Chapter 149: Rage, Murder, Ferocity

In the first year of Daxia, the twenty-fifth day of the second month

On the third floor of the wooden house, Xia Hong opened his eyes, lying on the bed.

Though the room glowed with firelight, sensing no movement below, Xia Hong immediately knew it was daytime.

"440 jin, two days, fainted ten times total—progress now is…"

【Camp: Daxia (Level 0)】

【Lord: Xia Hong】

【Cultivation: Digging Earth Realm, Full—Skin Reinforcement Progress 31%】

【Population: 1088】

【Resources: Wood 52030, Coal 4910, Iron 11740, Silver 0, Gold 0】

Skin reinforcement progress surged by eleven points!

A look of surprise crossed Xia Hong's face; he clenched his fist to test his strength, and shock instantly turned to deep joy.

"Nearly seventy thousand!"

Less than one-third of the progress had already boosted his strength by nearly forty thousand jin.

As expected, once the skin reinforcement process fully completed, his base strength would reach at least one hundred fifty thousand jin.

Xia Hong paused, then clenched his right fist and suddenly punched forward.

Huuu…

A faint air explosion echoed in the small area his fist struck; the wind from the punch sent the room's brazier swaying wildly.

"Cold-Resist level is one hundred fifty thousand jin—my base strength of nearly seventy thousand, combined with the Long Fist technique, should match most of a Cold-Resist level!"

He spoke uncertainly because he had never encountered a true Cold-Resist level warrior; all this was merely speculation.

Xia Hong walked to the wall and flung open the window.

Cold light streamed onto his body; for half an hour, his face showed no sign of discomfort, and he even lifted his head to stare directly at the dim sun above.

"The higher the progress, the less I feel the cold of this light—when I have time, I'll test how long I can stay outdoors during the day!"

Staying fully outdoors is not the same as standing inside the wooden house with the window open, bathed in the light.

The wooden house benefits from the iron-smelting furnace's heat; the outdoors has none.

Though Xia Hong now felt almost no harm from the light, he still wasn't sure if he could endure four full hours outdoors during daylight.

He waited to test it because…

"In these three days, eight people are missing, and the wood resource count is off—something's happened!"

Xia Hong cared about more than just his own cultivation.

Camp population and resource reserves—these two critical factors—were always his primary focus.

Six days ago, wood was at forty-five thousand; at today's daily extraction rate of three to four thousand, it should now be over sixty-three thousand.

A loss of over ten thousand means that for three nights, the logging teams barely left camp at all.

Wood was manageable, but seeing the population down by eight, Xia Hong frowned sharply and shouted toward the door:

"Shi Ping, come in!"

He had woken several times during his seclusion; he knew Shi Ping had been guarding outside—Xia Chuan must have arranged it, worried he might need something.

"Lord, you're finally awake…"

Shi Ping pushed open the door at once, his face filled with relief and joy.

"What happened in the camp during my two days of seclusion?"

Hearing Xia Hong's question, Shi Ping's joy vanished into fury, and he recounted the events of the twenty-second night in full detail.

As Shi Ping spoke, Xia Hong's calm expression shattered; the joy from his emergence from seclusion vanished instantly, replaced by growing darkness—his anger matched Shi Ping's, burning fiercely.

Especially when Shi Ping led him to the back of the valley and saw the eight unburied corpses, his rage became unbearable—he drew his blade and split a massive log clean in two.

"Send word to Xia Chuan and the hunting team—everyone to the second-floor main hall!"

Xia Hong stared at the corpse with its severed head, its gut torn open, its neck pinned with wood—he spoke through gritted teeth.

"Yes, Lord! I'll go at once!"

After Shi Ping left, Xia Hong stood alone, staring at the eight corpses for over a hundred breaths, then bowed slightly, face expressionless, and turned silently back upstairs.

…………

Hearing Xia Hong had emerged, Xia Chuan and the others mining in the cave dropped their rodent-chisels and rushed to the second-floor main hall.

Seeing Xia Hong seated beside the furnace, all erupted in outrage:

"Big Brother!"

"Lord, you're finally out!"

"Lord, those bastards from Jingxian Camp…"

…………

"Enough. I already know."

Xia Hong raised his hand to cut them off—he was fully informed.

It was daytime; not only the seventeen hunters had gathered, but also the foragers, loggers, and nearly everyone else in camp, drawn by news of his emergence.

Their faces burned with fury—they had all been holding in rage for two days.

"Hunting team, prepare fully—we strike north tonight to kill."

Facing their fury, Xia Hong spoke calmly.

"Yes, Lord!"

The hunters' faces lit up; they nodded in unison.

Only the three at the front—Xia Chuan, Luo Yuan, and Yue Feng—each showed a flicker of unease.

"Lord, let us come with you!"

"Let me come too, Lord."

"We're weak, but with bows, we can threaten them."

"I want revenge for my third brother—Lord, please take us!"

………………

The foragers, loggers, craftsmen, even the logging teams from the supply depot—all pleaded to join.

"To deal with a bunch of trash, we don't need such a force—no more talk. Tonight, only the seventeen hunters come with me."

Xia Hong finished speaking, gave them no chance to reply, and turned straight up to the third floor.

The second-floor crowd erupted into heated discussion; the hunters dispersed to prepare, but Xia Chuan, Luo Yuan, and Yue Feng exchanged glances, nodded, and followed him upstairs.

Upstairs, finding Xia Hong's door still open, Xia Chuan led the two inside, bowed, and asked cautiously:

"Big Brother, have you broken through?"

After he spoke, not just he, but Luo Yuan and Yue Feng behind him, stared at Xia Hong with hopeful eyes.

Unfortunately, their hope was dashed.

Xia Hong shook his head slightly and said gravely: "Not yet. At least another month. You—"

Seeing their faces tighten with unspoken words upon hearing he hadn't broken through, Xia Hong understood at once.

Clearly, his earlier demeanor had misled them.

"You think Jingxian Camp is too strong, we shouldn't provoke them now, and revenge should wait until after my breakthrough?"

After a moment of silence, they nodded.

Anger blinds, but time cools.

Two days ago, when Xia Chuan first saw the eight corpses, his rage had been overwhelming—he too had wanted to strike back at Jingxian Camp without regard for consequences.

But now, after two days of calm, he had to admit: striking back now was unrealistic.

Two Cold-Resist level warriors stood like two mountains—an insurmountable chasm before Daxia.

At least, before Xia Hong broke through.

As for Digging Earth level, forget it—based on the three encounters so far, Jingxian Camp surely had more Digging Earth warriors than Daxia.

Superior fighters? We're weaker. Core strength? We're outnumbered.

We simply lack the power to seek revenge.

"Don't fear."

Xia Hong rose, waved his hand, and continued gravely:

"Unless those two Cold-Resist warriors from Jingxian Camp are with them every single moment—which is unlikely.

Even if they are, it doesn't matter.

Tonight, each man carries five torches—prepare for two scenarios.

Ignore the outer perimeter—we strike only within a thousand paces of Redwood Ridge, hunting them down until they're driven completely out of our northern territory!"

Though furious, Xia Hong had already considered the very concerns Xia Chuan feared.

If possible, he'd never wanted to break ties with Jingxian Camp so early.

But they had pushed too far—they were at his doorstep.

Not only did they kill, they probed for Daxia's location.

Killing crossed the line; probing their base was stomping Daxia's face into the mud, grinding it underfoot.

In the Ice Abyss world, camps most feared probing each other's positions.

From the first contact, Xia Hong had believed he had shown restraint, extending every possible goodwill.

Last time, he had the chance to kill Yuwen Tao—he let him go, and even let him carry a message: only ask Jingxian Camp to maintain mutual non-aggression with Daxia;

Three nights ago, he had the chance to use the Cold Beast to kill He Meng and others, but he likewise chose to abandon it, taking only their three hunting trophies; when He Meng and the others fled, he made no effort to hinder them.

Clearly, on both occasions, the other side showed no gratitude.

Not only did they show no gratitude, but He Meng's direct move to bring men south to Redwood Ridge to kill people revealed that the Mirror Immortal Camp had no regard for Great Xia whatsoever — deep down, they viewed Great Xia as a tiny, easily crushed entity.

They've probed our base's location and now plan to come straight to our door to kill us!

Xia Hong's pupils grew colder; seeing the worry on Xia Chuan's three faces, he knew what they feared. After a brief pause, he stirred his spirit.

"Roar…………"

Suddenly, a low roar came from above.

Xia Chuan and the others instinctively looked up, saw what was on the roof, and were jolted with terror, their expressions changing drastically as they simultaneously drew their waist blades.

Five coiling dragons, each sixty to seventy meters long, were entwined crosswise around the five massive wooden beams of the roof, each in a different posture, their gaping maws fixed unblinkingly on the three below.

"Mid-level Coiling Dragons — five of them — how could they appear inside this wooden hut!"

"Leader…"

Luo Yuan was the first to cry out in shock, but after speaking, he noticed the Coiling Dragons above remained motionless, and seeing Xia Hong's calm expression, his emotions immediately steadied, shifting to astonishment and delight.

Meanwhile, Xia Chuan and Yue Feng on the other side clearly reacted even faster — their gazes had already shifted from the Coiling Dragons to Xia Hong, their expressions filled with excitement.

"Leader, is this… the Wooden Dummy?"

As Xia Chuan spoke, the five Coiling Dragons atop the beams began to dissolve, reverting to their original forms.

Although the upgraded Wooden Dummies differed greatly from their previous state, Xia Chuan and the others recognized them at once.

After all, the only thing in the entire camp capable of transforming into a Cold Beast was this.

"Five, five mid-level Cold Beasts — Leader, this…"

"Now we don't have to fear — even if a Cold-Resisting expert comes knocking, we're completely safe. Hahaha, no wonder, no wonder…"

Xia Chuan's laughter infected Luo Yuan and Yue Feng, who also began to laugh.

First, mid-level Cold Beasts are inherently powerful — their impact force routinely exceeds a hundred thousand jin, they possess unique innate skills, cunning temperaments, and massive bodies.

Without the Iron-Wrought Bow and Beast Traps, plus overwhelming numerical superiority, Great Xia still wouldn't have the capability to hunt them down.

A single mid-level Cold Beast isn't much — after all, over the past few days, with their rich hunting experience and increasingly refined iron traps, they'd been killing three Snow-Mane each night.

But five at once? That's entirely different!

Even the formidable Mirror Immortal Camp dared not face more than two mid-level Cold Beasts simultaneously.

And these five? Fully obedient, capable of coordinated attacks, and utterly immune to pain — to be blunt, even if every single person in Great Xia combined their strength, they couldn't possibly succeed in hunting them. "With these five Wooden Dummies, our base is secure — even if those two Cold-Resisting experts truly come, they won't be able to touch us!"

At last, Xia Chuan and the others understood the source of Xia Hong's confidence — their expressions no longer held worry, but hardened resolve.

"Base security is guaranteed. Torches are the second line of defense. If Cold-Resisting experts truly come, we won't be helpless — if so, then acting against He Meng and his dogs carries no pressure."

"Enough. Go prepare — nightfall is coming!"

Xia Hong signaled the others to withdraw, then drew his ceremonial blade, beginning to adapt to the increased base strength granted by his recent skin-renewal.

Swish… swish… swish…

Each swing of the ceremonial blade emitted a violent sonic boom; the air currents stirred by the blade's glow made the campfire inside the hut crackle fiercely.

As his blade movements grew faster, the coldness in Xia Hong's eyes deepened, and his roaring battle intent surged upward from within.

"If a Cold-Resisting expert truly comes directly, so much the better — I can finally see for myself, instead of lingering here in constant dread. Let me see just how far behind I am!"

………………

Redwood Ridge, middle depths

Crack…

=9+book_bar

He Meng slashed his blade into the Demon Sheep's neck, then immediately pulled back.

Swoosh… swoosh… swoosh…

As he retreated, arrows flew from all directions — the already gravely wounded Demon Sheep collapsed within less than ten breaths.

Over twenty men emerged one by one from surrounding large trees.

As they gathered, they retrieved the iron arrows embedded in the Demon Sheep's back and turned to He Meng.

"Third one — hahaha, tonight's haul is excellent!"

"There are so many Cold Beasts in Redwood Ridge."

"Leader should've brought us here sooner."

"Such a prime spot, wasted by that Great Xia!"

"If we'd come south earlier, we wouldn't have suffered so much."

…………

"Hahaha…"

Hearing their words, He Meng laughed heartily: "Thanks to those fools of Great Xia — I thought they'd have some backbone, come after us. Turns out, for two days straight, not a single soul showed up. Hmph!"

He Gang sneered twice, shaking his head: "According to Lu He, they're barely a medium-sized camp — going head-to-head with us is suicide. Eight dead, they've probably accepted reality and are preparing to abandon Redwood Ridge. Weak, but at least they're sensible."

He Meng nodded slightly, scanning the surroundings, a look of pride spreading across his face.

When they first came here two days ago, even though they'd only operated in the north, he'd still been cautious, fearing Great Xia might sabotage them in secret.

After all, they'd killed eight of their men!

But for two straight days, not a single Great Xia member had been spotted in the north.

Tonight was the third day — he led his men straight south, into the middle region of Redwood Ridge — the very spot where they'd previously chased down Great Xia's ten men.

From the outskirts to the depths, they were astonished to find not only no people, but no signs of recent human activity at all — and even the outskirts still held unremoved timber and wheelbarrows.

Great Xia hadn't dared show their faces for days!

Confirming this, He Meng's mood lifted instantly.

Coupled with what his men said, and recalling the vast power gap between Great Xia and the Mirror Immortal Camp, He Meng's pride deepened further.

"Xia Hong's own strength isn't strong — when I first met him outside the Arrow Bamboo Grove, I observed his qi-muscle transformation — his power was barely over twenty thousand. Those dozen or so Earth-Digging cultivators beneath him? Even weaker."

"Only that fool Yuwen Tao would be deceived — he even advised the Leader to seek friendly relations with Great Xia. Such a pitiful camp — do they even deserve it?"

Beside him, He Gang nodded solemnly: "Just abandoning Redwood Ridge to make peace? How idealistic. Lu He said that since Great Xia inherited Luo Ge's camp, their base must lie between the two eastern high mountains. Next time we come, bring more men — go straight there."

He Meng nodded in agreement, then his face hardened with cruelty: "First, kill that leader, Xia Hong, and his useless cronies. Then bring the rest in — deliver them to the Leader."

Leader He Yuanhun placed great importance on camp population — previously, he'd publicly ordered both He Meng and Yuwen Tao to bring every single member of Great Xia into the Mirror Immortal Camp, by any means necessary.

"This Great Xia camp's members are stubborn, proud — if we bring them in, there'll likely be trouble at first."

Hearing He Gang's words, He Meng rubbed his ear, eyes flashing with fury: "What trouble? Just kill a few to instill fear — no matter how proud their nature, they'll still fear death!"

He Gang recalled something, nodded, and smiled: "True — we only killed eight, and they were already terrified. Their bones aren't that hard — as soon as someone dies, they immediately bow their heads and stay out of Redwood Ridge."

"Hahaha…"

Hearing He Gang's words, the surrounding men burst into laughter.

"I say, Great Xia isn't made of hard bone — they're lowly bone. Only when you kill them do they learn fear."

"Exactly! We were only hunting in the north — if they hadn't provoked us, we could've coexisted peacefully for a while. Now? With the south here, the entire Redwood Ridge belongs to our camp from now on!"

"Haha…"

Swoosh…

An archer on the easternmost edge, unable to contain his laughter, had barely laughed twice when a sharp arrow whistled through the air — his laughter cut off abruptly.

Bang…

An iron arrow shot from the darkness behind pierced straight through the back of his skull, then burst from his forehead, launching his body forward over ten meters before pinning him to the trunk of a large tree twenty meters behind.

"Watch out — arrows!"

"Who is it!"

"Everyone, scatter!"

………………

He Meng's face turned pale — he instantly retreated, shouting for his men to disperse.

At the sight of that iron arrow's power, he immediately realized the archer's strength matched his own.

Enemy hidden, we exposed — already deadly. And now, the hidden archer might be stronger than him.

"Who are you? I am He Meng of the Mirror Immortal Camp — when did we offend you? To strike from the shadows — how despicable!"

Swoosh…

The only reply was another iron arrow — similar in speed and force to the first. He Meng, determined to test it, gritted his teeth, gathered his strength, and raised his blade to block.

Clang…

Blade met arrow — sparks flew. He Meng, sprinting desperately, was thrown two meters to the left.

He Meng looked down at his shattered palms, his face twisting with horror as he shouted to the others: "Form a shield — you can't stop these arrows!"

He Gang and the other twenty-plus men instantly pulled from their backs rectangular pieces of pale-gold wood.

The scattered group swiftly gathered into five squads of four to five men each, quickly assembling the pieces into shields, held aloft by the last man as they continued fleeing.

Swoosh…

Another iron arrow shot from behind — targeting the group farthest ahead. But they'd already raised their shield — the arrow struck the pale-gold surface precisely.

Boom…

Though the arrow didn't pierce the shield, its immense impact flung the shield-bearer backward, knocking down the four men ahead — all five rolled five meters across the ground.

"How can it be this strong? Cold-Resisting level — this must be a Cold-Resisting expert! Is it the Beehive Camp? Or someone else? Why are they targeting me!"

Nearby, He Meng watched this scene, his heart trembling.

He didn't know the exact strength of the archer behind, but an arrow fired from such distance — capable of knocking down five Earth-Digging cultivators holding Lei Kui Shields — was beyond absurd.

Moreover, they had been flung backward four or five meters.

In any case, he simply couldn't do it.

…………

"A ten-stone iron-core bow—apparently, it's no longer suitable for me!"

On a large tree behind him, Xia Hong, who had been leading the chase, looked at the iron-core bow in his hand and shook his head slightly.

The bow had bent completely, and the specially thickened bowstring had snapped.

In total, he had fired only three arrows.

Around him, Xia Chuan and the others stared at the bent bow in his hands, their faces filled with shock and dread, all thinking the same question.

How many jin of strength does the leader possess?

"Enough. You all shoot arrows—keep the rest of them pinned down, don't let them out of sight. I'll deal with them one by one!"

Xia Hong gazed at the fleeing crowd in the distance, his eyes glinting with cold fury. He gave the order, tossed aside the iron-core bow, drew the ceremonial saber at his waist, and surged forward at full speed.

The Mirror Immortal camp's retreat was orderly.

He Meng and He Gang, the two strongest among them, brought up the rear.

Naturally, Xia Hong's first targets were these two.

After receiving the order, Xia Chuan and the others veered around He Meng and He Gang, drew their bows, and fired a barrage of iron arrows at the twenty-odd people fleeing ahead.

The shields blocked the iron arrows, so they couldn't strike their targets—but Xia Chuan and the others only intended to disrupt their escape, and weren't in a hurry.

Meanwhile, He Meng and He Gang at the rear sensed someone rapidly approaching from behind, and their nerves instantly tightened.

"Yu Han level? How could a Yu Han level warrior suddenly appear? No warning, just killing—why, why, why…"

He Meng cried inwardly, his expression utterly panicked.

Nearby, He Gang was equally terrified; when he passed a large tree and had to dodge around it, his escape speed slowed.

Shhh…

A blade slicing through air rang in his ear. He Gang whirled around, catching a flash of blade light striking from behind. Knowing he couldn't dodge, he dropped his head and raised his blade to block against his back—his heart froze for several breaths.

Jing…

The instant the slender long saber struck his great blade, He Gang felt as if a mountain had slammed into him. He couldn't even hold for half a breath—he was flung backward like a kite with its string cut.

Bang… Crack… Crack…

"Puh…"

He Gang flew backward over ten meters. Two sharp cracks echoed from his back—his internal organs had been crushed too severely; he spat out a gush of reversed blood.

Even with injuries this grave, his face still wore a look of relief. He turned to look behind him at He Meng, his eyes brimming with gratitude.

If He Meng hadn't turned back to intercept and absorb part of the force, his injuries wouldn't have been limited to broken backbones.

He would have been dead, one hundred percent.

"Nearly seventy thousand jin—it's a Yu Han level warrior, truly a Yu Han level warrior…"

Despite blood continuously spilling from his mouth, He Gang forced himself to warn his brother He Meng of the immense power he had just felt.

But when he looked up, he saw He Meng's expression frozen in utter shock, his pupils wide with disbelief.

"H-how… how could this be!"

He Gang spun his head around, desperate to see the attacker's face.

Unfortunately, the opponent seemed unwilling to grant him that chance.

Shhh…

"Watch out!"

A flash of blade light slashed toward him. Even as he felt He Meng pulling him aside, the chill of death crept into He Gang's nostrils.

Crack…

The sound of soft tissue tearing rang out. Scalding internal blood sprayed outward, instantly blackening the snow beneath.

He Meng, having dodged three meters away, stared at the half-body of He Gang still clutched in his hands—his expression twisted into madness.

"Stop running! Come back and fight this bastard! You killed my brother—I'll die today, but I'll tear a piece of flesh off you, AHH!"

Before he even finished speaking, He Meng hurled He Gang's corpse aside, raised his great blade, and charged wildly toward Xia Hong.

The twenty-odd men who had been fleeing all halted at He Meng's cry, turned around swiftly, drew their swords, and rushed toward him.

He Meng's group's ferocious reaction didn't surprise Xia Hong—he had witnessed this same madness before, when Yuwen Tao's men hunted.

If they fought like this during a hunt, how much more so in a fight to the death?

"Perfect. Let's finish them all at once!"

I really have no water—I'm just trying my best to write each chapter well. Plot progression must remain logical. I hope you can understand. I'll accelerate the plot.

(End of Chapter)