Chapter 1168: Invasion of Hui-1: Evolution Forest

"Big Wolf Bro, stop for a moment."

Xia Qing, on the wolf's back, hugged Handsome Giant Wolf's neck to make it stop, then called out to Old Four, the wolf leading the way up ahead. "Old Four, is there a cave with blue-skinned vagrant humans over there?"

Old Four bared his fangs impatiently. Yes!

"Wait for me a moment." Xia Qing pressed her walkie-talkie to contact Yang Jin. "Captain Yang, the mountain ahead of me is Hui-1 Number Twenty-Nine, right?"

Xia Qing was wearing a tracker, so Yang Jin could pinpoint her exact location. "Yes. Within ten kilometers ahead there are no Hui-1 officials or squad members. The Green Dragon Fifth Squad has already 'accidentally wandered' in. Go ahead with peace of mind."

"Copy that."

The Evolution Forest ahead belonged to Hui-1, but was under the Green Dragon Squad's control. So even if Xia Qing went there, no one would kill her as an intruder.

Old Four moved forward quickly, but Handsome Giant Wolf shook his body hard, showing he didn't want to carry Xia Qing anymore. Xia Qing immediately switched from Handsome Giant Wolf onto Big Guy, hooked her feet into the securing device under the giant wolf's protective suit, and urged in a soft voice, "Big Guy, Handsome Wolf Bro, Black Wolf Bro, let's hurry, keep up with Old Four."

To make her own travel easier, Xia Qing had Lord Huo Lei add securing devices to the protective suits of the two giant wolves. So these two giant wolves wore protective suits, and when Xia Qing wanted to ride them, she didn't need to put on special binding straps. She could leap onto the wolf's back, hook her feet in, and stick firmly to the wolf's back, freeing her hands to hold a gun or a blade.

Double the safety, soaring combat power!

The old wolf entered Hui-1 Number Twenty-Nine Mountain from Hui-3 Number Thirty-Nine Mountain. After moving forward for five minutes, he slowed down, finally lying down in a patch of dense grass taller than a person, and let out a soundless roar toward the stone wall ahead.

Old Four's movements didn't look like he'd just found a cave.

Xia Qing dropped to the ground, bent over and walked to Old Four's side, lowering her voice. "Old Four, are there blue-skinned vagrant humans ahead?"

Old Four bared four fangs, looking fierce.

"Understood. There are blue-skinned vagrant humans ahead, and they've hurt Old Four's companions. I'll have Yang Jin catch them right now. Old Four, don't move."

This counted as a windfall. Xia Qing soothed this weather-beaten old wolf who was still tenaciously alive, and contacted Yang Jin.

A month ago, Xia Qing accepted Old Four's mission invitation, teamed up with the northern wolf pack, and went to the great canyon adjacent to Hui-3 Number Twenty-Six Mountain and Hui-1 Number Twenty-Nine Mountain—at least five li west of their current location—rescuing two adult and one juvenile evolved wolves, three in total, who had been captured by vagrants and locked in a mountain cave.

In that mission, Old Four rescued his three companions. Xia Qing harvested a large amount of high-grade Yi Stones. Besides Yi Stones, the Green Dragon Squad also captured a nine-year-old Class C magnetic-sense evo named Xiao Jing.

Through interrogating Xiao Jing, the Green Dragon Squad learned that at least twenty more blue-skinned vagrants were hiding in the Evolution Forest. But Xiao Jing was too young and held too low a position within the vagrant squad to know exactly where these people were hiding, only the general area.

Based on the information she provided, the Green Dragon Squad sent out elite combat forces and had already rooted out twelve blue-skinned evos in the Evolution Forest, seizing several batches of supplies.

Because of the Green Dragon Squad's precise hunting, and the decline of the Blaze Squad, the remaining blue-skinned vagrants withdrew from this mountain area. A few days ago, the vagrants seized the opportunity of the migratory bird season and approached the Black Panther Squad of Hui-5, wanting to retrieve supplies hidden in Hui-3 Number Twenty-Nine Mountain.

Hui-3 officials tracked this squad's movements and dispatched Xia Qing, Zhu Zhenming, and the Tang Zhou Squad to wipe them out completely. In this mission, the three people scouting ahead were all dressed as vagrants, but only two were vagrants; the other was a Phantom Squad member in disguise.

Because both vagrants were killed, and the captured Phantom Squad member didn't know where the supplies were hidden, Hui-3 officials couldn't retrieve the supplies from Number Nineteen Mountain.

The two vagrants who cooperated with the Phantom Squad, plus the twelve found by the Green Dragon Squad, add up to fourteen people. That means at least six blue-skinned vagrants are still hiding.

These people are a malignant tumor and an unstable factor in the Evolution Forest, and need to be eliminated as soon as possible.

Xia Qing discussed with Yang Jin, "Right, in the mountain forest to the southwest of my position, vagrants are confirmed. The number is uncertain. Captain Yang, can you send people to catch them?"

The number couldn't be confirmed because Old Four couldn't count. Old Four's wolf pack's territory partially overlapped with the blue-skinned vagrants' area of activity, so Old Four was fairly familiar with these vagrants and also knew their attack methods.

Moreover, Xia Qing felt that Old Four's ability to quickly understand her meaning after entering Territory Three was also related to these vagrants. Through these vagrants, Old Four had already learned human speech and gestures.

Old Four brought Xia Qing here this time precisely because he wanted Xia Qing to drive out these vagrants and prevent them from threatening the wolf pack's safety.

The Green Dragon Fifth Squad had just passed through that area and hadn't spotted any vagrants. However, Yang Jin didn't doubt the brain-evolved old wolf's judgment, and also trusted Xia Qing's ability to communicate with the wolf pack. "Copy that. The vagrants are carrying a large amount of potions specifically designed to deal with Evolution Forest beasts. You pull back at least one hundred meters, then I'll bring people over to catch them."

"Okay, you all stay safe."

"Understood."

After getting Yang Jin's reply, Xia Qing led the wolf pack in quietly retreating one hundred meters, lying prone between Old Four and Broken-Back Wolf, watching ahead.

The vagrants' hiding skills were formidable; even with low-light and infrared gear, their hiding spots couldn't be found. But the Green Dragon Squad already had experience fighting vagrants—once the area was locked down, they couldn't escape.

Yang Jin moved fast. After several silenced gunshots, Yang Jin's voice came through Xia Qing's earpiece walkie-talkie. "Four vagrants captured, two dead and two wounded. They came to retrieve supplies hidden in Hui-3 Number Thirty-Nine Mountain. There are no supplies in the rock crevices of the cave they're hiding in now. They've already given up a supply hiding spot in Number Nineteen Mountain. Should I escort them there first?"

Bringing Handsome Giant Wolf along was indeed useful; this trip went very smoothly.

Xia Qing replied, "Okay. After you find the supplies, I'll confirm whether there are other caves."

After Yang Jin escorted the two vagrants and found a hidden cave inside an underground river channel containing quite a few potions, medicinal materials, food, and a small amount of Yi Stones, Xia Qing was led by Old Four to a cliff at Hui-3 Number Thirty-Nine Mountain.

Although he hadn't contacted Xia Qing, Yang Jin was sure there were large amounts of supplies ahead.

Because the two vagrants who had just insisted there were no other supply hiding spots here were showing tension and unease in their expressions and movements.

Five hundred meters ahead of Yang Jin in the Evolution Forest, Xia Qing scanned around through her low-light night-vision goggles.

Let alone a cave, there wasn't even a rock crevice here. Xia Qing asked, "Old Four, where is the vagrant human's cave?"

The old wolf, already showing impatience, looked up.

Xia Qing looked up at the pitch-black cliff face that she couldn't see the top of. "The cave is up above?"

Old Four grinned, briefly showing his fangs.