Chapter 353: Don't Rush to Break Through—Savor It, This Tough Little One

"The Xiongwu Army and Beizhao Army? Fine, adding one more army won't hurt!"

Less than half an hour after Xia Xia Yu Yao was carried away, Xia Hong returned to Xia Cheng.

In the Council Hall, hearing from Xia Chuan that Xia Xia Yu Yao had resolved the dilemma of who got the quota, Xia Hong shook his head with a faint smile—he didn't believe it for a second.

But thinking that Great Xia now had eleven armies, and that future expansion would inevitably accelerate, Xia Hong silently thought: "I must remind Brother Brother Director Yu Wen Tao—the Military Department needs to start designing other methods of troop augmentation."

The thousand-men-per-army structure was designed for when the number of Digging Earth Realm cultivators was limited; now that the population of Digging Earth Realm cultivators is growing, this rigid model can no longer be blindly maintained.

We're about to make contact with the Jiuzhen; we should also prepare several larger military formations. Large-scale troop operations and small-unit warfare are entirely different concepts—soldiers and officers alike need extensive time to adapt and train.

But this matter falls under the Military Department's jurisdiction, so I'll tell Brother Brother Director Yu Wen Tao. Since I'm heading to Longshan in two days anyway, Xia Hong didn't rush to tell Xia Chuan, instead shifting to a grave expression and bringing up the Míxū Guǐ incident.

"The Míxū Guǐ—it can go up but not down—the cold beasts in the Arrow Bamboo Forest are all…"

Hearing Xia Hong's harrowing account, Xia Chuan's face showed shock after shock, his heart filled with dread—but he quickly recovered and spoke in a low, urgent tone: "We must send word to Lu Yang and the others immediately—no one may descend directly from the cliff face anymore; only the secret tunnels are permitted. Also, the eastern edge of the Arrow Bamboo Forest must be off-limits to hunting parties. Even Brother got caught—anyone else who encounters it will die without fail."

Xia Hong had rushed back specifically to deliver this warning; seeing Xia Chuan grasp it so quickly, he naturally showed a hint of satisfaction, then paused, studying Xia Chuan intently before smiling: "Twenty-seven manes—I recall you broke through to Cold Resistance Late Stage in early June? In just over three months, you've gained nearly three manes. Impressive!"

Hearing Xia Hong praise his cultivation, Xia Chuan's face lit up with a smile, but he quickly shook his head: "Brother, you're praising me too soon. I've felt it—since breaking through Cold Resistance Late Stage, my cultivation speed has been plummeting. Based on my progress in the Martial Hall since early September, it'll take at least two years to reach Cold Resistance Peak."

Two years might even be an underestimate!

Xia Hong, as an elder, immediately shook his head upon hearing Xia Chuan's estimate.

Cultivation speed in Cold Resistance Late Stage slows further with each step, and the amount of pills required increases dramatically. Compared to his own pace at that stage, Xia Chuan's current speed is already fast.

But that's normal—Xia Chuan's Battle Body started at six manes, which lags behind mine, so his Cold Resistance progress naturally needs to be faster.

"Too bad the Lotus Platform can't be used by others—if it could, Ying Xuan Ling and Xia Chuan's cultivation speeds could both increase further."

Xia Hong shook his head, silently chiding himself for being greedy.

With the Martial Hall's triple cultivation boost, it's already a crushing advantage over other camps in Bingyuan; if the Lotus Platform's quintuple boost could be freely used by others, that would be excessive.

The Lotus Platform differs from the main structure—it clearly has a special connection to me as its host, and its resource consumption is drawn exclusively from the system, not physical resources. That's likely why others can't use it.

Seeing Xia Chuan's furrowed brow, Xia Hong knew he was desperate to grow stronger—he immediately shook his head: "Don't rush. The slower you break through, the better."

Slower is better?

Xia Chuan froze, his face filled with confusion.

"After reaching Cold Resistance Peak, there are still ways to further increase your strength—I learned this during my trip to Beishuo…"

Xia Hong recounted everything he'd gleaned from Zhu Yang.

The method to expand meridians beyond Cold Resistance Peak—the three spirit pills: Tiger Power, Dragon Carp, and Green Cod—and the Twelve Blood Meridian Art from Muyin Town…

Upon hearing this, Xia Chuan's expression instantly brightened with excitement.

The Cold Resistance Battle Body is truly a double-edged sword.

On one hand, it boosts your upper strength limit, granting power far beyond ordinary Cold Resistance cultivators; on the other, it locks your power ceiling based on your Battle Body rank, ensuring your combat strength always lags behind those with higher Battle Body ranks.

Base strength isn't identical to combat power, but it accounts for at least sixty percent of it.

For Cold Resistance cultivators, where strength is measured in manes, even a single Snow Snow Mane gap means a difference of one hundred thousand jin—Battle Body rank becomes even more critical.

Great Xia now has over five thousand Cold Resistance cultivators.

Xia Hong had clearly explained in Xia Li's "System Compilation" the four tiers of Battle Body—Extreme, Upper, Middle, Lower—and their corresponding power ceilings after breakthrough, so everyone understood the importance of Battle Body quality.

Those who break through Cold Resistance with a base strength of three manes or higher are classified as Extreme Battle Body—currently, only four people in Great Xia qualify: Xia Hong, Li Li Ying Xuan Ling, Brother Brother Director Yu Wen Tao, and Xia Chuan himself.

Logically, Xia Chuan should be satisfied with his Extreme Battle Body, but he knew full well how high his brother's and sister-in-law's qualities were.

One at nine manes, the other at eight and a half—both far surpassed him.

Over the years, Xia Hong's strength had accelerated rapidly, leaving everyone else in Great Xia far behind. Xia Chuan had long feared falling too far behind, worrying that one day he'd be useless to Xia Hong.

Originally, a gap only with Xia Hong was tolerable—but now he was also two and a half manes behind his sister-in-law, Li Li Ying Xuan Ling, and he couldn't help feeling anxious.

A two-and-a-half Snow Snow Mane gap at breakthrough becomes a twenty Snow Snow Mane gap at Cold Resistance Peak.

That's still just the Cold Resistance stage—what about when they reach Stage Stage Xianyang?

He'd already been worrying about this, and now, hearing from Xia Hong that further strength gains were possible after Cold Resistance Peak, his excitement was unmistakable.

Seeing Xia Chuan so stirred, Xia Hong waved a hand: "Calm down. The Twelve Blood Meridian Art of Muyin Town is a secret of the Lord's family, the Murongs—let's not even think about it. The other three pills come from Jin Shan, Lord Lord Jiang Xia, and Basha Towns—such rare pills won't be sold casually. We won't get them anytime soon."

"Just focus on your cultivation quietly. Don't spread this news. After we resolve the Longshan silver mine, I'll head to Wuyuan. If we can establish contact with Lord Lord Jiang Xia Town sooner, we might get a chance."

"Understood, Brother!"

Xia Chuan had grown much more composed; he knew such matters couldn't be rushed. He immediately suppressed his excitement and nodded firmly.

"Alright, get back to your duties. In two days, I'll depart for Longshan—I'll likely stay there a while. If anything happens in Xia Cheng, send word immediately."

Xia Hong didn't wait for Xia Chuan's reply. He rose, stepped around the dais, and headed toward the Star-Picking Hall behind.

As he ascended the suspension bridge to the Star-Picking Hall, Xia Hong lowered his head, lost in thought.

"Zhu Yang, with twenty-seven manes, became Director of the Inspection Bureau—this proves that strength above twenty manes counts as core power in Beishuo."

Xia Chuan has twenty-seven manes, Brother Brother Director Yu Wen Tao has twenty-five. Currently, how many in the camp exceed twenty manes? Liu Liu Yuan Cheng, Luo Liu Liu Yuan, Li Li Li Li Tiancheng, Hou Jing, Hong Guang, Hong Tian, Hou Tong, Hou Quan, Meng Yi, plus Zhou Liu Liu Yuan's seven—only sixteen total.

Qiu Peng, Yue Feng, Xu Ning, Lu Yang, Lin Kai, Zhu Shun, and the three Zhao brothers are close behind—they'll likely reach it by next year."

Thinking about it, it made sense: without pills, reaching twenty manes of base strength requires a base strength of at least 2.5 manes at Cold Resistance breakthrough—that means you must be at least an Upper Battle Body, and even then, only the top among them.

Great Xia now has over five thousand Cold Resistance cultivators, but according to the Camp Needs Department's statistics, only slightly over two hundred are Upper Battle Body—less than five percent of the total. Alarmingly low.

"But with Sacred Bloodline enhancements, their true combat power can rise another thirty percent. Add in martial arts and the Four Styles of Long Fist, and there's still room to grow. Right now, the only weakness compared to the Jiuzhen is the meridian-expanding pills. Once we secure those, our Cold Resistance Peak strength will crush theirs. As for Stage Stage Xianyang—though our numbers are few, our quality is unmatched!"

Mentioning Stage Stage Xianyang, Xia Hong's eyes briefly gleamed with pride.

According to Lu Yang's intelligence, each of the Jiuzhen has at least two Stage Stage Xianyang-level cultivators. Compared to them, Great Xia—with only Xia Hong himself as a Stage Stage Xianyang cultivator—seems painfully weak.

But while our numbers are lacking, our quality…

The brief clash with Yang Fa gave Xia Hong a clear sense of things.

He saw clearly: Yang Fa was Silver-Bone Stage Stage Xianyang, having broken through over twenty years ago, now at just over four hundred manes. From this, he could infer that the Jiuzhen' Stage Stage Xianyang cultivators weren't particularly strong.

"Whether any surpass me, I don't know—but none likely broke through with over a thousand manes, like I did."

Reaching this conclusion, Xia Hong felt significantly more at ease.

According to reports from Lu Yang and Xu Ning, the Jiuzhen of Mo'ao had never ceased their outward expansion.

The three northern towns had geographic advantages for expansion northward;

The four central towns were blocked, but their exploration of the Mo'ao Mountains ranked among the best in the Jiuzhen;

The remaining Basha and Lord Lord Jiang Xia towns had abundant aquatic resources and far surpassed the others in water exploration. Lord Lord Jiang Xia Town, if not for the obstruction of the Great Awakening Temple, would have already moved along the northern shore into Pingxi Plain.

Aggressive expansion is for strengthening power—this shows that any camp reaching Town-level status is far from ordinary. Great Xia currently holds the advantage thanks to the Dongling secret tunnel and has gained early intelligence on the Jiuzhen—but how events unfold in the future? Who can say?

With my strength as a foundation, I can at least guarantee Great Xia will never be defeated.

For Xia Hong, that was enough.

As for direct confrontation in the future—we'll deal with that when the time comes.

Xia Hong finished crossing the suspension bridge and reached the main gate of the Star-Picking Hall. After a brief sensory check, he bypassed the rear chambers and ascended the Star-Picking Platform via the rear entrance.

On the Star-Picking Platform, Li Li Ying Xuan Ling sat cross-legged, eyes closed, atop the Awakening Lotus. Her snow-white palace robe glowed with an alluring crimson under the cold light, harmonizing perfectly with the blood-colored medicinal energy swirling around her, complementing her exquisite face with a breathtaking, almost suffocating beauty.

As the medicinal energy seeped slowly into her skin and membranes, the crimson glow around her dimmed, her aura gradually settling—she had nearly fully absorbed the energy.

Li Li Ying Xuan Ling opened her eyes slowly after ending her cultivation. Seeing Xia Hong, a flash of joy crossed her gaze, quickly masked. She asked coolly:

"When did you return?"

"Just now. Fifty-one manes—you're only seventeen manes from breakthrough. Your cultivation's slowing down, right?"

While assessing the strength of Xia Cheng's people, Xia Hong hadn't included his wife. Fifty-one manes—Li Li Ying Xuan Ling was now the strongest in Xia Cheng, after himself.

And not just slightly stronger—she'd pulled a decisive gap from the second tier. Even pills couldn't bridge it.

"It's definitely slowing. In the past three months, I've only gained one and a half manes. The remaining seventeen—I estimate it'll take three years, maybe more. I'm far behind you."

Hearing Li Li Ying Xuan Ling's final words, Xia Hong chuckled softly.

Since Great Xia bore two children three years ago, Li Li Ying Xuan Ling had changed greatly—her attitude toward him, toward the camp, had clearly shifted. She now cared about camp affairs.

The one thing unchanged: her pride.

For the first four years, whenever he entered seclusion, she'd immediately retreat to the Martial Hall to cultivate—clearly competing, trying to catch up to him in strength.

Now that Xia Hong had broken through to Stage Stage Xianyang first, the gap hadn't narrowed—it had widened. Li Li Ying Xuan Ling couldn't help feeling defeated.

"Don't be dissatisfied. Your cultivation speed can crush everyone else in Xia Cheng. Your talent was never equal to mine—slower than me is normal."

"Hmph!"

Li Li Ying Xuan Ling knew he was deliberately provoking her, but her nature was proud—even knowing it, she was irritated. She snorted and said bluntly: "Don't get too cocky. When I break through, who's stronger isn't certain yet."

Xia Hong laughed openly, walked over, and gently pulled her into his arms. "Then I'll wait for your breakthrough—see who's stronger then."

Li Li Ying Xuan Ling instinctively twisted, but Xia Hong held firm—she stopped resisting, only her ears turning slightly red as she leaned softly against him.

Recalling the illusions conjured by the Míxū Guǐ, Xia Hong looked down at his wife, his eyes softening. He tightened his embrace, savoring this rare moment of tenderness.

Li Li Ying Xuan Ling sensed his unusual mood. Though her expression grew peculiar, she said nothing, simply closed her eyes and lay quietly in his arms.

After a moment, Xia Hong remembered something and asked softly: "Do you think your meridians still have room to expand?"

Li Li Ying Xuan Ling paused to think, then replied: "There's probably some room, but I doubt the upper limit is high. My meridians were already unusually wide to begin with—further expansion won't gain much."

Xia Hong nodded. Then he recounted his entire journey to Beishuo.

Li Li Ying Xuan Ling now understood why he'd asked. Her eyes flickered with thought: "A human's maximum strength depends on skin, flesh, meridians, and bones. Battle Body quality is the sum of these four—directly tied to innate meridian width. Both your talent and mine are top-tier. Even with pills, further enhancement would be negligible. These three pills you mentioned—likely offer us almost no benefit."

"But that Twelve Blood Meridian Art of Muyin Town—it doesn't sound like a meridian-expanding technique. It might actually help us."

Hearing Li Li Ying Xuan Ling's words, Xia Hong nodded slightly. Yesterday, after learning of those pills from Zhu Yang, his first thought had been whether he could use them—and his conclusion had matched hers.

It made sense: after breaking through to Stage Stage Xianyang, his strength had multiplied tenfold or more, and this surge came entirely from his bones—his meridians hadn't changed at all. So even if he used pills to expand them, his gain would likely be single-digit manes.

Not even one Snow Snow Mane—adding nine manes now would be a drop in the ocean. Truly negligible. Whether he had them or not made no difference.

"By the way, do you want to know what it's like after breaking through to Stage Stage Xianyang?"

"Of course. I wanted to ask you the day you broke through."

"Of course, I wanted to ask you the day you broke through."