Endless Winter: My Camp Infinite Upgrades

Chapter 492 Ready for Battle, Arrogant and Fierce Generals

Outside the outer city wall of the Great Xia Dynasty, in the northwest corner, lies the Tiger Forest.
The Tiger Forest is 5 kilometers long and 5 kilometers wide, which is not very large. Since it is specifically for underage children of the Cold-resistant level to practice, hunting is strictly prohibited. Apart from the Dragon Guards who are responsible for its management and maintenance, and those who are invited to observe each genius trial, almost no one comes here.

However, tonight's situation is clearly a bit special.

"You 30 men are responsible for observing the situation above the Tiger Forest from the watchtower. If there is any unusual activity, immediately blow the whistle to warn the enemy. I have arranged for people under the city wall to immediately inform the entire army upon hearing the alarm. Do not be careless in the slightest!"

At the intersection of the northwest city walls of Xia City, on a watchtower more than fifty meters high, the Dragon Guard Commander Tie Xinchuan patiently arranged the positions of the 30 Dragon Guards one by one before sternly giving them orders.

The 30 Dragon Guards, clad in black scale silver armor, all wore extremely solemn expressions. Upon hearing the order, they bowed deeply and shouted in unison, "Your subordinates obey!"

"Commander, isn't that enough? One guard every fifty paces, one sentry every hundred paces, the entire Tiger Breeding Forest is surrounded on the west, north, and south sides. Not to mention people, not even a small insect can fly in; there are also fifty Imperial Guards scattered throughout the forest on guard, and with us leading five hundred Imperial Guards to protect him closely, what problem could possibly arise with the Second Prince?"

Yuan Bai, the deputy commander of the Imperial Guard and commander of the Second Battalion, was standing on the top of the watchtower looking into the distance. He saw that the west, south and north sides of the Ruhu Forest were already surrounded by lines of firelight. His expression was a little strange. He felt that Tie Xinchuan was making a mountain out of a molehill.

It was nighttime, and those lines of firelight were torches held by the Imperial Guards who were on guard on three sides of the Tiger Breeding Forest.

In the past, during the Tiger Forest Trial held every ten days, at most a battalion of a hundred Dragon Guards would be sent to guard the perimeter. Tonight, however, the entire force was mobilized. Although the Second Prince's safety was indeed important, Yuan Bai still felt that this display of force was a bit excessive.

The key is that this Tiger Forest is right next to Xia City. The cold beasts inside were all captured and released from various parts of the Great Xia. They are all low- to mid-level cold beasts, not a single high-level one. What trouble could they possibly cause?
Not to mention the monsters. With the continuous surge in population of Xia City in recent years, the exploration progress of Redwood Ridge on the west side has naturally increased as well. Especially at the end of last year, Great Xia found the lair of the Frost Beasts in Howling Moon Valley, deep in the core of Redwood Ridge. Not only did they discover more than a dozen Frost Beast clans, but they also killed thirteen monsters. From then on, Redwood Ridge no longer had any secrets in front of Great Xia.

The greatest danger in the Ice Abyss comes from the unknown. With the complete end of the Great Xia's exploration of Redwood Ridge, the danger in this area has naturally been greatly reduced.

Now, the western city wall of Xia City and the ten-kilometer area between Hongmuling have been cleared. In the northwest corner, only a small section of the Ruhu Forest is connected to the Arrow Bamboo Forest on the north side, so there is basically no need to worry about the threat of cold beasts.

There's no need to worry about the cold beasts; the small torch can be used freely. The torch that the Dragon Guard is holding right now is designed to ward off monsters.

Since the cold beasts and monsters are no longer considered a threat, the only thing left to be wary of is people.

For a woman, that's even more impossible!

They were a thousand Dragon Guards, all of whom were the lord's personal guards. Yuan Bai was the deputy commander of the Dragon Guards, so he knew far more than the others.

The three towns of Chuishan, Muyin, and Jiangxia had long been secretly incorporated into the Great Xia. Now, the entire southern foothills are dominated by the Great Xia. Not to mention the three northern towns, even if Yangqu and Longgu were added, the five northern towns combined would be nothing but a wreck in front of the Great Xia.

In this situation, let alone who would dare to plot against the Second Prince, even if they did, who would have the power to do so?
Therefore, in Yuan Bai's view, the show that Tie Xinchuan put on tonight was really a bit excessive.

Tie Xinchuan, who had just turned twenty-eight this year, looked at his deputy Yuan Bai, who was a year younger than him, and shook his head slightly, saying, "Our Great Xia is currently at the height of its power. Don't be careless. Better safe than sorry. The five northern towns are being suppressed by 60,000 troops. They are like a pressure cooker right now. Who knows what stupid things they might do?"

After asking the question, he paused, then added, "Madam did not imprison the two princes without a reason."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Bai immediately understood. His brows furrowed slightly, and he said with disbelief, "They can't be that stupid, can they? In the past few years alone, Xia City has uncovered nearly a thousand spies from the five towns. Those five families aren't stupid. They should have some idea of ​​Xia City's methods. Why would they still dare to come?"

Since Hongmen opened as a port, Xia City has always maintained an open attitude towards the outside world. Not to mention the towns on the southern slopes, even people from the outer camps can enter Xia City as long as they have registered in Hongmen City in advance.

Trade, exchange, and the collection of information from other regions broadened the horizons of the Xia people and enhanced the productivity of the Great Xia... The benefits of opening up to the outside world are so numerous that it would take several days to fully explain them.

The problem is that advantages and disadvantages in this world always go hand in hand.

While opening up to the outside world brought many benefits to Xia City, it inevitably made it easier for spies from other towns to infiltrate. As the integration between Da Xia and the southern foothills deepened, more and more spies from other towns infiltrated Xia City.

To guard against these spies, the Great Xia Dynasty implemented many measures. For example, it stipulated that outsiders could only live in three guest areas of the outer city: North 5, North 18, and South 2. It also restricted their gathering and hunting activities, granting them temporary hunting privileges only when hired by the Xia people. Furthermore, it limited their range of activities, strictly prohibiting them from entering the inner city, and even the areas surrounding the government offices and military camps in various districts of the outer city…

Unfortunately, no matter how many measures were taken, there were still loopholes. Many spies still managed to sneak into the city under the guise of being travelers to gather intelligence on the Great Xia.

However, all they could do was gather intelligence.

Because of the existence of the Holy Rune Bloodline, outsiders who switch to the Great Xia are subject to a six-month review period. Once the six-month period is up, it will be immediately clear whether their intentions are genuine or not. The Great Xia established the rule three years ago that any outsider who switches to the Great Xia must undergo a one-year review period.

Therefore, no matter how well the spies from other towns are concealed, they will eventually be exposed. Let alone infiltrating the Great Xia, obtaining official status within the Great Xia would completely shut them down.

Over time, the spies in the outer towns also figured out about the Holy Rune, so they stopped hoping to infiltrate and focused on gathering intelligence.

The thousands of spies from the Five Towns that Yuan Bai just mentioned are not just any ordinary people; they are all highly skilled and extremely adept at disguise and infiltration, all at the Cold-Resistant level.

“These spies from other towns are under the surveillance of the Ancestral Spirit Stele in the Prison Hall. If they make even the slightest misbehavior, they will be arrested by the prison department immediately. There have been thousands of cases where they have been caught red-handed. If the five northern towns do not learn their lesson, it will be useless no matter how many more people they send!”

Not only Yuan Bai, but Tie Xinchuan was also an elder of the Great Xia Dynasty, so he naturally knew about the Zongling Mother Stele. After hearing his words, he shook his head and replied, "They certainly wouldn't dare to come inside the city, but it's hard to say what will happen outside. The people from the prison department said that the monitoring range of the Zongling Stele is limited to the city. After all, the Second Prince is going out of the city tonight, so it's better to be cautious!"

Upon hearing this, Yuan Bai's expression became more serious, and he nodded.

"Commander-in-Chief, Deputy Commander-in-Chief, His Highness the Second Prince's carriage has already left the city!"

Suddenly, a voice from the side came from the Imperial Guard. The two quickly turned their heads to look in the direction of the north of the city, and their expressions lifted slightly.

Three hundred Imperial Guards were escorting a bright red carriage, slowly making their way along the north city wall towards the direction of Ruhu Forest.

"The last time I saw the Second Prince was when I entered the Martial Arts Pavilion at the beginning of the year. I remember that the Second Prince's basic strength was already 13 jin at that time. I wonder how much he has now. This time I can finally see him."

Hearing Yuan Bai's words, Tie Xinchuan also said with great interest: "I saw it in May of this year. The Second Prince's basic strength at that time was 17 jin. Now, half a year has passed, and I estimate it is at least 23 jin."

The cultivation levels of the two princes are among the things that the Xia people are most interested in right now. Firstly, with the aura of Lord Xia Hong, the Xia people want to know just how high the talents of the two siblings really are; secondly, because they rarely leave the Xia Palace, the siblings seem even more mysterious, which naturally makes the Xia people even more curious.

In contrast to the reclusive nature of the First Prince Xia Yuyao, the Second Prince Xia Yusheng would occasionally leave the Star-Picking Hall and wander around the Xia Palace, so those who entered the Martial Arts Pavilion to cultivate might sometimes catch a glimpse of him if they were lucky.

Upon hearing Tie Xinchuan say that the Second Prince's basic strength had already exceeded 23 jin in May, Yuan Bai's expression suddenly changed.

"The Second Prince's battle physique aptitude hasn't even broken through 23 jin yet, it must have already surpassed that of Yuwen Sizheng and Sicheng, right?"

As the population of the Great Xia Dynasty continued to surge, the number of reference samples that broke through the cold-resistant level increased, and the content of "Xia Li: Xiuzhi Pian" became more and more complete.

Yuan Bai remembered that the repair chapter mentioned that during the skin reshaping stage, as long as the basic strength exceeded 20 jin, and then broke through to the cold resistance level, the basic strength would not only simply double, but would also receive an additional boost on top of the doubling. The higher the basic strength, the higher the boost would be.

He himself was also a top-tier battle physique, but unfortunately, during the reshaping of his skin membrane, his maximum basic strength only reached 17 jin. Therefore, once he broke through to the Cold Resistance level, his basic strength remained at 3.4 jin.

Xia Yusheng's basic strength was already over 23 jin in July, and he has most likely broken through to the Cold Resistance level now. His basic strength is definitely above 6 jin, and possibly even more. "Do you think that His Highness the Second Prince has definitely broken through to the Cold Resistance level?"

Upon seeing Yuan Bai's expression, Tie Xinchuan immediately guessed what he was thinking and asked with a smile.

Yuan Bai was taken aback upon hearing this, then nodded. But seeing the smile on Tie Xinchuan's face, he quickly realized that Han Yue, the head maid of the Zhaixing Palace who was in charge of taking care of the Second Prince, was the other party's wife.

Seeing the smile on Tie Xinchuan's face, Yuan Bai instantly understood what was going on. His expression suddenly brightened, and he asked in surprise, "Second Prince, you haven't broken through yet?"

Tie Xinchuan nodded, his voice tinged with envy, "Although Hanyue didn't tell me the details, I'm certain that the Second Prince hasn't broken through yet..."

The basic strength reached 23 jin in July, but it hasn't broken through yet.

How much of Xia Yusheng's basic power does he have now?
When he truly breaks through to the Cold Resistance level in the future, how much basic strength will he need?

Yuan Bai was completely stunned and couldn't help but exclaim, "The Second Prince's battle physique aptitude is probably even greater than that of the Madam and the Lord, isn't it?"

The best combat physique aptitude in the Great Xia Dynasty is currently recognized as belonging to Lord Xia Hong and his wife Li Xuanling. However, interestingly, no one knows exactly how much base strength they had when they broke through to the Cold Resistance level.

However, this did not prevent the Xia people from speculating. Some said 7 manes, some said 8 manes, and some said 9 manes. In short, there were many different answers. But the only thing that could be confirmed was that Xia Hong and Li Xuanling were definitely above Si Cheng's 6 manes.

"Let's go! We'll see them soon. Lu Dong, Luo An, Zou Ping, Zhao Yuankong, and the others are all so arrogant. Today, the Second Prince's public appearance should really put their arrogance to a halt!"

After finishing speaking, Tie Xinchuan took the lead and walked towards the bottom of the city wall.

Upon hearing this, Yuan Bai's eyes lit up instantly, and he immediately followed.

The composition of the Dragon Guard was based on the military system of the early Xia Dynasty. The entire army consisted of a thousand men, divided into ten battalions. The most elite scout battalion was personally led by Commander-in-Chief Tie Xinchuan, while the remaining nine battalions were commanded by Deputy Commander-in-Chief Yuan Bai and eight other commanders.

At this moment, half of the Dragon Guards had already dispersed to guard the area around the Lunch Tiger Forest, while Tie Xinchuan and Yuan Bai's hundred men were waiting for Xia Yusheng's imperial carriage at the northeastern outer perimeter of the Lunch Tiger Forest.

"Everyone stand at attention! His Highness the Second Prince's carriage will be arriving shortly!"

The two quickly arrived at the front of the army and saw that the soldiers of the two battalions were not standing properly and were chatting idly in groups of three or five. Tie Xinchuan immediately shouted angrily.

As you can see, when the two hundred soldiers saw Tie Xinchuan coming, they showed no fear at all. Only when they heard him say that Xia Yusheng's imperial carriage was about to arrive did they quickly line up and stand in formation.

Seeing the performance of the two hundred soldiers, Tie Xinchuan couldn't help but sigh slightly.

Not only him, but also Yuan Bai, the deputy commander who followed behind, did the same.

"Commander, the imperial carriage is right behind us. His Highness the Second Prince wants you to lead your men into the woods to clear a path. You don't need to wait here. You can lead your men in first!"

Suddenly, an armored figure swiftly swept in from behind. It was Lu Dong, the commander of the Third Battalion. He addressed Tie Xinchuan as commander, but neither his face nor his words showed any respect for him as commander. He even took Xia Yusheng's verbal instructions and directly issued orders to him.

Upon hearing Lu Dong's words, before Tie Xinchuan could say anything, Yuan Bai's expression immediately darkened, clearly indicating that he wanted to reprimand Lu Dong.

But before he could speak, Tie Xinchuan stopped him.

"Alright, then I'll lead the men in to clear the way!"

Tie Xinchuan shook his head at Yuan Bai, then replied to Lu Dong, waved to the scout battalion and the two hundred men of the first battalion, and led the way into the woods.

Seeing this, Yuan Bai could only suppress his anger and follow behind Tie Xinchuan. Turning his head to look at Lu Dong's departing figure, he couldn't help but lean forward and say to Tie Xinchuan:
“At the beginning of the year, the two of us shouldn’t have taken on these positions as Commander and Deputy Commander of the Dragon Guard. We have no way to manage these thousands of arrogant and fierce soldiers. We would have been better off joining any other unit. Why did we have to put up with this mistreatment?”

Upon hearing Yuan Bai's words, Tie Xinchuan remained silent, but couldn't help but sigh softly, a hint of regret flashing across his face.

The idea of ​​forming a royal guard for the lord had been around for a long time, but it had never been successful due to the limitations of the Great Xia's strength.

With the explosive growth of the Great Xia's cold-resistant class in recent years, Xia Chuan finally issued an order to Yuwen Tao, the head of the Military Affairs Department, in March of this year to form the Lord's Imperial Guard.

Yuwen Tao naturally dared not be careless in forming an imperial guard for the lord. He put a lot of thought into everything from the specific name of the imperial guard, the number of soldiers, the equipment specifications, to the cultivation level restrictions, and the specific selection methods, and carefully checked each step.

Since they are imperial guards, their numbers cannot be too large, so they are set at one thousand, following the original regulations of the Xia army.
Equipment regulations cannot be neglected. Weapons aside for the moment, the most advanced of the standard battle armor in the Great Xia Dynasty is the Xuanlin Silver Armor, which is made of silver and dragon scales. Therefore, the Xuanlin Silver Armor has naturally become the standard equipment of the Imperial Guard.
The name "Dragon Guard" also comes from the black-scaled silver armor.

As for the cultivation level restriction, it's quite simple. The total weight of the Xuanlin Silver Armor of the Ten Thousand Forging level is more than 1.5 manes. Without a strength of more than 15 manes, even the ability to move will be restricted when wearing it. Therefore, the cultivation level restriction for the selection of the Dragon Guard is naturally set at more than 15 manes.
The 15-mane requirement is just a cultivation level limit. When it comes to the actual selection, let alone 15-mane, even those with 20-mane strength won't be selected.

The Xia people, especially the older generation, are well aware of the immense benefits of serving as a close attendant to the lord and a member of his personal guard when traveling with Xia Hong.

As soon as the news of the formation of the Dragon Guard in March spread, the entire Great Xia was in an uproar. Not to mention the young people who had not yet joined the army, even the already established Great Xia legions such as Cloud Dragon, Dragon Warrior, Dragon Slayer, and Tiger Leopard had a large number of elite soldiers who were tempted and returned to participate in the selection.

Given the fierce competition, one can only imagine how strong those who stand out and ultimately become members of the Dragon Guard must be.

As the military governor, Tie Xinchuan was aware of this data.

Currently, the weakest of the 1,000 members of the Dragon Guard have a base strength of over 25 manes. If you include their sacred runes and martial arts, they can all reach a strength of over 40 manes.

Strength is secondary; the key is that these people are all very young. In March, when the selection of the Dragon Guards took place, due to the large number of soldiers who wanted to return to the army, Yuwen Tao made a supplementary regulation: the age of the Dragon Guards soldiers could not exceed thirty years old.

In fact, Yuwen Tao's rules were already very clear: the quota for the Dragon Guard was specifically reserved for the most talented group of the new generation in the Great Xia Dynasty.

The strength of the Dragon Guard, an army formed by gathering thousands of top geniuses, goes without saying.

The problem is, with strength comes more trouble!

Lu Dong, Luo An, Zou Ping, Luo Cheng, Liu Peng, Hong Ye, Zhao Yuanwu, Zhao Yuankong, Xiao Heng, Xiao Yan, Chen Ping, Murong Qian, Xiahou Ning, Qin Wuxin, Jiang Yichen...

Moreover, in addition to the top geniuses of the new generation of Da Xia, the most talented young people from the three newly merged towns of Muyin, Jiangxia, and Chuishan are also all there.

Getting such a group of people to obediently become ordinary soldiers who follow orders from their superiors is as difficult as climbing to the sky.

(End of this chapter)