Endless Winter: My Camp Infinite Upgrades

Chapter 390 Two Undeterred Individuals, The Tragic Situation of the Xiang Family and the Population of Ba Shang, Yuan Cheng Keeps the Suspense Into Secret
"Deputy Director Xu, that person was only a deputy director?"

"His strength is estimated to be around thirty-mane. This is another top expert of the Great Xia with more than thirty mane, following Xia Chuan, Yuwen Tao, Yuan Cheng, Qiu Peng, Yue Feng, Lin Kai, and Shi Ping. There are already eight of them. Just how many experts does the Great Xia have?"

"The key is that this Lord Xu is quite young, yet his talent is astonishing!"

"There's definitely more than that. I've heard that very few people have actually been to Daxia Town, only some of the core leaders of the eight towns. They definitely know more than we do."

"You can tell by looking at the Eight Towns' attitude towards Great Xia!"

“That’s right. The Great Xia dares to fully open up trade to our village-level camps, which is clearly a way to bleed the Eight Towns dry. It’s been more than two months since the port was opened, and the Eight Towns haven’t dared to make any response. Isn’t that enough to explain the problem?”

"These eight people are definitely just the tip of the iceberg of Daxia Town. I estimate that Daxia's strength far exceeds our imagination."

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

The basic strength of the Earth-Digging Realm, from the initial breakthrough of 10,000 jin to the limit of the Earth-Digging Realm, except for some extreme cases, the strength of the Earth-Digging Realm at different cultivation progress is at most 100,000 jin.
Unlike the Earth-Digging Realm, the basic strength of the Cold-Resistant Realm is measured in mane, with one mane being 100,000 jin. In addition, there are limitations due to the Battle Body aptitude, so the strength range at this stage is too large.

For example, although both Yi Zong and Wu Shi Zong are called the Cold-resistant level, their strengths are almost worlds apart.

In Mo'ao Nine Towns, the Cold-Resistant level is generally divided into three levels based on strength: those with 8 or more bristles are called good, those with 24 or more bristles are called experts, and those with 30 or more bristles are called top experts.

Anyone with even a slight understanding of combat bodies will quickly realize why they are categorized this way. Without further enhancement using drugs, the highest strength of an ordinary Cold-resistant level is only 8 manes. Those who can raise their strength to 24 manes or more are already comparable to the peak Cold-resistant level with a top-tier combat body. Those who can raise their strength to 30 manes or more can basically dominate the Cold-resistant level regardless of their combat body aptitude.

Among the eight towns, those with a strength of over thirty hairs and the Cold Resistance level can be counted on one hand. On average, there are probably only about ten such individuals in each town.

The Great Xia only began to emerge in Mo'ao Mountain in April, and now eight of them have already appeared. Who knows how many more there are in their town?
Therefore, it is understandable that everyone's faces showed shock at this moment.

As everyone was discussing, Yuan Cheng and Xu Ning had already led the Yunjiao Army soldiers far away. Yang Ning and Li Hu were standing there staring at each other, their pupils filled with horror and terror.

“It’s him. Although his clothes and demeanor have completely changed, I can confirm that among the six people Xia Hong brought to the Rogue Encampment nine years ago, there was that burly young man!”

Li Hu leaned close to Yang Ning in a low voice, his tone extremely confident.

Although Yang Ning did not respond, the tremor in his pupils showed that he was even more certain of the answer than Li Hu.

Nine years is not a very long time.

Moreover, nine years ago, with the cooperation of Chuishan Town, they crossed the north bank of Hengjiang River to go to Hongmuling to draw maps, which was a life-threatening experience, so both of them remembered it very well.

If Li Hu could recognize Yuan Cheng, then he certainly could too.

"Thirty or more? How is that possible? How is this possible? Nine years ago, Xia Hong himself was only at the Earth Digging Realm, and the six people he brought were all only at the Wood Logging Realm. Nine years... only nine years..."

Yang Ning was completely stunned. Although he had made a lot of mental preparations before coming here, when he finally confirmed that the Great Xia that was famous throughout the nine towns today was the same small camp they had encountered at Hongmu Ridge nine years ago, he was still greatly shocked and even began to doubt himself.

He is thirty-three years old this year, with the peak of the Cold Resistance level and the strength of twenty-one manes. He is definitely one of the best among his peers in Beishuo. But compared to Yuan Cheng just now, what is he?
The key point is that Yuan Cheng was just one of the six young people that Xia Hong, the leader of the Great Xia camp, brought to the Rogge camp nine years ago.

The other five, and that... Xia Hong, where is he?

Thinking of the rumors about Xia Hong, the lord of the Great Xia Dynasty, Yang Ning couldn't help but tremble.

"It's a monster, it's definitely a monster. A normal camp couldn't possibly develop at this speed. Brother, isn't this what we came here to confirm? Now we have the answer, we should be happy!"

Upon hearing Li Hu's words, Yang Ning looked up at him and noticed that besides the shock, there was also a hint of fear on his face. After pondering for a moment, Yang Ning immediately knew what Li Hu was afraid of.

Nine years ago, Li Hu almost killed Xia Hong's subordinate over the issue of ownership of that wooden puppet.

Thinking of this, Yang Ning's brows immediately furrowed.

Not only Li Hu, but he also wanted to bring Xia Hong's subordinate to Beishuo City back then. However, due to the joint pressure from the people of Hongmuling, he had no choice but to retreat with Li Hu.

"It's alright. Yuan Cheng didn't recognize us just now. Since we've managed to sneak in with false identities, let's find out everything and bring back as much information as possible. The town chief will definitely be very happy!"

Upon hearing this, Li Hu's eyes lit up immediately, and he nodded emphatically.

He and Yang Ning were both commanders of the Northern Shuo Garrison, so they knew quite a bit about the situation. The Great Xia had been too powerful recently, and its actions, such as opening ports for trade, had seriously damaged the interests of the various garrisons. At present, apart from Muyin and Jiangxia, the other six garrisons were very hostile to the Great Xia, and the three northern garrisons regarded the Great Xia as a thorn in their side.

Moreover, the reputation of the first town of Mo'ao in the Great Xia Dynasty spread.

Another rumor is now circulating in the Eight Towns.

The rumor is that Xia Hong has replaced Yang Zun of Bei Shuo and become the strongest person in the nine towns on the southern slope of Mount Mo Ao.

It's unclear how the other seven towns reacted, but the reaction in Beishuo Town was extremely strong.

How can the name of the great lord Yang Zun be slandered?
When this rumor entered Beishuo City in mid-July, the town chief Yang Fa was furious and immediately executed more than a dozen key disseminators. He then issued a strict order to everyone in the city not to continue spreading the message.

When Yang Ning first arrived at the military camp and heard this rumor from the soldiers, he reacted extremely strongly and almost killed someone. In the end, considering that the soldier was just spreading rumors, he only punished him with one hundred lashes, which severely injured him.

Currently, the core members of Beishuo are extremely hostile to Daxia, including Yang Ning and Li Hu.

The two traveled a great distance to Hongmen to inquire about the situation in Daxia, partly to resolve their inner confusion and partly to share the burdens of the lord and the town chief.

"The three people who just followed that Deputy Director Xu into the city, I recognize the one in the middle, his name is Xiang Tianyang, and the two on the side look similar to him, they should also be members of the Xiang family."

Having made up his mind to stay in Hongmen to gather information, Yang Ning didn't think twice. But when he thought of the three people Xu Ning had brought into the city, a dark look appeared in his eyes.

"At the end of April, at the Feast at Hongmen, the Great Xia first seized the Jiuqu Camp from our Beishuo, and then seized Bashang City from Chuishan Town. Now they have invited the Xiang family members here, probably because of the more than one million people in Bashang City who are unwilling to relocate."

Li Hu nodded immediately upon hearing this.

He had also heard that the people of Ba Shang City were unwilling to relocate.

"Those people from Yinhe Valley will probably stay at Hongmen for a few days. In the next few days, let's try to act with Han Peng and see if we can see any other familiar faces besides Yuan Cheng."

"it is good!"

Li Hu immediately nodded in agreement.

Nine years ago, Xia Hong brought six people to the Rogue Encampment with his logging machine. Confirming Yuan Cheng's identity alone was not enough; confirming a few more familiar faces would have been more reliable.

While the two whispered their discussion, they did not break away from Han Peng's group.

They were completely unaware that Han Peng, at the front of the group, glanced at the two of them, a hint of gloom flashing in the depths of his eyes.

…………

Hongmen City, Siya Building, top floor main hall.

Xiang Tianyang led his two cousins, Xiang Tianqing and Xiang Tianyu, and followed behind a golden-armored soldier as they slowly entered the main hall. All three of them had unusually somber expressions, and it was unclear what they were thinking.

"Gentlemen, my Minister Si has some other matters to attend to and will be able to see you later. Please wait a moment."

The soldier who led them in bowed and gave them a brief instruction before quickly leaving the hall.

The three stood in the main hall, silent for a long time, none of them speaking.

Finally, Xiang Tianqing on the left couldn't help but speak first.

"Eldest brother, fourth brother, no matter how strong the Great Xia is, there is absolutely no way they can make our Xiang family move away from Ba Shang!"

Xiang Tianqing, who was in his early forties, was the youngest of the three and had the most impulsive temper. He spoke first to express his opinion, and then continued in a deep voice: "Not only my Xiang family, but also the Zhang family, the Zheng family, the Wang family... more than a dozen families of all sizes in the city, and more than 600,000 other people, have lived in Ba Shang for generations. The Great Xia wants to move more than a million of us with just one sentence. This is unreasonable!"

Upon hearing this, Xiang Tianyang and Xiang Tianyu instinctively wanted to respond, but then they seemed to remember something and remained silent.

Ba Shang City originally had a population of only over 800,000. However, due to repeated defeats during the battle with Dajue Temple at the beginning of the year, the city had no choice but to relocate all the people from the village-level camps within its territory to the town, causing the city's population to surge to over 1.5 million in a short period of time.

Later, the five great masters of Dajue Temple created that five-headed, monstrous Maitreya, which caused further misfortune and took away the lives of a third of the city's inhabitants. As a result, the population of Ba Shang City is now only a little over a million.

The destruction of Dajue Temple did not bring the dawn of victory to Ba Shang City.

Lord Xiang Fuhai's body could not be found, the army leader Xiang Fanyun and the town leader Xiang Tianlin had both died in battle, the high command was almost wiped out, and countless members of the Xiang family were also killed or wounded. Of the entire Yuhan-class soldiers in Bashang Town, only a little over five hundred remained, which was equivalent to one-sixth of the pre-battle strength.

After the war, Ba Shang City could only watch helplessly as the six towns emptied their treasuries and divided up all of Ba Shang's territory. Even Ba Shang City itself was eventually given to Chui Shan Town.

Less than a day later, they received news that Ba Shang City had been transferred back to the hands of the Great Xia.

While feeling shocked and saddened, most people in Ba Shang City were actually quite happy, especially after learning that Xia Hong was the one who had dealt with the five-headed, masked Maitreya and saved the people of Ba Shang City. They felt even less resistant to him.

In early May, the Longwu Army entered Ba Shang City without any obstruction, which is clear evidence that they were not opposed to it.

However, by mid-May, when Xu Ning, the deputy director sent by the Great Xia to oversee Ba ​​Shang, proposed that all of Ba Shang's more than one million people be relocated to Xia City, their resentment immediately surfaced.

More than 500 people at the Cold Resistance level, along with tens of thousands at the Earth Digging level, and almost all the residents of Ba Shang City, all refused.

They were living happily in Ba Shang City, so why would they want to move elsewhere? No matter how much Xu Ning and the people of Da Xia described Xia City, not a single person agreed.

The dozen or so families in the city, along with five hundred people at the Cold Resistance level and all those at the Earth Digging Realm, united together. No matter how much the Great Xia Dynasty tried to persuade them, they refused to move. Even though the Great Xia Dynasty allowed them to send people to visit the city, and they successfully relocated a portion of the people, almost all of them were from the original village-level camps. The vast majority of the original inhabitants of Ba Shang remained unmoved. It is estimated that there are over 90 people still in Ba Shang City.

"After four months, the Great Xia's patience must be wearing thin!"

These words popped into Xiang Tianyang's mind at that moment, and he sighed softly.

His trip to Hongmen was at the invitation of Xia Chuan, the Director of the Imperial Secretariat.

Da Xia's patience was exhausted, and he was preparing to force them to relocate. He couldn't think of anything else that would make Xia Chuan, the Minister of Justice, personally invite him to Hongmen.

Among the Xiang family's Tian generation, Xiang Tianyang's talent and cultivation were not outstanding. He was over sixty years old this year and only had a cultivation level of twenty-eight hairs, which was nothing in the past in Ba Shang City.

Now, he can not only represent the entire Xiang clan, but also, together with his two cousins, represent more than a million people in Ba Shang City to negotiate with the Great Xia. In the past, this was an honor he could never have dreamed of.

If he could, Xiang Tianyang would rather never have such an honor fall upon him.

"Tianqing, you can't fight city hall. Murder, bribery, threats... Da Xia has too many ways to deal with us. They haven't used force yet; they're giving us a way out. And then..."

“Brother, I know you have a point, but no matter what, I have lived in Ba Shang for decades. Every blade of grass, every brick and tile here was built up step by step by my Xiang family, generation after generation, leading the people of Ba Shang. What right does Da Xia have to make us move away from here?”

Xiang Tianyu, who had been silent all along, could no longer hold back. He nodded and said in a deep voice, "The destruction of Ba Shang is a foregone conclusion, and we acknowledge that we will become a member of the Great Xia Dynasty. But the Great Xia Dynasty should not force us to relocate from Ba Shang. Of course, I know that Xia City is very good, as can be seen from the various cultivation resources that the Ba Shang Supply Office has taken out. But even so, in my heart, it is not as good as Ba Shang..."

Seeing that Xiang Tianyu, who was usually aloof, had said such things, Xiang Tianyang shook his head and sighed, then fell into deep thought.

Ultimately, it all boils down to four words: it's hard to leave one's homeland.

Once people get used to an environment, it's hard for them to want to move to another place. The hardships and dangers of long journeys, the adaptation and integration into a new environment, the change in lifestyle, the feeling of being dependent on others...

The reasons are varied, but the situation is currently at a stalemate.

The remaining 900,000-plus residents of Ba Shang City simply refused to move, no matter what.

The words of Xiang Tianyu and Xiang Tianqing basically represented everyone's attitude. Even though Xiang Tianyang knew that Daxia was tolerating them and the people of Ba Shang, he dared not go against everyone's will no matter what.

“Alright, since both of you cousins ​​are so determined, I won’t say anything more. No matter what conditions Lord Sicheng proposes later, we will not agree to the relocation, not for ourselves, but for those 90-plus people…” “You are Tianyang, right?”

Before Xiang Tianyang could finish speaking, he was interrupted by a weak, aged voice. Upon hearing this voice, both he and the other two trembled violently, their expressions instantly becoming excited.

The three quickly turned to look at the area from which the sound came, and saw an elderly figure slowly walking out from the compartment behind the main seat. The three began to tremble violently, and without thinking, they rushed over and knelt down in front of the man.

"Uncle, you're still alive!"

"Tianqing greets the lord."

"Tianyu greets the lord! It's wonderful that the lord is still alive!"

The person who came out of the cubicle was none other than Xiang Fuhai, the lord of Ba Shang.

Although Xiang Fuhai was pale and clearly very weak, Xiang Tianyang and the other two were kneeling on the ground, their excitement beyond words.

After Xiang Tianyang raised his head, he quickly realized something and burst into tears, sobbing loudly in front of Xiang Fuhai.

“Uncle, he’s dead. Everyone’s dead. In the Battle of Ba Shang, more than 600 members of the Xiang clan died, and the other dozen or so clans suffered similar losses. More than 80% of the Cold-Resistant level cultivators died, and more than 70,000 of the Earth-Digging level cultivators died. The treasury was emptied by the Six Towns, and the territory was divided up completely…”

I originally thought Xiang Fuhai was dead, but his body could not be found.

Upon suddenly discovering that the other person was still alive, Xiang Tianyang was overjoyed and excited. He couldn't help but pour out all the pent-up frustration and pain he had accumulated over the past four months.

An elderly man in his sixties knelt on the ground, weeping uncontrollably, recounting to Xiang Fuhai his ordeal after the destruction of Ba Shang, showing no trace of the composure and dignity of an elder.

Xiang Tianqing and Xiang Tianyu, who were standing nearby, were clearly moved by Xiang Tianyang's words, and tears welled up in their eyes as well.

More than 1.5 million people died, a third of whom died. For the eight towns of Mo'ao, including the Great Xia, it was just a simple sentence, but the pain it brought to the people of Ba Shang will probably never be erased in their lifetime.

Because all those who died were their relatives.

As for the Xiang family, who were the main defenders in the Battle of Ba Shang, and the original core high-level families, not to mention them.

The Xiang clan originated from Xiang Fuhai's grandfather's generation, rose to prominence under Xiang Fuhai's father's generation, and then reached its peak under Xiang Fuhai's leadership. They have been deeply rooted in Ba Shang for over seventy years and continue to this day. The clan has nearly seven hundred members, but more than six hundred died in the Battle of Ba Shang, suffering a devastating blow.

If the two of them were like this, then Xiang Fuhai was even more so.

In fact, from the moment he saw that the person who came was Xiang Tianyang, Xiang Fuhai's heart had already been hit with a heavy blow.

Among the more than twenty disciples of the Tian generation, Xiang Tianyang was of mediocre talent. The fact that he was able to come to Hongmen as a representative of Ba Shang proved that in the great battle at the end of April, not only his Xiang family, but also the elite Yuhan-level warriors of the other dozen or so families in Ba Shang were basically all wiped out.

Xiang Fuhai was already pale and extremely weak. After hearing Xiang Tianyang's words, his expression was extremely sorrowful, and his body swayed as if he were about to collapse.

"Uncle, what's wrong?"

Upon seeing this, Xiang Tianyang and the other two immediately got up and stepped forward to support him, their faces full of worry.

Xiang Fuhai closed his eyes and regulated his breathing for a moment. When his body had recovered, he opened his eyes and looked at his three cousins ​​in front of him. His face was full of grief, and he asked in a trembling voice, "How many people in the clan are still alive? Are Wentian, Wendao, Wenhong, and Wenlong still alive? How many of the Wen and Yu generation members are still alive?"

The Tian generation refers to Xiang Fuhai's nephews and nieces. All of Xiang Fuhai and his younger brother's children must have died. We can only ask their four direct grandsons and the even younger Yu generation great-grandsons how many of them survived.

Wen Tian, ​​Wen Dao, Wen Hong, and Wen Long are not only the direct grandsons of their brothers, but also the most talented among the Wen generation. They are all only in their forties this year, and their strength is all above twenty. The latter three are all of superior battle physique. His eldest grandson, Xiang Wen Tian, ​​is even more of a top-grade battle physique and was the most valued by him in the past.

Upon hearing this question, a deep sorrow appeared on the faces of Xiang Tianyang and the other two. Looking at their uncle's swaying body, the three of them remained silent in tacit agreement.

"Just tell me directly. I've lived for over 140 years and seen all kinds of storms. This little thing is nothing to me!"

Xiang Tianyang's expression froze upon hearing this. He looked up at Xiang Fuhai's resolute expression and finally spoke through tears, "Wenwen, Wenhong, and Wenlong died in battle at the city gate that very night. Wentian had narrowly escaped death, but the next day, the six lords forcibly divided up the Ba Shang treasury. Wentian couldn't stand it and went to argue with them. His words inadvertently angered Yang Zun, and Yang Fa, the head of Beishuo Town, personally intervened..."

"Go on, what did Yang Fa do to Tian'er?"

Seeing Xiang Tianyang's hesitant expression, Xiang Fuhai's heart trembled slightly. He clenched his fist and then gestured for him to continue.

A look of deep sorrow appeared in Xiang Tianyang's eyes as he continued, "Yang Zun and Yang Fa should have both realized that Wentian had the aptitude for a top-grade battle physique. Yang Fa then took direct action and severed both of Wentian's arms."

"Ah... Pfft..."

Unable to suppress his anger any longer, Xiang Fuhai let out a long roar. Overwhelmed by rage, he spat out a mouthful of blood, his face turned deathly pale, and his body went limp.

"Uncle..."

"Lord!"

Xiang Tianyang and the other two had been supporting Xiang Fuhai, so they naturally wouldn't let him fall down like that, and quickly helped him up.

"Yang Zun and Yang Fa, one day I will slaughter your Yang family members, or I will not be a man! Shangguan Yang and Qin Feng forced me to fight to the death with Dajue Temple in Ba Shang. As long as I live, Jinshan and Wuchuan will never have a good life. And Chuishan, Longgu, and Yangqu are all no good. As long as I live, I will fight the six towns to the death!"

Xiang Fuhai's eyes were filled with an extreme chill, and his words seemed to be squeezed out from between his teeth, his tone full of anger and hatred.

However, if you look closely, you'll notice that as he said this, his gaze inadvertently glanced at the side wing of the main hall.

………………

"My lord, Xiang Fuhai is showing his loyalty to our Great Xia!"

In a quiet room on the side of the main hall, Qiu Peng jokingly teased Xia Chuan with a smile.

"His body is still in a semi-crippled state, and he is counting on Chengfeng and the alchemy workshop to help him recover his Manifest Yang level cultivation. It's normal for him to show his loyalty."

Xia Chuan didn't speak, but Yuan Cheng smiled and picked up where he left off.

Xu Ning, who had just personally led Xiang Tiancheng and the other two to Hongmen City, was also sitting below. Hearing Yuan Cheng's words, he smiled and said, "It's true that they need our help, but Bei Shuo's actions are indeed a bit excessive. The experts of the Tian generation in Ba Shang have all been killed or injured. Xiang Wentian is almost the one among the remaining people who is most likely to break through to Xianyang. Yang Fa cut off his arms, which is obviously to cut off the Xiang family's roots. It's normal for Xiang Fuhai to be so angry."

"Seven parts truth, three parts falsehood!"

Xia Chuan, who was sitting in the main seat, finally spoke up. After defining Xiang Fuhai's words, he smiled and continued, "The three northern towns jointly coerced Xiang Fuhai into leading his men to fight Dajue Temple to the death. This was the root cause of the destruction of Ba Shang Town. How could Xiang Fuhai not hold a grudge?"
Even without the incident with Xiang Wentian, he and the three towns would have been sworn enemies.

As for the three towns of Chuishan, Longgu, and Yangqu, since they participated in dividing up the Ba Shang treasury and territory, it is only natural that they are resented.

Xiang Fuhai was still somewhat cunning. He probably already guessed the purpose of Da Xia's rescue of him, so he deliberately said things like "we're locked in a life-or-death struggle with the Six Towns" to enhance his own and the Xiang family's value.

Qiu Peng lowered his head and pondered for a moment, then immediately realized what he meant and nodded with a smile, "Now that he has lost his Manifest Yang level cultivation, the Xiang clan is down to just a handful of people. Indeed, this is the only way to increase his value."

After speaking, Qiu Peng seemed to remember something and asked Xia Chuan in a low voice, "Sir, if Cheng Feng develops a pill to help him restore his cultivation, should we really help him restore his cultivation?"

Upon hearing this question, Xia Chuan's brows furrowed slightly at first, but he quickly realized something, his brows relaxed, and he smiled, "Then we'll have to see how he and those people from Ba Shang perform in the future."

Upon hearing this, Qiu Peng and the others immediately smiled.

"The relocation of the Ba River area can finally be resolved smoothly!"

Xu Ning breathed a sigh of relief. He had been stationed in Ba Shang since early May, more than four months ago, and the most troublesome thing for him was the population migration.

Just as Xiang Tianyang guessed, if the Great Xia really wanted to force those more than one million people to migrate, there were certainly many ways. The problem was that Xia Hong had already given instructions in advance that everyone had to migrate willingly. As a result, he couldn't use many of his methods.

"Ba Shang is indeed different from the camps that our Great Xia previously annexed. It has a total population of over one million, and they have identified themselves as Ba Shang people for generations. It is too difficult to integrate them into Great Xia. It is fortunate that the lord had the foresight to leave such a brilliant move as Xiang Fuhai..."

Xu Ning couldn't help but sigh, and Xia Chuan, Qiu Peng, and Yuan Cheng all nodded, their faces showing admiration.

Looking back now, Xia Hong must have already foreseen this day when he rescued Xiang Fuhai in Ba Shang. Such strategy is truly admirable.

"By the way, Si Cheng, there are two very interesting people who have infiltrated Hongmen. You might find them interesting..."

Suddenly, Yuan Cheng thought of something and smiled as he spoke to Xia Chuan.

"Who is this person who infiltrated Hongmen?"

The three of them immediately looked at him with curiosity.

"Just as Xu Ning led Xiang Tianyang and the other two into the city, a caravan also entered the city. That caravan was jointly organized by nine village-level camps in Yinhe Valley, Jinshan Town, and the leader of them was named Han Peng!"

Yuan Cheng did not directly mention the two men's names, but instead brought up the group that entered the city today, emphasizing Han Peng's name.

"Han Peng of Yinhe Valley..."

Upon hearing Han Peng's name, Xia Chuan initially looked puzzled. After a moment of contemplation, he quickly remembered something and a glint of light appeared in his eyes as he said, "Han Peng was on the list that Han Feng brought from Jinshan Town in August, right?"

"That's right, it's this person, Han Peng, the leader of Jinyang Village in Yinhe Valley!"

Upon hearing the name, Qiu Peng immediately recognized it. Seeing Xu Ning's confused expression, he quickly explained, "You remember Han Feng, right?"

Xu Ning frowned slightly, but quickly remembered and asked, "Is it Han Feng, the son of Han Jiuli, who escaped from Han Qiong's camp six years ago?"

Qiu Peng nodded and said, "That's right. Six years ago, after he walked out of the secret passage, he joined Gutan Village in Jinshan Town by chance and became the deputy leader of Gutan Village. At the end of last year, the seven towns transferred people to support Jiangxia, and he happened to be among them, where he ran into Lu Yang."

The lord's maids, Han Yue and Han Shuang, are actually his two younger sisters. He visited Xia City at the end of last year, and at the beginning of last month, he brought his wife and children to seek refuge in Great Xia. Besides bringing some information about Jinshan Town, he also brought us a list.

Xu Ning quickly figured out the ins and outs of Han Feng's defection to the Great Xia, and then asked with curiosity, "What list?"

"It's a very interesting list. Han Feng has been in Gu Tan Village for six years and is familiar with many of the Cold-Resistant level cultivators in the surrounding camps. He discovered that there are five people in this group whose cultivation levels have increased abnormally, and they are extremely keen on gathering information about various towns and cities, even willing to spend a lot of money to do so. He sensed that these people must have a big problem, so he told us the names and situations of the five people. Han Peng, the leader of Jin Yang Village, is one of them!"

"Outside the Nine Towns?"

Xu Ning lowered his head and pondered for a moment, then instantly understood. He suddenly looked up at Xia Chuan, a look of surprise on his face.

Xia Chuan did not answer, but a hint of gloom and solemnity appeared in his eyes.

But Yuan Cheng continued speaking with a smile.

"While Han Peng may certainly pique your interest, I'm not talking about him today, but rather two other people."

"Stop keeping me in suspense, just tell me the name!"

Seeing Yuan Cheng's smug expression, Xia Chuan couldn't help but ask him to just say the name.

Yuan Cheng chuckled and finally spoke.

"Yang Ning, Li Hu!"

Upon hearing these two names, Qiu Peng and Xu Ning immediately stood up.

"It's those two bastards!"

"They've finally arrived. A few years ago, when Lu Yang brought back news, I almost couldn't resist going to Beishuo to slaughter them. Now they've actually delivered themselves to our doorstep!"

　Sorry everyone for the past few days. I'll be back to 10,000 updates starting tomorrow after I finish my work. Please vote, subscribe, and do whatever you want. Thank you! I'll keep working hard this month and surpass last month's update volume!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)