Chapter 272: 20% Extermination Rate

Chapter 272: Chapter 272: 20% Extermination Rate

Xiaqing handed over the cloth bag containing the Evolutionary Eagle and said loudly, "I gave it an anesthetic and a styptic. I got them both in a trade with Territory Land No. 7, so I guarantee they won’t worsen the eagle’s injuries. This eagle is Yellow Light and weighs twenty-five pounds."

She had to speak loudly. The roar of the aircraft was too deafening; anything quieter would be inaudible.

The Safe Zone’s purchase price for live Yellow Light animals was sixty points per pound. This eagle was worth one thousand five hundred points for its meat alone, which was also the minimum price Xiaqing would accept for a trade.

"Thanks." Xin Yu stepped forward, took the bag to inspect its contents, then began to negotiate. "This is one of the Evolved Fierce Birds. Even with a broken wing, it’s worth more than just its meat. I’ll give you two thousand points. How does that sound?"

Xiaqing often did missions, so of course she knew the going rate. "Deal."

Hearing how decisive Xiaqing was, Xin Yu visibly relaxed. "Do you want points or supplies?"

Xiaqing asked, "I’d like to trade for some Green Light Garlic and two uprooted Green Light mint plants. Is that possible?"

"It is. Green Light Garlic counts as a plantable seed; it’s one hundred points per clove. The mint is also a hundred points per plant. So, for two thousand points, that’s two mint plants plus three heads of Green Light Garlic. I’ll give you the garlic now, and I’ll have Captain Tan deliver the mint after the insect plague is over." After speaking, Xin Yu pulled three heads of garlic directly from her Protective Suit’s pocket and handed them to Xiaqing.

"Okay, thank you." ’Seeing Xin Yu pull the garlic right out of her suit meant she must have guessed I’d want to trade for it,’ Xiaqing thought, thanking her sincerely. A head of garlic has more than six cloves, but the ones in the center are small and produce weak sprouts. If they encountered Harmful Rain, their Harmful Element levels might rise, turning them Yellow Light or Red Light. That was why Xin Yu calculated it as six cloves per head. Strictly speaking, Xin Yu had given her extra.

Xin Yu didn’t say anything more. She just nodded, turned, and headed back to her own territory, carrying the eagle.

Tang Huai, who had been watching from the sidelines, immediately spoke up. "Xin Yu, what do you want an Evolutionary Eagle for? Even with an injured wing, it’s still an eagle. They’re hard to train. If you’re that bored, why don’t you get some rabbits to play with?"

Xin Yu ignored Tang Huai and kept walking. Feeling his pride wounded, Tang Huai raised his voice. "Hey, I’m talking to you! Don’t take it too far. Stop, I have actual business to discuss with you!"

To Xiaqing’s surprise, Xin Yu actually stopped.

She turned back, her opaque, brown Protective Mask facing Tang Huai. Because the mask was opaque, Xiaqing couldn’t see her expression, but her voice was cold enough to convey everything.

"I’m not interested in your business. If it’s about the territory, have Tang Lu talk to me. If it’s about your family, have your father or Tang Ning talk to me. You are not qualified."

Hearing those four words—"You are not qualified"—Xiaqing’s estimation of Xin Yu shot up another notch. ’Damn,’ she thought. ’This woman is an absolute boss!’

Tang Huai was so furious he was hopping mad, but he didn’t dare curse her out. After watching helplessly as Xin Yu walked away, he turned his head only to find that Xiaqing had also vanished. Only then did he mutter a curse, "One, two, three of them... every last one is fucking crazy..."

Xiaqing raised an eyebrow. ’One and two are me and Xin Yu. Could the third be the reason Tang Huai was making such a scene on the Lord channel today?’

Xiaqing stuffed the Green Light Garlic into a pocket of her Protective Suit and continued her patrol of the territory. There were few bugs in the greenhouse; everything was normal. The half-bloomed cotton was damp with insecticide and would dry out when the sun came out tomorrow. The Green Light Big Chuntun Tree on the High Slope, which Xiaqing had already sprayed once, was in much better condition than the other trees, with very few insects on it.

It would be at least ten hours before the helicopter could spray the Buffer Forest. Seeing that the originally distributed insecticide was somewhat effective, Xiaqing immediately shouldered her sprayer and began to treat the trees beyond the empty spaces on either side of her terraces.

"The test results are in. The improved insecticide has an eighty percent success rate against leaf-miner moth larvae, but its effectiveness at killing Evolutionary Thorn Moth larvae is less than ideal." Zhang San’s voice was weak and tired.

"This species of thorn moth larvae is a newly evolved variety with strong resistance to pesticides. The improved insecticide only has a twenty percent kill rate against them. I have a High Level Evolved Herb that, when added, can raise the kill rate against the Evolutionary Thorn Moth to ninety-five percent. Tan Junjie, talk to the Territory Management Department and see if they’ll buy it. It’s two hundred points per plant, and we’d only need two hundred plants to spray this entire area."

"Roger that," Tan Junjie replied immediately.

Hearing that the kill rate could reach ninety-five percent, the Lords who were busy catching insects all grew excited, chattering amongst themselves.

Amidst the joyful clamor, only Li Si’s voice was ice-cold. "Brother San, you’re not talking about the High Level Evolution Black Orchid Grass you dug up from my territory, are you?"

"Not just that," Zhang San replied, clearly in a good mood. "I’m also using some that I grew myself."

’The ones you grew yourself? Where did the seeds come from? Weren’t they from the High Level Evolution Black Orchid Grass you dug up from my land?!’ Li Si ground her teeth. "Brother San, do you have any idea how precious High Level Evolved Herbs are?!"

Zhang San’s voice was nonchalant, and he was obviously being petty again. "I felt like it."

’Exactly! An idol’s happiness is priceless!’ Just as Xiaqing was about to offer her own torrent of admiration, Zhao Ze beat her to it. "Brother San, you’re a true champion of the people!"

Qi Fu chimed in excitedly, "If we can get it up to ninety-five percent, we’ll make it through this insect plague safely."

Zhu Li asked, "The remaining live insects can be cleaned up by birds, frogs, and snakes. Brother San, this medicine won’t affect them, will it?"

Zhang San responded, "It has a slight effect, but it’s not major. Not fatal."

Everyone’s excitement was quickly dampened by Tan Junjie’s next words. "Because this is a small-scale pest infestation localized to our area, the Territory Management Department has a limited budget and cannot purchase the herbs from Territory Land No. 7. We ask the Lords to negotiate a solution among yourselves."

Before Zhao Ze could even complain, Xiaqing calmly replied, "After the insect plague started, Captain Tan reported it to the Territory Management Department immediately, and they promptly requested a plane to be dispatched for spraying. They have already fulfilled their responsibility. The Lord Law is very clear: problems that Lords can solve on their own should be solved by the Lords themselves."

"I was hoping to save some money where I could, but it looks like we can’t skimp on this one." The second-hand dealer, Kuang Qingwei, started running the numbers with a clatter of mental calculations. "Brother San, you just said this area needs two hundred plants, and that you and No. 9 Territory don’t need any. On average, that comes out to one two-hundred-point plant per 308 mu. How about this: whoever wants to use the medicine from the High Level Evolution Black Orchid Grass can just trade with you directly?"

Since Zhang San had offered the High Level Evolved Herbs in the first place, he had obviously intended for them to be used. "Fine."

"Thanks, Brother San!" Kuang Qingwei said before immediately starting to make arrangements. "Alright everyone, put your names down. I’ll make the purchase for a full-territory spraying. We can trade for it with Green Light plants or points."

After Xiaqing, Qi Fu, Zhao Ze, Hu Zifeng, and others had all stated their need, Xin Yu also spoke up. "No. 8 Territory requires the medicine from the High Level Evolution Black Orchid Grass for a full-territory spraying. We will trade with Green Light plants or points."