"The young master brought so many Cold Resistance Level soldiers, along with over a thousand Longyou troops, and still couldn’t kill him. This Leader Xia’s strength, in all of Longyou, is second only to Li Tianhua!"
Upon hearing the name Li Tianhua, Li Hu’s expression flickered with discomfort, but he quickly sneered and said, "How old is Li Tianhua now? Even if he’s stronger, so what? Look carefully, how old is Leader Xia?"
Yang Zhong, who had never noticed Xia Hong’s age, was reminded by Li Hu and immediately stared at Xia Hong’s face. As soon as he looked, his expression froze.
"Why do I feel like he’s even younger than the young master..."
Before Yang Zhong finished his sentence, Li Hu immediately pulled him down by the head.
The two of them exchanged glances and both appeared slightly tense.
"Did I see it right? Was he just looking at us?"
"Of course he sensed it. With his level of power, if you stare at him this close, how could he not notice? Stop talking nonsense."
"Brother, do you know those two?"
On the platform, noticing Xia Hong’s gaze fixed on the two not far away, Xia Chuan glanced over and immediately asked curiously.
Xia Hong shook his head and smiled, "Their names are quite interesting!"
Just as Xia Chuan was about to inquire further, Qiu Peng approached with a face full of confusion and said, "Leader, are you really going to release all these people? The Earth-digging Realm from Long Mountain and Zhaoyang combined have 1,672 people. If we let them go back, they might be our enemies in the future."
"If you can’t understand, think about it slowly later. Do as I said for now."
Just now in the dark passage, Xia Hong was unwilling to explain much; now back at Wushuang, he even less so.
Even though Xia Chuan and a number of Cold Resistance Levels clearly showed agreement with Qiu Peng’s concerns, he still chose to decisively make an independent decision, leaving only one sentence before departing the square and heading towards the Wushuang Main Building.
"Understood, Leader!"
Though Qiu Peng and the others didn’t understand, seeing Xia Hong leave directly, they didn’t say anything further. After nodding in agreement, they began to carry out his orders.
The current most important organizational unit in Great Xia is the Hunting Team, where the rule is that members can voice dissent, but once the captain makes a final decision, everyone else must unconditionally comply. This rule has permeated every aspect of the camp.
So Xia Hong’s present decision must be followed unconditionally.
No matter how perplexed they are, they have no choice.
The Cold Ruins Tripod, of course, has the effect of eradicating Dewdrops, but it requires substantial contact to be effective. Simply being within its temperature radiation range only suppresses the dewdrops, preventing them from heating up and exploding. To eradicate them completely, Solidified Fire Oil must be used.
When he brought out the Cold Ruins Tripod in Gourd Valley, Xia Hong realized this.
He certainly couldn’t have people queuing up to touch the Cold Ruins Tripod. The Solidified Fire Oil brought from Xia City this time is ample enough.
Just before his arrival, quite a few people at Wushuang Square had their dewdrops ignite, which caused their death. Once he arrived and placed the Cold Ruins Tripod at the Wushuang Main Building, no one else died in the square.
"It’s so warm. Why did it suddenly get so warm?"
"The warmth is coming from the main building. I saw Leader Xia Hong go in."
"The dewdrops on me seem to have stopped heating up."
"Nobody’s dying anymore. It must be some technique from Leader Xia Hong, right?"
"It has to be him. He could even kill that monstrous creature, so surely it’s him."
The rise in temperature and the suppression of the Dewdrop Plague happened simultaneously.
Everyone turned their heads to look at the main building, their faces filled with astonishment. After a brief exchange of discussions, without exception, their eyes filled with admiration and gratitude.
The retreat and escape of Li Xuanling’s group within Gourd Valley, coupled with Xia Hong’s timely appearance with the giant tripod, had already formed a stark contrast in their minds. Adding on the distribution of Solidified Fire Oil by Great Xia, their admiration and gratitude towards Xia Hong surged to a peak.
Of course, not everyone shared this sentiment.
For instance, the Earth-digging Realm members from Long Mountain and Zhaoyang mostly wore expressions of hesitation, as if wanting to say something to Xia Chuan and others on the platform, but not daring to speak up.
"May I ask how the officials of Great Xia intend to deal with us?"
Finally, after a long pause, an Earth-digging Realm member from the Zhaoyang Camp couldn’t hold back any longer and addressed Xia Chuan and the others on the platform.
As soon as this person spoke, the square fell dead silent, with all eyes fixing on the platform, faces full of tension.
Especially the Earth-digging Realm members from Zhaoyang and Long Mountain, who appeared particularly uneasy.
"Rest assured, you will be released. There’s only one hour until dawn. You won’t get far if you leave now. Once it gets dark tomorrow night, the camp gates will open, and anyone who wishes to leave will be free to do so!"
But quickly, with Qiu Peng’s response, the tension and apprehension vanished from their faces, replaced first by astonishment, then by a look of complex emotions.
Great Xia is actually letting us go?
Not only the Earth-digging Realm from Long Mountain and Zhaoyang but even those from Hanqiong and other ordinary people were noticeably caught off guard by this answer.
"Sir, we’ve nowhere else to go. Can we join Great Xia?"
From the Hanqiong side, someone quickly grasped the situation and inquired hurriedly.
Upon hearing this, Qiu Peng’s previously tense expression relaxed a bit, and he smiled, "Of course you can. Whether to stay or leave is entirely up to you. Our Great Xia never forces anyone to join!"
The over ten thousand people on the Hanqiong side visibly relaxed.
Whereas among the thousand-plus from Long Mountain and Zhaoyang, most still showed complex expressions, looking at Xia Chuan and Qiu Peng on the platform, lost in thought.
Among the crowd, Yang Zhong and Li Hu appeared particularly astonished.
After a glance at each other, their eyes showed a noticeable firming of resolve.