Endless Winter: My Camp Upgrades Infinitely Chapter 1329 - 433: The Martial Arts Competition Ends, Cat Demon and Presence, Defeated East Ridge Group_3

Xia Hong's eyes narrowed faintly, his blood and energy erupting from his whole body in a rush, blanketing the entire hall with overwhelming pressure at once.

Right then, Lu Dong, Luo An, and the others weren't the only ones crushed—even Xia Chuan, Yuwen Dao, and all the top officials struggled for air, staring up at Xia Hong in utter shock and disbelief.

Fu Tiandu, taking the full brunt, faced unimaginable force.

His frame shuddered nonstop, the transformation already ended. After a few breaths, he jerked his head up toward Xia Hong, silver eyes gleaming with wild agitation.

Whoosh...

Spotting the source in the tattoo on Fu Tiandu’s chest, Xia Hong acted without delay, firing a brilliant beam from his left eye straight into it.

"Ah..."

Hit by the beam on his chest, Fu Tiandu's mouth flew open in a piercing, ear-splitting shriek—a woman's voice, nothing like his earlier tone.

The silver-white fur across Fu Tiandu’s body vanished swiftly after the cry.

Whish...

With the fur gone entirely, a silver gleam burst from his chest, bolting straight for the hall's exit.

"Want to run after coming in?"

A cold smirk crossed Xia Hong’s face as his figure vanished once more, blocking the silver gleam the instant after. Weaponless, he swung his hand out and smashed it down hard.

Bang!

"Meow..."

A piercing feline wail rang out, the silver light crashing down and slamming into the hall floor. Xia Hong had controlled his strike perfectly, or it would've punched right through the whole building.

"Cat Demon! It’s the Cat Demon that stole from the Hongmen silver vault."

Lin Kai, positioned left in the hall, paled at the cry. Seeing the silver-white kitten Xia Hong had flattened on the ground, he blurted out in shock.

"Lord, our Hongmen City in December last year and this February..."

Noting Xia Hong's puzzled look, Lin Kai hurried to clarify, swiftly detailing the prior two silver vault robberies in Hongmen City.

The Cat Demon that steals silver!

Xia Hong pulled out the key details from Lin Kai's account, his curiosity deepening on his face. He gasped especially when the Cat Demon on the floor morphed into a plain silver cat statue in moments.

Grabbing the silver figurine off the ground, he snapped it in half with a gentle squeeze.

"A silver substitute, interesting!"

Shutting his eyes, Xia Hong activated the Ancestral Spirit Mother and Child Stele to scan every corner of Xia City thoroughly. Finding no anomalies, he mulled it over briefly, then glanced at Fu Tiandu sprawled nearby.

It had sneaked into the main hall undetected, and Xia Hong had felt clearly earlier that this Cat Demon was a solid-bodied Deceitful Monster—shifting to a mere silver sculpture upon death, far from ordinary.

Fu Tiandu had come to by now, catching Xia Hong's stare and dropping to his knees at once, face twisted in misery. "I beg the Lord for mercy. This lowly one never meant to lie—it's just that this Cat Demon holds my life in its claws. Joining Hongmen's Martial Arts Competition was all its force, and those two earlier silver vault thefts there were its work too.

In two hits, it took six million taels from the Hongmen vault. This lowly one was tricked and kept one million taels for myself..."

"First tell me, what’s up with this Cat Demon?"

Cutting Fu Tiandu off sharp, Xia Hong demanded details on the Cat Demon.

Fu Tiandu looked defeated, cupping his hands right away. "This Cat Demon's name is Jiu Ming. It boosts its power using silver and plants a feline plague in people. The plague lurks hidden inside, tough to spot, but when it flares, it twists the victim fast into a flesh-hungry beast. This lowly one crossed paths with it heading to Hongmen City."

Jiu Ming—nine lives—and faking death as a silver stand-in was merely a life-saving trick?

Nine lives, sneaking into Xia City without fear of Solidified Fire Oil, thriving on silver instead of shunning it...

Xia Hong's eyebrows knit slightly upon hearing this, sensing real trouble.

"Do you know how many people he infected with the feline plague?"

Fu Tiandu swiftly cupped his fists, "In Hongmen City, roughly sixty individuals—it spread the plague through my body, so I recognize them. I can lead you straight to Hongmen right now to point out those sixty people..."

Xia Hong furrowed his brows while casting a glance at Lin Kai.

Lin Kai's face had stayed utterly impassive for a while now. Catching Xia Hong's signal, he strode rapidly toward Fu Tiandu, plainly set on dragging him back to Hongmen for the identification.

Fu Tiandu suddenly seemed to grasp the peril, dropping his head low in desperate plea, "This humble servant meant no evil; it was all compelled by this Cat Demon. I beseech the Lord to spare my life, please, Lord, show mercy..."

"When did I ever claim I would kill you?"

Xia Hong cut Fu Tiandu off abruptly, eyeing him intently for a moment before giving a faint headshake. "The Cat Demon made off with six million taels of silver altogether, and you've confessed to keeping one million taels for yourself, so you'll cover that one million taels' loss! Remain within Great Xia, and once you've repaid that one million taels of silver, you'll walk free."

At these words, Fu Tiandu froze in shock, then his features softened with deep feeling, his voice brimming with heartfelt thanks, "Gratitude to the Lord for such mercy—this lowly one will be forever thankful!"

"Jinshan Town Yinhe Valley, Extreme East Outer Domain Xiahe Village—is that really your origin?"