The majestic golden dome;
Blue leather blankets covering the entire floor of the grand hall;
On both sides, a variety of eerie white beast bone statues;
Eight solemn and powerful golden pillars;
Hundreds of pure iron beast-shaped coal burners;
A four-footed square giant cauldron in the center of the hall;
The main hall on the top floor, when Chen Yingyuan and Peng Bo entered, the opulent style inside the hall immediately overwhelmed them.
Beehive and Yang Lu do not lack coal and iron.
But first, neither family is as luxurious, and the iron ore they must pay annually to Long Mountain is no small amount. The remaining iron ore is either used to enhance camp defenses or to forge weapons and war armor, leaving nothing to spare;
Second, the moment they entered Xia City, they realized that their own casting and smelting skills were inferior to Great Xia’s.
"With fewer resources, poorer craftsmanship, lower alchemy, forging, and construction capabilities, resource distribution and institutional aspects far inferior to Great Xia, thus..."
Thousands of thoughts flashed through Chen Yingyuan’s mind in an instant. Finally, he seemed to decide something, looked up at Xia Hong on the high platform, took a deep breath, and walked forward, bowing:
"Chen Yingyuan, pays respects to the leader!"
Peng Bo, standing behind Chen Yingyuan, clearly understood the deep meaning of this action. With a complex expression, without any hesitation, he walked beside Chen Yingyuan and respectfully bowed to Xia Hong:
"Peng Bo, pays respects to the leader!"
The hall was not solely occupied by Xia Hong.
Qiu Peng, who had entered earlier, was already standing nearby. Counting Yuwen Dao, Yuan Cheng, Luo Yuan, Meng Yi, Zhu Ling, Zhu Yuan, Lin Kai, Lu Yang, Huang Yong, Hong Gang—eleven Late-stage Cold Resistance are all present in Xia City.
The originally somewhat noisy crowd, seeing Chen Yingyuan and Peng Bo’s display of respect, instantly quieted down.
There was no surprise among the people, only a sense of inevitability.
Xia Hong, holding a wine cup on the high platform, showed a strong sense of joy in his eyes when he saw the two respectfully saluting and heard "leader".
Though in Longyou, Chen Peng and four others have joined Great Xia and heed his and Xia Chuan’s commands.
Xia Hong understands that is because their families are in Xia City.
Getting an ordinary Late-stage Cold Resistance to join Great Xia is not simple, let alone the strength of these four. Furthermore, Chen Peng and Peng Bo were each camp leaders with equivalent status to his own.
Whether these four would truly be willing to join Great Xia before returning to Xia City was unknown.
Xia Chuan left Chen Yingba and Wu Tianxing in Longyou to intentionally bring Chen Yingyuan and Peng Bo back.
Once these two agree to join Great Xia, the other two wouldn’t be an issue!
Their actions now clearly demonstrate their attitude.
Chen Yingyuan, Late-stage Cold Resistance, Seven-maned Power;
Peng Bo, Late-stage Cold Resistance, Eight-maned Power;
Chen Yingba, Late-stage Cold Resistance, Six-maned Power;
Wu Tianxing, Late-stage Cold Resistance, Six-maned Power.
From this moment on, the four Late-stage Cold Resistance truly joined the camp, becoming members of Great Xia.
"Rise, now joining the camp, everyone will be treated equally. You two should have registered with the Hunting Department, can create your own Hunting Team, and integrate into the camp’s regular hunting life. If confused, seek out Qiu Peng and Yuwen Dao."
Though pleased, Xia Hong refrained from excessive enthusiasm towards them, instructed them, then waved them to join the ranks. He looked at the thirteen present and continued smiling:
"Gathering you here now for two matters!"
Yuwen Dao and nine others have just returned home once, summoned here for the second time now.
"First matter, Yuan Cheng, you speak!"
Yuan Cheng nodded at the command, stepped forward, faced everyone and said: "My Garrison Department has added three outposts—Hanqiong, Wushuang, and Beehive—thus needs to appoint three Defense Envoys. If anyone is interested, you may recommend yourself to the leader!"
Those who heard this, except for Yuwen Dao, Yuan Cheng, Luo Yuan, Zhu Yuan, the four already with positions in the Six Ministries, the remaining nine all showed interest.
To be a Defense Envoy externally is surely better than merely being a regular Hunting Team captain. Both in practical benefits and in personal status.
The only downside might be less comfort and safety than in Xia City.
Yet those present are all seasoned veterans who live dangerously; safety never factors into their considerations.
Moreover, a Late-stage Cold Resistance is unlike the Earth-digging Realm. Considering Great Xia’s environmental development, ensuring outpost safety means they can return anytime, just cannot linger in Xia City.
"Leader, Hong Gang willing to garrison Longyou!"
"I, Huang Yong, am willing too."
"Subordinate wants to go too."
"Meng Yi willing to go."
"If possible, Peng Bo is willing too."
Remarkably, all nine expressed intent to go.
Xia Hong silently smiled on the high platform, unsurprised.
Yuan Cheng was more prepared. Seeing nine express intent, he smiled and said: "If all wish to go, then there’s no choice but competition. Whoever is more capable goes..."