Chapter 577: Gold News, Shocking News and Panic, Corpse Demon Army |
"The system can detect gold from the Golden Saint Pill, so it can be confirmed that one of the ingredients in the Golden Saint Pill formula is gold. It's just a shame the gold content in the pill is too low; it simply can't be extracted."
Xia Hong pinched the Golden Saint Pill, his expression tinged with regret.
The moment he bought the Golden Saint Pill at the Yang Market, he used the camp system to detect it. The pill indeed contained gold, but the problem was the system detected only 0.3 units, which was nowhere near enough to extract.
The conversion ratio for system resources is increasingly high. The cheapest, wood, is 1000 jin for one point; coal is 20 jin per point; iron is 10 jin per point; silver is 5 jin per point. Following this pattern, gold is most likely 1 jin per point.
0.3 units means the gold content in the Golden Saint Pill is roughly 0.3 jin, which according to Great Xia's weight regulations is 3 liang.
One Golden Saint Pill is worth 30 million liang of silver. Although gold is just one of its auxiliary materials, this still shows its astonishingly high value. Silver simply can't compare; the conversion ratio between the two must be terrifying.
"That Yang Market is so mysterious and unfathomable, yet even they can't find gold. Currently, the only information I've managed to gather about gold is that the Great Xu Nation..."
As the words "Great Xu" echoed in his mind, Xia Hong felt an inexplicable stirring in his heart. This feeling was completely different from when Great Xia was just a small camp and he first heard about medium, large, giant, and even town-level camps.
He first heard the term "nation-state" from Chu Tianxu's mouth, during that recruitment speech when he left Yanling Commandery at the end of last year.
"A nation-state is not merely a gathering of cities and common people; it is a spiritual land favored by the fortune of heaven and earth. The strength of its monarchs and lords can suppress ten eras, unify the eight wastelands; where their august presence shines, none dare disobey. The expansion of its territory, though spanning thousands of miles, does not rely on weapons of war, but on the hearts of the people. The prosperity of its national power can withstand the fierce beasts and evil abominations of the Ice Abyss, can shelter hundreds of millions of human lives, and can also elevate the fortune of a region."
That seller didn't actually say much, but his words left an extremely deep impression on Xia Hong, who remembered them verbatim to this day.
Especially the last phrase, "elevate the fortune of a region." With his two lifetimes of experience, Xia Hong could roughly understand the immense weight these six words carried. This undoubtedly ignited an even stronger desire within him to explore nation-states.
"That seller probably wasn't from Great Xu, just someone who had been there. Five million liang of silver for a location... that's too outrageous. There's no need to pay that money. Even if I knew the location, I couldn't go there at this stage anyway..."
Xia Hong shook his head, temporarily setting aside the matter of Great Xu. He then looked at the dazzling array of various supplies inside the Yellow Mustard Bag, sorted them into categories, took out a list, and began slowly itemizing them.
"Jade Sun Pills for the Warmth Realm, Sun-Breaking Pills for the peak of the Warmth Realm, Molting Bone Pills, Meridian-Cleansing Pills, Bone-Burning Pills... The various pills obtained from Yanling and Chencang total 28 types. Adding those bought at the Yang Market makes 39 types. Based on the grades of these pills, they should keep the Medicine Pavilion researching for a long time.
I brought five stalks of Chencang's sorghum seeds. Additionally, at the Yang Market, I found three stalks of Red Sprout Rice seeds and three stalks of Green Jade Sorghum. These three types of crops can all serve as substitutes for beast meat. I'll hand them over to Cheng Feng and have him quickly cultivate them first in the medicinal field. Then, we need to find suitable planting areas within Great Xia's territory. Once planting is fully implemented, within a few years, the average cultivation level of Great Xia's population is bound to experience a surge.
Over 4,000 high-grade Blood Jade Beads can be used to remedy defects in the skin membrane and flesh. Thirty-six pieces of Blood Jade Crystal can remedy skeletal defects. And six pieces of Blood Jade Marrow will most likely allow me to improve my bone frame aptitude. There aren't many of these three items; consuming them directly would be a terrible waste. Let the Medicine Pavilion research them first. It would be best if they could be used for alchemy.
Then there are the hundreds of types of various supplies collected over the past three years from Chencang and Caiqiu, including those scavenged at the Yang Market last year. It will probably take the Artisans Department a very long time to digest them all..."
Looking at the supplies in the Yellow Mustard Bag, a faint flicker of excitement passed through Xia Hong's pupils.
Traveling through Mo'ao Chuan for three years, the improvement in his personal strength was secondary. The key was the things he collected during this process—the batch of supplies currently in the Yellow Mustard Bag.
Compared to other camps, Great Xia's greatest advantage is the system. The characteristics of the Refining Pavilion and Medicine Pavilion buildings determine that Great Xia possesses an absolute advantage in the matters of imitation and innovation.
And because of this advantage, in terms of productivity, there is no possibility of Great Xia lagging behind other camps in the long term. At the very least, this can be guaranteed for any camp it can come into contact with, no matter how powerful it is.
If productivity cannot lag behind in the long term, then catching up through development becomes a logical progression. The only difficulty is time.
This is the core reason why Xia Hong was willing to sign a ceasefire agreement with Caiqiu!
Knowing full well that I will definitely surpass you in the future, and in the short term, you don't have the ability to overthrow me... so why rush?
"Thirty years of peace. Unless Cai Qianshan has the ability to break the agreement, the Evergreen Valley area can be temporarily at ease. Next is to focus all efforts on development, raising the overall strength. Of course, to truly settle down and develop with peace of mind, there's one more prerequisite condition, which is..."
Xia Hong turned around, looking back at the complete map of Mo'ao Chuan and the Southern Foothills behind him. His gaze finally settled on Dongchuan City of Beishuo Town, his eyes narrowing slightly.
Chencang's army of 100,000 is currently the only threat Great Xia faces. However, Xia Hong isn't anxious now. The news of Great Xia's impending ceasefire with Caiqiu probably won't stay hidden for long. Chencang might have already received the news. It depends on how Chu Longteng decides!
The possibility of fighting a war on two fronts is low. Although Chencang is strong, it's not arrogant to that extent. And Great Xia's threat is clearly not as great as Caiqiu's. As long as Chu Longteng hasn't lost his mind, he should know how to choose.
"Dongchuan City, including Danxue Peak to the north, must definitely be retaken. Even the Nine-Bend Blood Corridor behind Danxue Peak must be taken. Only by holding the two major northern gateways in our hands can Great Xia develop without fear of threats from the feudal towns!"
The situation in Evergreen Valley is already settled. Xia Hong has decided to have Yuwen Tao lead the army to garrison Guangningshan. The specific deployment doesn't require his personal attention. After exploring the Bone-Erosion Path to ensure no problems arise, he should return to the Southern Foothills territory and start dealing with the issue of Chencang's 100,000-strong army.
"Let him in!"
While Xia Hong was deep in thought, he suddenly sensed footsteps outside the tent. Before the person outside could report, he directly spoke up, telling them to enter.
"Your subordinate pays respects to the Lord Leader!"
The visitor was Qiu Peng. Just after giving Luo Cheng his instructions, Xia Hong immediately had Tie Xinchuang summon Qiu Peng.
"I've already made a list of the things in this Yellow Mustard Bag. Make a trip back to Xia City and deliver it. You must personally hand it over to Mu Dong and Cheng Feng."
"Your subordinate obeys!"
Upon hearing this, Qiu Peng didn't hesitate and immediately cupped his hands in agreement.
Of course, he was still a bit puzzled. He was currently busy taking over the territory of Evergreen Valley and taking inventory of various resources within the region. What item required him to personally make a trip back to Xia City?
However, as he took the list from Xia Hong's hand and saw the dazzling array of precious supplies inside the Yellow Mustard Bag, his expression immediately lost its composure. His pupils contracted several times in succession. He hurriedly took the supplies from the Yellow Mustard Bag, bundled them up securely, and directly strapped them to his body.
"Without delay, I'll take a few men and return immediately!"
"Alright, no need to be so tense. It's not that far. Once back in the Southern Foothills territory, returning to Xia City from East Ridge is very fast. Alright, alright, you may go..."
Xia Hong gave a wry smile, waved his hand, and directly signaled for him to leave.
Qiu Peng didn't dawdle either. He bowed in farewell, then turned and left.
Having Qiu Peng take the supplies back, Xia Hong also needed to start his own work. After finally calling Tie Xinchuang from outside the tent to give some instructions, he too was about to leave the Guangningshan field camp.
The Dragon Garrison Captains are the army directly under Xia Palace's command, so they naturally cannot be stationed long-term at Guangningshan. Li Xuanling left with Xia Yuyao and Xia Yusheng. Now, as the Lord Leader, he was also leaving, so the Dragon Garrison Captains needed to return to Xia City as well.
After Tie Xinchuang left, Xia Hong directly ascended into the air and flew towards the Bone-Erosion Path.
However, he hadn't flown far before he stopped, then looked up at the southern sky, his expression darkening slightly.
In the southern sky, a figure was flying towards him with a somewhat panicked demeanor. Xia Hong recognized him at a glance—it was Hou Tong.
"Lord Leader, Lord Leader, something terrible has happened..."
"What is it? Speak slowly!"
"Madam... Madam and the two young masters have been abducted by a mysterious woman. That woman called herself Li Longyu. She said she wouldn't harm Madam and the two young masters, but she has important matters to discuss with the Lord Leader. She will wait for the Lord Leader at Red Dragon Lake."
Shocked by this dire news, Xia Hong's expression changed drastically. He almost instinctively charged towards the south, flying over a hundred meters before turning back to transmit his voice to Hou Tong: "Follow me! Tell me everything clearly!"
Hou Tong's face was still full of panic. Upon hearing this, he immediately followed Xia Hong and recounted his encounter in its entirety.
According to Hou Tong, he encountered three mysterious women at the southern end of the Bone-Erosion Path. The woman leading them called herself Li Longyu. After asking about the current year, she first coerced Hou Tong into following behind them. Then, halfway, they inexplicably intercepted Li Xuanling and her children. They didn't resort to violence throughout; merely revealing a hint of their aura was enough to take Li Xuanling away. Finally, they released Hou Tong to deliver the message, notifying Xia Hong to go to Red Dragon Lake.
Li Longyu? Three mysterious women of unknown origin?
Their bodies radiated an extremely dense aura of abominations, yet they didn't seem like Abominations?
How did those three know that Li Xuanling and her children were returning via the Bone-Erosion Path tonight?
The two maidservants possessed Tribulation Body Realm strength, with auras surpassing even Cai Qianshan's?
The two maidservants addressed the white-clothed young woman as "Princess"?
Princess—is that a title used in nation-states?
People from a nation-state, who know me? And have important matters to discuss with me?
…………
Although Xia Hong grew more and more confused as he listened, and during Hou Tong's account, he scrutinized him with extreme severity several times, learning from his mouth that the three women who abducted his wife and children very likely all possessed strength above Cai Qianshan's, his heart immediately descended into panic. He didn't ask for details, just urged Hou Tong on, accelerating as they sped over the Bone-Erosion Path, heading towards the Southern Foothills territory.
………………
"ROAR!"
At the same time Xia Hong passed through the Bone-Erosion Path and flew towards the Southern Foothills territory.
From deep within an unknown cave in the western cliff face of the Bone-Erosion Path's middle section, an extremely eerie roar suddenly erupted.
BANG…………
Before the roar faded, another powerful collision sound rang out. A green-clothed young woman was pacing back and forth in the middle section of the cave, occasionally glancing towards the depths, her face full of worry.
"The Commandery Princess is taking too great a risk. No, no, what if something happens? I have to go in and check. Even dying with the Commandery Princess is better than her facing danger alone!"
The green-clothed young woman hesitated for a long time. As the commotion inside grew louder, she gritted her teeth and finally made a decision. Drawing the long sword from her waist, she charged straight inside.
WHOOSH…………
However, before she had charged in more than ten meters, a powerful gust of air rushed towards her. Her body jerked to a halt. Looking up, she saw a white figure flying towards her. The worry on her face instantly vanished, replaced by sheer delight.
"Commandery Princess! You're alright! That's wonderful, that's wonderful... Wuwuwu..."
Seeing her Commandery Princess walk out unscathed, the green-clothed young woman, who had been worried for half the day, couldn't help but weep tears of joy.
"Qing'er, crying again. I told you to wait obediently outside for me. Why couldn't you just wait? Worrying needlessly. If something happened to me inside, what use would you coming in be? Wouldn't that just be throwing your life away too?"
The white-clothed young woman who flew out from the depths of the cave spoke while her hands moved swiftly. Her right hand grabbed the green-clothed young woman and lifted her up. Her figure moved with incredible speed, almost instantly flying out of the cave.
Although it was night, the young woman's white clothes shone brilliantly. Her two beautiful eyes were bright and full of spirit. Her dark hair was tied back with a green jade ribbon. In her left hand, she held a sky-blue long sword. Her sleeves were half-rolled up, revealing half of her jade-like arm, her flawless skin completely visible.
Especially at this moment, although her face wore a scolding expression, her brows carried a compassionate softness, like an ethereal and elegant immortal fairy, with not a trace of worldly aura about her.
"Commandery Princess, you say that so lightly! Qing'er was so anxious waiting for you outside! We sneaked out this time anyway. Lord Fang Bo and the Commandery Governor are definitely frantic with worry by now. If something happened to you, Qing'er wouldn't even be able to return to Wei Bo. Next time, no matter where you go, Qing'er must follow you!"
Qing'er puffed out her cheeks, clearly still angry about her Commandery Princess's previous actions. After stating her position firmly, she couldn't help but add, "Lord Fang Bo said before that Wei Bo's great undertaking rests entirely on the Commandery Princess's shoulders alone. The slightest mishap, and Qing'er would become a sinner of the feudal town. Commandery Princess, you absolutely must not act recklessly in the future!"
"Haha..."
Seeing Qing'er's originally sweet and innocent face now wearing a mature and serious demeanor, the white-clothed woman couldn't help but laugh out loud. She couldn't resist reaching out to pinch Qing'er's cheek, saying softly, "You've only just broken through to the Sun Manifestation Level. Even if I, the Commandery Princess, truly had a mishap, how could it be blamed on a little girl like you? Chencang and Caiqiu are currently fighting. Granduncle and the Commandery Governor just took Cai Qianshan back to the Wei Bo Mufu. They have no time to pay attention to us. Don't worry!"
Qing'er pouted and swatted away the white-clothed woman's hand, asking in confusion, "Caiqiu is being beaten back step by step by Chencang. What is Cai Qianshan doing at our Wei Bo Mufu at this time?"
"He almost got killed by Chu Longteng. His injuries are too severe. Caiqiu's Tribulation Body Realm experts are all tied down by Chencang. Moreover, Granduncle faintly sensed that some abomination was watching him. It's not safe for him to stay at the Caiqiu Mufu. Only our Wei Bo Mufu can ensure his safety."
Qing'er nodded, then suddenly remembered something and asked, "By the way, Commandery Princess, were you fighting an Abomination in the cave just now?"
Although the two of them had already escaped the cave, she remembered clearly that before the Commandery Princess escaped, that low roar came from inside the cave. That roar was deep, oppressive, and full of bestiality, clearly not something a human could produce.
Hearing her question, the white-clothed woman's expression immediately turned grave. She said in a low voice, "Corpse Demons... That bunch of Abominations from the Blood Mire Plains actually left an army of Corpse Demons inside the cave. I only saw a rough estimate just now. The number is conservatively over thirty thousand."
"Corpse Demons? Thirty thousand? Gulp..."
Upon hearing this, the maidservant Qing'er swallowed hard, her face instantly turning deathly pale.
Although the Blood Mire Plains only borders Chencang and Caiqiu, the two feudatories, because it produces Blood Frost Beasts and, in recent years, more and more people have learned about Blood Jade Beads, Wei Bo has also sent large numbers of disciples to participate in trials in the Blood Mire Plains. Therefore, Wei Bo's understanding of this place is not lacking at all.
As far as she knew, there are currently two known types of Corpse Demons in the Blood Mire Plains: Iron-Bone and Copper-Bone. Iron-Bone Corpse Demons have strength between 5 and 15 Jun, while Copper-Bone ones are between 20 and 100 Jun.
Thirty thousand Corpse Demons—that's thirty thousand Sun Manifestation Level beings. What kind of concept is that?
The total number of Sun Manifestation Level cultivators from all four feudatories of Mo'ao Chuan combined is less than ten thousand. The key is, aptitude determines that the strength of the vast majority doesn't even reach 20 Jun.
Even more deadly is that the currently discovered types of Corpse Demons are only Iron-Bone and Copper-Bone. But who knows if there are higher-level ones? After all, according to Ice Abyss material classification, after iron and copper comes silver.
"Then we must hurry back and report to Lord Fang Bo! We can't let Chencang and Caiqiu continue fighting. The four feudatories must join forces. Also, that camp called Great Xia in the Southern Foothills territory must contribute. Otherwise, all humans in Mo'ao Chuan will perish..."
"Where is it that simple?"
The white-clothed woman's gaze darkened as she shook her head. "Chu Longteng has been scheming for years to annex the other three feudatories, even launching reforms to integrate Mo'ao Chuan. Unless you can place these thirty thousand Corpse Demons right in front of him, how could he possibly give up the current opportunity so easily?"
"The Commandery Princess has already discovered them, hasn't she? Just tell Chu Longteng about the cave and have him come see for himself, right?"
"Take a closer look."
Qing'er didn't understand her meaning. Following the Commandery Princess's indicated direction, she looked over, and her expression immediately froze.
Qing'er quickly turned her head and asked in shock, "Deliberately hidden by the Abominations?"
The white-clothed woman had already taken out a crimson pearl from her bosom. After patrolling close to the cliff face for a circle and seeing the pearl show no reaction, she shook her head. "This cave was originally shrouded by an abominable miasma. I only discovered it by accident using the Boundary-Breaking Pearl. Inside the cave, there was a Disaster-level Abomination wearing golden armor guarding it. It didn't chase me out just now because it didn't want the Corpse Demon army to be revealed prematurely. I suspect either these Corpse Demons aren't fully formed yet, or they are waiting for something else..."
Whichever it is, for the four feudatories of Mo'ao Chuan, it spells utter catastrophe!
The white-clothed woman's expression became extremely grave, her pupils filled with worry.
Although the four feudatories of Mo'ao Chuan have their frictions, ultimately, they are all human. Once this Corpse Demon army moves out, which of the hundreds of millions of lives across the four feudatories can remain untouched?
"Commandery Princess, such a major matter... we should hurry back and report it to Lord Fang Bo first, right? Once this Corpse Demon army moves out, even the four feudatories combined won't be able to fight it. Regardless of whether Chencang believes it or not, we must prepare first."
"Alright!"
The white-clothed woman didn't argue with her maidservant and directly nodded in agreement. But soon, she remembered something and changed her mind. "Qing'er, you go back to the Mufu to deliver the message. I still need to go to the Southern Foothills territory to see that sleeping crimson demonic dragon within Great Xia's borders. According to Caiqiu intelligence, that demonic dragon is either a Heavenly Phenomenon Realm fierce beast or a Disaster-level fiendish abomination. Since I've come this far, I might as well go confirm it."
"Commandery Princess, you're going off alone again? No, I'm coming too!"
"Be obedient, Qing'er."
"No! Absolutely not! I must stay by the Commandery Princess's side."
"This... alright then..."
The white-clothed woman looked at Qing'er's resolute face, showing a helpless expression, seemingly forced to compromise. However, a hint of cunning was clearly hidden in the depths of her eyes. The moment her words fell, her figure directly vanished, leaving only an afterimage in place and a final instruction.
"Commandery Princess! Commandery Princess! Li Baobao! Come back! Come back..."
Seeing the Commandery Princess abandon her and leave, Qing'er instantly flushed red with anger. She stomped her little feet on the spot, so anxious she directly shouted the Commandery Princess's name. But even so, the white-clothed woman did not turn back.