The pest infestation came without warning.
Three nights later, at the Yellow Bud Rice Fields.
Those emerald green beetles that could rapidly multiply suddenly appeared.
Nearly ten acres were almost completely ravaged.
Standing at the edge of the field, Chen Mu could distinctly hear the spine-chilling, grating crunch crunch sounds.
The swathes of Yellow Bud Rice, like collapsing sand castles, broke, tilted, plunged, and before they could hit the ground, they were devoured into nothingness.
Chen Mu quickly rang the Heartless Bell, working in concert with the Ghosts and the Five Ghosts to swiftly eradicate the pest.
Even so, nearly a tenth of the Yellow Bud Rice was lost.
As he was busy, a sudden blaze rose in the distance, quickly turning half the sky a blazing red.
Chen Mu’s heart chilled, and the paper spirit figures immediately flew into the sky.
Unfortunately, the distance was too great, and he could only make out vaguely that it was one of the Yellow Bud Rice Fields.
“Setting fire to kill the insects?”
“And what about the Yellow Bud Rice? Are they abandoning it?”
He didn’t understand what was happening there, but it was impossible for him to go and check.
“This pest infestation seems no small matter.”
“And who knows how the Lower Courtyard will handle it?”
…
By the banks of the Tongtian River.
“Junior Brother Liang!” Lin Su arrived at the cliffside wood tower temple with a face full of anxiety: “Has Director Song returned yet?”
“Could it be because of last night’s pest infestation?” Junior Brother Liang did not dare dawdle: “I’ve already notified Master. He should be back soon.”
Lin Su immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
“Does Senior Brother Lin know the specifics of the pest infestation?” Junior Brother Liang asked curiously.
He spent most of his time cultivating in the wooden tower and wasn’t very familiar with the basin’s situation.
“A few experienced disciples said it was a completely new Exotic Insect that could split and multiply, hiding during the day and coming out at night, skilled at burrowing,” Lin Su shook his head helplessly: “Ordinary methods are useless. We have no choice but to disturb Director Song.”
“Is it that serious?” Junior Brother Liang did not understand.
“It’s severe!” Lin Su spoke gravely: “If we can’t kill the insects quickly, we might face a complete crop failure this year!”
“I didn’t expect it to be this serious,” Junior Brother Liang became solemn.
“Now we can only wait for Director Song to return,” Lin Su said helplessly.
Junior Brother Liang couldn’t help but nod.
Director Song Wujie came from the Lower Court of Jilong Road, and his best skill was raising and controlling various Exotic Insects.
The two stood beside the wooden tower, looking out at the Tongtian River, silent for a moment.
After a long while, Lin Su lightly coughed: “When Director Song returns, concerning the Round Light Mirror, I’ll need Junior Brother to take extra care.”
As he spoke, he took out a weighty cloth bag and handed it to Junior Brother Liang.
Junior Brother Liang accepted it with a naive smile, slipping it into his sleeve: “Don’t worry, once Master returns, I will certainly help Senior Brother Lin obtain the Round Light Mirror.”
Lin Su exhaled in relief, his face full of gratitude: “Many thanks, Junior Brother.”
“Senior Brother has taken good care of me, this is but a small effort, no need for thanks,” Junior Brother Liang waved his hand nonchalantly.
“Junior Brother is generous!” Lin Su praised with a laugh.
But in his heart, he wished he could kill the bastard.
If it weren’t for the three payments of White Jade Coins I gave you, would you be so agreeable?
This Junior Brother Liang might look honest, but he was actually quite crafty!
But that person who stole the Exquisite Jade Plate was even more despicable!
Had that person not caused trouble, he wouldn’t have been pressured by such a youngster.
“Once I find you with the Round Light Mirror, huh…”
…
Early the next morning.
Low Hill Courtyard.
Chen Mu had not yet eaten when the wooden door was suddenly pounded furiously.
He opened the door to find Old Hao bustling in, agitated.
“How can those insects be killed?!” Old Hao’s eyes were bloodshot: “The ones that can keep splitting.”
“I’ve got no solution either,” Chen Mu gave a bitter smile: “Didn’t you see my field before you came? I too suffered from the disaster last night, losing nearly two acres.”
He naturally couldn’t reveal the existence of the Heartless Bell.
If word got out about the Heartless Bell, given the widespread devastation in the basin, those Lower Court disciples who lived off the land would surely come for his Magic Artifact like madmen.
“Then how did you last time…” Old Hao couldn’t believe it.
“Last time was just blind luck, I happened to encounter the beetles before they had started to proliferate massively,” Chen Mu sighed and shook his head.
He couldn’t admit the truth at any cost.
“It’s a certainty that I’ll be in debt this year,” Chen Mu said with a look of annoyance.
“My twenty-four White Jade Coins…” Old Hao was dumbstruck as he suddenly realized.
Chen Mu’s land had been ravaged by pests; failing to meet the target meant no rewards for him.
His own fields were plagued by the pestilence, and the reward he had within his grasp vanished before his eyes.
Old Hao felt the world spin, his eyes rolled back, and he sat down on the rocking chair with a thud.
“Don’t faint on me, old man!” Chen Mu exclaimed, startled.
“I wish I could faint!” Old Hao said, his face red with anger.
With the robust physical condition of a Shell Soul, he couldn’t even escape reality!
“Director, when are you coming back…” Old Hao’s face was filled with deep resentment.
…
It took a good while for Old Hao to calm his emotions a bit.
Only then did Chen Mu dare to inquire about the specifics.
“It’s all over,” Old Hao sighed.
“I cultivated twenty mu, and just last night, eight mu were gone!”
“Had I not set the fire to contain it in time, there would’ve been nothing left.”
Chen Mu understood; no wonder there had been flames everywhere last night.
“Old Li next door has even worse luck,” Old Hao sighed, feeling sympathy for another’s misfortune: “He drank the Drunken Immortal Brew last night and slept till dawn.”
“Fifteen mu of his crops were stripped clean!”
Chen Mu suddenly felt alarmed.
The damage done by these insects to the Yellow Bud Rice was truly severe!
“Did the Lower Courtyard just stand by and watch?” Chen Mu frowned.
“The old insecticides don’t work. Hundred Herbs Pavilion doesn’t know when they’ll be able to produce a new one,” Old Hao shook his head.
“The Inspection Courtyard is clueless too. They usually deal with large Exotic Beasts and those from the Evil Path. They have no experience with these kinds of insects,” Old Hao said helplessly.
“Actually, our Oversight Courtyard has the means. If only Director Song hadn’t gone to the Upper Court and not returned yet,” Old Hao’s face once again took on the look of a wronged little wife filled with grievance.
“No, I can’t just sit here and wait for death,” Old Hao suddenly stood up: “I have to go back and fight those insects to the death!”
“Even if I have to squash them one by one, I’ll kill them all!”
With those words, he ran off.
Chen Mu stood at the doorway, watching Old Hao as he quickly climbed over the hillside, deep in thought.
“With the pestilence wreaking havoc and Hundred Herbs Pavilion’s medicines ineffective…”
“If I could develop an insecticide…”
“Forget it, forget it; I can’t stick my neck out for this!”
“While it’s great to show saintliness before others, the next step could lead to the abyss.”
“I should just protect my nine mu of land and quietly farm experience at home.”
…
In Shang Huan’s residence.
Old Monk Hao and Shang Huan covered their mouths and noses with wet cloth.
They wielded shovels, constantly stirring a pile of reddish-brown, pungent powder before them.
“Is this stuff really effective?” Shang Huan’s eyes were so irritated with tears streaming down.
“How the heck would I know!” Old Hao snorted with eyes wide: “At any rate, I can’t stand it!”
Shang Huan chuckled, “Doesn’t matter at this point. With the current crisis, if you hold up a lump of cow dung claiming it can kill pests, people will buy it.”
“Not to mention… Ah-choo! This kind of nose-tickling stuff!” Shang Huan continued while sneezing.
“Uncle Hao, be sure you’ve thought this through.”
“There’s a high chance this won’t work. If it doesn’t effect after we sell it, we’re likely going to face a violent backlash,” Shang Huan said seriously.
He had seen the opportunity to make money from the pestilence but didn’t want to gamble with his life.
“No worries. My neighbor Old Li has lost everything. We give him half the profit, and he’s bound to sell it even if it kills him!” Old Hao chuckled: “There’s definitely more than one Old Li out there.”
Shang Huan burst into loud laughter: “Uncle Hao, that’s brilliant!”
Outside the courtyard, Chen Mu, carrying a bag of modified Mesmerizing Divine Smoke for beetles: “…”
I often feel out of place with you because I’m not ruthless enough.
What’s all that stuff, chili powder? Black pepper?
Could you at least try a bit harder! Even mixing a little bit of insecticide in there would do!
Chen Mu sighed deeply.
Making a fortune out of disaster and even thinking ahead to find a scapegoat?
What sort of characters have I gotten to know?!