Chapter 91: Evolutionary Wolf Raids the Wild Boar Breeding Center Again

Chapter 91: Chapter 91: Evolutionary Wolf Raids the Wild Boar Breeding Center Again

On June 5th, Xiaqing finished clearing out the Injurious Grass that had sprouted in her territory after the second Harmful Rain.

The other crops in her territory that had successfully survived the second Harmful Rain had their Harmful Element levels increase, with some dropping from Green Light to Yellow Light.

The biggest loss was to the Green Light Sweet Potato Seedlings, four of which were downgraded to Yellow Light. If she hadn’t successfully propagated 140 sweet potato vines from cuttings, Xiaqing would have been tempted to grab her Iron Hammer, march back to the Safe Zone, and smash the weather station!

Regardless of whether they were Green Light or Yellow Light, the crops stretched out their branches and leaves after the second Harmful Rain, continuing to grow according to the unique habits of their evolved forms.

Tending to the crops in her territory no longer took up too much time, so Xiaqing started going into Mountain No. 49 with Luo Pei to practice long-range shooting. When she went into the mountains with Luo Pei, Hu Zifeng would send two of his team members into the Third Territory to watch her home.

Mountain No. 49 was to be used as a practical training ground, so there was no need to clear it out completely. They just had to deal with the mid-to-high-level aggressive, evolved Poisonous Insects and venomous snakes. As a result, the mountain was still full of danger, but none of it was fatal.

Luo Pei’s training exercise for Xiaqing today was long-range shooting of venomous snakes.

"Ah!"

Hiding behind cover on the flat roof of a building in the Second Territory, Tang Huai couldn’t help but gasp and duck his head down. After hearing that Luo Pei was leaving his territory to patrol Mountain No. 49, Tang Huai had run up to the roof to find him with a pair of binoculars. He spotted the branches of a tree shaking at the entrance to Mountain No. 49 and adjusted his focus, only to find himself staring straight down the cold, dark barrel of a gun.

Luo Pei, the Sharpshooter of Hui San Base, had truly been reborn from the ashes.

Lying beside him, Tang Heng asked in a low, anxious voice, "Brother, what is it? Did you find Luo Pei?"

"If you’re not afraid of dying, look for yourself!" Tang Huai snapped, shoving the binoculars into Tang Heng’s arms.

Tang Heng knew his brother was still angry with him, but he didn’t try to explain. He just asked quietly, "Has Luo Pei already recovered his peak strength?"

Tang Huai’s face was grim. "His reflexes are incredibly fast. He detected me watching him from two thousand meters away and aimed his sniper rifle right at me."

"This is trouble. I’ll go report to Captain Xu right away."

"Go, go, just hurry up and go." Tang Huai impatiently scooted backward before being the first to leave the roof. He went back to digging for pests in the fields.

Tang Heng sighed helplessly and went back inside to report to Xu Pin.

Xu Pin, who had been urgently recalled to the Safe Zone by the brigade commander, was already overwhelmed by the fact that the Su Feng Team headquarters had been blown to bits. "Got it. Continue surveillance."

"Yes, sir." Hearing the foul mood in Xu Pin’s voice, Tang Heng didn’t dare mention that the Second Territory needed supplies and personnel. He just hung up.

Standing on Mountain No. 49, Luo Pei asked Xiaqing, "During the first Harmful Rain, where was that large tree in your territory that underwent a rapid Qiang Evolution?"

"It’s in the western Buffer Forest. You can’t see it from here." Xiaqing pointed out the tree’s location for Luo Pei. "It was an ormosia tree. Captain Tan and his men uprooted it completely and took it away. During the second Harmful Rain, an evolved ormosia seedling sprouted there, but I’ve already cleared it out."

Luo Pei had also led a team to clear the western Buffer Forest of the Third Territory last winter, but he had no particular memory of that area. This meant the ormosia tree that suddenly evolved must have looked very ordinary back then.

Luo Pei led Xiaqing up to an altitude of five hundred meters and began teaching her the essentials of aiming a sniper rifle.

Having had a gun for over two months, Xiaqing was no longer the rookie she used to be. With a single shot, she hit the evolutionary Qi Snake on a branch five hundred meters away... right in the tail. The Qi Snake dragged its injured tail and fled.

"Not bad." Although Luo Pei said it was not bad, his voice was clearly tinged with dissatisfaction. "The wind speed is currently below five meters per second, but it still affects mid-to-long-range shots. Adjust your aim, but keep targeting the same spot you aimed for just now."

"Yes, sir." Xiaqing readjusted her aim and continued shooting.

Over the course of the morning, Xiaqing fired off a hundred bullets. She returned to her territory brimming with a sense of accomplishment and boasted to the Sheep Leader, "Boss, I’m one small step closer to becoming a Sharpshooter."

The Sheep Leader, chewing its cud with narrowed eyes, couldn’t be bothered to respond.

Luo Pei was very busy and didn’t have time to train with Xiaqing every day. The next day, after patrolling her territory, Xiaqing entered the Evolution Forest beyond the high slope of the Third Territory’s Northern Isolation Zone.

According to the lease she signed with the Green Dragon Team, the 13,500 acres of Evolution Forest extending one and a half kilometers north of the Northern Isolation Zone of Territories No. 1, 3, and 4 were not part of the rented area.

Therefore, she was responsible for clearing out any dangerous, aggressive, evolved creatures within this area herself. If she hadn’t been equipped with a better Protective Suit and firearms, Xiaqing would never have dared to venture alone into the Evolution Forest after two Harmful Rains.

This place was her personal training ground and her private foraging base. To get stronger, she had to venture into dangerous territory and train with live ammunition.

But getting stronger was a gradual process that required caution.

The fifty-meter stretch of the Evolution Forest immediately adjacent to the isolation zone was mostly safe, as the Danger Investigation Team frequently sprayed it with insecticide and Insect Repellent.

But fifty meters deeper, it was a completely different world.

Soon, a green vine as thick as a finger wrapped tightly around Xiaqing’s leg.

It was a low-danger, aggressive vine, nothing that required a gun. Xiaqing sliced through the vine binding her with one swing of her machete. Then, following the vine back, she CHOP-CHOP-CHOPPED the Evolution Vine into pieces, dug it up by the roots, and cleared it out completely before pushing forward.

Two hours later, Xiaqing heard a faint rustling sound—the sound of a large animal moving about.

Xiaqing immediately put away her machete, drew her Handgun, and took aim.

An adult evolutionary Porcupine, its body covered in sharp quills, entered her line of sight. She was ecstatic. ’Mountain No. 49 really is teeming with wildlife!’

A Porcupine covered in quills was still a pig. Xiaqing aimed her gun at its front leg, deciding to capture it alive.

"SQUEAL—"

Before Xiaqing could pull the trigger, the agonized squeal of a wild boar echoed from down the mountain.

Xiaqing’s heart sank. ’Something’s happened at the Wild Boar Breeding Center again!’

"BANG!"

Xiaqing shot the Porcupine in the front leg, dodged the shower of quills it fired, and quickly rushed forward to pin it down. She sealed its mouth and wound with tape, then tied it up, going with the grain of its quills, and stuffed it into a bag.

"SQUEAL—"

Another painful squeal of a wild boar rang out. Xiaqing shouldered the bag and ran back the way she came.

"Sister Qing, Sister Qing," came Chen Cheng’s voice from the walkie-talkie. He was the one guarding her territory.

Xiaqing immediately replied, "I’m on my way back now. Protect the Sheep Leader."

"Roger that. Be careful, Sister Qing. If you run into the Wolf Group, report your position immediately."

"Understood."

After half a month, the wolves had returned.

She hadn’t run far when she suddenly stopped, quickly scrambled up a large nearby tree, and aimed her gun forward. A greyish-brown Evolutionary Wolf darted forward, appearing in her line of sight.

The Evolutionary Wolf pinpointed Xiaqing’s position, leaping back to use the tree trunk as cover. It revealed only half its face, snarling and glaring at her, its mouth and teeth stained with fresh blood.

’This is the Evolutionary Wolf that just killed the two wild boars at the breeding center.’

Not wanting to make an enemy of it, Xiaqing holstered her gun and made a "go ahead" gesture with her hand. The Evolutionary Wolf understood her meaning, and with a single leap, it vanished from sight.

Xiaqing listened intently. Only after confirming it was safe did she jump down from the tree and run back to her territory.

"Sister Qing." Chen Cheng came forward to greet her, then sniffed the air. "I smell Porcupine. Did you catch one, Sister Qing?"

Seeing the Sheep Leader pedaling the water wheel, Xiaqing finally breathed a sigh of relief. "I was lucky enough to run into one. Do you know how many wolves came this time?"

"No word yet. Captain Tan and Brother Feng took some men and rushed over." Chen Cheng sighed. "From the sounds of it, it was two adult boars again. The people at the Wild Boar Breeding Center must be heartbroken."

Xiaqing nodded, placed her backpack on the ground, and took out the bag containing the Porcupine to draw a blood sample and test its Harmful Element content.

Watching, Chen Cheng said with regret, "Red Light. What a shame. What do you plan to do with this Porcupine, Sister Qing?"

"Zhong Tao is coming tomorrow. I’ll trade it to him for supplies." Xiaqing quickly applied a tourniquet to the Porcupine’s wound. Live ones were worth more than dead ones.

Tomorrow was the day she and Sun Zhe had arranged for the delivery of the second batch of earthworm castings. It had been half a month since the Harmful Rain, and the roads that had been swallowed by Injurious Grass were open again. Zhong Tao was part of the Hui San Base military patrol and supply convoy. He wouldn’t cancel his patrol just because an Evolutionary Wolf had entered the breeding center and killed two wild boars.