Endless Winter: My Camp Infinite Upgrades

Chapter 426 Shadow Demon Insects, Xiang Liang's First Merit, Cheng Ping's Regret
gulp...

On the ground, the head of his own shadow, illuminated by the firelight, had a curved crack, resembling a humanoid creature opening its mouth in a cruel laugh.

The young man in white realized that the laughter was coming from the shadow on the ground. His frozen body trembled uncontrollably, and his pupils were filled with fear and terror.

"Jie Jie Jie Jie..."

As the eerie laughter rang out a second time, another humanoid shadow wielding a long knife appeared behind the shadow on the ground, silently placing the knife against the former's neck.

The young man in white seemed completely stunned. Instead of drawing the sword from his waist, he reached into his robes.

call…………

The shadowy figure on the ground clearly didn't want to waste any time, and suddenly slashed with its blade. Although both the figure and the blade were shadowy, the moment it swung, it still stirred up the surrounding airflow and produced a fierce whistling sound.

Zizizi!
However, at the critical moment, the young man in white pulled out a piece of yellow candle from his pocket. The fuse of the yellow candle had obviously been treated, and it quickly ignited the moment it was taken out.

"what…………"

As the yellow candles lit up, the shadows on the ground let out a scream, and their shapes began to twist and distort.

Beep...

The moment the yellow candle lit up, a clear and melodious bone whistle suddenly resounded all around. It turned out that the young man in white had just taken out not only the yellow candle but also a bone whistle from his robes.

"I've finally caught you, you beast!"

The young man in white suddenly looked up and was none other than Xiang Liang, the deputy head of the Hongmen Criminal Investigation Department.

There was no trace of drunkenness on Xiang Liang's face. The fear and panic in his pupils instantly transformed into sharpness and ferocity. He was still blowing the bone whistle. After silently making a decision, he quickly drew his horizontal sword from his waist and plunged it directly into the twisted black shadow on the ground.

Clang...

However, when the horizontal blade coated with fire-binding oil was inserted into the shadow, it did not deliver a fatal blow to the head-cutting ghost as Xiang Liang had expected. It only scraped a spark at the point of impact, exacerbating the distortion of the shadow.

However, the decapitated monster clearly felt the pain, and its ferocity seemed to be aroused. It raised its knife again and slashed at Xiang Liang's shadow head, continuing the action it had just failed to complete.

call…………

However, the Shadow Slash decapitation technique, which had always worked before, failed this time!

Under the glow of the yellow candlelight, it became nothing more than an ordinary shadow, and the slash of the knife had no effect on Xiang Liang whatsoever.

"laugh…………"

The headless monster seemed to sense something, and its twisted shadow began to shrink rapidly into a black dot the size of a fist. Then it quickly broke away from Xiang Liang's shadow and fled to the shadow of the nearest house in the blink of an eye.

"Everyone, light the yellow candles and surround this beast!"

zizi...

However, just as the head-cutting ghost escaped into that shadowy area, a burly man clad in golden armor and wielding a large sword galloped from not far away in the alley. It was Zhu Xing, the captain of the Yunjiao Army's scout camp.

As soon as Zhu Xing arrived, he took out a yellow candle and lit it. He first stood in the shadow area of ​​the house, and then he did not forget to tell the people who came later to light their yellow candles.

As the shadowy areas of the house were illuminated, the decapitated creature, having nowhere to hide, continued its escape into the remaining shadowy areas.

sizzle...

However, Zhu Xing was only the first. The moment Xiang Liang blew the bone whistle, hundreds of Yunjiao soldiers from all directions had already swarmed over. Almost everyone had a yellow candle in their hand, and the entire dark alley was quickly illuminated.

As the shadowy area dwindled, the decapitated monster's space to maneuver also dwindled until it was finally cornered into the last shadowy area.

Whoosh……

A silver arrow pierced the air and struck the headless monster in the shadows with unerring accuracy. However, just like when Xiang Liang stabbed it with his scalpel, it only produced a spark and did not cause any fatal damage.

"唳……"

But unlike last time, the sharp hissing emanating from the shadowy area was clearly mixed with intense pain. The black dot darted around in the shadowy area like a headless fly, but dared not jump out of the shadowy area.

"This black dot is probably not its true form yet, but as long as we're certain it can only move in the shadows, we'll eventually find its true form!"

Lin Kai, dressed in a crimson robe, leaped over from the distant rooftops in a few bounds, stood atop the wall, and looked at the howling black dot in the shadows with a very gloomy expression.

The arrow he just shot was not only made of pure silver, but also coated with a lot of fire-condensing oil. When the black spot was hit, it only sparked a little bit of fire, which was obviously different from ordinary monsters.

huh... huh...

Two more figures followed closely behind and stood beside him. They were Yuwen Tao and Yuan Cheng, who had come from other positions.

"This is the fifth night in a row. We finally caught him. That beast is really cautious!"

Yuan Cheng looked down at the shadow below, pulled out a small silver dagger from his body, cut a piece of solidified fire oil, and threw it at the shadowy area.

"唳……"

Similar to what Lin Kai had just shot with his bow and arrow, the black dot in the shadows sparked after being pierced by the dagger. Although it let out a shrill scream, it was clearly not fatally injured and continued to scurry around the shadows like a rat.

"Can we only move around in the shadow areas?"

Upon seeing this, Yuwen Tao immediately understood what was going on.

"Gather all of you and trap it in the middle!"

At Lin Kai's command, more than a hundred Cloud Dragon Army soldiers immediately raised yellow candles and surrounded the shadowy corner of the wall.

As soon as the light source arrived, the shadowy area in the corner of the wall naturally disappeared. The black dot that was the incarnation of the headless monster had nowhere to hide and was completely trapped by the yellow candle. As the soldiers got closer, the yellow candle became more and more compact, and its space for movement became smaller and smaller.

"Enough! Put the yellow candles on the ground and disperse!"

Lin Kai only waved his hand to stop the soldiers and told them to disperse after he had compressed their living space into a circular area with a diameter of only five meters.

The soldiers placed the yellow candles on the ground and dispersed one by one. The black dot was still trapped in the middle. Although it tried to rush out in all directions, it eventually retreated when it approached the light source of the yellow candles.

"Although the Yellow Candle can defend against strange and supernatural methods, it cannot destroy them. So we have only restricted its abilities to prevent it from escaping, is that what you mean?"

Hearing Yuan Cheng's question, Lin Kai nodded slightly and said in a deep voice, "This black dot is clearly not its true form, but rather a means of attack. Trapping it now is useless; we must find its true form to completely destroy it."

After Lin Kai finished speaking, he seemed to remember something and quickly took out a fiery red jade stone from his pocket. Seeing that the jade stone was emitting an extremely strong fluorescence, he frowned slightly and said, "The stone is reacting, which proves that the true form of this headless monster is not far away."

This jade stone was found by Tong Xingsheng on Chu Dongning's body last month. In the past ten days or so, Lin Kai personally led the prison warden to track the traces of the strange creatures in the southern city, and it has been confirmed that the function of this jade stone is to sense the strange creatures in the vicinity.

The closer they got, the stronger the jade's reaction became. The intense light they were receiving clearly indicated that the true form of the headless monster was very, very close to them.

If it's not a black dot on the ground, then what could its true form be?
Just as everyone in the room was deep in thought, Xiang Liang, who had retreated to the very edge, looked at the black dot surrounded by yellow candles in the corner, and suddenly seemed to remember something. He stepped forward hesitantly and bowed to Lin Kai and the other two.
“My lords, since the black dots are merely a means of this decapitation trick, I dare to suggest that we keep only the yellow candles that are trapping it, and extinguish all other light sources in the vicinity to see if we can render its trick ineffective.”

Upon hearing Xiang Liang's suggestion, Lin Kai was slightly taken aback, but after a moment's thought, he quickly realized what was going on and his expression brightened.

"By the way, this black dot is essentially a shadow, and it's a shadow created by itself. The key to creating a shadow is a light source!"

Yuwen Tao was the first to react, looking at Xiang Liang with admiration on his face.

"Bai Shanning, take your men to block off the alley and prevent anyone from getting close; Zhao Bao, take your men to extinguish all the light sources in the houses on both sides; Zhu Xing, take your men and spread out to the sides of all the torches and coal stoves. When I give the order, you will all put out the fires at the same time."

"I obey my orders!"

Meanwhile, Lin Kai had already begun giving orders.

The three nodded in agreement and immediately began to make arrangements in an orderly manner according to his orders.

First, the alley was blocked, and many people who came to watch the excitement were kept outside; then, the lights in the houses on both sides were turned off, plunging them into darkness; finally, next to more than twenty torches and coal stoves, there was a Yunjiao soldier, either holding an animal skin or carrying a bucket of water, all ready and waiting for Lin Kai's order.

"Destroy!"

Lin Kai wasted no time. Seeing that everyone was ready, he drew his sword and gave the order.

Thud... hiss...

More than twenty light sources around the alley went out at the same time, with only the yellow candle in the corner still burning. But that little light was of little use, and the entire alley was plunged into darkness in an instant.

“Buzz…”

Whoosh……

As darkness fell, a faint buzzing sound rang out. Almost reflexively, Lin Kai raised the powerful bow in his hand and shot a silver arrow straight at the top of a coal stove in the distance.

Nourishes...

Above the coal stove, there was clearly nothing, yet the swiftly flying arrow had obviously hit something, hovering directly above it. Moreover, the condensed oil on the surface of the arrow quickly ignited, instantly producing billowing black smoke.

"唳……"

At the same time, the painful and shrill scream rang out again, and above the extinguished coal stove, the headless monster finally revealed its true form.

It turned out to be a black, humanoid flying insect the size of a fist.

The term "humanoid" is used to describe it because, apart from a pair of transparent wings, the black flying insect had a head, torso, and limbs, making it indistinguishable from a human.

But upon closer inspection, one will find that its face has no facial features, only a huge mouth that takes up half of its face; its limbs are more like four black blades growing on its body than hands and feet; and its torso is covered with a layer of dark shell, making it look very much like an insect.

Buzz…………

That demonic insect wasn't quite dead yet.

It suddenly turned its head and flew towards Huang Zhu.

"It probably can't stray too far from the black dot. Only by retracting the black dot can it move freely. Protect the yellow candle and shoot it with the bow!"

Yuwen Tao immediately saw through the demonic insect's intentions. Seeing that Lin Kai's powerful bow hadn't stopped moving at all, he and Yuan Cheng also immediately took down their own silver powerful bows.

The three of them stood around the yellow candle, constantly shooting arrows at the demonic insects.

The demonic insect could fly, so the three of them had no chance to engage in close combat. Since its range of movement was limited, shooting it with arrows was undoubtedly the safest option.

The speed of that demonic insect was truly astonishing. You should know that Lin Kai's first arrow had already caused it considerable damage, but it was still able to dodge more than 90% of the powerful arrows fired by Yuwen Tao and the other two.

Swish swish swish…………

The three of them sped off, firing in rapid succession, determined not to let the demonic insect get close to Huang Zhu. The demonic insect's dodging became increasingly difficult, and the outcome was already obvious.

"Tell me, how much draw weight do you think the three gentlemen have in their Silverwing Bows?"

"You can tell just by looking! The top-of-the-line Silverwing Bow in the Logistics Department can only achieve a draw weight of 30 bristles. With the strength and financial resources of the three of you, you must be equipped with bows that have a draw weight of 30 bristles."

"No wonder the arrows exploded so loudly; many people in the south city heard it." "Quickly, disperse them and don't let them gather here."

"Quickly retrieve the arrows that the three adults shot out, lest those people nearby pick them up and run away."

………………

After the three of them fired more than a hundred arrows, the demonic insect was basically reduced to its head and main body. Its transparent wings on its back were still flapping wildly, but at a speed several times slower than before. Anyone with eyes could see that it was already at its last gasp.

puff...

In the end, Lin Kai's iron arrow struck the demonic insect's head with pinpoint accuracy.

laugh……

A thicker plume of black smoke, even denser than before, rose from the head of the demonic insect. As flames suddenly erupted, it froze completely in mid-air.

When the firelight faded, only a transparent, round insect egg remained in mid-air. Strangely, the transparent wings on the back of the demonic insect did not disappear; they continued to flutter, keeping the egg suspended in mid-air.

At the same time, the black dot surrounded by the yellow candles seemed to change due to the death of the demonic insect. It was no longer afraid of the yellow candles and turned into a wisp of black smoke, flying straight towards the insect eggs.

call out…………

The insect eggs, which were originally transparent, transformed into a highly textured black jade color after absorbing the black energy.

Lin Kai leaped off the wall, grabbed the insect egg, and landed, looking at the egg in his hand with a glint in his eyes.

"The decapitated monster is finally dealt with!"

Lin Kai held the insect eggs, breathed a sigh of relief, and turned to look at the nearly two hundred people who had participated in the exorcism that night, his face full of smiles.

"Brothers, you've all worked hard these past few days. I, Shouzheng, will soon have the Logistics Department reward you for your contributions. Once the Xia City Logistics Department has assessed the value of this insect egg, everyone who participated in eliminating the evil spirit tonight will receive a share!"

After several days of hard work, everyone's faces were naturally full of joy; Zhao Bao and the warden's men breathed a sigh of relief and looked at Lin Kai and the other two with gratitude on their faces.

Lin Kai then turned to look at Xiang Liang, his face full of praise, and said, "Deputy Chief of Punishments, Xiang, used himself as bait to lure out the monster. He deserves the greatest credit tonight. I will personally recommend him to the Chief Justice for commendation. Don't worry."

Xiang Liang's expression suddenly brightened, and he clenched his fist slightly in his sleeve. He quickly bowed to Lin Kai and said gratefully, "Thank you for your promotion, sir!"

At this moment, the most excited person in the entire venue was definitely Xiang Liang himself.

His suggestion was to send someone through the dark alleys to lure the beheading ghost out on his own.

For the first four days, they sent at least a hundred people as bait, but the head-cutting ghost just wouldn't show up. Xiang Liang thought there was no hope left, but tonight it actually succeeded.

Moreover, by sheer coincidence, the decapitated monster's target was him.

The greatest credit!

With those two words in mind, all the risks he took tonight were worth it.

"Alright, none of you should stay here. Those who need to patrol, continue patrolling. This is only the first monster; it's not time to let our guard down yet."

"I obey my orders!"

After dismissing the members of the prison warden and the Yunjiao Army, Lin Kai turned to look at Yuwen Tao and Yuan Cheng beside him, and said with gratitude, "Thank you both for your help tonight!"

"Si Cheng entrusted me with overseeing Hongmen; this is simply my duty!"

Yuwen Tao made a polite remark, but Yuan Cheng and Lin Kai were so close that he didn't even need to be polite. He simply waved his hand, looked at the insect egg in Lin Kai's hand, and asked with a smile, "You're not planning to use this insect egg?"

Some monsters can grant special abilities simply by killing them, while others will yield items after being killed. Merging these items can also grant abilities, which is no secret in the Great Xia Dynasty.

Lin Kai killed the insect eggs, so he naturally has the right to enjoy them first.

Lin Kai's words just now clearly indicated that he was unwilling to use the insect egg, which is why Yuan Cheng asked this question.

Upon hearing this, Yuwen Tao also showed curiosity and asked with a smile, "That method of the demonic insect controlling shadows to kill is quite good. Does Lord Lin not need it?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Kai immediately shook his head repeatedly, looking helplessly at Yuwen Tao and saying, "Yuwen Sizheng, please stop humiliating me. If you had taken a liking to this insect egg, I wouldn't have had a chance to get it just now!"

Yuwen Tao laughed when he heard Lin Kai's amusing words.

But despite his laughter, he did not deny Lin Kai's statement!
Indeed, given his strength, if he really wanted to seize this insect egg, Lin Kai would definitely lose to him.

In fact, Yuwen Tao probably already guessed why Lin Kai was unwilling to fuse with the insect egg.

"The lord once said that each person can only fuse with a monster once in their lifetime, so it's best to choose carefully. I was hoping to improve my superior battle physique aptitude, so I have to be even more careful. This demonic insect should be a monster, and it's obvious that it has nothing to do with improving aptitude, so forget it!"

Sure enough!

Upon hearing this, Yuwen Tao immediately laughed and teased, "You're quite greedy."

Yuan Cheng went even further. Upon hearing Lin Kai's words, knowing that he envied the master's organs within his body, he couldn't help but reveal a smug expression, saying, "That's called luck, Kai, you can't have it, hahaha..."

That sly laughter was clearly meant to provoke Lin Kai.

Lin Kai couldn't help but punch him twice, saying irritably, "Don't be so cocky. Who knows what kind of powerful monster the lord might kill someday? I've accumulated a lot of contribution points, and none of you will be able to compete with me in the future!"

Upon hearing this, Yuan Cheng immediately nodded emphatically and said solemnly, "What you said hit the nail on the head. With such strength as a lord, there will definitely be even better opportunities in the future. As long as you are prepared with your contribution points, you will definitely have a share."

Yuwen Tao couldn't help but joke, "Then Brother Lin, you'd better be careful. I have quite a few contribution points on me, and if I come across anything good, Yuwen Tao won't hold back."

"Please, Your Excellency, have mercy!"

Upon hearing this, Lin Kai immediately shook his head repeatedly. To be honest, when it comes to wealth, apart from Si Cheng, there are only three people in the entire camp that he fears: Qiu Peng, Yue Feng, and Yuwen Tao in front of him.

Of course, Yuwen Tao was clearly joking, and Lin Kai naturally didn't take it seriously. The three of them joked all the way back to the Siya Building.

"I'll head back to the barracks now. If Lord Lin needs anything, please send someone to inform me!"

“I’m going back to the barracks too. If there are any other strange occurrences, call me anytime.”

Yuwen Tao is the Director of the Military Affairs Department, and Yuan Cheng is the Director of the Garrison Department. Normally, both of them would be in Xia City. However, Yuwen Tao has recently been assigned to oversee Hongmen, while Yuan Cheng came to Hongmen because of the recent relocation of the Dragon Slaying Army. Neither of them has a fixed residence in the Department Building, and they can only live in the barracks area at present.

Having only eliminated one of the strange creatures in the southern city, the two knew there would definitely be more to come, so they offered to let Lin Kai know if anything happened.

Lin Kai saw the two off with gratitude, then turned and went back to the main building.

He had just stepped onto the top floor when he saw Li Longkai standing guard at the entrance of the main hall, clearly waiting for him. He immediately asked curiously, "Is there something you need from me?"

Li Longkai immediately stepped forward, cupped his hands, and said, "My lord, Chengping has returned from Ba Shang, he..."

Lin Kai frowned slightly upon hearing this. He first waved his hand to stop Li Longkai, and then led the way slowly into the hall.

Inside the main hall, Cheng Ping was kneeling on the ground with a face full of remorse. Hearing someone approaching from behind, he turned his head and saw Lin Kai. He immediately turned around and began to kowtow.

Bang...bang...bang...

"Chengping was deceived by treacherous foreigners and almost harmed both of you, and the Great Xia Dynasty. He deserves to die a thousand deaths for this, my lords..."

Lin Kai kicked a cushion over to stop Cheng Ping from kowtowing any further, then asked, "Has the portrait of the murderer who killed your eldest son, Cheng Yang, been recovered?"

Upon hearing this question, Cheng Ping's regret instantly turned into a surge of hatred, and he said dejectedly, "After Lord Xu of Ba Shang restored my memory, I immediately found the painter there to recreate that person's appearance. As soon as I returned, I went with Lord Li to check with the other four people, and it was yet another new face."

Upon hearing this, Lin Kai's expression immediately darkened.

That scoundrel Chen Cang is actually this cautious!
Cheng Ping is the fifth victim of memory tampering in Da Xia. The four people before him had already gone to Ba Shang to find Xu Ning and restore their true memories. All four of them also recreated the appearance of the person who tampered with their memories. However, the appearances of the four people who were recreated in the end were all different.

Now Cheng Ping has revealed a new face, which means that Chen Cang changes his appearance every time he makes a move.

How can we catch them now?
Lin Kai frowned, looked down at Cheng Ping, and asked, "Cheng Ping, your son was killed by that person, wasn't he?"

Upon hearing this question, Cheng Ping clenched his fist under his sleeve, a bitter look on his face. He nodded and said, "That night, I took Yang'er out hunting. That person killed Yang'er in front of me, and then used some means to tamper with my memories, making me believe that..."

He paused, looked up at Lin Kai with deep regret on his face, and then continued, "He made me think that Lord Lin killed Yang'er. Later, he said he had a way to help me get revenge, so I told him the whole route Lord Lin took to Muyin."

This is the origin of the ambush in Fengyang Village!
Bang...bang...bang...

After Cheng Ping finished speaking, a wave of guilt washed over him, and he kowtowed repeatedly to Lin Kai.

"My lord, I was wrong, I deserve to die, I..."

"Alright, you should already know what's going on. When your son Chengyang was killed, I already guessed that the person wanted to use you to do something to me. The reason I deliberately prevented you from going to Lord Xu to recover your memory was to lure that person out through you."

Cheng Ping wasn't stupid; he knew exactly what was going on. Back on the 18th of last month, after the ambush in Fengyang Village, he had already had some vague suspicions, but at the time he still believed that Lin Kai had killed his son, so he didn't think about it in detail.

It wasn't until three days ago, when Li Longkai sent men to escort him to Ba Shang to find Xu Ning and restore his memory, that he finally woke up completely.

It's one thing that Lin Kai deliberately didn't help him regain his memory; it's another thing that he was deceived and directly colluded with outsiders to murder Lin Kai. Although there is a certain connection between the two, his crimes are undeniable.

That's why he's kneeling here now, constantly begging for forgiveness.

His biggest worry right now is that Lin Kai will use this incident to...

"Are you afraid I'll banish you from Great Xia?"

Lin Kai looked down at Cheng Ping and suddenly asked a question with a smile.

Upon hearing this question, Cheng Ping's face immediately showed fear. He quickly prostrated himself and pleaded, "Cheng Ping harmed you, sir. I know my crime is heinous and I deserve to die a thousand times over. Whatever you decide to do with me, sir, is right, but..."

He paused abruptly, a deep-seated hatred welling up in his eyes, and continued, "That man Chen Cang not only killed my eldest son, but also altered my memories, causing me to commit such a crime. Chengping swears that he will spend the rest of his life finding this man and exterminate his son and his entire clan, so that he too will suffer the pain of losing his son and his family!"

boom……

The hatred in his voice had reached its peak. After speaking, he slammed his head against the ground again and pleaded, "If Chengping is expelled from Great Xia, he will never have the chance to take revenge in this life. I beg you to forgive Chengping this time. I am willing to accept any punishment, as long as I can stay in Great Xia and have the chance to take revenge on that person!"

Cheng Yang, who just turned fourteen this year, has the cultivation level of the Earth-Digging Realm and a basic strength of more than 25,000 jin. With this talent, he is definitely not bad among his peers in the Great Xia Dynasty. As long as he continues to work step by step, it is only a matter of time before he surpasses Cheng Ping.

Last month in Nancheng, Cheng Yang accidentally bumped into him once, so Lin Kai remembered it very clearly. Such an outstanding eldest son was killed so in such a muddled way. Hearing the overwhelming hatred in Cheng Ping's tone at this moment, Lin Kai actually understood why he lost his mind last month and conspired with outsiders to harm him.

Unfortunately, a mistake is a mistake!

Lin Kai shook his head and said, "Luckily, you only wanted to kill me and didn't think about betraying Great Xia. Don't worry! I won't expel you. You've made such a big mistake this time, you definitely can't stay in the Logistics Department. I've talked to Li Longkai, and you'll serve in the Longshan Silver Mine for half a year as compensation for this crime. How about that?"

The silver mine has been in operation for six months?

Such a serious crime, and all you have to do is serve six months in a silver mine?
Cheng Ping was stunned for a moment, then looked up at Lin Kai with excitement on his face. He even couldn't help but shed tears and bowed deeply, saying, "I will never forget Lin Shouzhen's great kindness!"

"Okay, let's get down!"

Cheng Ping stood up, bowed to Lin Kai, then turned and bowed to Li Longkai before respectfully leaving.

(End of this chapter)