Ice Age Apocalypse: I Hoard Billions of Supplies

Bai Chunyu didn’t bother with vague hints. He got straight to the point: “After you’re done with the gathering tomorrow, our captain would like you to come meet him.”

“People from the outer cities like you don’t really know how things work in Blizzard City. You might get tricked into going somewhere you shouldn’t.”

He smiled warmly as he continued, “If I’m not mistaken, Bai Li Changqing from the Black-Robed Squad has already tried to recruit you into his team, hasn’t he?”

Zhang Ye thought to himself: Bai Li Changqing doesn’t have the guts. If I joined, he wouldn’t be able to keep his position as team captain.

But Bai Chunyu clearly thought he’d guessed right.

His smile deepened. “After their former captain Bian Junwu died in battle, the Black-Robed Squad’s overall strength dropped to the bottom of the six major investigation teams. There’s even talk they might lose their team status altogether.”

“So I hope you’ll be careful. Don’t let yourself get roped into something you’ll regret.”

Zhang Ye understood that Deng Shentong inviting him over was likely a prelude to recruiting him.

Unfortunately for them, Zhang Ye had no intention of staying in Blizzard City.

Still, he wasn’t the kind to reject a smiling face. And according to Bai Li Changqing, Deng Shentong held even higher standing in Blizzard City than Bian Junwu once did.

So there was no need to offend the man.

Zhang Ye said, “After the gathering, I’ll pay a visit to Mr. Deng Shentong.”

Bai Chunyu’s eyes opened slightly, a satisfied smile spreading across his face.

“Great. I’ll come find you then. It’ll also be a good chance to tell you about the history of our Celestial Team—and let you see our strength firsthand.”

With that, he turned and headed back into the Operations Center.

The others looked toward Zhang Ye.

Fatty Xu sounded worried. “Boss, now you’ve really got their attention. What can you do? You’re like a sparkling diamond—there’s just no hiding that shine!”

Zhang Ye said calmly, “With my level of strength, it was inevitable they’d start noticing.”

Even before absorbing Yuan Kongye’s source energy, Zhang Ye’s performance had already been enough to attract Bian Junwu’s interest.

So this wasn’t something he could avoid.

Being too good—it was its own kind of headache.

“But if I’m not interested in joining Blizzard City,” Zhang Ye continued, “I doubt they’ll try to force me.”

Both Bian Junwu and Bai Li Changqing had told him the same thing.

The investigation teams and the Yan Yun Unit placed heavy emphasis on loyalty.

So the process of recruiting Variants from outside was extremely strict. They didn’t just look at power, but also background, character, and more.

As for forcibly drafting someone—only if your ability was so powerful they’d swallow their pride just to keep you.

If Zhang Ye ever revealed the full extent of his strength, that might happen.

But right now, he’d only shown the level of an elite investigation team member.

In the context of Blizzard City, that level of power wasn’t common, but the six investigation teams and the Yan Yun Unit had plenty who measured up.

Hearing this, everyone around him let out a quiet sigh of relief.

From what they’d gathered, Blizzard City had a maze of rules. Your access to survival supplies depended on your contribution level.

If Zhang Ye got transferred here, they’d probably have to come too. And life under those restrictions would be a far cry from the freedom they had in Tianhai City.

Meanwhile, Lu Keran couldn’t take her eyes off the box in Zhang Ye’s hands.

Zhang Ye knew exactly what she was thinking and smiled. “Come on, let’s head back.”

He was eager to get a good look at this new weapon too.

The group returned to the apartment complex.

The female attendant who’d received them earlier looked visibly relieved to see them back safely.

Her brows furrowed ever so slightly, and though she didn’t say anything, her expression clearly showed a bit of displeasure.

Still, she didn’t dare make it obvious. Her polite smile just turned a bit colder.

Zhang Ye couldn’t be bothered with her and headed straight to his room with the others.

Xiao Honglian and the rest had stayed behind at the apartment, so they had no idea about Zhang Ye’s duel with Wu Di.

Now, everyone gathered in Zhang Ye’s room, their eyes fixed eagerly on the black box he was holding.

Liang Yue and Lu Keran were the most curious about the new weapon.

Zhang Ye wasn’t the type to keep people guessing. He placed the box on the table and opened it right in front of them.

A soft hiss sounded as the lid popped open, releasing a faint white mist.

Zhang Ye instinctively frowned and stepped back, but Lu Keran quickly reassured him, “It’s a chemical preservative for the metal—to prevent corrosion. Only the most valuable treasures and weapons get stored like this.”

Zhang Ye relaxed.

As the mist dissipated, the weapon inside was finally revealed.

Everyone instinctively leaned in to get a closer look.

At first glance, the sabre already gave off an extraordinary vibe. Its design was distinctly cyberpunk. Under the light, the blade shimmered with a cold blue hue, while the handle was wrapped in black leather.

The sabre wasn’t long. Blade and handle together measured just a little over one meter—around 1.2 meters in total.

Compared to Liang Yue’s long sabre, Longming, it was noticeably shorter.

The blade was straight and sharp, good for both stabbing and slashing.

It wasn’t a weapon for wild, sweeping attacks—but it was perfect for close-quarters combat, parrying, and defense.

Its strengths were speed in tight spaces and ease of carry.

“What a blade!”

Liang Yue recognized it instantly. “It’s modeled after the Tang horizontal sabre. Not quite the ancient style, but definitely made for close combat.”

Zhang Ye lifted the sabre. Though he wasn’t a sword expert, he could feel how sharp the blade was. It was definitely on par with Longming.

Lu Keran couldn’t wait. “Brother Zhang Ye, can I take a look?”

Zhang Ye gave a slight smile. “Go ahead.”

In the apocalypse, cold weapons were mostly only useful to strength-type Variants.

After all, this wasn’t ancient times—modern firearms were widely available and highly effective.

Zhang Ye had asked for this blade mostly as a symbolic trophy, something for close-range self-defense. He didn’t expect to use it much.

That’s why Bai Li Changqing hadn’t minded parting with it.

Of course, that didn’t mean it wasn’t valuable—it just meant that for someone at Zhang Ye’s level, abilities were usually more practical than weapons. Unless you were a Variant who specialized in melee combat.

Lu Keran took the sabre. It wasn’t heavy, probably five or six pounds at most, but it was razor sharp.

Perfectly suited for someone like Zhang Ye, who wasn’t built like a tank.

Lu Keran ran her fingers over the blade, activating her Mechanized Control ability. Immediately, she began analyzing the materials and construction of the entire weapon.

Author’s Note