Chapter 20: Chapter 20: Leather Boots Are Hardly Useless!
On the snowfield, Fu Zhu and the others walked against the cold wind, heading in one direction. March 7th and Xing, huddled in the group, couldn't help but hug their arms tightly and hide behind Fu Zhu to shield themselves from the biting wind.
"Whew, it feels a bit cold... Dan Heng, how far is our destination?"
Dan Heng, leading the way at the front, glanced at the map on his phone. "If we haven't gone the wrong way, we should still have about ten kilometers to go."
"What?!" Hearing there were still ten kilometers left, March 7th instantly became anxious. "If I knew we had to walk this far, why didn't we ask Big Sis Himeko to send down a few snowmobiles?"
Dan Heng silently turned his head and shot March 7th a look. "Do you remember how the last snowmobile died?"
The expression on March 7th's small face froze instantly. She quietly shrank back behind Fu Zhu, muttering under her breath, "That was just an accident... I didn't mean to crash the vehicle either..."
Xing glared at March 7th, who was also shrinking behind Fu Zhu to avoid the cold wind just like her. So it was you who caused us to have to trek through this icy wasteland on foot!
Seemingly sensing Xing's accusatory gaze, March 7th sheepishly stuck her tongue out at her.
Fu Zhu looked at the endless, boundless snowfield ahead, a slight worry appearing on his face. Thanks to his MC traits, he wasn't afraid of the cold, but it was different for March 7th and the others. Wearing short skirts in this icy weather, staying on the snow for too long could cause problems with their legs.
Fu Zhu thought for a moment and felt it necessary to make some equipment for them as protection. "Dan Heng, is there a forest nearby?"
Hearing Fu Zhu ask this, Dan Heng immediately checked his phone. "If the continental plates on Jarilo-VI haven't shifted much in the past few hundred years, then there should indeed be a forest about three hundred meters ahead to the left. Should we head over?"
"Let's go. I'll make some things for you all, just in case."
Dan Heng nodded, but he glanced up at the sky. Four hours had already passed since they teleported down from the Astral Express. Moreover, according to the weather forecast provided by the Archives, a blizzard was likely to hit in about two more hours. If they couldn't reach their destination before the blizzard, they might be in for a very difficult night.
"We should hurry. Time is short."
Led by Dan Heng, the group walked for a few minutes and finally spotted a forest of considerable size. However, the trees in this forest weren't as tall and dense as Fu Zhu and the others had imagined. Heavy snow had bent many trees over, their tips even touching the ground, showing just how severe the Eternal Freeze on Jarilo-VI was.
"Let's hurry over there! At least the snow in the forest isn't as deep as outside!"
Seeing the forest, Xing couldn't wait and started running towards it. But as soon as she lifted her leg, she plunged into a snowdrift. The snow even reached her waist, making it even harder for them to advance.
Seeing this, Fu Zhu immediately took out the few wooden planks he had from his inventory. Although the quantity wasn't large, it was enough to build a path over the snow layer all the way to the forest. Afterward, he could get more wood to supplement his supply.
After March 7th pulled Xing out of the snowdrift, the two girls stood there with their mouths agape in astonishment, watching Fu Zhu casually wave his hand and conjure a wooden cube above the snow layer, clearly much heavier than the snow itself. Despite this, the wooden cube showed no sign of sinking into the snow, as if it naturally belonged there.
Fu Zhu jumped onto the plank, then turned around and reached out, pulling March 7th, Xing, and Dan Heng up one by one. The one-meter-wide space was small, but the four of them could barely stand on it.
Once everyone was up, Fu Zhu continued using planks to build a wooden bridge suspended above the snow layer, leading straight to the forest ahead.
Upon reaching the forest, Fu Zhu didn't rush to chop down the surrounding trees. Instead, he first placed the crafting table from his inventory on the ground, then crafted four pairs of leather boots inside it. He turned and distributed them to the others.
"Here. These leather boots can prevent you from sinking into the snow layer and slightly enhance your defense. Put them on."
"Really?" March 7th took the leather boots and examined them closely, finding no trace of any high-tech features. Clearly, these were just ordinary, common leather boots. Even if they were light, their own body weight was a factor! How could wearing them possibly prevent sinking into the snow?
Xing, however, had no doubts. The moment she received the leather boots, she wanted to put them on. But before she could act, the leather boots in her hand suddenly disappeared. In their place, the black boots Xing was originally wearing transformed into a pair of brown leather boots.
"Wow, they're pretty smart!"
After examining her new shoes several times, Xing asked Fu Zhu again, "Big Bro, what about my original shoes? They're not with you, are they?" As she spoke, a subtle look entered Xing's eyes.
Fu Zhu felt a vein twitch on his forehead; he sensed she was thinking something quite impolite. Unable to restrain himself, he gave her a light chop on the head.
"Ouch!"
"What are you talking about? These leather boots just cover your original shoes. When you take them off, your original shoes will reappear. Besides, what would I want your shoes for? It's so cold, and your shoes aren't very breathable. They must stink!"
Xing rubbed her slightly reddened forehead, pouted, and retorted unconvinced, "A beautiful girl's feet smell nice! Isn't that right, March?"
March 7th nodded vigorously in agreement, while also not forgetting to put on her leather boots. "Exactly, exactly!"
Fu Zhu rolled his eyes speechlessly at the two girls, then turned his gaze towards Dan Heng, who had already put on the leather boots and was cautiously stepping onto the snow layer.
Dan Heng tentatively tapped his foot on the soft snow layer, discovering that the originally soft snow, which collapsed upon touch, now felt as hard as concrete.
March 7th and Xing were still grabbing Fu Zhu's arms, desperately trying to educate him on how beautiful girls' feet smelled nice. But when they caught sight of Dan Heng easily standing on the snow layer out of the corner of their eyes, both simultaneously released Fu Zhu's arms.
March 7th couldn't help but exclaim, "Dan Heng, when did you learn the lightness skill 'Floating on Snow'?"
Xing's reaction was even more exaggerated. She directly bowed ninety degrees towards Dan Heng, her tone impassioned. "Coach, I want to learn this!"
Even Dan Heng was rendered somewhat speechless by the reactions of these two girls. He sighed, covering his face, and pointed towards Fu Zhu. "Didn't Fu Zhu tell you before? This is the effect of the leather boots he made. It's not that I learned some 'Floating on Snow' lightness skill."
March 7th and Xing both went "Ohh," then looked at each other, excitement visible in their eyes, and immediately stepped onto the snow layer.
"It's true! Are these leather boots really that magical?"