Chapter 334: Midnight Battle: Wolves and Bears Clash in the Evolved Forest

Xia Qing took out a bottle of insect repellent and turned to the Alpha. “Queen, this spray keeps bugs away for about three hours. Want me to spray some on you guys?”

Evolved wolves ran incredibly fast. In just half an hour, they’d reach deep into the Evolved Forest, arriving at the battlefield. Whether things went smoothly or not, the fight would probably be settled in two hours. The repellent might not do much, but at least it’d help keep the wolves focused and undisturbed.

Clad in a brand new protective suit, the Alpha had no interest in the spray. Circling Xia Qing once, he simply headed outside.

Without any orders, Crippled Wolf, Lame Wolf, and the huge wolf all followed the Alpha out. Er Gou brushed against Xia Qing as he left to join the others, and soon the whole pack had filed out of the yard, leaving the Abandoned Village behind.

Even the new wooden door under the eaves went unnoticed. With such a big fight ahead, Crippled Wolf didn’t spare it a glance.

As the wolves moved out, none howled—even Lame Wolf, usually hyper and all over the place, was uncharacteristically quiet.

With a leap over the river, the pack followed the Alpha, picking up speed. In the blink of an eye, they’d left human territory behind and disappeared into the Evolved Forest.

Cameras on the lower and upper slopes picked up the intruders and sent alerts straight to Xia Qing’s phone. Clutching her phone, she stood with her snowy companion behind the village, quietly watching the direction the wolves had gone.

The rain that had drizzled through midday finally let up. Now, under a sky full of stars, wild grass carpeted the earth, insects drummed out a chorus that sounded just like the drums of war.

Xia Qing took a deep breath and called Hu Zifeng. “Captain Hu, the wolves will be heading from Section Three on Hill Forty-Nine, through Valley One, into the valley between the two hills. Please let them pass.”

Hu Zifeng, eyes glued to the monitoring screens, watched the wolves sprinting past in a blur. He looked up and down, left and right, but didn’t spot them carrying any big items. “You know, they look like they’re heading into a brawl.”

Could the thing they traded with Xia Qing for actually be a weapon?

“They’re probably out for revenge,” Xia Qing said, heat rising in her veins at the thought. “Captain Hu, could you monitor the inside of the Evolved Forest for any big movements?”

“Got it.”

Hu Zifeng immediately reported everything to Luo Pei. If a major fight broke out among the big beasts in the forest, other animals nearby would panic and flee. Even if a full-blown beast stampede was unlikely this time of year, it paid to stay prepared.

Xia Qing and Old Goat made their way home, tidying up the yard, the sheep shed, and the living room. That’s when Xia Qing realized something straight-up tragic:

The big rabbit she’d gotten from Shi Du was huddled in its cage, trembling with fear, not eating at all.

Xia Qing knew it was terrified of wolves. So when word came that the pack was on its way, she brought the rabbit inside from the sheep shed and stashed it in the tool room. The wolves hadn’t gone in there, but that poor rabbit was still a nervous wreck.

Grew that big for nothing, apparently.

Xia Qing tossed a few leftover spinach leaves into the rabbit’s cage and swapped out its water for fresh, pure spring water. She tried to reassure it. “This spring water sells for 144 credits a liter. Spinach juice goes for 3,000 credits per 15 milliliters. Put together, that’s worth more than your whole body. Eat up.”

“Rooaaar—”

She’d barely finished when a faint roar from an Evolved Bear drifted over from far away. The rabbit quivered even harder. With a helpless sigh, Xia Qing moved the rabbit to the outer basement room for its safety.

With a battle brewing in the Evolved Forest tonight, she was worried the poor thing would be scared to death if she left it upstairs.

“Captain Tan, are you there? What’s going on? Why are the Evolved Bears roaring at night?” Tang Huai’s voice crackled through the walkie-talkie.

“Bears are roaring?” Zhao Ze couldn’t hear a thing and asked in surprise.

“Definitely! But it’s at least sixty miles away. Only those with advanced hearing can pick it up,” Tang Huai replied. “Captain Tan, any idea what’s up with the bears in the Evolved Forest?”

Tan Junjie responded in a serious tone, “The Inspection Team is investigating. All lords, please remain within your territories and do not go out.”

“Rooaaar—”

“Awooo— ooo—”

“There are wolves too!” More wolf howls echoed from deep within the forest, and Tang Huai, with his sharp ears, picked them out. “Maybe the wolf pack and the bears are fighting over territory.”

“Wolves’ howls carry for sixty miles?” Zhao Ze could hardly believe it.

Normally, the roars of regular wolves and bears would never travel that far. But these were high-level evolved animals, and with the quiet of night, only those whose hearing had advanced to level five or above could catch these distant sounds.

Xia Qing, with even sharper hearing and deep familiarity with the wolves, could tell it was the Alpha howling. His call was long and stern, the kind that summoned all his comrades.

So, the evolved wolf pack was fighting the evolved bear pack? Hu Zifeng had mentioned there were two brain-evolved bears deep in the north part of the Evolved Forest, near Hui Three Base.

If a wolf pack led by two brain-evolved wolves took on a bear pack led by two brain-evolved bears…

Remembering the sheer size of the evolved bear she’d seen on Hill Fifty, Xia Qing slowly breathed out. No wonder the wolves had prepared so thoroughly. The bears’ defense and attack capabilities far outclassed those of the wolves.

Still, wolves moved quicker, and their teamwork in fights was second to none. The Alpha and Crippled Wolf weren’t fools. If they dared launch this attack, they had to believe they had a shot.

Even then, the pack was bound to take some losses. Xia Qing was already bracing herself to patch up any wounded wolves after the fight.

Earlier that afternoon, when she gave Ji Li the medicinal herbs, Xia Qing also swapped for some painkillers and wound ointment. She let Chang Li and Zhang He know too—if the wolves’ injuries were too much for her to handle, she’d need their help.

Third Brother?

Unless it was a matter of life and death, she didn’t want to disturb the big shots.

Hu Zifeng called again. “The wolves and bears are fighting on Hill Sixty. It won’t spill over here, so get some rest.”

Both brain-evolved bears were on Hill Sixty-One. The wolves hadn’t attacked the bears’ main territory—just trying to reclaim what the bears had taken from them. If that’s the case, the wolf pack must be facing a less dangerous bear.

Xia Qing felt a little better, but as bear roars overpowered the wolves’ howls, she still couldn’t sleep soundly.

Sure enough, before dawn, Xia Qing was woken by her phone’s alert. Pulling up the camera feed, she spotted Crippled Wolf and the giant wolf, both battered, showing up on the high slope in torn protective gear.

Xia Qing dashed downstairs and raced outside. Old Goat, not wearing night vision goggles, stumbled after her. Xia Qing didn’t bother telling Old Goat to stay home; she just scooped him up onto her shoulder and hurried to meet the two wolves outside the village.

She set Old Goat down and watched him interact with the two evolved wolves. While peering through her night vision goggles, Xia Qing checked them over: both had clearly just come back from a tough fight.

Crippled Wolf’s protective suit was in tatters and soaked, but there was no blood. Without her protective mask, Xia Qing couldn’t smell anything, but at least it didn’t look like a messy injury.

The huge wolf had several wounds, but the bleeding had stopped. Nothing life-threatening.

Crippled Wolf came over, tilted his body, and motioned for Xia Qing to check his pocket. With a quick glance at the nearby giant wolf, Xia Qing reached into Crippled Wolf’s mostly-intact side pocket and pulled out a walnut-sized Yi Stone. She asked quietly, “Handsome, what do you want in exchange this time?”

Why bring the giant wolf here? Where’s Queen, Er Gou, and Lame Wolf?

Crippled Wolf paced a few steps north, looked back at Xia Qing, walked a bit farther, then turned back again. Old Goat came over and gently nudged Xia Qing with his big head, urging her to follow.

Xia Qing got the message. “You want me to follow you? Where to? What’s up?”

Crippled Wolf circled Xia Qing anxiously, then strode north again, turning back with every few steps.