Chapter 217

The Hive camp's reaction time was actually quite fast.

From the moment the explosion sounded to the main area organizing personnel to head to the mining area, it took no more than half an hour to quell the riot.

Chen Yingba stood at the entrance of the mining area with a furious expression, looking at the three mining supervisors before him, wishing he could kill them with a single slap.

The three mining supervisors looked disheveled; two of them even had knife wounds on their bodies, and they stood there timidly, unable to utter a single word.

Looking at the one who remained uninjured, Chen Yingba asked:

"Tell me, how many people escaped?"

Hearing Chen Yingba's inquiry, the man immediately stepped forward and said, "There were 105 people living in the area from No. 80 onwards. In the riot just now, 32 were killed, 41 were captured, and the remaining 32 are nowhere to be found. The pursuit through the encampment tunnels is still ongoing. It's daytime now, so they definitely can't escape..."

Slap...

Chen Yingba slapped the man, sending him flying three meters away. He pointed at the tunnel area behind him and roared angrily, "Open your dog eyes and look—is it daytime or nighttime now!"

The man scrambled up from the ground, his face full of terror as he looked up. Following the direction Chen Yingba pointed, he saw the large pit above Tunnel No. 19 and realized that no light was shining in from outside the pit. Only then did he realize that night had fallen.

32 killed, 32 escaped—that's 64 Earth-Digging Realm slaves in total. They could have mined nearly ten thousand jin of iron ore for the camp every day, and just like that, they were gone. Chen Yingba's heart was practically bleeding.

He turned his head to the right, where a long row of people were kneeling on the ground, with many men holding weapons standing guard behind them. These were the 41 people captured during the riot.

Seeing that all these people's leg shackles had been broken, a fierce look appeared on Chen Yingba's face. He said, "Separate them all. Question them one by one. Find out who opened their shackles. Whoever dares to lie, beat them—beat them until they are honest."

His subordinates immediately took action upon hearing this, dragging those who were captured alive to the side for separate questioning. Judging by the screams that followed, the interrogation method was clearly very bloody.

Chen Yingba took the three mining supervisors and walked into Tunnel No. 19. He looked up at the large pit leading directly to the surface, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"Tell me what happened again."

Hearing Chen Yingba's inquiry, one of the three supervisors immediately spoke:

"We were sleeping when we suddenly heard a 'bang.' We thought it was a cave-in somewhere in the mining area and were just about to get up to check when we heard many people shouting to escape. Realizing the miners were trying to flee, we immediately grabbed our weapons and rushed out.

As soon as we three rushed out of the room, we saw that the miners' shackles had all been opened and they were fleeing toward the tunnel exit. We hurried to stop them, and other miners in the area also came out to help, but everything happened too fast. By the time the others reacted, those miners were already climbing up at this spot, which is why so many managed to escape in the end."

Hearing this account once more, Chen Yingba's expression grew increasingly solemn.

As the first person to arrive at the mining area, he had not only personally participated in capturing the rioters but had also observed this large pit inside and out.

The opening of this pit was only the size of a human, but the diameter at the surface was five or six meters, as if something had tunneled through from bottom to top.

According to this man's account, the miners were clearly well-prepared, which meant that this large pit in the tunnel was very likely their doing.

How could this be possible?

This tunnel was at least fifty meters from the surface. With just those hundred or so Earth-Digging Realm miners, even if they were given a day and a night, it would be impossible to dig through.

"My lord, could it be some unknown cold beast?"

"Do you think those miners could control a cold beast to help them dig a hole?"

Chen Yingba dismissed the man's speculation with a single word, his eyes growing even more puzzled.

Just then, the results of the interrogation from the mining area came back.

"My lord, we've found out. Most of the shackles were opened by Wang Hun, Zhang Jun, and Liu Hua. These three were also the ones who notified them to escape, along with four others from Cave No. 93. We've searched through all the corpses on the ground, and indeed, there is no trace of these seven. They must have escaped. If nothing goes wrong, the problem lies in this Cave No. 93."

Cave No. 93!

Just as Chen Yingba was about to speak, two of the injured mining supervisors also spoke up.

"By the way, my lord, I remember now. When the miners rushed out, the three of us went to stop them and were almost killed. Someone stepped in to save us—he was also from Cave No. 93, a newcomer who just arrived today. I think his name is Hong Yu..."

"It's Hong Yu, that's right. He was the one who saved us. I even saw with my own eyes that he killed several fleeing miners and helped others stop them."

"Yes, yes, it was him. If he hadn't woken the others up in time, even more miners would have escaped just now."

Hong Yu?

Finding that he had absolutely no impression of this name, Chen Yingba's brows furrowed.

"Is this person also a miner?"

"He isn't. He's a newcomer who arrived yesterday and was assigned to the mining area."

"If he's not a miner, why was a newcomer assigned to live in Cave No. 93?"

Seeing the three supervisors stammering and unable to speak, Chen Yingba immediately knew what was going on. A nameless fire rose in his heart, and he slapped them again.

He was well aware of how these people below extorted and took bribes. A newcomer being assigned to live in a miner's cave was nothing more than a failure to provide benefits or some slight offense given. Otherwise, why would these three have such a reaction?

"Where is that Hong Yu? Go and bring him here!"

"Hong Yu isn't here. I seem to recall seeing him follow Lord Cheng Ping to pursue those miners. I don't know..."

Bang...

Hearing that Hong Yu was also not there, Chen Yingba was just about to get angry when a corpse suddenly slid down from the large pit, hitting the ground with a loud thud.

Bang... bang... bang... bang...

Four more fell down one after another. After a total of five corpses had emerged, two disheveled figures slid down from the pit one after the other.

"Cheng Ping?"

"Who is that person?"

"That corpse on the ground looks like Wang Hun!"

"It really is Wang Hun, and the four beside him are also from Cave No. 93."

"I was originally leading four brothers to mine here when I happened to hear the explosion and saw the miners rushing out to escape. I immediately led my men to stop them, but they were numerous and well-prepared. For a moment, we couldn't stop them. Fortunately, Brother Hong Yu woke up the people in the other caves in time and helped us stop them, otherwise..."

Soon, Cheng Ping explained the sequence of events, including how he led men to pursue them to the surface and intercepted Wang Hun and the others. Unfortunately, his strength was insufficient; he was wounded by Wang Hun, and his four subordinates were killed. If not for Hong Yu's timely appearance, he too would likely have been killed by Wang Hun.

"Alright, go apply some medicine first!"

Seeing that the wound on Cheng Ping's arm was still bleeding, Chen Yingba frowned slightly, interrupted him, and tossed him a bottle of medicine. He then glanced at the five corpses on the ground and turned to face Hong Yu, asking, "Did you kill all five of them, Wang Hun included, and save Cheng Ping?"

Xia Hong nodded and said, "That is indeed the case. When these miners first rioted, I killed several of them inside, and many people saw it."

After hearing Xia Hong's words, Chen Yingba's brows immediately knitted together. He then turned his head and signaled to a man beside him with his eyes.

Whoosh...

The man understood and immediately drew his blade, slashing toward Xia Hong.

Xia Hong, standing where he was, seemed caught off guard. He appeared to have even forgotten to draw his blade, instead pulling that long saber from his back and blocking sideways.

Clang...

Xia Hong's strength was clearly inferior to the man's; the wooden scabbard was split, and his body was pushed back several meters. With a look of utter astonishment, he said, "My lord, why do this..."

Swish...

Before he could finish his sentence, the man's heavy saber continued to slash down.

Xia Hong twisted his body to dodge. Seeing the blade edge tear his clothes, he seemed unable to endure any longer and finally revealed an angry expression. Pushing off with his legs, he did not retreat but advanced instead, raising his long saber and lunging toward the man's chest.

Although his strength was inferior to the man's, his saber technique and footwork were superior. Moving and shifting, he not only dodged countless blade strikes but also closed the distance to less than a meter.

"Eh?"

The man attacking Xia Hong looked surprised, and his face clearly couldn't hold its composure. He pulled back his heavy saber, his body suddenly springing forward, and he slashed down at Xia Hong's head with great speed. Whoosh...

Both in strength and speed, the man far exceeded Xia Hong. With a strike from such close range, no matter how Xia Hong dodged, he was bound to be hit.

But no one expected that faced with such a strike, Xia Hong not only made no attempt to evade but even reversed his grip on the hilt. Seizing an extremely minute and subtle opportunity, he aimed the tip of his saber at the man's throat and thrust it upward with force.

"Stop!"

In fact, there was no need for Chen Yingba to speak.

The man's heavy saber had already been forcibly stopped just half an inch from Xia Hong's skull.

Correspondingly, the tip of Xia Hong's unsheathed saber was also exactly half an inch from his throat.

"A base strength of twenty-six thousand jin, and he can fight Chen Hai like this. This Hong Yu's saber technique and combat experience are both top-notch. A talent!"

Chen Yingba looked at Hong Yu, his eyes full of admiration.

"My lord, I came to join the Hive camp. Yesterday, no hunting squad would take me, so I was assigned to mine, and I didn't say a word. I was assigned to live with the miners for no reason, and although I was angry, I endured it.

(Note: This line appears to be a garbled placeholder or error in the source text.)

I accidentally encountered the riot, notified the others in time, helped stop them, and even killed the ringleader, Wang Hun. You don't credit me, and now you even have someone attack me. Since the Hive doesn't welcome me, then Hong Yu will just go elsewhere. I ask that you grant me permission, my lord—Hong Yu will leave the Hive now!"

"Don't be angry. I captured Wang Hun myself, and I know his strength very well. Naturally, I wouldn't have believed that you killed all five of them alone and saved Cheng Ping, but now, I believe it!"

For someone of Chen Yingba's status to offer such an explanation was clearly very rare. The people around realized that Hong Yu had caught Chen Yingba's eye, and their eyes were filled with envy.

"Hong Yu, your strength is good. The injustice you suffered when you arrived at the camp yesterday was all due to these incompetent fools. From today on, you are one of my men. You have performed a great service this time, and the camp will not treat you poorly. How about this: the main area will reward you with a house, and in addition, a full set of weapons and two hundred jin of beast meat!"

As Chen Yingba's voice fell, the expressions of everyone around froze instantly. After a full ten breaths, those who reacted looked at Xia Hong with eyes full of envy, and even jealousy.

Two hundred jin of beast meat and a house were actually nothing.

Joining Chen Yingba's hunting squad directly—that was the real benefit.

The hunting regiment had over thirty squads under its jurisdiction, and the one with the greatest strength and best treatment was undoubtedly the one led personally by the regiment commander, Chen Yingba.

A look of astonishment also appeared on Xia Hong's face. He looked up at Chen Yingba, unable to speak for a moment.

Such a reaction was, in Chen Yingba's eyes, perfectly normal.

He turned back to look at Chen Hai and said, "Excluding these five, there are only twenty-seven left who escaped. There are still people searching outside; you take men and go as well, and bring everyone back to me if possible."

Chen Hai nodded immediately and led his men away.

Chen Yingba then looked at the mining supervisors and said in a deep voice, "Keep a close eye on the mining area these next few days, patch up this large pit, and find out exactly how this big hole came to be. If there really is some unknown cold beast appearing, and you are negligent again, it will be your own lives you lose."

"Yes, my lord!"

After speaking, Chen Yingba glanced up at the large hole and walked along the tunnel toward the main area.

Xia Hong stood where he was, his astonishment having faded. Watching Chen Yingba's departing figure, a smile slowly appeared on his face.

Originally, he had thought that by performing a service, he could leave the mining area and logically join Luo Ming's squad. With his help, Luo Ming's squad entering the view of Chen Yingba or even Chen Yingyuan would be easy, and subsequently striving to follow them to Longshan would be even more reasonable.

He hadn't expected to accidentally stumble directly into Chen Yingba's squad.

This was much more convenient than joining Luo Ming's squad.

The members of Chen Yingba's squad, without a doubt, were considered the upper echelon of the Hive, so asking them for information would naturally be more appropriate.

Moreover, today was already the eighteenth of the first month, and with only three months left until mid-April, Chen Yingyuan would have to take supplies to Longshan to participate in the alliance meeting, which would certainly require bringing many people. At that time, Chen Yingba's squad would likely be deployed.

This could be considered an unexpected joy!

During this time, he could gather more information about the Hive and its surroundings; additionally, he could take the opportunity to see how the three Frost-Resistant Realm experts—Chen Yingyuan, Chen Yingba, and Wu Tianxing—cultivated.

Oh right, and he also had to figure out who the Hive's fourth Frost-Resistant Realm expert was!

"Let's go, let's head to the main area!"

Xia Hong said with a beaming smile. Cheng Ping, who had been nervous the whole time, quickly followed.

With Chen Yingba's order, Xia Hong's treatment upon returning to the main area to report was completely different from the last time.

The person who received him at the main building suddenly became much more pleasant. Not only did he enthusiastically tell him about his living quarters, but he also took the opportunity to introduce him to the situation and members of Chen Yingba's squad.

Chen Yingba's squad had a total of twenty-five people. Unsurprisingly, apart from Chen Yingba, the other twenty-four were all elites of the Hive.

Soon, Xia Hong received an iron badge. On the front of the badge was the character "Chen," and on the back was the number 25.

Directly above the number, it was even marked with "Rank."

Seeing the word "Rank," Xia Hong was stunned.

The man who gave him the badge saw Xia Hong's expression and immediately explained with a smile, "The commander's squad is different from other squads. You twenty-five people all have strength rankings."

"Why is that?"

Xia Hong had some guesses, but he still asked.

"The commander rarely goes out hunting. Generally, when he goes out, it's to hunt mid-level cold beasts, and he won't take everyone—only ten people. But everyone wants to go, so there's no other way but to use strength rankings to filter them. Basically, every time he goes out, the ten people ranked 1 to 10 follow. If those below want to go, they have to find a way to move up."

"Then if I want to raise my rank, what is the method?"

"Challenge them, but every challenge requires 20 jin of beast blood!"

After hearing this, Xia Hong's expression was a bit strange, but he quickly understood.

The Hive's elites generally had base strengths exceeding thirty thousand jin, meaning they had all started using beast blood. To these people, beast blood was the most precious thing.

The problem was that the Hive's productivity wasn't as advanced as Great Xia's. Judging from their living environment, their experience in hunting cold beasts was likely not as extensive as Great Xia's. Xia Chuan, Yu Wentao, and the others, once they passed the thirty-thousand-jin limit, could lead teams to use traps and tools to hunt mid-level cold beasts through teamwork.

But the people here in the Hive couldn't.

Moreover, because of the elite system, while they cherished their lives, they were likely wary of others, so their teamwork ability was probably lacking as well.

In this way, it was likely even harder to obtain beast blood.

Following Chen Yingba out to hunt should allow them to get a share of beast blood, which was why they were so eager.

Judging from the Hive's implementation of the elite system, it was no surprise that the upper echelons' control over beast blood resources was definitely even more exaggerated than their control over beast meat.

This was not hard to understand.

If beast meat was the means by which the Hive's elite class controlled everyone below, then by extension, beast blood was the means by which the three Frost-Resistant Realm experts—the Chen brothers and Wu Tianxing—controlled the elite class.

"Killing the goose that lays the golden eggs, putting the cart before the horse. It's no wonder the Hive has only achieved this much after so many years. Just like their encampment being underground, they have long been shrinking back for self-preservation, greedy for comfort and pleasure. It's safe, sure, but their development is extremely limited. Once they encounter any slightly larger disaster, they will likely fall apart in an instant."

Xia Hong left the main building and quickly found the living quarters Chen Yingba had rewarded him with. Sitting in the main hall, he pondered the pros and cons of the Hive's elite system, quickly reaching his own conclusion and shaking his head incessantly.

Just as he had thought before, the original intention of this elite system was definitely good, but as time passed and the camp grew, the so-called elite group formed a wealthy and powerful class that had become too big to fail.

The Chen brothers should be able to see this, but the problem was that they themselves were members of that wealthy class, and perhaps they had even risen from within it. Having finally endured the hardships to reach their position, they naturally wanted to continue using this method to maintain their transcendent status.

Reform is easy to talk about, but to actually do it requires no small amount of courage.

"Note this down. In the future, Great Xia must take this as a warning. When it is time for reform, one must reform. To be conservative and cling to the wealth of a few is self-castration in disguise. Not only will the camp fail to develop, but when a slight problem arises, everyone will end up suffering!"

Xia Hong finished writing his insights on the animal hide scroll and shook his head slightly.

"Uncle Yu, Uncle Yu, are you home?"

Just then, Luo Cheng's voice came from outside the door.

Xia Hong frowned slightly, but still stood up and walked toward the door.

(End of chapter)