Chapter 363

Mo'ao Era, Year 131, 15th day of the 10th month, daytime.

Dongling Garrison Point, a wooden house a hundred meters from the main building.

Zhu Bai Xu, Bai Wuji, Wan Qingyu, Nie Shen, and Yang He were sitting around a coal stove with their senior brother, Lu Yun. There were not only them in the room, but also thirteen other young people of similar age, about fourteen or fifteen years old, sitting around two other coal stoves.

A group of half-grown boys were at the age of most vigorous energy. Coupled with the fact that they had clearly just experienced a major event and were all carrying some injuries, they had no sleepiness at all in the middle of the day and were huddled together, discussing something with great excitement.

"Tonight's hunt was really exciting! I had never hunted in the North Ning Mountains by myself before. Every time I went out, there was a big group of people following me. Only after fighting one-on-one with a cold beast did I realize that they were all pampering me before. My base strength of fifteen thousand jin was actually almost unable to beat even a low-level cold beast."

"Same here. When I left the camp last night, I saw Zhao Shanyu leading a group of people following us, and I thought it would be like hunting in the camp before—if any problem arose, they would immediately take action. As a result, I was knocked flying more than ten meters by that magic sheep and vomited several mouthfuls of blood. Seeing that they didn't move at all, I realized this time it was for real."

"It's a pity our strength is a bit lacking; we only hunted a few low-level cold beasts. Senior Brother and the others are the truly powerful ones. The six of them joined forces and almost hunted that intermediate-level Black-Evil Eagle."

"No way around it, that Black-Evil Eagle's aerial ability is too strong. Although Senior Brother and the others are stronger than us, they only have Earth-Digging Realm cultivation. It's still too difficult to hunt intermediate-level cold beasts."

"Luo An and the other four are truly amazing! Using iron chains to set traps, they not only successfully captured that Black-Evil Eagle but also hunted four additional low-level Red Luan. All five were avian cold beasts; they made a fortune."

"No wonder the five of them can enter and leave the main building freely. Not only are they strong, but their talent is also much higher than ours."

………………

As everyone discussed, their eyes would look toward Lu Yun and the other five in the center from time to time.

Little did they know that when they talked about Luo An and the other four, Lu Yun and the other five also had faces full of shock and envy.

"Senior Brother, Luo An, Zou Ping, and the others—those five are all people from the Master's previous camp, right?"

Zhu Bai Xu suddenly spoke in a low voice, asking Lu Yun in the center.

As soon as he spoke, Bai Wuji, Wan Qingyu, Nie Shen, and Yang He all turned their heads to look, their faces also full of curiosity.

Lu Yun did not answer, but raised his eyebrows and asked Zhu Bai Xu back: "Why do you say that? How did you see it?"

Zhu Bai Xu lowered his head and pondered for a moment before saying: "Not to mention Zhao Liu Yuan Shan—she is Zhao Shanyu's niece to begin with—the key is that I can see that the five of them have hunting habits very similar to the Master and Zhao Shanyu. The martial arts moves they use when fighting cold beasts are also of the same style. Plus, in the entire camp, only the five of them can enter and leave the main building freely. If they weren't people from the Master's previous camp, I really couldn't think of any other reason."

"I agree with Zhu Senior Brother's statement. Only this explanation is reasonable."

"I have already asked others in the garrison point. They only came to Dongling on the 10th of last month. They must be people from the Master's previous camp."

…………

As soon as Zhu Bai Xu spoke, Bai Wuji, Wan Qingyu, Nie Shen, and Yang He also spoke up one after another in agreement. Clearly, their thoughts were about the same as his.

Thinking that the five of them had been in Dongling for almost a month, Lu Yun didn't say anything more, just nodded slightly, which counted as resolving the five's confusion.

"Sure enough!"

Compared to a month ago, Zhu Bai Xu had become much more steady. Seeing Lu Yun nod to confirm his guess, he nodded slightly, a bright light appearing in his eyes as he asked: "Senior Brother, is the Master's previous camp very, very strong? I discovered that the Master, Zhao Shanyu, and those people never consider themselves Beishuo people. Ten days ago, when the Inspector, Lord He, came, they didn't give him a good look, and didn't even let him into the main building, just dismissing him with a few simple words. I have lived in the North Ning Mountains for so long, and I have never seen any camp dare to do this!"

Bai Wuji and the other four heard this and nodded. Ten days ago, when He Wuyang came to Dongling to find the Master, Lu Yang, they happened to be present as well.

There was no need to mention this matter. Just a month ago, on the night of the Zhu Ridge camp competition, Lu Yang rebuking He Wuyang in front of the people of the eight North Ning Mountain camps was enough to prove that Zhu Bai Xu's words were by no means groundless speculation.

Coupled with some things they had seen and heard during their month in Dongling, the five were indeed curious to the extreme about the strength of Master Lu Yang's previous camp.

Dongling only arrived in the North Ning Mountains four years ago. In just four years, they could become the head of the eight North Ning Mountain camps. Lu Yang and his group were so powerful that the other seven camps were naturally curious about their origins. Zhu Bai Xu and the other five, as the sons of leaders, naturally knew some inside information.

Having lived here for more than a month, as their understanding of Dongling deepened, while marveling at Dongling's strength, they also became more and more curious about the strength of Master Lu Yang's previous camp and were eager to inquire.

"I discovered that almost everyone in Dongling who can enter and leave the main building freely has Earth-Digging Realm limit cultivation. On the night of the Zhu Ridge competition, counting the Master and the three adults, Zhao Shanyu, Zhao Hu, and others, a total of sixty-two Frost-Resistance level people appeared in Dongling. I thought this was Dongling's entire strength, but over this month, I have seen at least twenty new Frost-Resistance level faces here that were not people who appeared on the night of Zhu Ridge. How can Dongling's strength be so strong? Could it be that the place where the Master lived before was also a town-level camp?"

Zhu Bai Xu did not cover up, directly stating his observations from the previous month and even stating his guesses. Clearly, he already had extreme trust in his Senior Brother, Lu Yun.

Not to mention seventy or eighty, even if Dongling had a hundred Frost-Resistance level people, it shouldn't be linked to a town-level camp. After all, which of the Mo'ao Nine Towns didn't have thousands of Frost-Resistance level people?

The problem is that they can all see that Master Lu Yang and this group of people in Dongling have an attitude toward Beishuo Town that is clearly unlike them, the local people of the North Ning Mountains.

It is not just the act of rebuking the Inspector, He Wuyang. In daily conversations, when mentioning Beishuo Town, Master Lu Yang, Zhao Hu, and others do not have a half-subservient tone, and occasionally even speak rudely. In the eyes of Zhu Bai Xu and others, this is simply unbelievable.

Except for the fact that Master Lu Yang and others also came from a town-level camp, they really couldn't find any other reasonable explanation.

Lu Yun did not answer Zhu Bai Xu's question, but first looked around at the eighteen people in the room and said in a low voice: "The nineteen of us are all disciples under the Master. As the Senior Brother, I won't hide it from you. Whether the Master came from a town-level camp, I dare not confirm, but I am sure that the camp he was in before, even if it is not as strong as Beishuo, is probably not much worse."

Having received personal confirmation from Senior Brother Lu Yun, the expressions of the teenagers in the room were shocked, and their expressions began to change repeatedly.

Lu Yun continued: "You have seen Dongling's situation, and the spiritual pills, fine wine, and salt that the Master has rewarded you with this past month, as well as the martial arts techniques taught to us—have you ever seen them before? Those things might not even be available in Beishuo City, right?"

It is interesting to say that among the nineteen teenagers in the room, Lu Yun's background is probably the lowest. Zhu Bai Xu and the other five are the sons of leaders, and the remaining thirteen are also the offspring of Frost-Resistance level people. With their backgrounds, they have naturally come into contact with many good things on weekdays, and there is no lack of spiritual pills and medicines brought out by elders from Beishuo Town.

It must be said that in the past month, the many things that Master Lu Yang bestowed upon them while teaching them were indeed no worse than those in Beishuo, and some things might not even be available in Beishuo Town.

Seeing that all the junior brothers lowered their heads and fell into deep thought, Lu Yun immediately struck while the iron was hot: "Junior brothers, I know that when you came to Dongling, most of you held the idea of being hostages. But this past month, what attitude the Master has had toward you, I believe everyone has seen for themselves."

Speaking to this point, he paused slightly and continued: "Not to mention teaching everything he knows, at the very least, he is truly cultivating you as his own disciples. I won't hide it from you: I have been under the Master's tutelage for more than two years, and it wasn't until last year that I had your current treatment. Other things aside, just these four items—refined salt, Beast-Spirit Pills, Blood-Sore Pills, and aged wine—currently, in the entire Dongling camp, besides the five hundred people in the main building, the total number of people qualified to exchange for them at the Camp Supplies Department is less than a hundred. And the nineteen of us are all among them."

The minds of the teenagers are actually not very mature yet, and since what Lu Yun said is basically true, and in the past month, Lu Yang has not treated them as hostages but has truly been fulfilling his duties as a master, everyone was slightly moved when they heard this.

Seeing the changes in everyone's expressions, Lu Yun knew that his words had taken effect. He stood up directly and said loudly to everyone: "Junior brothers, although I am the Senior Brother, I am also a Dongling person. A month ago, most of you were present for the details of the Zhu Ridge competition and know more than I do about who was reasonable and who was not. You should have an idea in your hearts.

I admit that the Master having you come to Dongling to be his disciples must have the intention of using you to threaten the various camps in the North Ning Mountains. But ask yourselves: if the various camps in the North Ning Mountains no longer target Dongling in the future and can live in peace with Dongling, what use does the Master have for you hostages?

Over the past month, you have already met with your families twice. Have you heard the Master ask your five camps to do anything?

You came here, and the Master not only exempted the five camps from so many debts but also provided funds for your cultivation, sincerely treating you as disciples. If you still harbor resentment and are unwilling to sincerely accept the Master, I think..."

"Senior Brother, you don't need to say any more. I know how the Master has treated me over the past month. A master for a day is a father for life. From today on, I will no longer treat myself as a hostage."

Bai Wuji directly interrupted Lu Yun's words, his voice full of determination. Lu Yang personally taught him a set of saber techniques half a month ago and specifically set aside a day to take him to the snow forest to practice, a memory that is still fresh in his mind.

"Me too. Since the Master treats me with sincerity, I will definitely repay him with sincerity. Although I am still young, I can still distinguish between sincerity and pretense."

"Not to mention anything else, my strength has increased by more than nine hundred jin this month, which is faster than the cultivation speed I had in my own camp before. Not to mention the improvement in strength—the Master is more attentive to my cultivation than my father. He didn't treat me as a hostage at all."

………………

Hearing Bai Wuji, Wan Qingyu, Nie Shen, Yang He, and others speak one after another, a satisfied expression appeared in Lu Yun's eyes. Waiting for the voices of the crowd to fade, he nodded and said solemnly: "Lu Yun did not misjudge people. You junior brothers are indeed sensible people."

Speaking to this point, his tone changed slightly, and he said in a low voice to everyone: "I won't hide it from you junior brothers: Senior Brother predicts that the Master's original camp should have more than just these five hundred people who escaped. Not just Zhu Junior Brother, I have discovered at least a hundred strange Frost-Resistance level faces over the past few years."

"A hundred!"

"So many?"

…………

Zhu Bai Xu and others suddenly let out a cry of surprise, their pupils full of shock.

Unlike them, who had only been here for a month, Lu Yun had been living in Dongling for a long time. Coupled with their interaction over the past month, Lu Yun already had great prestige among them. What he said was undoubtedly more convincing, so the teenagers believed it immediately.

A hundred new Frost-Resistance level faces, plus the hundred people Dongling already had—that was a full two hundred Frost-Resistance level people. The key is that this was only a part of the people who escaped after Lu Yang's original camp suffered a disaster.

How strong must the camp where Lu Yang originally lived be?

"You junior brothers have been here for more than a month and should be able to see that the Master and Zhao Shanyu and the others don't care about the vast majority of people in Dongling at all and clearly haven't made any long-term plans. I estimate that this group of people will sooner or later leave Beishuo and go back to rebuild their homes. Don't you junior brothers want to follow them and see how strong the Master's original camp really is?"

Zhu Bai Xu, Bai Wuji, Wan Qingyu, Nie Shen, Yang He, and the other eighteen people looked at each other after hearing Lu Yun's words, their expressions full of excitement.