As for the third road directly linked to the provincial highway, if we had money, it would absolutely be the best option.

But in reality, even a hero struggles without a penny. Over six hundred infrastructure points, how can he afford to build?

Just as Cheng Ye was pondering, the road workers suddenly burst into exclamations, dropping their tools and sprinting towards the iron-plated shelter.

Raul poked his head out for a look, his face changed drastically, and he quickly shouted, "Inspector Cheng, quickly drive the car inside!"

"What?"

Cheng Ye hadn’t responded yet, but when he poked his head out of the car window, his expression immediately darkened.

The car started, fiercely turning the steering wheel, and dashed into the shelter, cramming together with the workers.

"Brother Cheng, what’s going on?"

The top of the SUV wasn’t the kind of modern sunroof, but rather an armor steel of notable strength.

Wang Kang turned his head in puzzlement, his face suddenly turning pale.

In the high sky.

A dense swarm of black birds swept across, like a moving cloud hovering over the iron shelter.

Roughly counting, there were at least three to five hundred of them, the flapping wings merging into a thunderous roar, vibrating against the eardrums as they approached.

"Why are there so many bird mutant beasts?"

Cheng Ye pushed open the car door, standing at the side of the shelter, gazing toward the sky.

This was his first time seeing such a spectacular gathering of mutant beasts, like a locust plague crossing, even blocking out the sunlight on the roof completely.

Looking far out, several equally large bird flocks were circling around the county road nearby.

The workers along the road all hid in the shelter, various tools scattered on the ground.

Not far away, someone lit a fire pit, smoke rising skyward, only slightly nudging the bird swarm aside, unable to disperse them.

"It’s been like this since a week ago."

Raul walked over, shaking his head with a bitter smile, "These damn things are too annoying. No one used to come to Wenlu County, and they had already claimed it as their territory to nest and breed. We came over for road construction, only to become intruders to their home, harassed now and then. They got completely provoked when softer methods failed to drive them off, and now they’re obsessively targeting us!"

After he spoke, he pointed to the fire pits stacked alongside the road.

Though it wasn’t lit now, the traces of ashes on the ground showed they had likely been ignited many times these days.

"This smoke repellent doesn’t work; it only temporarily makes them dodge. They’ll be back for sure in a couple of hours, annoying as hell."

"Is it the same over at Wenlu County?" Cheng Ye pressed.

"Not just Wenlu County."

Raul replied helplessly, "The situation at Dapo Town, where you are heading, is likely worse. These birds have migratory habits. When the rain line hangs around Happiness City, they’ll temporarily leave. As the rain line retreats, entering autumn and winter, they’ll migrate back to nest and breed. Right now, it’s their returning time!"

"No wonder!" Cheng Ye suddenly understood.

The last time he followed Jiang Chuan to scout Dapo Town, except for that Ant Wolf, he hadn’t even seen other mutant beast shadows.

At the time, he thought this place was too remote for even mutant beasts to bother, but it turned out the area had long been factionalized by these bird mutant beasts.

"Isn’t there any way to deal with these things?" Wang Kang also got out of the car, sticking his head out to look.

The bird swarm formed a dense black sheet, obscuring the specific types, but the overwhelming pressure was spine-chilling.

"We can only wait for them to leave by themselves. If we retaliate with gunfire, it will only invite more frenzied revenge." Raul quickly shook his head.

"Retaliate?"

"Yes, most of the birds in these swarms are Thorn Birds, extremely aggressive."

"Thorn Birds..." Wang Kang pondered, "Are they the kind that spits toxic thorns?"

"There are many types of Thorn Birds, not just one."

Mu Shuang got off the car, her voice clear as she picked up the conversation, "Around Happiness City, there are more than ten types of Thorn Birds, mostly feeding on metals and Black Stone. The three most common, one is the Iron Claw Dive Bird, not very large, but with particularly developed wing muscles, expert at gathering wings and diving swiftly from high altitude to attack."

"What Inspector Wang just mentioned about the toxic sac Thorn Bird is another type, having a bulging sac on their neck filled with venom. They stay afar, hidden high or in bushes, ready to spit toxic short thorns when the opportunity presents itself. If the venom touches skin, it causes redness and ulceration; if it splashes into the eyes or wounds, the treatment is a major hassle."

"Lastly, the Spinal Thorn Shooting Bird has a row of sharp spines along the spine, normally looking like an ordinary feather crown. But when attacked or hunting, they can shoot bone spines like crossbow bolts with a range of forty or fifty meters and decent accuracy. The power of an adult shooting bird is comparable to a .22 bullet, while young ones are similar to a slingshot."

"Yes, those are the three most common types." Raul promptly nodded, pointing overhead, "Right now, almost all the birds above are Spinal Thorn Shooting Birds, so it’s better we hide away. Anyone hit without wearing protective gear ends up either heavily injured or instantly killed."

"It’s that serious..." Wang Kang’s brow furrowed tightly. If Dapo Town is like this too, it certainly spells big trouble.

Cheng Ye stood nevertheless, quietly contemplating.

Although it was his first time seeing living Thorn Birds.

Indeed, prior to this, he had read about them multiple times in the Inspector’s manual and during his time memorizing Firewood Communication for the trainee assessment.

Firewood Shelter City, with its lush plants and abundant food, if there were Thorn Birds, they were mostly of the mild-mannered variety.

But Stone Province was different, the Extraordinary Curse underground has siphoned off vegetal traits, and the wild vines and foliage appear robust, yet are unable to become food for any creature.

The mutant creatures that have survived here until now mostly consume metals, stones, or a few surviving on fish and other mutated organisms in the water.

After consuming metals and stones and undergoing repeated mutation catalyzed by the S3 virus, these Thorn Birds have long departed from human perception of bird species in the past era; calling them alien creatures wouldn’t be an exaggeration.