Chapter 896: Flower Leopard

"Luo-ge, can I go down for a bit?"

Xia Qing, who had slept less than four hours last night and followed Luo Pei out to learn how to fly a helicopter, suddenly spoke up asking to descend.

Without saying why, Luo Pei assumed she needed to use the restroom, and immediately directed Er Yong, who was piloting the helicopter, to descend. "Slowly pull down the collective lever. If you feel the helicopter swaying left or right during the descent, adjust the tail rotor's force direction to keep the helicopter balanced."

"Yes."

"Hold it steady. See that leopard under the big tree to the front-left on the display? After spotting a large predator, you can't descend within twenty meters above the highest point in this area, or the helicopter might be attacked by the predator. If you spot bears or primates capable of throwing heavy objects, you can't descend within fifty meters."

"Yes."

The helicopter swayed a few times, then hovered in the air.

"Don't touch the control stick anymore."

"Yes."

Er Yong sucked in his stomach and straightened his back, not daring to look at Luo-ge's face beside him. When Luo Pei trained people, his presence was overwhelming; during the Blue Dragon team's intensive training, not a single person wasn't afraid of him.

After Luo Pei confirmed the helicopter was steady, he turned his head and ordered, "Beard Feng, check whether the rappel point is secure, and check whether the rappel rope and descender are firmly connected."

After checking, Beard Feng reported, "Confirmed, everything is normal."

Luo Pei ordered, "Yin Jie, demonstrate helicopter rappelling technique."

"Yes." Yin Jie demonstrated the rappelling method for the few people on the aircraft, landing smoothly.

After confirming Xia Qing had learned it, Luo Pei only then let her rappel, and instructed, "Go a bit slower, don't rush. I'll take them for a flight around, and come pick you up in an hour. This is the border between the Western Wolf Pack's and Northern Wolf Pack's territory, belonging to the leopards' activity zone. Be careful yourself, contact us promptly if anything happens."

"Okay."

Following the key points of the movements she had just learned, Xia Qing used the rappel rope and rappel speed controller to descend at a uniform speed, landing steadily on the ground.

After Yin Jie returned to the helicopter, Er Yong, who was piloting it, once again failed to take off smoothly this time, and only rose into the air and flew away after trembling twice.

After they left, Xia Qing once again carefully confirmed all her equipment was fine, before taking out her phone, and following the latitude and longitude shown by the phone's compass, searching for the target of this trip.

Earlier this morning, when Beard Feng was sending Xia Qing back to Territory Three, he had asked her whether she would rest for a day and learn helicopter piloting skills tomorrow. Xia Qing firmly refused, stating that sleeping just over three hours was enough for her.

The main reason she insisted on learning to pilot a helicopter today was to take a helicopter to this area, and figure out the cause of the magnetic field anomaly here.

Based on different perception targets, magnetic-sense evolution abilities are divided into four categories: perceiving magnetic field changes in animals, plants, Shang elements, and Yi elements.

All the magnetic-sense evolvers announced so far can only perceive one category. For example, Seeing Xin Yu is a magnetic-sense evolver who can perceive magnetic field changes in animals.

But Xia Qing belongs to an unannounced type: she can perceive two categories—magnetic field changes in Shang elements and Yi elements—making her a minority among magnetic-sense evolvers.

Applying the classification method for brain-domain evolver types, Xia Qing's situation makes her a Category-Two magnetic-sense evolver.

Xia Qing doesn't know Yuan Yan's magnetic-sense evolution type, because this is Yuan Yan's secret; even as allies, Xia Qing won't actively probe others' secrets.

Xia Qing, a Category-Two magnetic-sense evolver, has already used her magnetic sense to capture over a dozen Shang snakes with abnormal Shang element fluctuations, and who knows how many aggressive Shang-evolved plants.

But as of yesterday before dark, she had only discovered one plant with abnormal Yi element magnetic field changes: a Green Lantern Toon tree in its sprouting period within Territory Three this spring.

Compared to aggressive Shang-evolved plants and Shang snakes, Zhang San is more interested in flora and fauna with abnormal Yi element magnetic field fluctuations. Every time Xia Qing visits, he asks her whether she has any new discoveries.

After disappointing her idol for five months, Xia Qing, a die-hard deep-pit fan, was finally able to capture the abnormal Yi element magnetic field fluctuations last night while being carried through this evolved forest by the handsome giant wolf, so she had to come over as soon as possible to take a look.

Because the abnormal magnetic field fluctuations of the Toon tree within Territory Three only appear during the sprouting period, and disappear once the Toon tree buds quickly poke out and unfurl. So Xia Qing worried that the abnormal fluctuations here wouldn't last long either.

As she walked, she checked the Yi synthetic element detector on her arm. This detector was something she exchanged with her idol for 150 Green Lantern Toon sprouts.

Because she had already locked onto the abnormal area, Xia Qing followed the beast trail the handsome giant wolf had run along last night for over twenty minutes, and once again captured that gentle magnetic field.

The light on the Yi synthetic element detector she wore on her arm didn't light up, indicating there was no Yi synthetic element gas here.

The air toxin detector also didn't light up, indicating the air here also contained no toxins, which put Xia Qing somewhat at ease.

Guided by her magnetic sense, she arrived under a big tree, and Xia Qing was confused again.

Was the magnetic sense anomaly this big tree, or the vines entwined around the big tree, or perhaps the mistletoe on the big tree and vines?

Xia Qing didn't dare rashly touch this tree, so she took a photo of the big tree, attached text, and sent it to her idol.

In less than thirty seconds, her idol's video call came through. Zhang San, whose face still bore sleep marks, beamed. "Xia Qing, where did you find this?"

Xia Qing immediately turned the camera, showing the target plant to her idol. "This is Mountain Area Forty-Eight, near Forty-Six..."

Xia Qing, who had only spoken half her sentence, suddenly tossed her phone, and while rolling forward, drew her black blade, blocking the leopard that had suddenly darted out from behind to attack her.

But just as she blocked this big leopard's attack, two medium-sized leopards darted out from behind and to her right. Xia Qing could only roll to the left, and drew the gun at her waist.

"Xia Qing, what's the situation?" Zhang San's urgent inquiry came through the phone, his idol's anxious face on the screen.

Xia Qing pointed her gun at the three leopards, and called out loudly, "Third Brother, I've run into leopards. I'll call you back later."

"Okay, watch out..."

Before her idol finished speaking, Xia Qing watched helplessly as that big leopard used its sharp claws to pierce through the brand-new phone she had spent nearly ten thousand points to buy, which she hadn't even warmed up yet.

Damn!

Xia Qing gripped the gun in her hand tightly, took a deep breath to steady her emotions, and tried not to provoke the one large and two small evolved leopards opposite her. "Is this your territory?"

She hadn't seen this leopard before, which was perfectly normal, because this was her first time in this area.

"Aow—"

The mother leopard's voice was low, yet carried thunderous震撼感; this call was full of intimidation and warning.

Clearly, Xia Qing's appearance made the mother leopard feel its territory had been invaded; it was driving Xia Qing away.

"Aow—"

"Aow—"

The two half-year-old leopard cubs also bared their fangs at Xia Qing, letting out roars they thought were very majestic and fierce.