Countdown Day 17, Morning
A gentle early-summer breeze drifted through the half-open hotel window, carrying a pleasant warmth.
But standing in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, Lin Qi subconsciously tightened her bathrobe, a faint tremor flashing deep in her eyes.
Only those who had truly experienced extreme cold could develop such an almost pathological obsession with “temperature.”
In her previous life, after the global mega-flood disaster, the temperature plummeted overnight.
From above 20°C… straight down to an unimaginable -60°C.
It was a hell where even the soul could freeze solid.
Lin Qi had personally witnessed people who had been struggling in floodwaters—soaked to the bone—turn into lifeless ice sculptures in an instant when the temperature dropped.
In that world without heating, electricity, or even a single dry blanket, people would stab their companions to death just for a worn-out, bloodstained jacket.
She herself had once been trampled by several men just for half a used warm patch, breaking two ribs in the process.
“That kind of bone-deep cold… I will never experience it again.”
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
When she opened them again, the trembling was gone—replaced by absolute coldness and determination.
Today, she would use money to forge an extreme-cold armor that even death itself could not penetrate.
10:00 AM, Northern Edge “Beifeng Extreme Outdoor Gear Manufacturing Plant”
This was one of the most advanced cold-weather equipment factories in the country, supplying polar expedition teams, mountaineering teams, and military-grade gear.
Lin Qi drove straight into the factory compound.
Inside the office, the factory director—a sharp-eyed middle-aged man with a crew cut—frowned as he looked at her.
“Miss Lin, we don’t take civilian retail orders. If you want ordinary down jackets, go to the wholesale market.”
“I’m not here for civilian trash that only works down to -10°C.”
Lin Qi sat down calmly and placed a detailed list on the desk.
“I represent an overseas extreme research expedition group. I want your highest-grade stock, and I’m also reserving your full production capacity for the next three days.”
The director originally didn’t care—
Until his eyes landed on the list.
His pupils violently shook.
Order List:
Polar expedition-grade one-piece cold suit (1000-fill goose down, -70°C resistance): 50,000 sets
Graphene heating thermal underwear (top specification): 1,000,000 sets
Military-grade extreme cold sleeping bags (-50°C): 200,000 units
Thickened 95% white goose down quilts (10kg each): 500,000 pieces
Snow goggles, windproof masks, heated gloves, snow boots: 500,000 each
“What… what is this?!”
The director shot up, palms slamming the desk.
“Fifty thousand sets of polar suits?! One million thermal underwear sets?! Do you know what kind of equipment this is?! This is enough to outfit a polar combat army!”
Lin Qi’s voice remained cold.
“I don’t care about cost. I only care whether you can deliver.”
She placed a black gold Swiss bank card on the table.
“Full payment. Plus 20% premium to buy out your entire production capacity for three days.”
The director’s breathing turned heavy.
For a moment, he realized—
This order alone could make the factory earn what it normally earns in decades.
“I… I can do it!” he shouted. “We have emergency stockpiles and production lines! I’ll have all workers go into full production!”
Then Lin Qi added:
“There’s one more thing.”
“Warm patches.”
The director blinked.
“I want military-grade heating patches. 65°C sustained heat, 24-hour duration. Also heated insoles.”
Her tone sharpened.
“Ten million pieces.”
The director nearly fainted.
Ten million warm patches.
That wasn’t an order anymore—it was madness.
And she wasn’t finished.
“Plus heating equipment: military-grade smokeless coal stoves, kerosene heaters. 100,000 units each.”
“And I need 10,000 tons of high-grade smokeless coal, and 5,000 tons of aviation kerosene.”
By the time she finished, the director’s hands were shaking uncontrollably.
“Total… over five hundred million…”
“Swipe the card.”
Lin Qi didn’t even blink.
That night.
High-Tech Industrial Zone, Abandoned Logistics Park
A massive delivery wave arrived.
Dozens of trucks unloaded mountains of:
Thick polar down quilts
Arctic-grade cold suits
Endless piles of warm patches
Industrial heating equipment
The warehouse was transformed into a fortress of “white snow-like supplies.”
“Collect.”
Lin Qi activated her spatial ability.
“Whoosh——!”
Everything vanished.
Inside the infinite static space, a new zone formed:
Extreme Cold Defense Area
500,000 white down quilts stacked like giant white towers
10 million warm patches arranged like glowing bricks
Arctic suits floating in perfect formation
It looked like an arsenal built to fight winter itself.
Lin Qi exhaled slowly.
For the first time, the nightmare of extreme cold from her past life… began to crumble.
She had secured food, clothing, hygiene, and warmth.
Everything needed for survival had been acquired.
But she did not stop.
She opened a blueprint on her tablet.
A fortress design.
A true end-of-the-world stronghold.
Because food and warmth alone were not enough—
Humans were the real danger in the apocalypse.
When civilization collapses, monsters are not the only threat.
Other humans become worse.
Armed with steel bars, blades, and desperation, they would tear apart anything for survival.
“A normal door is just paper in front of them.”
Her eyes turned cold.
“To survive, I need a fortress that even missiles can’t break.”
She looked toward the highest point of the city.
In her previous life, only the high-end hillside district survived the flood.
That would be her next target.
She started the engine.
The Porsche roared to life.
Like a predator finally unsheathing its claws.
“Next stop… the mountaintop estate.”
Countdown Day 16.
The strongest fortress in the city… is about to get a new owner.