Chapter 33: Beast Battle

Endless Winter: My Camp Upgrades Infinitely

"Yuan Cheng, Lin Kai, go put out the furnace! Xia Chuan, Yue Feng, you five come with me to the cave entrance. Everyone else retreat further inside, now!" Faced with the sudden crisis, Xia Hong swiftly issued commands.

The Frost Beast was already dangerously close to the cave entrance—fleeing outside wasn't an option. Besides, it was still daytime. Even those who had reached the Lumberjack Realm cultivation couldn't withstand the extreme cold outside, let alone the rest of the camp members.

The cave wasn't large, but there was enough space for everyone to move back about ten meters.

"But it's daytime... Without the fire, they won't last long..." Yuan Cheng had been puzzled by the order from the start, but the urgency left no time for questions. Only after extinguishing the flames did he finally voice his confusion.

"Don't you remember? The Small Torches we use during hunts with the leader come from this furnace," Lin Kai replied.

Yuan Cheng's expression immediately changed. They'd all witnessed how crazily Frost Beasts reacted to those torches. If the beasts discovered this roaring furnace... The thought was terrifying.

"Thank the leader for the warning—that could've been disastrous. I recall those torches not only heal Frost Beasts but can even enhance their strength."

"Yuan Cheng, Lin Kai! Get over here and help once the fire's out!" Xia Chuan's shout sent both men rushing toward the cave entrance.

"Quick, bring wood to block the entrance—just in case."

As the ground continued trembling, Xia Hong directed everyone to move all stored timber to the cave mouth's center. Meanwhile, he approached the entrance's side and carefully dug a small peephole to assess the outside situation.

The moment the hole opened, a beam of light pierced through. With no fire illuminating the cave's interior, the darkness made the incoming daylight starkly visible.

Yet with that sunlight came an invasive, bone-chilling cold. Xia Hong, closest to the opening, could actually see dust particles in the light beam freezing at terrifying speeds—within three to four breaths, they crystallized into snowflakes midair before drifting down.

His pupils contracted sharply. Testing, he extended his palm into the sunlight.

Sssss...

Instantaneous agony. A piercing cold shot from his hand straight to his skull. His skin turned bluish instantly as blood flow ceased in that area.

Feeling numbness spreading alarmingly up his arm, Xia Hong yanked his hand back. Only after vigorous rubbing did sensation gradually return.

"Daytime temperatures are this extreme? No wonder humans can only survive in shadows. Even Digging Realm cultivators probably couldn't walk freely under sunlight."

Shaking his recovered hand, Xia Hong pressed his eye to the peephole.

The sunlight's assault was exponentially worse on his eyeball. Blinding pain lanced through his skull, but he endured it to survey outside—and his heart plummeted.

A six-legged, six-horned monstrosity resembling a gargantuan goat—easily five to six meters long—was charging madly toward their hillside. Standing over two meters tall at the shoulder, its violent charge plowed through smaller trees and even earthen mounds in its path.

"That horned goat Frost Beast is charging right at us!" Xia Hong sealed the peephole as his eye reached its limit.

Xia Chuan and the others paled. They'd seen that beast before—but only at night, when it slept atop Golden Frost Trees. Due to its massive size and their lack of knowledge about it, Xia Hong had always deliberately avoided it during hunts.

"Don't panic. It's heading this general direction, but may not find our cave specifically. Let's observe first."

With the Frost Beast now dangerously close, Xia Hong refrained from reopening the peephole, instead positioning everyone on either side of the entrance. They all prayed the beast would pass by unnoticed.

Thud... thud... thud...

Miraculously, the thunderous footsteps slowed. Not only did the beast's movements grow less frenzied, but the sounds indicated it was actually moving away.

Tension eased slightly among the group.

"Must've been accidental. It didn't detect the cave and is leaving."

Only Xia Hong remained uneasy, his brow deeply furrowed. Suddenly, he pressed his ear to the ground.

Three breaths later, he sprang up with a horrified shout: "SCATTER TO THE SIDES NOW!"

Everyone reacted instantly, diving left and right just as—

CRASH!

Six razor-sharp horns exploded through the entrance. The defensive barricade of branches, turf, and timber disintegrated into splinters under the assault.

The entire cave mouth collapsed. Deadly cold and sunlight flooded in together, frosting the eight nearest men's animal-hide skirts instantly.

"Fall back further inside! We can't fight it here!"

Xia Hong ordered retreat while charging forward himself. He seized the beast's horns—nearly getting launched backward by the impact. Even bracing with all his strength, the creature's momentum sent him skidding twenty to thirty meters across the cave floor.

Yet through sheer footwork, he gradually redirected the charge's trajectory from the cave interior toward the left wall.

This wasn't a contest of strength—the horned Frost Beast clearly outclassed even an adult Snow Mane. His goal was simply altering its path. If it reached the crowded rear, nobody could withstand that rampage.

At the last moment before collision, Xia Hong kicked off the wall, releasing one hand to draw his hand axe. As the beast veered toward the right wall, he swung at its skull with all his might.

CLANG!

The horned beast barely needed to adjust—a slight head tilt intercepted the strike with its antlers. Not only did they block the attack, but the impact shattered Xia Hong's stone axehead.

Staring at the now-useless wooden haft, Xia Hong felt numb.

"Leader! Catch!"

Xia Chuan's thrown axe brought momentary relief. The seven others had surrounded the beast, three on each side, hurling ropes to entangle its torso before pulling backward with combined might.

Though all merely Lumberjack Realm cultivators, their united strength was formidable. The ensnared Frost Beast staggered, nearly toppling sideways before catching itself.

ROOOOAR!

Its enraged bellow echoed through the cavern. Finding itself unable to break free from the restraining ropes, forced into a stalemate, the beast's fury visibly escalated by the second.