Chapter 373: Of Wolves, Sheep, and Gates

A wolf and a sheep—one a fierce predator, the other a gentle grazer. Yet they have more in common than you’d think.

Old Goat’s favorite foods are toon tree leaves, greenlight perilla, edible pasture grass and he has a territory with pure spring water. So, once he realized the walls weren’t blocking him from his food anymore, he calmed down and got back to happily eating.

Er Gou, the sick wolf, can’t eat raw meat anymore and only survives on cooked meat processed by humans. Most of his meals come from his companions, with the rest earned by trading snakes and mice he catches in Section Three and on Hill Forty-Nine to Xia Qing.

But Section Three just doesn’t have enough prey. So, when Er Gou saw the iron mesh walls closing in, trapping him inside, a wave of unease hit.

Now, this predator who grew up in the Evolved Forest bared his fangs and lifted his claws, ready to tear down the barrier between him and his prey.

“Er, don’t!”

Xia Qing stepped up and spoke with a serious expression. “I traded a ton of food for these walls. Both Old Goat and I need them for protection.”

Maybe Er Gou couldn’t decode Xia Qing’s words, but he understood what it meant when Xia Qing blocked his path. He tucked his fangs away, lowered his claws and took a few steps back, though his posture and eyes were full of stubborn resistance.

This wolf, who was nearly killed by parasites and trusts just one human, was about to fall out with her over a circle of fencing.

But Xia Qing wasn’t let down by Er Gou’s reaction. She’d be furious too if anything tried to cut her off from her food.

“Er, look.” Xia Qing walked about ten meters east and stopped by the north gate. “This is a door. From now on, you can come and go through here.”

Having lived in Xia Qing’s territory for months, Er Gou wasn’t a stranger to doors. But this metal-barred ‘door’ looked nothing like the one at home, so he just stood where he was, unmoving.

Xia Qing called Old Goat over, the one always munching on grass, and demonstrated how the new door worked. “This automatic revolving gate cost me a fortune. Watch closely.”

The door was fitted with cameras that could recognize faces, pupils and even height. When someone registered in the system—human or evolved animal—walked into the scan zone, it unlocked.

Outside major locations in the Safe Zone, they used doors just like this. When Xia Qing decided on building the iron mesh fences, she also settled on this gate to let Hu Zifeng’s squad and the wolf pack come and go easily.

Standing at the gate, Xia Qing waited as the camera above the frame scanned her face and eyes. A crisp beep sounded and the metal turnstile spun, opening the gateway. She stepped through to the other side with ease.

Old Goat’s usually squinty eyes went wide. Er Gou, who’d been itching to follow her out of the enclosure, also padded over to examine the gate.

“Beep.”

The camera on the door recognized Xia Qing as she re-entered the zone, triggering another spin of the metal bars and opening the way again.

Back in the territory, Xia Qing called out to her companions. “Old Goat, Er Gou, want to give it a try?”

Er Gou’s furry face was all nerves, so Xia Qing took out a compressed ration bar and coaxed Old Goat in a soft voice:

“Old Goat, you’re the bravest and smartest sheep on Blue Star. If you walk through this gate, you’ll make history for all evolved sheep. You’re the pride of your species and a hero to Section Three! Go on, if you make it, I’ll give you this new bar. It tastes way better than the old ones.”

Old Goat, who’d been lazily chewing grass and watching from the sidelines, instantly perked up at the promise of a treat. As soon as the door beeped open, he darted through and claimed his reward.

Now that Old Goat had figured the door out, Er Gou quickly followed his lead. As soon as the gate opened, he bolted through and dashed off into the distance.

Xia Qing didn’t bother calling him back and instead started making Old Goat go in and out of the north gate time and again.

Once Er Gou was finally convinced the gate would never block him and the tall walls wouldn’t trap him anymore, his pent-up worry melted away. He wagged his tail happily at Xia Qing.

Honest to say, that was very dog-like.

Xia Qing chuckled and rubbed his head, then gestured. “Er, run over to the wolf den and bring Queen and Crippled Wolf here. I need to teach them how to use this gate too.”

Those two were her biggest clients, and she needed their Yi Stones. Losing their business just because of this new door would be a blow.

Er Gou brushed against Xia Qing’s leg, then headed through the gate, cut across the barrier and raced up into Section Three of Hill Forty-Nine.

Even though it was broad daylight, Xia Qing didn’t worry about the wolves being spotted by others.

Everyone was too busy during harvest and planting season—no one had time to stroll around.

With 250 more refugees living across Territories One to Ten, the Inspection Team had their hands full. So Tan Junjie and Luo Pei agreed to let the Azure Dragon Squad patrol the northern barrier in Sections Three through Seven along Hill Forty-Nine, just for now.

That meant the Inspection Team wouldn’t be swinging by any time soon, and things here were nice and safe.

Before long, Er Gou was back with two brain-evolved wolves. Xia Qing demonstrated the door’s function and had Er Gou show it twice more. Then she welcomed the other wolves enthusiastically. “Queen, Crippled Wolf, your turn! This gate’s totally safe. You can come and go as you please, no hassle at all.”

She’d already entered both of their details in the door system. Now when these two entered Section Three, the cameras let them move without ever alerting Xia Qing.

But as Xia Qing looked on expectantly, Alpha suddenly sprinted from the center of the barrier. When he was just four or five meters from the wall, he vaulted clean over the fence Xia Qing had spent 250,000 credits to build, landing squarely in Section Three.

Crippled Wolf followed right after, leaping in the same way. Both wolves calmly looked up at Xia Qing as if nothing happened.

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You little punks!

Xia Qing ignored the two mischief-makers and set out to patrol her territory. She needed to vent, maybe by killing a few evolved bugs, catching some evolved snakes, or unearthing a couple nests of evolved mice.

“Beep.”

About a hundred meters out, Xia Qing heard the door beep again. She didn’t bother going back—just pulled out her phone and checked her notifications:

“Crippled Wolf exited Section Three through the north gate at 17:21 on November 9.”

“Knew Crippled Wolf had brains!” Xia Qing, still carrying her knife, was about to put her phone away when it chimed again—and another alert popped up:

“Crippled Wolf entered Section Three through the north gate at 17:22 on November 9.”

Then:

“Crippled Wolf exited Section Three through the north gate at 17:22 on November 9.”

And then:

“Crippled Wolf entered Section Three through the north gate at 17:23 on November 9.”

And again:

“Crippled Wolf exited Section Three through the north gate at 17:24 on November 9.”

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That wolf, I swear!

Xia Qing gritted her teeth, itching to go chop a wolf!