Endless Winter: My Camp Upgrades Infinitely

Chapter 1372: Chapter 444: Ancient Zither Acquired, True Colors Revealed, Landgrave’s Attention

Just when Xia Hong noticed Cai Mengya turning her head to look deeper into the White Phoenix Forest, he became suspicious. Though he was dealing with the Beast King Level Snow Phoenix, he always kept an eye on the direction deeper inside.

Therefore, once he detected two Xianyang Level auras making a move deeper in, he immediately realized he had been set up by Cai Mengya.

The true purpose of this woman coming to the White Phoenix Forest was the thing that those two Xianyang Level individuals were dealing with in the depths, whereas his main role in her scheme was to distract the Snow Phoenix flock.

Of course, the most important task was to deal with the strongest Beast King Level Snow Phoenix.

If the previous thoughts were somewhat speculative, then upon seeing Lu Xinghai and Meng Zizhou, Xia Hong was certain.

Lu Xinghai and Meng Zizhou were the two young Silver Armor Generals holding a sword and saber; their identities were far from simple.

Firstly, their origins; besides the Landgrave Cai Qiu family, there were six noble families, including the Lu and Meng families;

Secondly, their strength and talent; both possessed Xianyang Level power and were not even sixty years old. Not just in Cai Qiu, they would be considered top geniuses across the Four Vassals;

Thirdly, their status. Qinghua City had a total of ten thousand troops, commanded by the City Lord and the Four Great Commanders, which included Lu and Meng.

Coincidentally, during a banquet at the City Lord Mansion a month ago, it was these two who vied with Xia Hong over Cai Mengya, eventually leading others to provoke Xia Hong, making him agree to accompany Cai Mengya to the White Phoenix Forest.

“These people conspired with Cai Mengya to stage a show. The earlier intrigue was all an act to lead me here to draw the attention of the Beast King Level Snow Phoenix…”

From the moment he saw Lu and Meng, Xia Hong instantly understood everything.

There was hardly any surprise on his face; the provocation used by Lu and Meng was easy to see through, and Xia Hong merely complied to maintain his persona as the princely heir from a powerful foreign fief.

What he didn’t expect was the setup by these people, starting so early.

The act began from the moment of intrigue…

Unfortunately, their act failed now!

“Playing mind games with me?”

The giant rabbit was hit by the Shattering Divine Light, its body instantly stiffened on the spot, then shattered like a porcelain vase, cracking and falling apart, leaving only five colorful tails standing firmly behind.

In less than three to four breaths, the giant rabbit’s body completely disintegrated, and the five tails slowly stretched and contracted, finally exploding with a burst of strong light.

Once the strong light dissipated, the giant rabbit’s body vanished completely, leaving only a two-meter-long five-stringed ancient zither, with its strings’ colors corresponding to the rabbit’s five tails: gold, green, blue, red, and yellow.

“Make a move!”

Seeing the ancient zither, Lu Xinghai immediately acted.

Meng Zizhou, upon hearing it, was understandably unwilling to fall behind.

Both ignored Xia Hong above them and reached out to seize the zither.

Ka…

A burst of sword light struck down from above; Lu and Meng were aware of it but evidently underestimated Xia Hong’s strength. Their brows furrowed slightly, yet they continued with their actions.

When the sword light descended, it sliced open the flesh on their right hands instantaneously, the cracked bones emitting a snapping sound. The powerful force made their bodies collapse in front of the zither, revealing fear and shock on their faces.

“Dare to snatch from me, where did you get the audacity?”

Xia Hong’s body abruptly descended, standing three or four meters above their heads. As he spoke in a low voice, he lifted the Shattered Star Sword, placing it against their necks, completely unrestrained in his murderous intent.

The scene seemed new to them, and they appeared stunned.

“Brother Hong, Brother Lu and Brother Meng are helping Mengya catch the Rabbit Fur Beast, what are you doing?”

Cai Mengya arrived belatedly, her eyebrows slightly furrowing upon seeing the scene, but soon she feigned innocence.

Xia Hong turned his head to look at Cai Mengya, his expression bordering between amusement and seriousness until her behavior became awkward. Then, he shifted his gaze past her to the black-clad elder behind her, quickly dismissing what he saw with indifference.

“Since they are helping you, I will spare their lives!”

Xia Hong responded with a cold laugh, not exposing Cai Mengya. He sheathed the Shattered Star Sword and took the Five-Colored Ancient Zither from the ground.

Seeing Xia Hong take the zither, Cai Mengya’s pupils showed an anxious tint. She quickly took two steps forward, using her seductive voice to implore melodiously to Xia Hong, “Brother Hong, the Rabbit Fur Beast is no longer found. Can you let Mengya have this zither?”

Xia Hong turned to Cai Mengya, revealing an incredulous look.

At this stage, she was still acting; was his debauchee persona too well-established, or was the woman simply too naive?

For a moment, Xia Hong lost even the desire to be angry.

“Hahaha…”

He suddenly laughed a few times. Only then did he raise the zither in his hand, teasingly asking Cai Mengya, “Do you truly desire this?”

Cai Mengya could not miss the mockery in Xia Hong’s tone, and her previously alluring expression instantly froze.

“Hong Prince, my lady once publicly declared, whoever helps her catch the Five-Colored Magic Sound Rabbit shall earn the right to propose to her. The Hong Prince is a foreign fief noble, and the lady is a descendant of Landgrave Cai Qiu. If due to this rabbit, an alliance is formed today, a legendary tale could unfold!”