Chapter 791: A Hazard in the Grass: Clearing Yellow Scourge

Dangerous evolved Scourge Grass called Huanggan-39 has appeared all over the territory. It’s everywhere, with at least one or two plants in every five square meters. To clean out the Scourge Grass, you have to pull out the Huanggan-39 first, then deal with the other types.

On top of that, all of the Huanggan-39 needs to be removed before noon tomorrow. Time is running out and the job is huge, so Xia Qing kept hiring more people to help.

Soon, Wen Nengjie and Yu Shou each led ten people into Section Three. Following Xia Qing’s instructions, they split the area into north and south zones. Their first task was to dig out the Huanggan-39, then clear the rest of the Scourge Grass.

The dividing line between north and south was a path Xia Qing had carved with the rotary tiller’s mowing wheel, running east to west through Section Three. It was about 500 meters from the path to the southern iron mesh wall, with a total area of around 1200 mu—relatively flat farmland that included two abandoned villages in the southeast and southwest. Wen Nengjie’s team was in charge of cleaning this whole area.

From the path north to the reservoir and south of the river stretched another 1300 mu. After taking away the abandoned village where Xia Qing lived and the 30 mu farmland Xia Qing marked as a barrier, the rest was left for Yu Shou’s team to clean.

Xia Qing and Old Goat were responsible for their own abandoned village, the thirty mu farmland, and the massive 4500 mu buffer forest. Xia Qing handled the Scourge Grass while Old Goat stood guard over what he believed was the most valuable resource in the territory—the Toon Tree.

And Wolfdog Number Two?

Once the two teams entered Section Three, Er slunk to the highest point in the ruins where Xia Qing was staying, eyes brimming with hostility as he watched both groups. The moment anyone dared step into the village, they’d become targets for his attack or be driven away.

So long as the person isn’t Xia Qing, this evolved wolf shows its wild and savage nature. Wen Nengjie’s squad wouldn’t even take the risk, and even Yu Shou and Zhang Hongda—both evolved fighters—knew better. With a grown evolved wolf lurking in ambush, their nerves were taut. No one set foot in the village.

No one was allowed to bring guns to work in Section Three. Even Zhang Hongda, a three-element evolver, didn’t have enough confidence that he could avoid a sneak attack from a top predator hidden within the towering Scourge Grass, over two meters high.

Fight it? Yeah, right. Xia Qing didn’t even hesitate to take out a well-equipped ten-person Trapping Team from Fire Phoenix over this wolf and that sheep! Anyone daring to mess with Er or Old Goat? They might not leave Section Three alive.

After wandering around and pulling up every Huanggan-39 in the ruined village, Xia Qing lifted her head and called out to the wolf sprawled atop the ruins. “Er, I’m heading over to work in the fields. You staying here to guard or coming with me?”

Wolfdog Number Two poked his head down from atop the ruins and looked at Xia Qing, but had no intention of coming down.

Xia Qing got it. “Alright, you stay here and keep watch. I’ll go clear out the Huanggan-39 in the Evolved Forest. Shout if you need me.”

Er bared his teeth in a doggish grin at Xia Qing, then went right back to his spot up high, never taking his eyes off the humans crisscrossing through the Scourge Grass.

It’s not like Xia Qing didn’t want to put protective masks on her two animal companions, but they both refused.

Wolfdog Number Two found the masks a nuisance in battle, while Old Goat couldn’t stand having his cud-chewing interrupted by wearing one.

So, Xia Qing first made sure to purge all the Huanggan-39 from her ruined village. She even checked the Scourge Grass she’d mowed down, making sure every last stalk of Huanggan-39 was gone. She sprayed insect repellent over Er too, so even in the Scourge Grass, he wouldn’t be bothered by evolved insects.

Only after that could Xia Qing leave the village with peace of mind to keep clearing Huanggan-39 elsewhere.

Within Xia Qing’s territory, there were a total of fifteen greenhouses, covering 13.1 mu. That included two terraced slope greenhouses at 1.7 mu, two regular greenhouses at 0.9 mu, ten planting greenhouses in the fields at 10 mu, and one 0.5 mu pasture shed for Old Goat—which also housed the Chicken Manure Vine.

Even though Xia Qing was allies with Territory Fifteen, she couldn’t drop her guard completely.

Material goods can tempt anyone. Xia Qing had no intention of testing her allies’ morals with the bounty growing in her greenhouses.

Of the crops shielded with Yi Stones during the Devastation Rain, five greenhouses and one pasture shed had not a single Scourge Grass, and all the seedlings were thriving. Those greenhouses made it obvious something was up.

No telling which curious ally might peek inside to figure out why those crops were growing so well.

Poke around for a bit and they’d spot the Yi Stones mounted on hardwood poles. It hadn’t been four hours since the Devastation Rain ended, and the Devastation Element in the air hadn’t dropped to normal yet. The Green Lantern crops inside were still protected by the Yi Stones.

Xia Qing didn’t want anyone besides Hu Zifeng’s team to know she’d installed Yi Stones in her fields or find out just how her farmland had fared after that second round of Devastation Rain.

So, she used the rotary tiller to carve out an isolation zone around the ten field greenhouses, two regular greenhouses, and the pasture. The isolation zone covered about thirty mu. The core was all greenhouses and regular houses, and the outer ring was at least six meters of Scourge Grass. Xia Qing, as the lord, handled all Scourge Grass removal inside the ring, while Yu Shou’s team was responsible for the outside.

With a six-meter-thick wall of Scourge Grass blocking the view, Yu Shou’s team couldn’t see inside to the greenhouses, and Wen Nengjie’s team, busy in the southern territory, saw even less.

Yu Shou’s team had no complaints about Xia Qing fencing off her own management area.

After years of disasters and famine, people’s moral bottom line had worn away. Laws barely meant a thing, and trust between people was at an all-time low.

Food is essential for survival, and you can never be too careful or guarded in protecting it.

Most other lords who hire outsiders to work their territory don’t just mark off no-entry zones—they supervise the workers personally or send someone to keep watch, just to make sure their supplies stay safe.

So Xia Qing only marked off her isolation area; she didn’t patrol around watching and supervising everyone. To Yu Shou and Wen Nengjie’s squads, that actually felt like a sign she trusted them.

While clearing the Huanggan-39 inside the isolated zone, Xia Qing realized there weren’t any inside the greenhouses. She pressed the walkie-talkie. “Has anyone found Huanggan-39 in the greenhouses? I don’t have any on my end.”

“Same here,” Yuan Yan replied. “Probably because the Huanggan-39 seeds are bigger than the mesh of the insect nets, so they got blocked outside.”

Zhu Li agreed with Yuan Yan. “Sounds about right. I’ve noticed way more Huanggan-39 near the edge of my greenhouses too.”

Tang Heng guessed, “If that’s true, this Scourge Grass probably blew in from somewhere else, or maybe birds brought the seeds over.”

If Huanggan-39 had evolved from the existing Scourge Grass here in the territory, it should be growing inside the greenhouses too.

Zhao Ze let out a sigh. “How much have you all cleaned up? My eyes are going blurry, and I haven’t even finished a hundred mu yet.”

Scourge Grass comes in all different colors, some almost taller than humans, and creates a vibrant, tangled grassland. There are over a dozen types with yellow leaves, and trying to spot the not-so-distinct Huanggan-39 among them after a while would make anyone go cross-eyed.

Tang Huai grumbled, “Some idiot here got the bright idea for us to pick all the yellow Scourge Grass first and then sort out the Huanggan-39 after. Makes it even harder!”

Honestly, it was a bad plan—once you pull up the Scourge Grass, the leaves start wilting, and then it’s even tougher to tell the different types apart by the shape of the leaves.

With her level-nine evolved vision, Xia Qing didn’t have this problem. After she finished the thirty mu of farmland, she carried five big bundles of Huanggan-39 out of the isolated area and stacked them by the road.

“Let me help, Sister Qing.” Zhang Hongda hurried over, carrying his own armful of yellow grass when he saw Xia Qing come out.

His Synthetic Toxin had been neutralized, so his movements were fast and precise. Even with little red bumps showing beneath his face mask, his grin was radiant and the light in his eyes shone brighter than the sun overhead.

There was little chance the red bumps would fade, but Zhang Hongda didn’t care. Being as healthy as he was now, he was more than satisfied and truly grateful.

Xia Qing didn’t refuse his help. “So, after that last Devastation Rain, you feeling tired at all?”

No one embodied a speed evolver more than Zhang Hongda—he shook his head so fast it was almost comical. “Not tired in the least! Actually feels incredible, like being reborn!”

Having gained a new three-element ally put Xia Qing in a great mood too. She nodded with a warm smile and turned to clear more Huanggan-39 from the buffer forest.

Yu Shou came out carrying his own bundle of yellow grass and caught sight of Dazhi standing by the grass pile, looking a bit dazed. “What’s up? You tired?”

“…Not at all! I’m good!” Zhang Hongda, still caught in Xia Qing’s fleeting smile, snapped out of it and dove right back into the towering Scourge Grass.