Chapter 38: We Must Decline to Continue |
The snow-filled night outlined Redwood Ridge with dense, pale trees. Wind and solitude had always been the unchanging themes of this forest. Despite being surrounded by nine camps with a combined population of three to four thousand in earlier times, these numbers remained far too few for such a vast territory as Redwood Ridge.
When territories were initially divided, even the mighty Rogge Camp dared only operate within a one-kilometer perimeter of Redwood Ridge's outskirts. The other eight camps had even smaller ranges of just five hundred meters. This standard wasn't arbitrarily set—it was established through life-and-death explorations conducted by Rogge Camp's former leader Luo Feng and his hunting team.
The outermost five hundred meters of Redwood Ridge were primarily inhabited by low-level Frost Beasts. Venturing deeper increased encounters with mid-level Frost Beasts, while within one kilometer, only mid-level beasts remained. The logic was simple: trees grew larger towards the center, and Frost Beasts—creatures that preferred dwelling in trees—who occupied these massive specimens were undoubtedly formidable.
Thus, though all camps knew Redwood Ridge's depths held inexhaustible resources, none dared cross that boundary—not even Rogge Camp, the sole camp with hunting privileges. Even low-level Frost Beasts typically possessed strength exceeding eight thousand jin, with stronger adults surpassing ten thousand jin. Humans needed at least Digging Realm cultivation to confront them directly, let alone mid or high-level Frost Beasts.
This highlighted humanity's predicament—compared to them, Frost Beasts seemed to be this land's favored species.
Fifteen years after inheriting leadership from his father Luo Feng, Luo Ming had led countless hunting expeditions yet always adhered to the rules, never venturing beyond Redwood Ridge's one-kilometer mark. Thus, when first crossing this boundary, he couldn't help feeling somewhat excited.
Superficially, the interior differed little from the outskirts. But careful observation revealed significant differences in the trees. The outskirts featured primarily vermilion frost trees, followed by golden frost, with crystal fruit trees being rarest. Here, golden frost dominated, followed by vermilion frost, with crystal fruit trees remaining scarce. Additionally, seven or eight tree species unseen in the outskirts grew here.
The Frost Beast density also differed. Luo Ming's experienced eyes instantly spotted at least three beasts perched on nearby trees—two mid-level ones by their size. This made him instinctively lighten his footsteps despite knowing nocturnal Frost Beasts slept deeply and rarely awoke unless provoked. Still, mid-level beasts posed potential dangers.
Turning to Shi Qing trailing behind him, Luo Ming stopped upon seeing his gloomy expression and patted his shoulder: "Don't worry. At this distance with those two masters watching, your brother will be fine. Even if the Wood Puppet Abomination appears, they have bone whistles—we'll assist immediately upon hearing them."
Suddenly—
Peeep!
As if confirming Luo Ming's words, a sharp bone whistle sounded from their left just as Shi Qing opened his mouth. Both men paled. Reacting first, Shi Qing drew his recurve bow, already nocking an iron arrow as he sprinted left. Luo Ming followed closely, reaching the whistle's source within breaths—where their expressions changed completely.
Shi Dong limped toward them, pursued by two familiar figures. Their shock stemmed not from the chase, but the pursuers' identities.
"Wang Rui, Sun Xinzhu! What are you doing? Why attack Shi Dong?"
"They're not Wang Rui or Sun Xinzhu! They've been replaced and ambushed me!" Shi Dong cried angrily, firing unstable arrows backward while hobbling, his injured leg and panic ruining his aim.
Swish... Swish...
Fortunately, Shi Qing reacted swiftly. The blank expressions of "Wang Rui" and "Sun Xinzhu" confirmed their abnormality. Two well-aimed arrows from Shi Qing stopped their advance, allowing Shi Dong to reach safety.
Sweating profusely, Shi Dong lifted his pant leg, revealing a bleeding eight-inch gash. After hastily packing snow onto the wound, he explained: "In the woods, they excused themselves to relieve themselves. Within fifteen minutes, the Abomination replaced them and slashed my leg."
Exchanging grave looks, Luo Ming and Shi Qing were interrupted by sudden shouts:
"Tiger! Here!"
"Abomination! You won't escape!"
Two hundred meters away, Yang Ning and Li Hu charged toward a six-meter-thick tree, weapons drawn. After exchanging glances, Li Hu tensed his arms, muscles bulging as he raised his Yanling saber overhead before delivering a mighty horizontal slash.
Could he possibly... cut down that massive tree in one strike? Impossible! Luo Ming's mind rejected the notion—the saber was under two meters long against a six-meter diameter trunk.
Crack... Thud!
Yet the crisp snapping sound carried clearly across the distance. The enormous tree toppled, revealing a black-clad figure—the previously encountered Wood Puppet Abomination—leaping from its crown. Yang Ning and Li Hu immediately flanked it, engaging combat.
Meanwhile, Luo Ming remained stunned by Li Hu's feat. "How is this possible?" Though Yang Ning and Li Hu had claimed equal Digging Realm cultivation, how could the gap between peers be so vast?
"Leader Luo, we've arrived."
The voice snapped Luo Ming from his daze. Turning, he found four additional groups had joined them besides Shi Qing and Shi Dong. The fake Wang Rui and Sun Xinzhu had collapsed lifeless as the Abomination came under attack.
Two group leaders grew grim upon seeing the bodies. "We've lost four already. With these two, that's six more dead."
"This is the fourth wave. Continuing like this will deplete all our camps' Lumberjack Realm combatants!"
"Leader Luo, if we fail to kill that Abomination this time, we must withdraw. Rogge Camp can afford losing fighters, but our smaller camps cannot."
Even Shi Qing added: "Leader Luo, this can't continue. Though those masters are powerful, using our men as bait repeatedly is unacceptable. If we fail again today, Boulder Camp must also withdraw."
Their complaints visibly shook Luo Ming, guilt flashing across his face as doubt crept in.