Chapter 418: Bargaining with Wolves: The Price of Serpentine Armor

Yang Jin replied, “The surveillance bird hiding in the woods caught this scene, but it was taken out right after. No idea if it was the wolves or the bears who did it. As of now, the wolves and bears are still facing off. I’m luring four evolved bears back to Hill Sixty-One.”

Yang Jin’s actually still in the Evolved Forest, luring four evolved bears farther north away from human territory. How is he even managing that? And he’s still finding time to reply to my messages on such a dangerous mission?

Before Xia Qing could send her questions, Yang Jin sent another long message:

“Last night, the wolf pack pulled off a successful ambush on the pythons. They killed one giant python, several Devastation Snakes, and countless little snakes. I’ve confirmed the Devastation Snakes and pythons have a symbiotic relationship. After the bear pack discovered the wolves ambushed the pythons, they came down the mountain and started a fight. The remaining pythons retreated, so it’s clear the bears and pythons are allies. The two you see in the photo are brain-evolved bears—whatever you do, don’t let them find out you’re acting alongside the wolves.”

Xia Qing carefully read Yang Jin’s updates twice, saved the photos and messages, and replied earnestly, “Received. Thank you.”

Usually, if a bear saw Xia Qing hanging out with the wolves, it probably wouldn’t think much of it. But if those two brain-evolved bears caught her, they’d definitely see her as an ally of the wolves.

If that happened, the bear pack could easily mark her—and even this whole territory—as targets.

No way was she going to put the entire territory in danger just because of her trades with the wolf pack.

Having made up her mind, Xia Qing pulled out the Devastation Element Detector to check the Devastation Element content of the giant python. The detector lit up green, and Xia Qing wasn’t surprised in the slightest.

Any animal that can become the leader of a territory always gets the best food and keeps itself in peak condition.

This massive python must have a high status among the snakes—its skin is definitely high-grade in hardness.

That makes it a top-level evolved creature, and its meat is worth a fortune—at least 300 credits per pound. Eating it actually speeds up evolution.

It was time for Xia Qing to have a serious talk with Crippled Wolf and see what he wanted to trade for this python. Honestly, even if he asked her to haul an automatic gate up to Hill Sixty-One, she’d do it.

“Knock, knock, knock.” Xia Qing rapped on the wolf den’s door, trying to sound proper as she called in, “Crippled but dashing wolf, are you home?”

A few seconds later, Crippled Wolf opened the door, showing off those sharp, snow-white fangs with a smug grin.

Xia Qing grinned back and pointed to the giant python by the pond. “Handsome wolf, can I trade for that python? I can swap you some pesticide or even a door for it.”

Crippled Wolf stopped smiling, studying Xia Qing thoughtfully for a moment. Then he tucked his paw in and closed the door.

Xia Qing stood there speechless.

……

……

Seriously, was this necessary? Even if you all discussed it right in front of me, I wouldn’t have understood a thing.

A short while later, the den’s door swung open. Alpha was the first to stroll out, followed by Crippled Wolf, Black Wolf, Lame Wolf carrying his sister, and finally Er Gou.

Six wolves came to a halt beside the python, all turning their heads simultaneously to stare at Xia Qing with an eerily unified look.

What are you doing? Why are you just standing there? Come on already.

Feeling thoroughly judged, Xia Qing shuffled over. Crippled Wolf patted the python with his paw, then tapped Alpha’s leg, and looked back at Xia Qing.

Alpha’s injury was healing, but its fur was still thin in that spot—the scar was obvious to anyone.

Xia Qing thought she understood what Crippled Wolf wanted. She pointed at Crippled Wolf’s back, where his fur had already fully grown in after healing, then at his uninjured leg. “Handsome wolf, do you want to trade this giant python for some potion to regrow Queen’s leg fur?”

No problem at all! Of course I can do that.

Honestly, there was no need to trade for that. A few more medicinal baths and Alpha’s skin would heal, the fur would grow back on its own.

Alpha looked all serious, while Crippled Wolf watched Xia Qing, deep in thought.

Clearly, Xia Qing had misunderstood.

She racked her brain thinking what could still be wrong with Queen’s leg. Was it not fully healed and needed more treatment? But that couldn’t be—she’d hopped over a four-meter wall like it was nothing, not even a hint of a lingering injury.

After thinking for a bit, Crippled Wolf moved again. He came right up to Xia Qing and pawed at her wrist.

But my hand’s empty…

A bolt of realization struck Xia Qing. She slipped off her protective glove and, with her left hand, pointed to the right—where she was wearing a snakeskin glove and wrist guard. She asked, “You want these?”

Crippled Wolf lifted his head, baring those adorable little fangs at Xia Qing again.

You’ve got to be kidding me!

Xia Qing stared wide-eyed. “Handsome wolf, how did you know I had snakeskin gear? Did Er tell you?”

Is Er really that clever? Just how did you all communicate anyway?

Crippled Wolf bared his fangs, patted Xia Qing’s wrist guard, ran back to Queen and tapped her leg, then tapped the python’s toughest scale right over its heart.

Xia Qing finally got it—Crippled Wolf wanted her to use the tough, evolved snakeskin from the python’s heart to make protective gear for Alpha’s legs.

Set aside whether that’s even possible, weren’t they afraid the snakes would go berserk if they saw wolves sporting snakeskin armor?

Maybe snakes don’t have fur, but their allies—the giant bears—definitely do!

But that wasn’t really Xia Qing’s problem. She looked at Crippled Wolf seriously. “So you want to give me this python so I’ll use its snakeskin to make Queen… leg guards?”

Crippled Wolf thought for a while, then—under Xia Qing’s shocked gaze—turned around and sniffed at his own waist, safely covered by the protective suit.

Xia Qing was speechless.

“You want a snakeskin waist guard too?”

Crippled Wolf then went around and tapped Alpha’s waist, Lame Wolf and his sister, Black Wolf, and Er Gou—all of their waists and legs. Last, he turned to face Xia Qing.

Xia Qing was floored. She drew a circle in the air, pointing one by one at all the wolves’ legs and waists, and double-checked with Crippled Wolf: “So, all of you want waist and leg guards made from python skin?”

Crippled Wolf, clearly delighted that Xia Qing finally understood, pulled a walnut-sized Yi Stone from Alpha’s side pocket and dropped it at Xia Qing’s feet.

All right then—payment for labor, ready and waiting.

On evolved wolves, the most vital spots are the waist, belly, limbs, and throat. The protective suit already covered their throats and bodies, but Crippled Wolf wanted the hardest snakeskin from the python to shield the limbs, and another layer for the waist and belly. With full armor like that, their fighting power would nearly double.

No wonder the snakeskin on this python was untouched—turns out, half the reason the wolves fought the pythons was for that skin.

This brain-evolved wolf was clever in a way that sent chills down Xia Qing’s spine. As a human, she stared at the Yi Stone and the expectant wolves, suddenly unsure.