Endless Winter: My Camp Upgrades Infinitely Chapter 1260 - 417: Yanze Lake and Blood Miasma Plain, Wang Yuxiu, the Xiang Family Turns the Tables

Five kilometers to the west of Xia City, a thick snow mist obscured the landscape while bitter winds howled incessantly.

A sextet of figures held their positions around a massive tree, maintaining a tense vigil.

Fixed to the bark of the tree was a painting of a snowy landscape. Had Hou Ming been present, he would have instantly recognized it as the exact replica of the Redwood Ridge scene he had observed in the North Fifth District chamber.

Naturally, had he been there, he would have also identified the six sentries guarding the canvas as the very individuals he had been tasked to apprehend—Chu Dongning and his entourage.

Fwoosh...

The snowy illustration upon the tree erupted with luminosity. Two slender arms emerged from the painting, swiftly followed by a graceful woman in simple robes who leaped out from the canvas.

"Little Princess!"

"Did those Xia commoners dare to mistreat you, Little Princess?"

As Chu Yan’er materialized, the four middle-aged men, including Chu Dongning, visibly eased their stance. However, observing that she had assumed her proper form, Chen Yu and Chen Huang immediately demanded to know if the Great Xia people had bullied her, their faces twisted in fury.

Rip...

Upon emerging, Chu Yan’er tore the painting to shreds without a moment of hesitation. Her delicate face was marred by a mixture of mortification and rage, leaving her with no intention to acknowledge the inquiries of Chen Yu or Chen Huang.

[Given your current standing and strength, you possess no right to address me in such a manner. Perhaps if your lord were present, things might be different.]

The remarks of Xia Hong echoed endlessly through her mind. Unable to restrain herself, she balled her hands into fists beneath her sleeves, her expression burning with resentment.

"That audacious Xia Hong! He actually dared to claim that I, a Princess, lack the qualifications to speak to him, and he had the sheer arrogance to treat me like a child! It is absolutely infuriating!"

As a prominent descendant of the Landgrave’s lineage and a prodigious talent, Chu Yan’er had always been cherished by her great-grandfather, the Governor of Yanling County. When she turned thirteen and earned the title of Yanling County Princess, the Landgrave himself bestowed upon her the name Pearl of Chen Cang...

Given her esteemed social standing within the Chen Cang Feudal Town, how could she ever be expected to endure being patronized like a naive toddler by the mere lord of a town-level camp like Xianyang?

"Little Princess, how could Xia Hong be so insolent? We shall report this to the Governor of Yanling immediately and have him descend personally to teach Xia Hong a lesson..."

"The Prefectural Governor is occupied with countless state affairs; how could we possibly burden him with such a trifle?"

Hearing Chen Yu’s aggressive outbursts, the four middle-aged men including Chu Dongning grew solemn, but as Chu Yan’er offered her rebuttal, their tension dissipated.

Ultimately, the Little Princess possessed far greater foresight than the others.

Despite her lingering anger and shame, Chu Yan’er understood perfectly why Xia Hong had been provoked. Truth be told, she lacked the moral high ground. Furthermore, she had no intention of bothering her distant great-grandfather with such a trivial grievance just to have him travel all the way to Xia City.

Besides, it was becoming clear that this Great Xia Town was not a force to be trifled with lightly.

Chu Yan’er cast a gaze toward the east, where the faint silhouette of city fortifications loomed five kilometers away. Her expression shifted several times before she spoke in a measured tone:

"This Xia Hong is a difficult opponent; we must depart at once!"

"To where do you intend to retreat?"

Before the echoes of her voice had even vanished, and before the group could prepare for their departure, a mocking voice drifted down from directly above their heads.

Chu Yan’er froze instantly. The remaining six individuals felt their blood run cold as they instinctively brandished their weapons and stared upward in a panic.

When the seven of them beheld Xia Hong looming in the air while clad in a flowing black robe, their faces reflected not just terror, but absolute incredulity.

This is impossible...

How could Xia Hong possibly have tracked them to this location?

Seeing the sheer dread in their eyes, Xia Hong offered a cold, knowing smirk as he shook his head.

Xia City had been constructed in the shadow of the Twin Dragon Valley, with its primary gate facing west. During the most recent expansion in August of the third year of Da Xia, the western wall reached a length of 20 kilometers, while the north and south walls extended 15 kilometers each, bringing the total territory to 300 square kilometers.

Furthermore, the surveillance reach of the Level 5 Ancestral Spirit Mother and Child Stele extended up to 50 kilometers in any direction.

Because of this, not only could the entirety of Xia City be observed, but any movement by foreign entities within a 30-kilometer radius of the city was clearly registered by the Mother Stele.

Other individuals would have required the Mother Stele to compute the trajectory of these intruders, but Xia Hong, as the master of the system, had no such need. He could manipulate the interface directly.

The instant Chu Yan’er vanished from the Prison Department’s auxiliary hall, the Mother Stele had provided immediate feedback. He had initially assumed that, given her spatial movement capabilities, she would have long since fled beyond his reach.

Much to his surprise, new life forms had emerged within minutes at Redwood Ridge, just five kilometers west of Xia City, and they happened to be a group of seven.

It was evident that Chu Yan’er’s abilities were not yet fully perfected. Her method of using paintings for spatial displacement carried a clear distance limit, likely contained within a 30-kilometer band.

Of course, this assessment of her “imperfect” skill was purely based on the standards of Great Xia.

Great Xia possessed the Ancestral Spirit Stele, allowing for coverage just beyond the 30-kilometer mark; other camps lacked such mystical assets. It was no wonder that with this ability, Chu Yan’er felt bold enough to leave Chen Cang and venture into the Southern Slope Territory.

Xia Hong remained silent for a prolonged duration, which only heightened the anxiety of the seven figures below. Chen Yu, who had just been eager to summon the Yanling County Governor to punish Xia Hong, now trembled into silence, huddled like a frightened quail.

Among the seven, only Chu Yan’er maintained a semblance of composure. Realizing that escape was no longer an option, she lowered her weapon, stepped forward, and bowed with cupped hands, offering an apologetic look toward Xia Hong: "Yan’er admits she should not have acted against those within the city today, I beseech Lord Xia Hong to show mercy..."