Endless Winter: My Camp Upgrades Infinitely

Chapter 1812: Chapter 579: Panlong Palace, First Encounter with Xiahou Xuan

“I remember now, Chilong Lake is a forbidden area, inhabited by a bloodthirsty demon dragon of terrifying power. Five years ago, during the chaos at Dajue Temple, that demon dragon was briefly revived under the control of Master Wusheng. The anomaly at Chilong Lake might be related to the demon dragon?”

Xiahou Yong, who was following the soldier towards Chilong Lake, suddenly realized, raising his head to look at the soldier ahead with a face full of suspicion.

Jiang Yiqing heard the words and quickly reacted, looking at the soldier with a hint of confusion.

Speaking of the demon dragon affair five years ago, the main participants were the lords and army chiefs of each town in the Southern Slope, plus three Xianyang Level experts from Chen Cang. Besides these people, it was assumed only the locals of Qinghepu and some Xia Army soldiers present knew.

But given Great Xia’s strict record-keeping, such a significant event was definitely recorded immediately in the Great Xia Calendar. The Calendar and Xia Li are two books that Xia people must read. Xiahou Yong and Jiang Yiqing, having been in the Great Xia Capital for so long, had certainly read them in detail and came to know about the demon dragon.

“You two are overthinking. It should have nothing to do with the demon dragon. I heard from the brothers on guard there that they saw several figures sneak into the lake before dawn. Worried they might be feudal town spies, they reported immediately to the three lords, but it’s been over three hours since the lords went over, and no news has come back yet, so it should be fine. Maybe they just saw wrong.”

Upon hearing this, Xiahou Yong frowned and exchanged glances with Jiang Yiqing, both showing a hint of seriousness.

Chilong Lake has a demon dragon sleeping in it. Such an important place naturally has a dedicated military garrison to guard it, not because the army can fend off the demon dragon, but because due to Master Wusheng’s precedent of manipulating the dragon’s body, Great Xia fears others with ulterior motives may come to use this dragon again.

If someone were to awaken the demon dragon in advance, it would be a catastrophe for the present Great Xia.

Witnessing several figures sneak into the lake, the garrison soldiers’ report is certainly not baseless. Anyone daring to think of this demon dragon must not be a simple character.

“Rest assured, north of the Five Towns hasn’t been destroyed yet, and sometimes spies would infiltrate around Chilong Lake. We’re used to it, and with the Five Towns now successively wiped out, even Cai Qiu defeated by our lord, where would they dare to send spies to court death? Certainly, there’s no issue!”

The soldier’s judgment about the garrison seeing incorrectly was originally based on this.

Xiahou Yong was silent for a moment, internally shaking his head, but he didn’t speak.

Beside him, Jiang Yiqing clearly didn’t agree either, but he wouldn’t retort against that young soldier either, just quickened his pace slightly, wanting to meet Cheng He sooner.

Chilong Lake is just three kilometers from Qinghe Village, and the three accelerated their pace, soon reaching the lake shore.

“Chilong Lake is a forbidden area, halt!”

On the western shore, the Defensive Army had already sealed off the area. As the three approached, they were stopped by soldiers.

“Cheng Yang, why are you here?”

Fortunately, someone led the way, and Jiang Xinfan then realized the young soldier who accompanied him was named Cheng Yang, muttering to himself that it seemed so. Judging by age, he was likely Cheng He’s relative, like a nephew.

Cheng Yang evidently had some reputation in Qinghepu’s Defensive Army. After chatting with the soldiers blocking the way, he soon gained passage.

“The three lords are surveying the situation in the center of the lake. Please follow me!”

Though Xiahou Yong and Jiang Yiqing hadn’t assumed their posts, they counted as officials. Upon learning the reason, the soldier courteously led them inside.

The two followed the soldier through the army blockade to the shore, and upon seeing the scene in the center of the lake, their expressions suddenly froze.

The Ice Abyss’s extreme cold meant all water bodies were basically frozen with solid ice, and the ice thickness was exceptionally terrifying. Without camps like Great Xia with fishing and hunting capabilities breaking the ice, one would barely see flowing water.

Chilong Lake was no exception.

The lake’s surface was now frozen, with many soldiers walking and surveying on the ice, some holding torches, some spreading solidified fire oil, and others patrolling with crimson deceit detection stones…

This scene was familiar to Xiahou Yong and Jiang Yiqing; they realized it was inspecting deceitful object auras. Being promoted to Defense Envoy meant they were experienced from training across various Great Xia locations.

Typically, the danger level of water bodies is far higher than land. Great Xia mainly controls water bodies through the Xing River, covering the five regions of Wuyuan, Qinghepu, Hongmen, Binjiang, and Jiuqu. The power of Water Cold Beasts is innately terrifying, and with water as their home terrain, the casual activities on the ice seen here are basically impossible in other regions.

But Chilong Lake is an exception, clearly recorded in the Great Xia Calendar, as having not a single Water Cold Beast, thanks to the bloodthirsty demon dragon.

It makes sense; with such a terrifying demon dragon residing, no other Water Cold Beast can survive.

However, what made the two’s faces freeze was not the soldiers exploring the lake but the scene in the lake’s center.

From the lake’s center, a dazzling golden light shone, visible from hundreds of meters away. Xiahou Yong saw clearly that Cheng He and others were surrounding a patch of flowing water.

The light emerged from the lake bottom, as if some rare treasure was emitting golden rays, penetrating the water’s flow to the surface.