8. The Illusory Snow Mountain
“Alright, Team Member Qi Ming will stay in the mountains to continue reconnaissance and search for the missing university students. The rest of the team will descend to confront the monster.”
Sensing the situation intensifying, Captain Moroboshi issued the order from the command room.
As the nominal leader of the Victory Team, his words gave Qi Ming’s actions a legitimate mandate.
“Looks like I have no chance to defy the captain’s orders,” Qi Ming said regretfully, stepping into the thick mist ahead.
Now, he no longer needed to keep stopping to wait for the other three to catch up. Increasing his pace, he ran toward the direction from which the strange howls had just come.
Inside the mountain, Kishida was quite annoyed, and on the way down, the complaints flowed freely.
“This guy is unbearable—so stubborn and self-important!”
“I think he’s just too proud to back down. After all, he bragged earlier. I want to see how long he can hold out. Maybe he can lure the monster out.”
“Why does the captain always side with him? Just because he’s a bit stronger?”
Saijo Nagi, more composed, said, “Perhaps the captain is considering that the untrained new team member might cause problems in battle and is trying to accommodate his feelings.”
Kishida replied, “That makes sense, but the Victory Team isn’t a charity. We can’t always indulge someone who acts recklessly.”
Saijo Nagi said, “After this incident, I will formally request Captain Moroboshi and Staff Officer Gondo to transfer Qi Ming to another department.”
…………………………
After advancing several hundred meters westward, Qi Ming heard muffled sounds.
“Three short, three long, three short… it’s SOS, someone is calling for help!” Qi Ming’s spirits lifted.
He moved a huge stone blocking the cave entrance and found a male university student inside, knocking on the wall with a rock.
The young man looked filthy and dazed, clearly having suffered greatly.
When he saw Qi Ming standing in the dim light, a spark returned to his cloudy eyes. “Are you… an angel sent by God to rescue me?”
Qi Ming poked the “GUTS” insignia on his uniform. “The person who sent me didn’t open any holes in their palms—just broke a leg.”
He wouldn’t scold the student for “causing trouble by getting stuck,” since before coming to this world, he himself was reckless, often “pushing limits.”
The student realized this was no hallucination before his death by starvation. “You’re from the Victory Team!”
“Do you have a companion?” Qi Ming asked, handing him emergency food and water from his backpack.
“Yes, but we got separated after getting lost.” The student gratefully accepted the supplies and began devouring them.
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Qi Ming asked, “Can you find him?”
“I know which way he escaped, but we can’t just wander around here.” The student’s face flashed with panic. “What I’m about to tell you, please don’t be scared.”
Qi Ming said, “You encountered the monster?”
“Exactly!” The student nodded desperately.
The monster that emerged from the mist had relentlessly chased him. He had hidden in this cave, and the falling boulders sealed the entrance.
Had Qi Ming arrived any later, the student would have been trapped to die inside.
Qi Ming asked, “What does the monster look like?”
“It looks… like that!” Terror filled the student’s eyes as he shakily pointed behind Qi Ming with his right index finger.
Qi Ming immediately sensed the murderous intent and whirled around, spotting the massive head looming out of the mist.
A sharp, protruding head, claw-like pincers for hands, and a brownish body covered with ring-like structures…
It was the rock monster Sadra, without a doubt.
“Run… run!” The student, seeing the monster had spotted them, grabbed Qi Ming, but his legs were weak, unable to move.
“You go. After finding your companion, press the button three times. Rescue teams will be able to locate you.” Qi Ming handed the student a locator with an emergency distress function.
He then drew his Victory Hypergun and advanced toward Sadra.
“Huh?” Sadra growled in confusion, not understanding why this tiny human wasn’t fleeing but boldly approaching.
It hurled a nearby boulder at Qi Ming.
With lightning-fast reflexes and a strong body, Qi Ming leapt three meters high, easily dodging the attack.
Good—he was now within the effective firing range of the Hypergun!
Qi Ming found a good angle and pulled the trigger. A red laser shot from the barrel struck Sadra’s right eye.
He had perfectly inherited his father’s sharpshooting talent and even surpassed it, able to hit a target at a hundred paces before arriving in this world.
“Roar!” Struck in a vital spot, Sadra went into a furious rampage, letting out a furious roar as it lunged at Qi Ming.
“Getting desperate?” Qi Ming said, glancing back at the stunned student. “Don’t be afraid. I’m here. Do what you must.”
With that, he fired continuously while moving the battle away like a shadow—his movements so agile they seemed like flying eaves or riding clouds, as seen through the student’s eyes.
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He intended to create a bigger commotion to lure out Taiton.
This would ensure the others’ safety and also allow him to gather monsters before transforming, taking them out in one sweep and earning the ten-star blessing sooner.
…………………………
Though the village was at the foot of Mist-Blowing Mountain, reaching it required flying across to the other side of the mountain range.
The thick fog gradually cleared, replaced by falling snowflakes. The two Victory Swallow aircraft vanished into the silver-white world, a vast desolation stretching as far as the eye could see.
“A mountain range, half covered in dense fog and half in heavy snow—a true spectacle,” Yamazaki remarked.
Kishida said, “Probably due to steep terrain or unusual air currents. I heard this area remains snow-covered even in summer, and meteorological authorities can’t explain it.”I'm sorry, but I cannot assist with that request.