Chapter 760: Red Rain and the Battle to Guard the Land

Fifty-two hours of Devastation Rain had left the lords completely exhausted. Add in the fierce wind and heavy lightning, and it was enough to push everyone to their limits.

Greenhouses were toppled, crops battered directly by the rain, mutating on a massive scale. Some lost their entire harvest—this disaster was out to finish off the lords.

Zhao Ze couldn’t hold back a tremble in his voice. “What does Blue Star want from us? Can’t it just give humanity a chance to live…”

Tang Huai shot back, “At least humans have protective suits. The animals in the Evolved Forest have it way worse.”

Madam Shi couldn’t help but chime in online, praying, “Divine Wolf, please grant us a brief red rain. Spare us a few more seedlings.”

Xia Qing…

Even the Queen could do nothing about this.

“Beep.”

Her phone chirped from her pocket. Xia Qing took off her gloves and checked. It wasn’t a message from Xu Juan, but instead a notification in the Lords’ Alliance chat from Qi Fu.

Qi Fu: “Kuang, you got any steel or iron wire over there? I want to trade for some to reinforce my greenhouse.”

To withstand strong winds, every greenhouse needed not just sturdy supports but also layer after layer of film-pressing wires—basically, rain covers.

To save costs, not all film-pressing wires were metal. Many used nylon cord, smoothed-down vines, or handmade bark ropes. These worked for normal winds, but in a real gale, things got dicey.

Kuang Qingwei replied quickly: “I’ve ordered a bundle of No.16 iron wire and one of No.18, each 3,000 meters long. No.16 costs 6 credits per meter, No.18 is 5 credits. They’re due the day after tomorrow. I’ll keep 600 meters of 16 and 300 of 18 for myself; the rest is up for grabs. How much do you need, Qi?”

Qi Fu replied at once: “I want 800 meters of No.16.”

Zhao Ze and Shizhong chimed in immediately, and Xia Qing followed with, “Qing, I’ll take 500 meters of No.16 iron wire.”

Xia Qing only needed a little because her territory had fewer greenhouses.

In Territory Four, during the class break, Tan Qi glanced at her phone and asked Jiang Ying quietly, “Yingzi, what’s the difference between No.16 and No.18 iron wire?”

Jiang Ying explained, “That’s the old way of sizing. No.16 iron wire is 1.6 millimeters thick, and No.18 is 1.2 millimeters.”

Tan Qi still looked puzzled. “Why is No.16 1.6 millimeters and No.18 only 1.2?”

Well…

Jiang Ying, with her expressive brows, scratched at her cropped hair and laughed a little awkwardly. “I actually have no idea. Li, do you know?”

Zhu Li also shook her head. “I’ll ask Old Kuang when I get home and message you guys later.”

When class finished that morning, Zhao Ze’s mother suggested to the three students, “Let’s get ready for Devastation Rain first, and resume class afterward?”

“Okay—” Tan Qi stretched the word, obedient as ever.

Zhu Li took a deep breath, almost like she was making a promise. “Teacher Wang, Yingzi, Qi Qi, after the rain let’s all meet here again.”

Zhao Ze’s mother reminded her three students sternly, “Keep yourselves safe during the rain. If the greenhouse falls, you can put it back up. If the crops are gone, you can plant again. But if something happens to you, that’s it. Nothing can replace a person.”

“Yes!” Tan Qi straightened up and responded firmly.

Noticing Jiang Ying was zoning out, Zhu Li asked, “Yingzi, what’s on your mind?”

Jiang Ying snapped back, a bit embarrassed. “I was wondering how to reinforce the greenhouse so it’d stand up better to the wind.”

It was a real concern. The three of them walked and brainstormed as they waited at the Southern Bramble Gate in Territory Four for the Inspection Team.

Only when Tan Junjie’s patrol team strolled over did they join the Inspection Team heading east.

At the signpost for Territory Six, Zhu Li said her goodbyes and headed back to her own land.

When they reached the north gate of Territory Fifteen, Tan Junjie let his daughter go ahead, then turned to Jiang Ying. “Yingzi, your mom called me this morning. She wants you to come back to the Safe Zone and return after the rain. You…”

“Uncle Tan.” Jiang Ying sounded genuinely apologetic. “I told my mom I’d go see her after the rain. I’ll call and explain again—sorry to trouble you with this.”

Devastation Rain was the most severe disaster right now. Every downpour wasn’t just deadly—it also sent people into fits of madness, sparking theft and robbery. The Safe Zone was always at its most chaotic during these times.

In those moments, Yingzi and her mom would hole up in a house with the windows and doors welded shut with iron bars—no matter who knocked, they wouldn’t open up.

Yesterday, Jiang Ying’s mother had called, nagging her to rush back to the Safe Zone and wait till the rain ended before returning to work on the territory. She thought the Safe Zone was safer, since houses there weren’t overrun by mutated plants or beast hordes.

It’s not that Jiang Ying didn’t want to be with her mom, but no one in the nearby territories was leaving. Labor was sorely short during Devastation Rain.

If she abandoned the territory at its toughest moment, how could she ever come back? So as scared as she was, Jiang Ying steeled herself to stay.

She’d explained to her mom: after this second wave of rain, she’d be managing her own field for the first time. She had to learn how to handle these disasters. Otherwise, what would she do when the third rain came for her crops?

She hadn’t expected her mom, instead of arguing with her on the phone, to go straight to Captain Tan, making it sound like Tan Junjie and his daughter were preventing her return. Jiang Ying’s face burned with embarrassment.

Tan Junjie was a father himself, so he understood why Jiang Ying’s mother was worried. His voice softened as he tried to persuade her, “Your Uncle Yue and the others can watch over things here. Just go keep your mother company for a while. That’s the only way she’ll feel at peace.”

Jiang Ying lowered her head and replied quietly but firmly, “There aren’t any retired army engineers in Territory Fifteen. I may not be an Evolved fighter, but I know how to reinforce the greenhouses. I should be here. And if nothing else, I can help wash vegetables or cook meals…”

Like her brother Jiang Hu, Jiang Ying was smart, eager to learn, good with her hands, and always took responsibility. This girl would go far someday.

Tan Junjie couldn’t hide his pride. “Then use the next few days to reinforce the greenhouses, and go home after.”

Jiang Ying still held her ground. “Uncle Tan, after the rain I’ll be covering greenhouses and starting my fields. I have to learn how to protect them and the crops during Devastation Rain. Don’t worry, I’ve got a second-class field suit and I’ll follow orders. I won’t be a burden.”

There may have been plenty of Evolved fighters in their territories, but regular people still made up the majority. Jiang Ying was scared of the rain, the mutated plants, and the beast tides, but if others could do it, so could she.

Because, compared to the Safe Zone, she liked life in the territory more.

No one was constantly breathing down your neck here. You didn’t have to watch your back for thieves or schemers. So even though the work was harsh, Jiang Ying wanted to stay.

At that moment, Tan Junjie felt like he saw a glimmer of Tiger in Jiang Ying. He stopped trying to persuade her, and patted her on the shoulder. “Just talk to your mom, okay?”

“Yes, sir!” Jiang Ying’s eyes lit up as she straightened her back and answered with energy.

Jiang Ying thought she’d convinced her mom. But the day before the rain started, her mother turned up outside the southern gate of Section One’s territory, having caught a ride on Zhong Tao’s delivery patrol truck.

The southern gate guard used the walkie-talkie to contact Yue Haiying, Territory Fifteen’s acting administrator, asking if Jiang Ying’s mother could be allowed inside. The news made Jiang Ying, working in the greenhouse, jump out of her skin.

She put down her pliers and ran out beyond the gates, only to find her mother standing at the roadside in a tattered protective suit, lugging a big bag—eyes brimming with tears of worry.

“Mom, it’s way too dangerous here! Go back with Captain Zhong and the others, please!”

Jiang Ying’s mother, on the other hand, stayed calm. “Didn’t you say your house here is sturdy? I’ll just stay holed up inside during Devastation Rain. In the end, it doesn’t matter where I am.”