't surrender, then what? Taihao’s Eastern Army numbers a colossal two million. After capturing Sakhalin Island (known in the Dragon Country as Karafuto), they split into two prongs: one landed near Ozerovsky on the Kamchatka Peninsula, crossing the Koryak Mountains; the other landed at the port of Okhotsk on the northern shore of the Sea of Okhotsk and is advancing along the upper reaches of the rivers. Now, their Western Army has pushed from the Stanovoy Mountains (Outer Khingan) to the Aldan Plateau. All three armies are about to converge on the Lena River highlands. At that point, resistance will be impossible. That’s why I suggest abandoning broad defense and concentrating superior force to confront them."

Pris sighed in defeat. "But they now have three million modern troops. Even if we concentrate our forces, what advantage do we possess to fight back?"

The French President frowned. "It’s very strange. By all accounts, Taihao shouldn't possess this many modern troops. Even with the Great Dragon Country supporting them from behind, they couldn't suddenly mobilize three million soldiers. Moreover, their ammunition and equipment seem inexhaustible. How?"

The British Prime Minister offered an explanation. "How? Our intelligence indicates Taihao has a secret base beneath the East Sea, but the water is too deep for us to scout. Judging by the satellite imagery from these recent battles, I suspect the vast majority of Taihao's soldiers are intelligent robots!"

The British Prime Minister’s words stunned everyone. They knew their intelligence apparatus was second to none—otherwise, why would James Bond 007 be so famous? Russian President Pris exclaimed, "Impossible! The troops fighting us face-to-face are our Russian soldiers. Are we incapable of noticing?"

The British Prime Minister let out a cold sneer. "I wouldn't speak without evidence. Our satellites possess thermal imaging capabilities. Yet, based on all the returned data, many images show a discrepancy in depth compared to normal human profiles. Taihao grafts artificial skin onto their robots, but their internal metal doesn't radiate heat like the outer skin, causing the image deviation. I believe Joe’s satellites can confirm this."

Joe Bush wiped sweat from his brow. His intelligence analysis department had never brought this to his attention. It seemed his own intelligence corps had been lax, while the British had been keenly observant. "I agree with this assessment. It also perfectly explains Taihao’s extremely low casualty rates and their boundless supply of manpower."

Pris remained skeptical. Russia had developed robots, but never ones with this level of sophistication. This wasn't a movie; these units could fight independently without being distinguishable from real humans. If they manufactured tens or hundreds of millions, wouldn't they instantly conquer Earth? Thus, he questioned, "Can technology truly be that advanced?"

The British Prime Minister countered, "Why not? Don't the Black Hole Bomb and the Magneto King already prove that point to us?"

Representatives from all present nations agreed with the British Prime Minister's view. But even disagreeing wouldn't stop the approaching massive army. Russian President Pris gritted his teeth. "I believe it's time to implement 'Sky War,' or we won't stand a chance of turning this around."

Joe Bush knew Taihao's next target would definitely be him. Once Russia fell, half the world would effectively be under Taihao's control, and Taihao would never leave the other half alone. So, he hardened his resolve and voted, "I agree. Our current strength is far inferior to Taihao’s, not to mention satellite reconnaissance. If both sides destroy each other's satellites, we stand to gain the most."

The German Chancellor tentatively suggested, "Shouldn't we perhaps consider negotiating peace with Taihao? If we continue fighting like this, defeat is inevitable."

Joe Bush erupted in anger. "Sir! Show the courage you possessed in the era of the Second World War!"

No one else objected. They had seen the fate of Japan—tens of millions, including the Self-Defense Forces and newly conscripted troops, had been wiped out. While those Taihao soldiers likely didn't hate them as much as they hated the Japanese, and this past week of fighting showed the enemy was no longer engaging in massacres, nobody wanted to admit defeat. Destroying their satellites might offer a turning point; after all, their own nations had only a few satellites in the sky, meaning the US and Russia would suffer the most losses.

On June 15th, Taihao forces had advanced into the Western Siberian Plain, and the Allies’ satellite kill preparations were complete. To prevent Taihao from noticing anything amiss and launching a preemptive strike to destroy their satellites, all preparations were conducted in the utmost secrecy.

At 11:25 PM, East Eight Time Zone, observers fortunate enough to be in courtyards witnessed what appeared to be sporadic meteor showers. The Allies, desperate for the first strike advantage, used their own maneuverable satellites in the initial wave to collide with and destroy a large number of Taihao’s satellites. Immediately following this, taking advantage of Taihao losing satellite navigation, massive numbers of 'kill-star' missiles and laser weapons loaded onto Boeing 747s were used to hunt down the remaining Taihao satellites. Utilizing space shuttles, the US and Russia also deployed one hundred thousand small steel pellets into orbit; traveling at sufficient velocity, even a pellet the size of a soybean could destroy a satellite.

Taihao reacted instantly, firing intense laser beams from the lunar surface that annihilated every satellite in Earth's orbit—military or civilian alike. By this time, Taihao’s own satellites were also lost. Suddenly, Earth's outer space was a chaotic mess. All ground communications were severed. The clamor of the news media’s smear campaigns ceased, and many newspapers even suspended printing due to the disruption.

At 8:00 AM on June 16th, the main hall of the Sun Palace Temple in Poseidon City, Bermuda, was silent. No one dared to speak first, especially Xiaoyu Di and Xiaohui, whose heads were bent so low they seemed about to sink beneath the table. Xiao Chuchu’s face was streaked with tears.

I stood up. "What is this? Is this how we react when we meet difficulties?"

Xiaoyu Di pleaded, "Brother, punish me. It was my oversight; I failed to prepare adequate defenses."

Xiaohui followed, "Brother, it has nothing to do with Miss. This is my fault. I failed your trust. Please don't blame the Mistress, okay?"

Xia Huren stated, "It’s my fault. My intelligence work was not thorough enough."

Taozi leaped onto the table and projected into everyone’s minds, "Intelligence work is my responsibility; it has nothing to do with Old Xia. Boss, punish me instead."

I interrupted, "Enough. I’m not looking to assign blame. If anyone is most responsible, it’s me." As I spoke, I walked over and patted Xiaoyu Di and Xiaohui on the shoulders. "Don't blame yourselves; it pains your brother to see this. This is common in war; where do you find generals who always win? Besides, what have we lost besides satellites? Liu Hu, Zhang Dahai, Shen Jian, and the others on the battlefield will be fine. We aren't the only ones without navigation. Moreover, we can manufacture new satellites quickly; they will be the ones suffering in the end."

Yi Xiaorou interjected, "That’s right, everyone should look at the bright side. We have high-altitude early warning aircraft everywhere, while the Allies’ planes are constantly restricted by our air defenses. Our aircraft can fly anywhere, but without satellite navigation, they can't even run civilian flights. So, the situation favors us much more."

Xiaoyu Di worried, "Our satellites will take three days to fully complete, but just clearing the current orbit will take half a month. And we need Sister Long Nü’s help, or it will take us half a year to clean it up."

The satellite orbits were now choked with high-speed debris and steel pellets. Even if the satellites were ready today, they couldn't be deployed. America and Russia truly played their final card this time.

"Oh no!" Fang Yanmeng suddenly cried out. "Liu Xue is on a plane!"

I was startled. "What happened?" The destruction of the satellites had caused numerous tragedies, including the failure of many pieces of Taihao equipment reliant on satellite navigation.

Fang Yanmeng explained, "Liu Xue went to Lhasa for a performance. She said she was coming back this morning, but we haven't seen her yet. I don't know if she boarded the plane last night or not."

A sudden chill washed over me. Although Liu Xue had no special relationship with me, she was under Hong Long’s protection. If something went wrong now, wasn't that our responsibility?

Zhou Ni suddenly stood up as well. "Zhao Ting!"

I wiped sweat from my brow. "What about Zhao Ting?"

Zhou Ni stammered, "She took one of our fighter jets to Nepal to sign a document. Now... now I don't know how she is."

My head was throbbing. Losing satellites wasn't the biggest fear, and I wasn't afraid of being temporarily unable to launch new ones. But I worried about this person having trouble or that person having an accident. Now, I couldn't even call to ask; the Huan Yu network and mobile phones were useless. Limited radio transmission was nowhere near sufficient.

Feeling overwhelmed, I instinctively stepped out of the Sun Palace Temple for some fresh air. The women followed, knowing that Li Qi was currently my favored companion, so they pushed her forward to comfort me.

"Zhao Qian, don't worry. Everything will get better."

Xiaohui added, "Yes, Brother. I’ve already dispatched one million robot soldiers. I'm not afraid of anyone causing trouble, and the early warning aircraft’s coverage will increase significantly. We can still achieve regional communication using them."

A sea breeze blew, causing me to shiver. I hastily took off my coat and draped it over Li Qi. "Let's go home. I will figure out a way to find those two. Maybe they weren't in the air when the incident happened. Furthermore, our pilots are highly experienced; they should be able to make an emergency landing without navigation. There won't be any problems."

Cheng Susu hugged her arms, trembling. "Has anyone else noticed how cold it is today?"

Everyone finally realized the temperature was vastly different from normal. Long Nü looked up at the sky and pulled out a device resembling a mobile phone. She checked it and gasped. "This is bad!"

"What now?" everyone asked anxiously.

"Look at the Earth's satellite cloud map," Long Nü said, handing the phone-like object to us.

We were astonished. "How do you have a satellite cloud map from this exact moment?"

Long Nü chuckled. "Hehe, your satellites are all destroyed, but the Moon’s satellites are intact! This was just transmitted to me from the Moon base. It’s only a partial view, though; the Moon’s line of sight is limited, so we can’t observe the whole Earth."

I almost forgot; didn't we use weapons from the Moon base when retaliating against the Allies? Xiao Chuchu finished looking first. "Wh-what does this mean? Huge masses of rain clouds and massive cyclone vortices forming over the major oceans."

Long Nü confirmed, "Exactly. A major problem is brewing. Everyone has already sensed the temperature change. Too many satellites exploding in the outer orbit have affected the Earth’s atmosphere. We've never encountered this phenomenon before, so we can't predict what the weather will be like in the future. But looking at the current satellite cloud map, I fear we are in for trouble."

I asked Long Nü, "Can you use the Moon base's signal to provide temporary communication for us?"

Long Nü replied, "Due to angle limitations, the communication range is restricted."

I sighed. "It's better than nothing. It looks like a massive storm is coming. Notify everyone in Poseidon City to evacuate to the Earth-class underwater fortress. You all go back immediately to pack your things and retreat to the Hope starship. At the same time, find a way to notify our army in Siberia: cease fire immediately and dispatch transport planes to bring them into the underwater fortresses to avoid the disaster."

From noon onward, the torrential rain never stopped. The US and Russia were dumbfounded. Who would have thought that hunting satellites would affect the climate? They had unintentionally deployed a physical weapon against the Earth. Based on positional observations and successive reports, Taihao had withdrawn its troops. However, blizzards had begun starting from the polar regions, and temperatures plummeted in areas north of 30 degrees latitude. If this continued, areas north of 20 degrees latitude might start snowing, despite it being summer in the Northern Hemisphere.

After ensuring everyone else evacuated, I could no longer stay. I decided to head to Lhasa first to find Liu Xue, and then look for news of Zhao Ting along the way. Damn those Americans and Russians! Accustomed to satellite navigation, they were now suddenly blind, making movement impossible. If it weren't for the need to avoid the storm, I would have annihilated them immediately. Now, look at this—although aircraft can fly everywhere, finding precise coordinates is impossible. Everything felt like a return to six thousand years ago.

I first needed to check the Lhasa airport to see if the plane Liu Xue was on had departed on schedule. I hoped she was safe.

Fearing my parents and wives would worry, I lied and said I was going to check on the evacuation of personnel in the war zone, rather than joining the Hope in retreating to the deep-sea base. Entering space or descending into the deep sea—those were the best ways to escape disaster.

Without satellite navigation, all movement relied on visual estimation. Currently, the conditions were torrential rain and gale-force winds, with tornadoes occurring in some places. The vessel had to proceed with extreme caution. Later, as we gained altitude, the heavy rain turned to heavy snow, making terrain observation impossible. Fortunately, once inside the Great Dragon Country, the winds were not as severe; otherwise, a small-tonnage vessel like this might have been swept away.

After flying around aimlessly, I couldn't bear it any longer and abandoned the ship to search on foot. After all, my speed was far superior to ordinary spacecraft. But the air was thick with snowflakes, preventing me from accelerating; if I moved too fast, the flakes hit my face like knives. Achieving supersonic flight was impossible due to the immense drag.

Finally, around 10 PM, following the contours of the Himalayas, I located Lhasa, almost completely buried by snow. Seeing the familiar Potala Palace filled me with relief. However, when I reached Gonggar Airport, I learned that the flight Liu Xue was on had departed on schedule just before the communication blackout!

This was disastrous. Even if we could revive our systems, what good was it if we couldn't find Liu Xue? I had promised her I would ensure her safety. Was I going to break my word? Hong Long had never failed before. Was this an anomaly?

I recalled that when I left, some of my wives had guessed my destination, but they hadn't stopped me—that must have been their trust in me, an acknowledgment of my capabilities. Therefore, I couldn't give up; I had to find Liu Xue, living or dead.

The airport waiting lounge was crowded with travelers. In this freezing weather, many were huddled on chairs, shivering. The young woman at the service desk had no time for me, rushing off to join the service team helping passengers find lodging and blankets for warmth.

With no communication tools available, it felt like a return to primitive times. No one knew whether that flight had crashed or not. Reaching the destination was impossible; the only hope was a successful emergency landing. I deeply regretted letting Liu Xue travel with only a few bodyguards. If I had sent a dedicated aircraft, none of this would have happened.

"Sir, why are you still standing there? Please, the airport is chaotic today. If you have nothing pressing, could you rest somewhere else for a while?" The service desk attendant returned to find me still dazed and called out, her temper frayed by the day's chaos.

"Miss, could you please check the route of that flight for me? I mean, what places did it pass over?"

The service desk attendant didn't speak Tibetan, but her appearance was very much like a Tibetan person—at least her eyes and nose were different. Her skin wasn't the healthy dark tan of a herdsman but fair, bearing a resemblance to Dawa Zhuoma, the Tibetan beauty often seen online. However, this didn't hold my attention for long; beautiful women no longer interested me much.

The attendant didn't refuse my request. After tapping on the computer for a moment, she told me to look myself. Liu Xue was on a flight from Lhasa to Hong Kong, from where she was scheduled to fly to the US. Because she was too high-profile, we hadn't brought her with us when we defected from the Capital. After her Lhasa performance, she had a long vacation planned and intended to come to Bermuda to join the others. But picking her up directly from the Dragon Country might cause misunderstandings, so Fang Yanmeng and the others set the pickup point in Miami. Who knew that Liu Xue would lose contact before even leaving the Dragon Country?

The plane flew over Chengdu, Guiyang, and other cities in Sichuan after departing Lhasa. Naturally, they wouldn't provide me with the exact flight path, but even knowing it wouldn't help much—without satellite navigation, who knew the precise latitude, longitude, and altitude? Nevertheless, seeing the general overview gave me a clearer idea; searching blindly wouldn't work.

"Thank you, Miss. Can you tell me how long after takeoff communication failed and chaos erupted?"

"A little over ten minutes," the attendant replied, becoming serious as she saw my persistence. "Sir, do you have someone on that plane? I can only offer my condolences. All satellite navigation failed. We had two crashes at our airport, and rumors say there were even more accidents inland. Please accept my sympathies."

Damn those American and Russian people! Targeting Taihao's satellites was one thing, but those tens of thousands of steel pellets they scattered blinded every satellite in orbit, including the Great Dragon Country’s civilian system.

"I have a friend on board. I need to find her. Thank you, Miss. Goodbye."

The attendant stopped me. "Really? Sir, you are so brave! It’s snowing heavily outside. If—if you happen to find the plane, could you please ask Miss Liu Xue if she is safe for me? I happened to see her board the plane when I got off work last night and even got her autograph. It’s a pity..."

I firmly replied, "I will. I will make sure to pass on your message. Goodbye."

In the short time I spent in the airport lounge, when I found my spacecraft again, it was already buried in snow. Disaster. It seemed countless people would die this time. Was this war a mistake? Unease settled in my heart.

To my surprise, the spacecraft's hatch could no longer be opened. The outside temperature had dropped to a terrifying level. Only because my body was extraordinary had I not noticed it. Now, this was a problem; I couldn't even travel on foot instead of the ship.

I found a hidden spot to temporarily conceal the ship. Its technology was still under strict secrecy, and since the current Dragon Country government was not fully aligned with me, I couldn't let anyone discover it.

Snowflakes continued to fly everywhere. The satellite chaos occurred just over ten minutes after Liu Xue's plane took off. She couldn't have flown too far; they would likely have sought the nearest safe spot to land, as flying blindly in the sky was far more dangerous than an emergency descent.

Thankfully, the anti-gravity boots on my feet were still functioning, and my power of clairvoyance was extraordinary. Even though the plateau was blanketed in snow, as long as I concentrated, the surrounding landscape entered my mind without the slightest omission—a result of multiple evolutionary upgrades. In my initial stages, this chill would have frozen me solid.

Ten minutes into my flight, covering the distance a civilian aircraft would take, my consciousness stretched outward. I was far beyond the outskirts of Lhasa. On the Tibetan Plateau, there was nothing but mountains, occasionally punctuated by plains nestled among the peaks.

At this moment, everything was a blinding white expanse; nothing could be seen. The sudden, violent blizzard had disoriented even the beasts, their corpses scattered everywhere.

As the search radius expanded, the tension gripping my heart gradually eased. Since I couldn't find the plane, they must have flown on. Perhaps they even spotted Chengdu Airport and made an emergency landing there. I should press on toward Chengdu Airport to check.

Because the snow was so heavy, my flight speed was sluggish. Supersonic travel was completely out of the question; I could only advance at a pace comparable to driving a car. Gradually, I felt the anti-gravity boots beginning to lose control. What was the temperature now? Without a thermometer, I couldn't be precise, but I was certain it surpassed the minus twenty-three degrees Celsius of Qumalai in the Tibetan region—likely much colder than the minus thirty-one degrees in Mohe.

This temperature exceeded the design tolerance of the anti-gravity boots. We certainly hadn't intended them for Antarctic exploration. Many delicate components were starting to malfunction. The boots, being worn, cancelled out some of the cold current, but the spacecraft, left grounded, had long since failed. Now, it seemed my own body was beginning to succumb to the icy invasion.

This was disastrous. If the snow continued this heavily, and the wind kept strengthening, combined with the failing gravity boots, I would be unable to fly out of this snowy highland!

I pushed my speed as much as possible, but things often work against expectation: the more you worry about something, the more likely it is to happen. I prayed the anti-gravity boots would hold out long enough to reach Chengdu, or perhaps allow me to find a small town along the way to shelter temporarily. But after flying over one ridge, the power cut out completely. I was thrown from mid-air, like a dropped watermelon, onto an open, snowy field.

I lay there, suffocated by the snow, regretting my rash decision to rush out and save Liu Xue. Even if she had met misfortune, couldn't her body be preserved in this cold weather? Couldn't she just be revived later? Fool! If I couldn't get out of this snowfield, I might lose my own life. My wives, I was wrong; I was too impulsive.

A bigger problem was that after traveling this far, I realized I had completely lost my sense of direction—I was lost. I lay on the snow, contemplating the issues for a while. When I opened my eyes again, I found I had been completely buried by the snow. The sharp, cold wind stung my face, and my joints were starting to go numb. This was another test. Unlike the ordeal six thousand years ago when I was trapped in Longshan, where I could fight enemies with raw power, this time I faced cold—brute force was useless.

I tried to stand, but the accumulated snow was already past my waist, making movement incredibly difficult. It took me two hours to reach the end of this open area. Not far ahead loomed a mountain peak that pierced the clouds. It must have been around three in the morning. Thankfully, my vision was unaffected by the darkness. Looking up, I saw nothing but a monotonous gray sheet of falling snow. Looking around—front, back, left, and right—the tracks I had made were already erased by the wind. There was nothing but mountains. I couldn't even find a tree to check its rings for direction.

Before sweat could even reach my cheeks, they turned to ice crystals. I hadn't expected such a rapid climate shift. It was just the explosion of a mid-to-high orbit satellite; how could it trigger such violent global weather changes in such a short time?

This sudden turn of events reminded me of a disaster movie I once watched, something the Americans made to warn the world: extreme melting due to the greenhouse effect, massive freshwater injection from melting Antarctic icebergs, followed by a global super-storm that plunged the Earth into an ice age from ten thousand years prior.

Could this be a remake of that film? Because all communication was down, I couldn't know the climate changes elsewhere, but judging by the satellite cloud map from Long Nü, this catastrophe was worldwide.

I estimated my current location to be near 30 degrees North latitude, but the altitude here already exceeded four thousand meters, with temperatures likely past minus fifty degrees Celsius and still dropping. Perhaps the Earth really was entering a new Ice Age.

I moved my numb joints, preparing to walk around the mountain peak before me. After taking only two steps, I walked straight into a mound of snow. It was hard, not soft like freshly fallen powder. I assumed it was a pile of rocks but couldn't resist digging at it with my hand. It was silver-white, but it didn't look like stone.

Kicking away the surrounding snow with a few strikes, my eyes brightened. It was a piece of metal, extending deeply beneath the snow layer. Despite being terribly cold, my curiosity drove me to dig further. Soon, the tail fin of a massive aircraft appeared before me.

No way. Could it be this coincidental? Due to the extreme cold, I had retracted my probing consciousness stream. Now, seeing an aircraft under the snow layer, I couldn't immediately tell which flight it was—maybe even a foreign one. I needed to use clairvoyance to know the details.

Taking one look confirmed my surprise and terror. It was indeed the China National Airlines Boeing 737 that Liu Xue had boarded. It must have failed its emergency landing, smashing head-on into the rocks at the base of the mountain. The nose section was completely mangled. The sudden blizzard had buried the fuselage within hours, meaning anyone inside might have frozen to death even if they survived the impact.

With my speed and strength, digging a tunnel through the snow would be effortless. And since I could see through the snow layer, the work would be precise. Before long, a snowy passage led directly into the aircraft cabin. The cabin door was half-open, saving me time. I pushed away the snow piled at the entrance and stepped inside the 737.

The economy section had sixty or seventy seats. It was a wreck; several passengers lay on the floor—men and women—but all were rigid, having been dead for a long time. I recognized Liu Xue's build. A quick check confirmed she wasn't among them. She must have been in the first-class section ahead.

I bypassed the bodies on the floor and pulled open the first-class door. A rush of smoke choked me, making me cough. First class had caught fire! But it must have extinguished itself quickly because the blaze hadn't reached the fuel tanks, or it would have exploded by now. However, looking at the mess of people strewn inside, their fate looked grim—no better than an explosion.

The cockpit was crushed, and the crew was likely all dead. Thick snow had piled up inside, making it difficult to inspect immediately. I searched the front cabin passengers one by one and found Liu Xue’s two bodyguards. They weren't Super Soldiers, but they were experts. Yet, no matter how skilled, they couldn't evade a disaster like this. The landing strip must have been too short during the emergency descent, forcing them straight into the rocks below the mountain. The violent impact caused a fire, but since there was already snow present, the melting snow running down from the cracked ceiling must have quenched the flames.

This was strange. I had prepared for the worst—passengers burned beyond recognition on the floor—but there were no women. I searched everywhere, but Liu Xue was missing. Did she never board the plane? Impossible. Dawa Zhuoma clearly said she saw her board and even got an autograph. Could she have flown away using her own anti-gravity boots?

But the front cabin door showed no signs of having been opened before me. The cockpit, though shattered, had metal sheets jammed together, making escape impossible. So where was Liu Xue? Could she have performed an out-of-body transfer? Or, like in a novel, did she cross over into an alternate timeline?

Anxious, I immediately initiated a whole-plane clairvoyance sweep. My gaze finally settled on the first-class lavatory. Someone was clearly sitting inside, head bowed too low to make out a face. I rushed over and tugged at the door; it was locked from the inside. With a single punch, I smashed it open. Inside, a girl was leaning against the toilet, arms crossed over her chest. The space was small; two people could barely turn around in it. A 737 is a short-haul model with limited capacity, so the first-class lavatory wasn't exactly luxurious.

It was indeed the Liu Xue I had been desperately seeking. Seeing that she had survived the fire by hiding in the restroom greatly relieved my heart. If she had been burned beyond recognition, that would have been tragic—I couldn't guarantee Hua Qingqing's ability to perform reconstructive surgery. Seeing her intact, even if her vital status was uncertain, brought much peace.

"Liu Xue, Liu Xue," I gently shook her shoulder. She felt somewhat stiff but not the hardness of a corpse. The situation wasn't the worst.

Liu Xue didn't respond, but I heard the sound of her teeth chattering—she was alive! I reached out to pull her out of the restroom; it was too cramped, and I needed to get her outside to treat her. But as soon as my hands applied pressure, Liu Xue let out a weak moan of pain. Her voice was terribly faint; if she hadn't been in excruciating agony, she wouldn't have wasted the energy to moan.

Only then did I have to examine her closely. My God, Liu Xue's body was frozen solid to the partition wall of the toilet and the flushing mechanism beneath her!

Perhaps she had leaned against the wall because she was cold. The snowmelt had seeped onto her clothes, and with no movement for a long time as the temperature dropped, her clothing had fused tightly to the surfaces she touched!

Liu Xue lacked the strength to even open her eyes. After a few painful groans, she became still. Her limbs were not completely rigid but close to it. If I had discovered her just a few minutes later, her heart might have stopped beating.

I rubbed her vigorously but found that her clothes were slightly adhered to her skin too. If I pulled hard, I risked tearing her skin. What should I do?

"Liu Xue, hang on a little longer. I'll find tools to rescue you right away." Without waiting to see if she heard, I immediately returned to the main cabin to search for something.

There should be at least a knife, but such items might be hard to find on an aircraft. I pulled out some thermal clothing, then went to the cockpit and broke off a few sharp pieces of metal sheeting, returning to the restroom.

I draped the clothes over Liu Xue's body and began using the metal shards to cut away the parts frozen to the wall. The upper parts were easier; I cut through her clothing with the metal shards and could disengage her with a bit of care. But her posterior was pressed tightly against the flushing toilet, where the flesh was compressed into one mass, fused with the clothing and the porcelain—impossible to separate cleanly.

As I was struggling with this, the previous commotion must have roused Liu Xue. "Y-you... who... save... save me."

I dropped the metal shards, stood up, and gently shook her shoulder. "Liu Xue, hold on. I am Zhao Qian. I'm here to save you. Don't be afraid; you'll be fine. We, the Red Dragons, promised to guarantee your safety and will never break our word!"

Now that I had found Liu Xue, even though the situation was complicated, the fact that she was temporarily safe restored my confidence. All the regret and disappointment from before vanished. I had to save her!

"I... I... I'm... cold."

Liu Xue’s body began to tremble. I helped her pull the clothes tighter. "It will be fine soon. I need to separate what's stuck below. Don't move, or you might get cut."

I worked my way around, slicing through all the clothing that could be separated, then stared at the fused area, racking my brain for a solution. In my haste before, I hadn't thought much about it, but now that I had cleared my hands, I realized I might have committed a faux pas. Because this circle of cutting had completely exposed Liu Xue's buttocks.

Liu Xue's posture was naturally slightly forward-leaning, hands hugging her chest, her rear end subtly projecting against the toilet. This made her backside stick out even more prominently. I knew it was unintentional, but her two bare cheeks shone like twin white steamed buns before my eyes. If you added two cherries, they could rival Cheng Susu's breasts. It must be from her frequent dancing that she possessed such a magnificent shape. I wondered how they would feel to the touch.

"Zhao... Zhao Qian... q-quickly... save me..." Liu Xue struggled slightly, seeming to regain some strength after being awakened.

I hastily shifted my gaze away from her backside and firmly held her shoulder. "Liu Xue, don't move yet. Your body is fused to the toilet. I will find a way to separate you."

Liu Xue was completely numb to her rear end at this point; she had no idea her buttocks were exposed to a man's gaze. Her previous utterance was merely an unconscious plea. After muttering a few times, she weakly closed her mouth again.

The porcelain of the flushing mechanism was smooth and hard; cutting it would surely injure her. I decided instead to smash the toilet cistern with my fist, then lifted her, ceramic pieces and all, out of the lavatory. First class was uninhabitable; the fuselage was too severely damaged, not to mention the corpses lying about. I carried Liu Xue to the economy section, chopped two seats flat with a few palms, and stripped two leather jackets off the dead bodies on the floor to make a makeshift bed for her. I laid her face down, as a shard of porcelain from the toilet was still stuck to her backside.

In a flurry, I moved the few corpses outside the cabin first, then closed the door. Although we were now under the snow layer, preventing strong winds, retaining any warmth possible would help Liu Xue recover.

Liu Xue’s posture was still somewhat rigid, especially her rear end, which stuck up and out, almost as if awaiting a man's arrival. I covered her with several layers of clothing, deliberately leaving her buttocks exposed. Staring at the two round, pale mounds, I didn't know how to begin cleaning them.

While I was lost in thought, Liu Xue suddenly spoke again: "Zhao... Zhao Qian, th-thank you... My... my bottom feels so cold."

Fortunately, Liu Xue regained sensation so quickly. Her body must be extraordinary. Could the other women have secretly modified her genes behind my back? Given how well they’ve been doing lately, that was entirely plausible.

"Yes, you have a large piece of porcelain stuck to your bottom. I... I'm trying to figure out how to remove it. If only we could start a small fire to heat it up." In these critical times, I certainly wasn't worried about Liu Xue scolding me for looking at her bottom.

"N-no... impossible!" Liu Xue moved slightly. "That would damage my body. You cannot suddenly apply heat. Rub my body with snow; once my body temperature recovers, they will detach on their own."

I praised her: "Wow, I didn't realize your emergency first-aid knowledge was so extensive. You're much better than me! Fine, I'll go outside and get snow to rub... rub... your... body."

Rubbing Liu Xue's body? This was too much. Couldn't I find some other way to save her?