Chapter 683: Green-Light Bamboo Shoots

"Yes, Yan-jie, put the snake away." Xia Qing is the defender today and must keep watch on all sides at all times, ready to eliminate any approaching danger; gathering the prey is the support staff's job.

"Got it." Yuan Yan nimbly picked up the qi snake that had been severed in two, quickly sealed it into her backpack, and only then swung her pickaxe to dig for bamboo shoots.

A one-meter-long giant bamboo shoot buried in the soil was unearthed; weighing it by hand, it had to be over twenty-something jin. This spring the price of yellow-light bamboo shoots is 15 points per jin, so this single shoot is worth over 300 points!

The couple was overjoyed, and following the direction this bamboo root grew, they continued searching for edible bamboo shoots.

Sister Qiqi glanced at the big shoot the Qi-Fu couple had found, then lowered her head and kept looking for shoots according to the experience Qi Fu had taught her. After great difficulty she found one, but it was red-light; Tan Qi was only discouraged for a second before immediately pulling herself together to search for the next.

Xia Qing held a blade in her left hand and a gun in her right, standing beside the three of them, responsible for guard duty.

"Green-light bamboo shoot discovered in Sector Two, currently being excavated, chopping in one minute." Liangzi broadcast an announcement over the walkie-talkie.

Chopping a green-light bamboo shoot may cause that bamboo to fire leaf darts, and may also startle nearby animals into fleeing into other sectors and hurting people, so an advance announcement is needed to warn companions in other sectors to be on guard.

Xia Qing replied, "Copy that, stay safe."

One minute later, Xia Qing heard the tink-tink of leaf darts from Sector Two striking hard objects.

Half an hour later, Yue Haiying broadcast an announcement: "Green-light bamboo shoot discovered in Sector Three, currently being excavated, chopping shortly."

After Xia Qing acknowledged receipt, she noticed Qi Fu, Yuan Yan, and Sister Qiqi all growing somewhat impatient, so she spoke up to remind them, "Qi-ge, Yan-jie, Qiqi, steady."

Green-light bamboo shoots sell for 80 points per jin, so Xia Qing could understand their anxiety, but impatience is the greatest taboo in the Evolution Forest, because once a person loses composure, mistakes come easily.

These three sectors Xia Qing had divided all yielded green-light bamboo shoots last year; as long as they kept searching, they would find one. It wasn't that Xia Qing didn't want to tell them the location of the green-light bamboo — it was because she couldn't remember exactly which one it was either.

After receiving the reminder, the three immediately steadied their minds and continued digging for shoots.

An hour later, Sister Qiqi found the first green-light bamboo shoot; although it was only palm-sized, the little girl still jumped up happily.

Xia Qing took a soft ballistic shield out of her backpack, opened it, and the four took cover beneath it before letting Sister Qiqi break the shoot off with a few pulls.

After the shoot broke off, the bamboo root trembled and the green-light bamboo fired leaf darts outward. Hearing the bamboo leaves thud-thud against the soft ballistic shield, seeing several leaves shoot into the soil and stick into bamboo stalks, Qi Fu and his wife and Sister Qiqi, sheltered under the umbrella, stared wide-eyed, unable to believe bamboo leaves could do such a thing.

Unthinkable, absolutely crazy!

If evolution keeps going like this, maybe plants will break free from the soil and run around everywhere…

"Done."

After the leaf-dart barrage ended, Xia Qing put away the ballistic shield and let the three gather around this green-light bamboo to dig the green-light shoot.

Digging shoots is hard labor; another hour passed, and the squad set up a tent and rested on the spot.

Rest time doesn't mean nothing can be done. Qi Fu asked, "Captain, can I peel the shoot skins and only bring the shoots back?"

Everyone's carrying capacity is limited; by peeling off the skins and chopping off the roots, they could carry more shoots back.

Seeing her three companions all staring at her in unison, Xia Qing shook her head firmly, "No. Once the smell of peeling shoots spreads, it may attract shoot-eating animals nearby and bring danger."

This is also why the shoot pits must be buried immediately after digging, and the shoots packed into bags.

"Understood." In the Evolution Forest, every action must follow the captain. Qi Fu immediately gave up the idea and obediently sat down to rest.

Sister Qiqi finished her adjustments inside the tent, sorted out the bamboo shoots she had dug, found she had already reached her carrying limit, so she crawled out of the tent and discussed with Yuan Yan, "Yan-shen, have you two dug enough shoots?"

Yuan Yan shook her head, "Still over three hundred jin short."

She and her husband were both strength evolvers; although they had dug quite a lot in the morning, they were still far from the seven-hundred-fifty-jin maximum load target the two of them had agreed on.

Sister Qiqi asked, "I've dug enough shoots — may I help you two dig this afternoon?"

This kind of exchange is one of the unwritten rules among members of ad-hoc gathering squads. Sister Qiqi had to return with the team, so she'd be idle for the remaining time anyway; better to help the Qi-Fu couple find shoots and earn some points.

Yuan Yan nodded, "Twenty points for each big shoot, ten points for each medium one — alright?"

They were asking Sister Qiqi to help search so they could dig enough jin as quickly as possible, and still rest a while before the return trip to recover enough energy to carry the shoots back to the territory.

"Deal." Sister Qiqi agreed readily; being able to earn points through her own ability made her very happy.

Two hours later, nearing three in the afternoon, the squad members had all reached their pre-set targets for shoots dug, and began the return trip.

Although they didn't need to clear bushes and brambles to open a path on the way back, the squad's load had increased, so their pace wasn't fast. Especially the rugged, bumpy stretch from the bamboo forest to the foot of the third peak of Mountain Fifty was extremely taxing on stamina. So after marching forty minutes, Xia Qing heard the team members' breathing growing heavier and harsher, called a halt, and ordered a fifteen-minute rest on the spot.

Hearing they could rest, the strength evolvers all slumped onto the rocks one by one, leaning back against their backpacks and gasping for breath. As a fellow strength evolver who had hauled supplies for years, Xia Qing knew their condition all too well — without fifteen minutes, they wouldn't recover.

She softly asked Sister Qiqi, who was lying with eyes closed against her backpack, "Qiqi, do you need me to carry some of your supplies?"

Although Sister Qiqi's small pack wasn't large, she was only ten years old and not a strength evolver; the fact she'd held on until now was already remarkable.

Sister Qiqi was so exhausted her eyes saw stars and her throat burned; she couldn't speak at all, and could only raise a trembling palm.

Xia Qing smiled and gently high-fived her.

This was the gesture the two of them had used during Yanlong's special training to encourage each other when on the verge of collapse. The little girl was telling Xia Qing: she was very tired now, but she could hold on.

Xia Qing then walked over to Lord Huo Lei to ask about his condition. Lord Huo Lei was the oldest in today's team; Xia Qing estimated his backpack at no less than five hundred jin. For a forty-eight-year-old fourth-tier strength evolver, hauling five hundred jin of supplies over fifteen li of mountain road was already a full load.

Lord Huo Lei, drenched in sweat, panted, "This work's even more exhausting than blacksmithing, but I just drank a nutrient solution — rest a bit and I'll recover."

Xia Qing nodded, her keen ears picking up the sound of animals moving.

Liangzi's voice quickly came through, "Two small animals have appeared — probably squirrels, wildcats, or weasels."

Animals like these won't attack humans, but since they were carrying a large amount of supplies, out of caution Xia Qing still decided to set up a defense: "Liangzi, Yue-ge, on defense; everyone else rest where you are."

Before long, on a rock three meters away, a round little white head slowly poked out. The little fellow stared at the clustered humans with a pair of big, shiny black eyes.