Redemption of a Born Demon

Chapter 329 - 247: The Storm Rises Again, An Anomaly in the Sky Reveals an Array Map (Part 1)

Moreover, this bout of extreme weather had lasted far too long. The station always made a habit of stockpiling excess supplies and energy, but their reserves were now dwindling at a visible rate.

If this weather persisted for another two weeks, they might truly be left with nothing.

Thus, their only option was to suspend all non-essential activities, conserve every last bit of their supplies and energy, and wait for the blizzard to pass—or for help to arrive.

WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH!!

Inside, the research team huddled together in the dim room. Outside, the howling wind slammed snow against the station’s sheet metal walls, producing a terrifying sound. The entire room seemed to tremble, and they wondered if the gales would rip it from its foundations at any moment.

The mood was heavy and oppressive.

"I... I have a feeling... the blizzard is getting stronger. Can the station take it?"

A female researcher asked, her voice trembling slightly.

"I don’t know. Who could? In all our years observing Antarctica, we’ve never seen a blizzard this intense or long-lasting. Why did it suddenly start? We had absolutely no warning, no data. Who knows how bad it’s going to get?"

"It’s unpredictable. It’s already intensified by at least three storm categories since it started. Maybe it’ll intensify by another three, or maybe it’ll last for another month."

Another young male researcher muttered.

"Xiaozhao! Don’t be so pessimistic. This disaster will pass. The homeland won’t forget us. The rescue teams must be figuring out a way to get to us right now."

A middle-aged man said in a stern voice.

He was Station Chief He of the Kunlun Research Station.

"Station Chief, don’t lie to us. Our communications with the outside world are completely cut off. In this godforsaken weather, who could possibly rescue us? Even a steel behemoth would be swallowed by this storm."

Another member of the team said, his head hung in despair.

The feeling of waiting for an unknown fate in the midst of a disaster was agonizing. Any moment could be their last.

"Alright, listen up. We still have a decent amount of food and fuel. We’ll cut rations to one meal a day. Everyone, get out your thermal sleeping bags. Stay in them unless absolutely necessary to conserve body heat. Then we’ll lower the heat to reduce energy consumption. We should be able to last another month this way."

Station Chief He announced.

No one looked happy to hear it, but they all nodded in agreement.

It was their only option.

Just as they were about to get up and grab their thermal sleeping bags, something happened that made their blood run cold.

THUD! THUD! THUD!!

A series of impacts suddenly rang out from outside the station. From the sound of it, something was hitting the main door with terrifying force.

Everyone flinched at the sound, their pupils contracting in shock.

’What is that?!’

’Judging by the sound, it has to be huge and incredibly strong, maybe on par with a brown bear.’

’Damn it!’

’But this is Antarctica, not the Arctic! The Arctic has polar bears, but there are no large land animals like that here!’

’Besides, even if there were, nothing could move around freely in a blizzard like this!’

"Xiaowu, get the monitors on, now! See what the hell is banging on our door! Xiaohu, you and the others, get the weapons! Now!!"

Station Chief He, with his military background, managed to remain calm, but the younger team members were already starting to panic.

’From the sound of the impacts, the steel door won’t hold for long.’

’Once that door gives way, the blizzard will flood in and destroy everything, even before that thing outside gets to us.’

The team rushed to the main control room. The researcher, Xiaowu, activated the external cameras, which had been powered down to save energy. Most of them had been destroyed by the blizzard, but thankfully, one was still operational.

But what they saw next made their minds go completely blank.

They saw a monster, roughly two meters tall, with a powerful build and long arms that hung past its knees. It was covered in shaggy white fur and was relentlessly smashing against the station’s main door in the heart of the blizzard.

’What... is that thing?!’

Everyone was dumbfounded. It was a species they had never encountered, something that seemed to have crawled out of a legend.

’Like the legendary Yeti?!’

A chill ran down everyone’s spine.

"’S-Station Chief, what do we do now?’"

A young researcher stammered.

For a moment, Station Chief He was at a loss.

"Everyone else, get to the north sector and seal the bulkheads! Anyone with a gun, you’re with me. If that damned thing breaks through, we’re putting it down."

Station Chief He finally said through gritted teeth.

"Station Chief!"

The team cried out, looking at him. If they did that, it was hard to say what would happen to those who stayed behind to fight.

"Those are my orders!"

Station Chief He shouted.

"Wait! Look! Something’s wrong with the feed!"

Just then, one of the researchers shouted, pointing at the monitor. Everyone’s attention snapped back to the screen.

The monitor feed began to flicker violently, as if from some interference. But through the distortion, they could still clearly see a burst of cyan light erupt from within the blizzard on the far side of the screen.

SWISH!!

Then, they saw a streak of cyan light flash across the screen and pierce through the monster’s chest.

The monster, which had been hammering at the door just a moment ago, suddenly went rigid. Then, with a heavy thud, it collapsed to the ground.

’W-What was that?!’

Everyone was frozen in place.

Then, they saw a woman emerge from the blizzard—a storm strong enough to toss a small car. She was wearing a form-fitting thermal suit, her hair tied back in a ponytail, and her figure was surprisingly graceful as she moved, hunched against the wind.

She bent down to inspect the monster, then stood up again. With a sudden tremor running through her body, she thrust her palms forward several times in quick succession.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!

The station’s locked main door flew open. The woman’s figure blurred as she entered, dragging the Yeti’s corpse with her. Then, bracing herself against the howling gale, she used sheer, terrifying strength to force the massive door shut and lock it once more.

Station Chief He and his team were horrified. But the person was already inside. As the man in charge, he had to make a call. Besides, she was human—at least you could try to reason with a human, unlike a monster.

"Guns with me!"

Gritting his teeth, Station Chief He rushed from the room, rifle in hand, and aimed it at the figure by the main door.

"Oh? It seems you’re all right."

The woman glanced up at him. She had an oval face and eyes as clear and captivating as an autumn lake. Her beauty was gentle and graceful, with no trace of sharpness.

"Who are you?"

Station Chief He demanded, his eyes wary.

"’You... Are you Shu Xuanji?! The only Female Martial Saint from the recent Donghua Martial Hero Conference?!’"

Suddenly, a researcher behind the station chief gasped, his eyes lighting up with recognition.

"Oh? You recognize me?"

Shu Xuanji seemed surprised.

She was indeed Shu Xuanji, the Female Sword Immortal from Qingcheng Mountain. She had achieved Ascension during the first Martial Hero Conference alongside Wang Chen and Meng Qianyuan, and had ultimately won the final tournament.

A short while ago, extreme weather had descended upon Antarctica. As the disaster worsened, its unusual magnetic field disturbances caught the attention of Donghua’s most powerful cultivators.

Some had used divination through Arrays to calculate that an anomaly was occurring in Antarctica. Shu Xuanji, who happened to be searching for a place to further her Cultivation, believed that confronting the extreme weather in Antarctica might lead to unique insights. Thus, she had agreed to make the trip and investigate the situation.

Upon her arrival, she found the outlying Great Wall Station had been only lightly affected. The personnel there had received her and requested that, if possible, she check on the other Donghua research stations as she investigated further inland. She had agreed.

She just hadn’t expected to make such an unexpected discovery here.

She ignored Station Chief He, whose rifle was still trained on her, and looked down at the furry, ape-like monster at her feet.

’What in the world is this thing?’