Hidden Moth-Chapter 494 - 281: Sunset Piaocai Surrounds the Golden Mountain

"Xiao Kao, I remember you have been to the Mount Everest Base Camp, the one on the South Slope in Niger."

"Yes, I have been around there. Last time, when you three visited the Floating Colors Grotto Heaven, Elder Li asked me to take him there before he left."

"Can you help me rescue someone?"

"Who, when?"

"A friend’s child, I’ll send you the details right away, it’s urgent!"

"Where are you, sir? I can teleport you along to the Everest side."

"First rescue the person then get me there, time is of the essence... Whether it works or not, make sure you stay safe!"

This was Gu Chun’s call, quite sudden, while He Kao was on his way home from work. He quickly found a spot where he could park, turned off the engine, and disappeared from the car.

Five minutes later, he appeared within Niger’s borders, about thirty kilometers from the Mount Everest Southern Base Camp. This was the nearest location he passed while lighting up the map, last time also dropping Elder Li here.

He had already changed his gear, wearing attire for crossing the icy Bering Strait, not suitable for professional mountaineering but could withstand harsh winds and cold. There was no time to find anything else due to how tight the schedule was.

He Kao’s current limit of Divine Sense could reach more than two kilometers, and thirty kilometers required less than twenty teleportation attempts, able to be reached in a minute without interference.

The person he was supposed to rescue was a girl named Lina, yet she wasn’t at the Mount Everest Base Camp.

The best window for climbing Everest is mid to late May, and it was now just early April, so why was she there? Because commercial Everest climbing is an extremely luxurious endeavor, consuming both money and time.

There are professional teams providing services for climbers, including meteorologists, route scouts, accompanying guides, logistical support, and medical teams. Even if thrifty, one climb would cost four, five hundred thousand East Country Coins.

And having progressed to the Everest step, the preliminary costs already amount to at least millions.

Climbers need to undergo adaptive training beforehand, first reaching the 5,400-meter Base Camp to acclimatize, then repeatedly practicing between the Base Camp and the 6,000-meter Camp One and 6,400-meter Camp Two.

During this time, Lina was training between the Base Camp and Camp One, and today was her first attempt to reach Camp Two, when an accident occurred while withdrawing from Camp Two.

The meteorologist’s forecast had a slight error, she encountered a sudden storm during her descent and didn’t return to Camp One at the agreed time, losing contact with the Base Camp.

In such circumstances, unless the guide can bring her back to camp before dark, it would be dire. But guides are human too, and might meet disaster along with their clients during a storm.

There’s a two-hour time difference between Mount Everest and Qi Yuan, it was still daylight here. He Kao first arrived at the Base Camp, where there’s barely any vegetation, mostly scattered stones mixed with snow and ice.

Tents were everywhere, along with various supplies piled up, people’s clothes and tent colors were vividly striking, only He Kao’s white cold-weather gear seemed different.

The environment at the camp was dirtier and messier than imagined, and the air was not pleasant to smell, but the distant scenery was breathtakingly magnificent.

The visibility was great, clearly revealing Everest, the snowy mountain towering in the world, an indescribably grand feeling rushing forward, the sunlit peaks were golden in color...

Near the mountain’s base were ribbon-like strands of white mist at six thousand meters altitude, looking beautiful and nearby, but hard to reach—the storm band Lina had faced.

The climate here is eerie, the weather nice at the Base Camp, Everest shining in the sunset gold, yet the half-mountain area suddenly whipped up with winds and snow mist.

The camp was a bit chaotic, many were in tents talking in various languages, using diverse communication devices, indicating more than one team of mountaineering trainers was in danger.

There was about half an hour until dark, but He Kao wasn’t rushed, leaving the Base Camp to find a decent surrounding mountain hollow, sitting down to circulate mana and refresh his Divine Qi.

Suddenly arriving from Qi Yuan, He Kao needed to acclimate, circulating the most suitable Observing Body Technique, considering he was now a Tier Two Acupuncturist.

When he stood, the sun had just set, and the Base Camp area started to stir up winds, but the storm in the distant directions of Camp One and Two seemed significantly weakened.

After dark, rescue operations here were impossible, but He Kao could rely on Divine Sense for sight, not much affected.

He got a few spare mask-type oxygen tanks from the nearby camp, putting one on himself, using consecutive teleportations to reach Camp One, not staying there, advancing into the somewhat eased storm.

Using Divine Sense to search, He Kao found more than one endangered person, all still retaining vital signs, yet unable to return tonight, likely being trapped here forever.

He prioritized rescuing Lina, deploying the Primordial Spirit Travel Technique. Elder Li had provided detailed enough information, hoping she’d be instantly found within Divine Sense reach.

In the enveloping cold winds and snow mist, Divine Sense was considerably affected, even the Yin Spirit separated from the body felt invaded by cold, becoming somewhat dazed and sluggish.