Chapter 1193: Call Me Ancestor and I'll Do It

How else am I supposed to defend it?

Hearing those words, Xia Qing knew her idol still hadn't realized how serious this incident was.

Although she was pressed for time, Xia Qing still answered her idol's question in great detail. "If Little Fifth were also a wolf pack member, and it was just playing and wrestling with the little weasel—even if it drew blood, even if it broke the weasel's leg—the wolf pack wouldn't intervene. But Little Fifth isn't a wolf pack member, and it wasn't playing with the little weasel. It treated the little weasel as prey and hunted it, and it hunted it twice."

"This morning, around almost eleven, Little Fifth broke into Zone Three of Mountain Forty-Nine, which Beard Feng doesn't allow it to enter, and chased the little weasel. I warned it off. I didn't expect it to actually circle around me, enter Zone Three of Mountain Forty-Nine again, catch the little weasel, and wound it—which is why the little weasel sprayed its toxic gas in self-defense."

Zhang San was silent for a few seconds, then replied, "Cats and weasels have similar diets; they're competitors. Little Fifth chasing and driving off weasels is just its nature."

"You're right," Xia Qing affirmed her idol's view first, then continued her analysis.

"So, this conflict is partly my responsibility too. This spring, after humans entered the western wolf pack's territory and slaughtered its cubs, the western wolf pack triggered a beast tide and clashed fiercely with humans, with casualties on both sides. This incident affected not only the western wolf pack, but the northern wolf pack as well."

"You see, even though I've earned the trust of the northern wolf pack's leader, right up to now the northern wolf pack still won't let me be alone with their cubs that are seven or eight months old and have some ability to protect themselves. Every time a wolf cub enters my territory, there's an adult wolf guarding it. Do you know why this little weasel came into Mountain Forty-Nine alone?"

The brain-domain evolver Zhang San didn't even need to guess. "It's the offspring of that albino weasel."

As expected of an idol standing at the very top of the pyramid—one word and he gets it!

"Right. That albino weasel had a cesarean in your territory, and five of the eight cubs in its belly survived—this is one of them. This litter of little weasels lived in the sheep shed in Territory Three for over a month, so they're very familiar with my scent, and the weasel parents trust me a lot too."

"Before it happened, I was in the same patch of grassland as that adult weasel. It was hunting, I was gathering grass seeds. The little weasel must have been nearby then—I just didn't notice it. After the adult weasel and I finished a trade, I left that area and went into Mountain Forty-Nine, which is why the adult weasel dared to let the little weasel come find me on its own."

"I overestimated how much Little Fifth's brain domain had evolved and underestimated its nature. I didn't escort the little weasel out of Mountain Forty-Nine, which gave it the chance to act."

Zhang San sat back in his office, which smelled strongly of disinfectant, and quietly gazed at the sky beyond the bulletproof glass window.

After the catastrophe, even on a clear day, the blue of the sky was no longer what it used to be.

"Third Brother, this brain-domain and toxic-gas evolved little weasel is an important member of the northern wolf pack. Last time you went to dig bamboo shoots, I went to Mountain Fifty-Five to invite the Head Wolf and the Broken-Waist Wolf over to protect you, and they brought both that adult evolved weasel and this little weasel along, because the two of them have extremely powerful evolved toxic gas. This little weasel's mother is that albino weasel that had the cesarean. In late May this year, she brought out from deep in the Evolution Forest the rare medicinal herbs you traded with Red Eleven Base."

After stressing the importance of Little Bai Mao and the plucked-fur cub, Xia Qing went on to stress how hard it was for the wolf pack to raise its cubs. "Three of those five weasel cubs have probably already been killed by predators. Now only two cubs remain—one white, one yellow. If the one that came over today hadn't been this toxic-gas evolved cub, but that albino cub, its toxic gas isn't that strong—it might already have been killed and eaten by Little Fifth."

If Little Fifth had been strong enough to kill the weasel cub cleanly, without being spotted by any wolf pack member, that would have been its own ability.

It was precisely because its combat strength wasn't that great that the wolf pack allowed it to live in Mountain Forty-Nine, and that Xia Qing hadn't taken it seriously.

This might also be one of the reasons the plucked-fur weasel dared to let the plucked-fur cub enter Mountain Forty-Nine alone.

Zhang San listened to the howls of wolves and asked, "The wolf pack is going to fight?"

Xia Qing assured her idol, "Don't worry. With me here, this incident absolutely won't escalate to the point of war."

Zhang San instructed Xia Qing, "Good. After Little Fifth recovers, I'll restrict its range of movement and won't let it enter the wolf pack's territory again. If the wolf pack wants medicinal compensation before they'll withdraw, as long as it's not too outrageous, you agree to it."

"Understood!"

Hearing how readily Xia Qing agreed, Zhang San felt uneasy again and warned coldly, "Don't go too far yourself, either."

Xia Qing assured her idol once more, "Third Brother, don't worry. I'm in an alliance with both sides in this conflict, so I'll stay neutral. Even if the wolf pack wants medicine, it'll be the Green Dragon Squad paying points to buy it from you."

After hanging up the phone, Zhang San stood up and walked to the window. Listening to Tan Junjie's solemn announcement on the walkie-talkie, he quietly gazed at the rolling Evolution Forest not far away.

Not just the sky, but the living things beneath it

—including humans—all the creatures of Blue Star, had changed even more from before.

"Knock, knock-knock!"

From the rhythm of the knocking, Zhang San didn't need to turn and check the surveillance to know who it was. He walked back to his desk and pressed the door's open switch.

Zhang Song pushed the door open and walked in, his face full of expectation as he looked at his direct superior, the head of the P3 laboratory. "Third Brother, I want to apply to leave the territory for two hours, to go to Mountain Forty-Nine and observe this human-wolf pack conflict up close."

Zhang San shot him a look and refused outright. "You reek right now. If you observe up close, the wolf pack will identify you as the enemy."

Zhang Song pressed his case. "The smell on me is very faint. I'll change into a brand-new protective suit, spray on odor-isolating agent, and stand downwind to make sure the wolf pack can't smell me."

Seeing Zhang San still wouldn't relent, Zhang Song pleaded urgently, "Third Brother, this chance is just too rare—please let me go. If a wolf smells me, I'll immediately run to Sister Qing's side so the wolf pack knows I'm with her."

Zhang San……

"How old are you, how old is she?!" Calling her 'Sister' with a straight face—that skin is really thick enough.

Zhang Song stepped forward, but his two disobedient legs tripped him and threw him off balance, sending him sprawling across Zhang San's desk. "As long as you approve it, I'll call you Grandpa, I'll call you Ancestor—anything works."

Xia Qing, who had finally run out of Mountain Forty-Nine, hadn't even reached the wolf pack's gathering point when her phone rang again.

This time, it was Yang Jin.

Yang Jin knew the situation was urgent, and after the call connected he didn't waste a single word. "Sister Qing, how does the wolf pack want to resolve this conflict?"

Xia Qing didn't waste words either. "It's not certain yet. I guess the Head Wolf might ask you to withdraw from part of Mountain Forty-Nine, and the Broken-Waist Wolf might ask you to compensate with some supplies."

Xia Qing solemnly reminded him, "Captain Yang, this time Little Fifth was the one in the wrong first. During the wolf pack's howling demonstration, you must keep your squad members in check—don't let them point weapons at the wolf pack. The northern wolf pack is a vital part of maintaining the ecological balance of the Evolution Forest, and a solid barrier helping the human territory resist outside enemies. Let them howl for a while, vent their anger and calm down—then we can talk."

Yang Jin nodded. "Understood. As long as the wolf pack doesn't charge over and hurt anyone, the Green Dragon Squad absolutely won't make a move. What supplies will the Broken-Waist Wolf want? I'll have people prepare them in advance."

In Yang Jin's view, this conflict triggered by a fight between a cat and a weasel wasn't a crisis—it was an opportunity.

Because a negotiation like this, where neither side has suffered major casualties, was a perfect chance to clear up misunderstandings and bring the two sides closer together.