Xia Jingxing arrived in front of the five-fragrance rice field, feeling a pang of heartache as he looked at the large areas of collapsed rice seedlings.
“My waist is broken!”
“These damn fat rats are too heavy!”
“Good thing they didn’t eat me!”
When he had inspected those Spirit Fields earlier, he had indeed found many plum blossom-shaped footprints, and he had thought they belonged to Yao Beasts with keen senses of smell, such as bears and badgers.
He hadn’t expected them to be rodents.
If they were rodents, then these rats must be about the size of a Hog Badger.
He quickly helped the rice seedlings back up; some had been completely knocked down, some were broken at the waist, and some were even cut off.
The seedlings broken at the waist were more complicated to deal with; he would have to secure them with bamboo strips, and they might need to be propped up for a long time before they matured.
By the time Xia Jingxing finished all of this, it was already Shenshi in the afternoon.
The previously dense rice seedlings had become sparse, which greatly displeased him, and he began to plot how to catch these Medicine Stealing Rats.
It would be best to set a trap.
He went to the part of the Spirit Field closest to the dense forest and saw several plum blossom-shaped footprints leading into the dense forest.
From the number, these Rat Yao Beasts were working in groups.
He released his ability and began to follow the footprints into the dense forest.
“Those guys are really vicious. They just stepped right over my head!”
“I wonder if this two-legged beast can catch them!”
Following the thoughts of these plants, Xia Jingxing soon arrived in front of a giant Black Thornwood tree.
【Name: Black Thornwood, Innate Attribute: Wood Hardening】
【Cannot be extracted】
“Those guys dug up the soil around my roots. They even gnawed on my roots. What naughty children!”
“They also scratched my tree stump, oh, it hurts so much!”
“My roots are hollow underneath; how can I absorb nutrients like this!”
He didn’t approach but observed the base of the Black Thornwood tree, discovering many sharp claw marks.
“It must be a creature with extremely sharp claws,” Xia Jingxing judged from the depth of the claw marks on the tree stump.
These claw marks exceeded the depth that ordinary Rat Yao Beasts could cause.
He also found a foot-sized black hole at the base of the Black Thornwood, several times larger than a normal rat hole.
“It should be a Rat Yao Beast at Qi Cultivation second or third level!”
If it were above Qi Cultivation third level, the marks it made would certainly not be this small.
He followed the traces this time to confirm some clues about the Medicine Stealing Rats, which would help him set the next trap.
Of course, before setting the trap, he planned to fence off the entire Spirit Field, so that if a Yao Beast came, it would create some noise and could be deterred somewhat.
He quickly left the rat hole and walked towards the bamboo grove. The trees in the dense forest were all common trees of no rank, and their toughness was far inferior to the seemingly less sturdy bamboo.
By the time he returned to the Spirit Field, he had already gathered fifty or sixty thick bamboo poles, all old bamboo he had found deep within the bamboo grove.
They must have been twenty or thirty years old.
By the time he had fenced off the entire Spirit Field, it was already a quarter past You Shi.
The newly built fence was a full ten feet high, made of two layers of stacked bamboo poles.
This type of fence could only protect against small Yao Beasts that couldn't dig holes; it wouldn't stop the rats that had stolen last night. He planned to purchase a defensive Formation in a few days.
For now, he could only use the fence to deter them somewhat... Time quickly passed, and half an hour later.
After Xia Jingxing finished his meal, the sun had left only a patch of sunset glow.
He took the newly woven large net and went to the front of the dense forest.
This net was woven from thousand leaf rope. The thousand leaf rope was as thick as a thumb and extremely tough; even the Medicine Seeking Badger, with its astonishing biting force, couldn't break free, so catching a few Medicine Stealing Rats would be easy.
“My skill is still there! Now, just waiting for the rats to take the bait!”
These Rat Yao Beasts had already tasted the sweetness, so they would definitely come again. At that time, he would place a few Spirit Medicine under the net, and he didn't believe they wouldn't take the bait.
It is said that it is difficult for Yao Beasts to gain intelligence. Although Yao Beasts with Cultivation have some intelligence, they are still far inferior to Cultivators.
In front of the Spirit Field, where there was a pile of footprints, he spread the entire net on the ground, using a large bamboo pole as a support. When the Rat Yao Beasts took the bait, he would pull it up.
This spot also had the most luxuriant weeds, which would allow him to hear their thoughts and react quickly.
Weeds: “What is this! So heavy! I’m going to be crushed to death!”
After setting up the trap, he put some dry grass on top, covering the rope, then took out a purple beard root and threw it in the very center.
The purple beard root was mature, and its medicinal effect was much stronger than that of the polygonatum root in its seedling stage, and its fragrance was also more intense.
Even a mature polygonatum root was worth a few Spirit Stones less than a purple beard root.
“No pain, no gain!” Xia Jingxing gritted his teeth, still deciding to use this Spirit Medicine as bait.
If these Rat Yao Beasts were of good quality, they might fetch a good price.
Soon, the sky darkened.
Sounds of many Yao Beasts coming out to forage also came from the direction of the dense forest.
“Other Yao Beasts in the dense forest wouldn’t come sniffing, would they?”
Xia Jingxing couldn't help but feel a little worried.
Fortunately, during the hour he waited, no other Yao Beasts attacked.
Just then, the thoughts he heard in his ear suddenly changed.
“They’re here again! They’re here again!”
“Those big guys are here again!”
“Stepped on again, how miserable!”
“Gently, gently!”
Besides hearing the weeds' complaints, Xia Jingxing also saw pairs of pale green eyes.
“There are five of them. No wonder they messed up all eight acres of my Spirit Field.”
His eyes flickered with a hint of resentment.
The several pairs of eyes flickering in the dark seemed to have smelled other scents and hesitated for a long time in front of the net trap.
‘Squeak! Squeak!’ Urgent calls occasionally came, as if they could no longer resist the temptation.
After five breaths, the pale green eyes finally moved, pouncing towards the purple beard root in the center.
Since there was only one root, the five Rat Yao Beasts began to argue fiercely, even letting out warning shrieks.
Seeing that all five Rat Yao Beasts were in the center of the net, he didn't dally, pulling hard on the rope he held tightly.
‘Squeak, squeak, squeak — howwwwl, howwwwl, howwwwl —’
The sound was sharp and piercing, echoing through the previously silent surroundings.
Xia Jingxing looked at the five hanging Rat Yao Beasts, a smile playing on his lips.
“Medicine Stealing Thieves, I finally caught you! Let me see what you really look like.”
He lit the lantern beside him and, holding the brightly lit lantern, came before the five Rat Yao Beasts.
Upon smelling the unfamiliar scent, the five Rat Yao Beasts immediately bared their teeth at him.
Xia Jingxing looked at the five large rats struggling desperately, curiosity flashing in his eyes.
These five large rats were dark brown all over, with layers of thick scales on their backs, and their front claws were like sharp blades, a little larger than the Hog Badger he kept in the pigpen.
He took out his Yao Beast handbook and quickly flipped to the rodent pages, soon finding a similar rodent name in the handbook.
“Iron Claw Mole!”
Iron Claw Moles have keen senses. Adult Yao Beasts can detect Yao Beasts within ten feet. Although they are not as good as Medicine Seeking Badgers, and the Spirit Medicine they find is also of mixed quality, their price is not low.
The key is that their sharp claws can dig extremely deep burrows.