Chapter 55: Corpses Litter the Ground [Please Follow!]

Luo Ming was willing to return with Xia Hong, a sign of initial trust.

What Xia Hong needed was precisely this much trust.

All he wanted was for Luo Ming to return to the camp and take a look.

If nothing had happened at Luo Ge’s camp, that would be best—he hoped so too.

While traveling, Xia Hong also questioned Luo Ming, and after careful inquiry, he finally understood the source of Li Hu’s hostility toward him.

Earlier, Hong Mu’s remarks had already enraged Li Hu into striking someone; then, by sheer bad luck, Xia Hong mentioned being tricked four times by the Wood Puppet Ghost.

It turned out his own words had just landed right on the gun barrel.

Still, Xia Hong shook his head, feeling a flicker of disdain for Li Hu.

Before coming here, upon hearing of Beishuozhen’s hundred-thousand-strong population, Xia Hong had harbored some expectations for Yang Ning and Li Hu, both from that place.

After all, the more strong individuals there were, the safer the human environment and the higher the level of civilization; in this cruel world of Bingyuan, such a place ought to be humanity’s beacon.

Those who emerged from such a beacon should surely be exceptional.

But after hearing Luo Ming’s description, it was clear they were not.

This Li Hu was not only narrow-minded, quick-tempered, and easily angered, but also looked down on others, arrogant and full of rotten habits.

Xia Hong certainly didn’t believe everyone in Beishuozhen was like this—for instance, Luo Ming clearly held Yang Ning in high regard, speaking highly of him.

“It seems that even across different worlds, human nature remains universal—the truth that one grain of rice breeds a hundred kinds of people applies everywhere.”

“For a massive settlement like Beishuozhen, with over a hundred thousand people, it’s only natural that there are good and bad among them.”

This had already dispelled Xia Hong’s illusions about the so-called Beishuozhen.

“Chief Xia, are you a Digging Earth cultivator?”

Luo Ming asked this in a tone of shock.

After sprinting through the snow for so long, he had only now realized that unlike the other Woodcutting Realm cultivators lagging behind by over a hundred meters, Xia Hong had been right beside him the entire time.

An increase in foundational strength meant a comprehensive upgrade in physical condition and a major leap in control over all aspects of power—speed across snowfields was far beyond what Woodcutting Realm cultivators could achieve.

That he could keep pace with Luo Ming naturally meant he, too, had broken through to the Digging Earth Realm.

Xia Hong didn’t hide it—he simply nodded.

Looking at Xia Hong’s impossibly youthful face, Luo Ming drew in a sharp breath; his shock turned to suspicion.

It wasn’t that he’d never seen someone so young reach Digging Earth.

Not to mention far-off examples like Yang Ning and Li Hu—but in the vicinity of Hongmu Ridge, and especially in a tiny, insignificant camp like Daxia, such a thing was impossible.

Even if Xia Hong had extraordinary talent, he couldn’t have passed the test of Cold Beast Meat.

Even Luo Ge’s camp, with its steady supply of Cold Beast Meat over the years, had never produced a Digging Earth cultivator so young.

“Could this Xia Hong be a Wood Puppet Ghost in disguise?”

The thought rose in Luo Ming’s mind. He glanced back at Xia Chuan, Yuan Cheng, and the other six equally youthful Woodcutting Realm cultivators, then looked again at Xia Hong—his eyes grew wary.

Seeing Luo Ming’s expression change, Xia Hong immediately understood what he was thinking. Though slightly exasperated, he still admired Luo Ming’s cautious nature.

Honestly, if this group were replaced by any other, Luo Ming’s suspicion of the Wood Puppet Ghost would make perfect sense.

“Chief Luo, don’t jump to conclusions. Let’s return to the camp first—I’m ninety percent certain your camp has already suffered disaster!”

To avoid unnecessary complications, Xia Hong spoke up, giving Luo Ming a preemptive warning.

Luo Ming understood his meaning instantly; his face darkened, and his pace quickened.

Soon, the two arrived ahead at the valley entrance where Luo Ge’s camp lay; the others behind, already close, followed suit.

Seeing the pile of broken rocks and wood at the entrance unchanged from when he’d left, Luo Ming let out a sigh of relief.

But it was only temporary—he hurried around the debris to the left, searching through the rotting logs until he found the massive log blocking the entrance.

The log was over five meters in diameter and more than fifty meters long, made of the heaviest Jinlin wood; normally, several men were needed to pull it out, but Luo Ming, as a Digging Earth cultivator, could manage it alone.

Still, seeing him struggle, Xia Hong stepped forward to help pull it out together.

The other three Digging Earth cultivators from Luo Ge’s camp also came over.

With five Digging Earth cultivators pulling together, even the heaviest log was no match.

Thud…………

The log was yanked straight out, crashing to the ground with a thunderous boom.

But the moment the sound echoed, Xia Hong, Luo Ming, and everyone else present turned pale.

For at the end of the log facing the camp interior, six bloody arms hung prominently, beside them a large patch of shredded flesh and blood spatter.

“Something’s happened—follow me inside!”

Luo Ming shouted these words, his face covered in terror as he dashed into the entrance.

Behind him, the twenty-eight Digging Earth and Woodcutting Realm cultivators from Luo Ge’s camp also turned ashen and rushed in after him.

Xia Hong’s face darkened too, but he didn’t rush in—he first pulled a piece of Ninghuoyou from his pouch and handed it to Xia Chuan.

“Chuan, don’t go in. Paint Ninghuoyou all around the entrance’s outer edge, then hold the rest and guard here—anyone who comes out, spray it straight on their face.”

“Understood, Chief!”

“The rest of you, hurry inside with me.”

Saying this, Xia Hong led Yuan Cheng, Yue Feng, and the other five into the camp.

In truth, upon seeing those six bloody arms, Xia Hong had already guessed the horror within.

But when he finally stepped inside Luo Ge’s camp,

his scalp still went numb.

Corpses littered everywhere…

Everywhere he looked lay dead bodies; every step trod on bloodstains.

The thick stench of blood coalesced into mist, drifting through the valley.

Mangled limbs and severed arms were scattered everywhere; yellowish-white chunks of flesh lay scattered across the ground.

The corpses on the ground were not one whole.

Some had half their skulls severed, others split clean in half at the waist, some with both legs cut off still crawling in agony…

These victims ranged from adults to children—even infants still nursing were among them, but their vitality was far weaker than adults’, reduced either to mounds of pulped flesh or sliced into several pieces by sharp blades.

The entire valley echoed with weak, pitiful sobs and cries, yet not a single intact living person could be seen on the ground.

“Aaaaaaaaaa…”

Terror, grief, rage, guilt, madness, disbelief…

A thousand emotions fused into Luo Ming’s piercing, chilling scream, which tore through the valley and echoed into the heavens.

Xia Hong took a deep breath, watching Luo Ming and his group ahead, his eyes flickering with sympathy.

Others might hear different things in Luo Ming’s scream.

But he heard only overwhelming pain and despair.

Exactly as Shi Qing had shown him when he’d witnessed the massacre firsthand.

(End of Chapter)