Chapter 472: The Arrival of Calamity Snow

Yanlong carried Xia Qing back to the territory and set her down at the village entrance; when she was told to go back and get her things, it was already past one in the morning on December 1st.

It wasn't that Yanlong didn't want to see Xia Qing home, but because a giant wolf had blocked the road into the village, stopping Yanlong from entering. If Xia Qing hadn't held her back, the wolf would have already pounced.

Late at night, Yanlong wasn't in the mood to tangle with a stinking wolf.

Xia Qing wanted to keep up her image in front of Yanlong, but she truly had no strength left to walk. She could only lean against a tree and call for her companion, "Boss, boss…"

"Da-da-da—"

The nighttime light was poor, so Sheep Boss didn't arrive quickly, but the fact that it was willing to come was already more than enough for Xia Qing.

Seeing Xia Qing so weak, Sheep Boss immediately pointed its spiral horn at Yanlong, pawed the ground and tossed its head, ready to call for backup to avenge Xia Qing.

Xia Qing quickly covered its mouth. "Boss, don't call. Sister Yan didn't bully me. I'm just too tired. Sister Yan kindly brought me back. I can't walk anymore. Boss, carry me home, okay? Boss, guarding the house alone is too hard. You're really amazing…"

Watching that not-very-bright evolved sheep being sweet-talked away by Xia Qing in just a few sentences, Yanlong's gaze shifted to the silver-gray giant wolf still standing at the village entrance.

This wolf's combat power was clearly very high, and judging by its eyes and expression, its intelligence shouldn't be low either. There might be a chance for cooperation in the future.

Yanlong stood in a parade-rest posture, hands behind her back and away from the gun and knife at her waist, signaling she had no intention of fighting or attacking, and nodded toward the wolf.

The handsome giant wolf's ice-blue eyes didn't change at all, still locked tightly on Yanlong, ready to fight at any moment.

Carried home by Sheep Boss, Xia Qing saw three wolves lying in the sheep shed. Even Sheep Boss was unwilling to carry her into the house, and she immediately sensed something was wrong.

After entering the house, Xia Qing didn't dare remove her protective mask. She first opened all the windows to ventilate, then took the medical kit from the cabinet, called in the sick wolf and drew a tube of its blood, then packed up the blood sample, the weapon used by the Fierce Fire Hunting Team to fire gas shells, and the recording device, and had Sheep Boss carry her outside the village to hand them to Yanlong.

The 250 jin of Green Lantern mountain walnuts couldn't be brought up from the underground storage today. She'd send them over once her strength returned.

Not long after Yanlong left, Xia Qing saw flecks of snow drifting down from high above, glittering with light.

The Calamity Snow of the tenth year of the catastrophe had arrived. Xia Qing reached out and caught a few flakes. Seeing their color, her brow furrowed.

"Xia Qing, can you hear me?" Beard Feng called Xia Qing over the walkie-talkie.

"I can." Xia Qing replied, "Captain Hu, the Calamity Snow has started. The snowflakes are very dark in color. The first wave might already be red level."

Beard Feng replied, "Right, the Calamity element is rising noticeably. The sheds and greenhouses are already covered, making sure animals and plants won't be hit by the Calamity Snow. How are you feeling right now?"

"I took a recovery potion at Territory Seven. I'm feeling much better now." Xia Qing asked Feng to help watch the territory. "Still, tonight and tomorrow, I'll have to trouble you all to help guard the territory."

"Rest easy. During the Calamity Snow, we'll be responsible for the safety of the territory and the fields. By the way, the peanuts you harvested today have already been sent over. I was afraid the temperature was too low and they'd freeze, so I spread them out in the breeding greenhouse first."

The breeding greenhouse had lower humidity than the planting greenhouse, making it more suitable for drying peanuts. Beard Feng's choice was correct. Xia Qing thanked him, then asked, "Can you come to the village entrance in ten minutes? I traded a piece of Yishi with Captain Yang for some Green Lantern snake meat. It's already been cut, and we can install them in the Green Lantern wheat field to prevent the crops from Calamity-evolving."

The response measures for Calamity Snow and Calamity Rain aren't entirely the same.

Calamity Rain appears in spring, summer, and autumn. When it falls, it washes over the mountains and land, flowing into low-lying areas or rivers. As long as you cover the crops with rainproof cloth and promptly remove Calamity-evolved plants, that's enough. Once the Calamity Rain stops, the excess Calamity element absorbed by the soil quickly evaporates along with the moisture.

Calamity Snow occurs in winter and clings to wherever it lands. If not cleared in time, the Calamity element inside the sheds covered by Calamity Snow will rise even more noticeably than during the Calamity Snow period itself, and the probability of crops Calamity-evolving is also higher than during the Calamity Rain period. Moreover, after the snow period ends, due to the temperature, the evaporation rate of Calamity Snow is slower than that of Calamity Rain. So relatively speaking, Calamity Snow's impact period is longer than Calamity Rain's, and its effect on crops is greater.

The Green Lantern vegetables in the planting greenhouse and the wheat and rapeseed in the fields are all at the seedling stage, so the probability of Calamity-evolution is inherently higher than at maturity. Even for Green Lantern plants, without Yishi protection, the loss rate during the Calamity Snow period could easily exceed one-third.

The Green Lantern animals in the breeding greenhouse and the Green Lantern vegetables in the planting greenhouse have already been protected by Xia Qing with Yishi. She had originally planned to install the Yishi in the Green Lantern wheat field herself, but her body is too weak now, so she's asking Beard Feng to handle it.

Ten minutes later, Xia Qing had Sheep Boss carry her to the village entrance and handed the cut Yishi to Beard Feng. "I've already set up bamboo poles along the ridges in the middle of the Green Lantern wheat field, with small holes drilled in them. All you need to do is place a small piece of Yishi inside each pole. The remaining Yishi can be placed in the holes in the bamboo poles and stuck into the spots where the Yellow Lantern wheat and Yellow Lantern rapeseed seedlings are densest."

Beard Feng naturally recognized Yishi. He took them and counted carefully. "There are 40 Yishi pieces in total. After the Calamity Snow, I'll return every single one to you. Can you manage on your own at home? How about I call Chang Li and have her come take care of you?"

Xia Qing shook her head. "I can move, just slowly. No need to trouble Sister Li. During the Calamity Snow period, she must be incredibly busy."

During the Calamity Snow period, the probability of Calamity-evolution失控 in humans or animals with weak resistance also rises. Chang Li is the team medic—she's probably so busy she doesn't even have time to rest.

After Beard Feng left with the Yishi, Xia Qing told Sheep Boss to hurry her home. The Calamity element content in the air was now soaring, and she needed to give the three evolved wolves, whose internal Calamity element had risen after being poisoned, the Calamity-Reduction Agent as soon as possible.

Before feeding them, Xia Qing had to first draw blood from the three wolves for testing, to confirm the Calamity element content in their bodies. Only then could she accurately determine how much the Calamity element in the evolved wolves would drop after one dose of Calamity-Reduction Agent, so she needed to hurry.

She had already taken a blood sample from the sick wolf just now. She had expected that drawing blood from the Head Wolf and the Broken-Waist Wolf would take some persuading, but Xia Qing hadn't expected both wolves to be so cooperative.

After drawing blood and feeding them the Calamity-Reduction Agent, Xia Qing hung a small piece of Yishi around the necks of the Head Wolf and the Broken-Waist Wolf to isolate the excess Calamity element in the atmosphere.

Then, Xia Qing held up the last Yishi necklace and negotiated with the Broken-Waist Wolf. "Handsome Wolf Bro, can you put this necklace on that giant wolf for me?"

Xia Qing, Sheep Boss, and the sick wolf had all been wearing Yishi, so the only one at home not wearing Yishi now was the handsome giant wolf that had just returned to the sheep shed.

The homebody and capable Broken-Waist Wolf happily took on the task. It picked up the necklace in its teeth, walked over to the handsome giant wolf lying by the sheep shed door, easily put the Yishi necklace on it, then turned its head and showed Xia Qing its adorable little fang tips.

Finally done with everything, Xia Qing leaned weakly against the haystack and smiled too. "Handsome Wolf Bro, you're really amazing."

Even though Calamity Snow was drifting outside, even though her house was filled with a terrible stench, at this moment, Xia Qing felt incomparably happy.