Chapter 1164: Predators in the Mist

Above the human territory, helicopter blades roared. Over Hill Forty-Nine, raptors screamed. In Section Three, the howls of the Wolf Pack echoed through the air.

Thwup. Thwup. Thwup…

One by one, the spot-billed ducks that had hidden in Wolf Valley’s pond surfaced. Some, less lucky, dove into the shallow end and got stuck in the muck, never resurfacing. Flathead dragged a duck with a broken neck from the shallows and immediately began eating at the pond’s edge.

With the ducks showing up, the raptors’ cries grew louder, and so did the wolves’ howls. The temperature kept climbing. Inside the greenhouses covered with rainproof tarps, it must’ve soared past thirty degrees Celsius by now. If they didn’t open them soon, the rice plants, still filling out their grains, would suffer irreparable damage from the heat.

Within the territory, Lord Xia Qing, who’d planted over half an acre of WD-6 and J-2 Green Lantern rice, an acre and a half of Green Lantern corn, and half an acre of Yellow Lantern corn, spoke up. “Captain Yang, could you contact Captain Tan? Let’s have the Ninth Center and all territories pull back half of the rain cover on the greenhouses for ventilation.”

Because Xia Qing had been busy with missions outside the territory the past few days, she hadn’t joined Section One’s group for Evolved fighters during the migratory bird season. Right now, her walkie-talkie was tuned into Yang Jin’s squad, but to reach Tan Junjie she’d need to use her phone.

She couldn’t free up her hands—she had to keep both eyes locked on the two raptors circling above, ready to respond if they suddenly changed course and dove into Section One’s fields.

Yang Jin nodded. “Xuanyu.”

“On it.” Li Xuanyu immediately reached out to Inspection Team member Su Ming. Across every patch of Section One and inside the Ninth Center, people rushed to the greenhouses, hoisting up the rain covers to let fresh air flow through and bring down the temperature inside.

Captain Tan Junjie kept reminding the territory lords over the Lords’ channel to stay alert. Inside every territory, laser cannons and countless guns were trained on the two giant raptors wheeling through the sky.

Because of those two raptors, other migratory birds either changed course or climbed higher. For once, the skies above the territory were oddly peaceful. The raptors cried out, but the lords weren’t worried—the howl of the Wolf Pack was much louder.

After raising the greenhouse covers, Tang Huai wiped the sweat from his forehead. “Xin Yu, those are Giant Raptors circling up there, right? What do they want? Why haven’t they left yet?”

Xin Yu, over in Territory Eight, didn’t bother replying to pointless questions. The raven on her shoulder buried its head in its feathers, while the territory’s ground hawks hid in the bushes, necks hunched and eyes nervously fixed on the predators above.

An hour later, the spot-billed ducks still huddled in the pond, showing no intention of flying on. The two raptors shrieked, then climbed up into the clouds. The Wolf Pack answered with a triumphant howl.

Even Xia Qing, riding in the helicopter above, felt her throat tickle—she wanted to howl right along with them.

Li Xuanyu reported in. “Captain, both Giant Raptors have left the Forty-Ninth Mountain area and are heading north at speed.”

Yang Jin gave the order. “Crisis over, return the helicopter.”

“Roger that.” Hu Zifeng piloted the helicopter back to Hill Forty-Nine, set it down on the helipad, and opened the cabin door. Yang Jin shot Xia Qing a smile and asked, “Sister Qing, can we catch those spot-billed ducks in the pond?”

Every member of the Azure Dragon Squad perked up, listening in. Li Xuanyu glanced back and forth between the boss and Xia Qing. Their boss was two years older than Xia Qing, but why was she called Sister Qing?

And why did Xia Qing call their boss ‘Captain Yang’ and that guy surnamed Duan ‘brother’? Was there something going on?

No way… their boss hasn’t managed to win her over yet, right?!

Everyone in the helicopter—members of the Azure Dragon Squad—strained their ears for the answer. Xia Qing put on an appropriately soft tone. “Those wild ducks belong to the Wolf Pack. I’ll go keep watch for now, let’s stay in touch, okay?”

Yang Jin’s ears turned red against his will and his voice got even gentler. “Okay.”

Seeing that embarrassing display, Hu Zifeng turned away. He honestly couldn’t bear to look…

Even senior sniper Cao Ping started glancing between the boss, Hu Zifeng, and Xia Qing, a glint in his eyes brighter than when he had prey in his sights.

After leaving the mountain top, Xia Qing headed quickly for the edge of Section Three near Wolf Valley. Most of the Wolf Pack was gathered at the pond, feasting on duck. Flathead, belly round as a ball, was bickering with Lame Wolf, whose mouth was still full of feathers.

In the pond, a handful of spot-billed ducks kept watch, heads up and eyes scanning. The rest had twisted their necks backward, beaks buried in their backs as they slept.

When Lame Wolf saw Xia Qing approach, he howled up at her for her to hurry down.

“Coming!” Xia Qing leapt into the valley.

“Quack! Quack! Quack!”

The moment a human came near, the duck on sentry duty sounded the alarm, and every duck snapped awake, gathering at the center of the pond. But none took flight—they were clearly worn out, too tired for another journey.

Xia Qing brushed the feathers from Lame Wolf’s face, then walked over to the Alpha, busy gorging herself. “Your Majesty, how about I fetch the rest of the ducks?”

The Alpha made no objection. Gun slung over her shoulder, Xia Qing waded into the cacophony of quacks, pulling the ducks stuck in the mud from the pond’s shallows. She rinsed the mud off in the water, then quickly checked each one. The Green Lantern ducks she kept; Yellow and Red Lanterns she tossed onto the grass at the shore.

After making a full circuit, she’d gathered twenty-two ducks: four Green Lanterns, ten Yellow Lanterns, and only eight Red Lanterns. That was an unusually good ratio for edible ducks—no wonder those two Giant Raptors had refused to let them go.

Where did this flock even come from, with such high-quality birds? Could it be that most of the ducks in this pond are edible?!

Once Crippled Wolf was full, he cleaned himself up, sniffed at the ducks on the ground, then at the ones in Xia Qing’s hand. He laid his massive paw atop the ducks she was holding.

Xia Qing stood her ground. “You’ve already eaten. These four are mine. The ducks on the ground are all yours.”

Crippled Wolf kept his paw firmly in place, refusing to let go.

“If I hadn’t blocked them with the helicopter, all these ducks would have landed in Section Three and been my prey.”

Still, Crippled Wolf refused to budge, fixing Xia Qing with a solemn look.

She didn’t back down. “How many ducks are on the ground anyway? Broken Back, can you count them all?”

Broken Back, who loved math and was always happy to take a test, bounded off in high spirits to start counting.

Xia Qing swiftly packed the four Green Lantern ducks in her backpack’s storage pouch, then sidled up to the Alpha, who was still grooming her golden fur. She pointed at the sleeping group in the center of the pond and whispered, “Your Majesty, am I allowed to hunt those ducks?”

The Alpha stopped and fixed her with those gilded eyes, stern as ever.

“Not allowed? Alright.” Xia Qing gave up without a fuss and turned to Handsome Huge Wolf. He was pinning three ducks beneath his paws—surely all Green Lanterns. Could he finish them all?

Noticing Xia Qing’s gaze on his catch, Handsome Huge Wolf snatched up all three ducks at once and trotted off.

Oh, well.

Xia Qing walked over to Broken Back, who was still busy counting ducks. “Handsome Wolf, how many ducks are there in total now?”