Chapter 946: Hunt Beneath the Shadowed Forest

“Brother Song, don’t step outside the greenhouse.”

“Goofball, stay put in the territory. No sneak eating. I’m heading out for a bit.”

Xia Qing quickly reminded Zhang Song before heading out. As she raced through the Northern Buffer Forest, she shouted another warning to the temp workers inside the territory, then leapt over them and exited with a quick scan.

Chen Cheng hadn’t arrived yet, but time was short. Xia Qing just couldn’t wait any longer.

Crouched inside Greenhouse Six, Zhang Song snapped out of his shock after seeing the Alpha up close. He stared nervously at the sky above Section Three, hoping Hu Zifeng’s squad would arrive soon.

His observation subject still hadn’t fully recovered and lay exposed in open ground. If a bird of prey swooped down and snatched it now, they’d be in big trouble.

After two minutes, Zhang Song couldn’t hold back any longer. He stood up, ready to rescue the monkey, when a low, fierce growl snapped through the air.

“Awoo—”

Right in front of him, just three meters away, stood Er—the evolved wolf dog! Meeting a beast at such close range, face to face with nothing between them, was nothing like watching animals through a screen or bulletproof glass. In that instant, every hair on Zhang Song’s body stood on end, muscles rigid, cold sweat breaking out down his back.

Even knowing that the wolf wouldn’t actually bite him, his body reacted instinctively, impossible to control.

Slowly, Zhang Song relaxed his raised arms, letting them fall naturally at his sides to appear completely non-threatening. In reality, his right hand was ready inside his protective suit pocket, gripping a vial of potent wolf repellent.

After confirming that the stinky human inside the greenhouse posed no threat, Er darted off to the Northern Buffer Forest. The moment he arrived, Monkey—who’d been waiting patiently—scrambled onto his back. Wolf and monkey disappeared into the dense forest together.

If Xia Qing didn’t forbid showcasing evolved wolves, an excited Zhang Song would have recorded this scene—the monk-faced monkey’s complex social maneuvering was one for the books.

“The Queen wants me to ride the big guy?”

Xia Qing greeted the burly gray-brown wolf she hadn’t seen in ages and looked to the Alpha for confirmation.

The Alpha bumped Xia Qing gently, urging her not to waste time—time to move out.

“Got it.” Xia Qing pulled a blanket pad from her backpack, laid it across the big wolf’s back, and climbed on.

The gray-brown wolf shook its neck, signaling Xia Qing not to grip so tight, then shot off into the forest. Though not as bulky or tireless as the Handsome Huge Wolf, this one could still carry Xia Qing twenty or thirty miles with ease. Clearly, the Alpha bringing two huge wolves meant they had a long journey ahead.

Lying low on the wolf’s back, Xia Qing watched the scenery flash by. She was determined to seize this rare chance to practice spotting things while moving at speed.

As a level-nine-and-a-half advanced Vision Evolutionary, she had even stronger visual coordination and adaptive skills than Yang Jin. If Yang Jin could see clearly while sprinting, with a bit of training, Xia Qing could too.

With three wolves and Xia Qing in tow, they left Hill Forty-Nine, headed north through the Bamboo Grove, past Crocodile Lake, then the swamplands full of wild ducks and giant lizards. Finally, the gray-brown wolf stopped, panting heavily.

Well prepared, Xia Qing took out three homemade premium nutrient shakes and fed them to the wolves before switching to another brown wolf.

This wolf gave a rough shake, clearly not thrilled about carrying Xia Qing, but with the Alpha’s orders, it could only obey.

The three wolves ran north for another thirty miles, finally entering unfamiliar territory—Hill Fifty-Nine. Their pace slowed noticeably, weaving through the trees’ vast roots.

At this speed and with this terrain, even Xia Qing could keep up on foot. She followed right behind the Alpha, saying nothing and focusing on the path ahead.

Half an hour later, the Alpha stopped suddenly and dropped low to the ground. Xia Qing crouched beside him, watching carefully. Seeing her right at the Alpha’s side, the huge wolf behind them let out a grumpy growl.

Whatever those two behind her were grumbling about, Xia Qing didn’t care. She focused entirely on searching for their target. Here, mountains towered above, the forest was thick, and the sound of water rushing below mixed with endless birdcalls and insect buzz. But where was the target?

Underwater? Luckily, she’d packed her wetsuit.

After a moment, the Alpha stopped staring at the water and instead raised his head to scan above. Once he was sure it was clear, he moved on. So, the target wasn’t in the water—maybe above?

A creeping suspicion formed in Xia Qing’s mind.

The deeper they ventured, the darker the forest became. Even though it was only a bit past ten in the morning, it felt like night.

Tree roots crisscrossed the ground, thick with damp moss. The only light came from glowing bugs flitting through the air and phosphorescent moss, mushrooms, and all sorts of evolved plants scattered over the forest floor.

For a human to get anywhere here, you’d have to pitch a tent, crawl inside, decontaminate, take off your protective mask, put on the night vision goggles, then put the mask back on, pack up, and go—over and over—just to move forward safely.

Why all that hassle? Because this was the heart of the Evolved Forest. Taking off a protective mask outside the tent was no different than betting your life to see if you’d survive.

The Alpha was in a hurry and never paused for a second. Xia Qing couldn’t waste time either, so she stuck close, pushing onward by the faint glow.

After stumbling and falling twice, Xia Qing heard the Alpha let out two low howls. The huge wolf behind her grabbed her backpack and tossed her onto its back.

Immediately, Xia Qing hugged the wolf’s neck tight and vowed to ask Uncle Huo to upgrade her mask—he needed to build in a night vision feature for moments like this. One button to drop the goggles right over her eyes.

With all these twists and turns, even the best sense of direction would be useless. Xia Qing was completely lost. She shut her eyes and used her magnetic sense to map out the trees around her. At last, the Alpha stopped, and the big wolf dumped Xia Qing on the ground. The Alpha tapped her sniper rifle, still strapped to her back, then gestured for her to climb a tree.

Xia Qing nodded, quickly swapped for her cat’s claw climbing shoes, and scaled more than twenty meters before she saw where she really was.

Trees—everywhere—every size and color, most unrecognizable. The tree she’d picked had leaves almost the exact shade as her special protective suit. The Alpha must’ve chosen it on purpose, the perfect sniper perch.

But where was the target for her shot?

From her hiding place high in the branches, Xia Qing scanned her surroundings. Soon, she spotted it: northwest, two kilometers away, perched atop a massive, sixty-meter-tall tree, was a gigantic bird’s nest.

How did she know it was northwest? Easy—the sun was shining bright overhead, and with a glance at its position, Xia Qing could calculate direction in a heartbeat.

It was already past one in the afternoon.

Judging by the nest’s immense size, her target had to be an eagle—or maybe a hawk. Most likely it was the giant eagle that had shrieked furiously above the limestone pillars of Section Seven just two days ago.

That nest was enormous, and much of it had been rebuilt with fresh branches.

So, it had run off into the territory of the Northern Wolf Pack. No wonder Hui Three’s mission and helicopter squads came up empty.

Xia Qing checked her phone and compass, only to find the magnetic field here was haywire—no phone signal either. She stuffed them away. Last time, the eagle-killer squad had six elite human snipers. This time, Xia Qing was on her own.

The giant bird sure knew how to pick its spot. That solitary tree towered high, with only a few thirty-meter ‘saplings’ nearby and a ten-meter gap from its nearest neighbor.

With the bird holding the high ground, it had the best vantage and most defensible spot anywhere around.

The Alpha’s chosen sniper spot for Xia Qing was twenty meters lower than the giant tree, and the view wasn’t great, but her cover was excellent—about the best you could get in this area.

Xia Qing—top human sniper—took aim and waited for the target to show.

“Awoo—awoo…”

The target hadn’t appeared, but all of a sudden the cries of a wolf pup echoed from the nest—instantly tightening Xia Qing’s chest with worry.