Chapter 127: Yi Stone

Chapter 127: Chapter 127: Yi Stone

Evolvers had large appetites, and the two of them quickly ate every last bite of food on the table. As they were clearing the dishes, they heard a sound from the yard.

Luo Pei looked out the window and saw the broken-leg wolf in the yard dragging its immobilized hind legs as it crawled toward the sheep pen.

When it noticed Luo Pei watching, the broken-leg wolf stared viciously at him, looking like it wanted to charge forward and tear him to shreds.

’This wolf must have been in a vicious fight with humans before, or it wouldn’t have that expression.’ Luo Pei asked in a low voice, "Are you planning on keeping these two wolves in the territory?"

Xiaqing hadn’t intended to keep the wolves at first, but plans rarely survive contact with reality. "The one with the broken leg is manageable, but the one with the fractured spine will need its dressing changed after the surgical incision begins to heal. Someone from Territory Land No. 7 is coming for a follow-up in ten days. Once it no longer needs dressing changes, I’ll let it go."

’As for the one crawling in the yard that looks like it wants to kill me, I won’t keep it even if it crawls into the sheep pen. I’ll have the Head Wolf take it away later. It can take it wherever it wants for all I care.’

Luo Pei sat back down in his chair and noticed the Sheep Leader squinting at him, its expression still quite displeased. Luo Pei offered the Sheep Leader a friendly smile and continued asking Xiaqing, "Why did you save those two wolves?"

In front of Luo Pei, Xiaqing spoke her mind freely. "Bartering for supplies is secondary. I was mainly thinking that with the Wolf Group, Snake Group, and Bear Group fighting, these two can’t be the only ones injured. The Head Wolf risked bringing them to a human territory for treatment, which must mean they’re important members of the Wolf Group. If we heal them, our territory will be safer."

After the Natural Disasters and the great evolution of Blue Star’s lifeforms, many human radicals advocated for using biochemical weapons to annihilate dangerous evolutionary creatures.

In the second year of the Natural Disasters, during the initial phase of the great biological evolution, a Safe Zone with a population of three million, located in a superpower in the southeastern region of Hua Country, used biological weapons on a massive scale to eliminate Evolutionary Rats during an attack.

Although the Evolutionary Rats were eliminated, it caused a common bacterium to undergo a major evolution, becoming a super-pathogen. All living things—including humans—were afflicted by this super-pathogen. In just three days, more than half of the three million people were dead.

That superpower had to drop two atomic bombs to stop the spread of the super-pathogen, but the devastating consequences of the extreme radiation have yet to be resolved.

It wasn’t just bioweapons. The use of chemical weapons, or even heavy-firepower weaponry, by the nations of Blue Star would trigger adverse chain reactions, leading to countless vicious incidents where humanity suffered the backlash.

Thus, at this stage, exploiting the newly formed food-chain dependencies among evolutionary creatures to have them balance each other out is a key strategy for nations to manage the threat they pose.

This is the main reason why, even in the tenth year of the Natural Disasters, humanity has still not reclaimed dominion over Blue Star, despite possessing a vast arsenal of advanced modern weaponry.

Just like now, if the Wolf Group were to be wiped out or weakened enough to leave the territory, it would allow the Bear Group and Snake Group to expand, potentially triggering a series of chain reactions.

The fact that Xiaqing could think about things beyond just farming made Luo Pei very happy. "Your thinking is spot on. If we can use this incident to find a way to coexist peacefully with the Wolf Group, it would be beneficial not just for this territory, but for the entire Hui City Base. But we’ve only taken the first step, and it’s still hard to tell whether it’s the right one. So, the fewer people who know you have Evolutionary Wolves in your territory, the better."

"Brother San definitely won’t spread it around. The howling last night wasn’t loud, so Tang Huai on land number two wouldn’t have heard it. I’ll give Tan Junjie a heads-up. You need to make it clear to the Head Wolf that they are not to disturb people in other territories, otherwise we’ll have to send them away immediately."

"Okay." ’The Head Wolf is extremely smart; I can definitely make that clear to it.’

Luo Pei asked, "Can you manage this on your own? I can have Chang Li come over to help. She’s a core member of the Green Dragon Team, and she’s trustworthy."

Xiaqing wanted to try it herself first. "The assistant said changing the dressings is quite simple. I’ll give it a try first. If I can’t manage, I’ll ask Doctor Chang to come and help."

After getting a clear picture of the situation, Luo Pei was about to leave when Xiaqing suddenly remembered something. "Brother Luo, wait a second."

Xiaqing opened a desk drawer, took out the satchel the Head Wolf had brought, and pulled out a stone the size of a pigeon’s egg.

Before Xiaqing could explain, the Sheep Leader, who had been lying nearby, walked over and stared intently at the satchel in her hands.

Xiaqing immediately emptied the contents and hung the satchel around the Sheep Leader’s neck. "This is your bag. Don’t lose it or give it away again."

Satisfied, the Sheep Leader returned to its spot to lie down and continue chewing its cud. Luo Pei found the dynamic between Xiaqing and the Sheep Leader rather amusing.

"Could you take a look at this stone? Is it useful for anything?" Xiaqing wiped the mud off the stone and handed it to Luo Pei.

Then, for the second time, Xiaqing saw a look of unmistakable excitement on Luo Pei’s face.

The first time had been four months ago, when Xiaqing offered to provide Luo Pei with her sufficient supply of spring water to cure his poisoning. ’So this stone... it’s very useful?’

Luo Pei’s gaze shifted from the stone to Xiaqing’s face. "This stone is very, very, *very* useful."

After saying this, Luo Pei handed the stone back to Xiaqing. He then pulled out a round pendant from around his neck, pressed open its outer casing, and revealed a small piece of jade inside.

The jade was composed of irregular black and white stripes. Xiaqing had seen it more than once. "Tang Lu wears a heart-shaped pendant made of this jade, and when Fire Phoenix from the Fiery Fire Team came to our Safe Zone last time, she was wearing a bracelet made of this material too."

Only then did Xiaqing realize that while the stone the wolf had delivered wasn’t as beautiful as the jade Luo Pei wore, after being wiped clean, a patch of black and white spiral stripes was visible where a piece of the brown outer layer was missing.

She grew excited. "Is this a raw jade stone?"

Luo Pei shook his head. "It’s not jade. It’s just a stone."

Xiaqing was at a loss for words.

"Its full name is Yi Stone. As the name implies, it is a stone rich in the Yi Element. It’s a precious resource that appeared after the great evolution of life on Blue Star, and it’s even more valuable than Pollution-free Spring Water."

Xiaqing’s eyes widened. "Brother Luo, what are Yi Stones used for?"

Luo Pei, who had intended to leave, sat back down and explained in detail to Xiaqing, "Once the outer layer of a raw Yi Stone is broken, it continuously releases the Yi Element, lowering the concentration of the Harmful Element in the surrounding air. The Yi Stone is one of the reasons why evolutionary creatures in the Evolution Forest can maintain their sanity and not lose control during a high-concentration Harmful Rain."

Xiaqing gasped. "So, that means it’s possible to find Yi Stones in places within the Evolution Forest where high-level evolutionary creatures gather? And humans can use them too?"

’How could she have never heard of something so important, a resource so precious?’

Luo Pei continued to explain, "Besides Yi Stones, evolutionary creatures have other methods to counteract the Harmful Rain. So even in places where high-level evolutionary creatures congregate, you won’t necessarily find Yi Stones."

"Like Pollution-free Spring Water, the conditions under which Yi Stones form are still unknown to humanity. A person wearing a Yi Stone that is still actively emitting the Yi Element can go without a Protective Mask even in a red-level Harmful Rain, as long as they ensure they don’t get wet from the rain itself."

’Holy crap!’ Xiaqing was utterly stunned.