Endless Winter: My Camp Upgrades Infinitely

Chapter 1256: Chapter 416: Secluded Cultivation Breakthrough, A Botched Arrest, Let Your Superior Handle It [Subscribe Request]

”Even if those two feudal towns have it, I have no idea how to get there!”

Reflecting on the promise he made to Li Xuanling last month to comfort her, a hint of helplessness crossed Xia Hong’s face.

Regarding the locations of Chen and Cai feudal towns, all he knew was that they were to the north; beyond that, he was clueless. He couldn’t just recklessly search northward, could he?

Having a Xianyang Level of cultivation was considered quite commendable among humans, but it definitely wasn’t enough to roam freely in the Ice Abyss.

The Sumeru Nightmare on Twin Dragon Mountain was a living lesson.

In any unfamiliar area, recklessly venturing in demands a price.

Death, too, is not impossible!

Furthermore, the lack of large-scale migrations from Chen Cang and Cai Qiu feudal towns south into the Nine Towns Territory already spoke volumes.

Of course, Cai Qiu was able to plant secret agents within the Nine Towns Territory, and Chen Cang was able to send three Xianyang Level individuals this April to assist the Northern Three Towns against Dajue Temple. These two points alone suggest that there’s a special route connecting the two towns up north.

The only current issue with going to the feudal towns is the precise route.

The Great Xia currently captured a Cai Qiu secret agent, Han Peng, but the problem is Han Peng is from Jinshan Town and has never even been to Cai Qiu; Mu Longhe saw the three Xianyang Levels from Chen Cang, but knows nothing about Chen Cang, let alone the route there. The only thing he knows is that Yang Zhun, Qin Feng, and Shangguan Yang seem to have a fair understanding of Chen Cang.

”Could it be that I really need to ask Qin Feng and Shangguan Yang?”

Xia Hong’s brows slightly furrowed; Yang Zhun was certainly out of consideration. The likelihood of Qin Feng and Shangguan Yang telling him was also slim, especially since he had humiliated them at Hongmen last month.

Thus, asking those three about the route was virtually out of the question.

”There are two other ways: one is to catch the middle-aged man in black who killed members of the Three Towns Chamber of Commerce and disrupted relations in the Nine Towns. He definitely knows, but according to the information Xia Chuan brought back, this person is extremely careful and also has means to alter memories, making him difficult to catch;

the second way is to start with Han Peng from Jinyang Village, or capture more secret agents like him!”

Han Peng had mentioned that he meets with his Cai Qiu superior twice a year, once in March and once in August. Lu Yang has already brought Han Li under his wing and taken him to East Ridge, so Han Peng surely wouldn’t dare to betray them. Come next March or August, capturing the superior he meets will reveal how to get to Cai Qiu.”

Having uncovered Han Peng’s identity as a Cai Qiu secret agent, the Great Xia naturally wouldn’t easily release him. Fortunately, through Han Feng, the Great Xia had long grasped the situation in Jinyang Village and knew Han Peng had a precious grandson named Han Li. They had thus informed Lu Yang in advance, asking him to find a pretext to bring Han Li to East Ridge.

Han Peng was currently the only lead the Great Xia had to reach the Cai Qiu feudal town, so it was handled with caution to prevent him from reverting his allegiance.

”By the way, there’s the newly appeared Chu Yan’er, who also seems to be someone who’s killed deceitful monsters. It’s unclear from which feudal town she comes; let’s see if Xia Chuan can extract some useful information from her!”

In summary, there’s no need to inquire from the Northern Three Towns. The Great Xia can at least rely on existing clues and methods. It might take some time, but as long as the location of Cai Qiu is pinpointed, finding the other feudal towns won’t be a problem.

”The urgent task is still cultivation. Before setting off to the feudal towns, I need to enhance my strength a bit more!”

Strictly speaking, Xia Hong formally made a breakthrough last September. Counting it, it’s just been a year. His strength steadily rose from just over 10 jun to 11 jun, which in the outside world might be considered a fairy tale.

But let’s not forget that with both the Enlightenment Lotus Platform and the Martial Arts Pavilion doubling his efforts, he experienced an eightfold increase in cultivation speed. Also, Mu Longhe and Xiang Fuhai had not healed; in the entire Great Xia, he was the only one at the Xianyang Level who could normally cultivate, so all the Bone Condensing Pills and Bone Gathering Pills were for his use, making resources no issue; adding the enhancement from the Twelve Blood Scripture Skills made it all the more impressive.

Thus, it may seem like he’s been cultivating for just a year, but the actual time is far more.

”By my estimation, it’ll take another two years to reach the middle stage. Currently, I’m still relying on Bone Condensing Pills and Bone Gathering Pills for cultivation. Let’s hope Moao Mountain brings some unexpected surprises...”

Xia Hong brushed aside his idle thoughts, closed his eyes for meditation, and began cultivating as the Lotus Platform emitted a faint luminescence.

......

While Xia Hong immersed himself in cultivation at the Star-picking Platform,

the atmosphere at the North Fifth District of the Outer City suddenly turned grim.

The Outer City actually only established 22 districts, with 18 districts in East City and 4 districts in North City.

The so-called North Fifth District was a temporary setup specifically for accommodating external settlers.

Since the opening of the port at Hongmen in July, and the Great Xia deciding to open its doors to the outside world, an influx of people from other towns and village-level camps, even from the Outer Domain, came to Xia City in admiration. These people came for various purposes—visiting, investing themselves, trading, or even covertly gathering information.

Whatever the purpose may be, since the Great Xia decided to open its doors, it naturally needed to accommodate all these people properly for reputation as well as safety, hence setting up this North Fifth District for their residence.

Of course, it all comes at a fee!

Those who dared travel from afar to Xia City were naturally capable individuals. Previously, those able to reside in the North Fifth District at least had Earth-digging Realm Limit Cultivation. However, since the eighteenth of last month, the situation has changed.