Chapter 948: Fallen Giants and Blood-Stained Alliances

Passing by the headless body of the Giant Raptor, Xia Qing stopped, pulled out a soft measuring tape, and snapped a few photos of the corpse from different angles.

She had to move fast. Once the Alpha finished his howl, the Evolved Wolves’ habits dictated they’d deal with this body right away.

This was most likely the one Gui Five chased down. Xia Qing needed these photos and some tissue samples to claim Gui Five Base’s sixty thousand credits reward plus the extra five thousand from Hui Three Base.

To get those sixty-five thousand credits, all ten main combat teams from Hui Three Safe Zone had sent their elite squads. No one expected this raptor would end up deep in Evolved Forest stirring up trouble for the Wolf Pack.

Sure enough, as soon as Xia Qing finished her shots, the Alpha leapt onto the raptor’s body and threw his head back with a furious howl. “Awooooo—”

Xia Qing quickly tucked away her phone and measuring tape, then hurried to Crippled Wolf’s side. Blood seeped from the two gashes on its head and its paw, staining the stones red.

Nearby, the Little Wolf—also bleeding—was pushing under Lame Wolf for milk, howling pitifully. Even though at four or five months old it was long weaned, this was just an instinctive reaction from being so terrified.

With the Little Wolf cared for by its own parents, Xia Qing bent to examine Crippled Wolf’s wounds. She hadn’t even touched him when she noticed every wolf—except the Handsome Huge Wolf, still howling—staring straight at her.

Xia Qing…

“What is it?”

Blood trickled down from Crippled Wolf’s head wound as he lifted his soaked paw and pointed at the bird nest perched high in the ancient tree.

Xia Qing looked up, then pointed at the nest—actually not that big from down here—and asked, “Broken Back, are you telling me to climb up and check what’s inside?”

Crippled Wolf kept pointing, blood from paw and head dripping onto the rocks in bright red spots.

Xia Qing gestured again. “You want me to knock the nest down instead?”

Crippled Wolf bared his bloody fangs, dead serious—yep, Xia Qing got it right.

“Alright!” Xia Qing reached to her belt and pulled off a grenade, tossing it straight for the fork at the very top of the giant tree where the nest sat. With Crippled Wolf hurt this badly, she had to blast it down and treat him fast.

“Boom!”

The grenade was Xin Yu’s handiwork—packed with over four times the usual explosives. The trunk beneath the nest, as thick as half a meter, was blasted apart. As the upper branch tilted and began to fall, Xia Qing’s pupils shrank.

A dead adult Evolved Wolf, skull hollowed out, tumbled from above with broken branches and two enormous bird eggs.

The Alpha leapt high, smashing an egg with one swipe, landed among his fallen packmate and the dead wood, and raised his head for a mournful howl. Dried leaves from the nest scattered on the wind, swirling down like Devastation Snow to shield the sun and cast a shadow over them all.

Every wolf joined his angry howl. Xia Qing stood quietly among the fallen leaves, relaxing her tense fist only when she saw the brown-gray Evolved Wolf beside the Alpha wasn’t Lame Wolf.

This was Blue Star’s bloody law of survival—no matter the species, the weak are killed while only the strong earn food and the right to live on.

As king of the Northern Wolf Pack, the Alpha didn’t just unite the Evolved Wolves into a true pack. He also made alliances with humans, Yellow Weasel, even leopards—all for survival. Still, not everyone could be saved.

On this evolved Blue Star, no species could hold dominance like pre-evolved humans once did.

After a few deafening howls the Alpha lowered his head to lap at the spilled egg on the branches, then ripped into the Giant Raptor’s neck—what was left of it—tearing off meat to swallow.

Crippled Wolf limped over, leaving bloody footprints, and started gnawing at the raptor’s flesh. Handsome Huge Wolf followed after.

Soon, the Alpha turned his gaze to Xia Qing, who still hadn’t moved.

She understood. Drawing her Black Blade, Xia Qing cut off a chunk of raptor meat and hacked loose one thick bird leg, sealing both away in a bag.

After Xia Qing had claimed her share, the rest of the pack took turns devouring the Giant Raptor. Even the just-rescued, injured Little Wolf struggled over to yank at its wing. The plucked one had already bolted, nowhere to be seen.

It wasn’t just about food for these wolves—it was revenge. They meant to shred the Giant Raptor to pieces.

The Alpha tore off the second bird leg and laid it carefully at Xia Qing’s feet, watching her in silence.

Through her protective mask, Xia Qing bumped her forehead gently against the Alpha’s, pulled up a video of her helicopter, and gestured, “Your Majesty, Broken Back and the Little Wolf both need treatment. Should I have the humans fly this helicopter over with medicine and a doctor?”

Helicopters were hardly foreign to the Alpha. He didn’t object.

“Got it. I’ll call the chopper.” Xia Qing did a quick patch-up on Crippled Wolf’s bleeding face wounds, then had the Big Guy carry her up the mountain peak three miles away. There, after getting phone reception, she sent her coordinates to Er Yong and then called Third Brother. She gave a quick rundown of the wolves’ injuries, asking him to send Zhang Song her way.

Xia Qing’s medical skills were basic at best—she could stitch wounds and smear some ointment, but that’s about as far as she dared go.

Zhang San’s first question was about her. “You’re not hurt, are you?”

Xia Qing replied, “Nope, I was on sniper duty all the way, never even took off my mask. Didn’t even graze my skin. Third Brother, can I have Huo Zhun protect Brother Song?”

She trusted retired Huo Zhun over Sector Seven’s regular security, and wanted to keep Ji Li and Zheng Chen’s people away from the Wolf Pack.

Call ended, Xia Qing immediately contacted Huo Zhun to pick up Zhang Song.

When Xia Qing returned to the giant tree, some wolves had already left, carrying their fallen packmates. The Alpha and Little Wolf were tending Crippled Wolf’s wounds, while Black Wolf and Lame Wolf cared for the injured cub.

At Xia Qing’s approach, Lame Wolf flashed bloody fangs and growled.

What a temper, seriously…

Xia Qing just sighed quietly, yanked out her medical kit, pulled on anti-bacterial gloves and walked over. Nudging Black Wolf aside with her foot for space, she pinned down the injured black cub. First, she gave it an oral dose of pesticide, then cleaned its wound with disinfectant swabs.

It was the first time Xia Qing had treated this cub, but it didn’t fight her too much. Maybe the injury was that bad, or maybe the pack had already accepted her as “one of their own.”

The cub’s wounds were deep, much like what Little Fei Mao suffered after its run-in with a harrier eagle—small entry but cut deep. This would need proper care back at base.

Finishing up, Xia Qing found herself watched by both Little Wolf and the Alpha, their tiny fangs bared, as she turned to treat the long and short cuts tree branches had left on Crippled Wolf’s head. Thankfully, he’d put on his Snake Skin Protective Suit, or his whole body would have looked the same.

Evolved Forest was humid and hot this season, so wolves rarely wore protective suits. Xia Qing figured the pack had gone out hunting with the cubs. The black cub was snatched by the raptor, then the Alpha went searching for her while Crippled Wolf ran back to Hill Fifty-Five, pulled on the protective suit and came back to set an ambush.

Lame Wolf was probably left behind to guard Hill Fifty-Five, which is why she hadn’t shown up.

After peeling off Crippled Wolf’s protective suit, Xia Qing saw three of his four paws bleeding. Heart aching, she asked, “Broken Back, which of these three hurts the most?”