Chapter 1078: Opening Fire

August thirty-first of the eleventh year of the Calamity, 9:30 a. m.

Inside the great canyon that forms the boundary between Sector Twenty-Six of Hui-3 Base's southwestern mountain region and Sector Twenty-Nine of Hui-1 Base's northern mountain region, a gun barrel, black as a hole, hides among the slender blades of grass at the mouth of an unremarkable crack in the mountainside.

Lying behind that barrel is Hui-3's newly promoted top sniper, Xia Qing, a three-attribute advanced Evolver.

The Wanderers know this terrain even better than Old Wolf does.

Xia Qing led the wolf pack through the flue to retreat into this cave, inevitably leaving tracks on the ground. Because Xia Qing and the main body of the pack crawled back and forth through the flue, their feet and paws are black.

Even without olfactory or visual Evolvers among the Wanderers, they could follow the tracks on the ground and stone walls for over two thousand meters and find this small team, more than half of whose members are old, weak, sick, or injured.

Old? That refers to Old Wolf, who is in a convalescent period—his stamina and combat power have declined, and he gets leg cramps if he runs for too long.

Weak? That refers to Little Wolf Sister, only six months old, with no combat experience and unable to keep her cool.

Sick? Of course, that refers to the three evolution wolves who were just rescued and are still too weak to do anything but lie deep inside the cave.

The northern wolf pack's lead wolf has clearly realized this too. It lies beside Xia Qing, its amber-gold eyes fixed on the valley outside, its two furry big ears pricked straight up, concentrating fully on catching every whisper of wind and movement in the canyon.

The exhausted Little Wolf Sister lies behind and to the side of her mother, watching the four wolves deep in the cave, guarding against their sneak attack; Handsome Giant Wolf crouches beside the other exit of this gourd-shaped cave, watching the movement over there, while Black Wolf crouches behind it, also keeping a close eye on that unfamiliar group of wolves inside the cave.

Broken-Waist Wolf? Went out to scout; current position unknown.

For a sniper, this cave's location isn't ideal, but Xia Qing can't go out, because her current main mission is to protect the wolf pack, not to kill the target.

"Woo—"

The lead wolf's ears swivel, and it lets out a low warning. Every wolf in the cave, including the three still lying down, lifts its head and goes on alert.

Xia Qing's finger rests on the trigger, her eyes fixed on this jagged, boulder-strewn canyon.

"Thump, thump, thump—"

The sound of a large animal running comes through. Xia Qing's barrel swings to the right, and a brown-black monitor lizard without a collar quickly appears in her field of vision, followed by quite a few smaller animals in full sprint.

Xia Qing, gripping her gun with both hands, immediately warns, "Your Majesty, don't let Little Wolf Sister go out."

The lead wolf lets out a low growl, stopping the pup who has already stood up behind it.

"The one in front is the monitor lizard from that cave earlier. It's been coated with a meat-scented agent, so a lot of animals are chasing it," Xia Qing says in a low voice, briefing the lead wolf on the situation in the canyon. "Those bad humans who captured the evolution wolves are using the monitor lizard to lure the helicopter away so they can move."

Although that monitor lizard isn't wearing a collar, the ring of marks on its neck from frequently wearing one is clearly visible. Xia Qing just saw the monitor lizard in the cave—how could she mistake it?

This cave has already been exposed, so the Wanderers' next move will definitely be to run. The question now is whether they run directly, or retrieve the supplies Xia Qing took before running.

Why wasn't the wolf pack drawn by the scent of the trapping agent? Of course, because Xia Qing had previously smeared on their noses the antidote prepared by her idol.

This trapping agent is a must-carry drug in the packs of this Wanderer team. This trapping agent is extracted from the seeds of the meat-fragrant Carnage Grass found on the territorial passage in Northern Zone One. Six days ago, the big shot of Territory Seven had already obtained these grass seeds, formulated an antidote that cancels out the trapping agent's attractive scent, and added it to the blood-red agent seeds, which had people spray it on the passage.

The scent factor released by the antidote chemically reacts with the meat-fragrant scent factor released by the trapping agent, so what the wolf pack smells now isn't a meat fragrance, but a stench.

About two minutes after the dozens of animals large and small had run past, the roar of a helicopter came from far to near, howling overhead above the cave where Xia Qing was hiding.

Xia Qing quickly flexed her neck and fingers, ready for combat.

"Sister Qing, this is Xie Yu. My team is approaching the target position. What was that herd of beasts that just lured the helicopter away?"

Xie Yu's voice comes through the walkie-talkie. Half of Xia Qing's worry lifts. "It was a monitor lizard released by the Wanderers, carrying an agent that attracts carnivores. Captain Xie, don't worry about the beasts—head straight for the target location. They may try to flee with the supplies."

"Copy."

Xia Qing didn't ask him to send people to support her, which means she doesn't need his help on her end. Xie Yu leads the team at full speed toward the target location. The Wanderers, who possess a large amount of Yi Stones, are preparing to switch nests—this is the perfect chance to raid their den!

"Woo—"

A low growl sounds in Xia Qing's ear. The lead wolf and its pack slowly rise to their feet, preparing to launch an attack.

No target has appeared in Xia Qing's field of vision, and her hearing hasn't picked up any suspicious movement either, but the lead wolf's hearing and sense of smell are far sharper than hers—there must be an enemy approaching.

Before Xia Qing could even detect the enemy's presence, the lead wolf had already shot out. Xia Qing immediately followed. Handsome Giant Wolf rushed to the cave mouth and pressed one paw down on Little Wolf Sister, who was about to follow them out.

The instant the lead wolf darted out of the crack, it sprinted at top speed to the right. Xia Qing burst out of the cave, and a bullet struck the transparent shield raised on her left shoulder with a sharp bang.

The opponent is a sniper with excellent aim. After missing with the first shot, they fired three more in quick succession to suppress Xia Qing, keeping her from poking her head out.

Xia Qing, hiding behind Shi Zhu, casually tosses a special-made grenade toward the direction the bullets came from.

"Bang!" The grenade is hit by the enemy sniper's bullet and explodes mid-air.

"Ah—"

A scream comes from the top of the opposite canyon. Broken-Waist Wolf springs out, slamming a Wanderer carrying a rocket launcher off an eighty-plus-meter stone wall.

"Bang bang bang!" Using the falling Wanderer as cover, Xia Qing fires three shots in quick succession, hitting the thinnest part of a mushroom-shaped stone pillar seven hundred meters away. The pillar collapses with a rumble. The sniper perched on top loses balance and falls backward—just then, Xia Qing puts a bullet into his right shoulder, robbing him of his best chance to escape. He plummets along with the pillar and is crushed beneath the rubble.

The gunner who fell from the high altitude and had already thrown away his rocket launcher is an Evolver of considerable combat power. He hits the ground, rolls twice to shed momentum, and dodges the falling stones. But before he could get up, he was knocked down by the lead wolf, whose combat power is even higher, and failed to dodge the larger falling rocks.

Sniper and gunner: dead.

Xia Qing, who has already climbed to the best nearby sniper position, quickly scans the area with her eyes. Confirming no enemies lurking within two thousand meters to either side, she calls out to her companions, "Your Majesty, Broken-Waist, take cover—the helicopter is coming."

Such a huge commotion here means the roar of the helicopter that had been patrolling overhead—and been lured away by the monitor lizard—will grow from faint to loud, and it'll be here soon.