Endless Winter: My Camp Infinite Upgrades

Chapter 372 A Crushing Defeat for Both Sides: The Great Awakening Flame Dragon Master Suffers Two Deaths and Three Injuries, and an Unexpected Encounter

Clang...

Xiahou Zhang had been defeated once before, and his left arm injury was clearly not yet healed. Now, facing the Vajra Master's advance, he dared not be careless in the slightest and quickly raised his black silver knife to block at his face.

The Vajra Master was attacking his head. His fist clashed violently with the broadsword, just like in their last encounter, producing a loud metallic clang that created a shockwave in mid-air that instantly overturned hundreds of soldiers below.

Xiahou Zhang withstood the blow and was forced back more than ten meters, his broadsword trembling violently. In contrast, the Vajra Master who attacked him stood motionless, his eyes filled with coldness.

The two were currently fighting in the low-altitude area, at most two or three hundred meters above the ground. The power of a Manifestation Yang level cultivator is often several hundred li, and even a slight collision could kill many Earth-Digging Realm cultivators with the aftershocks.

Fortunately, their battle took place outside the eastern side of the pass. The two thousand Zhenyu soldiers who were breaking out with Jiang Yuanlong, the seven towns' Yuhan-class soldiers, and the monks of Dajue Temple who were tightly locking the pass to prevent them from breaking out were engaged in a fierce struggle.

"Get out!"

Xiahou Zhang's shout also revealed that his fighting spirit was not strong. He chose to fight at low altitude here in order to overturn the monks of the outer temple so that Jiang Yuanlong and his group could retreat in time.

"retreat!"

Jiang Yuanlong and the others could have retreated, but they stayed behind to create an escape route for the Digging Earth Realm behind them. Seeing that Xiahou Zhang had suffered a loss in the first exchange with the Vajra Master, and hearing his urgent shout, they dared not linger any longer. With a loud shout, they led the remaining Zhenyu Army behind them and fled frantically to the east.

The remaining troops of the Seven Towns, who were at the Cold-resistant level, also frantically followed him and ran out.

Then there were 180,000 people at the Earth-Digging Realm. Of course, there were far fewer than 180,000 now, probably only a little over 100,000 at most. They also rushed to escape through the gap on the east side, afraid of being a step too slow.

"I am Yan Xin, the chief disciple of Master Yanlong of Dajue Temple. From this moment on, all those in the Digging Realm of the Nine Towns who kneel and surrender will live. I promise that after the battle, you will all be released back to your respective towns. Anyone who stubbornly attacks the pass again will be killed without mercy!"

Yan Xin's voice echoed across the battlefield. Not many people immediately laid down their weapons, but as Jiang Yuanlong led the Zhenyu Army and all the Yuhan-class soldiers to retreat one after another, and the pass was closed again, the number of people began to increase rapidly.

"This evil temple deserves to be condemned."

Clang...

"Commander Xiahou, you should worry about yourself first!"

Upon hearing Yan Xin's shouts from below, Xiahou Zhang's apprehension towards Dajue Temple instantly surged to its peak. At his age, how could he not understand that Dajue Temple's act of releasing people was clearly an attempt to win over the hearts of the people?

Once these people are released, who will fight to the death when the village camps below encounter Dajue Temple in the future?
Unfortunately, he had barely uttered the words "his heart is wicked" when he was entangled by the Vajra Master again. He hastily raised the Ink Silver Blade above his head to protect his vitals, but he still couldn't avoid being sent flying by a punch.

Buzz…………

His right arm trembled violently, blood was gushing from the web of his hand, and he could barely hold the knife. Yet the Vajra Master's attacks were relentless, giving him no chance to catch his breath.

Clang... Clang...

Xiahou Zhang glanced at the gap below and saw that more than half of the people inside the valley had already knelt down and surrendered. His expression immediately became much more dejected.

He knew very well that he was no match for Vajra Guru, so for so long he was risking his life to save as many people in the Digging Realm as possible.

But now it's clear that there's no way to turn things around!
boom…………

In a battle between experts, the worst thing to do is to lose focus.

Xiahou Zhang was momentarily stunned, and the Vajra Master seized the opportunity, swooping down from the sky and delivering a vicious palm strike to his head.

The dark silver blade was still held above his head, but Xiahou Zhang, who had been fighting for a long time, seemed to be showing signs of exhaustion. When the Vajra Master struck down with his palm, if he hadn't deflected the blade at the last moment, his dark silver blade would have almost cleaved into his head.

Even so, the blade that had received the Vajra Master's seven-pound force still struck the top of his head, knocking him straight down from the air and slamming him into the ground.

Boom!

The Hongguan Port was surrounded by ice. With his physical strength at the Xianyang level and the downward momentum of the Seven Jun Force, Xiahou Zhang did not create any snow mist when he landed. Instead, he directly cracked the solid ice on the ground and his whole body was like a stake, directly inserted into the ground.

"Death!"

Seeing that Xiahou Zhang had been severely injured by him, the Vajra Master pressed his advantage, his gaze turning icy. Almost the instant Xiahou Zhang landed, he appeared directly above him.

His face was filled with murderous intent, his whole body shone with golden light, and his right hand transformed into a palm blade, which he slammed down on Xiahou Qin's head.

If this palm strike lands, it will surely be fatal.

"Commander!"

"grown ups."

………………

On the eastern outskirts, Jiang Yuanlong, Jiang Yuanhua, Xiahou Qin, and more than a dozen other Jiangxia generals, who had not gone far, were filled with rage and shock upon seeing this scene.

On the other hand, the Dajue Temple side, whether it was Yan Xin, the other four chief monks, the monks of the Zen temple, or even the cold-resistant earth-digging realm monks from Qinghepu, all looked extremely excited and were clearly looking forward to it.

call out…………

However, at this critical moment.

A black, cold blade suddenly pierced towards the Vajra Master's face.

No one expected that Xiahou Zhang, who was severely injured, would suddenly draw an incredibly slender black soft sword from his waist. The soft sword was a little over a meter long and less than half an inch wide. Compared to normal weapons, it could be described as a thin needle.

After the soft sword was drawn, it instantly straightened. Xiahou Zhang pushed off the ground with both legs, his body bursting out of the ice. He then raised his right arm and thrust it forward, which was the origin of that black, cold blade.

It was nighttime, and the black, cold blade sounded strange, but the cold blade that Xiahou Zhang drew was indeed black, a blackness even purer and more complete than the night.

"If I can't break through your entire body, I'll surely find your tricks! Die!"

Xiahou Zhang's attack was clearly premeditated.

As he flew out of the ice, a 500-foot-tall silver skeletal phantom suddenly rose behind him, also wielding a black soft sword. Its movements were identical to his own, and it suddenly stabbed towards the Vajra Master's pupils.

The trick he mentioned is the eyes!

The Vajra Master's physical strength was simply too high; his silver-black blade could not be broken from any angle. The trick was the only way.

From the moment he appeared tonight, he has been constantly creating openings and deceiving the Vajra Master, all for this one strike.

This slender, flexible sword hidden at the waist was clearly prepared on purpose.

Pfft...

Become!

Xiahou Zhang felt his soft sword successfully pierce through the Vajra Master's left eye, and a ferocious look appeared on his face. He suddenly increased the power in his right hand, trying to smash the Vajra Master's head with one blow.

Click...

However, the soft sword only advanced an inch or so. When the tip of the sword pierced through the skull and emerged from the back of his head, Xiahou Zhang's expression immediately changed when he saw that the Vajra Master's face had not changed at all.

The key and the bones are all broken, yet there's absolutely no reaction...

This Vajra Guru is no ordinary person!
The thought flashed through his mind, his heart clenched, and an extremely dangerous feeling surged into his heart. He even abandoned the soft sword in his hand, picked up the dark silver knife beside him, and tried to escape.

boom…………

This seemed to confirm Xiahou Zhang's thoughts. The Vajra Master, with a soft sword stuck in his left eye, acted as if nothing had happened. Before Xiahou Zhang could leap away to escape, he extended his right fist and struck him directly on the shoulder.

This punch, even the force didn't change much, it was still seven-tenths of the same strength.

Pfft...

Xiahou Zhang was sent flying like a cannonball. He dared not linger for a moment and, enduring the excruciating pain, fled directly to the east.

"Yan Xin, take some men and clean up the battlefield. I'm going to hunt down the traitors!"

Vajra Master clearly had no intention of letting Xiahou Zhang go. With the soft sword stuck in his left eye, he acted as if nothing had happened. After giving instructions to Yan Xin, he suddenly flew up and transformed into a golden light, chasing after Xiahou Zhang.

Lost!

In this great battle, the Eight Garrisons were clearly defeated. Not only were all 180,000 troops wiped out and Hongguan Pass completely lost to the enemy, but Xiahou Zhang, the commander of the Jiangxia army, was also defeated by the Vajra Master for the second time.

Depending on the situation, it's still uncertain whether they will survive.

"It's almost dawn. Everyone, follow me to Hongguan Village to count the surrendered soldiers and sort them into the Nine Towns' Digging Grounds. The disciples of the Zen Temple, guard the Hongguan Pass and the area around Hongguan Village to prevent the Nine Towns' spies from spying on us."

"I will obey the Chief's orders!"

Yan Xin emerged from the battlefield of Hongguan, littered with corpses, and gazed at the territory of Jiuzhen beyond the eastern side of the pass. With a disdainful expression, he waved his hand to give orders to the crowd before leading the way towards Hongguan Village.

The Qinghepu army soldiers, having won the battle, naturally followed behind him with their heads held high, escorting the Eight Garrisons army that had already surrendered.

Hongguan Village is located one kilometer east of Hongguan. Once Hongguan is captured, this village will naturally fall into their hands.

Thus, this great battle, which began on the 17th of last month and lasted for 43 days until today, November 30th (counting from dawn), has already achieved a preliminary result.

Dajue Temple captured three villages in succession and also took control of Hongguan Pass, forcibly seizing the entrance and exit on the north bank of Hengjiang River from Jiangxia Town.

On a smaller scale, it was Jiangxia Town; on a larger scale, it was the entire territory of the nine towns to the east, which was now completely exposed to Dajue Temple.

There are clearly quite a few people who can see this.

You could tell from the excited expressions on the faces of the group of people in Qinghepu who were equipped with the cold-resistant gear.

Of course, not everyone looked excited.

At the back of the crowd, Xiang Liang and Bai Shanqiu, who were mixed in with the group of Earth Digging Realm cultivators, looked very uneasy. Strangely enough, their skin also had a golden hue, but if you looked closely, you would find that their golden color was slightly different from that of the other Cold Resistance Realm cultivators in Qinghepu.

"The effects of that molten fire pill only last for two hours, so this Zen gold powder probably won't last much longer either, right? If it doesn't dissipate soon, it might give us away!"

Xiang Liang and Bai Shanqiu were both anxiously hoping that everyone would return to normal soon, as they dared not even approach the other people in the Cold Resistance group.

The gold on their bodies was applied hastily on the battlefield using the Zen gold powder given to them by the monks.

With the incident involving the Fire Melting Pill on the 17th of last month as a precedent, they dared not use anything issued by the Great Awakening Temple, let alone chant incantations. On the battlefield, the two of them mostly hid in the corners. Seeing the changes in everyone, they had a sudden inspiration and used Zen Gold Powder to cover the exposed parts of their bodies. In addition, they blended in with the Digging Realm team the whole time, which barely allowed them to get by.

The battle had ended, but the golden light emanating from everyone still lingered, so the two of them had no choice but to grit their teeth and continue pretending.

………………

"His eyes and skull were pierced, yet he's completely unharmed. He's no ordinary Manifestation Yang level being. Just what kind of demon is this Vajra Master?!"

On the east side of Hongguan, in an area of ​​about seven or eight kilometers, two golden figures suddenly sped through the air, one after the other.

The man in front looked terrified, turning his head to look behind him every now and then. It was Xiahou Zhang, who had just escaped from Hongguan Pass. The one chasing after him was Vajra Master, whose left eye still had a black soft sword sticking out.

"Benefactor Xiahou, you are doomed today!"

The black soft sword not only pierced his left eye, but went straight through the left side of his head, with the tip extending thirty or forty centimeters from the back of his skull. Blood kept flowing from the Vajra Master's left eye, and his entire face was covered in bloodstains. However, his expression remained calm as he spoke, as if he felt no pain, which made him even more eerie.

"You old monster, you want to kill me? Dream on!"

Xiahou Zhang had suffered two defeats in a row, and his sure-kill attack had just been thwarted. Seeing the Vajra Master's confident posture, his inherent arrogance was stirred up, and he didn't forget to turn around and mock his opponent.

His speed was indeed not as good as before after his injury, but he had already escaped more than ten kilometers away from Hongguan. Vajra Master had also been chasing for more than ten kilometers. He had already realized that the other party was not good at speed and had basically no chance of catching up with him.

"As long as I escape back to the town, I'll be fine!"

Xiahou Zhang gazed towards the town to the east, not daring to slow down in the slightest.

He was completely unaware that the Vajra Guru, who had been sticking to him from behind, suddenly flashed a cold glint in his eyes.

Xiahou Zhang flew another five kilometers east, about twenty kilometers away from Hongguan. When he passed a snow-covered mountain area three or four hundred meters high, he suddenly increased his altitude and tried to fly directly there.

boom…………

Just as he crossed the mountain peak, a hundred-meter-long fiery dragon suddenly rose from the snow-covered forest at the summit. The fire dragon bared its fangs and moved with incredible speed, engulfing Xiahou Zhang's body in an instant.

"There's someone else!"

The moment the fire dragon rose, Xiahou Zhang's eyes widened in horror, and the hairs on his body stood on end. He could clearly see that inside the fiery dragon was an old monk in a yellow robe, holding a spear. The old monk raised his spear and charged straight towards the sky.

"It's over!"

A look of despair flashed across Xiahou Zhang's pupils, and only two words came to mind.

In an instant, he understood. No wonder the Vajra Master, knowing he couldn't catch up, kept chasing him relentlessly. The other party had clearly deliberately brought him to this snowy mountain area.

Hidden in the snow-covered forest atop the mountain was a master.

This is a certain death trap!

puff…………

The spear pierced his chest, and Xiahou Zhang could almost hear the sound of his flesh being torn apart. The violent force surged into his body, instantly interrupting his escape to the east. The intense flames on the spear engulfed his body, and the spear tip was already beginning to destroy his bones.

"This master said you were doomed, so you..."

He was already in a state of desperate escape, and after only a few breaths in mid-air, the Vajra Master behind him caught up and flew all the way to the top of his head, raising his hands to strike his skull directly.

Xiahou Zhang brandished his dark silver sword, attempting to repel the master below, but he was already severely injured, his strength greatly diminished, and he was unable to budge the spear in the opponent's hand.

His chest was pushed against something, and a giant hand slapped down on the top of his head.

Xiahou Zhang's eyes were instantly filled with deep despair.

He could only close his eyes and wait for death.

"who!"

Bang………………

A violent roar resounded, but Xiahou Zhang did not die.

Before the roaring sound began, he first heard the Vajra Master's voice filled with shock and anger. Before he could react, his body was pushed away by a tremendous force.

Buzz…………

A figure suddenly stood in the spot where he had just been standing. Judging from his appearance, the person was at most in his early twenties. He was wearing a black robe with unusually wide sleeves and a distinctive texture. The entire robe was decorated with shimmering gold threads. Not only was the material unfamiliar to Xiahou Zhang, but the style was also completely different from that of the Nine Towns.

"Not a Manifestation-level being from the Nine Towns!"

After this thought flashed through Xiahou Zhang's mind, he looked up and saw the man in black's actions. His gaze suddenly sharpened, and his pupils were instantly filled with horror.

The man in black, without using any weapons, blocked the Vajra Master's palm with his bare hands. Moreover, the moment he appeared, he must have struck the old monk with a gun below with his leg. The old monk with the gun was now rushing out of the dust and smoke at the top of the snow mountain.

"May I ask, sir, which of the nine towns are you from? Could it be...?"

The Vajra Master's tone was clearly filled with deep apprehension, and the other old monk with a gun who flew up from below also had an unusually solemn expression.

Clearly, the brief exchange had made both of them realize the danger.

"What nonsense!"

Unfortunately, the man in black looked calm, but seemed unusually impatient. Before the Vajra Master could finish speaking, he suddenly thrust his hand forward and struck the man directly in the face.

"You evil beast, how dare you act so arrogantly!"

Enraged by the black-clad man's posture, the old monk with the spear roared, and his spear instantly burst into flames, just like the giant fire dragon that had appeared when he ambushed Xiahou Zhang earlier, and pounced straight at the black-clad man's back.

Clang...

However, the black-clad man's strength clearly exceeded their expectations. His speed was unbelievable; before the old monk with the gun even arrived, his fist had already slammed into the Vajra Master's face.

"Brother, this Vajra Guru's skin..."

Xiahou Zhang, who was about to offer a warning, stopped before he could finish speaking, the horror in his eyes rising to another level. The fist struck his face, and the Vajra Master hastily raised his hands to block, his entire body radiating golden light as before, successfully catching the black-clad man's fist.

But the opponent's strength was clearly far beyond his.

His hands were punched directly into his face, his nose was broken instantly, and his entire face caved in by a centimeter or two.

Glug...

Even though Master Jin Guang's expression remained calm and he did not show any signs of being seriously injured, Xiahou Zhang could not help but turn to look at the man in black and swallow hard just by seeing the collapse of his face.

He had fought Vajra Guru twice and knew very well how strong the other man was. The fact that a single punch could stun his face like that could only mean one thing: the black-clad man's strength was enough to overwhelm Vajra Guru.

"Ten jun, this person's strength is at least ten jun or more, possibly surpassing Shangguan Yang, or even Yang Zun. Look at his bone structure and battle physique, how many zhang is it!"

Xiahou Zhang stared at the man in black, his pupils widening in shock. He knew very well what it meant to be a Xianyang-level expert whose strength surpassed even Shangguan Yang and Yang Zun.

At this moment, all he wanted to see was the size of the black-clad man's skeletal battle form, so as to deduce the true extent of his opponent's strength.

Unfortunately, his plan was clearly doomed to fail.

The moment the man in black blasted past the Vajra Master, he drew the black soft sword from the man's left eye, then turned and slashed horizontally, creating a black sword blade hundreds of meters long that swept away the old monk with the gun who had come up behind him.

"Great Awakening Flame Dragon Master, is that right?"

When the old monk with the gun was recognized, a look of surprise appeared on his face, but he didn't say anything. He just followed the Vajra Master with a gloomy expression and approached the man in black from the front and back.

The man in black, wielding a soft sword, saw the two men closing in on him. His gaze turned cold, and he swung the sword sharply, first blocking the faster Master Yanlong from behind. With a sweeping kick, he sent Master Yanlong flying dozens of meters, spear and all. Without hesitation, he clenched his left fist, gathered his strength, and then punched out in front of him.

boom…………

The Vajra Master's fist was blocked once again.

However, the result was different this time. The man in black had used a lot of power when he kicked Master Yanlong away, and his left fist, which he had hastily gathered, was naturally not as strong as before. He was forced to retreat repeatedly by Master Vajra's attack.

call out…………

However, after retreating only two or three meters, the man in black quickly stopped his retreat, abruptly turned his body, and used the strength of his waist and abdomen to slash out a black sword blade with his right hand, which flew straight towards the chest of the Vajra Master.

"Pity!"

At this moment, the Vajra Master was radiating golden light. Even if the sword struck him, it would only be like when his face was smashed, and he wouldn't suffer any fatal injury. That's why Xiahou Zhang secretly felt sorry for him.

It seemed that the man in black was too strong. When faced with this sword, the Vajra Master did not dare to take it head-on. Instead, his pupils narrowed slightly, he gave up throwing a punch, and then suddenly twisted his body to block with his side.

Snap...

The man in black was indeed very strong. As the black sword blade sliced ​​through, not to mention flesh and blood, the Vajra Master's right arm bones clearly cracked, and he was swept away more than a hundred meters by the sword blade.

"What are you still standing there for? Even if these two old geezers team up, I can't beat them. If we don't run away now, we'll miss our chance."

Upon hearing the voice of the man in black, Xiahou Zhang's expression changed drastically. He especially noticed that both masters were glancing at him out of the corner of their eyes. He gritted his teeth, cupped his hands, and said, "Thank you for saving my life, brother. Xiahou Zhang will repay you in the future!"

After saying that, he sped away to the southeast, not daring to linger there any longer.

"Judging from his appearance, that person is at most sixty or seventy years old, maybe even younger, yet his strength is so formidable. His clothing isn't in the style of the Nine Towns; is he from somewhere else, or is someone from one of the other Eight Towns secretly breaking through and deliberately pretending?"

"No, no, it's not from the other eight towns. People from the other eight towns wouldn't go to such lengths to save me. It must be from outside the realm."

"An external force has its eye on Nine Towns. This is troublesome!"

………………

Xiahou Zhang frowned, clearly not at peace. He sped southeast for over a hundred kilometers until a massive black city wall stretching fifteen kilometers from north to south came into view. Only then did the expression on his face finally relax completely.

The main gates of all nine towns face the Mo'ao Mountains to the east, and Jiangxia City is no exception. Therefore, the west city wall he sees now is considered the back gate of Jiangxia City.

Although it was the back door, people immediately came to greet him as soon as he approached.

"Brother!"

The newcomer was clearly of high status, dressed in a white robe of superior material, with his full head of white hair neatly tied back. His face was deeply lined, and although he looked much older than him, he addressed him as "Senior Brother" the moment he spoke.

"Xinfan, Hongguan has fallen!"

Xiahou Zhang is the only disciple of Jiang Yinglong, the lord of Jiangxia. Strictly speaking, he has no junior brothers. The only person in the entire Jiangxia town who can be called his senior brother is Jiang Yinglong's eldest son, who is the town chief Jiang Xinfan standing in front of him at this moment.

"So be it. Senior brother, go back and heal your wounds first!"

Seeing Xiahou Zhang covered in wounds, Jiang Xinfan clearly had a premonition about the battle at Hongguan. So when he heard that Hongguan had fallen, he did not show any surprise, but instead gestured for Xiahou Zhang to enter the city first.

Seemingly finding Jiang Xinfan's response too bland, Xiahou Zhang was clearly a little angry and said in a low voice, "With the loss of Hongguan, the barrier between Jiangxia and Dajue Temple is completely gone. If Master and the Seven Towns have gained nothing from this trip, our Jiangxia will soon face even more severe retaliation from Dajue Temple. You are the town leader, have you thought about what to do next?"

Seeing the anger on Xiahou Zhang's face, Jiang Xinfan naturally knew that he was still resentful that his father, Jiang Yinglong, refused to guard Hongguan with him.

"Senior brother, don't be angry. Perhaps good news will come back from Father soon. To strike a snake, you must strike its vital spot. What the Seven Towns Chief said before was not wrong. Without finding the monster behind Dajue Temple, we cannot completely eliminate it. Holding Hongguan is only temporary. As long as the people of the Eight Towns..."

Although Jiang Xinfan was the town's leader, he only had the cultivation level of the Cold Resistance level. He knew very well that Jiangxia Town was supported by his father and senior brother. Therefore, the thing he did most often as the town's leader was to mediate the conflicts between the two.

It's not that Jiang Yinglong and Xiahou Zhang, the master and apprentice, have a bad relationship; on the contrary, they are very close. However, when it comes to important matters concerning the town, they sometimes have disagreements on their ideas, which is normal.

Jiang Xinfan was clearly very experienced in handling these matters. After he finished speaking, the anger on Xiahou Zhang's face gradually subsided. He then sighed softly and said, "We can only hope that Master can achieve something. Originally, we were planning to expand westward from the north bank of Hengjiang, but now that road is blocked by Dajue Temple. We don't know what will happen next..."

What people fear most is what comes to pass. Before Xiahou Zhang could finish speaking, he sensed something, abruptly turned his head to look at the western sky, and his expression changed drastically.

Pfft...

On the west side, a middle-aged man holding a large knife suddenly fell from mid-air.

The middle-aged man's clothes were tattered and blood was seeping from all seven orifices of his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth. He was in an extremely disheveled state. He coughed up another mouthful of blood after landing and could not even stand up.

"Master!"

"Father."

When Xiahou Zhang and Jiang Xinfan saw that the person who came was their leader Jiang Yinglong, their faces instantly filled with horror. They rushed over and helped Jiang Yinglong up.

Jiang Yinglong looked extremely flustered, his mind seemingly in a daze. After closing his eyes and regulating his breathing for more than ten breaths, he exclaimed in alarm to Xiahou Zhang, "Quickly send the army to the Fengshan camp. The strength of Dajue Temple is unfathomable. After taking Hongguan, they will definitely continue to expand. We must prepare immediately."

"Disciple will do it immediately, Master. What happened at Dajue Temple?"

Fengshan Camp, the very place where I almost got killed, is located more than 20 kilometers east of Hongguan Village. The camp was set up there mainly to defend against Chuishan Town. Right now, Jiang Yinglong's intention is clearly to send a large army there to defend against Dajue Temple.

After Xiahou Zhang finished answering, he still couldn't help but ask what had happened at Dajue Temple.

Jiang Yinglong's emotions remained unsettled for a long time. As if recalling his encounter at Dajue Temple, a deep sense of horror rose in his eyes as he said, "Juyuan, Heiming, and Wusheng, the three great masters in Dajue Temple, each with their own terrifying methods, along with more than seven hundred formal monks. Of the eight of us who went there, apart from Yang Zun and the other two from the three northern towns, the remaining five of us were left with two dead and three injured."

boom…………

Jiang Yinglong's words instantly caused a huge uproar in Xiahou Zhang's heart; Jiang Xinfan's pupils shrank and his expression froze.

Eight Xianyang-level beings passed by, two dead and three injured.

this…………

"I will immediately dispatch the Zhenyu Army to assemble at the Fengshan camp. Junior brother, you must quickly send a message to the other seven towns. No, Muyin cannot be left behind either. Send a message to the leaders of the eight towns and tell them to come to the Fengshan camp to discuss countermeasures."

"Understood, Senior Brother!"

After Jiang Xinfan finished answering, his expression suddenly turned grim. Looking at Xiahou Zhang, he continued, "Eight Xianyang-level cultivators, two dead and three injured. The Eight Towns must be on edge right now! Do you think they'll agree?"

"If they don't agree, then we have our own plan. Let's send the message first!"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Xinfan didn't say anything more and simply nodded, heading towards the town.

"Master, who were those two Xianyang-level cultivators who died?"

"Yang Qu, Cao Qianhai, and Long Gu, Long Mingfeng, it's fortunate that only the three great masters of Dajue Temple are here tonight. If there had been one more master, I might have perished there as well."

Upon hearing his master mention that Dajue Temple only had three great masters, Xiahou Zhang immediately nodded slightly, a sense of lingering fear rising in his heart.

If that man in black hadn't appeared tonight, he would have been dead for sure.

Xiahou Zhang originally wanted to talk about the rescue that night, but seeing Jiang Yinglong's panicked look, he held back and instead asked, "Why didn't Cao Qianyang and Long Mingyuan come in person?"

Cao Qianhai is the head of Yangqu Town, and Long Mingfeng is the head of Longgu Army. Surprisingly, neither of these two towns came from the same lord.

"Not only did those two not come, but the lords of Chuishan and Bashang also didn't come. Duan Hong came from Chuishan, and Xiang Fanyun came from Bashang. These idiots are still scheming against each other even when they're about to die. If all eight lords had come, they wouldn't have been beaten so badly by those three masters!"

Jiang Yinglong's face was filled with rage, clearly indicating that he was very unhappy that the four lords of the town did not come.

"Both Yangqu and Longgu towns lost a Xianyang-level expert, so they certainly won't let this go easily. By the way, Master, how are Duan Hong and Xiang Fanyun's injuries?"

Xiahou Qin had already helped Jiang Yinglong up. After noticing the injuries Jiang Yinglong was carrying, his expression immediately became much more serious. He then inquired about the condition of the other two seriously injured people.

"Those two were much more seriously injured than me. My injuries will probably take two or three years to heal..."

Jiang Yinglong's expression suddenly turned ugly as he spoke. He slowed his pace, turned to look at his apprentice Xiahou Zhang, and continued in a deep voice, "Your left arm injury hasn't healed yet. These new injuries were inflicted at Hongguan, weren't they?"

Xiahou Zhang nodded without saying a word.

Jiangxia only has two Xianyang-level cultivators, and both are currently seriously injured, which is not a good thing.

Jiang Yinglong frowned, pondered for a moment, and then said in a deep voice, "Send a large army to the Fengshan camp to make a show of force for Dajue Temple. Things are different now. If the Seven Garrisons still just send some random people to fool us, then we will not go to war with Dajue Temple. Yangqu, Longgu, Chuishan, Bashang, plus our Jiangxia, all five garrisons in the Central and Southern regions are severely weakened. This juncture is very delicate. The primary task is to preserve our strength. Not to mention the surrounding areas, those three families in the north may be having some bad ideas now. You must be careful in the near future."

Upon hearing Jiang Yinglong's words, Xiahou Zhang's expression changed repeatedly before he finally nodded emphatically, a cold glint in his eyes, and said, "I understand, Master!"

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

Ten kilometers east of Hongguan Pass, a group of thirty-two armored soldiers was speeding eastward through the snow-covered forest.

The sky was already beginning to brighten, and judging from the fact that the group was not in a panic as they hurried along, they were all clearly at the Cold Resistance level.

"That guy on the road, he wasn't lying to us, was he? Let's meet at Fengshan Camp."

"Fengshan is still more than ten kilometers away from here. Several people have said so, so it should be true. It's too late for those at the Digging Realm to get there now. They're probably all looking for a place to hide. Those at the Cold Resistance Realm can still get there."

"An army of 180,000, just like that, lost, tsk tsk..."

"With Hongguan lost, Jiangxia is in even more trouble."

"Invulnerable to swords and spears? That master's divine power is too strange."

"Luckily we ran fast, otherwise we would have been dead."

"Was the last one to show up Xiahou Zhang, the leader of the Jiangxia army? He was no match for that Vajra Master at all, and I don't know if he managed to escape in the end."

"It's probably a bad omen!"

………………

Upon hearing Zhu Shun's last question, Lu Yang, the leader, also showed a hint of curiosity. He also wanted to know if Xiahou Zhang was dead or not.

After all, he was a Ninth Town Manifestation Yang level official; if his death could be confirmed, it would be big news.

"He ran away, but I saved him!"

A voice suddenly came from above the crowd. Lu Yang was stunned, and then his face lit up with joy. He looked up at the black figure in the sky and bowed deeply, saying, "Lu Yang, the Guardian of Dongling, pays his respects to the Lord!"

"Meet the lord!"

Wang Tao, Zhu Shun, and the others looked up at the figure in the sky, and their reactions were similar to Lu Yang's: they all bowed and paid their respects to the newcomer.

Xia Hong slowly floated down in front of Lu Yang, reached out his hand and smiled, "What a coincidence, to run into you here. No need for formalities, please get up!"

Lu Yang and the others looked up and saw the black soft sword in Xia Hong's hand. They immediately recognized it as Xiahou Zhang's weapon and looked puzzled.

Seeing everyone's expressions, Xia Hong knew what they were thinking. He smiled and said, "Don't treat all the camps outside of Da Xia as enemies. Jiangxia is very useful to us. You'll understand later!"

Wang Tao and Lu Yang were the first among the group to react, a glimmer of light appearing in their eyes, clearly understanding Xia Hong's meaning.

Lu Yang suddenly remembered something and quickly cupped his hands to Xia Hong, saying, "By the way, Lord, we hadn't gone far from Hongguan Pass when we saw several figures flying out from that direction. They should be from Jiuzhen..."

"I saw it all. There were six people in total, three seriously injured and three slightly injured. They all ran north. They should be Xianyang-level from Jiuzhen."

Xia Hong interrupted Lu Yang directly, a glint of shrewdness flashing in his eyes.

He was only ten kilometers away from Hongguan Pass. Having just escaped the entanglement of the two great masters at Xuefeng, he originally planned to cross Hongguan Pass to the west and return to Wuyuan. However, after flying only a few kilometers, he unexpectedly bumped into a heavily injured Xianyang-level being fleeing eastward. He did not make a sound, but concealed himself and moved northward. Sure enough, he discovered five more Xianyang-level auras behind him.

"The operation of the Nine Towns' Xianyang-level at Dajue Temple has definitely failed. Muyin Town is not involved in this matter, so at least eight Xianyang-level personnel went there, but only six returned, half of whom were seriously injured. If nothing unexpected happens, at least two of them have already been killed."

Xia Hong was basically clear about the whole story of the battle at Hongguan, so based on these six Manifestation Yang-level auras alone, he was able to make a rough deduction about the matter.

Upon hearing these words, Lu Yang and the others were immediately invigorated.

"My lord, Dajue Temple has now occupied Hongguan. Since they know that the Nine Garrisons are severely weakened, they will definitely continue to invade Jiangxia's territory from Hongguan to the east. I observe that the Nine Garrisons are like a pile of loose sand, and it is highly unlikely that they will reorganize the coalition. According to your idea, my lord, it is just the right time for us to help Jiangxia get out of the predicament!"

Xia Hong rescued Xiahou Zhang from the Vajra Master, and given Xia Hong's earlier statement that Jiangxia would be of great use to them, Lu Yang could naturally guess his intentions. Therefore, after concluding that the Nine Towns would not form a coalition army again, he directly offered his suggestion.

To help Jiangxia resist Dajue Temple, to disintegrate the Nine Towns from within, and to bring Jiangxia into the Great Xia camp first.

Xia Hong's expression flickered slightly, and a hint of interest flashed in his eyes. However, after thinking for a moment, he quickly shook his head and said, "It's not the right time to offer help in times of need. The Nine Towns suffered such a great loss at Dajue Temple, and there will definitely be follow-ups. I'm not optimistic about the Second Allied Forces either. But nothing is absolute, so let's just wait and see."

Let Dajue Temple weaken the Nine Towns' strength first...

Xia Hong didn't say the last sentence. He looked down at Lu Yang and Wang Tao, and suddenly thought of something. He took out a small blue porcelain bottle from his pocket and threw it over.

"Have you heard of Tiger Power Pill, Dragon Carp Pill, and Green Cod Pill?"

Lu Yang caught the porcelain bottle, and upon hearing Xia Hong's question, he immediately guessed what it was. He nodded emphatically at him, his eyes full of anticipation.

"Hahaha, at the beginning of last month, I chased away that red carp monster in the Xinghe River in Wuyuan. Now, the ten kilometers of water in the south of Wuyuan belong to my Great Xia. The formulas for Dragon Carp Pill and Green Cod Pill have been completed. Here are fifty Dragon Carp Pills. Give one to each of them!"

"Thank you for the pill, Lord!"

Lu Yang and the other 32 people instantly showed great joy on their faces.

Xia Hong's personal gift of the elixir certainly pleased them, but it wasn't enough to elicit such an exaggerated reaction from them; the key was the water area.

The Great Xia has already controlled ten kilometers of waterway south of Wuyuan, and has also developed Dragon Carp Pill and Green Cod Pill.

They were all at the Cold Protection level of Dongling and were very familiar with the situation in the Nine Towns, so they were well aware of the value and effects of these two kinds of pills.

Especially Wang Tao, who came from Longshan, was only a lower-grade battle physique. Although he now had the peak of the Cold Resistance cultivation, his basic strength had always remained at the eleventh level.

From now on, the Great Xia will also have Dragon Carp Pills and Green Cod Pills!
This means that his stagnant strength, which had been declining for many years, can finally be improved, and the contribution points he had accumulated over the past few years can finally be put to use.

If Wang Tao is like this, then naturally everyone else is too.

Although Lu Yang possesses a superior battle physique and will have the strength of more than two and a half manes upon breakthrough, he is currently at the late stage of the Cold Resistance realm with a base strength of eighteen manes. This means that his room for improvement is limited; he will reach his limit after improving by about two more manes. The Dragon Carp Pill and the Green Cod Pill are equally significant to him.

In terms of contribution value, is his contribution value less than Wang Tao's?
"I'm pretty sure the coalition won't be formed. The three northern towns definitely won't support Jiangxia. I estimate you'll be returning to Dongling soon..."

After pondering for a moment, Xia Hong suddenly thought of something and continued, "On the way back to Dongling this time, you should focus on finding out about Muyin Town. I am very interested in this Muyin."

"I obey my orders!"

Lu Yang and the others still needed to remain in Dongling to lie low, so they couldn't be taken back to Xia City casually. After giving them instructions, Xia Hong told everyone to be careful and then flew away.

"Respectfully seeing off the lord!"

(End of this chapter)