Chapter 52: You Will Be Even More Powerful Than the Fire Phoenix

Chapter 52: You Will Be More Powerful Than Fire Phoenix

Although the possibility was extremely low, Xia Qing had indeed worried that the spring water flowed down from the mountain, and that there might be a spring source on the mountain itself. If a spring on the mountain were discovered and dammed by someone, it could lead to a reduction or even the drying up of the spring within her territory.

Therefore, Xia Qing planned to wait until the evolutionary forest entered a low-risk period during winter to enter Mountain No. 49 to search for an uncontaminated spring. If one truly existed, she would find a way to seal it off completely.

As for the method of buying a mountain, she hadn't even considered it.

A mountain with dense vegetation was a resource before the Great Biological Evolution of Blue Star, but after the evolution, it became a time bomb.

Igniting this time bomb required only a few hours of Red Killing Rain.

To prevent dangerous evolved creatures in the evolutionary forests from entering safe human residential areas, the base had introduced a mountain forest contracting policy long ago.

Whether it was a squad or an individual, as long as they paid a certain amount of points, they could contract a mountain or a certain area of evolutionary forest within the base. All resources produced within the contracted area belonged to the contractor; however, at the same time, the contractor was responsible for clearing dangerous evolved creatures within the forest.

If the clearing was not done or was incomplete, leading to dangerous evolved creatures spreading from the contracted forest to other areas and causing significant harm, the base would hold the contractor accountable.

In previous years, those who contracted mountain forests were either wiped out by evolved creatures during the Killing Rain or lost everything and cried for their parents due to escaped evolved creatures. Consequently, in recent years, no one had done such a foolish thing. This was why the state continuously improved the original policy and proposed the Territory Plan.

To Xia Qing's knowledge, the only person who currently held usage rights to a mountain and had hundreds of people guarding it was the female powerhouse Fire Phoenix from Hui-1 Base.

She bought the mountain because there was an uncontaminated spring on it.

Therefore, if Xia Qing were to suddenly step forward now to buy the usage rights to Mountain No. 49, it would be equivalent to actively exposing the existence of important resources on the mountain, drawing everyone's attention to her territory and Mountain No. 49.

As for the idea of having the Azure Dragon Squad buy the mountain and give it to her, Xia Qing felt that was even more inconceivable than her buying it herself.

Xia Qing spoke bluntly, "Brother Luo, I'm a direct person, please don't take offense. Will the base agree to sell the mountain to the Azure Dragon Squad?"

The Tang family, led by the base's second-in-command Tang Zhengrong, had always viewed the Azure Dragon Squad as a thorn in their side. Whatever the Azure Dragon Squad wanted to do, the Tang family would certainly find ways to prevent it.

Luo Pei explained in detail to Xia Qing, "Within three hundred miles north and east of Mountain No. 49, there are dense evolutionary forests with countless dangerous Killing-Rain evolved creatures. There is very little arable land, so that forest area is not within the scope of territory development."

"Establishing a lord system to allow citizens to leave the safe zones and cultivate crops in territories to increase production is a project strongly pushed by the top leadership, which is why our base is putting great effort into promoting this work. But even with large numbers of troops patrolling and stationed there, territories near the evolutionary forests still suffer massive losses during the Killing Rain, which is a major concern for the base."

"If the Azure Dragon Squad buys Mountain No. 49, which is adjacent to the territories, they will have the obligation to guard the mountain and prevent dangerous evolved animals from descending to harm people or destroy farmland. Therefore, Tang Zhengrong won't sincerely oppose it. Even if he suspects the Azure Dragon Squad's motive for buying the mountain, he will only think that the squad wants to arrange a peaceful place for retirement for me, since I've lost my combat effectiveness due to poisoning. As for the military, their only concern is that after the Azure Dragon Squad buys the mountain, it might threaten the troops stationed at the old regimental headquarters. You know the origins of the Azure Dragon Squad; gaining the military's trust is not a difficult task for us."

Given this explanation, buying it was indeed possible. Xia Qing continued to express her thoughts, "It would be quite good for the Azure Dragon Squad to establish a training base on Mountain No. 49. Once you establish the training base, the security of my territory will also improve by several levels. Brother Luo, once you buy the mountain, it should just belong to the Azure Dragon Squad; there's no need to transfer it to me."

If the mountain belonged to Xia Qing, how would she guard it? With her, or with Boss Yang?

Spend points to hire a large number of people to guard the mountain? Hire whom? The Azure Dragon Squad?

The Azure Dragon Squad buys the mountain, transfers it to her, and then she spends points to hire the Azure Dragon Squad to guard the mountain...

Isn't that just stripping off one's clothes to do the very thing one just did? It was a redundant loop that made Xia Qing unable not to doubt their motives.

Brother Luo might consider Xia Qing's position, but Yang Jin, the stingy miser, would not, nor would Xie Yu, who had become incredibly sharp after his brain evolution.

They might just want to use this transaction to make her hand over the spring as well.

Xia Qing was not like Boss Yang; she would not blindly assume that she could outsmart the three leaders of the Azure Dragon Squad and gain any advantage.

It was better to let the mountain belong to the Azure Dragon Squad and let them guard it. She and the Azure Dragon Squad were in a cooperative relationship; they wouldn't actively expose the secret of the spring, and they could even help her draw fire by making people think the secret lay on Mountain No. 49.

Xia Qing would simply be the "darkness under the lamp," living steadily and low-key.

The only potential loss for Xia Qing in doing this would be that she couldn't enter Mountain No. 49 to collect green-light plants.

If she couldn't enter Mountain No. 49, she could still enter other mountains! There were green mountains everywhere; why insist on hanging oneself from a single peak?

Could she no longer dig up green-light bamboo shoots?

If she couldn't dig them, she had other ways to eat. Once the Azure Dragon Squad dug them up, she could just exchange a bucket of spring water for them.

Luo Pei understood Xia Qing's concerns but still advised her to accept it, "It is most reassuring to hold important resources in your own hands. You can trust me and cooperate with the Azure Dragon Squad now. But once Yang Jin, Xie Yu, and I are gone, no one can guarantee that the next or the next-next leaders of the Azure Dragon Squad will be trustworthy."

In fact, the three leaders of the Azure Dragon Squad were not in agreement on this matter. Luo Pei and Xie Yu advocated for Mountain No. 49 to belong to the squad, but Yang Jin advocated for giving it to Xia Qing.

Ultimately, Yang Jin convinced Luo Pei and Xie Yu.

Hearing Luo Pei's words, Xia Qing couldn't help but sigh.

If the situation deteriorated to the point where the top combatants of Hui-3 Base—the three leaders of the Azure Dragon Squad—all died, Hui-3 Base would be finished. A novice like her, wanting to survive, would likely have to abandon her territory and flee to another base.

Hearing Xia Qing's sigh, Luo Pei opened his still-reddened eyes and stared at her, saying very seriously, "Xia Qing, you are only twenty-five this year. You still have ten years to improve your three types of evolutionary abilities. As long as you want it, you will definitely be more outstanding than the three of us in the future, and even more powerful than Fire Phoenix of the Blazing Fire Squad. Fire Phoenix can guard a spring; you can certainly do the same."

Yang Jin said that Xia Qing would become a powerful combatant that no one in Hui-3, or even the entire Hui City Base, would dare to underestimate. The Azure Dragon Squad was doing her a favor now, and they would definitely not suffer for it in the future.

Yang Jin said that allies and springs were not mutually exclusive options. By giving the mountain to Xia Qing, they could have both the fish (the ally) and the bear's paw (the exchange for spring water).

At that time, Xie Yu had asked Yang Jin why he was so certain that Xia Qing, who was working hard just to make a living, would become a powerful combatant capable of standing alongside them in the future.

Yang Jin gave a reason that neither of them could refute

Because Xia Qing's will to live was firmer than anyone he had ever known. A person who is wholeheartedly determined to survive through their own abilities will certainly seize any available opportunity to make themselves strong.

Having her biggest secret exposed to her face, Xia Qing's eyes widened instantly. Her mind raced with whether she should flee immediately or kill Luo Pei first before escaping.

"Haha." Her reaction amused Luo Pei, a level-ten visual evolver, "Little girl, you don't actually think that after going on so many missions with me, I would be so blind that I haven't even figured out your abilities, do you?"