With a violent tremble from the core of the Cryo Hypostasis and a burst of sharp, indescribable screeching...
The culprit behind the ley line anomaly finally shattered across the ground. Its remains slowly melted and evaporated into a cold mist that dispersed into the air.
It's finally over...
Lu Chen wiped away some imaginary cold sweat—after all, it had frozen long ago.
He glanced around. The massive cavern was starting to change. Ice cracked, snow melted, and the entire ice kingdom was on the verge of collapse.
As the ground rumbled, warm sunlight streamed through the cracks in the dome, casting golden rays across Lu Chen's cheeks.
The blizzard had stopped.
The ice block encasing Qiqi slowly began to descend. The little girl with a talisman stuck to her forehead remained fast asleep, blissfully unaware of the intense battle that had just taken place.
"Qiqi's sleeping like a log…"
Venti had strolled over and now stood beside Lu Chen, soaking in the sunlight.
"She's really not afraid of the cold?" Venti circled the massive ice block curiously. "If I were frozen in there, I'd definitely lose my mind…"
Just imagining it gave him chills—and made him crave a drink even more.
"Qiqi's constitution is... special," Lu Chen explained. As a zombie, she likely couldn't feel temperature at all.
Now that he thought about it, there was still a faint trace of life in Qiqi's body, but her sense of hot and cold must be different from others.
"So how are we getting her back?" Venti looked at the giant ice block. "We're not actually carrying this thing, are we?"
"Hopefully not…"
As the two of them pondered the situation, the ice surrounding Qiqi finally began to melt. One of her tiny fingers twitched.
Lu Chen let out a breath of relief. Good—if it hadn't melted, lugging a giant ice block all the way back to the city with someone frozen inside would've been way too suspicious.
People might even think he was some kind of maniac.
[Challenge Task: Melting Ice]
[Within 72 hours, travel to the southwestern mountains on the city outskirts to resolve the ley line anomaly and welcome the new character: Qiqi.]
[Task Complete]
[Reward: 1,600 Primogems, 1.6 million yuan (real-world currency)]
Lu Chen felt a sudden influx of Primogems and smiled in satisfaction.
Once again, he'd finished ahead of schedule. The system had given him three days—he only needed two.
While he was thinking about that, the ice had completely melted. With her body frozen at the center, Qiqi slowly began to slide down.
Lu Chen stepped forward and gently caught her.
Though born centuries ago in Liyue, Qiqi had been sealed in amber ever since that fateful accident. Her appearance hadn't changed—she still looked like a small child.
She was light in his arms, as if she might float away.
Lu Chen took a closer look at her.
A yellow talisman was tucked between her light purple hair and the brim of her hat, almost covering her tiny face.
Her round cheeks twitched slightly, and her lashes fluttered like butterfly wings. Finally, Qiqi opened her innocent rose-colored eyes.
They were beautiful, but vacant—lifeless, as if lacking any energy.
Their eyes met. After a moment of silence, Lu Chen broke it with a warm smile.
"Hey, Qiqi. Do you remember me?"
The sunlight behind Lu Chen made it hard for her to see his face. She shook her head gently. "I don't remember."
"..."
"Looks like little Qiqi forgot you!" Venti teased.
Lu Chen gave a helpless smile. Qiqi really did have a terrible memory. But he remembered quite clearly—they had crossed paths back at Bubu Pharmacy during his journey through Liyue with Lumine.
"I'm Lu Chen," he said, reintroducing himself.
Qiqi stared up at the boy holding her. Against the backlight, she still couldn't make out his face.
But his voice sounded familiar. Warm. Just like this embrace.
"I'm Qiqi. I'm a zombie."
Lu Chen chuckled and gently set her down.
All around them, the roar of melting glaciers echoed. Ice chunks of all sizes rained down from the ceiling, slamming into the ground with thunderous crashes. The whole place felt like it was falling apart.
"This place isn't safe. Let's get out of here!" Lu Chen said.
Qiqi looked around and nodded obediently.
"Let's not go back the way we came," Venti suggested, already setting up a wind current before lifting into the air.
Lu Chen glanced at Qiqi, walked over, and scooped her up again.
Opening his Wind Glider, he caught the gentle updraft and soared alongside Venti toward the dome, flying out of the cave.
From high above, the mountain still looked wrapped in a blanket of white. Though the weather had warmed, snow and frost still covered the land.
The camp they had seen earlier had been dismantled. Tents gone. The ground was a mess, but no one was in sight.
That group must have pulled out long ago.
Qiqi looked down with her big eyes, completely silent.
Unlike Raiden Ei or Venti, she showed no curiosity toward this unfamiliar world.
Despite everything that had happened, she didn't ask questions or panic. She just stayed calm and quiet.
What a good kid, Lu Chen thought.
The three of them landed at the foot of the mountain, searching for the path they had taken to get here.
When they found it, Lu Chen saw the area had been sealed off. A long line of police tape, flashing sirens, swarms of personnel, cameras, and reporters filled the scene.
Abnormal weather, monsters, earthquakes—any one of those would've been headline news. Together, they were sure to dominate the front page for days.
But now that Lu Chen had resolved the ley line anomaly, no one would ever know the real story.
What caught his eye was a group of mysterious, fully armed individuals in uniform.
They weren't police or military—but clearly official. Their presence and equipment made that obvious.
After taking a moment to memorize their uniforms, Lu Chen turned away.
To avoid trouble, the three took a wide detour and eventually met up with the SUV driver in a nearby village.
When Venti saw the utterly baffled driver, it was like reuniting with a long-lost relative.
"Quick, quick! Pop the trunk! I need my wine!"
Venti jumped into the back seat, and after a series of glug-glug-glugs, he finally screwed the cap back on with a satisfied grin.
The car started moving, and Qiqi, sitting next to Venti, stared at her with curiosity as she drank.
Lu Chen caught the scene in the rearview mirror. This was the first time Qiqi had shown any real interest in something.
"What's up?" Venti glanced over. "You want some?"
"Don't corrupt a child!" Lu Chen's warning shot in immediately.
"Relax! I'm just kidding..." Venti pouted, thinking, as if I'd give booze to a kid. I'm not that irresponsible...
If Lu Chen could hear that, he'd probably nod in agreement.
Lu Chen looked at Qiqi again. She was staring at the flat metal flask, her voice soft, but her tone deadpan.
"Is it something tasty? Is it coconut milk?"