Chapter 93: 【Seek First Subscription】Wooden Dummy

「This…」

「Three cold beasts in one night?」

「How is that possible!」

「When Luo Ming was leader, the most they ever got in a night was two, right?」

「Not even two—that time, I remember, one was just found.」

「Three cold beasts in one night? This… this… how is it possible?」

「Over three thousand jin?」

「What three thousand jin? Didn’t you hear? Just said—it’s 4,280 jin.」

………………

Three prey, from entering the valley, being carried into the wooden hut, to the final weighing, drew continuous shouts of astonishment from everyone in the camp.

Whether they had work in hand or had been inside the hut all along, everyone now came over, surrounding the three prey in layers, faces filled with shock, awe, even disbelief.

The most stunned of the camp’s nine hundred-plus souls were the families of Da Chuan and Huang Zhao, who had just entered; not even one intact cold beast corpse had they ever seen before.

Next were the hundred-odd men of Luo Ge’s camp—though they’d seen hunting teams return with prey under Luo Ming’s leadership, three in a single hunt clearly shook them to their core.

In comparison, the three hundred-plus of Great Xia reacted least, yet their expressions made clear this trio of prey had still delivered a heavy psychological blow.

4,280 jin—once the three prey were skinned and boned to reveal the net weight of cold beast meat, everyone turned instinctively toward Xia Hong, all minds simultaneously recalling his earlier promise on meat distribution.

So… he wasn’t lying to us.

He truly can do it!

Xia Hong understood their thoughts perfectly.

Tonight, he brought back three prey precisely to make every soul in the camp know he could fulfill his promise on cold beast meat distribution.

First, to reassure them; second…

Xia Hong took three wooden bottles from Xia Chuan, then walked to the wooden dummy, opened each bottle in turn, and dripped the three collected cold beast essences into its hollowed abdomen.

The moment the essences touched the surface, Xia Hong immediately sensed the change within the system’s wooden dummy.

Wooden Dummy (Level 1): Training tool. Activated by coal stones, greatly enhances cultivation speed and martial insight.

Special Function 1: Can record cold beast species via essence, manifesting as any recorded beast and unleashing its adult-level power.

Currently recorded species: Long-tongued Snow Mane, Bone-spiked Frost Wolf, Golden-eyed Demon Sheep.

All three species recorded. Next, just place the coal stones.

Xia Hong’s eyes flickered slightly as he placed three coal stones on the dummy’s abdomen.

The moment the stones touched the surface, they ignited spontaneously, a warm fluorescent glow surging from the dummy’s abdomen outward along its limbs.

In moments, the once lifeless wooden dummy lifted its head, opened its eyes, stretched its arms—alive, as if awakened.

「The wooden man came to life?」

「What wooden man? That’s the leader’s wooden dummy.」

「Right, right—it’s the one the leader made earlier. I forgot.」

「It really came alive.」

…………

This astonishing sight instantly triggered a chorus of cries as everyone surged forward.

Ignoring their astonishment, Xia Hong shifted his focus, confirmed one cold beast species, and selected the dummy’s sparring mode.

The instant he made his choice, the dummy changed immediately.

Its abdomen blazed bright, then erupted in a blinding flash that momentarily blinded everyone.

When the light faded, the wooden dummy was gone. In its place stood a four-meter-long adult Snow Mane, its back bristling with backward-facing spines, twin long fangs bared, face twisted in ferocity.

At first sight of the Snow Mane, everyone instinctively flinched in fear—but seeing it stand motionless, and watching Xia Hong step forward to touch its body, they realized at once: this was the dummy transformed, not a real cold beast.

Fear vanished, replaced by curiosity and awe.

「Turned into… a cold beast?」

「That’s the wooden dummy just now?」

「This isn’t real, is it?」

「It’s probably not as strong as a real one—just looks identical.」

…………

Xia Hong studied the dummy’s transformed form carefully, then turned toward the wooden hut’s entrance and saw dawn was still some way off—he stepped outside.

The Snow Mane, now a manifestation of the dummy, followed him step by step. Though its expression remained calm and showed no aggression, the moment it moved, everyone inside the hut recoiled in terror, scattering to either side.

Not just ordinary men—even those of Wood-Cutting Realm reacted the same.

This alone revealed how deeply the fear of cold beasts was etched into the bones of these humans in Redwood Ridge.

Xia Hong naturally noticed this.

He frowned slightly, then quickly relaxed.

After all, the humans here on Redwood Ridge were still far too weak. Even the weakest cold beasts ranked higher in the food chain, hence this fear, rooted in their very marrow.

Tonight’s hunt proved one thing: their group’s position in the food chain would soon rise entirely above low-tier cold beasts. Once that happened, this fear would slowly fade with time.

Outside the hut, Xia Hong stepped ten meters away from the Snow Mane, then gave the command to begin.

The instant he spoke, the Snow Mane’s calm face snapped upward, its pupils darkening to crimson, its breathing growing heavier, its expression twisting into ferocity.

Roar…

A muffled roar erupted as the Snow Mane shot forward like a cannonball, charging straight at Xia Hong.

The valley floor held no snow, yet each of its paws left deep claw marks in the earth.

The sheer force of its charge was terrifying.

Ten meters was easily enough for Xia Hong to dodge—but he didn’t. He steadied his breath, rooted his feet, leaned forward, arms spread, motionless, eyes locked on the charging beast.

Thwack…

The moment Xia Hong’s hands gripped the Snow Mane’s skull, it exploded like a detonating cannonball.

The beast’s terrifying impact sent him skidding backward over ten meters—his straw sandals worn through, his feet carving a ten-meter-long gouge in the ground.

Chi…

Yet even so, Xia Hong, leaning forward, managed to halt the Snow Mane’s charge after those ten meters.

And more than that.

Xia Hong’s brow tightened, teeth clenched, he channeled all his strength, flipped his arms, lifted his body into the air, spun mid-flight, summoning every ounce of force.

Using the Snow Mane’s residual momentum, he flipped its massive body a full circle through the air.

Boom…

The Snow Mane crashed to the ground with a thunderous impact.

Xia Hong rolled with the momentum, avoiding its back spines, mounted its neck, and pounded its skull with fists like relentless raindrops.

Shhh…

After dozens of blows, the Snow Mane’s movements weakened noticeably. Just as everyone thought Xia Hong had won, the beast suddenly opened its mouth—its long tongue shot out like a spear, piercing straight for Xia Hong’s chest.

Xia Hong, prepared, leapt back—but the distance was too short. Before he’d moved a meter, the tongue curved midair and wrapped around him.

Xia Hong’s eyes flickered. He cut his losses, reached out with one hand to grip the tongue, then halted his retreat, leapt into the air, drew his knees up, and slammed them down with full force onto the Snow Mane’s skull.

Boom… crack…

This airborne knee strike, delivered with his hardest joint, struck the Snow Mane’s head with a sharp, crisp snap of breaking bone.

The Snow Mane’s movements slowed further, clearly mortally wounded.

But the tongue he’d grabbed with his arm had already pressed against his neck.

One more inch, and he’d be dead.

That meant…

「With a base strength of thirteen thousand jin, plus my Long Fist, my total force exceeds fifteen thousand jin—and yet, even barehanded in direct combat, I still can’t defeat the Snow Mane. The power of these cold beasts… is simply terrifying!」

Xia Hong stood, staring at the Snow Mane now restored to stillness, his face grave.

(End of Chapter)