Chapter 71: Rainproof Shelters and Brewing Danger

Long, thick bamboo strips were anchored into the edge of the field at one end, then tied at the other end to the tops of bamboo on the opposite side, forming arch-shaped ribs for the rainproof shelter.

After setting up these arches every half meter, a top beam and two side beams locked them in place. Add the doorway, a front support, and a 150-meter rope for alignment, and soon the frame for a standard rainproof shelter—150 meters long, 4 meters wide, and 3 meters high—was standing tall.

Right now the crops inside the shelter weren’t even a meter tall, but there was no skimping on height. Any lower than three meters, and moving inside would be a hassle—and once the crops started Xiangification, they’d shoot up, possibly even double in height, ripping right through the roof.

With the frame up, she pulled the rainproof tarp over the shelter and used whatever she had on hand—iron wire, nylon rope, rags—to tie it down tight and anchor the edges. Just like that, the rainproof shelter was finished.

Even the planting experts from the Safe Zone would have to admit—her shelters were top-notch.

After five years on the Construction Crew, Xia Qing had helped build more than half the professional greenhouses for the Safe Zone’s Planting Center. It was no wonder her own territory’s shelters were up to spec. The only difference was the materials—hers were bamboo instead of the center’s industrial panels, but these bamboo shelters could easily stand up to a two-day, ninety-millimeter Xiang Rain.

Territory Three’s northwest side was cradled by high mountains, so the wind wasn’t much of a threat here. Still, Xia Qing’s cautious streak meant she checked every detail as she worked.

For creeping crops like sweet potato and pumpkin, the shelter could’ve been lower. But Xia Qing had plenty of bamboo and tarps, and those crops were right next to the potatoes, so she planned to group all three under one standard shelter.

She had enough material, sure, but no way was she letting pumpkin vines run wild everywhere. She wrangled the long, evolved pumpkin vines into tidy bundles and stuffed them into the shelter. Looking at those neat green clumps, Xia Qing felt deeply satisfied.

Once the big shelters were set, Xia Qing put up smaller rainproof shelters for the two patches of green-glow peanuts, Boss Sheep’s pasture, and a huge stretch of evolved Chinese fevervine. By the time she was done, night had fallen.

She still had enough materials left for one more standard shelter, but giving any to Zhao Ze or Tang Huai never even crossed her mind. Instead, she split the leftovers among her various shelters as backup supplies.

By ten the next morning, clouds had rolled in. A southeast wind brought damp, chill air. Without hesitation, Xia Qing threw on her protective suit and hurried with Boss Sheep to the little cabin by the fields.

She’d built this tiny cabin during breaks a while back, using building materials salvaged from the Ruined Village. It had a pointed roof, a single door and window, and twelve square meters of space—just enough for her and Boss Sheep to rest inside.

Once a crop began Xiangification, if you didn’t pull it up fast, it would affect everything around it. And if it was a dangerous Xiangification, not clearing it in time could bring on disaster.

Xia Qing wasn’t too worried about her crops going through a mid-to-high-risk Xiangification. Most of her seeds came from the Safe Zone, where they’d been bred for generations. As long as the red Xiang Rain didn’t go wildly over the limit, the chance of dangerous Xiangification developing was low.

A dangerous Xiangification meant a crop gained some new skill that could be a real threat—like producing toxins or learning to attack actively.

Dangerous Xiangifications were ranked into high, medium, and low risk. That giant evolved tree that showed up in Xia Qing’s territory during the first Xiang Rain? According to Tan Junjie, it was a medium-risk event.

Medium risk—most Evolvers wouldn’t be able to handle it.

Over the next forty-eight hours, Xia Qing made hourly rounds of her fields, swiftly pulling out any Xiangified plants or hunting down any dangerous Xiangified animals.

She’d already warned Hu Zifeng: if things got out of hand, she’d call in Hu Zifeng’s Squad for backup.

Boss Sheep had lost control during the first Xiang Rain this year. There was a good chance it might go off again—a rampage meant tearing up the house at best, or, at worst, losing its mind completely and turning into a furious, aggressive Xiangified animal.

So, Xia Qing had one more crucial mission this time: protect Boss Sheep. She couldn’t let it lose control again, no matter what.

She had two options. One: give Boss Sheep a Calming Capsule in advance. Two: keep it close by her side the whole time. The Calming Capsule had nasty side effects, so she opted to keep Boss Sheep with her by the fields instead.

After half an hour of Xiang Rain, Boss Sheep looked calm enough, thanks to Xia Qing’s steady hand and soothing strokes. That gave her peace of mind—time to go check the shelters.

She grabbed a bundle of fresh grass off the rack and dropped it in the feed trough. “Go ahead and eat, big guy. I’ll check the shelters and come right back.”

Boss Sheep stood up and started eating. Xia Qing, still suited up, left the cabin and began her rounds, following the planned route through her territory.

She finished her round—not a single crop had begun Xiangification.

That was all thanks to her airtight shelters—as professional as they came—and good drainage around each one. Sheltered and dry, the crops hadn’t touched a drop of Xiang Rain, and the Xiang element in the air wasn’t concentrated enough to start the Xiangification process.

Still, as the concentration of Xiang element in the air and soil rose, the risk would climb, too.

She hurried back to the cabin. Boss Sheep was still calm, so she took off her mask, tossed a few sticks into the little stove she’d built out of bricks in the center of the room, and used the smoke to drive out evolved bugs. Then, she opened the Lord Channel, keeping a sharp eye on the latest news from surrounding territories.

If any dangerous Xiangified creature turned up nearby, she’d need a plan on the spot—couldn’t let that kind of trouble spill into Territory Three.

The second hour of Xiang Rain hadn’t even finished when the first report came in—Zhao Ze in Plot Four said he had crops showing the first signs of Xiangification.

Nobody was surprised. Zhao Ze hadn’t built nearly enough shelters. Some of his fields were completely exposed to the rain—of course his crops were mutating.

Anxiety prickled at Xia Qing. She pulled out her Portable Tester and checked the rainwater—Xiang Rain had hit orange level. The danger was rising.

She made another lap of her fields—so far, her crops were still doing great.

By the third hour of steady, drizzling rain, Kuang Qingwei reported cotton crops going through Xiangification. “Brother Qi, the cotton’s loaded with flower buds after Xiangification. Do I really have to yank them all out? What if they still grow cotton anyway?”

Qi Fu answered, “You have to pull them out. Otherwise, the rest will mutate, too.”

“All these buds—think how much cotton we could get.” Kuang Qingwei was unwilling. “If the cotton still grows, does it really matter if they Xiangified…?”

Nobody bothered responding. Kuang Qingwei griped a bit more, then went quiet. Everyone knew those crops had to go; if too many of the same plant Xiangified, it could lead straight to a dangerous transformation, and then it’d be about survival—not harvests.

Half an hour after Kuang Qingwei settled down, Xia Qing saw for herself just how much he was struggling. Two cotton plants in her own patch began Xiangification, shooting up from thigh-high to over her head. Every new branch was packed with fruiting stems, and she counted more than fifty flower buds in total.

No hesitation—Xia Qing dug up both Xiangified plants, roots and all, with her shovel and transplanted them far outside the shelter, onto some regular farmland so they could keep growing—but nowhere near her main crops.

A regular cotton plant—even if it underwent dangerous Xiangification—was nothing Xia Qing couldn’t handle.

After four and a half hours, the Xiang Rain stopped. All told, eighteen cotton plants, thirteen mung beans, and twenty-six wheat stalks in Xia Qing’s fields had mutated. No surprise, every one of those came from the fields that had originally been soaked with filtered water. On top of that, six green-glow peanut sprouts and two yellow soybean sprouts had also mutated.

The forecast said the second round of Xiang Rain would last forty-eight hours. But four hours in and she’d already lost so many crops—how much worse would it get by the end?

Frustrated, Xia Qing hurried back to the cabin, yanked off her mask, and gulped a few sips of spring water.

Boss Sheep was on edge, too, so she stroked his coat, gave him a drink, and handed over a few pieces of dried green-glow bamboo shoot to chew on. If both she and Boss Sheep were feeling this irritable, the Xiang element in the air must have spiked. The next round of rain might hit red level.

Red level meant even greater danger ahead.

Sure enough, the next wave of Xiang Rain was at red level. In the Lord Channel, Kuang Qingwei let loose a string of curses. One of his workers had suddenly flown into a rage, destroyed a huge patch of mung beans, and wrecked the rain shelter.