I Became the Alchemy Master by Picking Up Trash-Chapter 256 - 254: Snowstorm

The incident of the Zhu Xian Sect infiltrating Tianyi City caused such a commotion that everyone felt the two-month suspension period went by in the blink of an eye. The third match of the military academy competition is about to begin.

Cold Smoke Castle is located on the extremely cold ice plains in the northernmost part of the Federation. Ice and snow storms frequently occur, and the earliest cities were already destroyed by the storms; the current Cold Smoke Castle is not on the original site.

The city was rebuilt, but the complex Teleportation Port was not so easily relocated, so there is a distance of over two hundred kilometers between Cold Smoke Castle’s Teleportation Port and the city.

The low temperatures can affect the throughput of the Transmission Array. To avoid a decrease in transmission power during peak periods and to prevent a large number of travelers from being stranded at the port, all participating teams must arrive at Cold Smoke Castle at least three days in advance.

After enduring nearly five hours of transmission control, the Harssas team finally set foot on the land of Cold Smoke Castle.

The moment the light of the Transmission Array dissipated, everyone sensed something was off with the atmosphere in the Teleportation Port. Not only was it devoid of the usual hustle and bustle before the competition, but there was also worry evident in everyone’s brows.

Near the gate of the port, there were dozens of fully armed soldiers guarding the place, frequently glancing outside the port as if waiting for someone.

A middle-aged man wearing a Cold Smoke Pavilion academy uniform saw the people from Harssas Academy and immediately rushed to welcome them. Accompanying him was a burly captain in a Fourth Army uniform.

"Principal Wen, colleagues, welcome, welcome!"

Wen Dao recognized him as the director of Cold Smoke Pavilion, second only to Principal Lian in the entire academy.

"Ah, Director Hao, a pleasure to meet! Did Principal Lian send you to receive us here?"

Hao An nodded, "Precisely."

"Have the other teams arrived yet?"

"Yes, the other teams have already settled in at Cold Smoke Pavilion. You are the last team to arrive."

Wen Dao wasn’t pleased. If it weren’t for the delay due to transmission control, with Harssas’s usual punctuality, they would never have been the last to arrive.

"In that case, let’s not waste time and go meet up with them at Cold Smoke Pavilion."

Upon hearing this, Hao An looked troubled and hesitated for a while before saying, "Principal Wen, I’m afraid we won’t be able to leave any time soon."

Wen Dao furrowed his brows, "Oh? Why is that?"

Hao An turned his gaze to the captain, who saluted Wen Dao and the others before saying, "Principal Wen, everyone, I am Tang Zheng of the Fourth Army, and I will answer this question."

"Twenty minutes ago, a once-in-a-century ice storm suddenly descended, and the snowstorm has blocked the road from the Teleportation Port to Cold Smoke Castle. I’ve already sent my men to scout the path, but until they return, it’s best for everyone to stay here."

Luo Jun was puzzled, "That’s odd; there was an ice storm twenty minutes ago, so how could we still be transmitted here?"

"The ice storm has affected the Star Network signal, causing delays in the transmission of information from the Transportation Department. I estimate that the Teleportation Port will soon be closed."

As soon as Tang Zheng finished speaking, red alarm lights lit up across the Teleportation Port, and all Transmission Arrays switched from two-way to one-way. From now on, the Cold Smoke Castle port was exit-only. Many stranded people, seeing the seriousness of the situation, began buying return tickets to temporarily leave.

The faculty and students of Harssas were speechless, realizing that this heavy snow seemed designed just to block their path.

Just then, there was some commotion beyond the port gate. Two soldiers rushed out, and as the door opened, white snow mist mingled with the extreme cold rushed in, causing goosebumps all over.

Half a minute later, the two soldiers returned with what looked like a snowman between them. Its hair was covered in thick ice, and its limbs were stiff, almost frozen to death.

Tang Zheng quickly walked over, followed by Harssas Academy’s faculty and students to check on the soldier’s condition.

Everyone worked together to break the ice on his body, replaced his Energy Stone, and activated talisman to heat up. It took a full five minutes before the soldier’s lips regained some color and he was able to speak.

"L-Lieutenant..."

Tang Zheng knelt down, holding the soldier’s ice-cold hand with concern, "Sun Jing, how are you feeling?" Sun Jing was his most outstanding recon soldier, nearly dying pained Tang Zheng.

"I’m fine... Lieutenant, the road is completely blocked... there are, there are long-haired creatures, a large group."

"What—!" Tang Zheng was shocked, "Did you see clearly?"

Sun Jing nodded and opened his light-brain to show Tang Zheng.

Sun Jing’s video was not hidden from Harssas Academy people, and Li Xing was stunned to see nearly the entire Ice and Snow Continent occupied by a strange creature.

The creatures were tall and hefty, lacking heads, tails, and facial features, with cube-shaped bodies supported by four broad-at-the-top and narrow-at-the-bottom legs. Covered in long white hair, they looked exactly like hair-covered molars from afar.

Tang Zheng’s heart sank; the appearance of long-haired molars proved the ice storm’s scale was at least special grade, indicating such blizzards could last for months.

Wen Dao cleared his throat and asked Tang Zheng, "Lieutenant Tang, what exactly are these long-haired molars?"

Tang Zheng was very respectful to Wen Dao; the teachers and students of Harssas Academy excelled in their abilities, earning his trust. It wouldn’t hurt to share information not involving military secrets.

"They are a species unique to our northern region. Until now, it is not concluded whether they are Star Beasts or plants, or what they feed on."

"Long-haired molars only appear in ice storm weather. Their size and numbers are proportional to the size of the ice storm."

The Harssas people were all stunned. In Sun Jing’s video just now, the long-haired molars stretched as far as the eye could see, didn’t that mean the current ice storm was a massive disaster level?

There were only three days to the competition; they couldn’t stay here indefinitely and had to find a way to leave.

Wen Dao: "Lieutenant Tang, isn’t there any way to leave?"

Tang Zheng smiled bitterly, "Principal Wen, I have urgent military duties; I want to return to Cold Smoke Castle even more than you, but unfortunately, I can’t. Human power is so insignificant in front of nature, there’s nothing I can do even if I’m anxious."

"Since you have military duties, you must have brought a heavy armored vehicle. We can use it to leave."

The northern ice plains are under snowstorms year-round. Compared to flying devices vulnerable to wind, heavy armor is more practical. Military personnel on missions usually have one per person, and with a bit of squeezing, they could transport everyone stranded at the Teleportation Port.

However, Tang Zheng shook his head with a bitter smile after hearing this. "If there were no long-haired molars, this method would indeed be feasible."

Wen Dao was puzzled, "Lieutenant Tang, what exactly is odd about the long-haired molars? Tell us, maybe we can brainstorm and find a solution."

Tang Zheng thought, since there was no other way, he might as well talk.

"Long-haired molars have plant-like characteristics. Their four legs function like roots, penetrating the frozen soil of the icy plains to firmly anchor their bodies, completely unfazed by Category-12 winds."

"A medium-sized long-haired molar can withstand an impact of five hundred tons; forcing a way through is impossible."

Luo Jun furiously declared, "Then let’s cut them down with Elemental Power!"

"No, if attacked with elemental power, the Star Beast attribute of the long-haired molars will awaken. Since their legs can embed into permafrost harder than steel, their strength is extraordinary, and their bodies are harder than millennium-old ice. Once they become agitated, we’re no match for them."

After listening to Tang Zheng, everyone was speechless. How could there be such infuriatingly troublesome things in the world!