Endless Winter: My Camp Upgrades Infinitely-Chapter 9 Ice Shuo, Vermilion Frost, Gold Lin

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The Great Xia Camp has finally birthed a new logging-grade combat power.

The mood of the people immediately improved quite a bit.

Xia Hong's mood, needless to say, was even better. He initially thought it would take more than ten days, but he broke through in just eight days, showcasing the potential of his body.

As nightfall approached, Xia Hong didn't delay. He walked over to the firepit and, under the astonished eyes of the crowd, pulled out a charred stick from within.

The stick was entirely pitch black, about half a meter long, thin at the bottom and thick at the top, with the thick end having a white tip.

Small Torch: For every 10 units of wood burned in the firepit, one can be generated, and it can be carried with you, similar in function to a small bonfire.

The special function of the small bonfire remained despite spending eight days in the cave, using the wood sparingly, but in total, they burned 13 units, thus generating one torch.

Since he had to go out, it was natural to make thorough preparations.

Its function is similar to a small bonfire, meaning it has the effect of deterring and wounding deceitful monsters. However, it also attracts Cold Beasts.

Soon, it was completely dark.

Xia Hong tied the torch to his back with a rope, fastened two hand axes to his waist, and then pulled a three-meter-long stick from the side of the camp wall.

Peering through a fingertip-sized gap in the cave entrance to look outside, he confirmed it was entirely dark. Xia Hong then turned back and gave Xia Chuan a final reminder.

"Remember the code I taught you. I will return before daylight. Once I leave, seal the entrance immediately. If anyone comes, if they can't match the code, no matter who it is, do not reveal yourself, understand?"

Having experienced the massacre just eight days ago, Xia Chuan was all too aware of the importance of Xia Hong's instructions and nodded firmly.

Xia Hong didn't say much more and tore open a gap to slip out directly.

Xia Chuan swiftly sealed the entrance but, through the last sliver of a gap, saw Xia Hong's departing figure, a trace of worry in his eyes.

...

Just how large Redwood Ridge is, not even Xia Hong, nor Xia Ding, knows.

The Great Xia is, after all, just a small-sized camp. Though they've been exploring consistently over the years, their range of activity is primarily the slope east of Redwood Ridge.

Mostly revolving around the six caves there.

The approximate range is about a five-kilometer radius.

The most crucial area within these five kilometers is the periphery of Redwood Ridge to the west.

For no reason other than the sheer number of trees in Redwood Ridge.

Not only are there many, but they also crazily extend outward.

It should be that, with nine human camps surrounding Redwood Ridge and continuous logging over the years, it should naturally shrink.

However, as per Xia Ding's observations, not only has Redwood Ridge not shrunk, but it has been continuously expanding outward over these years.

The trees grow larger and more numerous.

The rapid growth of resources is beneficial to humans.

But the problem is, these trees are not just resources for them.

They are equally critical to the Cold Beasts.

Most Cold Beasts reside on the trees.

Apart from hunting, Cold Beasts also enjoy consuming the fruits from the trees.

So the expansion of Redwood Ridge is, in fact, quite deadly for the surrounding camps.

As the trees constantly extend, the activity range of those Cold Beasts get closer to the neighboring camps, increasing the danger for humans.

Of course, these are not matters for Xia Hong to consider at this stage.

Though it was nighttime, the snow covering the ground moderately maintained visibility.

Unconsciously, he had reached the edge of Redwood Ridge.

In sight, ancient trees that could be considered towering giants in his past life seemed sparse and ordinary here, even small.

Upon a brief glance, even the thinnest trees on the outer edge had diameters of three to four meters, with lengths of thirty to fifty meters found everywhere.

The inner trees were more terrifying, with diameters of five or six meters, even exceeding ten meters; looking up, the tops could not be seen, reaching unknown heights.

On the snow-covered giant trees, thousands of sharp icicles hung, combined with drifting snowflakes, forming an exquisite and unparalleled ice-snow scene.

However, at this moment, Xia Hong was not in the mood to appreciate this.

After a long search, he selected a tree three meters thick.

Xia Hong nervously approached, brushed away the snow on the surface, revealing a layer of ice crystals beneath, and under the ice crystals, the tree bark faintly glinted with a red light.

Seeing the red light, he looked up and scanned the treetop carefully. After confirming nothing was there, he immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

"Red Frost Tree, should be no Cold Beasts residing here."

As per Xia Ding, the eastern edge of Redwood Ridge has the most Red Frost Trees.

Due to the fragility of Red Frost Tree branches and the large size of Cold Beasts, they seldom choose to dwell there.

Differing from Red Frost, the Gold Frost Tree, yellowish in appearance, has very sturdy branches, and thick trunks, making it a favorite for Cold Beasts, who frequently rest atop them at night.

Additionally, some Cold Beasts even nest and dwell there.

Considering the Gold Frost Tree's limited numbers, Cold Beasts stable enough to reside there usually possess considerable power.

Xia Hong marked the small Red Frost Tree with his hand axe, memorized the route, and continued deeper.

The camp's food and wood supplies were nearly depleted.

Leave this tree to chop down upon the return journey; the urgent task is to find Crystal Fruits.

"Ice Trees favor sunlight and grow faster in brighter locations; they typically grow in more open areas."

Recalling the features of Ice Trees, Xia Hong surveyed the forest, selecting a tree after confirming it was free of any threats, and climbed up.

The tree's surface, coated with snow and ice crystals, was not only bone-chilling but also extremely slippery; after exerting much effort, Xia Hong finally reached the top.

Upon reaching the treetop, the view indeed improved greatly.

Soon enough, Xia Hong spotted an open area about two to three hundred meters to the west.

"The eastern edge of Redwood Ridge, 800 steps belong to our Great Xia's territory. If you ever join the logging team, remember this rule well; if you cross into someone else's territory recklessly and get killed, you can't blame anyone but yourself."

Recalling Xia Ding's previous words, Xia Hong leaped off the tree and headed toward the open area to the west.

Eight hundred steps roughly equate to a distance of a league.

The open area belongs to Great Xia Territory, so crossing over shouldn't pose a problem.

Theoretically, given how crucial of a resource the Ice Tree, capable of producing staple food, is, the camp should remember its location, saving the trouble of finding it each time.

In reality, they did remember. But the sudden demise of Xia Ding and the logging team was unexpected.

There were originally thirteen individuals capable of venturing out from the camp, and most knew the Ice Tree's location.

Unexpectedly, before they had a chance to inform Xia Hong, all thirteen perished.

Thankfully, the tree wasn't far; Xia Hong found it without much difficulty.

Though he was eager for food, Xia Hong approached cautiously and calmly.

As he passed each tree, he thoroughly searched the treetop with a careful gaze.

Though it was nighttime, the typical resting time for Cold Beasts,

it didn't mean they wouldn't wake up.

Up to now, Xia Hong hadn't seen a Cold Beast, only learning about a couple from conversations between Xia Ding and the logging crew.

Although he hadn't seen any alive, based solely on the amount and frequency of Cold Beast Flesh acquired when Xia Ding was still around, he could deduce that their power was undoubtedly fearsome.

Thirteen logging-grade individuals took a month to successfully hunt down a single juvenile Bone-piercing Frost Wolf.

That already spoke volumes.

Xia Hong had to be cautious; with his current strength, encountering a Cold Beast likely spelled death.

Luckily, the journey went without a hitch. After more than an hour, Xia Hong finally reached that open area.

Upon reaching the destination and looking forward, Xia Hong's face immediately lit up with joy.

Amid the open ground, a forty-meter-tall, silver-coated towering Ice Tree stood quietly, densely packed with Crystal Fruits dangling above.

"Luck is truly on my side; this would likely weigh over a thousand pounds."

Xia Hong did not let the joy overcome his senses and directly climbed the tree to pick the fruits.

Instead, he first chose a nearby Red Frost Tree and climbed to the top.

There, he meticulously observed the crown of the Ice Tree.

Upon this inspection, his expression darkened considerably.