Chapter 347: Protective Gear for Power Evolvers

After Zhao's mother returned to Territory No. 4 with tears and a smile, Xia Qing continued walking forward.

The fifty-meter-wide northern isolation belt undulated with the terrain. The border between Territory No. 3 and Territory No. 4 was a north-south running valley, so the isolation belt here formed a concave shape.

The valley entrance on the south side of the isolation belt had been blocked tightly by Xia Qing and Zhao's mother with four thorny Evolved Aralia Trees.

Once the autumn harvest and sowing were done, Xia Qing could gather people and machinery to dig thorny trees from Mountain No. 50 and fence off her territory. From then on, anyone wanting to enter her territory would either have to use the gate or break through the thorn wall, greatly improving the safety factor.

After returning to her territory, Xia Qing went to check the sunflowers in the terraced fields. The sunflowers in Territory No. 5 had already been roasted into melon seeds and brought to the table, so hers could be harvested too.

Sunflowers had the highest germination rate of all the crops Xia Qing planted. Of the 150 sunflower seeds obtained from the Territory Management Department, 120 sprouted, giving an 80% germination rate.

After the Harmful Rain and daily wear, a total of 71 sunflowers successfully bloomed and set seed: 1 Green-Light, 62 Yellow-Light, and 8 Red-Light.

The Red-Light sunflowers hadn't evolved during the Harmful Rain; rather, the Harmful Element content in the Yellow-Light sunflowers had slowly risen and transformed them, with Harmful Element content between 15-18‰.

These sunflowers couldn't be eaten directly. They had to be sent to the Safe Zone's food processing plant, where complex procedures would first remove the Harmful Elements before they could be processed into cooking oil and food.

After the Harmful Elements were removed, most of the plant's own nutrients were also destroyed. Humans could absorb very little nutrition from eating them, but they wouldn't cause serious illness.

Xia Qing cut off all the large flower heads at the top of the sunflowers, packed full of seeds. The Green-Light ones were kept for seed, the Yellow-Light ones pressed for oil or roasted to eat, and the Red-Light ones were traded to Zhong Tao and Zheng Kui.

Counting the days, Zhong Tao and Zheng Kui should be driving over tomorrow to trade supplies.

Xia Qing took out her phone and contacted Zhong Tao. "Brother Tao, what time are you coming tomorrow? Could you bring me some farm tools? I have some supplies here I need to trade."

The line was full of noise. Zhong Tao shouted back, "We can't come over until we finish the mission we're on now. It'll be at least five days. Little sis, send me the list of what you need first, and I'll bring it with me then."

Zhong Tao hung up before Xia Qing could reply.

Though the call was short, Xia Qing, with her evolved hearing, still made out what the people over there were crying and shouting about: they were throwing tantrums, begging, threatening suicide, demanding the blockers step aside and let them into the Safe Zone.

Listening to the wailing, there were at least a hundred people. Connecting this with recent news and rumors, Xia Qing guessed these people were probably residents of Base Gui-Three who had been harassed by evolved marine creatures.

Base Gui-Three was several hundred kilometers from Base Hui-Three. How had these people crossed the dangerous evolved forest to reach Hui-Three?

Why didn't they go to Base Hui-One or Base Hui-Five, which were closer to Gui-Three? Or were there even more refugees outside those two bases?

Could the invaders who tried to seize Territories 158 and 159 yesterday have been a combat team from Base Gui-Three?

Base Gui-Three had a population of nearly two million. If these people weren't properly resettled, they would become a refugee tide as terrifying as—or even more terrifying than—a beast tide.

When people are starving, they'll even eat their own kind. Xia Qing had personally seen butchers dismembering human corpses like pigs, cutting them into chunks of meat. They didn't just eat the flesh; they even crushed the bones to suck out the marrow.

The increased defenses outside her territory were definitely related to this wave of refugees, because everyone knew there was food inside the territories.

Xia Qing took a deep breath and immediately dialed Lord Huo Lei, the owner of the Huo Family Blade Shop.

"Xia Qing, what do you want with me? I'm busy!"

Hearing Lord Huo Lei's voice and the roaring flames, Xia Qing seemed to smell the acrid sulfur dioxide from burning coal. "Uncle Huo, the rice I planted has ripened. Because the Territory Management Department canceled the agricultural trade fair, in a few days I'll have Captain Zhong Tao bring some back to you."

Hearing there was rice to eat, Lord Huo Lei's temper cooled considerably. "You only got 200 rice seedlings—how many catties of rice can that grow? Not even enough for one meal."

Xia Qing replied, "It can grow over ten catties. I'll send you six catties."

Lord Huo Lei snorted again. "The iron's done heating. If you've got business, say it; if not, hang up."

Xia Qing quickly got to the point. "Uncle Huo, I got two Hardness-Evolved snakes. I want to ask you to forge protective gear specially for advanced Power Evolvers."

Lord Huo Lei gave his apprentice a few instructions, moved away from the forge, and asked, "How long were the snakes? Too short and it won't be enough."

Not enough? Heh.

Xia Qing answered calmly, "After skinning, one piece of snake hide is six meters long, the other seven. Both are as thick as a person—only the tail tips are thinner."

Lord Huo Lei was silent for a few seconds, then roared, "Did you poke a snake's nest? When did you do it? Why aren't you hurrying up and bringing them to me? Leaving them in the territory to get eaten by bugs?"

This was also Xia Qing's dilemma. "I originally planned to bring them to you tomorrow, but Captain Zhong and his team have a mission and can't come over for a few days. So I wanted to ask you first how the snake hides should be handled so they don't spoil."

"How are you storing them now?"

Xia Qing replied, "Refrigerated and sealed."

Lord Huo Lei breathed a sigh of relief. "Refrigerated, they won't spoil in two or three days, but the mess outside the Safe Zone won't be resolved in three to five days. Here's what we'll do: you're not far from Territory No. 7. Take the snake hides to Territory No. 7 first and hand them to my son, Watching Huo Zhun. He'll handle it."

Mm. Mm? Mm?!!!

Xia Qing was shocked. When she'd worked at the blade shop, she'd often heard Uncle Huo curse his useless son. But anyone who could hang around Third Brother couldn't possibly be useless!

Lord Huo Lei discussed it with Xia Qing. "Fifteen meters of python hide can make at least five sets of protective gear. I'll use the best materials to make them for you. I won't charge for the work or the materials—just give me two sets of the gear."

"Deal." Xia Qing agreed immediately. That had been her plan all along.

She trusted Lord Huo Lei's character, and his craftsmanship was beyond reproach. If he said he'd use the best materials, they were definitely the best.

Hardness-Evolved animals with good hides were hard to find, but for Xia Qing it wasn't difficult. Given the cunning of the Broken-Leg Wolf, it would definitely use this kind of python to trade with her again.

Zhang San was the lord of Territory No. 7, and Watching Huo Zhun was on his territory. Xia Qing had to get the lord's permission before she could contact Watching Huo Zhun inside the territory.

Knowing her idol's temperament well, Xia Qing led with a Green-Light delicacy after getting through. "Third Brother, I gathered some Green-Light mountain walnuts. Would you like to try some? Should I send you twenty catties?"

Zhang San immediately perked up. "Great. What do you want to trade this time?"

Xia Qing immediately listed the medicines and pesticides she needed.

The things Xia Qing wanted were worth nearly ten thousand points, which made Zhang San even happier, because the higher the point value of what Xia Qing wanted to trade for, the better the quality of the walnuts.

"Deal. I'll have Ji Li deliver them and bring the walnuts back on the way."

Xia Qing quickly made her request. "Can Third Brother have Watching Huo Zhun deliver them? I got two python hides, and I can't get them back to the Huo Family Blade Shop in the Safe Zone right now, so I need Watching Huo Zhun's help to do some preliminary processing."