Ice skates forward, regardless of east or west.

1

A black SUV sped along the winding mountain road.

Gu Xidong stared at the rearview mirror—no headlights were following, but he knew that didn't mean it was safe.

That man with the gold-rimmed glasses let them go too easily.

"There's something in the fuel tank," Ling Wuwen suddenly said. She pulled a palm-sized device out of her backpack.

"It's not radiation, it's chemical labeling. They added a tracking agent to the gasoline, so the smell stays wherever the car goes."

Gu Xidong swore.

The child shifted slightly in the car seat in the back.

"What is she doing?" Gu Xidong asked.

Ling Wuwen turned around to look closely. The child's finger repeated a motion in the air: first drawing a circle, then an X, and then pointing in a certain direction outside the car window.

Repeat three times.

"Is it Morse code?" Gu Xidong asked.

"It doesn't look like... wait a minute." Ling Wuwen stared at the child's fingers, then his expression suddenly changed. "It's reversed Morse code. The dot and dash order is completely reversed. My father taught me that—it was the code he used in the special forces back then."

She quickly explained: "Circles represent long, crosses represent short... three circles and two crosses... long long short long long... that's the letter 'D'."

The child continued drawing. The next letter was 'A', and the next was 'N'.

DAN……

"Danger?" Gu Xidong guessed.

But the baby shook his head—even though he was only three months old, the amplitude and rhythm of the head-shaking were clearly conscious. She continued drawing the remaining letters: GER.

DANGER?

"That's not right." Ling Wuwen frowned. "If it were danger, it should be DANGER, six letters, but she only drew five."

The child seemed a little impatient, and drew it again with his little hand, this time with more effort. Five letters, in a clear order: D, A, N, G, E.

Then she pointed to the right front outside the car window—a fork in the mountain road, one road continuing uphill, one turning into a tunnel, and the third being a dirt road leading down into the valley.

"DANGE..." Ling Wuwen murmured, "The first five letters of 'danger'... Has she not learned the sixth one yet?"

Gu Xidong stared at the fork in the road. There were still two kilometers to go, and at a speed of 120 km/h, he would have to make a choice in less than a minute.

"She's issuing a warning," he said. "But what is she warning about? Which road is dangerous? Or are all three dangerous?"

The child stopped drawing. Ling Wuwen reached out and touched him—he had a fever again, and it was frighteningly hot.

"Every time I use my ability, I get a high fever..." She pulled out the suppressant, but hesitated. "Ling Yaqin said I can't use it frequently, it will damage my brain."

"But if we don't use it, we might drive straight into the ambush." ​​Gu Xidong slowed down, and the car came to a stop.

It is 800 meters from the intersection.

The child suddenly started crying, and it wasn't an ordinary cry.

Gu Xidong glanced at the rearview mirror—car lights were on on the mountain road in the distance, and there was more than one car.

The pursuers are coming.

"Which one should we choose?" Ling Wu asked.

2

Gu Xidong's mind raced. The mountain road offered good visibility, but it made him vulnerable to attacks from above; the tunnel was concealed, but if blocked, it would be a dead end; the dirt road was bumpy, but the terrain was complex, making it easy to evade pursuit.

The child was still crying, pointing at the three roads in turn, and finally stopped on the dirt road and didn't move.

"A dirt road?" Gu Xidong confirmed.

The child nodded, then fell into a deep sleep—the high fever combined with overuse of his abilities had overwhelmed him.

It is 300 meters from the intersection.

The headlights behind us were getting closer and closer, and we could see that they were three black SUVs traveling at a very high speed.

Gu Xidong jerked the steering wheel, and the SUV plunged off the road.

"They've split up." Ling Wuwen checked his pistol; only seven bullets left. "What's at the end of the dirt road?"

Gu Xidong turned on the car's navigation system, but the area on the map was blank, only showing contour lines. "I don't know. But the child chose this route, so it should be better than the other two."

No sooner had he finished speaking than a bright light suddenly shone from the woods ahead.

It was a searchlight, not just one, shining from three directions simultaneously, illuminating the SUV so thoroughly that it had nowhere to hide.

The car stopped.

The area was surrounded by woods, but there were people standing in the woods—at least twenty, fully armed, forming a fan shape. They weren't wearing uniforms, but their movements were synchronized, clearly indicating they had been trained.

The car headlights illuminated the face of the man in the lead.

It's Chen Mo.

She wasn't dead. Her left cheek was bandaged, but her right eye was as cold as ice.

"Get out of the car," she shouted through the megaphone. "Hand over the child, and you can leave."

Gu Xidong didn't move, his hands on the steering wheel, his mind calculating the angle for breaking through. But with twenty guns pointed at him, charging out would mean being riddled with bullets.

Ling Wuwen suddenly grabbed his hand.

"Let's split up," she whispered, pulling something from her backpack—a doll wrapped in a blanket, about the size of a baby. "I'll take the child as bait to distract them. You take the real child and go the other way."

"Are you crazy?!" Gu Xidong grabbed her wrist. "They'll kill you!"

"They need a live baby as a sample, they won't kill me." Ling Wuwen unbuckled the car seat, took out the real baby, and put it in Gu Xidong's arms. "Listen carefully: three kilometers ahead on the dirt road, there's a small river with an abandoned wooden bridge over it. There's a small boat hidden under the bridge, it's the backup route that B-3 prepared beforehand—he secretly told me about it in the submarine."

Gu Xidong was stunned: "When?"

"He slipped a note into my pocket." Ling Wuwen wrapped the doll up and hugged it to his chest. "He said: If you're really desperate, go to the river. Now we're really desperate."

Outside the car window, Chen Mo began to count down: "Three—"

"The small boat can seat two people." Ling Wu spoke quickly. "Take the child downstream. There's a small town thirty kilometers away with a clinic and cars. Don't wait for me, go straight to the Northern City."

"two--"

"Ling Yashi wants the child, not the formula." Ling Wuwen stared at him. "As long as the child isn't in her hands, she can't create the stabilizer, and the virus can't be released. That's the key."

"one!"

Gu Xidong gritted his teeth and nodded. He picked up the child, who was still unconscious, his little face flushed red.

Ling Wuwen kissed the child's forehead, then kissed Gu Xidong's face.

"Walk."

She opened the car door, raised her hands, and held the "child" in her arms.

"I surrender!" she shouted. "Don't shoot! The child is here!"

All the gun barrels were pointed at her. Chen Mo waved his hand, and two men stepped forward, took Ling Wuwen away, and headed into the depths of the woods.

3

Taking advantage of the moment, Gu Xidong opened the passenger door—and rolled out of the car with the child in his arms.

Chen Mo's angry shout came from behind: "There's someone else in the car! Search!"

Gunshots rang out, bullets struck the SUV, sparks flying. But Gu Xidong had already crawled deep into the woods, using the cover of night and the shadows of the trees to run wildly towards the river.

The child stirred in his arms, woke up, and opened his eyes halfway.

She looked at Gu Xidong, her little hand gripping his collar, not crying, just watching.

Gu Xidong ran the three-kilometer mountain road for twenty minutes. He dared not stop. He could still faintly hear gunshots and shouts in the distance, and wondered how Ling Wuwen was doing.

Finally, he heard the sound of water.

Pushing aside the last clump of bushes, the stream came into view—

It wasn't wide, only a dozen meters, and the current was quite swift. Under the moonlight, the abandoned wooden bridge leaned precariously across the river.

Gu Xidong climbed down to the bottom of the bridge, his hands groping among the rotten wooden stakes.

After groping around for half a minute, I came across a canvas bag. When I opened it, there was an inflatable rubber boat, neatly folded, and a manual air pump inside.

B-3 really had a backup plan.

He quickly inflated the boat, pushed it into the water, and sat on it with the child in his arms. The paddle was in his bag, so he grabbed it and paddled frantically, drifting downstream.

The river carried them away from the woods, and the gunshots gradually faded away.

Gu Xidong breathed a slight sigh of relief and looked down at the child.

The child was staring in the direction behind him.

Gu Xidong turned around—in the direction of the bridge, there were flashlight beams flashing; someone had chased them to the riverbank. But the distance had increased, and the rubber boat was not easily spotted on the dark river.

He continued paddling, laid the child down, and covered him with a thermal blanket.

At this moment, the child stretched out his hand and pointed to the bottom of the rubber boat.

Gu Xidong looked down—there was a waterproof bag at the bottom of the boat, taped shut. He tore it off, opened it, and inside was a note and a small radio.

The note was written in B-3 handwriting, and it was written in a hurry:

"Brother Gu, if you see this, it means Sister Ling's plan has succeeded. Tune the radio to 87.5; there's a surprise. Also, don't believe everything Ling Yaqin says in her video—she didn't tell the truth about some things. Take care."

Gu Xidong stared at the note, then looked at the old-fashioned radio. It was about the size of a palm and used batteries.

He hesitated for a few seconds, then turned on the power and set it to 87.5.

After a buzzing sound of electricity, a female voice rang out—not a broadcaster, but a recording:

"This is Raven, the 'Ice Shards' organization. If you're hearing this recording, it means you've passed the screening and become a trusted member. Now, please listen carefully: Ling Yashi's gene lock in the Northern City laboratory doesn't require the genes of your entire family, only the child's. Ling Yaqin lied to you because she knew that if she told you the truth, you might abandon your child. Also, there's an inside agent in the laboratory, codenamed 'Albatross,' who will provide assistance after you enter. The identification code is: ask 'When do migratory birds fly south?' and answer 'They fly when the ice melts.' Repeat..."

The recording plays on a loop.

Gu Xidong turned off the radio; his hands were trembling.

Ling Yaqin lied to them.

The gene lock only requires the child's genes—meaning that he and Ling Wuwen had no need to go to the Northern City. By sending the child somewhere to hide, Ling Yashi's plan would be put on hold.

But Ling Yaqin deliberately said that she needed a family of three, forcing them to go into danger together.

Why?

The rubber dinghy drifted downstream, with dark forests on both banks. Gu Xidong held the child, his mind a jumbled mess.

The child suddenly started coughing, coughing very hard, and his little face turned purple.

Gu Xidong panicked and touched her forehead—the fever was getting worse, and the inhibitor's effect was fading.

You must see a doctor as soon as possible.

4

The small town 30 kilometers away was his only option.

He increased his paddling speed.

Gu Xidong saw lights on the riverbank ahead—it was a small dock with several fishing boats moored there.

arrive?

He checked his watch; only a little over an hour had passed since he went into the water, and based on the current's speed, it should be less than twenty kilometers. But the dock was indeed in front of him, and there were still fishermen who had gotten up early to catch their nets.

Gu Xidong rowed the boat to shore. An old fisherman saw him, paused for a moment, but didn't ask any questions and continued mending his net.

"Grandpa, where is this?" Gu Xidong asked.

"Willow Tree Village." The old fisherman spoke with a heavy accent. "Where are you from? It's the middle of the night..."

"The child is sick, go to the clinic."

"The clinic is in town, about ten miles away."

"My son is going to town to sell fish later, could he give you a ride?"

Gu Xidong hesitated. They were complete strangers, and he dared not trust them too easily. But the child's breathing was becoming increasingly rapid; he couldn't delay any longer.

"Thank you for your help."

The old fisherman's son was a kind-hearted middle-aged man. The carriage was piled with fish baskets, and the smell of fish was very strong, but Gu Xidong didn't care about that. He sat in the corner with his child in his arms.

It was fully light. The tricycle bumped along the dirt road.

The child woke up again, looked at Gu Xidong, raised her little hand again, and began to draw reverse Morse code.

This time it's the complete six letters: DANGER.

Danger.

Then she pointed to the fisherman's son who was driving.

Gu Xidong's heart tightened, and he reached for the gun behind his waist—it was still there.

But the fisherman's son was oblivious, still humming a little tune. The tricycle turned into a narrower road.

Not right.

Gu Xidong tapped on the rear window of the driver's side: "Driver, is this the road to town?"

"Shortcut! Shortcut!" The fisherman's son shouted without turning his head.

The child's finger is drawing again, this time two letters: ST.

Stop?

Gu Xidong pulled out a pistol and pressed it against the back of the fisherman's son's head: "Stop the car."

The tricycle braked suddenly. The fisherman's son raised his hand, his voice trembling: "Brother, what are you doing...?"

"Who told you to lead us this way?"

"No, nobody's here... This is such a shortcut..."

Gu Xidong looked at the child. The child shook his head and pointed under the driver's seat.

Gu Xidong held a gun in one hand and reached out with the other—he felt a hard object, pulled it out, and found it was a walkie-talkie with a lit screen indicating that it was in use.

"Damn it!" He smashed the walkie-talkie, dragged the fisherman's son out of the car, and demanded, "Who ordered this?"

"I...I don't know...Last night someone gave me five hundred dollars, saying that a man carrying a child would be boarding the ship this morning, and asked me to bring him here...I really don't know what they want to do..."

Gu Xidong looked around. The woods were too quiet; not even a bird was chirping.

ambush.

He picked up the child and rushed into the woods. He abandoned the tricycle and ran on foot.

I had only run a few dozen meters when I heard the sound of engines behind me—more than one car was coming from three directions.

Gu Xidong hid behind a large tree and peeked out. It wasn't Chen Mo's men who came; it was another group, dressed in camouflage and better equipped.

They surrounded the tricycle, discovered the person had fled, and immediately dispersed to search.

"Children first! Adults' lives don't matter!" someone ordered.

Gu Xidong held his breath and carried the child deeper into the woods. The child was very well-behaved, not uttering a sound, only his little hands tightly gripping his clothes.

After running for about ten minutes, a barbed wire fence appeared ahead—the wall of an abandoned factory. Gu Xidong found a gap and crawled through. Inside were dilapidated factory buildings with all the windows shattered and piles of scrap machinery on the ground.

He hid inside a rusty shipping container and quietly closed the door.

Footsteps could be heard outside; pursuers were searching the vicinity.

Gu Xidong held the child and could feel her heartbeat, fast but steady. She looked up at him, and in the light from the gap in the shipping container, the silvery-white ring around her eyes was particularly noticeable.

She reached out her small hand and touched the stubble on Gu Xidong's chin.

Then he laughed.

The three-month-old baby smiled, revealing his toothless gums, and his eyes curved into crescents.

Gu Xidong was stunned. The smile was so pure, so pure that it brought tears to his eyes.

The footsteps grew closer.

Someone stopped outside the container.

"Check here."

Gu Xidong gripped the gun tightly, and covered the child's mouth with his other hand—even though she couldn't cry at all.

The container door was opened a crack.

Light seeped in.

Gu Xidong tightened his grip on the trigger.

But the person outside the door suddenly groaned and fell to the ground. Then came a second and a third muffled thud.

A few seconds later, a voice sounded outside, very softly:

When do migratory birds fly south?

Gu Xidong froze.

It's a code from the recording.

He hesitated for two seconds before answering, "I'll fly away once the ice melts."

The container door was fully open. A woman in her thirties, with short hair, wearing overalls, stood outside, holding a silenced pistol. Three men in camouflage uniforms lay unconscious at her feet, but not dead.

"Albatross," the woman said, "the raven sent me to fetch you."

She glanced at the child in Gu Xidong's arms, her eyes softening for a moment: "The child needs treatment, come with me."

Gu Xidong didn't move: "Where's Ling Wuwen?"

"They've been rescued," Albatross said. "Chen Mo's group fell into our ambush. Sister Ling suffered minor injuries, but she's safe. They're now at another evacuation point."

"How can you prove it?"

Albatross took a cell phone out of his pocket and made a video call. A few seconds later, Ling Wuwen's face appeared on the screen; her forehead was bandaged, but she seemed to be in good spirits.

"Gu Xidong?" Her eyes reddened when she saw him. "Where's the child?"

"Here, he has a fever, but he's holding on." Gu Xidong turned the camera to the child, "How are you?"

"It's just a superficial wound," Ling Wuwen said. "Albatross is trustworthy. Go with her. We'll meet in the Northern City."

The video call ended.

Albatross put away his phone: "Now you believe me? Come on, the car's at the factory back gate."

Gu Xidong followed her through the backyard, where a gray van was indeed waiting. After getting in, Albatross handed him a first-aid kit: "There are fever reducers and saline solution inside. Use them on the child first."

The car drove onto the road. While feeding the child his medicine, Gu Xidong asked, "How did you find us?"

"B-3 installed tracking devices on the rubber boats," Albatross said. "He anticipated your ambush and notified us in advance. Also, part of Ling Yaqin's video is genuine—the gene lock does indeed require the child's genes, but what Ling Yaqin concealed is that once the child's genes come into contact with the lock, it will trigger an alarm, and the lab will self-destruct. She didn't want you to know this because self-destruction means the formula will also be destroyed, and if Ling Yashi dies, her thirty years of research will be wasted."

Gu Xidong processed the information: "So Ling Yaqin actually wants to use us to both stop Ling Yashi and protect the formula?"

"Yes." Albatross nodded. "She wanted to be a savior and a god of science. But 'Ice Shard' disagreed—the formula had to be destroyed; it was Pandora's box."

After a two-hour drive, we entered a small town and stopped in the backyard of a private clinic. The doctor, an elderly man, was already waiting. After examining the child, he said, "It's a viral fever, but the child has a special constitution and can handle it. One injection and a day of rest will do the trick."

The child received an injection and fell into a deep sleep. Gu Xidong stayed by the bedside, while Albatross made a phone call outside.

As evening fell, Ling Wuwen arrived. She rushed into the ward, saw the child sleeping peacefully, and breathed a sigh of relief before hugging Gu Xidong.

"I thought I would never see you again."

"I thought so too." Gu Xidong hugged her tightly.

Albatross walked in, holding a tablet: "Latest intelligence. Ling Yashi has entered the Northern City laboratory, but she can't unlock the gene lock. She's waiting for you—or rather, waiting for the child. She's spreading false information, saying that if she doesn't see the child within three days, she'll release an incomplete virus. Although the effect will be reduced, it will still kill thirty percent of the population."

"She's forcing us to show ourselves," Ling Wuwen said.

"That's right." Albatross pulled up a map. "The laboratory is 300 meters underground, with only one entrance, heavily guarded. We can't force our way in; we have to use a plan."

"What plan?"

The albatross looked at them, then at the child on the bed.

"The child can't go. It's too dangerous. But Ling Yashi has to believe the child went."

She paused for a moment: "So we need a fake child and two actors who are not afraid of death."

Gu Xidong and Ling Wuwen exchanged a glance.

"Let's go," they both said at the same time.

The albatross laughed: "I knew you'd say that. The plan is this..."

She began to explain. Gu Xidong listened, but out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of the child on the hospital bed—she had woken up sometime earlier and was staring at the ceiling with her eyes open, her little hands moving slightly as she drew reverse Morse code.

There are a lot of letters in this drawing.

Gu Xidong quietly made a note of it, and after Albatross finished speaking and left, he asked Ling Wuwen, "Did you understand what she just drew?"

Ling Wuwen stared at the child's fingers, deciphering: "MOTHER...LIES..."

The mother lied.

The two were stunned.

The child turned to look at them, and the silvery-white ring in his dark brown eyes suddenly shone brightly.

Then, in a voice so clear it didn't sound like a baby's, she uttered her first word since birth:

"Mom...Mom...No..."

Before she could finish speaking, she closed her eyes and fell asleep again.

The high fever returned.

The thermometer reads: 41 degrees Celsius.