Chapter 1410: Riding a Wolf to See Mushrooms

In Territory No. 7, Zone 1, north of Hui San Base, the boss's office was quiet, tidy, and bright. Xia Qing, who had just returned from a mission, sat quietly in a chair; her ears were buzzing nonstop, and her expression was grave.

Zhang San walked out of the lab and set the examination report in front of Xia Qing. "Your tinnitus is caused by a strong sound impact on your inner ear. Your eardrum is undamaged, so no medication is needed."

That's great!

Xia Qing let out a huge sigh of relief. In five days she would be taking her last medicinal bath—the eighteenth one. If she had taken medication at this point and caused her bone and muscle damage recovery treatment to be interrupted for a month, forcing her idol to re-formulate her medicine and make her start the whole cycle over again—never mind her idol losing his temper, Xia Qing herself couldn't stand it.

The moment he saw Xia Qing's expression, Zhang San knew what she was thinking.

This blizzard disaster had only been going on for 38 hours, yet Xia Qing had already gone out on three missions, each one more dangerous than the last. Especially this last sniper mission, which had coincided with a triple-disaster event that hadn't happened in three years: thunder snow, explosive blasts, and hail all stacked together.

After Zhang San received the disaster forecast and found there was still some time before it hit, he immediately called Xia Qing to remind her to stay safe. Before he could finish speaking, he heard the sound of an explosive blast coming from the other end of the line.

For the thirty-eight minutes after hanging up the phone, Zhang San sat motionless in his chair, running thirteen rescue plans through his head. Only when Xia Qing sent a message saying she was safe did he collapse back into his chair.

Fortunately, this new human's luck was as good as ever.

Seeing the boss's expression wasn't great, Xia Qing immediately diverted his attention. "Third Brother, is that bullfrog that can release a Yi element magnetic field still alive?"

Zhang San came back to himself. "The bullfrog's vital signs are stable, and its surface injuries aren't serious. Although it's shown some physiological stress responses to the environmental changes, that's normal. I've already had Zhang He safely transfer it to a simulated ecological environment, so survival shouldn't be an issue. We'll test its Yi element content after it finishes hibernating."

Giant bees, Yi snakes, bullfrogs. In less than a year, Xia Qing, who was on good terms with the fierce beasts of the Evolution Forest, had already found three kinds of animals capable of releasing a Yi element magnetic field—and all of them were edible. Successfully researching and breeding any one of them would be of great significance for improving humanity's living environment!

Zhang San's expression grew even gentler.

Seeing her idol's mood improve, Xia Qing immediately added fuel to the fire. "Looks like this kind of bullfrog is pretty tough. I'll find time to swing by the southern test area again and see if I can catch two more to bring back."

Zhang San looked kindly at her. "We'll talk about that later. Keep a copy of this mission's footage, then go back and rest."

"Okay." If she weren't in such a rush to get back and check on her territory, Xia Qing would have loved to watch the video of her mission with her idol. Because this sniper mission was her shining moment!

While copying the video, Zhang San picked up Xia Qing's protective mask and examined it carefully for a while. After the copy was done, he told Xia Qing, "Before the disaster ends, try not to go out again. When it's over, bring this protective mask over. I'll have someone modify it for you—raise the lightning and blast resistance levels."

Xia Qing's eyes immediately lit up. Idol, the idol standing at the top of Jin Zita!!!

"Third Brother, can I bring one more over?"

Zhang San rolled his eyes at her. "Bring ten over if you've got the nerve!"

Xia Qing, who didn't yet have that much nerve, shook her head. "These helmets are really expensive. I can get my hands on at most three. I'll trouble you then."

Zhang San couldn't be bothered to deal with her anymore.

Xia Qing asked with a smile, "Third Brother, my throat's a bit uncomfortable. Could you ask Brother Ya to pick a few dragon fruits for me and get some vegetables that clear heat?"

Zhang San……

After being kicked out of her idol's lab, Xia Qing walked out with long strides and a blank expression.

"Sister Qing! Sister Qing!"

When Xia Qing was almost at the south gate of Territory No. 7, the strength evolver Daya caught up with her, carrying a large food box in his left hand and a big crate in his right. "Third Brother said you've had a hard run this time, so he had me pick some fruit and vegetables from the shed. Take them back and try them, Sister Qing. Let me know which ones you like."

Xia Qing took the food, and her blank expression finally showed a hint of a smile—but it was a rather forced one.

Daya looked left and right, saw no auditory evolvers nearby, and lowered his voice. "In the thirty-plus hours since the disaster started, Third Brother has barely rested and hasn't eaten a proper few bites. He's been running on nutrient solution the whole time."

Daya said just enough. One more sentence and it would have been overacting.

Xia Qing nodded calmly. "I've still got two hens on my side that I've been raising for two years on green-light vegetables and mealworms. I'll kill one this afternoon and bring it over for Third Brother."

"No need, no need. We'll come pick it up." After seeing Xia Qing off, Daya, smiling, turned and walked briskly toward the cafeteria.

The Red Eleven special-ops team members on duty in the distance watched this scene and carefully tried to figure out what the two had said based on the changes in their expressions.

After Tang Huai opened the door for her, Xia Qing returned to her territory, drove straight to the meeting room by the farmland, carried the food box inside, and handed it to Chen Cheng. "Third Brother's cafeteria made this. There's soup inside. Just stir-fry two vegetable dishes."

Chen Cheng beamed. "You got it! Sister Qing, go back and rest for a bit. I'll call you when the food's ready."

"Okay." Xia Qing went to the breeding greenhouse to see her companions.

Although the firewood in the fireplace at home was still burning, the outdoor temperature was already close to minus eighteen degrees, and the house wasn't much warmer.

So Xia Qing didn't bring her companions back right away. Instead, she distributed the gifts she'd brought back to them, telling them to wait patiently in the greenhouse until the house warmed up before coming home.

The two cold-fearing ones obediently stayed in the greenhouse munching on dragon fruit. The cold-resistant elder and Wolf Lao Er immediately followed Xia Qing onto the off-road vehicle and headed home together.

Xia Qing drove home, first inspecting the house thoroughly inside and out, then stoked the fireplace up high, and started up the tiller to shovel snow.

The snow in her yard was nearly ten centimeters thick again.

After shoveling the snow in her own yard, Xia Qing also shoveled the area beside the lab, and along the way brought two dragon fruits and several jin of a new variety of green-light vegetables down to Zhang Shi and little Ye Yiyi in the basement.

When Zhang Shi came up from the basement to get the vegetables, Xia Qing smiled. "Sister Ten, your eyes are really pretty."

"I had my eyes and nose done to look like a celebrity I liked before the disaster." Zhang Shi smiled gently. "I heard there was thunder snow and explosive blasts in the northern Evolution Forest of Hui One. You weren't hurt, were you?"

Xia Qing shook her head. "I took shelter in an underground bunker and wasn't hurt. After the explosive blasts ended, hail fell for another twenty minutes. That stretch of Evolution Forest was completely destroyed."

Zhang Shi sensed the change in Xia Qing's mood and comforted her. "When the temperature rises next spring, the destroyed areas will quickly be covered by plants again, and mushrooms of all kinds of colors and shapes will grow. The visual effect will be wonderful."

And they'll taste pretty good, too.

Remembering how she had taken her daughter to pick mushrooms and cook them, Zhang Shi smiled gently. Once the disaster passed, her baby could come to Territory No. 3 to play.

Xia Qing encouraged employee No. 004 of her territory. "After the first explosive rain next spring ends, Sister Ten can ride a wolf and take the child over to have a look."

Ride... a wolf, and take a child to see mushrooms?

Zhang Shi was completely stunned.

Xia Qing made her a promise. "Sister Ten, work hard. As long as the fourth one grows a set of sharp, sturdy teeth by next spring, this'll be no big deal."