Chapter 395 - 286: How to Guard Against Spies?

Chapter 395: Chapter 286: How to Guard Against Spies?

Corruption!

The words were silent, but they were deafening.

Xia Qingge was skilled in combat.

If he took her to the Underworld to slaughter the Underground Demons, it might truly be possible to suppress the "Earth Curse."

But what then?

She would become a homicidal maniac...

"Woohoo!"

A cheer interrupted Tang Wen’s thoughts.

SPLASH!

A huge spray of water erupted from the lake’s surface.

White Tiger the 21st, carrying Xia Qingge, crashed into the lake like a meteor.

WHOOSH.

The girl and the tiger leaped out of the lake, sending countless crystal-clear water droplets flying.

They glistened brightly under the winter sun.

Xia Qingge laughed endlessly, splashing water and forming it into balls to attack Tang Wen and Hu Qi.

Hu Qi was forced to dodge.

She grew even more excited. "Quick! Twenty-one, more water! Let’s get them."

SPLASH!

The girl and the tiger crashed into the lake again.

Tang Wen pursed his lips.

BANG!

The balls of water came at them like rain.

Hu Qi and Tang Wen played dodgeball in mid-air.

Xia Qingge was, after all, an expert who had broken through to the Fifth Grade.

After dodging continuously for a while, Tang Wen was soaked to the bone.

His clothes clung to his body, and the cold wind sent a chill through him.

Although he wasn’t afraid of the cold, it was still an unpleasant sensation. He stripped off his shirt, revealing a well-proportioned, chiseled torso. Sunlight washed over his skin, gilding it in a layer of gold.

Xia Qingge narrowed her phoenix eyes. ’That brat... he’s actually not bad looking,’ she mumbled.

BANG!

A super-sized ball of water flew toward her.

It was Tang Wen’s counterattack.

Just as she was about to dodge, her brows furrowed. A sharp pain lanced between her eyes, accompanied by an irregular heartbeat.

SPLOOSH!

The beauty in red was now a sopping mess.

Her exquisite curves were suddenly on full display.

Xia Qingge’s figure was already much taller and more statuesque than the average woman’s.

Not only were her legs long and slender, but she was also remarkably well-endowed.

"You brat, you’re so dead!"

"Run, run!"

Hu Qi flew forward, while Tang Wen kept looking back, a look of stunned admiration hidden in his eyes...

「Flame Camp.」

Seeing that Tang Wen’s trip to "get provisions" had been a success, General Zhou and the others hadn’t been idle either.

In just two days, they had led people to go door-to-door, identifying those who would have a hard time surviving the winter on their own stored rations.

This group would be the focus of the work-for-relief program.

The stove crackled and popped.

General Zhou and the others were drinking heated sweet potato liquor.

This was originally the Queen’s personal ration of liquor; she was the only one in the camp who could drink her fill every day.

The rest, like General Zhou, were considered lucky to get a ration of ten jin every half-month.

After all, from the simple perspective of the camp’s residents, using grain to brew alcohol was an absolute waste.

"Ah, drinking sweet potato liquor."

General Zhou and the others hadn’t heard any footsteps at all.

They were startled when someone suddenly spoke, only then realizing it was the Queen’s voice.

A figure in red appeared, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

When they saw Tang Wen had also arrived, they relaxed completely.

"The camp really does need a guardian. Otherwise, someone could sneak right into our home and we wouldn’t even know," Elder Xia lamented.

They exchanged pleasantries and sat down.

Tang Wen sat down next to Zhou Bing.

The Queen took the head seat and drank, listening to everyone’s discussion and nodding from time to time.

In truth, she was using most of her energy to fight the pain and understood very little about the camp’s affairs.

General Zhou was talking about the work-for-relief matter.

Simply put, it meant spending the entire dry season expanding the Inner City and repairing the Outer City.

Tang Wen added, "Our food supply is relatively stable. I also plan to clean out the great lake and stock it with fish fry before I leave. Therefore, it would be best to build a few factory districts in the Silver Wolf District to the north."

The concept of factory districts was not unfamiliar to them.

Their partner, Bai You Ruo, had promised to build factories for them. ℯ𝔴ℯ

Although there was no sign of them yet, Tang Wen also had designs for several simple industrial workshops.

They just needed to send trustworthy people to learn the trade.

"Why build them so far away?"

"A cunning rabbit has three burrows! Not only should they be far away, but they must also be hidden." Tang Wen looked at Commander Qian Dong. "We can send the Royal Palace Guard to build them."

"Then what about the Queen’s safety?" Qian Dong’s words lacked confidence.

Everyone knew that the Royal Palace Guard had never actually protected the Queen.

It had always been the Queen who protected them and the entire camp.

Tang Wen glanced at Xia Qingge. "The Queen will be going with me to Ganshan City and the White Tiger Tribe."

He paused, then said, "Everyone, there is something I must tell you. The Queen has contracted a strange illness, which is why she must leave with me."

The room erupted in a clamor.

"What strange illness?" Zhou Bing grabbed Tang Wen’s sleeve.

But he noticed General Zhou and Elder General Xia exchange a look. Amidst their grave expressions was a hint of relief.

"Don’t listen to this brat’s nonsense, I’m not sick! He just doesn’t want me to drink. Besides, even if there was something wrong, a pot of liquor would fix it!" Xia Qingge glared at Tang Wen, her eyes like daggers.

"You drink to treat an illness?!" Zhou Bing realized. Of everyone in the camp, she was the strictest about managing the Queen’s drinking.

"I just love to drink!" Xia Qingge pouted.

Tang Wen comforted Zhou Bing.

All the Commanders were in the room, their faces filled with worry. Xia Qingge’s repeated denials were useless.

A meeting that was supposed to be about the camp’s development immediately went off-topic.

Tang Wen went over to Elder Xia and General Zhou and asked a few questions.

Elder Xia recalled, "I’m Qingge’s uncle. She started suffering from this heart pain long ago, right after she became Extraordinary. In her early years, I visited every major and minor power within a thousand li, but there was no cure. I once met a Fifth-Grade expert. My intuition told me he knew something, but I wasn’t willing to marry into his family, so he said nothing."

Tang Wen nodded. "It’s a very strange illness."

He didn’t use the word "curse."

"Elder Xia, I heard your ancestral home is on the Eastern Continent?" ’Of course, Tang Wen didn’t want Xia Qingge going off in search of some ancestral home.’

But with her heaven-sent talent, she was bound to advance beyond the Initial Stage of the Fifth Grade in Martial Arts.

Yet the stronger she became, the greater the pain she would suffer. Without a way to alleviate it, the pain would kill her sooner or later.

"Ancestral home?"

Elder Xia nodded. "That’s right. It’s said to be a prosperous land. Our ancestors were part of an exploration team, but something happened. They lost the location of our homeland and couldn’t go back. They wandered the Northwest Land for a long time. Some turned back to find the way home, while our ancestors settled down right here."

"The Eastern Continent... is it even farther than Sanlian City?" General Zhou suddenly asked.

"Far, far farther. Besides, on a larger geographical scale, Sanlian City should be considered part of the west."

Tang Wen and General Zhou fell silent.

General Zhou was simply marveling at the vastness of the world.

Tang Wen’s thoughts were much more complex. ’It’s too far. Even if I reach the Fifth Grade and borrow two Fifth-Grade White Tigers from the White Tiger Tribe, we might not be able to make it back.’

Fifth Grade was not invincible. In the hierarchy of Martial Arts, it was merely a mid-tier rank.

Four Fifth-Grade experts sounded powerful, but against a Fourth-Grade expert, all they could do was run for their lives.

After the three finished their hushed discussion, Tang Wen grew quiet.

Seeing his expression, the two generals’ hearts sank...

Flame Camp grew busy.

Every Commander worked hard. It was clear the news of the Queen’s "illness" had hit them hard.

They remembered how, not long ago, she had dragged her ailing body into a bitter "one-on-five" battle against five Sixth-Grade experts. They couldn’t help but feel useless and wanted to do something. Keeping busy helped them feel a little better.

「A few days passed in a flash.」

One day, the camp unexpectedly captured a spy from Black Mountain City.

The spy himself was a small matter, but how to prevent such things from happening again needed to be taken seriously.

After all, what if the Huang Family also sent spies?

General Zhou and the others held a meeting all day but couldn’t come up with an effective solution.

For the camp to develop, it had to accept outsiders.

But who could guarantee that these outsiders weren’t spies?

From dawn to dusk and late into the night, the atmosphere in the hall was somber. They had accomplished nothing.

Just then, Tang Wen arrived late, holding a piece of paper which he handed to General Zhou.

The General took it and, after a brief moment of stunned silence, read a few words aloud: "Baojia System?"