Chapter 1379: Dividing the Search Zones

The surveillance equipment and system in Territory Three were exchanged by Xia Qing with her idol — a high-end model usable in P3-level laboratories.

Besides identifying intruders, the surveillance system also has tracking and intelligent recognition functions.

Anyone — human or medium-to-large animal — who enters Territory Three and is identified by the surveillance system as having access clearance will be continuously tracked by cameras throughout the entire territory, and their behavior will be intelligently analyzed. Once the system judges the entrant's behavior to be abnormal, it will immediately send an alert to the surveillance room and to Xia Qing's phone.

Because when the surveillance system automatically zooms, identifies, and tracks an entrant, the faint sounds and lens reflections it produces differ subtly from those produced by manual zoom operation.

That is why an evolver like Yang Jin, who has undergone special training and possesses brain-domain and visual evolution, can detect that someone is operating the cameras to monitor him.

During this Calamity Snow period, Yang Jin believed that only he and Xia Qing were inside Territory Three. When Xia Qing went out on missions, he was the only one left in the territory. So when Yang Jin left the surveillance room to patrol the territory and noticed someone operating the camera zoom to monitor him, he returned without a sound to the surveillance room beside the farmland. After confirming the surveillance room had not been breached, Yang Jin suspected that someone had hacked into Territory Three's surveillance system.

Based on Yang Jin's understanding of Xia Qing, she would never grant this access permission to anyone, nor would she use the surveillance to check on what he was doing while out on a mission.

As for how to answer this question, Xia Qing had long been prepared. She replied vaguely, "Daigua has this permission. It's been glued to its phone playing around with Ergua lately."

Huh?!

It was a rare treat to see that pleasing face wear a dumbfounded expression. Xia Qing's appetite grew even sharper, and she fished out a black-bone chicken drumstick to gnaw on.

Those two extremely timid monk-faced monkeys have phones now? And they got surveillance access? This...

It really is exactly the kind of thing Xia Qing would do.

Xia Qing is the lord; she has the authority to decide all matters within the territory. Yang Jin didn't ask her why she'd granted the monkeys surveillance access. After ruling out the danger, he mentally calculated Xia Qing's stock of second-hand phones and brought up a trade offer: "Sister Qing, are the two monkeys in your territory sharing one phone right now? Do you need to exchange for a few more? I have brand-new ones, second-hand ones — everything here."

Xia Qing wasn't about to give this iron rooster a chance to earn her points. "No need. To make sure Broken-Waist and Daigua using phones goes unnoticed by humans, the ones they use are all exchanged from Third Brother — phones with a very high confidentiality grade."

Not just them — she uses one too. Xia Qing gnawed on her chicken leg with an expressionless face, but her heart was blooming.

"Indeed the confidentiality grade should be raised, because if this got out, it would shock the entire Blue Star. Those two brain-domain evolved shepherd dogs in Orchid City are still using phone-watches." Yang Jin ladled two more scoops of chicken soup into Xia Qing's bowl before pouring the remaining soup into his own and downing it in one go.

Although Xia Qing was exhausted and in desperate need of rest, there was still one more matter Yang Jin needed to discuss with her before she rested.

"I had Xie Yu contact Xie Jing, and it's confirmed that Hui-1's group of wanderers will plant evolved Bai Mao grass roots around their hiding places. Although after their companion was captured they might stop planting, I feel we still can't let this lead go. So at five in the morning, I dispatched six squads carrying trained birds to search the Hui-3 Evolution Forest, hoping to find traces of the fugitive wanderers. What's your plan for Hui-1, Sister Qing? If you're not deploying the southern wolf pack to search, I'll cooperate with Hui-1's squad."

Great minds think alike — almost. The negotiation has begun!

Xia Qing also downed the soup in her bowl in one gulp and replied, "I already contacted the southern wolf pack's Fourth at four in the morning. Broken-Waist Wolf also knows about this. The northern and southern wolf packs have begun searching for suspicious Calamity Grass zones. They'll contact me when there's news."

Sorry — my move was an hour ahead of yours.

The wolf packs in the Hui-3 Evolution Forest have already become a combat force Xia Qing can call upon. Yang Jin asked with a smile, "Alright, the Azure Dragon Squad won't get involved with Hui-1 then. For the Hui-3 Evolution Forest side, what's your arrangement, Sister Qing?"

Xia Qing answered strictly, "If the wanderers are hiding within the wolf packs' territory, even if you discover them first, the wolf packs get the final say."

Xia Qing was strict, but Yang Jin was even stricter. "When you say 'wolf packs,' Sister Qing, you mean the Hui-3 northern and southern wolf packs, correct?"

No, no, no.

"And the Hui-3 western wolf pack." Without waiting for Yang Jin to voice his objection, Xia Qing continued, "The western wolf pack's wolf king is the older brother of the northern wolf pack's third-ranked combatant. These two packs are iron allies."

The western wolf pack has tense relations with humans, and the Azure Dragon Squad's search range never included the western wolf pack's territory to begin with. Yang Jin nodded, "Alright, I'll have them avoid these three wolf packs' territories. However, if the wolf packs need it, the Azure Dragon Squad can provide assistance."

Already exhausted, Xia Qing sat at the negotiation table after eating her fill, her mind running at full capacity. "I'll need to confirm this point with the wolf packs before I can give you an answer. But there's one more thing I need to state in advance: the wolf packs' search range isn't limited to their own territories."

The wolf packs' territory belongs to the wolf packs; human territory belongs to humans. In the Evolution Forest, areas that belong to neither the wolf packs nor humans can be explored by anyone — as long as your combat power can overpower that area's lord, or you can avoid being detected by that territory's lord.

Yang Jin leaned forward slightly, looking at Xia Qing, who had fought for eight hours and was still radiant. "Sister Qing, shall we follow the squad mission rules and divide up the search zones in advance? That way we can boost efficiency, avoid conflict, and clear out these ticking bombs — or tumors — in the Evolution Forest as soon as possible."

Supplies are important, but the Evolution Forest's safety is even more important. After making this point clear, Yang Jin first showed his sincerity: "The squads I dispatched are currently in Southern Evolution Forest mountain zones 18–19. The Evolution Forest during Calamity Snow is extremely dangerous for wanderers too, especially since this group has lost Blaze's support and has long been on the run — they definitely can't replenish the necessary disaster-relief supplies in time. So I suspect they'll return during Calamity Snow to hide out for a few days in Evolution Forest areas they're more familiar with."

If two squads take on the same mission, there is indeed such a rule. But Xia Qing didn't make the decision for the wolf packs outright. "Wait while I call to confirm."

Xia Qing first dialed Fourth's number, only to find that the old wolf hadn't brought his phone. Then she dialed Broken-Waist Wolf's number — this time it connected.

Xia Qing looked at the eye-searingly bright Yishi protective case she had personally crafted, hanging around Broken-Waist Wolf's neck, and after two seconds of silence asked the big black nose on the screen, "Broken-Waist, where are you?"

Broken-Waist Wolf raised its head to look, then picked up the phone pouch in its mouth and shifted to a different angle.

Seeing the silver-gray giant wolf with pale ice-blue eyes appear on the screen, Yang Jin was greatly surprised.

Xia Qing smiled, "Handsome Giant Wolf's older brother is there too? Broken-Waist, are you in the western wolf pack's territory?"

Why not ask the Western Wolf King? Because that wolf could never answer Xia Qing's question.

Broken-Waist Wolf, mouth tightly shut, appeared on the screen again, indicating it was not currently in the western wolf pack's territory.

Xia Qing thought for a moment, then asked, "Are you in the western tiger group's territory?"

Broken-Waist Wolf bared its mouth, revealing its adorable, snow-white little fang tips.

Why does Broken-Waist Wolf think the wanderers are hiding in the western tiger group's territory?

Beside Xia Qing, in a spot the phone's camera couldn't capture, Yang Jin's face showed thought.