Chapter 81: Luo Ming

The distance between Daya and Luo Ge’s camp was only four kilometers.

Although he had previously led the logging team through this route, this time, with all 341 people from the camp moving together—not just him and Xia Chuan’s six—it required far more consideration and was much harder.

Fortunately, Luo Ming seemed genuinely eager to leave; by nightfall the next day, shortly after dark, he arrived swiftly with Li Baihe, Xu Kang, Shang Ping, and nine others, coming from the direction of Hongmu Ridge.

The Daya people, having prepared overnight, were already ready.

In truth, there was almost nothing to carry besides people.

Clothing: among Daya’s current three hundred plus people, fewer than a hundred wore animal-skin skirts, over half of whom were those who had entered with Da Shi; the remaining two hundred plus all wore dry-leaf garments and simply laid down a layer of dry grass to sleep on—these items could be made on-site anytime, so there was no need to carry them.

Food: the only stored items were crystal fruits, totaling over twenty-four thousand jin; these were simply divided, with each able-bodied person carrying a sack—no problem; additionally, there was only one freshly hunted snow-maned cold beast, even simpler.

As for the accumulated wood from this period, Xia Hong had converted it all into fixed resources, storing it along with the iron-smelting furnace and several other structures inside the system, eliminating the need for manual transport and making things even easier.

Notably, once physical items were converted into resources, they could only be used for system structures; Xia Hong had previously kept some unconverted because the camp people needed wood to make tools.

Since the items to pack were few, and they had prepared a full day in advance, Xia Hong quickly finalized the travel plan.

As before, one hundred thirty-seven able-bodied men led the way, with Shang Ping at the front clearing the path;

one hundred forty-nine children under thirteen walked in the middle, guarded by Xu Kang and Li Baihe along with seven logging-level protectors;

forty-four slightly older individuals formed the third group;

Xia Hong and Luo Ming, accompanied by Xia Chuan and ten logging-level men, handled the rear guard.

“Move out!”

After finalizing the deployment, Xia Hong gave the order.

The entire Daya column began its massive northward migration.

Unlike last time, when moving from Cave One to Cave Four, when everyone’s faces showed confusion and uncertainty, this time, after leaving the cave and stepping onto the path, every person’s face carried excitement and eagerness.

Even the children, their faces blue from cold, still sparkled with hope and longing.

It was natural: for everyone around Hongmu Ridge, Luo Ge’s camp’s strength was deeply ingrained in their minds—even children knew life in Luo Ge’s camp was far better than theirs.

Ordinary people’s thoughts were, of course, naive.

They didn’t understand the difficulties of camp fusion, nor did they realize the hardships Luo Ming’s camp would face after he left with three diggers.

They simply naively believed they were going to Luo Ge’s camp to claim everything it had, and naturally felt overwhelming excitement.

Xia Hong would never dampen their spirits; having hope was better than having none.

Besides, he was confident that after reaching the valley, Daya’s development would accelerate by a full step—not only could they surpass Luo Ge’s camp’s former conditions, but even outdo them.

…………

Three hundred people could no longer follow the previous route of entering Hongmu Ridge first before heading north; this time, the migration path led directly north from the cave slope, passing through Tashan and the camps of Da Chuan and Huang Zhao, finally reaching the valley.

For safety, Xia Hong had minimized the column’s length as much as possible, but due to the sheer number, it still stretched fifty to sixty meters.

Visibility under the snowy night was poor; with such a long column, Xia Hong at the rear could no longer see the front. He therefore walked with Luo Ming to the side, slightly behind the main body, found a better vantage point, and continued moving forward.

“Brother Xia Hong, don’t be too tense. Cold beasts rarely move at night, and we’re no longer in Hongmu Ridge—we’ve already passed Tashan, and another two kilometers should get us there.”

Recalling how all the cold beasts he’d seen at night in Hongmu Ridge had been asleep, Xia Hong nodded, his nerves relaxing slightly.

Yet, as if heaven had heard Luo Ming’s words and took offense, just as Xia Hong’s tension eased, a long howl echoed from the western Hongmu Ridge.

“Aowu………………”

The voice of a frost wolf.

Xia Hong was startled, but recognizing it as only one bone-spined frost wolf, he quickly calmed down.

However,

Aowu… Aowu… Aowu…

A dozen consecutive frost wolf howls caused Xia Hong’s expression to change drastically, every hair on his body standing on end; he snapped his head up and shouted toward the front:

“Everyone, speed up! Hurry, hurry, hurry!”

Luo Ming, no longer caring whether his mouth had been blessed, reacted instantly and, like Xia Hong, shouted toward the front: “Shang Ping, move faster! Li Baihe, Xu Kang, bring your men over to help!”

As soon as the howls began, the column stirred, but Xia Hong and Luo Ming’s loud warnings calmed the crowd significantly.

Shang Ping at the front increased his pace; those at the rear suppressed their fear and kept moving forward with the column—the formation remained orderly, and their speed actually increased.

Meanwhile, Li Baihe and Xu Kang led their seven logging-level men away from the column to the western side; the ten men at the rear—Xia Chuan, Yuan Cheng, and others—also stepped forward.

All of them positioned themselves along the western flank of the column, watching intently the Hongmu Ridge—the very spot where the howls had originated.

They stared for over a hundred breaths, until the howls vanished completely.

Yet not a single frost wolf appeared.

Hssss…

Suddenly, the snow beneath their feet began to churn violently.

Over a hundred meters away, a dozen snow surges erupted out of nowhere, rushing swiftly toward them.

“What is that? Not frost wolves?”

Everyone’s eyes locked onto the towering snow waves, filled with confusion—the howls had definitely been frost wolves.

But what were these snow waves?

A sudden insight flashed through Xia Hong’s mind; his face paled. He drew his Cold Shock Blade, stepped away from the snow, and shouted in alarm:

“Underground! They’re all beneath the snow!”

Everyone instantly understood, quickly drew their weapons, and retreated rapidly beyond the snow.

“Xu Ning, Qiu Peng, climb the trees! Everyone else, stand with me and hold the line.”

As Xia Hong spoke, Luo Ming also realized—he turned and shouted to those behind him: “Bai He, Wang Dong, Wang Yu, you three—climb the trees, now!”

Their reactions had been swift.

But the frost wolves were faster.

No sooner had Luo Ming finished speaking than three powerful frost wolves burst from the snow directly before them, targeting Luo Ming, Xia Hong, and Xu Kang;

immediately behind them, over a dozen smaller frost wolves—seven headed for Xia Chuan, Yuan Cheng, and the other logging-level men, while another four or five circled past them and sprinted toward the fleeing ordinary camp members heading north.

“Damn!”

Xia Hong raised his blade to block the wolf charging at him, then turned to see the four or five wolves racing toward the civilians—his heart sank to the bottom.

(End of Chapter)