Dividing the Meat

That Frost Wolf actually hadn't eaten the Snow Mane.

It had not even been willing to spend the effort dragging away its own prey.

Xia Hong quickly realized that the reason was probably the torch.

Clearly, in the Frost Wolf's eyes, the torch was far more important than the Snow Mane.

The Frost Wolf had hurried off with the torch in its mouth because it feared other Frost Beasts might come and snatch it away.

Xia Hong naturally understood that as well. Once the Frost Wolf had left for a while, he swiftly rose from the snow pit, rushed forward, heaved the four-hundred-plus-pound Snow Mane onto his back, and ran eastward beyond the ridge without looking back.

The Frost Wolf and Snow Mane had fought for so long just now. Who knew whether other Frost Beasts would come? Besides, the Snow Mane had bled so much that the scent in this area was thick. If he ran too slowly, there was no telling what accident might happen.

Moreover, after being delayed here for so long, dawn was nearly here.

He had to get back.

He raced all the way like wind and lightning, thankfully without any real danger.

Xia Hong soon spotted the camp's cave.

After approaching the entrance, he did not rashly barge in. Instead, he called out first:

"Storms from all eight directions cannot compare to the rain of our Redwood Ridge."

"When rain falls on Dragon Gate Mountain, the snowfield tiger comes down the mountain."

Xia Chuan's delighted voice came from inside. Immediately afterward, the branches blocking the entrance were rustled aside from within.

It was not only Xia Chuan who came out to greet him, but Yuan Cheng as well.

When the two saw the enormous Snow Mane carcass on Xia Hong's back, their mouths fell open in astonishment. They were so dumbfounded that they even forgot to speak.

"Hehe, I picked up a bargain. Let's get inside first and seal the entrance."

The three entered the cave. Before the entrance had even been sealed, cries of astonishment rang out one after another within.

"What is that?"

"Chief, did you go hunting?"

"Hiss... did the chief hunt this?"

"I've never seen such a huge Frost Beast. Is the chief really that strong?"

"Even when the Lumber Team was here, they never brought back prey this big."

In an instant, the way everyone in the camp looked at Xia Hong changed.

There was reverence, admiration, dependence, and a little more hope.

The strong were revered—an iron law no matter where one was.

Especially in this world, fraught with danger at every turn, where one had to worry about dying at any moment.

Just as someone in the camp had said, even when the Lumber Team had been here, no one had seen them bring back prey this large.

And this had only been Xia Hong's first outing.

"I didn't hunt it. It was just luck."

Xia Hong explained briefly, but judging by the expressions on everyone's faces, they clearly did not believe him. After pondering for a moment, he held himself back and did not explain further.

After all, these were extraordinary times. Giving the people in the camp a little more hope was not a bad thing. A misunderstanding was a misunderstanding.

However, when he saw Xia Chuan and Yuan Cheng coming up from behind, their eyes also filled with fervor, he could not hold back. He gave each of them a sharp knock on the forehead.

"Don't let your imaginations run wild. I don't have that ability. Frost Beasts are far stronger than you can imagine. If this Snow Mane had been alive, everyone in our camp put together probably would not have been enough to fill its stomach."

The others could be naive, but Xia Chuan and Yuan Cheng could not.

There were not many pillars in the camp to begin with, and Xia Chuan and Yuan Cheng were the best among them. Barring accidents, they should be the next to break through to the Lumbering Realm after him, and they might soon have to go out with him.

Naivety could cost them their lives.

After Xia Hong explained, the two finally learned how the Snow Mane had come about.

Yet the way they looked at Xia Hong remained filled with fervor and admiration.

Though they had not experienced it themselves, they could both imagine how dangerous that situation had been. Xia Hong, who had managed to bring this Snow Mane back, naturally became even more towering in their hearts.

"The people from Big Stone Camp have gone too far! When they were short-handed for hunting before, they came to our camp, and Uncle Ding and Father always agreed. They even personally led people over to help. Now they actually dare to cross the boundary to hunt."

However, Yuan Cheng quickly caught the key point in Xia Hong's words. He rose to his feet and angrily denounced the people of Big Stone Camp.

Xia Chuan beside him also wore an indignant expression, clearly harboring grievances in his heart.

In truth, crossing into another camp's territory to hunt or gather resources was an extremely serious and vile act around Redwood Ridge.

The reason was simple. There were many trees on Redwood Ridge, many Frost Beasts, and even more unknown precious resources.

The problem was that the humans in the surrounding camps were all too weak.

Because they were weak, they simply did not dare venture deep into Redwood Ridge.

Every camp only dared operate within a tiny area along Redwood Ridge's outskirts, their range extremely limited.

Thus, when territories had been divided in the early days, aside from Rog, the medium-sized camp, the land allotted to every other camp had already been very small.

Under such circumstances, gathering resources in another camp's territory harmed others.

Judging from Big Stone Camp's earlier actions, this was clearly not their first time crossing the boundary. That meant they were also well aware of the Ice Vast Tree's location.

It was very likely that they had already picked several batches of Crystal Fruit from the Ice Vast Tree.

"Given the situation, let them cross the boundary. We don't have the ability to deal with it right now. Let the camp survive first. Once we grow stronger, they naturally won't dare come over again."

Xia Hong could understand the two men's anger, but the camp's current situation was too dire. They had neither the energy nor the right to deal with such matters.

Of course they had to defend their territory, but surviving came first.

"You two, answer me honestly. If you were supplied with Frost Beast meat at full capacity, roughly how long would it take you to break through to the Lumbering Realm?"

Hearing Xia Hong's question, the two instinctively glanced at the Snow Mane on the ground, their breathing immediately growing heavier.

"Brother, if I were supplied at full capacity, I should only need a little over a month."

Xia Hong actually knew Xia Chuan's situation well.

When he had taught Xia Chuan Long Fist before, Xia Chuan's strength had already exceeded two thousand pounds.

It was only because Frost Beast meat had been in short supply that his growth had been slow.

Yuan Cheng on the other side also spoke.

"My strength has already reached three thousand pounds. I probably won't need even a month. If the chief is willing to teach me that Long Fist, I'm confident I can break through within twenty days."

Xia Hong's eyes immediately lit up. Yuan Cheng's strength was better than he had imagined.

"Not just you. I'll teach everyone in the camp."

After Xia Hong spoke, he turned to look at the Snow Mane meat and began calculating in his heart.

Given Xia Chuan and Yuan Cheng's current strength, the limit of Frost Beast meat they could consume in a day should be around three pounds. Even if both needed a month to break through, that would only be one hundred and eighty pounds.

That meant there would still be more than two hundred pounds left over.

Soon, Xia Hong had a plan. He had Yuan Cheng and Xia Chuan gather the other twenty-two people in the camp who were around their age.

The camp's current total population was one hundred and fifty-four. Excluding fifty-three middle-aged people and seventy-six children under twelve, the twenty-four people before him were all about Xia Hong's age.

"Everyone, I won't waste words on pleasantries. I didn't hunt this Snow Mane. It counts as Heaven believing our camp's fate is not yet finished and granting us a reward, so we must seize this opportunity to raise the camp's strength as quickly as possible.

"I alone brought the prey back, so I will take one hundred pounds for myself.

"Yuan Cheng and Xia Chuan are about to break through to the Lumbering Realm, so they will each receive ninety pounds.

"Adding what was left in the camp before, I calculated that there are still over one hundred and seventy pounds.

"The twenty-two of you will each receive one pound tomorrow. Then, based on basic strength, the top five will each receive thirty pounds."

At those words, everyone immediately revealed excited expressions.

They had not expected Xia Hong to be willing to share even prey he had brought back alone.

"The world outside is dangerous. The camp cannot survive with so many people relying on me alone.

"Xia Chuan, Yuan Cheng, you must break through as soon as possible.

"The rest of you are the same. The next time there is Frost Beast meat, whoever breaks through the fastest will receive priority for an allotment."

Hearing Xia Hong's grave words, everyone nodded slightly.

Xia Chuan and Yuan Cheng clenched their fists tightly, their eyes filled with determination.