Chapter 1240: Took on a Mission Outside the Base

As the saying goes, a stalk of crop is a flower, all depending on fertilizer as its master — meaning that to make crops yield abundantly, one must apply enough fertilizer.

After the microorganisms in the soil evolved, crab-shell fertilizer, which can suppress the evolved anaerobic bacteria, became an indispensable fertilizer for farming. Therefore, not only will the price of crab-shell fertilizer rise, but premium crab-shell fertilizer will also be monopolized.

Without premium fertilizer, one cannot grow premium crops. Better to rely on oneself than on others. Xia Qing decided to strike first, heading to the eastern coastal area of Hui-3 to fence off a large tract of land to raise crabs or collect crab shells and produce crab-shell fertilizer.

The evolved forests north, west, and east of the Hui-3 base safe zone all belong to the vast Shennongjia Evolved Forest Belt, with a total area of 1.43 million square kilometers.

Crossing the vast northern evolved forest sea, one can reach Red-11 base; crossing the northwest leads to Lan-5 base; crossing the west leads to Hui-6 base; crossing the south leads to Hui-1 and Hui-5.

After crossing the eastern forest region, one finds the winding coastline.

The ocean is the most dangerous region on evolved Blue Star. Under the combined effects of nuclear pollution, industrial wastewater, cosmic rays, and the two elements Qiang and Yi discharged by many countries, marine organisms have undergone complex and frenzied evolution and lost their value as food.

In the disaster years of food and material shortages, humanity naturally no longer has much interest in the ocean, which cannot provide food for humans. Only some coastal bases in Guicheng, Hongcheng, and Baicheng collect shellfish and crabs, and after removing salt and harmful substances, process them into fertilizer needed for growing crops, selling it externally.

Humanity has no interest in the ocean, but marine organisms have developed an interest in the land. Fierce survival competition forces many marine organisms to use the tides to explore and dig out living space along the coastline, seeking new ways to survive, causing the land by the sea to be nibbled away and occupied bit by bit by marine creatures.

Compared with Gui-3, which has already been swallowed by the sea, and Gui-5, which is in dire peril, Hui-3's luck is far better.

Although Hui-3 base is also adjacent to the sea, the Hui-3 safe zone is separated from the sea by more than four hundred li of evolved forest, and the Hui-3 safe zone sits at an elevation of over 200 meters. As long as no catastrophe on the scale of a major crustal movement occurs, the Hui-3 safe zone faces no danger of being swallowed by the sea.

Because the coastline is too far away and no food can be obtained from there, and Hui-3's financial and material resources are also very limited, Hui-3 has not developed its own base's coastline.

Now the situation has changed — coastal resources must be put to use.

To carry out this plan, Xia Qing needs to join forces with the Hui-3 First Battle Squad.

Over a thousand mu of crops are planted within Territory One; the Azure Dragon Squad will certainly need crab-shell fertilizer, so as soon as Xia Qing brought up cooperation, Yang Jin guessed her goal.

This made Xia Qing believe they would surely reach a cooperation agreement.

Of course Iron Rooster Yang Jin was interested. The key now was how to cooperate and how to split the profits. "If we're going to cooperate, it depends on how much sincerity Sister Qing can show."

Xia Qing's fighting spirit was also roused by Yang Jin. "We'll meet and talk tonight."

"Good."

After hanging up the phone, Xia Qing hurried to Center Nine. She had just finished giving instructions about unloading when the fertilizer arrived, and the phone of Agriculture Department Director Yang Benming rang in.

"Xiao Xia, according to confirmed intelligence, Hui-2 and Hui-5 bases have already dispatched battle squads to Gui-1 and Gui-5 to snatch the crab-shell fertilizer we ordered. The base commander wants you and Azure Dragon's Captain Yang Jin to team up and rush to Gui-5 as soon as possible — you must bring back the fertilizer we ordered. Even if they raise the price, agree to it, as long as it's not too outrageous."

Hui-2 and Hui-5 were of course also affected by this catastrophe. Seeing Hui-3 place bulk orders for crab-shell fertilizer, they certainly understood that crab-shell fertilizer suppresses harmful microorganisms in the soil.

Grain is the basic guarantee of human survival. Stored grain is a base's backbone. Therefore, ordering crab-shell fertilizer to improve the soil and ensure farmland quality so as to plant more and better grain is a normal need.

The crab-shell fertilizer stockpiles at the various coastal bases of Guicheng, Baicheng, and Hongcheng are all sizable, and Hui-3 base has not ignored the survival of other bases by hoarding fertilizer through over-purchasing. They don't go buy fertilizer from other bases, yet they snatch the disaster-relief fertilizer Hui-3 has already ordered — this is going too far.

Of course, Hui-2 and Hui-5 also know they don't have the moral high ground doing this, so they didn't send official representatives but private battle squads. It's plainly a move to cut in and steal the deal, or to drive the price up!

At this critical juncture, Hui-3 certainly cannot show weakness or back down. Because this batch of fertilizer is disaster-relief material concerning the survival quality of Hui-3 base's 1.81 million people.

Therefore, the Hui-3 base commander, who held the moral high ground, decisively ordered an official-and-squad joint elite team to be dispatched to bring back their own fertilizer, complete the soil improvement as soon as possible, and plant over three hundred thousand mu of overwintering wheat before the ground freezes.

Charged with this important mission, Xia Qing accepted the order. "Copy that."

Raise the price? Raise it to the point of outrageous? Hmph!

Hearing that Xia Qing was willing to take this mission, Yang Benming immediately felt the burden on his shoulders lighten by half. "Good! Besides the Azure Dragon Squad, the base commander has also sent a squad of special forces to protect you. The plane departs in one hour. We'll meet at the safe zone airport."

After hanging up the phone, Xia Qing immediately pressed the walkie-talkie button. "Territory Two's Tang Huai, Territory Eight's Zhou Zhaoping, Territory Eleven's Huo Zhun, Wang Man, Territory Fifteen's Zhang Hongda — are you there?"

Tang Huai came online first. "Here!"

Immediately after, Zhou Zhaoping and the others also came online and responded.

Xia Qing sent out the team-up invitation. "Hui-2 and Hui-5 have dispatched battle squads to Gui-5 to snatch our crab-shell fertilizer. You few, get to Landing Pad 49 within twenty minutes and come with me to bring the fertilizer back."

Tang Huai whooped. "Copy that! Those bastards have some nerve, daring to snatch our goods — let's kill them!"

In the disaster years, snatching supplies is snatching lives! Dare to snatch my life, and your life must be left behind for me.

This is the human instinct honed by ten years of material shortage. Not to mention adults, even six- or seven-year-old children understand this principle — hold tightly to your own supplies, and fight to the death with anyone who tries to snatch them.

So upon hearing what Xia Qing said, the lords were furious.

"Copy that." Zhou Zhaoping's voice was gentle and calm, no different from usual.

"Copy that." Wang Man was brimming with killing intent.

Twenty minutes later, Xia Qing brought Guo Chongjun, a dual-system evolver with Level-5 hearing and Level-4 vision from Center Nine's Security Department, and Su Sibao, a Level-4 speed evolver, to the landing pad, and together with Luo Pei's squad and the allies she had gathered, boarded the helicopter and headed for the Hui-3 safe zone.

This master and disciple are top snipers who go on missions together, but the two play different roles on a mission.

Luo Pei instructed his apprentice, who didn't look nervous at all. "The other side didn't send official representatives, so it's not appropriate for our base to send high-level officials. You and Zhao Baolin are the best candidates for this mission. I'll team up with Zhao Baolin and go to Gui-1; you and A-Jin team up and go to Gui-5. We still don't know whether the squad rushing to Gui-5 is from Hui-2 or Hui-5. If it's Hui-5's Black Panther Squad, this will definitely be a tough fight for you."

During last month's migratory bird season, Hui-3's top sniper Xia Qing made her debut, single-handedly capturing Phantom, the top sniper of Hui-5's Black Panther Squad, and wiping out his entire squad, shocking the whole nation.

After the completely paralyzed Phantom was sent back to Hui-5, he breathed his last in less than a week. Of course Hui-5's top-ranked Black Panther Squad couldn't swallow this insult. They posted a bounty mission on the black market, offering 500,000 points for Xia Qing's head.