Endless Winter: My Camp Infinite Upgrades

Chapter 358 Old Acquaintances of the Great Xia Dynasty, Chaos in Qinghe Village, Vajra Master, and Xu Ning's Surprise
September 25th, 131st year of the Moo calendar, night
At the entrance of Qinghe Village, a middle-aged man with a calm demeanor and carrying a long spear led a hunting team of about ten people, dragging two prey animals that were seven or eight meters long, as they walked in from outside the village.

It was nighttime, and there were not only patrol personnel at the village entrance, but also many people coming and going. The middle-aged man was obviously quite famous in Qinghe Village, and many people greeted him as soon as he entered the village.

"Captain Zhang Qin, you've had a very fruitful day!"

"Haha, not bad, not bad!"

"Two mid-level cold beasts in one night, your team is getting stronger and stronger."

"I'm in luck tonight, hahaha."

…………

While smiling and dealing with everyone, Zhang Qin slowly walked towards the village. When he reached the residential area, he turned to the team members behind him and said, "Alright, take these two prey back and divide them up. Hand over what needs to be handed over, and just give me a share after you've divided them up."

"Same as always, the captain is great!"

"Haha, of course, our captain is known for being very generous."

"Thank you, Captain."

"Thank you Captain!"

…………

The team members thanked him upon hearing this, and then dispersed and left.

In the end, only two team members remained. They followed Zhang Qin to the western part of the village. Along the way, people kept greeting Zhang Qin, and he responded to them with a smile, never getting tired of it.

Once the streets were finally deserted, Zhang Qin instantly wiped the smile off his face, a glint of light appearing in his eyes. He turned to look at the two team members behind him, who were about the same age as him, took out seven crumpled pieces of paper, and handed four to each of them. He whispered, "Split up. You each take charge of two houses, and I'll take care of the remaining three. Remember to be careful. There are many sentries in the village. If we're discovered, all our efforts will be in vain."

"Understood, sir!"

The two nodded solemnly, took the crumpled paper, and immediately went their separate ways.

Zhang Qin continued walking towards the western corner of the village and soon arrived at an ordinary wooden house. The window of the house was ajar. Zhang Qin was very vigilant. After confirming several times that no one was watching, he subtly flicked his wrist, and the paper ball flew into the ajar window.

After throwing the paper ball away, he quickly left the spot and headed elsewhere, clearly intending to find another place.

call out…………

Inside the wooden house, behind the half-open window, stood a young man in white, who looked to be about twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old. He seemed to have known all along, and the paper ball flew into the house and was caught by him before it even hit the ground.

After catching the crumpled paper, he immediately went inside.

The young man walked into a quiet room at the back of the house with practiced ease. Six people were sitting by the fireplace in the room: an elderly man who looked to be in his seventies or eighties; next to him was a hunched old woman; a man and two women, who all looked older than the young man and appeared to be middle-aged; and finally, a child who looked to be just over ten years old sat at the very end, looking very frightened.

If Xu Ning saw this group of seven, he would probably immediately see the problem: an elder, his son and daughter-in-law, plus the youngest grandson. It was exactly the same as when he led his men to infiltrate Hexia Village.

In a normal family, the two elders would naturally be the highest-ranking members, but the reality was clearly different. As soon as the young man walked in, the two elders, the child, and the two women immediately stood up, while the middle-aged man in black sitting in the middle did not react at all.

"Greetings, Commander Yang!"

"No need for formalities, please sit down..."

The young man in white gestured for the five of them to sit down first, then walked to the middle-aged man in black, unfolded the crumpled paper, and respectfully handed it over.

The middle-aged man in black took the crumpled paper, and after reading its contents, his gaze suddenly sharpened. He whispered, "It's time to make a move!"

[On September 28th, the operation began half an hour after dawn, throwing Qinghe Village into chaos.]

The young man in white had already taken his seat next to the middle-aged man, so he could easily see the contents of the crumpled paper by turning his head. Upon seeing the text, the young man's brows furrowed slightly, but after a moment's thought, he seemed to understand immediately. A glint of light appeared in his eyes as he said to the middle-aged man in black:

"Commander, Jiangxia Town is planning to create unrest in Qinghe Village to lure out those bastards from Dajue Temple, and then take this opportunity to send others to spy on Dajue Temple, right?"

Upon hearing this, the middle-aged man in black turned to look at the young man in white, his face immediately showing deep appreciation. He nodded and said, "To be able to discern Jiangxia Town's plan from just these few words, Yang Ning, it is truly a waste of your talent to serve as a commander under this general!"

If Xu Ning were here now, he would definitely recognize at a glance that this young man in white is none other than Yang Ning, the scout of the Northern Shuo Town Imperial Guard who came to Hongmu Ridge to draw a map eight years ago.

Eight years have passed, and Yang Ning, now over thirty, has naturally lost much of his youthful naiveté and become much more mature. However, the occasional arrogance that flashes between his brows proves that he still harbors a sense of superiority as a member of the Northern Shuo family.

"You flatter me, Commander!"

Hearing the praise from Commander Huang Lin, Yang Ning humbly replied before continuing, "Jiangxia Town has been lying in wait in Qinghe Village for over a year, and they haven't even entered the gates of Dajue Temple yet. If it weren't for Ba Shang leaking the news at the end of last year, we in Beishuo would probably still be in the dark. Who would have thought that such a behemoth would emerge on the north bank of Hengjiang!"

Recalling the dilapidated camps he saw eight years ago when he came to the north bank of Hengjiang to draw, and comparing them with the current scene in Qinghe Village, Yang Ning, who considered himself to be quite composed, still couldn't help but reveal a hint of horror in his eyes.

"Qinghe Village only has a little over two hundred Cold Resistance level monks, which is nothing special. The problem is that there are over five thousand monks with hair living in the Zen temple in the east of the village. Although their strength is only three-mane, they are all genuine Cold Resistance level monks. This number is comparable to our Nine Towns..."

Yang Ning paused slightly before continuing, "The Zen temple in the east of the village can only be considered the outer area of ​​Dajue Temple. The ten formal monks who came out of the Zen temple in February this year all had a strength of over twenty bristles, and the strongest of them even had a strength of over fifty bristles. If all the formal monks in Dajue Temple have this strength, then Jiuzhen will be in trouble."

And those five enigmatic masters—we haven't seen a single one yet. Judging from what we've seen so far, those five masters are definitely all at the Manifestation Yang level. The only question is, how do their strengths compare to the Manifestation Yang level experts of the Nine Towns?

Commander-in-Chief Huang Lin nodded slightly upon hearing this, his expression unusually solemn.

The matter of Dajue Temple was originally known only to the towns of Jiangxia and Chuishan.

This is not hard to understand. The eastern entrance on the north bank of the Hengjiang River is sandwiched between these two towns, one to the south and one to the north. Being so close, these two towns were naturally the first to know about the situation.

However, at the end of last year, the people of Ba Shang Town also unexpectedly discovered this Dajue Temple. Jiangxia and Ba Shang are adjacent and are the only two towns among the nine towns that are near water. The relationship between the two towns was already extremely bad. Ba Shang Town keenly realized that Jiangxia deliberately concealed the news of Dajue Temple in order to monopolize the benefits, so they directly leaked the news.

In this way, all nine towns knew about the Dajue Temple.

The Nine Towns are not those weak camps. Everyone knows that although the monsters are dangerous, killing them will bring huge benefits. Under such circumstances, the other seven towns naturally do not want Jiangxia and Chuishan to monopolize the benefits.

Thus, at the end of last year, under the leadership of the three northern towns, an operation targeting Dajue Temple was launched by nine towns.

The official purpose was to eliminate the monsters and protect the safety of the Nine Towns, but what the real purpose was was something everyone knew without saying.

Last year, people from Jiangxia and Chuishan towns infiltrated Qinghe Village. The other seven towns, upon learning of the situation, naturally did not want to be left behind. At the beginning of the year, except for Muyin Town, which explicitly stated that it would not get involved, the other six towns sent people to sneak in.

The seven of them were sent by Beishuo Town.

After spending eight months in Qinghe Village, Huang Lin finally understood why Jiangxia and Chuishan towns had failed to achieve anything after more than a year of lurking there.

This Dajue Temple is extremely secretive about protecting outsiders.

The temple is located at Chilong Lake, just three kilometers east of Qinghe Village. The more than 5,000 monks with hair at the Zen Temple in the east of the village patrol the area within two kilometers of Dajue Temple day and night. Getting past this checkpoint would be as difficult as climbing to heaven.
Even if you manage to get through this hurdle, there's another obstacle within a one-kilometer radius of Chilong Lake: the formal monks of Dajue Temple. Those formal monks are even more terrifying in strength, and their numbers seem to be quite large as well.

In the first half of the year, each of the six towns sent a master of concealment, skilled in the Cold Resistance level, to try to get close to the temple and spy on it. However, not a single one of them returned. The six towns then realized that Jiangxia and Chuishan towns had obviously suffered losses before and were deliberately keeping quiet to trick them.

After losing a number of skilled fighters, Liuzhen dared not advance any further, so he sent people to continue to lie in wait in Qinghe Village and slowly gather information.

Bazhen's idea was not complicated. As long as he sent people to infiltrate Qinghe Village, they would eventually be able to integrate into the core circle of the village. At that time, even if they could not enter Dajue Temple, they could at least obtain some useful information.

But as it turns out, they oversimplified things again.

Not only does Dajue Temple strictly guard against outsiders, but the same applies to Qinghe Village.

The village is full of sentries. Anyone who dares to inquire about Dajue Temple or the six-year-old children will immediately attract attention. At best, they will be watched for ten days or half a month; at worst, they will be taken away.

At first, the eight towns were unaware of these things. The several groups of spies who had infiltrated each town were still in contact with each other. Later, they discovered that several people were being arrested every month, so they became smarter and stopped meeting each other. Instead, they communicated by passing notes.

Since Dajue Temple is closest to Jiangxia Town, the eight towns decided at the beginning of the meeting that Jiangxia Town would be in charge of this operation, and the people of the other seven towns would have to obey the command of Jiangxia Town.

That's why Jiangxia Town sent them a message at this moment.

"Commander, the eight spies currently lurking in Qinghe Village number at most sixty or seventy people, and probably less than half of them are at the Cold Resistance level. It's unlikely that such a small number of people can cause chaos in the entire Qinghe Village, is it?"

"What do you mean it's unlikely? With just this few people, it's simply impossible!"

Huang Lin shook his head directly, giving an affirmative answer.

Since the goal was to infiltrate Qinghe Village, they had to make it look convincing. If everyone came at the Cold Resistance level, people would definitely become suspicious. Therefore, the personnel configuration of the eight families who infiltrated this time was almost the same: three or four Cold Resistance level personnel, two or three Earth Digging level personnel, and one or two children.

Although Huang Lin was unsure of the number of spies from the other seven families, he was certain that the total number of Cold-Resistant level 3 personnel would not exceed thirty.

With thirty cold-resistant level cultivators, there's no need for the more than five thousand monks with hair at the East Village Zen Temple to take action. The two hundred or so cold-resistant level cultivators in Qinghe Village alone can be easily dealt with as long as they react in time.

With such a small number of people, trying to disrupt a camp of over 100,000 people, almost the size of a town, is simply wishful thinking.

Yang Ning naturally understood this as well. After glancing at the note, he looked up and asked, "If that's the case, where does Jiang Xia get the confidence to make a move? Could it be that he's deliberately trying to trick us and use us as a tool to kill someone?"

"That's not the case. This operation was jointly planned by the eight towns. Jiangxia wouldn't dare to use such underhanded tactics to harm people. I suspect they've sent more people. This has dragged on for far too long. Eight months and they haven't gotten a single useful piece of information. If this continues, the other seven towns won't care, but Jiangxia will be under increasing pressure. I can understand why they're eager to act ahead of schedule!"

Upon hearing this, Yang Ning immediately understood.

The stronger the monsters at Dajue Temple are, the more dangerous the situation will be for Jiangxia Town, which is closest to them. The other seven towns have no safety concerns, at least not in the short term. At this stage, they are more focused on seizing the treasure, so they are not in a hurry at all.

"In any case, before we infiltrated Qinghe Village at the beginning of the year, the military leader gave us orders to follow the arrangements of Jiangxia Town. Since Xiahou Qin sent us a message, we should listen to him."

"Xiahou Qin?"

When Yang Ning heard Huang Lin call out the messenger's name, he was stunned for a moment, then quickly realized what was happening and looked at the crumpled paper in Huang Lin's hand.

Huang Lin waved the crumpled paper and smiled smugly, "I had dealings with Xiahou Qin a few times in my early years, so I recognize his handwriting. He should have a strength of over thirty manes now, which is about the same as mine."

Yang Ning continued, "Commander, how should we cooperate with Jiangxia?"

"Just create some chaos. There aren't any important figures living in the western corner. We can set a few big fires to distract some of the Cold-resistant level people."

Yang Ning nodded and said, "However, after this operation, we have to leave. We can't stay in Qinghe Village any longer. Hopefully, the people we arranged in Jiangxia can really find out the specific situation of Dajue Temple!"

Upon hearing this, a dark glint flashed in Huang Lin's eyes, but he said nothing and continued to arrange the specific details of the operation the day after tomorrow with Yang Ning and the others.

………………

September 28th, 131st year of the Moo calendar

As dawn broke, the streets of Qinghe Village were deserted, with no one in sight. Although every household had their coal stoves lit, the entire village was almost completely silent, clearly indicating that most people were already fast asleep.

There are occasional patrols of the cold-weather gear on the streets, but their numbers are negligible, and they are mostly concentrated at the village entrance and the main building in the village center.

In the Ice Abyss, a day lasts only two hours, and most people are sound asleep at that time, so this scene is normal.

Time passed slowly, and half an hour quickly went by.

Half an hour later, a dark figure suddenly appeared below the main building of Qinghe Village. The figure was holding several torches in its hand. When it saw the animal skin mat on the ground floor of the main building, it threw the torches up there.

Sizzle sizzle...

The surface of the animal skin mat was covered with fine down, which ignited instantly when lit and then spread wildly to other parts of the mat. The person who threw the torch then quickly ran to several other places and threw the torches around indiscriminately.

boom………………

The buildings in Qinghe Village are mainly made of wood, so once the fire started, it immediately ignited the buildings and then spread incredibly rapidly.

"on fire?"

"The main building is on fire? How could the main building be on fire?"

"Someone set the fire! Someone set the fire!"

"Quickly, catch that man! He's running away!"

………………

Before the man could finish throwing the torch, several Cold-Resistant level warriors rushed out of the main building. Seeing that the fire had spread to the first floor, their faces were full of anger. When they saw the black-clad arsonist, they quickly rushed up to him.

"It's not just the main building! Look, there are more and more fires breaking out in the village, more than twenty in total, and the number keeps increasing!"

Unfortunately, before they could even take a single step forward, a cry of surprise came from above the main building. Everyone froze, looking up at the sky above the entire village, their expressions instantly frozen.

At least twenty plumes of black smoke rose into the sky above Qinghe Village, and the number was still increasing. Moreover, the black smoke was getting thicker and thicker, which clearly indicated that the fire was growing rapidly.

Thump...thump...thump...thump...

Nine loud chimes suddenly rang out from the top of the main building, waking everyone in Qinghe Village from their dreams.

"Is that the main building's alarm bell? Is there an enemy attack?"

"Nine rings—that's a call for reinforcements from the Zen monastery!"

"Fire! Fire everywhere! Go put out the fire!"

"Help! I can't get out! I don't want to die!"

"We can't get out either; we can only wait for the monks from the monastery to come and rescue us."

"How could such a big fire suddenly start?"

"Help, help, help me, I can't get out."

"Where is the enemy?"

...............

It was still broad daylight, and even though people were awake, they couldn't leave their houses and could only watch helplessly as the fires grew larger.

Those who lived in the burning house were in a much worse situation.

Fearing being burned, they could only flee. Those with the Earth-Digging Realm cultivation were slightly stronger and could hold out for about ten seconds before quickly burrowing into nearby houses that hadn't caught fire yet. As for the Lumberjack Realm cultivators and ordinary people, they were frozen to death by the cold light as soon as they left the house, before they could even run three or four meters.

The sky above the entire village immediately filled with billowing black smoke, while below came the ever-increasing screams and wails.

"Don't save anyone yet. All those at the Cold Resistance level, form groups of ten and disperse throughout the village to kill the arsonists. Don't let a single one escape. The people from the Zen Temple will be here soon, so don't panic!"

"It's the leader's voice!"

"Yes, we should deal with those arsonist bastards first."

"We can't save too many people, let's deal with those beasts first!"

“The monk will be here soon; those people won’t be able to escape.”

…………

The first reaction of most of the cold-resistant soldiers was to save people. When they heard their leader Zhang Cheng's voice, they suddenly realized what was going on and quickly formed ten-person teams, which dispersed to various parts of the village to search for those who were still setting fires.

Qinghe Village's response was not slow, but there were simply too many arsonists. In less than five minutes, nearly thirty fires broke out throughout the village.

Moreover, the timing of the arson was perfect; it was when everyone was in the deepest sleep, leaving them no time to react.

"You beast, stop right there! You're trying to set it on fire!"

boom!
Although people have gradually found the arsonist and even started to fight him, the fire eventually got out of control and continued to spread rapidly. The sky above Qinghe Village was filled with black smoke, and even the snowflakes that were originally falling in the sky were replaced by embers. The scene was completely out of control.

In the western corner of the village, at the spot where a wooden house was piled with coal and stones, Yang Ning threw a torch directly onto it. Then, looking up at the thick smoke in the sky, a look of surprise flashed across his eyes.

"There are definitely more than just our number involved. I estimate there are over a hundred people. Jiangxia Town actually sent so many reinforcements?"

"It's not just Jiangxia's family; the other six families, including our Beishuo, should have sent others as well. Stop talking nonsense and keep setting fires. People are already approaching this way. Try to attract as many people as possible. If things get bad, then retreat!"

Upon hearing Huang Lin's words behind him, Yang Ning's expression froze, and he immediately picked up the torch in his hand and began looking for the next target.

"Stop it, you beast!"

Just then, a small team from Qinghe Village finally arrived. When they saw Yang Ning holding a torch, they took out their bows and arrows without saying a word and started shooting at him.

Clang... Clang...

Huang Lin, wielding a large sword, blocked his path and deflected several iron arrows.

"I'll hold them off, you just keep setting the fires!"

"Yes, my lord!"

After answering, Yang Ning quickly turned around and continued searching for the next arson point. The ten-man team from Qinghe Village was held back by Huang Lin and several others, and could only watch helplessly.

………………

In the east of the village, Xiahou Qin was leading more than twenty people in a frenzied arson. This place was closest to the Zen temple, and the villagers of Qinghe Village seemed quite at ease, with no one coming over, which gave him more time to set the fire.

However, Xiahou Qin's expression remained uneasy; as he set the fire, his gaze remained fixed on the eastern side of the Zen temple. Finally, as if sensing something, he abruptly turned and shouted at those still engrossed in arson:

"The people from the Zen temple have arrived! Drop the torches and run west! Hurry!!"

His voice was tinged with panic, and upon hearing it, everyone quickly dropped their torches and followed him toward the west side of the village.

call out…………

However, in the end, some people were still a step too slow.

Countless sharp white arrows suddenly flew in from the east, forming a large wave of arrows that directly covered the bodies of the two cold-resistant level soldiers behind them.

The white arrow was clearly not made of iron; it was more like the color of bone. The sharpness of the arrowhead was far beyond imagination. It not only pierced straight through the bodies of the two men, but also plunged into the ground after passing through, with only the fletching at the end still protruding from the surface.

"Don't look back, keep running!"

Xiahou Qin looked at the white bone arrows at his feet, his brows twitching. Noticing that some people still dared to look back, he angrily rebuked them, signaling them to keep running.

"Ignorant and wicked creatures, daring to disturb the peace of the monastery! All monks with hair, disperse to various parts of the village and ensure that these arsonists are killed without mercy!"

A furious shout suddenly rang out from the east side. Xiahou Qin, who had already run to the main building in the village, turned around as if possessed. He saw a large group of gray-robed monks with long hair running towards him from the Zen temple on the east side of the village, and a hint of joy flashed in his eyes.

At least four or five thousand have come out, good!
But that hint of joy quickly turned into horror.

Whoosh whoosh whoosh…………

More than 5,000 monks, almost all carrying a powerful white bow, shot arrows at various parts of the village while quickly splitting into two groups that sped off in the north and south.

Moreover, they didn't shoot arrows to kill the enemy; they only wanted to drive the arsonists toward the central main building.

"They're planning to surround us from both the north and south and trap us here."

Xiahou Qin saw through the other party's intentions at a glance, but he didn't dare to slow down his movements at all. He led more than twenty people behind him and rushed frantically to the west.

"All those in Qinghe Village at the Cold Protection level, go to the west and block the main road. Don't let a single one of these bastards escape!"

It was that middle-aged monk who had just been giving orders to the monks who spoke up again.

Zhang Cheng, the leader of Qinghe Village, along with the other Cold-resistant level warriors, even those who were fighting the arsonists, all put down what they were doing and quickly gathered on the west side of the village upon hearing the middle-aged monk's order.

"Stop setting fires and break out to the west! If you're too slow, you won't be able to escape! Hurry!"

In just a short while, the north and south directions were occupied by more than 5,000 monks with gray robes and hair. They had already divided their forces and were moving towards the west. Once they were all gathered together, none of them would be able to escape.

While Xiahou Qin reminded everyone, he had already escaped to the west wall of the village. Of course, it was impossible to leave directly, because there were already many cold-resistant level people in Qinghe Village who were guarding the area in advance.

"Break through!"

Xiahou Qin's weapon was a silver nine-hole broadsword. He charged into the group of cold-resistant warriors in Qinghe Village with the sword, as if he were in an empty field. The cold edge of the broadsword killed two people in an instant and forced back more than ten people, creating a gap in the enemy's defenses. There were really signs that he had successfully broken through the encirclement.

But the people of Qinghe Village were also incredibly fierce. Even though they knew that their strength was far inferior to his, they still kept rushing up, instantly filling the gaps. In fact, they could even injure him when they joined forces to attack.

"Brother Xiahou, let me help you!"

Just as a cold-resistant soldier from Qinghe Village was about to stab Xiahou Qin in the left chest with his sword, a deep voice suddenly rang out in Xiahou Qin's ears.

Keng!
A silver octagonal hammer with a head diameter of half a meter suddenly smashed down from the side, not only breaking the sword but also turning the upper body of the sword-wielder into a cloud of blood mist.

"Brother Cao, thank you very much!"

Xiahou Qin clearly recognized the person who came. After thanking him, he saw the people who were arriving one after another. Instead of joy, his face became even more somber.

One by one, the soot-covered and disheveled people gathered here from all over the village. It was clear at a glance that they were the arsonists from the city. There were at least 150 of them in total.

More than 20 minutes have passed now. In such a long time, many arsonists must have been killed. The fact that 150 people are still alive can only mean that the number of people involved in arson tonight is far greater than imagined.

These people were all wounded, some with several white bone arrows still stuck in their bodies, clearly having been chased here by the more than five thousand gray-robed monks.

The reason Xiahou Qin looked somber was that the gray-robed monk had already stopped him above the earthen wall on the west side.

So at this moment, these more than one hundred people had nowhere to escape.

"Xiahou Qin, tonight's arson was part of your Jiangxia Town's plan. You're not just going to run out of options, are you? I don't want to die here with you."

"I've been lying in wait for half a year, just to cooperate with you for this one night. Use whatever tricks you have up your sleeve, don't waste any time."

"I'm tired of staying here. Hurry up, I'm going back to Jinshan."

………………

The group that had cooperated with tonight's arson plan did not show much tension on their faces. Several of them, who were clearly leaders of their respective towns, even started shouting for Xiahou Qin to come up with a solution.

Hearing these people's words, Xiahou Qin's expression darkened slightly, and he did not reply.

He was just following orders; he had no backup plan, unless...

boom!
As Xiahou Qin's mind raced and he was about to turn his head, a deafening roar suddenly erupted from above the western earthen wall.

A silver blade, almost solidified and tens of meters long, suddenly slashed down from the sky, striking the top of the earthen wall.

Pfft...

You should know that many gray-robed monks were standing on that earthen wall.

The silver blade struck down, and at least a dozen gray-robed monks were instantly slashed into mincemeat before they could dodge. Those who managed to escape in a panic, though they survived, either fell unconscious or vomited blood upon landing, completely losing their ability to fight.

boom…………

The blade struck the ground with a deafening crash, reducing the western city wall to dust and carving a deep, knife-shaped trench over ten meters deep into the ground.

A violent shockwave spread outwards, and the group of gray-robed monks, as well as more than a hundred people including Xiahou Qin, were forced to retreat at least dozens of meters.

With this strike, the thick black smoke above the western earthen wall was directly blasted away, causing sand and stones to fly and snow and mist to swirl around, creating a scene that was utterly terrifying.

"What a powerful blade!"

"The surrounding temperature is rising. Has a powerful expert at the Manifestation Yang level made a move?"

"It must be a Xianyang level cultivator. Who in Jiangxia is that with the big sword?"

"It's Xiahou Zhang, the military leader of Jiangxia Town."

………………

As the snow and fog dissipated, everyone could finally see a figure hovering in mid-air above them.

The man appeared to be middle-aged, thin and slightly tall, dressed in a golden brocade robe. In his left hand, he held a large, jet-black, twelve-holed silver-ringed sword. He stood in mid-air, imposing and majestic, like the blazing sun, making it impossible for anyone to look directly at him.

"Greetings, Commander!"

"Greetings, Commander Xiahou!"

The first to react were Xiahou Qin and a group of people from Jiangxia Town.

Then the people from the other seven towns also bowed to the air.

Seeing the people from the other seven towns bow, Xiahou Qin showed no surprise whatsoever.

After years of deep integration, the nine towns adopted a camp system, and even the official titles were quite similar.

The military commander is the person in charge of military power in each town. There is only one commander in each of the nine towns, and naturally, he can only be a powerful person at the Xianyang level.

Regardless of Xiahou Zhang's position as the army leader, it was only natural for these soldiers of the Seven Garrisons, all at the Cold-resistant level, to bow to a powerful expert at the Manifestation level.

Xiahou Zhang, suspended in mid-air, paid no heed to the bowing of the people on the ground. He first stared at the group of gray-robed monks below for a while, seemingly finding nothing amiss, then looked up towards the east, towards the direction of Dajue Temple, and said with a slight smile:

"It is said that Dajue Temple has five great masters. I wonder if Xiahou Zhang will have the honor of meeting them today?"

As soon as Xiahou Zhang finished speaking, the group of gray-robed monks below, along with the cold-resistant level cultivators from Qinghe Village, instantly became enraged. They acted as if they hadn't even noticed Xiahou Zhang's suspended-in-air posture and immediately began shouting insults:
"Shut up!"

"You beast, you dare to ask to see the guru? You're not worthy!"

"As expected of the scoundrels from Jiuzhen, they're like a leech, they've arrested so many spies, yet there are still more."

"You wicked creature who set fires and injured people, what right do you have to meet the guru?"

…………

Hearing the shouts of the people below, Xiahou Zhang lowered his head slightly, and a glint of fire gradually rose in his eyes.

He held back with his first strike. Against a group of gray-robed monks with only three manes of strength, a full-force strike from him would have killed at least dozens of them.

"It seems those five masters didn't teach you to respect the strong!"

Xiahou Zhang spoke angrily in a low voice, lightly raising his black silver-ringed broadsword with his right hand, and slashed down at the few people below who had just spoken rudely.

"Those who speak rudely will die!"

Ding ding... Whoosh...

The silver rings collided with the blade, producing a crisp tinkling sound. Xiahou Zhang's movements appeared very light, but the blade he unleashed was as fierce as a whirlwind, drawing away the surrounding airflow to form a silver blade beam that was twice as long as the first strike.

However, the crowd below, seeing the silver blade slashing towards them, showed no fear whatsoever. In fact, most of them continued their verbal attacks on Xiahou Zhang, still cursing him.

Clang...

The blade's edge failed to kill those who were shouting as expected, and it didn't even manage to land.

Because a bald old monk in a yellow robe and with white eyebrows suddenly stood above the group of people and casually caught the blade with his outstretched hand.

The old monk was exceptionally robust, over two meters tall, with bulging muscles all over his body, and even his neck was thicker than that of a normal person. He was considered old because of the two white eyebrows above his eyes. If you only looked at his face, his skin was as pink and smooth as a newborn baby's, with a rosy glow, and he didn't look old at all.

"Greetings to the Great Awakening Vajra Master!"

"Greetings to the Great Awakening Vajra Master..."

As soon as the old man appeared, the five thousand gray-robed monks with long hair and the two hundred-plus cold-resistant monks from Qinghe Village all knelt down and bowed to him instantly.

Not just these people!
"Greetings to the Great Awakening Vajra Master..."

Throughout Qinghe Village, the sound of bowing echoed, clearly from the villagers who had just been thrown into panic by the fire.

The moment the old monk in yellow appeared, their hearts seemed to calm down, and they even forgot about the fire.

“Benefactor Xiahou, my Dajue Temple and your Jiangxia Town are neighbors and should live in harmony. However, you brought people to Qinghe Village to set fire and injure people, committing such a heinous crime. This master will seek justice for those who died tragically today!”

When the Vajra Master spoke, his voice was heavy with a nasal tone. Before Xiahou Zhang could respond, his body suddenly vanished from the spot.

The next second, he actually appeared directly above Xiahou Zhang.

His face showed a hint of anger. He raised his left hand, and his sleeve billowed up, clearly stretched taut by the muscles inside. Then, he slammed his palm down on Xiahou Zhang's head.

Clang...

They actually didn't use weapons, but instead used their bare hands to fight me?
Xiahou Zhang's face flushed with anger, clearly feeling that he had been underestimated by this Vajra Master. He suddenly raised his sword and slashed at the Vajra Master's left arm.

Both being at the Manifestation Yang level, their physical bodies were similar. Taking a palm strike versus a knife strike, the answer was obvious. A ruthless glint appeared in Xiahou Zhang's eyes. He refused to believe that this Vajra Master would actually dare to fight him head-on.

Clang...

The old saying that what you least believe is more likely to happen is being proven true in Xiahou Zhang's case.

His sword was indeed faster than the Vajra Master's, so it struck the man's arm first. However, the expected scene of severing the arm in one stroke did not occur; instead, a loud metallic clang rang out.

His own Ink Silver Blade is made of 100,000-level silver with an inner lining and coated with a layer of Ink Pig Oil to increase its toughness. In terms of hardness, it can definitely rank in the top five in the entire Nine Towns.

The Vajra Master's left arm was actually harder than his own black silver knife!

Xiahou Zhang suddenly realized something, his right eyelid twitched violently, a look of horror flashed in his pupils, and he quickly turned his head to avoid it.

The Vajra Master's left palm was aimed at his head. The opponent's hand was harder than his own black silver knife; if that palm struck his head, the consequences…

boom!
In the end, Xiahou Zhang turned his head away, but his shoulder was still struck by the Vajra Master's palm.

He was like a cannonball, crashing directly to the ground and creating a huge crater ten meters in diameter.

"This... power..."

"Is the Vajra Guru's power stronger than that of Commander Xiahou?"

"Being slammed directly to the ground, it seems like the strength is not just a little bit!"

"This……"

………………

This scene left Xiahou Qin and everyone in the Eight Towns completely dumbfounded.

call out…………

While they were stunned, Xiahou Zhang, who had been smashed into the giant pit, rushed out first. His face was full of solemnity. He did not run away, but instead held a knife in his left hand and continued to rush towards the Vajra Master.

"What are you standing there for? Run!"

Upon hearing the sound, the eight towns of the Cold-resistant level immediately reacted and, without thinking, fled towards the western earthen wall that Xiahou Zhang had just blasted open.

"We can't let them get away, chase them!"

The group of gray-robed monks, along with the cold-resistant monks from Qinghe Village, naturally wouldn't just sit idly by and watch them escape. Under the command of the leading monk, the surging crowd instantly chased after them from behind.

boom!
Meanwhile, in the sky, the battle between the two powerful beings of the Manifested Sun level continued.

Just as a fierce battle was raging on the west side of the village.

Unbeknownst to anyone, in an ordinary wooden house in the eastern part of the village, Xu Ning was staring intently through a crack in the window with his single eye, his face filled with surprise and emotion.

"It was totally worth it! This trip to lie down was totally worth it!"

"It was worth it to have spent five days staking out this room."

"Nine towns have actually sent people to infiltrate Qinghe Village and have already started making moves."

"Even the Xianyang-class soldiers have arrived. Commander Xiahou is a Xianyang-class soldier from Jiangxia Town."

"This Vajra Master's physique is clearly stronger than that of an ordinary Manifestation Yang level master. This Xiahou Army leader is probably no match for him. And there are actually four masters like this in Dajue Temple."

"Five thousand monks with hair, all at the Cold Resistance level with three-mane strength, and this is only the strength of the Zen Temple. The Great Awakening Temple must be even more terrifying..."

…………

Xu Ning's face was full of joy. Who would have thought that he would accidentally run into the people of Bazhen making a move and learn more information than he had in the previous six months in Hexia Village combined.

"That's enough, it's time to go back. We've gained enough!"

Xu Ning made up his mind and prepared to leave. He was currently near the Zen temple, and the five thousand monks with hair had all gone out. No one would notice if he left Qinghe Village now.

However, just as he was preparing to leave...

Suddenly, a dozen or so figures emerged from several wooden houses near the east of the village and sped off toward the Zen temple on the east side.

Xu Ning was stunned for a moment, then quickly turned to look to the east. When he saw that those people had swept past the Zen temple and were moving further east, his brows furrowed slightly. He turned to look at the two Xianyang-level beings still fighting on the west side and instantly realized what was going on.

"I see……"

Seeing that the dozen or so people were about to approach the Red Dragon Lake on the east side, Xu Ning did not hesitate at all and jumped off the wooden house and headed towards that direction.

He certainly couldn't miss such a great opportunity!

　I've added a long chapter of 10,000 words. There's a lot of content today, so it should be alright. The Nine Towns storyline has begun. Please vote! Thank you all so much!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)