Endless Winter: My Camp Infinite Upgrades

Chapter 524 Xiao Cai Fangbo, Chu Tianxu backs down

"Not a Beast King, but a puppet. Aren't the Great Xia's Frost Beast Puppets only at the Beast King level? How could there be two Beast Kings? This is impossible..."

Chu Tianxu had no time to care about his arms being bitten by the three-headed wolf king. His gaze was fixed on Xia Hong, his face full of horror and shock.

Beast King Puppet: The Great Xia Dynasty has two Beast King-level puppets...

This thought filled his mind, but he quickly realized something, and his expression suddenly froze.

Who said there are only two? Xia Hong has only brought out these two Beast Kings at the moment, but who can guarantee that he only has these two?

No wonder the other party dared to kill Chu Xuankong and the others so recklessly, and showed no fear when facing him. They even dared to say that Yang Zun would die!
So, they actually possess a powerful weapon—a Beast King-level puppet—in their hands...

"you……"

Chu Tianxu maintained his giant form in his battle-body golden form, his hundred-meter-tall body naturally exuding a powerful aura.

However, it depends on who you're comparing yourself to.

Both the Fire Lion and the Three-Headed Wolf King were over two hundred feet long and about one hundred feet tall at the shoulder. Putting aside their strength for the moment, in terms of individual size, Chu Tianxu was completely crushed.

Although he was still locked in a stalemate with the Three-Headed Wolf King, Chu Tianxu had lost all will to fight. He turned to look at Xia Hong, his voice hesitant, as if he didn't know what to say.

The fire lion stopped a hundred meters above him, its bright blue pupils fixed on him, but it made no further move.

Clearly, Xia Hong did not intend to kill him.

Frost beasts of the same realm are far superior to humans in strength. This ironclad rule of the Ice Abyss still applies at the Five Elements Realm and Tribulation Realm stages.

Chu Tianxu was at the second stage of cultivation, with a basic strength of 210 jun. He could roughly sense that the three-headed wolf king puppet that was biting him had a strength of about 140 jun, while the blue-eyed fire lion puppet that hadn't moved was even stronger, probably over 160 jun.

In a one-on-one fight, he should have no problem facing either opponent, given his overwhelming strength.

But one against two, that won't work!

Moreover, these two beast kings in front of him were not the normal cold beasts he had dealt with in the wilderness before. They were puppets controlled by Xia Hong, and who knew if they had any other tricks up their sleeves.

Not to mention, Xia Hong may have more than just these two Beast King puppets!
“We can’t continue fighting. The miasma in the Nine-Bend Blood Corridor has dissipated, confirming that it was deliberately caused by those monsters from the Blood Miasma Plains. This means there’s a very high probability that they’ve been keeping an eye on the Southern Foothills. If I go all out, I might attract them here. Even if I don’t attract them, what if I attract some other terrifying beings…”

Chu Tianxu's mind raced, and an internal struggle began to rage within him.

While the cultivation level of the Tribulation Body Realm is powerful, its limitations are also obvious. Because the internal organs of a Tribulation Body Realm human are extremely precious and sought-after cultivation resources for monsters and cold beasts, they cannot stay in crowded places for long, cannot act casually, and will even try to avoid venturing into unfamiliar areas.

It was already quite an achievement for Chu Tianxu to make this trip to the Southern Foothills region. Going all out was definitely out of the question. He was already furious when he saw the corpses of Chu Xuankong and the rest of his clansmen, but he didn't attack Xia Hong. So it was even less likely that he would attack now.

But he was too ashamed to back down like that...

Xia Hong did not allow the Fire Lion to rush up. Although the Three-Headed Wolf King continued to bite Chu Tianxu's arms, it did not make any further moves. Chu Tianxu neither softened his stance nor resisted, but kept his eyes fixed on Xia Hong.

The situation has reached a stalemate!

"Prefect Chu, bring Yang Zun and that six-armed, blue-faced man..."

Xia Hong roughly guessed Chu Tianxu's thoughts, knowing that this prefect was still a little reluctant to lower himself. After remaining silent for a long time, his tone softened slightly, and he was about to give him a way out.

But he stopped halfway through his sentence and turned to look towards the southern sky.

Chu Tianxu happened to turn his head to look south as well, and clearly sensed something, his expression changed slightly.

"Prefect Chu, you've run into a tough nut to crack, haven't you?"

A slightly frivolous young voice suddenly came from the south sky. A moment later, a bright light suddenly broke through the clouds and approached the Lord's Hall, stopping less than 300 meters away from Xia Hong.

That was a... young man.

He was indeed a young man. Although his face was sharp, he looked to be only about thirty years old. He was dressed in a blue brocade robe, holding a moon-white longsword. He was tall and slender, and although his posture was obviously arrogant, he did not come across as offensive because he always had a faint smile on his lips.

What's most striking is his confident and arrogant eyes, which are now freely moving between the three-headed wolf king and the fire lion. After examining the two beast kings, he looked at Chu Tianxu and finally turned his gaze to Xia Hong, his pupils full of curiosity and inquiry.

“Cai Qiuhu…”

Upon seeing the young man, Chu Tianxu was immediately stunned, clearly not expecting Cai Qiu to be Cai Qiuhu. But then he seemed to realize something, and his expression instantly turned gloomy.

"Isn't Xiao Fangbo leading men to help Cao Qianyang defend Yangqu Town? How come he has the leisure to come to Beishuo City?"

Xia Hong had been secretly observing the four battlefields for a long time, so when he saw the young man's Cai Qiu clothing and his aura of the Tribulation Realm, he immediately recognized Cai Qiuhu's identity.

Hearing Xia Hong address him with a hint of teasing, Cai Qiuhu didn't show any anger. Instead, he stared at Xia Hong with interest for a while longer before laughing and saying, "I never imagined that this small southern region could not only produce a tiger like Yang Zun, but also raise a figure like Lord Xia. It has truly broadened my horizons."

Cai Qiuhu's tone even carried a hint of flattery.

And it was extremely sincere, not in a joking way.

Xia Hong raised an eyebrow slightly. Although he knew that Cai Qiu was very likely not to choose to antagonize the Great Xia, he was still somewhat surprised that Cai Qiuhu could respond so mildly to his provocation.

No wonder Cai Qianshan designated him as the next governor so early on...

Since Cai Qiuhu had shown goodwill, Xia Hong naturally wouldn't continue to provoke him. He smiled and cupped his hands, saying, "I, Xia, have only received a little bit of good fortune and cannot bear such praise from you, Young Master Fang..."

On the other side, seeing Cai Qiuhu and Xia Hong chatting happily, Chu Tianxu's already gloomy face became even more somber, clearly indicating that he had already sensed something.

As for Xia Hong, after exchanging pleasantries with Cai Qiuhu for a while, he didn't waste any more words and got straight to the point with a smile: "May I ask, young Master Fang, what is your purpose in appearing here at this moment?"

Cai Qiuhu hurriedly waved his hand with a smile and said, "I do have important matters to discuss with Lord Xia today, but there's no rush. We can talk after Lord Xia has finished dealing with his current affairs."

As he spoke, he turned to look at Chu Tianxu, his face filled with an unusually strong sense of schadenfreude, clearly pleased with Chu Tianxu's current predicament.

After all, Chencang has always been relatively powerful in the four vassal states due to its superior overall strength. It is not surprising that Cai Qiuhu, as the next governor of Caiqiu, would be happy to see Chencang suffer a setback.

"Then please wait a moment, Uncle Fang..." Xia Hong was naturally aware of this. He nodded with a smile. He knew what Cai Qiuhu wanted to discuss with him, but since the other party didn't speak, he couldn't ask first.

After exchanging pleasantries with Cai Qiuhu, he turned to look at Chu Tianxu and said softly, "Now that Prefect Chu has come to the Southern Foothills region, you should be aware of the strange changes in the miasma of the Nine-Bend Blood Corridor..."

He paused for a moment, then continued, "Prefect Chu is a wise man. I don't need to elaborate on what those monsters in the Blood Miasma Plains are up to. Now that Beishuo has been destroyed, your vassal state and the Southern Foothills region no longer have any connection. I have long admired Chencang. Now that our two families are neighbors, we should make peace and join forces to stop the expansion of the Blood Miasma Plains. I wonder if Prefect Chu agrees with my words?"

Before Chu Tianxu could answer, Xia Hong waved his hand, and the three-headed wolf king immediately loosened its jaw and retreated dozens of meters.

The anger on Chu Tianxu's face had long since disappeared. As soon as his hands were freed, he immediately returned to his original state. Although his face was still gloomy, he finally nodded slightly, which was considered an answer to Xia Hong's question.

A smart person, after all, understands the bigger picture...

A slight hint of satisfaction appeared on Xia Hong's face as he smiled and said, "In that case, there's even less need for Prefect Chu to make a big fuss with me here over a dying man. The Southern Foothills are unfamiliar territory to Prefect Chu, and those monsters from the Blood Miasma Plains are most likely watching from the shadows..."

Although Xia Hong didn't finish his sentence, how could someone as intelligent as Chu Tianxu not understand his meaning?

The monsters of the Blood Miasma Plains are watching from the shadows. If he dares to fight Xia Hong here, the outcome will likely be unfavorable, regardless of whether he wins or loses.

Chu Tianxu's expression was extremely unpleasant. Although he knew that Xia Hong was right, he still felt very uncomfortable being manipulated.

After thinking for a moment, he still didn't want to back down, so he turned his gaze to Cai Qiuhu on the other side, and his expression began to flicker.

He could see clearly that from the moment Xia Hong's tone softened, Cai Qiuhu's expression became somewhat somber.

Cai Qiuhu's thoughts are not hard to understand. Caiqiu is located in the very center of the Mo'ao River, surrounded by the three vassal states, making it a veritable battleground. In addition, its expansion has been hindered in recent years, and the strength of the vassal states has stagnated. As a core high-ranking official in Caiqiu, Cai Qiuhu naturally feels a great sense of crisis.

The rise of the Great Xia on the southern slope is definitely a good thing for Caiqiu.

However, Cai Qiuhu's wishful thinking was too obvious. Xia Hong's originally stiff attitude began to soften, obviously because he saw this. Seeing that Xia Hong intended to ease the tension with Chen Cang and that the initial tense situation was gone, Cai Qiuhu's expression naturally began to change.

So there's still a chance...

Chu Tianxu's mind raced with thoughts, but in reality, only a moment had passed. Having discerned Cai Qiuhu's current intentions, he sheathed his sword, a slow smile appearing on his face. He spoke softly to Cai Qiuhu from afar, "Young Lord Cai, the Xia army has destroyed Beishuo. Their next step should be to destroy Jinshan and Wuchuan. If a powerful neighbor emerges in the south, it's not just my Chencang family that needs to worry..."

Still unwilling to back down, they even started to provoke Cai Qiuhu.

Xia Hong did not interrupt Chu Tianxu, but turned his head and looked at Cai Qiuhu with interest, wanting to see how this young Cai Fangbo would deal with it.

Unexpectedly, upon hearing Chu Tianxu's provocation, Cai Qiuhu's gloomy expression immediately relaxed. He then raised an eyebrow at Chu Tianxu and smiled, "Prefect Chu is right. A powerful neighbor has emerged in the south, and everyone has to worry about it, but the one who worries the most is definitely you, Chen Cang..."

Xia Hong understood Cai Qiuhu's seemingly cryptic words immediately. Recalling Chu Tianxu's words when he recruited him in Yanling County, a broad smile appeared on his face.

Of the four major warlords of Mo'aochuan, Chencang ranks first in overall strength. Moreover, Chu Longteng's ambition to unify Mo'aochuan is almost out in the open. The first bird to stick its head out gets shot. How could the other three warlords not be wary of Chencang?
As for Cai Qiuhu's statement, it clearly means that Chencang has the greatest ambition, so they are the ones who will be most worried if a powerful neighbor appears. The other three vassal states, on the other hand, do not have the strength or ambition to unify the Mo'ao River, so they are not so resistant to the emergence of a powerful neighbor.

What a clever little Cai Fangbo! With such a nonchalant response, he directly thwarted Chu Tianxu's instigation scheme.

Of course, not being provoked is secondary. The key point is that Cai Qiuhu clearly knows who Cai Qiu's biggest enemy is. It is not easy to be able to figure this out.

Xia Hong couldn't help but look at this young Prefect Cai with even greater respect, before turning to Chu Tianxu and smiling, "It seems Prefect Chu's instigation had no effect. In that case, quickly hand over Yang Zun and that monster! I, Xia, will be blunt here..."

At this point, Xia Hong paused, his smile vanished, and his tone suddenly turned somber as he continued, "Even if Lord Chu himself came today, Yang Zun would surely die!"

As soon as Xia Hong uttered those words, Chu Tianxu and Cai Qiuhu's expressions changed instantly. The former was mostly furious, and the latter was mostly shocked. But in addition, there was also a hint of surprise and doubt in their pupils.

Neither of them were stupid; how could they not understand the deeper meaning behind Xia Hong's words?
These two Beast King-level puppets in front of us are not the trump card of the Great Xia Dynasty!

"Lord Xia Hong, there's no need to provoke me with words. This time, the Chu clan's Yanling lineage, who marched south, were all slaughtered by your Great Xia. I, Chen Cang, will not let this go easily. When Lord Fangbo personally arrives at the Southern Foothills, I hope Lord Xia Hong will be just as resolute then, hmph..."

Chu Tianxu was not intimidated by Xia Hong's words, but he also realized that he could not save Yang Zun today. Feeling somewhat embarrassed, he left a harsh remark, snorted coldly, and threw Yang Zun and the blue light he had intercepted earlier out. Without giving Xia Hong a chance to respond, he got up and flew north.

Xia Hong only produced two Beast King-level puppets and had no intention of killing Chu Tianxu. Now that Yang Zun had been handed over, he naturally wouldn't try to stop him anymore.

"jade carving……"

Xia Hong took the two items, first tossing Yang Zun to Xia Chuan behind him, and then looking down at the blue light he was holding.

The blue light turned out to be a jade sculpture about 30 centimeters tall. The jade sculpture had six arms, a blue face, fangs, and red pupils. The two uppermost arms held a white spear. It was the same miniature form of the six-armed, monstrous sculpture from before.

"grown ups…………"

The jade carving was held in Xia Hong's palm. After three or four breaths, it slowly retracted its fangs, then its eyes rolled a few times and it came to life. Seeing that Xia Hong was staring at it, it hurriedly knelt down in front of him.

He didn't die after all...

Xia Hong had intended to spare the life of the six-armed evil spirit. Seeing that it had recovered, he nodded slightly. Now was not the time to talk, so he put it into his sleeve and then turned to look at Cai Qiuhu beside him.

"Young Master Cai, what important matter do you wish to discuss with me, Xia?"

While casually asking the question, Xia Hong waved his hand and put away the two Beast Kings.

Seeing the two Beast Kings disappear, Cai Qiuhu's eyes flickered slightly, but he quickly returned to normal, cupped his hands and smiled, "I, Cai, would like to plead for Lord Cao. I wonder if Lord Xia Hong would be willing to do me this favor?"

Cai Qiu has sent over a hundred Xianyang-level warriors. If all goes as expected, they should now have control of Jinshan and Wuchuan towns. As soon as the incident occurred in Longgu Town, they immediately sent people to Yangqu to assist Cao Qianyang in defending the city.

Not only are they extending their reach further and further, but now they're even coming to talk to me directly...

Xia Hong looked at Cai Qiuhu and asked with a smile, "Since Lord Cai has spoken, we should naturally give him face. But how should we do it? Does Lord Cai mean for our Great Xia to withdraw its troops?"

"To be honest, Brother Xia, that was indeed my thought before, but now it's clearly not appropriate. Lord Xia, just give Lord Cao a month to lead his men to Caiqiu, what do you say?"

Ok?
Xia Hong's face immediately showed a look of surprise.

It's not a withdrawal of troops; it's about taking Cao Qianyang and a group of people to Caiqiu.

This Cai Qiuhu is indeed no ordinary person!
(End of this chapter)