Chapter 162: Blood and Flesh Build the Wall—Has the Leader Not Broken Through Yet?

"Lin Wan, Shi Lu, gather all the children in the second-floor main hall."

"Shi Ping, take your team to raise the furnace to the third floor, light a pile of regular coal stones for heating—when I tell you to extinguish the fire, you extinguish it immediately."

"All others of Foundation Establishment, go to the forge, take bows and great knives, each of you claim a block of Ninghuoyou, follow me to the third floor; additionally, ten more men, move all iron arrows to the third floor."

"All Timber Cutting cultivators in the camp, except those with special assignments, take a five-stone bow and a block of Ninghuoyou, go to the first floor—Mu Dong, lead them and tell them what to do!"

"What are you still standing around for? The beast tide is coming—move now!"

Xia Chuan descended to the second floor and, without explaining to anyone, issued four commands at once; seeing the others still dazed, he roared out loud.

The beast tide is here!

Thud… thud… thud…

The ground continued to shake; everyone instantly snapped awake. Those called out changed expression and immediately turned to act.

"All the children gather here with me—Little Lu, hold Yue Yun for me. I'll take the other sisters downstairs to bring the children from the first and third floors up here."

"Yes, Sister Wan."

Lin Wan and Shi Lu were already surrounded by many adult women; at the core were almost all the families of the hunting team, a few of whom still held infants in their arms.

Seeing Lin Wan had already handed over her own child, the others followed suit, passing their infants to those beside Shi Lu, then some followed Lin Wan downstairs while most began searching rooms on the second floor to notify others, and a few ascended to the third floor.

The wooden house had residents on all three floors, but the second floor housed the most; the first and third floors had fewer people and very few children, requiring only a small number of people.

Shi Ping's group had already pulled chains to raise the iron-smelting furnace to the third floor at the center;

At the camp supply entrance, Tong Xinglong and Ying Yi were distributing weapons and Ninghuoyou —Foundation Establishment cultivators received ten-stone bows and great knives, while Timber Cutting cultivators received only five-stone bows.

Those who received weapons: Foundation Establishment cultivators all went to the third floor; Timber Cutting cultivators all followed Mu Dong down to the first floor;

And Xia Chuan, who had issued the orders, had already ascended to the third floor with Luo Yuan, Yuan Cheng, and others from the forge.

The third floor was already empty; Xia Chuan rushed up and headed straight for the door at the end of the western corridor.

The wooden house's third floor: the first floor had only one entrance; the second floor had windows spaced every ten meters on all sides, each wide enough for two people; the top third floor had a three-meter-wide corridor on all four sides.

Xia Chuan did not open the door directly; instead, he first took a pair of beast-skin gloves from his pocket and put them on, then pulled out a face mask to completely cover his face, leaving only his eyes exposed, and donned a fur-lined cap to fully conceal his head.

Finally, he took a strip of white silk cloth and tied it over his eyes.

Luo Yuan, Yuan Cheng, Zhao Long, and the subsequent Foundation Establishment cultivators who reached the third floor all copied him, covering their entire bodies tightly.

"It's daylight now; we've already tested this—this lets us stay outside briefly for ten minutes, after which we must rotate back to the furnace to warm and recover."

"Mu Dong is downstairs; we have sixty-seven Foundation Establishment cultivators total, split into two groups—I'll lead one, Luo Yuan the other. My group goes out first; your group stays hidden in the shadows inside and shoots arrows. When time's up, we rotate."

"Got it!"

Time was limited; Xia Chuan finished speaking quickly, gestured to the group, took a deep breath, and with solemn expression slowly opened the wooden door leading to the corridor.

Hssss…

Bone-chilling wind howled in from outside; despite their full coverage, over half the group shuddered involuntarily.

Chiiii…

If those near the interior only shivered, those outside began trembling outright—especially Xia Chuan, facing the daylight, whose outer clothing rapidly formed a layer of frost.

It was clearly a phenomenon caused by sudden cold-heat exchange.

The wooden house had the iron furnace warming it, but outside was different.

The world's cold air combined with the piercingly icy sunlight made Xia Chuan himself freeze in place for three or four breaths.

He clenched his teeth, drew his iron-bodied bow from his back, and led the group onto the corridor, gazing through the white silk cloth at the western valley entrance.

Thud… thud… thud…

The ground trembled more violently; though the wooden house was still two or three hundred meters from the entrance, Xia Chuan and the others clearly sensed the terrifying scale of the approaching frost beasts.

Boom!

A thunderous crash erupted from the entrance—a hole three to four meters in diameter suddenly appeared; countless wood splinters and rocks surged into the valley like a tidal wave.

"Roar…"

A snow-maned beast's head emerged from behind the hole, its blood-red vertical pupils locking onto the wooden house, then lifting slightly—as if seeing Xia Chuan and the others on the third floor—contracting sharply, followed by even more furious roars and bellows.

"Roar… roar… roar…"

Boom!!

Another five or six massive impacts rang from beyond the valley mouth; the pile of rocks and timber they had repeatedly reinforced the entrance with now collapsed like a dam breached by floodwaters.

With the impacts came flying stones and splinters; the fifty-meter-wide entrance shattered completely, leaving no barrier whatsoever.

At this moment, the scene beyond the entrance was fully revealed to Xia Chuan and the Foundation Establishment cultivators on the third floor.

"Gulp! Three hundred, four hundred… how many are there?"

Yuan Cheng's pupils dilated; he swallowed hard, as if no longer feeling the cold, his trembling body abruptly silenced by sheer terror.

Not just him—Luo Yuan, Zhao Long and his three brothers, Yue Feng, Lin Kai, Xu Ning, and the rest of the Foundation Establishment cultivators on the third floor—all their faces instantly filled with despair.

At the valley mouth, countless frost beasts surged inward in a dark, churning tide.

The first to enter were the larger snow-maned beasts and demon sheep; two types of frost beasts, one on each side, each three to five meters long, numbering nearly a hundred apiece.

No wonder—no wonder so many rocks and timber had failed to block them.

Two or three hundred snow-maned beasts and demon sheep—even if low-grade—when charging together, could shake heaven and earth.

Worse still, above them, frost wolves continuously climbed the northern and southern valley walls, gripping the cliffs and circling toward the wooden house;

Directly above the valley, where the twin dragon mountains' cliffs crossed, heads of coiling serpents emerged, each pair of eyes blazing red, staring down at the wooden house, then descending along the cliffs to the eastern side—the valley's depths.

"What are you all standing there for? Waiting to die?"

Xia Chuan's roar trembled as well, revealing his own despair was no less than theirs.

But despair or not, his bow-drawing motion was swift—he fired an iron arrow at a low-grade snow-maned beast already smashing against the wooden wall.

"Don't stand there frozen—no matter what, don't just wait to die!"

"That's right! Fight these devils! I just broke through to Foundation Establishment—I've got to take at least one with me!"

"With the wooden wall holding, kill one beast at a time."

…………

The others snapped back to awareness, shouting to steel their courage, stepping forward, drawing bows, and frantically shooting arrows at the wall's outer side.

Sssss… sssss… sssss…

Not just those on the corridor—Luo Yuan's group, hidden in the shadows inside, passed arrows to Xia Chuan's group while seeking gaps to shoot at the perimeter.

Boom…

The first snow-maned beast slammed into the wooden wall repeatedly, yet failed to budge it even slightly.

Not only did it not move, the wall seemed to grow even sturdier under its impacts—the later blows produced less and less noise.

Not only did the noise diminish, the spots where the snow-maned beast struck now bore wounds, oozing emerald-green blood.

Seeing this, Xia Chuan and the others' eyes lit up.

The western wooden wall had been piled to over a hundred meters thick and more than ten meters high, constructed in diagonal-crossed layers, and studded with numerous specially forged iron spikes.

Roar…

Pain ignited the snow-maned beast's ferocity; after its furious roar, it didn't retreat—it charged again with even greater force.

Puch!

But Xia Chuan and the others on the upper floor wouldn't give it a second chance.

Dozens of iron arrows pierced through countless gaps in the wooden wall, striking the snow-maned beast's body—each arrow carried a terrifying impact force exceeding ten thousand jin.

The seventy-centimeter-long pure iron arrowheads mostly pierced through the beast's hide and flesh, embedding fully inside; a few even pierced clean through, their tips protruding from the other side.

Those few were shot by Xia Chuan, Zhao Long, and others.

The snow-maned beast was instantly bristling with iron arrows; though its ferocity surged, its strength clearly waned.

Seeing the beast's strength fade, Xia Chuan's eyes gleamed brighter.

"The front line are all low-grade frost beasts—blocked by the wooden wall and our arrows, we can hold!"

Xia Chuan and the hunting team had never truly feared low-grade frost beasts; their earlier shock and despair came only from the sheer number.

This sight struck harder those who had only recently broken through to Foundation Establishment.

They had never hunted frost beasts before; unfamiliar with them and naturally fearful, they now saw their own arrows could wound—and even kill—a snow-maned beast. Confidence surged instantly.

"Thought they were so terrifying? Brothers, this counts as hunting!"

"Hahaha, thank goodness Xia Chuan Lord prepared the wooden wall ahead of time."

"Not just the wall—if we hadn't forged so many bows and arrows these past two days, we wouldn't be this lavish now."

…………

Sssss… sssss… sssss…

The group's cheering did little to brighten Xia Chuan's expression.

From their voices, he clearly heard deep despair.

It was natural—they'd only just shot down one beast.

Beside and behind that snow-maned beast, more were still pouring in; to its right, the larger golden-eyed demon sheep had now arrived.

The combined impact force of snow-maned beasts and demon sheep alone exceeded ten thousand jin.

No matter how sturdy the wooden wall, no matter how many iron spikes it bore—one beast might be held, two still manageable, even ten or fifteen might be resisted with their arrows for a while.

But now, hundreds poured in from beyond the valley.

Boom…

The demon sheep reached the wall; its violent charge, combined with six sharp horns thrusting forward, shattered the wooden wall into flying debris.

The hundred-meter-thick diagonal-crossed wall began collapsing like dry grass before a storm.

Roar…

The wooden wall began to collapse, and the Hanshou 's emotions seemed to surge, emitting several roars and charges, their rush toward the eastern wooden house growing even more frenzied.

"Shoot arrows—faster, don't stop! Aim for the Demon Sheep first—don't let them keep breaking the wall!"

Xia Chuan shifted his target to the front few Demon Sheep; iron arrows sliced through the air, striking mostly their backs, with only a few even being deflected by their horned heads.

These Hanshou weren't fools.

Aside from the first Snow Mane, which was killed relatively easily, all subsequent Hanshou charged forward with their heads lowered, giving no opening whatsoever.

Xia Chuan and the others, who had been standing on the third floor with the high ground, had just been thoroughly outsmarted by these Hanshou.

Being high up did let you see farther and shoot farther.

But hitting the vital spots on these Hanshou? That was hard.

The golden eyes on the Demon Sheep's back had to be opened to be a vital spot;

the only vital spots on the Snow Mane were its eyes and belly.

From this height, neither of these spots could be hit.

The hundred-meter wooden wall held for less than a hundred breaths before collapsing in a thunderous crash; the front-row Snow Manes and Demon Sheep were now less than twenty to thirty meters from the western wall of the wooden house.

"Roar…………"

One Snow Mane, the first to arrive, either too overconfident or signaling the others, suddenly let out a deafening roar toward the sky.

Pfft…………

In that instant it lifted its head, two speeding iron arrows shot forth twin white streaks, piercing straight through its left and right eyes.

"Squeal…………"

The Snow Mane shrieked in pain, its eyes pierced, its ferocity surging—it lowered its head and charged wildly at the wooden wall.

Too bad—it only charged two or three meters before its legs slipped, and it collapsed straight onto the ground.

"Woo…… roar…………"

The Snow Mane was blind, yet as if it had sensed something terrifying, it frantically thrashed its limbs on the ground, trying to rise—but no matter how hard it tried, it couldn't stand.

The Snow Mane's sudden change left everyone stunned.

Blinding its eyes was indeed deadly.

But with the Snow Mane's vitality, even if it were dying, it wouldn't collapse this fast.

And its reaction wasn't that of a dying creature—it was sudden weakness in its limbs.

What happened next left everyone even more baffled.

All other Hanshou trying to rush the wooden wall—whether Snow Manes or Demon Sheep—began slipping and collapsing the moment they neared the wall.

In an instant, over a dozen Hanshou were thrashing helplessly at the wooden house's entrance, clearly trying to rise—but unable to do so.

"It's Tengjiao poison! Tengjiao poison! A layer of mid-grade Tengjiao hide was laid on the wall—they all got coated when they crashed into it!"

As Shi Ping spoke, everyone instantly understood; several who had helped lay the Tengjiao hide also realized it belatedly.

In an instant, all eyes turned to Xia Chuan, filled with admiration.

"Zhao Long!"

Xia Chuan paid no mind to the others; seeing many Hanshou ahead hit by the poison, his eyes flashed with delight, and he immediately called out to Zhao Long.

Zhao Long nodded, pulled a pure white pearl from his chest, attached it to an iron arrow, ignited it with flame, and shot it straight into the cluster of Hanshou far from the house.

Chiiii……… The moment the white pearl ignited, thick white smoke billowed out; as the arrow flew into the Hanshou group, it exploded, releasing a massive fog that covered the entire valley in under ten breaths.

Before the fog dispersed, Xia Chuan had already swallowed an antidote pill; without his prompting, everyone else had already swallowed theirs the moment they saw the white pearl.

"By the way, low-grade Tengjiao venom sacs should also affect these Hanshou significantly—Young Master Xia is incredibly clever!"

Among the crowd, Hong Mu, still shooting arrows, turned to look at Xia Chuan at the front, his reverence deepening further.

He was, after all, two years older than Xia Chuan.

The wooden wall, mid-grade Tengjiao hide, low-grade Tengjiao venom sacs—all the preparatory work: mining, forging, reinforcing the house.

He couldn't have done any of it—he wouldn't have even thought of it.

This sea of charging Hanshou would make anyone despair—but under Xia Chuan's meticulous planning, a flicker of hope had inexplicably ignited in his heart.

Maybe… they could actually hold them off?

He wasn't the only one thinking this. Everyone else felt the same.

=9+book_bar

Since the Hanshou broke through the valley entrance, over seven or eight minutes had passed.

Hundreds of Hanshou surrounding the wooden house still hadn't reached its walls.

Maybe… they really could hold them off!

Idealism was full, but reality often crushed hope.

The faint hope rising in everyone's hearts was instantly extinguished by the violent trembling beneath their feet.

Boom…………

"It's the Tengjiao from behind!"

Feeling the tremors come from the eastern side of the house, Xia Chuan immediately realized: the Tengjiao that had descended from the valley's crossing point had begun smashing into the back of the house.

"Where's Luo Yuan?"

Xia Chuan turned and saw only five or six people left in the shadows inside the house; he immediately asked.

"My lord, he's taken men to the eastern corridor. Zhao Hu and Zhao Bao also took a few men each to the northern and southern corridors."

No wonder the Frost Wolves on the north and south hadn't charged yet.

Xia Chuan understood—and his expression darkened further.

He wasn't blaming Luo Yuan; he'd sent Luo Yuan precisely to guard the Tengjiao on the east, and Zhao Hu and Zhao Bao securing the Frost Wolves on the north and south was exactly what he wanted.

The problem was, all their Digging Realm experts had been deployed—and to cover all four directions, they'd been stretched thin.

Originally, they'd planned two groups: his group of thirty-four, Luo Yuan's of thirty-three, only guarding the western side, rotating through the corridors.

But the Hanshou were simply too many.

Not only that—they seemed to be coordinating.

Snow Manes and Demon Sheep attacked the western front; Frost Wolves split into two groups, circling the cliffs to strike north and south; Tengjiao dropped directly from above the valley to strike the house's rear.

Four-sided coordination—they were critically short on manpower.

Luo Yuan, Zhao Hu, and Zhao Bao, knowing the pressure on the west was heavy, likely took only eight or nine men each.

His side had the most—forty men.

But even forty couldn't hold back two or three hundred Hanshou.

If this was how bad it was here, the other three sides—with only ten men each—were doomed.

Worse, Xia Chuan felt the two eyes hidden beneath the white veil were beginning to sting, and his body's temperature was plummeting rapidly—he wouldn't last long.

"The limit is ten minutes—we've passed nine. We can hold one more minute at most. If we stay out here any longer, we won't be killed by the Hanshou —we'll freeze to death!"

Xia Chuan grew desperate, glanced at Yuan Cheng and the others, and saw ice already forming on their bodies; their shooting stances were distorted, their accuracy long gone.

After all, none had reached Cold Resistance level—ten minutes was already the limit.

Without this fabric woven from white threads, they wouldn't have lasted ten minutes.

"Chuan, go notify the leader? We can't hold!"

Yuan Cheng's voice trembled; he was the seventh person from Great Xia to break into the Digging Realm—and if he was like this, what about the others?

Though their arrows still flew, everyone's eyes turned to Xia Chuan—clearly agreeing with Yuan Cheng's suggestion.

Xia Chuan turned his head; directly opposite the corridor was Xia Hong's door. He glanced once, then immediately turned back to the house's exterior, gritting his teeth:

"Brother's still breaking through—don't disturb him. We'll handle this ourselves!"

The Tengjiao poison fog had affected the Hanshou, but not fatally—and mostly only the front ranks.

As more Hanshou filled in from behind, the fog's effect visibly weakened; by the end, it barely affected them at all.

Boom… boom… boom…

Finally, the first Snow Mane slammed into the front door—then the second, third, fourth…

The frenzied impacts came one after another.

Great Xia's wooden house was two hundred meters long and wide, with foundation piles over two meters deep, reinforced with iron throughout.

The original design had indeed been to withstand mass Hanshou charges.

But who could have imagined so many would come at once?

Crack…………

The impacts grew louder, the house shaking more violently.

Finally, after dozens of blows, came a sharp crack.

"Everyone inside! To the second floor—hurry!"

Xia Chuan felt the cold in his body had reached its peak—he'd pass out if he stayed out any longer—and shouted to the others.

Everyone sheathed their bows and quickly retreated from the corridor into the interior.

"Zhao Long, take men to notify Luo Yuan, Zhao Hu, and Zhao Bao—all of you to the second floor. Staying out here, we'll die faster."

"Got it!"

Zhao Long led a few men toward the other three corridors; Xia Chuan led the rest straight down to the second floor.

"Help…………"

" Hanshou have broken in here too—come quick!"

" Hanshou have broken in from behind!"

"Everyone, stay in the main hall—don't move. I'll go get help."

…………

Before he even reached the second floor, panicked screams filled his ears; Xia Chuan did not hesitate a moment and charged straight down.

Seeing the scene below, his pupils instantly contracted.

At the ends of the four corridors on the southeast, northeast, southwest, and northwest sides of the second floor, each had been shattered by holes three to four meters wide; on the north and south corridors, three or four Frost Wolves had already charged toward the main hall.

On the west side, the head of a Snow-Mane had just poked through the hole, its blood-red, grotesque eyes fixed hungrily on the iron smelter, brimming with excitement and madness;

On the east side, half the body of a Tengjiao had already entered, its vertical pupils also locked onto the smelter, filled with desire.

Xia Chuan had seen this exact gaze countless times when using small torches as bait; how could he not understand it now?

No—compared to the torches, their gaze toward the smelter was even more frenzied.

"Luo Yuan, take a team and kill the Tengjiao; Zhao Long, you three lead a team to kill the two Frost Wolves on the south side; Huang Yong, Hong Gang, lead your teams to drive out the Snow-Mane; Yuan Cheng, come with me to kill the Frost Wolves on the north side—move fast, and once they're dead, immediately seal the corridor holes."

Though Xia Chuan's orders were clear and precise, the despair in his eyes had grown several times stronger than before.

A few low-level Cold Beasts were no real problem; with so many Earth-Digging cultivators, killing them wouldn't be difficult.

The key was, these Cold Beasts could break through more than just the corridor walls.

The Great Xia wooden house used iron only at its four joints; the rest was mostly wood.

With these Cold Beasts' sharp fangs and claws, breaking through wood was effortless.

Crack………

As if to confirm Xia Chuan's suspicion, as he rushed into the corridor and neared the Frost Wolves, sounds of wood splintering from outside echoed from the rooms on both sides.

Thud………

Immediately after came the clear sound of limbs hitting the floor.

Some Cold Beast had broken through the outer wall and reached the second floor!

"Damn it!"

The second floor had over two hundred rooms; even with their size, it would take time for the Cold Beasts to break through each one and reach the central hall.

"Forget it—kill these corridor beasts first!"

Xia Chuan and his men rushed forward, surrounding and slaughtering the two Frost Wolves that had charged ahead.

………………

If the situation on the third and second floors for the Earth-Digging cultivators was already desperate, then the five hundred-plus men under Xiang Mudong on the first floor were now truly at the peak of despair.

At the main gate, over a hundred men pulled together on a single iron chain, every one of them biting their teeth until blood seeped out.

The chain was hooked backward above the door; the harder they pulled backward, the tighter the door sealed shut.

Thud………

The door had opened only a crack; the moment the cold air rushed in, everyone saw the monstrous jaws of the Cold Beasts outside. Though fear surged in their hearts, they still clenched their teeth and held the ropes with all their strength.

With each impact from outside, the hundred men were dragged forward a few steps by the chain, yet they held on with sheer willpower, pulling the massive iron door shut again.

Not just the main gate—on the first floor's main hall, four thick iron chains extended from the corridors, and over four hundred men were divided into four groups, each pulling one chain with all their might.

These chains stretched from the corridors to key positions on the first floor, each ending in a heavy iron lump; when the four hundred men in the main hall pulled together, the iron lumps on the wooden house interacted, temporarily preventing the Cold Beasts outside from fully smashing through the walls.

"Don't lose heart—as long as you hold these iron lumps, these low-level Cold Beasts can only break through wood. As long as we keep the house standing and prevent sunlight from entering, we'll all be safe.

Xia Chuan and the others are holding the enemy on the third floor; if we just hold on and keep the house from collapsing, we still have hope!"

In the center, Xiang Mudong gripped the end of one chain, blood already seeping from his lips; seizing the moment he spoke, he tied the chain directly around his waist.

As the impacts from outside grew more frequent, the force transmitted through the chain grew stronger with each blow; though his face had turned crimson, he gritted his teeth and refused to loosen his grip for even a second.

If even a single Earth-Digging cultivator like him was pushed to this limit, the condition of the five hundred-plus Wood-Chopping cultivators on the first floor was unimaginable.

Everyone's hands were raw, blood seeping from their mouths, nostrils, even their eyes—but not one of them let go of the chain.

Some, sensing they were nearing their limit, followed Xiang Mudong's example and tied the chain directly to their bodies—but their fates were far worse than his.

A single low-level Cold Beast could deliver a strike force of over ten thousand; the chain redistributed the impact to the wooden house, which now bore the combined force of hundreds of Cold Beasts charging at once.

Those who tied the chain to themselves were crushed to death within seconds.

Yet even so, others continued copying them.

"My wife and children are upstairs—if I can't protect them, what's the point of living? I won't let go—not even if I die!"

"We've eaten so much Cold Beast meat from the camp—finally, it's doing something useful. Even if I die today, I won't let these beasts in."

"The hunting teams and everyone else are killing beasts upstairs—we just need to lend a hand. If we can't hold on, are we even men?"

"Brothers, don't let go—if the house falls, none of us live, and neither do our wives and children. We can't let the Cold Beasts in."

"Aaaah!! Brothers, push harder—hold on!"

"Hold on, just a little longer—Xia Chuan and the others will come down to help soon."

"When the leader breaks through, once he emerges, we'll all survive!"

………………

Roars rose and fell in succession.

Though hoarse and exhausted, not a single one of the hundred-plus men pulling the main gate chain, nor the four hundred-plus pulling the four chains in the main hall, loosened their grip.

Even in death, they would first tie the chain to themselves—around their legs, waist, hands, even their necks…

Five or six hundred men shared an astonishingly unified resolve: if holding the chain could keep the house standing, they would give their lives without hesitation.

"If the wooden walls won't hold, we'll build walls with our flesh and blood!"

At the chain's end, Xiang Mudong's waist was already bleeding from the pressure, yet he was swept up by the others' emotion, roaring to the heavens, veins bulging in his hands as he pulled the chain backward.

But he had barely moved an inch when the wooden house shuddered violently again, yanking him back.

"Leader—hasn't he broken through yet?!"

Xiang Mudong's vision was darkening; despair slowly crept into his heart.

He had seen the Cold Beasts outside just now.

He knew full well—this many beasts, Xia Chuan and the others could never hold them back.

Right now, only Xia Hong could save them.

Not just Xiang Mudong—everyone's mind had turned to Xia Hong's name.

Only that leader, Xia Hong, who had led them to miracle after miracle, was their only hope.

"Leader—hasn't he succeeded yet?!"

(End of Chapter)