Chapter 153: Green Bamboo Fence and Marker Stone: Expanding Territory

Cease all external activities—not merely because of Gao Yu, this unexpected guest.

After killing He Meng and his group, Xia Hong himself had already planned this.

Though he had already demonstrated his strength before Yuwen the Guardian, he was uncertain how the Mirror Immortal Camp would react afterward.

After all, that was twenty-five lives.

And none were ordinary people—twenty-three were Earth-Digging Realm cultivators, two had already begun reshaping their skin membranes; losing so many at once would be a massive blow to any camp.

"If they can endure it, best of all; if they can't…"

On the third-floor room, Xia Hong slowly rubbed animal blood onto his body, his gaze lifting slightly.

After fighting Yuwen the Guardian and learning from Gao Yu about the Cold-Resisting Realm, at this moment, his only real fear of the Mirror Immortal Camp might be its enormous population base.

Of course, this fear, to Xia Hong, could also be considered an allure.

"The population of Great Xia is still far too small!"

As the animal blood took effect, Xia Hong's face grew increasingly pained; he forced himself to focus on other thoughts to distract from the agony.

The only way to rapidly increase population is to absorb other camps, but the current activity range of the camp is simply too small—there's no chance to even encounter other camps, let alone absorb them.

Though he coveted the Mirror Immortal Camp's ten-thousand-strong population, Xia Hong wasn't foolish enough to believe he could casually swallow an enormous camp.

Not to mention Yuwen the Guardian and He Yuanhun, two Cold-Resisting Realm experts—even the hundreds of Earth-Digging Realm cultivators below them were problems he couldn't possibly solve.

Under current circumstances, merely holding onto Hongmu Ridge's territory before the Mirror Immortal Camp is already the best possible outcome.

Absorbing them? That's a dream!

"Behind the Arrow Bamboo Grove lies the Mirror Immortal Camp; north of Hongmu Ridge is Pingxi Plain, home to another Beehive Camp—both are massive camps; barring unforeseen circumstances, any scattered small camps to the north have surely been absorbed by these two."

To the west is Hongmu Ridge, where there are certainly no human camps;

The same goes for the Double Dragon Mountains to the east—meaning…

Xia Hong's veins bulged as he endured the searing pain from nerves beneath his skin, slowly lifting his head to glance toward the southern edge of the camp.

For Great Xia to expand its population and find other human camps, the only direction is south; according to Luo Ming's map, four kilometers south of the valley lies a frozen river, which likely blocks the southern side of the Double Dragon Mountains.

"Luo Ming said there were no traces of Cold Beasts near the river; barring misfortune, it's extremely dangerous, and there's likely no human camp nearby either."

That means, to find other human camps, he must search along the outer southern edge of the Double Dragon Mountains—and keep as far away from that river as possible."

As Xia Hong calculated in his mind, he poured animal blood onto his body with the wooden spoon forty-three times; sensing his capacity had reached its limit, he immediately stopped.

"Indeed, the upper limit has risen by another two catties!"

His initial capacity limit was around thirty-five catties; the second time, he used four hundred forty catties total, divided into eleven applications, with the heaviest single dose being forty-one catties;

This time, it's even higher—forty-three catties.

The so-called capacity limit means if he adds more, he'll instantly pass out from pain, and the system will pop up a prompt to consume resources to sustain him.

Of course, after hearing Gao Yu's explanation, Xia Hong now knows "passing out from pain" is likely unique to him.

For others without a system, it would mean instant death.

Bearing this in mind, Xia Hong would never dare act recklessly again—who knows when the system might glitch or his resources run dry? If he died during a breakthrough, he'd be the most pathetic transmigrator ever.

"Anyway, there's no rush—better to be cautious. This round, I've used five hundred eighty catties total; my progress will surge again!"

Looking at the animal blood piled higher than ever before in the wooden tub, Xia Hong's eyes flickered with excitement.

Yesterday, the three mid-tier Cold Beasts they brought back yielded only two hundred catties total; it was mainly the four unfamiliar mid-tier Cold Beasts gifted by Gao Yu—each bled an astonishing amount, averaging about ninety catties per beast—that suddenly gave them so much.

Thinking of this, Xia Hong grew curious about the Double Dragon Mountains above the valley.

"It's just too tall—if we can find a viable route, once Great Xia grows stronger, the Double Dragon Mountains should become an excellent hunting ground!"

Of course, curiosity aside, with an elevation of over two thousand meters and total ignorance of what lies above, Xia Hong would never rashly ascend.

Even Gao Yu, a Cold-Resisting Realm expert, suffered a major setback on the eastern periphery; theoretically, above the valley lies the deepest western interior of the Double Dragon Mountains—who knows what lurks inside?

Over the next two days, Xia Hong relentlessly pushed his limits, using forty-three catties across seven rounds; though he never passed out, he was nearly at his absolute limit.

On the third day, when Xia Chuan reported that Gao Yu had departed, Xia Hong finally relaxed.

"Before leaving, he wanted to bid farewell to Elder Brother, but I refused him."

"As long as he's gone, keep all external activities suspended until three days from now, when I emerge from seclusion. The hunting teams too—keep mining."

Seeing the wooden tub still half-full of animal blood, Xia Chuan nodded immediately, knowing Xia Hong would continue his seclusion, and hurriedly withdrew.

Xia Hong remained alone in the room, continuing to pour animal blood onto himself, spoon by spoon; the intense pain surged back into his skull.

This time, he was far bolder than before.

In the past two days, he had held back at his limit, afraid of passing out, solely because of Gao Yu; now that Gao Yu was gone, he could afford to be bolder.

The third day after Gao Yu's departure—March 2nd, Year One of Great Xia.

Standing in the wooden tub, Xia Hong opened his eyes again, gazing at his increasingly smooth and luminous skin membrane; he clenched his fist, felt his strength, and his eyes flickered with emotion.

【Camp: Great Xia (Level 0)】

【Lord: Xia Hong】

【Cultivation: Earth-Digging Realm Peak (Skin Membrane Reshaping Progress: 56%)】

【Population: 1088】

【Resources: Wood 54030 Coal 4740 Iron 13210 Silver 0 Gold 0】

"Five hundred eighty catties total—raised my progress by twenty-five points, nearly a quarter! Different Cold Beast blood really does vary in effectiveness!"

A quarter jump in progress, saving so much time—Xia Hong's spirits soared; thinking those four beasts were gifted by Gao Yu, he even felt a flicker of gratitude toward the stranger.

Boom…

Crash!

Xia Hong slammed a punch forward; a gust of frigid wind shot out, instantly toppling a firepot over ten meters away, extinguishing the flames and scattering glowing coal and sparks across the ground.

"This is… one-mane strength!"

One hundred thousand catties!

Watching the chaos his casual punch had caused, Xia Hong instantly recalled the frosty wind unleashed by Snow Mane's charge; his expression grew even more exhilarated.

"Even unarmed against Snow Mane, I'm no longer intimidated. More importantly, with one-manage strength, my base power now rivals that of an ordinary Cold-Resisting Realm expert—if Yuwen the Guardian appears before me again…"

Recalling his clash with Yuwen the Guardian five days ago, a glint of coldness flickered in Xia Hong's eyes.

"External activities still can't stop—only five days without going out, and iron ore rose slightly, but wood and coal decreased; now even Cold Beast blood is gone…"

Looking at the nearly unchanged resources in the system, Xia Hong's excitement instantly faded; he shook his head slightly.

Not going out to gather or hunt is pure, unadulterated depletion.

Fortunately, there's a ready iron mine in the valley; otherwise, even iron resources wouldn't have increased in five days.

"Still, before going out…"

Xia Hong paused, directing his attention to the system.

More precisely, to the buildings listed after it.

【Unlocked Buildings: Iron Smelter (Level 2), Wooden Dummy (Level 1), Decoction Pot (Level 1), Polishing Stone (Level 1)】

【Unlocked Buildings: Green Bamboo Fence, Marker Stone, Yellow Earth, Small Wooden Table, Thick Iron Chain】

Marker Stone: Coal 150, Iron 90

Green Bamboo Fence: 20 wood, 5 iron per meter; upgrade after exchanging 10, 00 meters

Yellow Earth: 200 wood, 20 coal per square meter; upgrade after exchanging 10, 00 square meters

Until now, aside from Yang Ning's sword, suspected to be made of silver, Xia Hong had no idea what gold and silver looked like in this world.

The small wooden table and thick iron chain were clearly out of reach for now.

The only buildings he could afford now were these three.

The main reason these three had never been unlocked? Of course, lack of resources—new housing construction, the Rodent Swarm, the Mirror Immortal Camp, breaking into the Cold-Resisting Realm—resource gaps kept appearing one after another; Xia Hong never had the chance to unlock them even if he wanted to.

In fact, even now, if not for necessity, he'd likely still have no interest in unlocking these three buildings.

First, Yellow Earth: judging by the vegetation scale in this world, even the thinnest Ice-Resonance Tree, with a trunk radius of three or four meters, would require at least thirty square meters to transplant one.

Thirty square meters equals six thousand wood, six hundred coal.

Xia Hong certainly wouldn't transplant Ice-Resonance Trees now—crystal fruits remain a vital resource for Great Xia.

"If I must transplant, I'd choose Blue Jade Trees—but the few already discovered, the thinnest has a radius over six meters, requiring at least one hundred twenty square meters of Yellow Earth; calculating the resources needed…"

Forget it—Yellow Earth is unaffordable!

If Blue Jade Trees could be transplanted, they'd provide a steady supply of Blue Condensation Grass, ensuring stable production of Golden Wound Powder.

Though he knew this would greatly benefit the camp, Xia Hong immediately abandoned the idea of exchanging for Yellow Earth.

No choice—the resource cost is simply too high!

One hundred twenty square meters of Yellow Earth requires twenty thousand wood alone; that's manageable, but coal needs 2, 00 units—2, 00 units, which equals 48, 00 catties in actual weight.

Seventeen Earth-Digging cultivators, each equipped with Rodent Drills, can mine at least 13, 00 catties of coal daily—so it'd take only four or five days.

But Xia Hong still thought it wasn't worth it.

It wasn't that it wasn't worth it—it was simply that resources were insufficient.

"Better to prioritize exchanging for the Green Bamboo Fence first!"

Green Bamboo Fence: 20 wood, 5 iron per meter

Green Bamboo Fence, as the name suggests, is a defensive material for the base; judging by the exchange rules, it's likely a consumable.

Previously, he hadn't exchanged it because the camp hadn't faced any external threats—the Iron Smelter already guarded against anomalies, so demand for the Green Bamboo Fence was low.

But now it's different!

The Mirror Immortal Camp has been thoroughly antagonized.

Though five Wooden Dummies remain at the base, and with his current power rivaling a Cold-Resisting Realm expert, Xia Hong isn't overly worried about Yuwen the Guardian or He Yuanhun.

His real fear is their sheer numbers.

If those hundreds of Digging-Stage cultivators from Mirror Immortal truly mobilized en masse to come calling, whether Xia Army could hold its ground with its current strength is still uncertain.

At this moment, defensive supplies are crucial!

Xia Hong's spirit stirred slightly, and in his system, Wood and Iron each decreased by 20 and 5 points respectively. At the same time, a greenish bamboo fence, one meter wide and over five meters tall, appeared in his hands.

The bamboo fence was woven in a diagonal crisscross pattern, fused as one, with no trace of assembly; its surface gleamed with luster, its top sharpened like a spear, and covered with a layer of spikes over twenty centimeters long, radiating a chilling glint.

Green Bamboo Fence (Level 1): Garrison defensive supply, single-use consumable.

Special Function 1: Any outsider touching it triggers an immediate alert to the host.

Special Function 2: The bamboo spikes can be activated and fired by the host; after firing, the fence becomes inert and cannot regenerate—must be re-exchanged.

Upgrade prerequisite: Exchange a total of ten thousand meters.

Xia Hong placed the fence ten meters away, walked to the opposite side, and focused his spirit.

Shhh… shhh… shhh…

Though only one meter wide, the fence stood over five meters tall, and its spikes numbered at least a hundred or two.

In an instant, the spikes shot toward Xia Hong, stirring the air in the room and making the brazier blaze fiercely.

Xia Hong glanced at the speed of the incoming spikes, then closed his eyes and stood still, letting the spikes strike his body.

Ding… ding… ding…

=9+shu_ba

Over a hundred spikes struck Xia Hong's body and bounced off as if hitting a wall of bronze and iron, clinking before clattering to the ground.

Xia Hong opened his eyes and saw the white dots on his arms and chest—his eyes instantly filled with delight.

"This power…"

He pushed open the window and scanned the three sides of the garrison backed by mountains, then smiled.

"A bit expensive, but I won't need that many!"

Xia Hong immediately turned his gaze to the next structure: Marker Stone.

He could guess its purpose was to demarcate territorial boundaries; since Xia Army had never faced disputes with other camps before, it had no use for this.

Now was the time to get it!

Xia Hong's spirit shifted slightly; after the resources were deducted, a rhombus-shaped jade stone, half a meter per side, appeared in his hand.

Marker Stone (Level 1): Mother Stone, land-marking structure, maximum radiation range: one thousand meters.

Special Function 1: Can exchange four additional Child Stones; once linked to the Mother Stone, they form the garrison's territory. Child Stone exchange cost: 100 coal, 60 iron.

Special Function 2: All movements of any foreign lifeform within the garrison territory are detected and fed back to the Mother Stone.

Upgrade condition: 8, 00 coal, 6, 00 iron.

Xia Hong shot to his feet with a sudden motion, his expression brimming with excitement.

Whether to claim land was secondary—this Marker Stone's contribution to garrison security was immense.

It detects the movement trajectories of all foreign lifeforms within the area.

And feeds them back to the Mother Stone!

That meant even if he was away from the garrison, those left behind could confirm its safety through the Mother Stone.

By the way—do xiaoguai count as lifeforms?

This question suddenly flashed through Xia Hong's mind, and his gaze sharpened slightly.

He truly didn't know the answer.

"Forget it. Even if xiaoguai aren't lifeforms, the Iron Smelter still holds the line. From now on, whether human or xiaoguai, no one can sneak near the garrison unnoticed!"

With this guarantee, Xia Hong's mood lifted instantly; for the moment, even Mirror Immortal's northern camp seemed less worrying.

"Send someone to summon the Hunting Team, plus Mu Dong, Cheng Feng, and Bai Dongying—have them come here."

"Yes, Chief!"

During Xia Hong's seclusion, men from Xia Chuan's faction had been posted outside the door.

The guard outside, hearing Xia Hong's voice, sounded genuinely delighted, answered quickly, and hurried down the stairs.

For the past five days, the entire garrison had been sealed off; the Hunting Team had been mining in the caves, and everyone else had stayed inside.

Upon learning Xia Hong had emerged, everyone quickly came rushing over.

"Have a seat!"

Seventeen members of the Hunting Team, plus Mu Dong and the other two—twenty people total.

Xia Hong gestured for them to sit, then asked with a teasing tone: "Five days cooped up—bored stiff?"

Yuan Cheng was the first to answer: "Bored stiff would be fine—mainly, we've had no new resources lately. We were worried it'd affect your breakthrough!"

Luo Yuan added: "Exactly. Your breakthrough is the top priority right now. We only worry about that—everything else is secondary."

Xia Chuan and the others nodded in agreement—they clearly shared the same concerns.

Seeing their concern for his breakthrough, Xia Hong felt a warmth in his heart.

But knowing their worries, he waved his hand and smiled confidently: "Don't worry—even if I don't break through, Mirror Immortal won't dare do anything. If Yuwen the Guardian comes again…"

Though Xia Hong didn't finish, everyone understood his meaning from the coldness on his face.

A spark of excitement flashed across every face.

Right—last time, the Chief nearly killed Yuwen the Guardian.

In these five days, he used nearly six hundred jin of beast blood—his strength must have grown even stronger. Killing Yuwen the Guardian probably wouldn't be hard anymore.

Their only remaining worry was whether Mirror Immortal, with its overwhelming numbers, would launch a full-scale assault.

With He Yuanhun, still unseen, and Yuwen the Guardian, plus hundreds of Digging-Stage cultivators—if they all came together, even with Xia Hong, Xia Army still wouldn't stand a chance.

"Do you think our garrison is hard to find?"

Xia Hong knew exactly what they were worried about—he didn't elaborate, just asked a question.

Xia Chuan and the others paused, then thought for a moment—and immediately understood his meaning, a flicker of hope rising in their eyes.

Xia Army's garrison wasn't hard to find—at least not for humans.

East of Hongmu Ridge lies Shuanglong Mountain; the cliff region spans only a dozen kilometers from south to north, and Xia Army's garrison is the only valley among them.

Even without deliberate searching, given the traces left by our patrols, anyone just casually looking would likely find us.

"Lu Shang's camp has merged into Mirror Immortal. If Lu He is even slightly smart, he must know Xia Army has inherited Luo Ge's territory. Without doubt, Mirror Immortal already knows our location."

Xia Chuan's words felt like a calming tonic to everyone.

Their expressions relaxed instantly, their joy deepening.

The reason was simple.

They knew our location—and yet, for five days, they never came.

That proves they likely swallowed their anger after the incident five days ago.

"Maybe Yuwen the Guardian got scared—he nearly got killed. Would he dare come back and pick a fight?"

"We're in the right here. They crossed the border first. He Meng killed someone—it's only justice he pay with his life. What reason do they have to cause trouble?"

"Maybe Yuwen the Guardian repeated your words back, and He Yuanhun got scared and decided not to come after us?"

Maybe when Yuwen the Guardian repeats the leader's words, He Yuanhun will immediately be frightened and dare not cause trouble again?

………………

Xia Hong paid no mind to their banter.

But the fact that Mirror Immortal hadn't come to cause trouble did surprise him.

He couldn't figure out the exact reason—but it certainly wasn't what Xia Chuan and the others guessed. Judging from He Meng's ruthless, fearless nature, He Yuanhun was no soft man—he wouldn't be afraid!

But even if he couldn't understand it, Xia Hong wouldn't waste time on it.

When soldiers come, meet them with soldiers; when water comes, block it with earth. Before, he'd only been slightly worried—now he had two new structures. Even if Mirror Immortal came knocking, he wasn't the least bit afraid.

"Wait until tomorrow night—I'll take you north and you'll see. For now, let's set Mirror Immortal aside. I have something else to tell you…"

Xia Hong paused, then took a beast-skin map from the desk, handed it to Xia Chuan on his left, and told him to pass it down.

As everyone studied the map, Xia Hong's voice continued.

"Our garrison population is still too small. We must expand the range of our people's activities, scout more unknown regions, and try to find other camps—to increase our population as fast as possible…"

Seeing the southern zones already marked on the map, everyone immediately understood his intent and nodded.

"Of course, exploring unknown regions isn't easy—so rewards will match the risk. Rewards for discovering new regions, finding new camps, or directly recruiting new members will be determined by Xia Chuan."

Of course, exploring unfamiliar regions is no simple matter, so the rewards must match: the contribution points for discovering new areas, locating new camps, or directly increasing the camp's population will be determined by you, Xia Chuan.

Xia Hong wouldn't handle these details himself. After assigning them, he pulled from behind him another green bamboo fence and five Child-Mother Marker Stones.

Xia Hong would no longer handle these tasks himself; after entrusting them to Xia Chuan and others, he took from behind him a green bamboo fence and five mother-child marker stones.

As Xia Hong described the functions of the bamboo fence and Marker Stones, everyone's expressions grew increasingly excited—some even stood up involuntarily.

As pieces of green bamboo fence were placed at the western entrance of the valley,

news of Xia Army's southern expansion spread instantly through the garrison.

But the most important part was the reward system Xia Chuan announced afterward.

For mapping uncharted regions and having the map verified: every ten meters equals one Contribution Point.

Discovering a new camp and reporting it to the Chief for verification: Small camp = 500 Contribution Points; Medium camp = 2, 00; Large camp = 5, 00; Mega camp = 10, 00.

Recruiting outsiders into Xia Army—regardless of their cultivation—each person adds 50 Contribution Points, no upper limit. If you've got the ability, the points are yours.

The announcement of territorial expansion and the accompanying Contribution Point rewards sent the entire Xia Army garrison into a frenzy.

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(End of chapter)