Chapter 154: Evolved Raptors

After returning to her territory, Xia Qing first went to the edge of the farmland to thank Xiao Jiang and Guan Tong for guarding her territory in her absence, and told them to head back to Territory One.

Then Xia Qing settled the seven water caltrop plants in the shallow water of the reservoir, and set aside a section of the chicken coop to raise geese.

Xia Qing fenced off more than fifty square meters, and even dug a small pond of over ten square meters for the three little ones. She then said to Sheep Boss, who stood outside the goose pen watching the fun, and the Black Feather young rooster, who stood inside the chicken coop watching the fun, "These are the geese I caught today. Not bad, right?"

Sheep Boss chewed his cud with an expressionless face, while the Black Feather young rooster pecked at the newly erected fence, apparently displeased that Xia Qing had carved out part of his territory for the newcomers.

Xia Qing stopped paying attention to the two of them, quickly wove a goose cage from bamboo strips, lined it with dry hay, and placed it by the pond. Once the goslings went into the cage at night, she could carry them home just like she carried the chicks.

The mission today had taken over six hours, with no real danger encountered, and she'd harvested Green Light flora and fauna. The problem of the greenhouse's rainproof cover rolling up and down quickly had also been solved. Xia Qing was in a good mood and hummed a little tune.

When she got home, she found the Alpha Wolf lying in the sheep shed. Xia Qing was a little surprised. "Not busy today, my lord?"

The Alpha Wolf glanced at Xia Qing, not even lifting its head from where it rested on its forelegs.

Was it in a bad mood, or feeling unwell?

Xia Qing's eyes lit up. She went inside, fetched the Use Yishi, and said, "Is my lord sick? Do you need a doctor and medicine? You can trade with this kind of stone."

The Alpha Wolf simply closed its eyes. The fierce, brave broken-legged wolf measured with its eyes which part of Xia Qing would taste best. The brain-domain evolved wolf with the injured waist looked at the Use Yishi in Xia Qing's hand, thoughtful.

Disappointed, Xia Qing put the Use Yishi away and sent Ji Li a message. Tomorrow was the scheduled post-surgery checkup time, so she asked how he wanted to arrange it.

Half an hour later, Xia Qing finally received Ji Li's reply.

He gave Xia Qing two options: one, at 2:45 tomorrow afternoon, Xia Qing would bring the injured wolf to Territory Seven for the follow-up; two, wait until Zhang San returned to his territory before doing the follow-up.

Xia Qing didn't want to enter a territory without Zhang San present, because the bottles, jars, and operating room inside Territory Seven all made her feel uneasy.

So Xia Qing replied: I'll wait for Third Brother to come back. Please ask Brother Ji, when Third Brother has the time, whether the injured wolf needs its dosage adjusted.

She waited until she was eating dinner before getting Ji Li's reply: both the oral and the topical dosages should be reduced by one-third. Tomorrow someone will deliver the injection and the hemostatic medicine to you, in exchange for this morning's Green Light goose.

It seemed Zhang San already knew about Qi Fu's injury. The hemostatic medicine was surely for her, and the injection was probably for the wolf. Was she supposed to give the wolf a shot?

Xia Qing felt the whole thing was a bit dicey: Brother Ji, could you throw in an anesthetic to go with the injection?

Ji Li replied almost at once: Sure.

Reassured, Xia Qing shoveled the last bite of shredded potato into her mouth. As she went to wash the dishes, she heard a news bulletin on the Hui City main base broadcast:

"The evolved raptors that gathered due to the mass landing of marine organisms have, after the sea creatures were repelled, moved north from Guisan Base. Tonight they are resting in the evolved forest one hundred kilometers southeast of Huiyi Base. All Hui City bases should prepare to repel the evolved bird flocks, and protect the territories around the bases…"

Xia Qing listened, and lost all interest in washing the dishes.

Once evolved raptors gather, they won't disperse until they've eaten and drunk their fill. The dense canopy of the evolved forest makes it hard for the flock to hunt. So, if they want to hunt 'prey' quickly and in large quantities, they'll very likely choose to attack human gathering places—safe zones.

Based on bird habits, the flock will begin moving at sunrise. Given the distance, the base they are most likely to strike is Huiyi Base.

But Huiyi Base has the strongest defenses of any base in Hui City. If the flock's attack is stalled there, they may change course and head for Hui San Base, only two hundred li from Huiyi Base!

At a flock's speed, three hundred kilometers is only about two hours' flight. In other words, a little after six tomorrow morning, the flock could be over the first defensive line of Hui San Base, manned by Luo Pei and the others.

If the first defensive line can't stop the evolved bird flock, the flock will very likely reach the sky above her territory!

Her territory didn't just have large tracts of crops; it also had chickens and geese that would interest evolved raptors, and a wolf recuperating from injury. So Xia Qing had to prepare to repel the flock of evolved raptors.

After the Hui City main base news broadcast ended, the Hui San Base announcer read out a notice in a solemn tone:

"…Tomorrow morning, all residents within the safe zone must stay home, and personnel in the territories must also stay indoors and not go out. The army, the safe zone guard corps, and combat teams will do everything in their power to protect the safety of the safe zone and the territories…"

The agricultural knowledge broadcast that followed the weather forecast was also about how to protect oneself during an evolved raptor attack. Though the announcer's voice was very pleasant to listen to, the lords still listened with growing tension.

After the broadcast ended, Xia Qing turned off the radio and switched on the walkie-talkie.

The first to speak tonight was not any of the worried lords, but Tan Junjie, captain of the Hazard Inspection Team responsible for the safety of Territories One through Ten.

In an extremely solemn voice, he read through a notice issued by the Territory Management Department, requiring that all ordinary people within each territory keep their walkie-talkies on all day tomorrow, stay indoors in rooms with sturdy roofs, doors, and windows, and not go out. Evolved humans with the ability to fight back may, provided they ensure their own safety, counterattack evolved birds that damage the territory.

After the notice was read, Zhao Ze tactfully raised a request. "Captain Tan, my solar panels were smashed by the hailstorm and only one is left. I can't guarantee the walkie-talkie will stay powered all day tomorrow."

Tan Junjie answered crisply, "Then stay indoors the whole time."

Kuang Qingwei asked, "Captain Tan, will the base compensate for damage to crops in the territories caused by evolved birds?"

Tan Junjie replied, "The evolved raptors' targets are animals. As long as humans and animals don't move around near the fields, the chance of crop damage isn't high, though the greenhouses may be damaged. Tomorrow, when the flock attacks the territories, any lord who encounters a dangerous situation should report it immediately in this lords' communication channel."

"Now, on behalf of Hazard Inspection Squad Six, I am formally requesting of all lords: when the evolved raptors arrive over Territories One through Ten tomorrow, the inspection team will, based on actual combat conditions, enter and leave the various territories to kill evolved raptors. I ask that each lord grant approval."

Zhao Ze answered immediately, "Lord of Territory Four, Zhao Ze, approves."

Kuang Qingwei followed right after, "Lord of Territory Six, Kuang Qingwei, approves."

Qi Fu, Shi Zhong, and Xia Qing also responded with their approvals.

Territory Two was answered by Tang Huai, "I have been authorized by the Lord of Territory Two to exercise all lord's rights as full proxy. Territory Two also approves."

Territory One was answered by Hu Zi Feng, "I have consulted the Lord of Territory One. The Lord of Territory One approves."

With Hu Zi Feng's reply, only Territories Seven, Eight, and Nine had yet to respond.