Endless Winter: My Camp Upgrades Infinitely

Chapter 873: Chapter 335: Songyang Ridge, Seven Houses Surrender, First Batch of Silver Arrives

In the third year of Great Xia, on the eighth day of August, during the night.

On the north bank of the Xing River, more than twenty kilometers east of Five Ape Mountain.

A team of more than three hundred people was slowly heading north through the snow forest.

The vast majority of the team were wearing Hundred Forged Level Lei Kui Golden Armor, carrying strong bows capable of thirty stones of strength, wielding various weapons, while only a dozen leaders wore the regular dress of Great Xia.

Although the rear of the team largely maintained silence, the dozen at the front were chatting leisurely as they walked, clearly not on a hunting trip.

”Judging by the flow of the Xing River, the terrain along its banks should be rising continuously from west to east. The Pingxi Plain where we live is either in the middle or lower reaches of the Xing River.”

”The cliffs of Twin Dragon Mountain stretch north to south for hundreds of kilometers, with the lowest point over two thousand meters. The valley the Xing River flows through is its only fracture zone, making the slopes on both banks the only way to enter the Pingxi Plain.”

”Not sure about the south bank, but on our north bank, the width seems to be at most five kilometers, except for Songyang Ridge. Who knows if there are other wider areas to the east. Finding a few more resource points could earn Wuyuan more prestige in front of the lord!”

”Haha, Lord Zhao’s ambitions are a bit hefty. Discovering Songyang Ridge already gives us in Wuyuan the qualification to spar with Long Mountain. If we can also annex all seven camps, it’d be a great achievement. By the year-end evaluation, we might not lose to Long Mountain. Finding other new resource points would surely make Wuyuan quite prominent.”

”Hahahaha, very true!”

...

Hearing the banter from Lin Kai, Zhao Bao, Yu Bin, and others behind, recalling the recent buzz caused by Wuyuan in Xia City, Xu Ning at the forefront also smiled. Yet, as he gazed at the land on the north bank before him, his thoughts went far beyond that.

He took a gentle breath and then solemnly spoke:

”The lord named this place Xing Valley Pass, signifying the sole gateway connecting Pingxi Plain with the outside world. Such an important pass must be firmly grasped in the hands of our Great Xia. Starting with Songyang Ridge, after dealing with those seven camps, we shall immediately begin exploring Songyang Ridge and continue eastward to make the entire north bank of Xing Valley Pass our Great Xia’s territory!”

He paused for a moment before continuing, ”By doing so, our Great Xia can conveniently expand eastward, extending its territory beyond Pingxi Plain, or even take over the entire Twin Dragon Mountain. We might even compete with the rumored Moao Nine Towns!”

Lin Kai, Zhao Bao, Yu Bin, Lin Ye, Xu Shicheng, and other officials from the Seven Departments of Wuyuan listened to these grand and bold words and their expressions became slightly more serious.

Among them, only Lin Kai knew about Xing Valley Pass; the others were hearing of it from Xu Ning for the first time and only now understood Wuyuan’s strategic geographical significance.

”No wonder the lord set up the Seven Departments in Wuyuan, now it makes sense!”

”I was wondering why a relatively small Five Ape Mountain with scarce resources needed the Seven Departments. I was shortsighted.”

”As expected, the lord is far-sighted. I, Yu, am convinced both in heart and words!”

...

Hearing Yu Bin’s final words, Xu Ning glanced back at him with a hint of satisfaction on his face.

Yu Bin, the leader of the former Xiling Camp, had been part of Great Xia for less than a year after being incorporated from Longyou. Due to an assassination incident involving the lord at Long Mountain last year, Xia Chuan had a very poor impression of him.

Of course, Xu Ning felt the same.

However, there was no denying that Yu Bin’s performance after joining Great Xia had been commendable.

Back in July last year at Long Mountain, he had teamed up with the original Xiling’s Yu Cheng and Long Mu, both of Cold Resistance Level, to form the Lingyuan Team. With a decent foundation, by the start of the Cold Element Festival, Lingyuan was promoted to the Advanced Hunting Team.

Initially, when the Seven Departments were established in Wuyuan at the beginning of the year, the Logging Department’s position of Medicine Lord was vacant. The minister intended to let others compete for it. However, not long after the Cold Element Festival, Yu Bin achieved a significant merit at Beimang Mountain.

In early spring, Hou Jing was granted a title because of discovering a silver mine at Beimang Mountain, and the clue to this silver mine was found by the Lingyuan Team stationed at Zhaoyang at that time.

Yu Bin’s bad luck meant that when he found several White Jade Hazelnuts at the base of the mountain, and got people to start digging into the mountainside just two or three kilometers from the silver mine’s location, they were discovered by the Nine-headed Advanced Giant Fire Lizard.

Lingyuan Team lost five people, and Yu Bin himself was severely injured.

Left with no choice, he had to report the clues. At the time, the strongest hunting team north of Longyou was Hou Jing’s Beizhao Squad, and it eventually led to Hou Jing’s ennoblement.

Although Yu Bin hadn’t confirmed the silver mine’s location, he still made significant contributions, so Xia Chuan appointed him to the position of Medicine Lord in Wuyuan’s Logging Department.

Since taking up the position, Yu Bin has indeed performed well, not only cooperating with this Defender’s daily work but also personally leading teams to survey after the discovery of Songyang Ridge in June. He found more than ten new species including Golden Pinecone, White Jade Hazelnut, and Blue Mulberry Tree, earning considerable merit.

Furthermore, his words and actions show increasing respect for Lord Xia Hong, and he is indeed integrating into Great Xia at a rapid pace.

”My lord, we have arrived at Songyang Ridge!”

Xu Ning’s thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a voice from behind. He looked up to find that the team had emerged from the snow forest, reaching the southern end of a ridge.