32: Chapter 32: Attack of the Cold Beast 32: Chapter 32: Attack of the Cold Beast The small fire pit, after upgrading to an iron refining furnace, has its effectiveness greatly enhanced.
The range of temperature increase expanded from the original ten meters to a hundred meters;
The deterrence and damage capability have greatly improved, although the standard is not yet clear;
It can directly use coal for iron smelting;
The small torch function remains;
And most importantly, there’s the newly added special item, the Solidified Fire Oil.
Ignites upon touching deceitful monsters!
The memory of the first time summoning a small fire pit, turning the fake Xia Ding into ashes in an instant, resurfaced in Xia Hong’s mind, and he was instantly filled with anticipation for the function of the Solidified Fire Oil.
This Solidified Fire Oil is simply the perfect weapon for dealing with deceitful monsters!
Honestly, even though he’s been to Redwood Ridge many times during this period, each time, Xia Hong still feels somewhat anxious.
He’s basically not afraid of the Cold Beasts encountered on the periphery, as the number of people in the Logging Realm of the camp increases, but when it comes to deceitful monsters, he feels uncertain.
Of course, the small torch can also be used, but the problem is that the number of small torches is limited, and at most, it’s just held in hand to scare deceitful monsters; you can’t expect the monster to stand still and let it burn.
Moreover, the burning time of a small torch is limited to only fifteen minutes.
Solidified Fire Oil is different, as the liquid is not only easy to carry but also inconspicuous.
The most crucial part is that it’s harmless to people and ignites upon touching deceitful monsters.
Just these eight words alone are enough to make a big fuss about.
As the flame shrank, the originally rudimentary fire pit made of dirt blocks had somehow transformed into a circular furnace over a meter in diameter and two meters high.
“Hey, how did this fire pit become a furnace?”
The first person to see it exclaimed, drawing everyone over to watch.
People gathered around the furnace, feeling its warmth, and when they looked at Xia Hong, there was noticeably much more fervor in their eyes.
When disaster struck the cave earlier, the scene where Xia Hong summoned flames out of thin air, though seen only by a few, spread by word of mouth until almost everyone in the camp knew.
However, most people only heard about it, with many thinking it was made up and didn’t really believe it.
This time, however, was different.
The bonfire turning into a furnace happened right in front of everyone’s eyes, suddenly elevating Xia Hong’s status a notch higher in their hearts.
Xia Hong naturally wouldn’t bother to explain anything.
While deification is inadvisable, it does depend on the situation.
In these critical times when the Great Xia Camp is on the brink of despair, a skilled and inscrutable leader can be invaluable for rallying the group and bolstering confidence for the future.
The people in the camp aren’t too bad, Xia Chuan, Yuan Cheng, and the seven in the logging team, having witnessed the power of the small torch and his martial prowess against Cold Beasts, held even more fervent emotions towards him than the others.
Everyone in the Great Xia Camp unconsciously developed a concept in their hearts:
Xia Hong is powerful and wields some mysterious force.
Not only can he hunt Cold Beasts, but he can also defeat and repel deceitful monsters; he’s generous, willing to allocate more Crystal Fruit for everyone to be full; and fair, willing to share the Cold Beast Meat to enhance everyone’s strength;
Following this concept, everyone reached a consensus without asking:
Only by having Xia Hong as the leader can they live longer and better.
Xia Hong wasn’t a mind reader, so he couldn’t know what people were thinking, but from the way others looked at him, he could easily discern two points:
One point was that his status in the hearts of these people was rapidly increasing at an alarming rate.
The other point was that all the people in the camp, whether his younger brother Xia Chuan and the logging team members or the other civilians, from the middle-aged to children, gradually had a yearning for life and hope for the future in their eyes.
In the following days, Xia Hong did not lead any more teams to Redwood Ridge.
Even though upgrading to an iron refining furnace doubles the daily burn rate of wood, consuming 4 units of wood per day, Xia Hong’s current wood resources were already surplus.
With 470 units of wood resources, it’s enough to consume for more than three months without going out; adding the accumulated Crystal Fruits from before, there’s still over ten thousand pounds left, so there’s absolutely no problem staying in temporarily.
Xia Hong had thought about going over to Tower Mountain to see if he could find the location of Da Shi Camp and check on their situation.
But considering that deceitful monster might be nearby, he abandoned the idea.
Firstly, although it’s confirmed that Da Shi Camp is over by Tower Mountain, the camps tend to be well-hidden.
Even if he went, he probably wouldn’t find it, and even if he did, if their camp hadn’t encountered any issues, he wouldn’t be able to explain himself, which could easily cause conflicts.
Secondly, out of dread for that deceitful monster.
The last time, it seemed to lurk in the shadows, manipulating the fake Xia Ding, so strictly speaking, Xia Hong still hasn’t seen what that deceitful monster looks like.
Although there are now means to deal with deceitful monsters, the lack of knowledge about that particular one would certainly be detrimental if he approached rashly.
With all these reasons combined, Xia Hong could only patiently stay in camp, training with everyone while researching ways to cope with deceitful monsters.
“Practicing Long Fist with me, besides helping you absorb the Cold Beast Meat essence more efficiently, has another crucial role: enhancing your combat ability!”
By the furnace, the bare-chested Xia Hong was punching with limited movement, and as he unleashed sharp forceful punches, he explained the essentials of the Grand Ancestor Long Fist to the people gathered around.
“Whatever martial arts, in essence, practice two things: reaction force and explosive power.
These two aspects are your greatest reliance and confidence in opposing enemies.
Reaction force refers to the foresight of danger.
Using Cold Beasts as an example: before it raises its paw, if you can predict which side it will attack from and respond timely, it won’t be able to harm you.
And explosive power is producing the maximum force in the shortest time and at the fastest speed.
This is the strongest means to inflict damage on enemies, whether barehanded or armed, the principle is the same.”
Xia Hong’s punching sped up slightly, and the powerful punch wind made the furnace sound loudly, meanwhile, he continued:
“The basic strength of the Logging Realm is five thousand pounds, but that’s the static basic strength.
Being able to lift something five thousand pounds doesn’t mean you can punch with five thousand pounds force.
In actual combat, due to bodily reactions and movement limitations, you can’t easily exert five thousand pounds of force, so constant practice is necessary to continuously enhance muscle and get used to punching, allowing you to harness your maximum strength.”
“The greater the movement amplitude, the more muscles are mobilized, affecting punch speed and force more; thus, the Grand Ancestor Long Fist’s four routines—small combat, large combat, freehand, integrated combat—start with the simplest small combat short strikes.”
Even though Xia Hong’s punch speed was fast, the range of movement was confined to a small space, yet the friction with the air still produced intense wooshing sounds.
“You haven’t been practicing the small combat routine for long, so at most you can exert half of your basic strength, but with diligent practice, you can achieve 80% punching force like me.
Once you master small combat, I will teach you the large combat routine, merging punches, kicks, and waist actions into one, allowing you to exert 100% punching force effortlessly, and even erupt beyond the physical limits when mastered to a profound level.”
Xia Chuan and the others nodded in excitement.
They had all gone out with Xia Hong and witnessed firsthand his demonstration of small combat, large combat, and freehand strikes, so they clearly understood the power of this martial technique.
“In reality, the most powerful aspect of Long Fist is when combined with weapons…”
As Xia Hong was speaking halfway, suddenly, a series of tremors came from the ground under his feet, and his face changed at once as he looked towards the cave entrance.
Everyone gathered around the furnace also stood up collectively at once, turning to look at the cave entrance in unison.
“Is something charging over?”
“Such commotion, it sounds like Cold Beasts?”
“We’ve sealed the cave entrance, how could a Cold Beast find us?”
“It’s daytime now; if a Cold Beast finds us, we’re doomed!”
The faces of most people in the camp were instantly filled with despair.