Chapter 133: Natural Trench |
On the west side, deeper into Redwood Ridge.
About a hundred meters away from everyone stood a towering ancient tree, roughly twenty meters across in diameter. Because of the distance, only its outline could be seen.
By estimate, the tree rose over a hundred meters tall, and right now it trembled intermittently because a massive creature was climbing up along its trunk.
Even from so far away, Xia Hong could make out from the silhouette that the enormous creature’s body length was seven to eight meters, heavily built, with two gleaming tusks that were starkly visible in the night.
“Snow Mane?”
“Is that a Snow Mane?”
“Snow Mane!”
…………
At the sight of that enormous beast, the hunting team immediately identified it.
Thud…………
Everyone swallowed instinctively, then their gazes all shifted to Xia Hong at the front.
Although a pleased expression showed on Xia Hong’s face, his heart felt uneasy.
The pleasure came because after a whole night of searching they had finally spotted a mid-grade frost beast, and it was alone—proof that not all frost beasts lived in packs like the Gnawer Rats.
That alone made hunting a mid-grade beast far easier.
The unease came purely from the creature’s size.
Low-grade Snow Manes only reached four meters at most; their builds were far smaller. Even across a hundred meters, the mid-grade Snow Mane before them looked at least twice the size of the largest one Xia Hong had ever hunted.
Among frost beasts, the Snow Mane wasn’t weak; an adult’s strike force exceeded ten thousand jin, making it the most frightening beast Xia Hong had encountered so far.
And that was for a low-grade Snow Mane.
This one was mid-grade!
After looking all night and thinking about encountering a mid-grade frost beast for so long, now that it truly stood before him, Xia Hong felt less excitement and instead snapped into quick calm.
There was no other way—faced with that size, staying calm was the only choice.
“Can we try the old method?” Yuan Cheng bluntly took out a torch and suggested to the others.
Everyone, including Xia Hong, showed a flicker of interest.
But Xia Hong quickly scanned the surroundings, shook his head, and spoke in a low voice:
“Judging from how mid-grade frost beasts are distributed, that won’t work—unless we find a second mid-grade beast somewhere else, then use torches to attract the Gnawer Rat packs along the way to guide it here.”
When they heard that plan, everyone immediately shook their heads.
Gnawer Rat packs were one thing; they knew nothing about the strength of a mid-grade frost beast. Recklessly using torches as bait, and having to guide it over such a long distance—practical execution would be tremendously difficult and dangerous.
One careless move and it would cost lives.
“Then we can only set traps first, then use torches to lure it in. There are sixteen of us. If we coordinate properly, we should have a shot.”
Xia Chuan said this while signaling Li Yun, Li Pingkai, and Zhu Shun.
The three of them removed the animal traps from their backs, placed them on the ground, and then looked up at Xia Hong.
They weren’t the only ones; Xia Chuan’s remaining eleven men also looked to Xia Hong, clearly waiting for his call.
“Torches, animal traps, ten-stone Iron-backed Bows—our whole hunting team is here. No one’s seriously injured. Leader, don’t hesitate. I can’t promise success, but at least we should try!”
Seeing hesitation on Xia Hong’s face, Xia Chuan was the first to urge him.
After hesitating a moment, Luo Yuan nodded and said seriously, “Right. We’re well prepared. Unless something unexpected happens, the camp won’t see another Digging Realm for a long time. This is our only setup—let’s try it, leader.”
“Sixteen people. Even if it’s strong, worst-case we fail the hunt and run away. Leader, don’t waver.”
“I think we should go for it. Sixteen Iron-backed Bows loaded with ten-stone draw weight—if we don’t engage it head-on but flank and maneuver, we’ll certainly have opportunities.”
…………
Everyone chimed in, expressing they wanted to try.
Though Xia Hong remained silent, a warm feeling rose in his chest.
They all said they’d be fine, that they were strong, that their manpower was enough and they had a chance—but they knew the danger. Why they pushed so hard was clear: they all understood that killing a mid-grade frost beast was the key to breaking through the Warmth Realm.
In other words, they were willing to take this risk for their own breakthroughs.
Xia Hong’s mind grew solemn. He glanced back at the distant giant tree and finally made a decisive call: “Alright—let’s try!”
With the decision made, Xia Hong stopped considering alternatives and began issuing orders: “Li Yun, you three go find suitable spots, dig pits, and set the animal traps.
Xia Chuan, Luo Yuan, and Yuan Cheng come with me to observe the surrounding terrain.
The rest, find your positions.
Remember: if nothing goes wrong, this Snow Mane’s power is more than we can handle even together, so we cannot confront it directly. Bows and arrows are our main tactic—if the arrows prove ineffective, abandon the attempt immediately.
You have half an hour to prepare. Keep your distance at around a hundred meters from it during that time. Do not alarm it—no sudden moves that might spook it.
After half an hour, return here and we’ll discuss the next move.”
“Yes, leader!”
They nodded and quietly agreed, then scattered to their tasks.
Over the past half year, these fifteen had gone hunting with him many times—nearly a hundred outings. Many things didn’t need explicit instructions; they worked by tacit understanding.
Xia Hong felt reassured and took Xia Chuan and two others to circle the tree the Snow Mane occupied, getting an early feel for the terrain.
The tree the Snow Mane clung to was over a hundred meters west; Xia Hong paid special attention to the south and north sides.
“Snow Manes don’t have the strongest perception among frost beasts. We just walked several laps nearby without detecting it and it didn’t detect us. This one probably just came from the inner side. I hope its head is badly injured!”
Hearing Yuan Cheng’s wishful thinking, Xia Chuan and Luo Yuan shook their heads at once, but each still held a small glimmer of hope.
Frost beasts in Redwood Ridge fought among themselves, and mid-grade beasts fought even more fiercely. If this Snow Mane had just moved out from the inner ring, it might have lost a fight and been wounded.
But across a hundred meters, even the Snow Mane’s facial features were indistinct; there was no way to tell its condition from here.
“Don’t indulge in unrealistic fantasies. If it were injured, it might be irritable and even more dangerous!”
They walked to the far north, almost leaving Redwood Ridge, and Xia Hong crushed Yuan Cheng’s hopes before leading the three back south.
“This area is the former territory of Lushang Camp. Beyond north is the Arrow Bamboo Forest. If a fight breaks out, we can’t draw it north—only south or east outside.”
“That Snow Mane’s huge. We don’t know its reflexes. There are plenty of trees here for shooting positions; if it’s slower to react, all the better.”
“People make the difference!”
Back where they started, the half hour had nearly passed and the rest began filtering in.
They had found positions smoothly. The last to return were Li Yun and his two who handled the animal traps, along with helpers they’d called on the way.
Li Yun and the others wore excited expressions; the moment they saw Xia Hong, they couldn’t hold back:
“Leader, there’s a natural trench to the south—eight meters long, three meters wide, covered with snow and at least six meters deep. The three of us called others to help dig and deepened it by another two meters. We’ve placed three animal traps around the trench. If we can successfully lure the Snow Mane into it, the hunt is already more than half won.”
“Lead the way—let’s go see!”
At Li Yun’s description, Xia Hong’s eyes lit up and he had him lead them forward.
They followed Li Yun two hundred meters south, and a natural trench slowly came into view. Almost everyone, including Xia Hong, brightened at the sight.
The trench was large, wedged between two massive trees over ten meters across. The accumulated snow that once covered it had been cleared—obviously Li Yun’s handiwork.
One animal trap was placed on each side of the trench’s entrances, and one in the center at the bottom. All three traps were tethered with ropes and covered again with white snow.
“Cover the trench back with snow—this is the spot!”
Xia Hong inspected the interior and the surrounding ground, then made a quick decision. The natural trench was practically tailor-made for that huge Snow Mane.
Looking at the two trees flanking the trench, Xia Hong’s expression shifted as he made further arrangements. When all preparations were complete, he instructed everyone to return to their assigned positions.
“One more thing: bows and arrows are our only tool. If we clash with it directly, not even I can win—let alone you. If it turns out arrows don’t work, everyone scatter and retreat. If they do, coordinate with each other. You all know how to use your bows, right?”
After one last reminder and seeing everyone nod, he paused, then continued: “First priority is protecting yourselves. There are many mid-grade frost beasts in Redwood Ridge, but we only have one life—understand?”
“Understood, leader!”
“The strength and methods of mid-grade beasts are uncertain, and the contribution point value is hard to set. But if we kill this Snow Mane, it will be the camp’s first mid-grade prey. That’s significant, so I set its price at…”
Xia Hong paused before finishing.
“Ten thousand points!”
At once all fifteen heads snapped up, faces full of delight.
Especially the three Zhao brothers—Zhao Long’s hand on his bow trembled slightly.
“Since we’re relying on bows, contribution points won’t be split evenly. Whoever’s arrow does the most damage gets the biggest share of contribution points!”
After saying that, Xia Hong dismissed them to take their positions.
“That’s all—go wait where you staked out earlier.”
Once everyone was in place, Xia Hong took a torch from behind him and planted it at the trench’s edge, glanced back at the massive silhouette of the Snow Mane on the distant tree, and took a deep breath.
Whoosh…………
The torch flared to life in the snowy night.
The air around them froze for a moment.
Xia Hong had already climbed a nearby large tree, ceasing his breathing and watching the movements of the northern tree.
The other fifteen dispersed around him did the same.
Crack…………
From the north came the sound of branches breaking.
Everyone’s hearts tightened and they quietly turned to look that way.