Chapter 16

"Leader, I've broken through."

"Brother, I've reached Woodcutting Realm too."

Xia Chuan and Yuan Cheng had both broken through at the same time!

Watching the two of them lift five-thousand-jin logs one after the other, Xia Hong finally exhaled a deep breath of relief.

Three Woodcutting Realm cultivators!

Though weak compared to other camps, at least they were finally making progress.

Moreover, over this period, Yue Feng and the other five had also improved greatly.

As long as they proceeded step by step, gradually returning to their former state was only a matter of time.

Just after nightfall the next day, Xia Chuan and Yuan Cheng fastened their stone axes at their waists, their faces alight with excitement, and fell in behind Xia Hong.

"I'll say it again—Redwood Ridge is dangerous. Outside, you follow my orders exactly. No independent action. Tonight, I'm mainly taking you to familiarize yourselves with our territory, and each of you must chop down one tree alone."

"Understood, Leader!"

Hearing the seriousness in Xia Hong’s tone, Xia Chuan did not call him "brother"—for the first time, he joined Yuan Cheng in addressing him as "Leader."

Xia Hong nodded, gave a few final instructions to the five behind him, then led the way out of the cave; Yuan Cheng and Xia Chuan followed closely behind.

With Xia Chuan now venturing out, the camp was naturally under the care of Yue Feng and the other five. The camp was sufficiently hidden; as long as no special circumstances arose, safety should still be assured.

Though it was night, the snow’s reflected light made the excitement on Xia Chuan and Yuan Cheng’s faces perfectly clear to Xia Hong.

In truth, not just them—even Xia Hong himself had been excited on his first outing.

They had always stayed inside the cave, sealing the entrance by day; when Xia Ding was still alive, they could open the entrance at night for fresh air.

Since Xia Ding’s death, for over a month now, everyone in the camp except him had barely seen any light.

"The humans in this world must be cursed..."

Ever since he first crossed over and learned about this world, Xia Hong had felt this way.

Eternal freezing, no exposure to light, forced to hide in shadows, vastly outmatched by cold beasts, and plagued by inexplicable supernatural entities hunting them down.

The plight facing humanity in this world was simply unimaginable.

This was no longer a hellish level of suffering.

Even the true eighteen layers of hell might not be worse.

Xia Hong didn’t know if any humans lived with dignity, but at least what he had seen so far was this very image of hell.

Perhaps the Luo Ge camp lived somewhat better?

As Xia Hong’s thoughts drifted, he had already reached the outer edge of Redwood Ridge.

"Tonight’s tasks are two-fold: first, to familiarize you with this environment—where the cold beasts are, how to identify them, the types of trees nearby, and the boundaries of our Great Xia camp’s territory.

Second, you two must each chop down one tree and bring it back tonight."

Their excitement had not yet faded, and Xia Hong did not dampen their spirits; as he led them around the perimeter, he explained everything.

Over twenty-plus nights, Xia Hong had memorized every detail within five hundred meters around him.

The locations of the three Ice-fruit trees, the seven Golden Frost trees confirmed to be occupied by cold beasts;

The area with the densest distribution of Zhu Shuang trees, the spot with the most small Zhu Shuang trees.

As he described each location one by one, Xia Chuan and Yuan Cheng remained silent, listening intently and committing every detail to memory.

Until the three reached the position of the third Ice-fruit tree—then an interruption occurred.

Near the third Ice-fruit tree, there were people.

Unlike Xia Chuan and Yuan Cheng, Xia Hong had been constantly observing his surroundings as he walked.

So when still over a hundred meters from the third Ice-fruit tree, he had already sensed movement there.

"There are people ahead. Step lightly—no noise. Let’s observe first."

Xia Hong crouched down first; Xia Chuan and the other followed suit, hiding behind trees along the snow-covered ground, slowly approaching the third Ice-fruit tree.

Though visibility on the snow was decent, it was still night; only when they drew within thirty meters of the tree did Xia Hong clearly make out the figures.

Seeing them, his brow immediately knitted, his expression darkening.

At this distance, he couldn’t make out their faces, but he saw four people—and one of them carried a large blade.

They were from Great Stone Camp.

This was the fifth time Xia Hong had seen Great Stone Camp intruders trespassing into his territory.

Correct—since the Snowmane incident, over the past twenty-plus days, Xia Hong had spotted Great Stone Camp intruders three more times on his own land.

During this period, he had found three Ice-fruit trees.

The first was on the west side—the one closest to Great Stone Camp.

The second was over a hundred meters north of his usual entrance into Redwood Ridge.

The third, the one before them now, lay toward the eastern edge of his entire territory.

Great Xia’s territory spanned only five hundred meters wide; Xia Hong had always entered from the center. The previous four times, he had seen Great Stone Camp intruders on the west side—this time, they were on the east.

That meant Great Stone Camp wasn’t just brazenly entering—they were also penetrating deeper and deeper into his territory.

"The four from Great Stone Camp—you’ve crossed the boundary!"

This time, Xia Hong chose not to ignore them. He stood up, walked toward the Ice-fruit tree, and rebuked them sharply.

Hearing Xia Hong’s words, Yuan Cheng and Xia Chuan realized the four were from Great Stone Camp; they immediately rose in anger and followed behind Xia Hong.

Guilty consciences always flinch—the four from Great Stone Camp had been picking the crystal fruits from the tree. At the shout, they leapt down, turning sharply to stare nervously at Xia Hong.

As Xia Hong approached, his gaze swept constantly across the surroundings.

Great Stone Camp had two archers—were they nearby?

"May I ask who the three of you are?"

One of the four stepped forward to ask Xia Hong’s identity; from his voice, he sounded middle-aged.

Xia Hong drew closer, clearly seeing all four—each appeared middle-aged; the one who stepped forward was the only one carrying the blade.

The previous owner of that blade had already been beheaded by Snowmane.

"Great Xia Camp. Xia Hong."

"Son of Old Ding."

Xia Hong recognized them; they recognized him too.

The man holding the blade, upon seeing Xia Hong’s face, instantly recognized him.

"So young?"

"Out at night—Woodcutting Realm already."

"Old Ding raised a fine son."

The other three, seemingly familiar with Xia Ding, either deliberately flattering or genuinely astonished by Xia Hong’s youth, all spoke up.

"Don’t change the subject. You’re picking fruit—you’ve crossed the boundary!"

"Hey, you little—"

The last man to jump down from the tree, angered by Xia Hong’s persistence on the boundary issue, grew visibly furious, taking two steps toward Xia Hong as he spoke.

But before he could finish, the man with the blade raised his hand to stop him.

"Nephew, I’m Wang Ming. I knew your father, Xia Ding. If you’re willing, call me Uncle Ming. Our camp’s been having problems—our crystal fruit shortage is too severe. We had no choice but to come here tonight to borrow some food from your Great Xia Camp.

Once we recover, we’ll repay you immediately. What do you say?"

After hearing Wang Ming’s words, Xia Hong’s face immediately darkened.

This guy is treating him like a fool!

Xia Hong simply stared at Wang Ming, remaining silent for a long time.

However, Xia Chuan, who was behind him, couldn’t hold back his anger and spoke up.

“Just admit it’s theft—don’t pretend it’s borrowing. Brother, don’t waste words with them; when the Rogues’ Camp divided territories back then, they clearly stated that trespassing on another’s land is equivalent to murder. I’ll go back right away and inform Father, so he can bring people over.”

Upon hearing Xia Chuan’s words, Wang Ming and the four men behind him immediately grew grim.

(End of Chapter)