Chapter 75: Evolutionary Rat Crisis Resolved

Chapter 75: Chapter 75: Evolutionary Rat Crisis Resolved

Xiaqing had no time to listen to the clash between the No.1 and Second Territories. After putting Night Vision Goggles on herself and the Sheep Leader, she grabbed her gun, locked the door, sprinkled Insect Repellent Powder, and then headed toward the southern part of her territory with the Sheep Leader.

The Sheep Leader might not be able to kill an Evolutionary Rat, but with Xiaqing by its side, she could ensure it wouldn’t get bitten.

The Second Territory was just south of the Third Territory, which meant there were surely more than just four Evolutionary Rats that had invaded. If they didn’t clear out the invading rats before nightfall, the consequences would be unthinkable.

They couldn’t afford to wait for the Danger Investigation Team to deal with destructive Evolutionary Rats that could scatter everywhere. Just as Xiaqing pulled out her phone to call Hu Zifeng, his call came through.

He skipped any pleasantries and got straight to the point, "The Olfactory Evolutionary members Chen Zheng and Chen Cheng are already on their way to the Third Territory. Will that be enough?"

"If they both come over, what about the No.1 Territory?" Hu Zifeng’s team only had those two Olfactory Evolutionaries.

Hu Zifeng was completely different from the hot-tempered person who had been arguing on the Lord channel. His voice was perfectly calm. "Our mission is to protect the Third Territory."

Protecting the Third Territory was their mission, and Luo Pei was there too, which indeed made the Third Territory more important than the No.1 Territory.

After hanging up the phone, Xiaqing felt much more at ease. She fully engaged her Visual and Auditory abilities, searching for traces of the rodent Evolutionary Rats.

The two Olfactory Evolutionary members from Hu Zifeng’s team and Yuan Rui, an Olfactory Evolutionary from Tan Junjie’s team, arrived one after another. Using their enhanced smell to track, they swept Xiaqing’s entire territory in just over an hour. In total, they tracked sixteen rodent Evolutionary Rats that had crossed over from the Second Territory. Four had already been killed by Xiaqing, four had been hunted down by the Evolutionary Birds within the territory, and the remaining eight were eliminated by the three of them.

Once the cleanup was finished, Yuan Rui, the Olfactory Evolutionary from Tan Junjie’s team, immediately rushed off to reinforce Land No. 9.

While they were searching the Third Territory, traces of rodent Evolutionary Rats also appeared in Land No. 4 to the east, Land No. 9 to the east of the Second Territory, and Land No. 8 to its southwest. Three ordinary people had already been bitten in Land No. 9, making the situation critical.

Even from within her own territory, Xiaqing could hear gunshots and enraged shouts coming from the lands to the east and south.

South of the Second Territory lay Territory No.11. Xiaqing guessed that Evolutionary Rats must have fled there as well, but Territory No.11 was outside Tan Junjie’s team’s designated area, and its Lord wasn’t on the communication channel for Lords one through ten.

At 9:00 PM, the Harmful Rain started to drizzle again, making the task of protecting the territory even more difficult.

With only a not-very-bright sheep for a helper, Xiaqing didn’t dare to be overconfident. She called Hu Zifeng again and asked him to send Da Jiang, an Auditory Evolver, to help her defend the Third Territory. By then, the No.1 Territory had also been cleared of Evolutionary Rats.

Once Da Jiang was in position, Xiaqing had three human helpers: Da Jiang, a Level 4 Auditory Evolver, and Chen Zheng and Chen Cheng, both Level 5 Olfactory Evolutionaries.

Twenty-three-year-old Chen Zheng and twenty-one-year-old Chen Cheng were brothers. They even had the same ability level. The only difference was that the older brother was calm and steady, while the younger one was a bit more energetic.

The Third Territory faced two dangers that night. The first was attacks and destruction by Evolutionary Rats or other Evolutionary Animals. The second was the Qiang Evolution of the crops. The four of them split into two teams: Xiaqing and Chen Zheng would patrol the rain shelters, while Da Jiang and Chen Cheng would patrol the territory.

Of course, Xiaqing had one more helper: the Sheep Leader.

The drizzling Harmful Rain fell all night, its warning level constantly fluctuating between orange and yellow. Throughout the night, Da Jiang and Chen Cheng killed four more rodent Evolutionary Rats that fled from the Second Territory and cleared away wave after wave of Qiang Evolved Insects that approached the rain shelters. Meanwhile, Xiaqing and Chen Zheng cleared out one Qiang Evolved Plant after another.

Shortly after 4:00 AM, another huge swarm of Evolutionary Rats suddenly appeared in the Second Territory, running in hordes toward the No.1 and Third Territories. Gunshots rang out nonstop. After killing over fifty more of the rats, Xiaqing wished she could run over to the Second Territory and kill Tang Huai herself.

The Evolutionary Rat crisis was only declared over the next morning, after Tan Junjie’s team forced their way into the Second Territory and completely wiped them out.

Hu Zifeng sent four team members to relieve Da Jiang, Chen Zheng, and Chen Cheng, telling Xiaqing to go home and get some rest as well.

The situation was better during the day. The Harmful Rain was just a drizzle, and its warning level stayed at blue.

Shortly after 4:00 PM, Da Jiang, Chen Zheng, and Chen Cheng returned to the Third Territory, swapping out with their four teammates to resume watch duty with Xiaqing.

Da Jiang and Chen Cheng were once again responsible for patrolling the territory, while Xiaqing and Chen Zheng patrolled the rain shelters.

Amidst the soft, rustling rain, Da Jiang, the Auditory Evolver, spoke to his Olfactory Evolutionary teammate Chen Cheng as they walked. "The Third Territory is so much cleaner than our own territory. And look at all the crops and vegetables she’s planted. Miss Xia really lives up to her reputation as a Strength Evolution Person."

Chen Cheng snorted. "Guan Tong is also a Level 5 Strength Evolution Person. Do you think he could plant this many crops all by himself?"

Da Jiang immediately shook his head. "Definitely not."

Chen Cheng shook his body, flicking the rain from his Protective Suit. "Miss Xia isn’t afraid of hard work, and she’s got the skills to back it up. If most of the crops in those shelters survive this Harmful Rain, she won’t have to worry about food or clothing this year."

In the Disaster Year, having food to eat, clothes to wear, and a safe home was a dream for the vast majority of people. Da Jiang said with envy, "It’s not just that she won’t have to worry about food and clothing. She’s about to get an Evolution Cat, too."

The two of them completed a patrol circuit, clearing out a large number of Evolutionary Insects that had gotten close to the rain shelters and Xiaqing’s house, before returning to the small cabin by the fields. As it happened, Xiaqing and Chen Zheng had just finished their patrol of the shelters and were also resting inside.

After taking off his Protective Mask, Chen Cheng’s eyes were immediately glued to the Sheep Leader beside Xiaqing. He began to inch closer to it as he spoke. "Miss Xia, this cabin you built is amazing. It doesn’t leak a single drop of rain."

Xiaqing smiled. "If I couldn’t even build a small cabin without it leaking, I wouldn’t have lasted five years on a construction team. You guys are being too formal. Just call me Xiaqing, like you used to."

Xiaqing often went on missions with Luo Pei’s team, and Luo Pei’s team sometimes partnered with Hu Zifeng’s team. As a result, the members of Hu Zifeng’s team had known who Xiaqing was for a long time; it was just that her status now was different from what it was back then.

"We can’t do that. You’re our great benefactor." Chen Cheng scooted a little closer. "But calling you Miss Xia does sound too formal. How about we call you Sister Qing?"

"Of course you can." The Sheep Leader’s muscles tensed as Chen Cheng approached, looking like it was about to get grumpy. Xiaqing poured a cup of tea and handed it to Chen Cheng. "You’ve worked hard. Please, sit down and have some tea."

"Thanks, Sister Qing." Chen Cheng cupped the tea with both hands, still trying to inch closer to the Sheep Leader, but his brother, Chen Zheng, yanked him back.

"This tea is amazing. It doesn’t have the slightest bad smell," Chen Cheng said, taking a deep sniff.

Olfactory Evolutionaries were extremely sensitive to smells, which also meant they suffered a great deal. For example, the lingering off-tastes in filtered water that couldn’t be completely removed were a form of torture for them.

The tea was brewed with Pollution-free Spring Water, so of course it wouldn’t have a bad smell. Holding her cup, Xiaqing explained, "I traded for these tea leaves with the Lord of Land No. 7. It really does taste great."

Xiaqing had made the trade with Zhang San over the Lord channel, so people in the surrounding territories knew about it.

"For such good tea, that Lord of Land No. 7 actually traded spinach leaves? Just how much must he love spinach?" Chen Cheng marveled. "Sister Qing, I remember his Evolution Cat is due to have kittens at the end of this month, right? Do you happen to know how many she’s expecting?"