Chapter 462: Gas Bomb

Gunshots, the sounds of impact, and cries of pain kept coming from the core combat zone.

Capturing large fierce beasts without authorization is illegal, so the beast-catching team's firearms, like Xia Qing's, were fitted with suppressors—the gunfire didn't sound as loud as the impacts and cries of pain from the fighting.

Xia Qing followed the sounds, quickly closing in.

The well-equipped professional beast-catching team of Fierce Fire still had eight members, but the wolves only had three, and one of them was a sick wolf unable to reach peak combat condition. So this battle for the wolf pack was even more perilous than last May's fight, when the alpha wolf led six evolved wolves against twelve well-equipped main force members of the Wind Cloud combat team.

So even though the alpha wolf and the broken-back wolf were clever and formidable, even though all three wolves wore protective suits and had drunk premium nutrient fluid and anti-anesthetic agents, Xia Qing was still worried and anxious.

Ten years of disaster had long taught Xia Qing how to deal with danger.

Using the sounds of combat as cover, she reached the edge of the core combat zone, quickly climbed a large pine tree, and watched the battle from high ground.

Three beast-catching team members were already lying on the ground. The alpha wolf was fighting a high-speed evolver; the wolf was faster, but the opponent had a firearm, and the two were locked in a stalemate.

One beast-catching team member in a fully sealed camouflage airtight protective suit was lying in a high spot the alpha wolf couldn't see, trying to ambush the alpha wolf with a thick-barreled weapon Xia Qing didn't recognize.

But the alpha wolf was too fast for him to aim. Based on the protective suit and aiming posture, Xia Qing judged this person to be a researcher, doctor, or veterinarian with very low combat ability.

Both the broken-back wolf and the sick wolf had several anesthetic darts stuck in them and were fighting an evolver. Another person carried a thick-barreled weapon, preparing to ambush.

Unlike that rookie in the airtight suit who wanted to ambush the alpha wolf, this person carrying the unknown weapon wore field combat gear.

This was an evolver with combat ability!

The weakness of elasticity evolvers is that when they leap, they must rely on external force, and at the instant they prepare to leap using that force, they pause.

The sick wolf, protected by the broken-back wolf, keenly detected a dangerous human weapon aimed at the broken-back wolf and was about to charge at the attacker, but was shot by an anesthetic gun fired by a sniper hidden on the other side.

The moment this person shot the sick wolf, the one fighting the broken-back wolf fired a beast-catching net to snare it.

This was no ordinary beast-catching net—the net was covered with iron hooks of various sizes; once snared, there would be no escaping!

The broken-back wolf dodged with a leap, used the force to pounce on the beast-catching team member it was fighting, and the sick wolf jumped at the same time, cutting off the team member's retreat.

Seeing his comrade about to die under wolf claws, the hidden sniper quickly set down the anesthetic gun and grabbed his sniper rifle.

"Pfft."

Xia Qing's shot hit the beast-catching team sniper in the center of the back, killing him instantly.

The Fierce Fire beast-catching team's protective masks and suits had certain bulletproof functions, but Xia Qing's sniper rifle was so powerful that at this distance it could completely ignore the opponent's protective gear.

The moment Xia Qing killed the sniper, the broken-back wolf and the sick wolf also took down their opponents.

Xia Qing quickly aimed at the beast-catching team member wielding the thick-barreled weapon who was surrounding the broken-back wolf and the sick wolf, but she was still a step too late—this person had already rolled to evade the attacks of the broken-back wolf and the sniper, and was hiding behind a rock shouting into a loudspeaker, "Signal anomaly, use the three—"

"Boom!"

Before he could finish, he was hit by a grenade Xia Qing threw and blasted away.

Xia Qing immediately shouted, "Queen, hide—"

"Boom!"

……

Before Xia Qing could finish shouting, a violent explosion rang out on the hillside, and eerie purple-red smoke rapidly spread through the pine forest.

Damn it! An unknown gas bomb!

Xia Qing cursed, unable to care whether her position was exposed, and shouted at the top of her lungs, "Queen, retreat to me now! Broken-back, protect the Queen! Wolf Lao Er, get to me!"

The sound of the gas bomb explosion carried into human territory. Tang Huai, lying in Territory Twelve recovering from injuries, sat up at once, pressed his walkie-talkie, and in a hoarse, barely recognizable voice called out to his sworn enemy Beard Feng.

"What's going on? Madman, is your Azure Dragon combat team doing night training? That's too much, you're disturbing the people!"

Before Beard Feng came online, Zhou Xun, the acting proxy of Territory Two, started howling, "Boss, you're finally better! What time are you returning to Territory Two to take charge? I'll bring the brothers to pick you up."

Tang Huai cursed, "Are you deaf or did an evolved donkey kick you in the head? How many times have I said it? My leg won't heal for half a year!"

Half a year won't do, he'll die. Zhou Xun sniffled inside Territory Two, "Boss, if you use Third Brother's special medicine, the wound on your leg should heal in half a month, right?"

Tang Huai croaked hoarsely, "I lost too much blood, my body is weak, I need to recover slowly. Madman, can't you hear me calling you?"

Beard Feng came online, "Which territory is raising ducks? It's fine if they sound ugly, as long as the meat tastes good. Wanna trade? How many points each? If you don't want points, can we trade with worm castings?"

Everyone……

Tang Huai cursed in his raspy voice, "Hu Madman, you're asking for death!"

Beard Feng said cheerfully, "I can't understand duck language, get someone who speaks human to talk."

Everyone……

Tan Junjie came online, his voice serious, "Beard Feng, was that explosion just now on Mountain Forty-Nine?"

Beard Feng immediately responded, "No, it was on Mountain Fifty. The specifics are unclear; based on the sound alone, it was a high-explosive bomb going off."

"Copy that." Tan Junjie issued an announcement, "Each territory is to immediately report the number of people from your territory who entered the Evolution Forest today and have not yet returned, along with their purpose for going out and their current location."

Beard Feng reported first, "Territory One has no one entering the Evolution Forest outside of Mountain Forty-Nine. Territory Three's lord Xia Qing took an evolved wolf into the Evolution Forest this morning to look for herbs and hasn't returned. She didn't tell me where she was going when she left."

Xia Qing left the territory? When did that happen? Zhou Xun of Territory Two knew he was about to be scolded again, and dejectedly reported, "Territory Two has no one out."

Next, Territories Four through Seven reported in order, all saying no one was out.

Zhou Zhaoping, proxy of Territory Eight, reported, "Territory Eight has one delivery truck heading to Territory Thirty-Six to deliver goods, needing to pass through the southern city ruins, and hasn't returned yet. I've just made contact with the driver and escort personnel—they're on their way back to the territory, no one has left the group, everything's normal."

The city ruins swallowed by plants were also theoretically part of the Evolution Forest.

Assistant Xiao Liu of Territory Nine reported, "Territory Nine has a ten-person team out, collecting specimens on Mountain Fifty-One, and they haven't returned. Their current location is unknown, and contact has been lost."

Territory Nine didn't want to report anyone being out either, but anyone entering or leaving Territory Nine, whether through the south gate or the north gate, would be seen—they couldn't hide it.

"Territory Ten has no one out." After Territory Ten's lord Shi Zhong finished reporting, he anxiously asked, "Captain Tan, should we send people to check as soon as possible?"

Qi Fu anxiously asked, "Captain Hu, what herbs did Xia Qing go to collect?"

Zhao's mother was also very anxious, "Should we spend points to hire evolvers to form a team and go look for Xia Qing?"