Chapter 338: The Boon of the Peculiar Hickory Tree

Instead of bringing back the Alpha, Crippled Wolf reappeared with a pigeon egg-sized Yi Stone clamped in its jaws. It dropped the stone at Xia Qing’s feet, clearly trying to tell her that its protective suit was torn and needed replacing.

Just a glance at Crippled Wolf’s expression told Xia Qing it had no real idea how dangerous the Devastation Snake’s venom was.

Or maybe it did know, but figured the human standing before it was capable enough to handle any poison. That must be why it looked so relaxed.

Feeling a strange mix of emotions, Xia Qing pulled out the sealed Devastation Snake and showed it to Crippled Wolf. “You can trade your protective suit for a new one, but it’ll take some time. This snake with the lump on its head is called the Devastation Snake—its venom is deadly. If any of you get bitten, I can’t guarantee a cure. Seriously, steer clear of these things.”

Hearing about the possibility of a new suit, Crippled Wolf’s eyes narrowed, mouth opening to show off two tiny white fangs. It looked downright cheerful.

Xia Qing couldn’t help but shake her head.

Hopeless. She left it at that, then headed out to see why the Queen still hadn’t come in, ready to pack up and move on.

When Xia Qing didn’t take the Yi Stone, Crippled Wolf stopped grinning, wearing a thoughtful look instead.

“I’ll leave the Yi Stone here for now. Once I get the wolves’ protective suit, we’ll make the trade,” Xia Qing explained as she slung her heavy backpack over her shoulder. “I’m heading out now, alright?”

At the cave entrance, Xia Qing spotted Huge Wolf, who’d carried her all the way here, resting nearby. She waved. “Big guy, I’m heading out. If your wound splits open, come find me at the territory for a patch-up.”

Lame Wolf? Who knows where that little troublemaker’s run off to.

Crippled Wolf made no move to stop Xia Qing from leaving. Er Gou limped along behind her, clearly intent on following her back to the territory. Xia Qing smiled. No matter how fierce the fight had been last night, or how many casualties there were, the wolves she cared about were still alive. The ones she’d grown close to had all made it through, and the pack had reclaimed Hill Sixty from the python. That alone was worth celebrating.

How did Xia Qing know a python had taken over Hill Sixty? Earlier, she’d spotted snake skins wedged in the cracks of the cave walls. The place was damp and gloomy—the perfect spot for snakes.

After the disaster, temperatures on Blue Star dropped in autumn and winter. Over at Hui Three Base, nighttime lows had already fallen below fifteen degrees Celsius. Last night, it plunged as low as six.

Once it gets below ten degrees, snakes slow down. The wolves had picked an ideal time to launch a surprise attack on them.

As for the bear, Xia Qing was still unsure—did it rush over from Hill Sixty-One after hearing the snake-wolf fight, or had it been living up on Hill Sixty all along?

One thing was clear: there had to be something special about this mountain for three kinds of animals to fight so fiercely over it. Xia Qing suspected it might have a source of pure spring water or an untouched Yi Stone deposit.

So when she stepped out of the cave, Xia Qing kept her eyes wide open, scrutinizing her surroundings.

Morning had fully broken. The snakes’ and bear’s bodies at the entrance had already been cleared away, though streaks of blood and toppled trees still lingered as stark reminders.

Well…

Wait, what?!

Xia Qing blinked and stared hard at one of the fallen trees. Amid the massive tangle of branches, she caught sight of a spiky green fruit, about the size of an egg. Something about it looked strangely familiar.

No way… is that a hickory nut?

Delight lit up Xia Qing’s face. She didn’t even notice the Queen and Huge Wolf approaching—she was already diving for her Lethal Element Detector to check the Devastation element in that tree.

Green light. It was a huge hickory tree bearing thin-skinned, thick-fleshed nuts—Green Lanterns. Damn, this trip was hitting the jackpot!

“Crippled Wolf, you’re actually…”

Xia Qing turned, hickory in hand, just as the Queen sauntered up, her fur still damp. That massive wolf who’d howled on the mountaintop last night stood quietly five meters away, with over a dozen evolved wolves frolicking nearby.

This wolf was even larger and more striking than the Huge Wolf who’d hauled Xia Qing here. Honestly, the word ‘majestic’ suited it way better than it did Crippled Wolf.

Its fur was longer than the other wolves’, with a gray coat streaked through with black along its back, while its belly and legs were stark white. The colors gave it a clean, noble bearing.

Its face followed the same color pattern. Two bold black eye lines divided its face in two. Above its eyes, gray and black mingled; below, its muzzle was snow-white, and the shading along its lower eyes made it almost look painted. That face was… seriously something.

Sensing Xia Qing’s stare, the huge wolf lifted its pale blue eyes and met her gaze.

Locked in with those piercing eyes, Xia Qing’s heart thudded. This wolf—extremely, dangerously powerful.

She couldn’t afford to provoke it. Not in the slightest.

Xia Qing looked away and took the Alpha back into the cave, redressing and bandaging its four bloodied legs. She used waterproof bandages again—after all, she’d need to escort it all the way through sixty kilometers of wet, unruly Evolved Forest.

Afterwards, Xia Qing stepped outside, picked up a hickory nut from the ground and made her offer. “Queen, I’d like all the nuts from this tree. Can we work out a trade?”

This was territory the wolves had fought and bled for—every tree and blade of grass belonged to the pack. If Xia Qing wanted the nuts, of course she’d have to trade for them.

Wolves are carnivores—they wouldn’t care much about hickory nuts. Xia Qing figured her chances of trading were pretty good.

The Alpha’s regal golden eyes were a bit duller than usual, but still sharp and full of life. It glanced back at the cave, then stared pointedly at the nuts in Xia Qing’s hand.

“Deal. If any of the injured wolves inside need new bandages, the Queen can bring them to my territory.” Xia Qing agreed readily, reaching out to the hickory nuts. “So they’re mine now, right? I can start picking?”

With no objection from the Alpha, Xia Qing wasted no time. She whipped out a large reinforced sack and started picking Green Lantern hickory nuts at lightning speed.

Er Gou was so used to farm work on the territory that he tried to help, but Xia Qing waved him off and handed him a piece of jerky. Speaking softly, she said, “The skin on these fruits is toxic—let me handle it. You just eat your jerky and rest up. We have a long journey ahead.”

As soon as jerky was involved, Lame Wolf bounded over, abandoning its roughhousing with the other wolves to hound Xia Qing for treats.

Xia Qing handed it a piece, shooing it away so she could keep picking.

The tree had to be at least twenty meters tall. If the crown hadn’t been knocked loose to the ground, getting those nuts wouldn’t have been so simple.

By the time she was done, Xia Qing had filled six huge sacks—over eight hundred jin worth, shells and all. That was way more than she’d hoped for.

Between the load of hickory nuts, the supplies in her backpack, and the gun strapped to her back, she was now hauling over a thousand jin. Xia Qing could maybe carry it all—barely—but there was no way she could lug that weight over mountains and through sixty kilometers of Evolved Forest on her own.

She’d need the wolves’ help to haul it all back.