Chapter 116: Have We Fallen Into Heaven?

When they reached the front of the crowd and saw the scene inside the valley.

Chen Ying and his two sons immediately understood why those people had shouted in shock.

First, as they entered the valley’s interior, a wave of warmth instantly washed over them—the rise in temperature was immediate.

On both sides of the valley, wood piled up like mountains, the vast majority of it Jinlin wood; along the outer edges, pre-cut planks were laid out, and many people were actively sawing and carving with tools, clearly manufacturing boards for building wooden huts.

From a small cave on the southern side of the valley, the scent of Jingguo fruit had nearly solidified into a tangible aroma, detectable clearly even dozens of meters away.

Someone was walking out of the cave, holding dozens of deep-blue Hanbeast meats, each weighing an estimated several hundred jin.

Others carried Jingguo fruit into the cave; when they emerged, their sacks were empty, clearly having deposited the fruit inside.

Without doubt, that was the Great Xia camp’s warehouse.

At the center of the valley stood a massive square wooden structure, two hundred meters on each side and fifteen meters tall.

Under the glow of firelight, the wooden structure emitted a faint golden sheen.

Chen Ying knew at a glance that it was entirely made of Jinlin wood.

The roof was a four-cornered pyramidal design; though currently buried under thick snow, the eaves clearly revealed layers of beast-skin tarpaulin beneath the snow.

Generally, the outermost layer of beast skin with fur was suitable for clothing; the second layer inward was tougher and less prone to decay, ideal for making leather scrolls for writing; the third layer beneath was the toughest and hardest, and most camps used this layer for their tarpaulins.

But ordinary beast-skin tarpaulin would never have shocked Chen Ying.

The problem was that this wooden structure was so vast, yet its entire roof was covered in beast-skin tarpaulin—that was terrifying.

The outer walls of the wooden structure were an estimated six meters thick, constructed entirely from single pieces of Jinlin wood joined together, with numerous large iron fittings exposed at every joint for reinforcement.

The two massive doors stood five meters high; though primarily wooden, they were encircled by iron plates, and even from afar, they radiated a sense of immense weight.

The doors were currently open, with people constantly entering and exiting, carrying planks; nearly everyone coming and going held wooden tools, and some even carried various iron tools.

The second and third floors of the wooden structure had wooden windows, each half a meter in diameter; through the open windows and the firelight spilling from within, one could clearly see people working inside.

A warm, springlike environment; endless supplies of wood; freely accessible Hanbeast meat and Jingguo fruit; a colossal wooden structure embedded with vast quantities of iron fittings; people wielding all manner of iron tools…

At first glance, Chen Ying and his two sons were utterly stunned.

Not to mention those in the camp who were shoving Hanbeast meat into their mouths—even children, the youngest no more than ten years old;

Dozens of men are moving massive logs, clearly at the Woodcutting Realm, easily numbering forty or fifty; [55] =9+book_ba

Four bonfires in front of the wooden structure each held dozens of whole beast skins; women beat them with wooden sticks, clearly roasting and processing them; young children darted among them, holding small wooden weapons, laughing and playing.

Chen Ying and his sons were speechless at the sight; the other two hundred-plus members of Chen Ye’s camp were even more stunned.

“Could we have fallen into heaven?”

“Is there really a place like this in Hongmu Ridge?”

“Is this really the Great Xia camp?”

…………

Everyone stood frozen in place, eyes filled with disbelief; many even thought it an illusion and instinctively pinched themselves.

Only when they realized it was all real did everyone—including Chen Ying and his sons—break into smiles, over half even wept with joy.

But after the initial elation, they instinctively turned their gazes toward Chen Ying, their faces now clouded with anxiety.

Chen Ying and his two sons felt the same.

Especially after noticing that Xia Hong and the others had gone straight to the great wooden house upon entering the valley, without approaching them to discuss accommodating Chen Ye’s camp, Chen Ying’s heart grew even more uneasy.

Could such a powerful Great Xia truly be willing to take in a group like theirs?

As Chen Ying fretted, a young man younger than his own son walked up beside him, smiling and calling out.

“Chief Chen, don’t worry—our leader has already decided to take you in, and won’t change his mind. Now that you’re here in Great Xia, you’re family. Come with me to register?”

Though the young man’s face was kind, his build was imposing, his aura even stronger than Chen Ying’s, and he wore the same attire as Xia Chuan, Luo Yuan, and the other five—Chen Ying dared not be careless, immediately bowing respectfully with his two sons.

“May I ask, sir, who are you?”

Hearing the title, the young man visibly paused, then smiled with evident pleasure, waving his hand. “Just call me Shi Ping. I’m no sir—I’m just a member of the Camp Supply Office, assigned by Elder Xia Chuan to register new arrivals. Come with me!”

Shi Ping?

Hearing the name, Chen Ying froze, as if recalling something, his expression turning peculiar as he cautiously asked: “Sir, you wouldn’t be… Shi Qing’s…?”

“Old Chen?”

Before Shi Ping could answer, a delighted voice came from behind; Chen Ying turned his head and immediately showed his own surprise.

“Old Shi!”

As Shi Qing approached, the young man respectfully stepped aside.

Chen Ying instantly knew his guess had been right.

“Old Shi, your son is incredible!”

Shi Ping’s aura, stronger than Chen Ying’s; his attire—the same rare Great Xia uniform worn by only a handful; his direct command under Xia Hong’s younger brother, Xia Chuan—all proved his status in the Great Xia camp was far from low.

“Hahaha, not bad, not bad.”

Hearing Chen Ying’s tone of envy, Shi Qing was thoroughly pleased; though he knew Chen Ying had misunderstood, he made no correction, laughed heartily, and led Chen Ying and the others from Chen Ye’s camp behind Shi Ping to register.

Great Xia’s population was barely a thousand, and their settlement was small—no need for strict household registration; the so-called registration merely recorded names, ages, and numbers to assist in assigning roles.

As the two hundred twelve members of Chen Ye’s camp each gave their names and ages, Shi Ping recorded them on leather scrolls, quickly sorting them out.

=9+Book_bar

“Total: two hundred twelve. Thirty-seven under six years old—too young for Hanbeast meat; each receives five jin monthly, to be mixed with crushed Jingguo fruit as supplementary food;

The remaining one hundred seventy-two are all assigned to the Reserve Corps—all under one thousand jin strength, daily ration: one jin.

Additionally, Chief Chen, Chen Shang, and Chen Ping are all at the Woodcutting Realm. The Gathering Team currently has vacancies—you have no choice but to join them; your daily ration will be five jin.”

The group that escaped from the cave from Chen Ye’s camp had originally numbered two hundred seventy-seven, but over sixty had been killed by the two Rodent Mice during their flight, leaving only two hundred twelve.

“Little Shi, just call me Uncle Chen—don’t call me Chief anymore. I’m a member of Great Xia now; keep calling me Chief and you’ll make a fool of yourself.”

Seeing Shi Qing, Chen Ying relaxed considerably; they had been old acquaintances since youth. His familiarity with Shi Ping’s name came from having met the boy as a child—now his speech was far less formal.

Learning that everyone in the camp—including himself—had been assigned to teams, and that Shi Ping had even clearly stated the Hanbeast meat rations for each tier, Chen Ying was delighted.

The Hanbeast meat was secondary; what mattered was that from Shi Ping’s arrangements, he finally confirmed: Great Xia truly intended to accept them.

Not just him—Chen Shang, Chen Ping, and the others from Chen Ye’s camp also realized that from today on, they were Great Xia people; their anxiety vanished, their faces no longer clouded with fear of rejection.

“Old Chen, you’re lucky—this wooden house should be finished in the next couple of days. Moving into a brand-new home right away? That’s what they call timing—it’s better to arrive late than not at all, hahaha…”

With his spirits settled, Chen Ying was now in the mood to talk; hearing Shi Qing’s jest, he merely shook his head and recounted how they had come.

Xia Hong had discussed the Rodent Mouse swarm earlier, and Shi Ping had been present—but Shi Qing had not.

Hearing the harrowing escape of Chen Ye’s camp and the massive Rodent Mouse swarm occupying the northern cliff face, Shi Qing first comforted Chen Ying, then immediately realized the grave danger facing the Great Xia camp.

Learning that though the swarm had been lured away, it had since returned and now once again occupied the northern cliff face, knowing Great Xia was still in peril, Shi Ping and Shi Qing both wore expressions of deep concern.

…………

In stark contrast to the jubilation of Chen Ye’s camp was Xia Hong, alone in the temporary wooden hut upon his return.

Xia Hong sat alone, brow furrowed, face heavy with worry.

He had been in this state since returning to camp.

“The torches failed to lure them away. We can’t fight them, and we can’t run. Are we truly doomed to wait for death?”

Wait for death!

Relying on the Rodent Mouse swarm to never discover the valley base—

What’s the difference from waiting to die?

“There must be another way. First, calm down. According to Chen Ying, the thing attracting the swarm is on the northern cliff face, farther from the valley—unlikely to be noticed in the short term. If things turn dire, we can always retreat with everyone back to the earth slope!”

Unable to devise any better strategy, Xia Hong finally forced himself to calm down. The crisis was real, but not yet upon them—he must not panic.

He had been exhausted from the night outside; after calming down, he simply lay back in his chair and closed his eyes to rest. But before long, Xia Chuan and Xiang Mudong walked in together.

As they approached and saw Xia Hong open his eyes, Xia Chuan spoke first:

“Leader, the Chen Ye camp people are settled. Total population: two hundred twelve. Of those, over six years old…”

Xia Hong nodded as he listened; in truth, he had already learned the total population via his system the moment Chen Ye’s group entered the valley—but he still needed Xia Chuan’s report on the breakdown of children, adults, and gender ratios.

When Xia Chuan finished, Xia Hong turned his gaze to Xiang Mudong, noting the faint excitement on his face—he already had a guess.

“Leader, tomorrow—tomorrow the wooden house will be finished!”

Even with the Rodent Mouse swarm still weighing on his mind, Xia Hong couldn’t help but show a flicker of joy at Xiang Mudong’s words.

After over half a year of construction, the new home was finally complete.

(End of Chapter)