Chapter 233: Next Step: Surrender, Depart for Yanglu

"What are your thoughts on what comes next?"

Xia Chuan sat upright in the main seat. He withdrew his gaze from the map, swept it across the seven people seated in the hall, and asked in a low voice.

Hearing this, the excitement on the seven people's faces subsided slightly, and they all lowered their heads to think.

Chen Yingba had not left. Though his expression was dazed, he couldn't help but prick up his ears, wanting to hear Does Da Xia's next move.

After a long while, Yuan Cheng was the first to stand up and cup his fists.

"My lord, we took the Beehive without losing a single man. Right now, there are only about two hundred people in the Earth-Digging Realm here. With a few methods, we only need to leave a hundred men behind to keep them in check. If you ask me, we should strike while the iron is hot and take Yanglu next!"

The people in the hall were slightly shaken by these words.

Take Yanglu next!

If they could really pull this off, Does Da Xia would swallow the territory of two of Longyou's giant camps in succession. Judging by the map in Xia Chuan's hand, this single stroke would expand their territory by at least 1,500 square kilometers.

1,500 square kilometers—what kind of concept was that?

Does Da Xia's most recently expanded territory was the Five Ape Mountain area. Even including that place, their current total territory was only 900 square kilometers.

It had to be said, Yuan Cheng's proposal tempted everyone in the hall.

Even Xia Chuan, looking down at the map, couldn't help but feel his resolve waver.

There were already two maps on his table.

One was the rough sketch sent back by Xia Hong via Luo Ming;

The other was the complete map of the Beehive territory found in the main hall.

The Beehive was located on the southeast side of the Pingxi Plain, reaching the Redwood Ridge in the south, with an east-west length of about thirty-five kilometers. To the due north was the Hanqiong Camp, with a north-south distance of about twenty kilometers. The total area of the territory was over 700 square kilometers.

The Yanglu Camp, which was comparable in strength to the Beehive, also had a territory of about 700-plus square kilometers. The two territories combined were exactly around 1,500 square kilometers.

No, it wasn't just a region this large; there was also...

Xia Chuan looked at the map, a flash of brilliance in his eyes.

"Yanglu and the Beehive are the only two of the twelve Longyou camps that border the northern entrance of the Redwood Ridge. This means that if we can take these two, both the west and north entrances of the Redwood Ridge will belong to Does Da Xia!"

Xia Chuan's gaze became increasingly fervent.

"Unwise..."

However, at this moment, Director Yu Wen Tao expressed a different opinion.

"My lord, forgive my bluntness, but taking the Beehive so smoothly had little to do with our own strength. No one knows the situation in Yanglu—where their camp is, how many people they have, how many Cold-Resistant Realm experts, or how many Earth-Digging Realm experts. To attack rashly would be unwise!"

Xia Chuan was startled by these words. The fervor in his eyes vanished instantly, and his expression cleared significantly. A flash of lingering fear crossed his heart, and he immediately cast a look of gratitude toward Director Yu Wen Tao.

He had almost been a fool!

Being able to take the Beehive without a drop of blood was certainly a point of pride, but it also showed from another perspective that Does Da Xia hadn't won through a bloody battle; it relied more on his planning, or to put it bluntly, luck.

The message and defensive layout sent back by his elder brother in advance; the inside man in the Beehive; himself taking Luo Yuan and the other three, disguised as Lu Sheng, to sneak into the Beehive camp ahead of time; the subsequent infiltration of a large force five days early...

It could be said that all the preparations Does Da Xia made in advance were at most just the preliminary groundwork for successfully taking the Beehive today.

The decisive factor that allowed them to take the Beehive without a drop of blood was stumbling upon the perfect timing while Zhaoyang was attacking the Beehive.

He had taken Luo Yuan and the other three to sneak into the Beehive's main area on the 20th of April. They had even approached Chen Yingba and Wu Tianxing midway. Why didn't they take the two of them down then? Because they didn't have absolute certainty.

Chen Yingba and Wu Tianxing both possessed the strength of six manes.

After he broke through to the Cold-Resistant Realm, he also had the strength of six manes. With the 30% boost from the Does Da Xia Sacred Mark, he had a maximum strength of eight manes. Taking down one of them was no problem at all, but what about the other?

After Yuan Cheng and Luo Yuan broke through, they had over three manes of strength; Zhao Long had two, and Hong Tian had only a little over one. Even with the Does Da Xia Sacred Mark's bonus, it was impossible for the four of them to kill a Cold-Resistant Realm expert with six manes of strength, let alone capture one alive.

Moreover, all five of them were in the Beehive's main area. If they couldn't take them down in a short time and provoked the Beehive's hundreds of Earth-Digging Realm experts to surround them, they would be the ones in trouble.

For the sake of caution, Xia Chuan had ordered them to first control the No. 19 mining area, then had the people from the Border Valley sneak into the Beehive in batches, and he had also called Director Yu Wen Tao over.

But to be honest, even with such caution, it would have been impossible for Does Da Xia to take the Beehive without a drop of blood. Everything was thanks to Zhaoyang's hard work over the previous two days; they had exhausted most of the Beehive's combat power.

Wu Tianxing's "deception gate" trick was the icing on the cake. If not for that, even if Does Da Xia had sent a thousand men, plus their eight Cold-Resistant Realm experts, they probably would have been just as helpless as Zhaoyang's people against the Beehive's turtle-shell-like main area.

"This great victory was entirely due to so many coincidences. I was almost blinded by it and even fantasized about continuing to attack Yanglu. Thanks to Director Yu Wen Tao's reminder, if I had really gone over rashly, I fear we would have suffered a great loss!"

Xia Chuan shook his head slightly, suppressing the greed in his heart. He stopped looking at the map and turned to Yuan Cheng: "Deputy Si Zheng Director Yu Wen is right. Yanglu is different from the Beehive. We know nothing about them. To attack rashly would be unwise."

Yuan Cheng and the other five were not stupid; they understood Director Yu Wen Tao's words. After a moment of thought, they all nodded, clearly agreeing with Xia Chuan's decision.

"My lord, Cheng Ping requests an audience!"

Just as Xia Chuan was about to speak, a voice came from outside.

Meng Yi immediately stood up and went outside. A moment later, he returned and reported to Xia Chuan: "My lord, the casualties have been tallied. There are 214 captives from Zhaoyang in the Earth-Digging Realm. The Beehive had a total of 721 Earth-Digging Realm experts; 592 died, leaving 129. Additionally, there were 4,921 Woodcutting Realm experts; 1,282 died, leaving 3,639. Besides that, the remaining population of the Beehive totals 29,273. Everything has been counted!"

Hearing that only 214 Zhaoyang men remained, the four Zhaoyang captives—Hou Ming and the others—kneeling below, had flashes of sorrow on their faces, their expressions deeply pained.

They had brought over 1,500 men this time. Not only did 80% die, but now they themselves had become Does Da Xia's prisoners. It could be called a miserable end.

Chen Yingba was the same. Of the seven hundred-plus Earth-Digging Realm experts, only a hundred-plus remained. Over a thousand Woodcutting Realm experts had also died. The Beehive's main strength was wiped out; they no longer had the foundation to stand in Longyou.

The key was that the camp had been taken over by Does Da Xia. Even if his elder brother returned, he would be unable to turn the tide. The Beehive was truly about to become history!

Realizing this, the sorrow on Chen Yingba's face grew thicker. Suddenly thinking of something, he turned and glared at Wu Tianxing, who was kneeling on the ground, a bloody hue rising in his pupils.

If not for Wu Tianxing's betrayal, how could Zhaoyang have broken in so smoothly?

If not for him tricking him into opening the iron gate at the last moment, let alone the Zhaoyang camp, even this group from Does Da Xia wouldn't have been able to step foot into the main area tonight.

"Wu Tianxing, you beast, I'll kill you, I'll kill you..."

"We treated you so well, why did you betray the Beehive!"

"My elder brother trusted you deeply and shared the Jade Bone decoction with you every time. You ungrateful white-eyed wolf, I'll kill you, I'll kill you!"

Chen Yingba, his anger surging, forgot for a moment that this was Does Da Xia's home turf. He drew his blade and roared, charging directly at Wu Tianxing, attempting to kill him.

Wu Tianxing, kneeling on the ground, was clearly caught off guard. His shoulder blades were pierced by curved hooks, making it impossible for him to put up a strong defense. In a panic, he could only roll on the ground to dodge.

But unable to exert his strength, he could at most dodge one strike.

Chen Yingba's second strike was aimed at his neck.

"Stop!"

Clang...

Just as the great blade was about to sever Wu Tianxing's head, a broadsword flashed from the side, directly bracing against Wu Tianxing's neck, blocking Chen Yingba.

Chen Yingba, as if he hadn't heard Director Yu Wen Tao's roar, withdrew his great blade and continued to attack Wu Tianxing.

With that, Director Yu Wen Tao stopped being lenient. He raised his foot and kicked him directly in the chest.

Chen Yingba had only fought Hou Ming before. Among Does Da Xia's eight Cold-Resistant Realm experts, he knew the strongest was Xia Chuan; he hadn't taken the others seriously.

Therefore, facing Director Yu Wen Tao's kick, he only dodged to the side, then drew his blade and threw it directly at Wu Tianxing on the ground.

Bang...

The next second, his body was kicked away like a cannonball, smashing through the wall and flying over ten meters outside, landing outside the hall.

Pfft...

Chen Yingba climbed up outside the hall and spat out a mouthful of blood. Looking up at Director Yu Wen Tao again, his pupils were filled with horror and shock.

"Seven manes—his strength is also greater than mine!"

Clang...

Seeing that the great blade he threw had also been blocked by Director Yu Wen Tao's sword, failing to kill Wu Tianxing, Chen Yingba's expression instantly withered.

Wu Tianxing, having escaped death twice, felt his emotions reach a breaking point. He turned to look at Chen Yingba and roared: "Betrayal? This Beehive was originally my Wu family's, you two brothers..."

"It seems you still don't understand your situation!" Xia Chuan, above, was somewhat unhappy with this farce.

He stood up, interrupting Wu Tianxing's roar. With a trace of obvious impatience in his eyes, he looked at the two and said in a low voice:

"I am not interested in the hatred between you. I only care whether you two can pledge loyalty to Does Da Xia and work for me from now on!"

Wu Tianxing didn't even think, immediately turning to kneel before Xia Chuan, bowing respectfully: "Wu Tianxing is willing to lead my whole family to join the Does Da Xia camp and serve you from now on!"

Xia Chuan naturally wouldn't take a traitor's loyalty too seriously. He nodded with a noncommittal smile, then looked at Chen Yingba.

Chen Yingba subconsciously showed a look of anger, but then thinking of something, his expression became very conflicted.

Xia Chuan didn't continue to ask, only turning to give Meng Yi an inquiring look.

Meng Yi understood and immediately bowed: "The families of Chen Yingyuan, Chen Yingba, and Wu Tianxing, including their collateral relatives and everyone associated with them, totaling 426 people, have all been identified. We are just waiting for nightfall tomorrow to send people to escort them back to the camp."

These words were undoubtedly the final straw that broke the camel's back.

Thump...

As the words fell, Chen Yingba knelt directly before Xia Chuan, his expression full of sorrow and compromise. He bowed his head: "Chen Yingba is willing to serve you, my lord, only asking that you treat my family well."

!

Even Wu Tianxing on the other side became more respectful in his posture.

Only then did a smile appear on Xia Chuan's face. He said loudly: "Good. As long as you serve Does Da Xia well, not only will your families be fine, but they will live even better lives than they do now!"

Judging by their expressions, it was clear they only remembered the first part.

Serve Does Da Xia, and their families would be fine.

"Alright, that's enough for the Beehive. Starting tomorrow night, arrange for people to go to the Border Valley to notify Watching Yue Feng, have him bring people over, and escort the captives back to the Border Valley in batches. As for the Beehive, Meng Yi and Hong Tian will lead the team to guard it for now. You two, no problems, right?"

"Rest assured, my lord, we have no problems!"

Meng Yi and Hong Tian immediately stepped forward and bowed in obedience.

The Beehive had only a hundred-plus Earth-Digging Realm experts left, along with over three thousand Woodcutting Realm experts, over twenty thousand ordinary people, two Cold-Resistant Realm experts, and two full-strength intermediate hunting teams of one hundred men. Controlling them shouldn't be difficult.

The thousand-plus people who came this time were all members of intermediate hunting teams, totaling twenty teams. Each of their eight Cold-Resistant Realm experts had one team under their name, so in reality, there were still twelve intermediate hunting team captains who hadn't arrived.

Xia Chuan thought for a moment and continued: "The remaining nine hundred men will also stay here for the time being, also under your command. Wait for my orders."

Hong Tian and Meng Yi bowed again, their eyes lighting up slightly.

It wasn't because they could command nine hundred more men; the current situation in the Beehive only required the two of them to lead a hundred men to control it. Leaving nine hundred men behind clearly wasn't for the Beehive.

If not for the Beehive, then what could it be for?

The expansion wasn't over yet!

Not just the two of them; Director Yu Wen Tao, Luo Yuan, and the others noticed this, and their eyes lit up as well, their expressions full of anticipation.

"It should be dawn outside..."

Xia Chuan murmured, turned back, and continued: "Director Yu Wen Tao, Luo Yuan, Yuan Cheng, Zhao Long, Hong Guang, the five of you come with me to scout the situation in Yanglu."

"Yes, my lord!"

Of course, they had to bring the other two.

"Chen Yingba, Wu Tianxing, you should be much more familiar with your neighbor Yanglu than we are. You two will lead the way for us."

"Yes, my lord!"

Chen Yingba and Wu Tianxing could only bow in agreement and stand up respectfully.

Snap...

"Thank you, my lord!"

Director Yu Wen Tao, on the side, directly undid the iron hook on Wu Tianxing's chest. Facing Wu Tianxing's thanks, he just waved his hand casually: "Serve Does Da Xia well from now on, and you won't be treated unfairly!"

Wu Tianxing was full of gratitude.

And Chen Yingba, on the side, thinking about having to serve Does Da Xia alongside this traitor from now on, felt very awkward.

"Alright, no time to lose, let's set off!"

Xia Chuan gave the order and, leading the seven Cold-Resistant Realm experts, went directly to the surface through a secret passage on the top floor of the main building.

Just as Xia Chuan had expected, it was indeed dawn outside.

The eight of them walked out of the passage. Except for Chen and Wu, the other six from Does Da Xia couldn't help but be dazed when they saw the scene outside.

If the Redwood Ridge was a labyrinth carved from ice crystals, a perfect combination of snowflakes and natural vegetation;

Then the Pingxi Plain was an ocean paved with accumulated snow. The snow plain was like frozen waves, and as far as the eye could see, it was all vast, pale white. When the wind whistled by, carrying snowflakes, fine silver sand rose from the ground, as if the earth were breathing.

"The scenery during the day really has a unique flavor. I've been broken through for over two months now, and I still can't get enough of it!"

Others were focused on the difference between the Pingxi Plain and the Redwood Ridge.

Yuan Cheng didn't have so much leisure; he was more immersed in the daytime scenery before him, clearly the excitement of breaking through to the Cold-Resistant Realm hadn't passed yet.

Xia Chuan and the other four smiled upon hearing this.

Among them, the breakthrough times of Luo Yuan, Zhao Long, and Hong Tian were not much different from Yuan Cheng's, so they resonated with his words.

"Me too, I can't get enough of it."

Yuan Cheng thought of something and laughed heartily:

"Watching Yue Feng broke through last month. When he saw the daytime for the first time, he almost cried with excitement. Xu Ning and I were laughing so hard on the side, hahaha..."

The few of them joked with each other, not noticing at all that Chen Yingba and Wu Tianxing, following behind them, had their pupils shaking upon hearing their words.

This group... they had all just broken through...

Chen and Wu both had the image of the Does Da Xia leader Xia Hong, whom they had met at the Border Valley a while ago, appear in their minds, their gazes slightly dazed.

Among the six from Does Da Xia before them, Hong Tian looked the oldest and should be the oldest; Luo Yuan and Zhao Long also looked to be nearly thirty.

And the remaining three—Yuan Cheng, Director Yu Wen Tao, and Xia Chuan—were clearly not old. Even if their real age as Cold-Resistant Realm experts was much older, these three wouldn't be over thirty.

Gulp...

Chen Yingba suddenly swallowed, suppressing the shock in his eyes slightly.

"It's a pity that only a very few people can see this scenery. This land, after all, doesn't belong to humans!"

Director Yu Wen Tao suddenly let out a sigh, interrupting everyone.

Everyone fell into thought, and the atmosphere suddenly became much more serious.

Indeed, strictly speaking, the Frozen Abyss world did not belong to humans.

Cold beasts and ghosts, whether in terms of space or time, were much broader than humans, and compared to humans, they were clearly more favored by this world.

"Whether the Frozen Abyss belongs to humans or not depends on human effort. Who would have thought that our Does Da Xia could reach where we are today? By the same token, no one can say for sure about the future. Perhaps one day in the future, the Frozen Abyss will belong to humans!"

"Si Cheng is right. No one can say for sure about the future."

Director Yu Wen Tao responded immediately, his expression also much more invigorated.

Seeing everyone's spirits lifted, Xia Chuan turned to signal to Chen and Wu on the side: "Lead the way!"

The two nodded and immediately led the six of them toward the west.

"Yang Lu's encampment is at Yangyuan Peak, the location is right at..."

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 234 =====