Chapter 219: Severe Losses

Chapter 219: Chapter 219: Severe Losses

Before the hail, Xiaqing had traded Evolutionary White-haired Chicken Shit Vine with Zhong Tao multiple times, so everyone knew the Third Territory had it. Xiaqing pressed the button to respond, "Yes, I have Evolutionary White-haired Chicken Shit Vine. Will this herb help treat Uncle Shi’s illness?"

Zhang San responded, "It depends on the Evolution Level. Send some of your Chicken Shit Vine over after the Harmful Rain."

"Okay." After Xiaqing agreed, just as she was waiting for Li Si to speak up and trade for the Chicken Shit Vine, a crooked bolt of lightning suddenly lit up the sky from horizon to horizon. A rumbling peal of thunder followed immediately, and then came a gale mixed with raindrops.

The third Harmful Rain of the tenth year of the Natural Disaster had begun.

Shi Zhong’s judgment was accurate. The Harmful Rain was torrential from the very beginning, hammering against the rainproof cloth and creating a tremendous racket. Even though it was partially muffled by her Protective Mask, the sound was still unsettling.

Xiaqing braved the rain to check the drainage ditches, then returned to the small cabin.

Hu Zifeng put away the detector, his expression serious. "Orange Level. The Harmful Element density is still rising. The red Harmful Rain might arrive soon."

When the red Harmful Rain arrived, someone had to be inside the greenhouses. The previously established shift rotation was no longer viable. The members of Hu Zifeng’s team all looked toward Xiaqing, Lord No. 3.

Xiaqing immediately laid out a plan. "Seven greenhouses, one person posted in each. I’ll take the corn greenhouse. Three people will patrol outside and clear out any dangerous Qiang-evolved creatures. No need to go to the village where I live. The Sheep Leader and the three wolves are there. They’re all wearing Protective Masks and can hear our conversation. They’ll sound an alarm if there’s danger."

"Alright." Hu Zifeng immediately gave the order. "Da Jiang, Chen Zheng, and Eryong, you three will patrol outside. I’m going to the High Slope greenhouse. The rest of you, take one greenhouse each."

The High Slope greenhouse contained the spinach Luo Pei needed daily. Hu Zifeng would only feel at ease watching over it himself.

Xiaqing gave a final reminder, "Watch out for the sunflowers. Safety first."

"Understood." Everyone donned their Protective Masks and ran out into the downpour.

Xiaqing hurried to the corn greenhouse and turned on the fifteen overhead lights one by one. During the patrols on the night of the second Harmful Rain, they had relied entirely on Night Vision Goggles and headlamps to check the crops, which had major drawbacks.

That’s why Xiaqing had traded crops with Zhong Tao for a batch of lights. Each light came with a rechargeable battery and could provide ten hours of illumination on a single charge. Insect activity was limited during the Harmful Rain, and since the rainproof cloth wasn’t very transparent, turning on the lights wouldn’t attract large numbers of insects drawn to the light.

With the lights on, Xiaqing could clearly see every corner of the greenhouse and every stalk of corn.

"We’re at Red Level." Hu Zifeng’s voice came over the headset comms.

"Attention all Lords. We are now entering a period of red Harmful Rain. Please remain vigilant. If you encounter a dangerous situation you cannot handle, report it immediately on the group channel." Tan Junjie’s solemn announcement came over the Lord channel.

In this tense moment, even Zhao Ze, who loved to complain the most, didn’t utter a peep. Every Lord stared intently at the crops in their territory, silently praying for the red Harmful Rain to end quickly.

Ten minutes, twenty minutes, thirty minutes...

The violent, red-level Harmful Rain, carried by fierce winds, battered the earth. The concentration of Harmful Elements in the air and in the rain-soaked soil climbed rapidly. Though the crops within the territory were shielded by rainproof cloth and spared a direct drenching from the Harmful Rain, the superabundant, abnormally active Harmful Elements in the air infiltrated the greenhouses through every possible gap. The Harmful Element concentration inside the greenhouses steadily rose, gradually matching the level outside.

In the microscopic world, invisible to human eyes, a fierce battle between the plants and the Harmful Elements had already begun.

The first report of a Qiang Evolution came from the team member guarding a vegetable greenhouse. "Two white radishes in the farmed vegetable greenhouse underwent Qiang Evolution. Grew rapidly. Already eliminated."

"Two cabbages underwent Qiang Evolution. Eliminated."

Hu Zifeng immediately ordered, "Eryong, reinforce the farmed vegetable greenhouse at once."

"Roger that." Eryong, the Speed Evolver on patrol outside, quickly rushed toward the vegetable greenhouse.

By the time the red Harmful Rain had lasted for fifty minutes, all the greenhouses were reporting Qiang Evolutions.

"Two corn stalks underwent Qiang Evolution. Eliminated."

Inside the corn greenhouse, having just dug up the twentieth rapidly elongating stalk, Xiaqing had no time to spare for the Injurious Grass sprouting at her feet. She scrambled back onto the half-meter-high ridge and scanned left and right, only to discover two more corn stalks—one twenty meters to her east and another forty meters to her west—simultaneously shooting upward!

She sprinted eastward, chopped down the Qiang-evolved corn, and threw it onto the high ridge. Then she raced westward and uprooted the other stalk, which had already grown to two and a half meters. As she ran back toward the east, she snapped the still-growing corn stalk in her hands into several sections, stuffed them into a sealed bag, and tossed it onto the ridge before rushing to dig out the roots of the eastern stalk.

The roots of the corn stalk she had chopped down just seconds before had already sprouted three palm-high yellow shoots. She cleared out the shoots and roots together, stuffed them into a sealed bag, and scrambled back to the high ridge, only to discover that three more corn stalks in different directions were now undergoing Qiang Evolution!

She ran toward the nearest one, reporting, "Qiang-evolved plants in the corn greenhouse are increasing. I need support, now!"

Corn wasn’t like other short-stalked crops; if it grew by a meter, it would hit the rainproof cloth ceiling of the greenhouse. Once its upward growth was blocked, the Qiang-evolved corn could only grow sideways, likely triggering Qiang Evolution in the surrounding plants.

Chen Zheng replied immediately, "On my way."

"BAA!" The Sheep Leader responded at the same time as Chen Zheng.

Busy on their own respective battlefronts, the members of Hu Zifeng’s team all heard the Sheep Leader’s cry. They paused in unison for a brief moment, then returned to their frantic work.

Xiaqing kept working, replying to the Sheep Leader in a soft voice, "Leader, I don’t need your help in the field. You watch the house. Take care of Second and your friends."

"BAAA—" the Sheep Leader bleated in response. Having spent the last half-year with him, Xiaqing understood. He was telling her not to panic, that he was coming to help.

Although Xiaqing had only called him "The Head Sheep of the Third Territory" on a whim, the Sheep Leader had taken the title to heart, shouldering the responsibilities of a true leader. If a manageable danger appeared in the territory, he would charge head-on. If it was a danger he couldn’t handle, he would lead Xiaqing to safety.

Soon, Da Jiang, who was patrolling the territory, shouted over the comms, "Sister Qing, the Sheep Leader has run out of the village! He’s heading for the corn greenhouse."

"Roger that."

While rapidly digging up corn roots, Xiaqing called out to the Sheep Leader, "Leader, watch your step! Don’t trip! Second, don’t follow Leader out, stay at home! Broken Waist, don’t let the wolves out of the sheep pen!"

SPLAT!

Da Jiang, who had just sliced a half-meter-long evolved centipede in two, was so startled by Xiaqing’s words that he slipped and fell, crushing both halves of the centipede flat.

The Night Vision Goggles made up for the Sheep Leader’s poor night vision, and his rigorous running practice had improved his Speed. He bounded swiftly over Da Jiang, who was still sprawled on the ground, and sprinted toward the corn greenhouse.

Chen Zheng, who was in the middle of clearing a Qiang-evolved corn stalk, asked, "Sister Qing, can Leader tell which stalks are Qiang-evolving?"

"No, but he can drag all the Qiang-evolved corn stalks out."

To deal with Qiang-evolved crops, one had to get their roots out of the native soil as quickly as possible to avoid affecting other plants. Corn has a very developed root system, so when uprooted, it would continue to grow while clutching a large clump of earth. Faced with this, the only options were to either quickly toss the Qiang-evolved corn out of the greenhouse or seal it away from the Harmful Elements.

With more and more corn stalks undergoing Qiang Evolution, neither method was as efficient as having the Sheep Leader’s help.