Chapter 27: Exterminating the Insect Mother

When Xi Yu waved at the citizens of Baiji County, he received an exceptionally enthusiastic response.

With a dragon waving at you, very few people could remain indifferent.

Cheng Liang and his mother simply couldn’t keep their composure; furthermore, they saw that the direction Xi Yu waved in seemed to be aimed directly at the two of them, which instantly filled them with intense excitement.

Xie Yicheng felt much better now; currently, he only wished he could become Wei Kangming and step forward to say a few words to the white dragon.

Everyone was filled with immense invigoration.

Not only had they seen the divine dragon today, but they had also been rescued by him.

Just thinking about it felt completely incredible.

However, what they didn’t know was that the shock in the heart of the white dragon, who had vanished from their sight, was by no means less than theirs.

He discovered that some strange changes were occurring within his body.

And the trigger for all of this seemed to originate from the citizens outside Baiji County.

He felt as if a Food Sacrifice ability was forming from the mutation traits within his body, and instinctively, Xi Yu knew this ability would be exceptionally important to him.

His past life’s human aptitude hadn’t been very good, and it wasn’t until he reached B-class that he manifested his own true ability.

Yet in this life, his Food Sacrifice ability seemed on the verge of forming at F-class, which he found somewhat incredible.

Regardless of what this ability was, it was destined to be extraordinary.

His elimination of the mutated locusts to help the citizens of Baiji County had been a spontaneous act, born of a genuine desire to help and devoid of any ulterior motives.

Yet now, he discovered he had actually obtained an unexpected harvest, which brought him a sense of pleasant surprise.

This also solidified his determination to resolve this locust crisis.

Xi Yu quickly set aside his attempts to perceive the mutation traits in his body; the Food Sacrifice ability was indeed forming, but to truly take effect, it would likely require several days, and currently, he could only wait.

However, he truly looked forward to this ability with great anticipation.

****

After collecting Garret’s corpse, Xi Yu directly entered the levitating battleship.

There were three levitating battleships in total; the one Xi Yu currently entered was the ‘Tianshen’ (Heavenly God), which had previously been controlled by Augustus.

Originally, he had wanted to board the ‘Sea King’ controlled by Isaac, but it was filled with the gamey smell of seawater, so after taking a few steps, he turned back to the ‘Tianshen.’

Isaac’s expression instantly froze, while Augustus looked smug.

The interior of the levitating battleship was vast, lined with rows of various cabins.

This was the war engine of the Drance Federation, built primarily for combat, which was why both its exterior and interior decor were filled with a grim, rugged, and militaristic atmosphere.

Xi Yu had Augustus lead the way, asking him to find a spacious room within the ship.

Thus, Augustus led Xi Yu directly to his own bedroom.

“Lord White Dragon, this will be your cabin from now on,” Augustus said respectfully.

“Old Au, do you even need to say that?” Acrylic was highly dismissive. “The entire Tianshen belongs to Lord White Dragon now; does he need your permission?”

The veins on Augustus’s forehead throbbed, and he wanted nothing more than to tear Acrylic apart. To suppress him, this fellow truly had no lower limit.

Xi Yu leaned against the door somewhat weakly; Augustus’s room was indeed spacious and luxurious.

No wonder this fellow stayed aboard day and night.

Capable of flying all over the globe and fleeing instantly when encountering danger, it truly was a must-have tool for global travel.

If he couldn’t fly himself, he would have been enticed.

However, he wasn’t here to sleep right now.

“Go straight to the dining hall,” he waved his hand.

Augustus didn’t dare say anything, quickly leading the group over.

Upon reaching the dining hall, Xi Yu sat down on a random chair, then said calmly to the three: “I said earlier that as long as you rescued people, I would spare your lives and reward you, and I won’t go back on my word. This time, each of you rescued nearly a thousand people, which is a great achievement. In the future, as long as you do not betray me, I won’t kill you, and as for the reward, I’ll give it to you now.”

Regarding the events of his previous life, killing them seven hundred times wouldn’t be enough to appease his anger, but they had ultimately rescued people today.

Furthermore, aside from Acrylic and Isaac, he had already taken the revenge he should have taken against Augustus and the others in his past life. In this life, as long as they were obedient, he was willing to give them a chance to turn over a new leaf.

In any case, these individuals possessed B-class combat strength, and in the future, when the Middle Continent faced its great tribulation, they would still be able to help.

Although the Ogaso conspiracy was unlikely to occur in this life, it would still be very difficult for the Middle Continent to establish a firm foothold in the future.

Not to mention the other worlds that hadn’t begun their invasions yet, merely dealing with the Ogaso and the worlds behind the Three Great Catastrophes wouldn’t be easy.

If they had to wait until those Food Sequence Lords descended, there was no telling what chaos Kun Star would fall into.

With that, Xi Yu pulled a whole unranked Tusk Donkey from his space. “You guys take this and divide it.”

“A beast?” Acrylic and the other two looked at each other. A reward?

“Old Au, what is that expression on your face? Could it be you’re saying Lord White Dragon is lying to us?” Acrylic stared at Augustus.

Augustus was nearly driven mad with rage; this Acrylic was simply disgusting. Hadn’t he also been surprised moments ago?

“Lord White Dragon, please wait a moment. This is a good thing, and I will definitely enjoy it.”

“This truly is a good thing; don’t waste it.” Xi Yu was quite repulsed by his fawning behavior, waving his hand to dismiss him. He wanted people who could get things done, not flatterers.

“Yes, Lord White Dragon.” Seeing that Xi Yu disliked his behavior, Augustus immediately became solemn.

Seeing this, Augustus felt his anger fade, suddenly finding the white dragon to be exceptionally wise and majestic.

However, why did his current state look a bit weak?

Naturally, Augustus didn’t believe Xi Yu was truly weak; he suspected the white dragon was teasing them again, wanting to lure them into striking. He truly felt innocent; he had genuinely accepted his fate now, and even if given ten times the courage, he wouldn’t dare harbor any designs.

Isaac was the most afraid of death among the three, and he immediately hovered near Acrylic. He didn’t dare stay near Xi Yu, fearing he would accidentally offend the dragon and end up with a hole in his head.

Xi Yu ignored the three of them. After resting for a bit, he found a pot in the dining hall and threw in an arm-thick spiny lobster, boiling it directly.

Marine delicacies contained relatively few mutation traits; after only half a night, the mutation traits on the lobsters and crabs had been completely dissolved, making them edible.

“Lord White Dragon, what are you doing? Let me help you,” Augustus said quickly.

“Don’t worry about me. Do your own thing,” Xi Yu waved his hand; he was only comfortable eating food he prepared himself.

The spiny lobster was quickly cooked.

Subsequently, Xi Yu peeled open the shell; the rich tomalley and inviting aroma instantly rushed toward him.

Xi Yu grabbed the large lobster tail and took a bite without dipping it in anything; the sweet texture spread through his mouth, filling it instantly. Xi Yu felt incredibly satisfied; it truly was the flavor from his past life.

****

On the other side, Acrylic and the other two also began to eat the beast meat.

Initially, they hadn’t expected much from it.

Even if Xi Yu hadn’t lied to them, the meat might only be a good thing for himself, while to them, it might be a form of torture, but they didn’t dare not eat it.

If they had the spine to resist, they would have fought Xi Yu long ago.

But once the beast meat entered their stomachs, the three were shocked.

The white dragon truly hadn’t deceived them; the taste of this Tusk Donkey meat was truly extraordinary.

As B-class experts, they naturally didn’t lack meat, but they had only eaten ordinary, pure meat.

The beast meat they were eating now truly blew them away.

The flavor of the meat was actually secondary; the key was that it contained Mutation Particles, and they naturally knew what this represented.

It meant they could directly use the beast meat to cultivate. Although the energy contained within the Tusk Donkey meat wasn’t much, what if Xi Yu possessed higher-quality meat?

Their eyes sparkled as they looked at Xi Yu.

The white dragon was indeed extraordinary.

At this moment, Xi Yu cut a small piece of lobster meat for each of them.

By now, the three of them were no longer apprehensive, eating the lobster meat with great anticipation. Sure enough, it didn’t disappoint them, and their faces were filled with pure enjoyment.

This lobster meat was simply unmatched; they hadn’t eaten seafood since the catastrophe.

Once they swallowed the lobster, they were all slightly excited.

Seeing that they had finished eating, Xi Yu said, “In the future, you will stay by my side and work; do well, and there will be rewards. If nothing else, as long as your achievements are sufficient, you’ll have chances to eat seafood.”

Although forcing them could also make them work, it definitely wouldn’t be as efficient as mobilizing their initiative. Of course, there was one thing he didn’t say: if they didn’t work hard and tried to play tricks, they would be destroyed directly. He had no energy to play wits with them day and night. He had already offered them sweetness; if they didn’t work hard, they couldn’t blame him.

“Lord Dragon, please rest assured. I will work diligently in the future and absolutely won’t harbor double-minded thoughts.” Although he was the first to state his stance, Acrylic appeared very solemn now.

Augustus and the other were not to be outdone, quickly offering their promises.

Xi Yu nodded. He took out Augustus’s weapons and returned them to him. “You guys rest for a bit, then join me in completely resolving the locust disaster in a bit.”

“Yes!” the three responded loudly.

Thinking of the beast meat they had just eaten, hope surged in their hearts. Living like this was definitely better than being locked up in a dark place or losing their lives. The three cherished this opportunity, not daring to harbor any crooked thoughts. Xi Yu’s powerful strength had completely stripped them of any desire to resist.

If Xi Yu could occasionally reward them with some lobster or seafood, this life actually seemed quite good.

Subsequently, Xi Yu ignored the three, resting on his own. He fell asleep before them without any reservations.

Seeing Xi Yu sleep so casually, Acrylic and his partners looked at each other, but they didn’t dare do anything. Garret’s fate was still fresh in their minds, and they didn’t want to seek death. The more candid Xi Yu was, the less they dared to harbor double-minded thoughts.

Thus, they also closed their eyes cautiously to rest nearby, not daring to leave.

****

In Baiji County, Wei Kangming had already arranged for the villagers outside to enter the city.

At this moment, he let out a sigh in his heart; although they had preserved the lives of the majority, their food and resources had basically been destroyed by the mutated locusts.

Not to mention the crops in the fields; they would likely harvest nothing this year.

And their food was not only for Baiji County’s own use, but also to be supplied to other cities in Huzhong Province. Fortunately, with the white dragon’s help, the mutated locust disaster hadn’t spread; otherwise, if a famine broke out in Huzhong Province this year, it would surely lead to massive devastation.

Currently, he was facing a pile of troubles; how to solve the food issues of the thousands of villagers who had just entered the city was a massive problem.

However, looking at the levitating battleships outside the city, Wei Kangming felt exceptionally invigorated.

The arrival of the divine dragon and the appearance of the battleships seemed to signify that everything was moving in a good direction.

In truth, he could even accept the appearance of the white dragon, but the sudden appearance of the Drance Federation’s levitating battleships in Baiji County was beyond his imagination.

If he hadn’t confirmed it repeatedly, he truly would have thought he was dreaming.

And there were many others like him; many military guards rubbed their eyes repeatedly. It was only after confirming that the three massive objects in front of them hadn’t vanished that they couldn’t help but grin.

This was the war engine of the Drance Federation; in the future, it might belong to their Middle Continent.

However, some were more direct, taking photos and videos of everything before them and posting them online.

The Middle Continent valued information and communications above all else, which was why every region could still access the internet and chat to this day. It was just that the communicators didn’t have as many functions as before; currently, most devices could only make calls and send texts, and those that could truly access the internet were few.

However, one or two devices capable of accessing the internet could still be found in a county town.

They hadn’t had time to photograph the white dragon, nor did they dare to, but no one had any reservations about photographing the levitating battleships. As for the white dragon’s existence, they felt it was highly necessary to speak of it, as it would surely boost the confidence of the entire nation.

The news of the levitating battleships appearing in Baiji County immediately caused a sensation online.

Although the number of people who could access the internet was small, the power of word-of-mouth was by no means weak, instead growing even more powerful.

However, basically no one believed this news.

While the internet was lively, in reality, very few truly treated this as real. Creating such a gimmick felt somewhat laughable.

Given the Middle Continent’s current situation, making such a joke was inappropriate.

And regarding the white dragon’s existence, they found it even more absurd. How could a mythical creature truly appear in the Middle Continent? If it was going to appear, why hadn’t it appeared earlier? Why did it happen to appear in your Baiji County?

The people of Baiji County didn’t argue when they saw the disbelief online; the divine dragon had been seen with their own eyes, and the levitating battleships were currently parked outside their city.

If they hadn’t seen it with their own eyes, they wouldn’t have believed it either.

But they believed the entire nation would boil with excitement sooner or later.

At this moment, what they were most curious about was: what was the relationship between the white dragon and the levitating battleships?

Although few people online believed this news, Chu Luan and Ding Ren, who were currently rushing to the capital, believed it implicitly.

Not only did they believe it, they were deeply shaken.

When they first learned of this news, they looked at each other, their eyes filled with questions.

Especially Ding Ren; he let out a heavy sigh in his heart. ‘It’s only been one night, and the little white dragon has already made such a massive move. In the future, even if someone said he captured a god, I’d believe it.’

Recalling Xi Yu’s personality, he found this was indeed something he would do. He had already seen this during the Ghost Domain incident; as long as Xi Yu wanted to do something, no one could stop him.

“Is Xi Yu always this unexpected?” Chu Luan couldn’t help but look at Ding Ren, his heart still filled with shock.

“Yes, he can always do things that are beyond imagination.” On the surface, Ding Ren appeared very calm. No matter how unexpected Xi Yu’s actions were, the result was always good.

Chu Luan looked at Ding Ren with some surprise; he seemed to detect a hint of pride on Ding Ren’s face.

‘Impossible, I must have seen wrong.’

Ding Ren had basically grown up under his watch, and it was absolutely impossible for him to be so expressive.

Chu Luan was too excited to sit still after learning the news.

Although Xi Yu had already given him the anti-gravity technology, technology and the actual finished product were two different things. If Xi Yu could give them the battleships to study, that would be even better, and he had a very strong intuition that this wouldn’t be a pipe dream; Xi Yu would absolutely do so.

His heart was currently warm; Xi Yu had brought him too many surprises, and had also brought the Middle Continent massive surprises.

This mutated insect disaster in Baiji County was fortunate to have occurred while Xi Yu was there; otherwise, once the locust disaster erupted, the entire Huzhong Province might have been devastated. He wished he could fly over now to fight alongside Xi Yu.

He believed that with Xi Yu there, the locust disaster would surely be resolved in the end. It was too late for him to rush over now.

However, Chu Luan still personally issued an order, having Huzhong Province notify Baiji County and the surrounding county towns to fully cooperate with Xi Yu, providing him with as much help as possible.

“We’ve only met once, yet why do I trust him so much?” Chu Luan also found it incredible.

“In any case, we need to return quickly,” Chu Luan said seriously. “We’ll switch to a helicopter in a bit.”

At the mention of this, he felt some regret.

After the catastrophe, the Middle Continent had preserved almost all of its technology.

However, major national assets like super trains and airplanes were basically unusable now, because any ghost or beast could cause accidents or danger. Even highly maneuverable helicopters faced the same issue, and currently, the Middle Continent had gradually abandoned the use of various high-tech weapons.

If it were only beasts, it would be fine, but the ghosts’ abilities were bizarre and varied, making them impossible to guard against.

For safety, the Middle Continent was forced to abandon these heavy assets.

The interruption of external transport and the forced abandonment of most resource extraction sites were also among the reasons for abandoning this technology.

The Drance Federation’s levitating battleships had proven that no matter what emergency arose, the anti-gravity technology could handle it. It could travel slowly through the air; as long as the core parts were guarded, there was no need to worry about the risk of crashing during emergencies. And in the air, there was no need to worry about roads suddenly being cut off.

As long as there was sufficient defensive power, they could travel anywhere in the world.

This was also why Chu Luan was so desirous of the anti-gravity technology.

He had even made a decision in his heart: since the battleships had arrived in the Middle Continent, he would absolutely not return them, even if it meant going to war with the Drance Federation. For the sake of the citizens, there were some things he had to fight for; the importance of the levitating battleships was far too significant.

“Alright.” Regarding Chu Luan’s words, Ding Ren nodded directly.

With two B-class experts like them, riding a helicopter shouldn’t pose too much of a problem. He was certain Xi Yu would head to the capital, and he was currently quite eager to meet him.

****

Xi Yu was unaware of the commotion in Chu Luan’s heart; after sleeping for two hours, his energy was mostly recovered.

He prepared to resolve the locust disaster completely now.

Xi Yu called Acrylic and the other two over; this matter required their cooperation.

“Next, the four of us will set out together to find the source of the locust disaster,” Xi Yu said solemnly.

Through his observations last night, he had discovered that this mutated locust disaster in Baiji County was not natural; there was a insect mother controlling them from behind.

When the Zerg invaded, the vast majority of the anaerobes flew into deep space, their whereabouts unknown, while the remaining aerobes were wiped out globally.

Zerg was a swarm species, posing the greatest threat to the globe at the start of the catastrophe. At that time, global high-tech firepower was at its peak, and the Zerg on Kun Star were basically wiped out under global mobilization.

However, some scattered Zerg remained across the world, causing various troubles over the years.

The reason Xi Yu was so certain was because normally, locust swarms would have scattered long ago upon encountering danger. While he had intentionally trapped them, the locusts’ smooth cooperation suggested their insect mother had sensed danger and wanted to protect itself.

Acrylic and his partners didn’t want to do this, but they didn’t dare object.

Even with their strength, eliminating the insect mother within the swarm was extremely dangerous; back in the federation, they would have used full firepower coverage long ago, not caring about the consequences.

However, they were quickly relieved; Xi Yu had no intention of using them as bait.

This made them feel a bit ashamed, and vaguely, they began to accept Xi Yu.

But if Xi Yu knew what they were thinking, he would only say they were overthinking. The reason he didn’t have them charge was mainly because they wouldn’t be very effective. The area affected by the locusts was quite large, and three B-classes wouldn’t be of much use; charging in would likely be futile, and the key was still the levitating battleships.

However, this required cooperation from Baiji County.

Leading the three out of the battleship, Xi Yu sought out Wei Kangming. He explained his plan and warned, “During the process of finding the insect mother, the mutated locusts will definitely go wild. At that time, they might launch a ferocious counter-attack, so you must have everyone hide in advance. Additionally, I’m worried the locusts will spread, so it’s best to have the surrounding counties and towns take precautions.”

“Yes, we’ll notify them immediately,” Wei Kangming replied seriously. “Don’t worry; the higher-ups have instructed us to fully cooperate with you. Furthermore, City Seat Guan has already said you don’t need to worry about his side for now; just focus on what you need to do.”

“Alright,” Xi Yu nodded. “Are three hours enough? We’ll launch the attack at 1 PM sharp.”

“More than enough,” Wei Kangming replied.

****

Xi Yu’s plan was actually very simple.

As powerful as the mutated locusts were, they couldn’t easily pierce the defenses of the levitating battleships. He just had to have the battleships drive the locusts; to protect the insect mother, the locusts definitely wouldn’t leave her guarding area, so the location with the highest density of locusts was most likely the mother’s hiding spot.

The plan was simple, but without the battleships, it was impossible to complete.

So now Xi Yu was glad he had captured them all. With their cooperation, he could save a lot of effort.

However, there was a problem now: Garret was dead, leaving only Isaac and Augustus capable of piloting the battleships, which meant one battleship would be left empty.

“Lord Dragon, I can learn!” Upon hearing this, Wei Kangming’s eyes lit up, and he volunteered immediately.

“I can learn too!” Acrylic said quickly; he had resolved to master the piloting technology after returning.

“Then the two of you learn together; whoever learns first gets to pilot.”

There was still time before the appointed hour, which was enough for them to learn.

“Yes!” Wei Kangming and Acrylic instantly glared at each other, fire burning in their eyes.

Augustus and his partner also taught them diligently; they had to, as Xi Yu was watching them from behind.

Wei Kangming wanted to learn, but Acrylic’s potential as a B-class expert was far superior, and he was already an expert in mechanics and artillery.

Previously, he hadn’t wanted to learn, but Isaac’s group treated the battleships as private property and didn’t let others touch them, so he had no opportunity.

Taking this opportunity, he finally mastered it.

Once Acrylic learned and familiarized himself with the controls, the appointed hour arrived, and Xi Yu didn’t delay any further.

Before the gazes of tens of thousands of citizens of Baiji County, the three levitating battleships rose slowly from the ground and headed toward the locust perimeter.

****

Xi Yu stood atop the ‘Tianshen,’ looking down over the earth.

The mutated locust disaster had erupted quickly, but the area affected was vast.

Over a night, the locusts had occupied almost an entire county, and this was after his efforts to eliminate a portion of them.

During the day, the locusts hadn’t spread further; he didn’t know if the white dragon’s deterrence had worked, or if the insect mother was controlling them intentionally.

As the three massive objects headed into the center of the locust perimeter, Augustus and his partners saw a dark mass on the ground—insects were everywhere, with barely any green visible.

The arrival of the battleships stirred up the swarm, and in an instant, countless locusts took to the sky, blotting out the light.

Even Acrylic and the others couldn’t help but feel their scalps tingle, wanting to fire their weapons directly, though they held back.

The next moment, thud-thud-thud, countless locusts slammed against the battleships.

For a moment, Augustus and his partners felt a pang of heartache.

Although it was unlikely for the locusts to breach the battleships’ defenses, it would certainly cause some damage, but they clearly couldn’t care about that right now.

Once the battleships charged into the center of the swarm, they were like tigers entering a forest.

Countless locusts launched suicidal attacks, but this didn’t affect the battleships’ speed in the slightest. The three steel beasts rampaged through the center of the swarm, scattering the locusts, while the sky full of insects could only let out angry screeches.

As the battleships wreaked havoc, the locusts were helpless against them, but seeing a human atop the Tianshen, countless insects charged toward Xi Yu.

But as they reached Xi Yu, they either brushed past him or vanished into thin air.

At this moment, both his dragon scale soft armor and glove space played a critical role; a single locust didn’t even reach the unranked tier, completely unable to resist the space’s gravity, and was swept into his glove space one by one.

He didn’t know if mutated locusts were edible, but they could certainly help the dragon aura dissolve mutation traits.

Xi Yu ignored the locusts around him, his eyes scanning the ground.

Since he had already ascended to F-class, the abilities of his dragon scale soft armor could basically be activated. Enduring the impact of the mutated locusts for a few hours was no problem.

The three battleships traveled through the air continuously, and an hour quickly passed, yet they still hadn’t found any trace of the insect mother’s hiding spot.

Though the locusts in the sky and on the ground were furious, they never lingered in one spot. If not for the fact that the locusts hadn’t left, Xi Yu would have suspected there was no insect mother. It seemed this mother was far more clever than he anticipated.

Acrylic and his partners were completely numb by now; the battleships were already damaged anyway, so they simply went all out. As long as Xi Yu didn’t call a halt, they wouldn’t hesitate.

As time went on, Xi Yu’s brow furrowed slightly.

He discovered this mother was not only clever, but possessed excellent patience, and even this hadn’t forced her out.

It seemed he would have to transform into the white dragon and inspect every area to find her.

However, unless absolutely necessary, he truly didn’t want to do so.

Xi Yu didn’t give up, having the battleships make another sweep.

Suddenly, Xi Yu discovered something abnormal.

He noticed that there wasn’t a single locust near the reservoir near Xiaoyang Village. Initially, he had thought the locusts were afraid of water and thus unwilling to approach. But after having the ‘Tianshen’ make another sweep, he discovered the locusts weren’t afraid of water, and many water bodies had traces of them.

Upon close inspection, many mutated locusts actually actively avoided that reservoir.

Looking at it now, this was indeed abnormal.

“Found you.”

Although this was only a minor anomaly, Xi Yu was almost certain of his guess.

The next moment, he leapt, and the white dragon charged directly toward the water.

Even before getting close, Xi Yu had already discovered the anomaly beneath the reservoir.

Beneath the water was a dense network of structures resembling transparent pipes. In the center of these pipes were densely packed insect eggs—the mutated locusts that hadn’t hatched yet. These structures were very quiet below the water, appearing like dead matter without any intelligence.

This was absolutely the insect mother; although Xi Yu hadn’t seen this type before, it was normal given the myriad species of mutated Zerg.

The white dragon’s current size was only that of a human, which was unremarkable.

But as he charged down, a massive rumble erupted within the reservoir. The once calm water surface boiled instantly, and at the same time, the sky full of locusts went wild, lunging toward the white dragon.

Thus, Xi Yu’s movements paused.

Seeing countless Zerg flying toward him, he simply opened his glove space.

Instantly, the locusts proactively flew into the glove space, and in no time, tens of thousands of locusts vanished before him.

Xi Yu was overjoyed; this method was incredibly effective and didn’t require him to consume dragon power. Because the number of locusts was too vast and they flew too fast, they threw themselves into his trap without him even needing to actively draw them in.

Soon, the number of mutated locusts decreased one by one, yet they seemed not to notice any abnormality, still charging toward Xi Yu desperately.

In the sky, the three levitating battleships stopped operating. Acrylic and his partners watched this scene from above, their faces filled with shock and disbelief.

The white dragon’s methods were simply too mysterious and bizarre.

****

Aisaxiks was an ordinary insect mother.

Years ago, when she followed her clan to discover a new world, she had invaded without hesitation. Swarming and devouring were the instincts of the Zerg, but unfortunately, the number of invaders was too small. Coupled with the fact that the anaerobic Zerg of their clan had abandoned them to head beyond this world, their invasion of this planet ultimately failed.

But she had survived by luck.

Over the years, she had built up her strength, slowly trying to alter her kind on this world, and she had finally succeeded. Her modifications were successful, and her offspring possessed more powerful abilities. She believed she was now stronger than before.

Now, she was going to emerge once more, letting this world feel the terror of the Zerg.

Over the years, she had also been observing this world, discovering that the strength of the race that had nearly wiped them out seemed to have waned. This gave her sufficient confidence that she would succeed.

But she never expected that just as her offspring emerged, they would encounter an incredibly terrifying, powerful existence.

His power filled her with dread; she hadn’t even felt such a terrifying aura from the Zerg Emperor.

She hoped this great existence was merely passing by, so she hid cautiously. But now she realized she was wrong; he was here for her.

Thus, she had to do her best to conceal her hiding spot, but she ultimately failed.

She had been discovered.

****

The white dragon slowed down. The insect mother beneath the reservoir seemed to realize Xi Yu was intentionally depleting the locusts, but she didn’t dare hesitate, still controlling the locusts to charge at Xi Yu.

Before long, more than half of the locusts in the sky had vanished; in this short time, Xi Yu had collected millions of them.

His glove space was actually not small, but it was close to being filled now.

Xi Yu wasn’t in a hurry, collecting them slowly.

Without the glove space, he still had the white dragon’s space. The white dragon’s space was massive; even if the number of locusts were a hundred times greater, he wouldn’t be afraid.

Finally, when the last locust vanished near Xi Yu, the glove space still hadn’t been filled.

Xi Yu stopped waiting.

The insect mother went wild; knowing she was no match for the white dragon, she launched a desperate struggle, with countless water droplets and transparent pipes shooting toward Xi Yu.

‘It’s time to end this.’

The white dragon stopped, his eyes filled with coldness.

BOOM.

A massive white light erupted from the white dragon, and his majestic dragon power descended, submerging everything below.

Accompanied by a loud wail, the world fell into complete silence, and everything in the reservoir vanished.

Xi Yu descended above the reservoir, and once he confirmed the insect mother was completely dead, he flew back to the levitating battleship.

“Head back.”

Acrylic and his partners’ souls trembled; the white dragon was simply too powerful.

They had confirmed once again that the white dragon was irresistible. For the rest of their lives, as long as they didn’t want to die, they wouldn’t dare rebel against Xi Yu.

****

Having resolved the locust disaster completely, Xi Yu didn’t plan on staying, preparing to head to the capital immediately; he had already delayed for a day.

He flew over Baiji County first, with Acrylic and the others operating the battleships behind him.

“County Seat Wei, the locust crisis in Baiji County has been resolved. I’m leaving now; we’ll meet again if fate allows.” Xi Yu circled over Baiji County once, conveying this news to everyone to ease their minds completely.

Looking at the white dragon moving through the sky, the entire population of Baiji County erupted.

Previously, only the rescued villagers had seen the white dragon’s true form, but now everyone had witnessed with their own eyes that the divine dragon truly existed.

This brought them an unprecedented spiritual impact.

Furthermore, the white dragon had brought them a piece of great news, which filled them with excitement and cheers.

At this moment, countless people bowed to the white dragon.

Especially villagers like Cheng Liang’s family who had been rescued personally; they were filled with gratitude and excitement, and many even prayed devoutly to the white dragon.

Xi Yu simply didn’t want to transform back and forth, and since many had already seen him anyway, he simply circled Baiji County in his white dragon form.

But just as he prepared to leave, he felt the internal transformation within his body accelerate.

This forced him to halt his plan of storing the battleships and heading to the capital.

The white dragon paused, then flew back toward the levitating battleship.

Dropping onto the Tianshen, Xi Yu transformed back into a human.

At this moment, he could perceive the strange change occurring within his body even more clearly. His Food Sacrifice ability was truly about to manifest immediately.

However, Xi Yu looked toward Baiji County with confusion; he was certain that this change was due to the influence of the citizens of Baiji County. But currently, the ability hadn’t fully manifested, and he wasn’t clear on the key details.

After some hesitation, Xi Yu decided to wait until the ability manifested before leaving.

He had an intuition that if he left now, the ability would fail to manifest.

Xi Yu trusted his intuition, and he happened to have some things he wanted to arrange anyway, rather than simply rushing to hand the battleships over to the First Realm Guard.

Since this matter wasn’t urgent, he would wait another day or two.

The levitating battleship landed outside Baiji County once more, which brought immense joy to the citizens who had thought the white dragon was leaving.

“Lord White Dragon, what should we do next?” Augustus and his partners quickly sought out Xi Yu; now that the locust crisis was over, they began to worry about their fate again.

“Stay here for a few days,” Xi Yu said gently. “Next, stay aboard the Tianshen and do not leave. Additionally, if any Middle Continent citizens want to come aboard for a tour, do not block them.”

“Yes!” The three were overjoyed; fortunately, they wouldn’t be knocked out by the dragon again.

“This is your reward.” Xi Yu gave each of them two three-pound mutated spiny lobsters.

They had performed well this time, so the reward he gave them naturally wouldn’t be small. With rewards and punishments, they would work diligently in the future.

“Thank you, Lord White Dragon!” Their eyes lit up.

If they could eat seafood daily, being captives actually seemed quite good.

****

“Lord Dragon!” Wei Kangming shouted from outside the levitating battleship.

His heart was filled with confusion; hadn’t the white dragon said he was leaving? Why had he returned? But this was a good thing for him, and he wouldn’t miss a chance to get closer to the dragon.

“County Seat Wei.” Xi Yu walked down from the battleship, feeling a bit embarrassed. He had said he was leaving, yet he had returned.

“Lord Dragon, why don’t you take a proper rest here in Baiji County, and let the citizens express their gratitude to you?” Wei Kangming wasn’t foolish enough to ask why he hadn’t left, quickly giving Xi Yu an opening.

“There’s no need for such trouble,” Xi Yu waved his hand. “I actually have something to discuss with you.”

“Go ahead, please command me as you wish,” Wei Kangming said quickly.

“This time Baiji County suffered a locust disaster, and the crops were heavily damaged; do you still have sufficient supplies?” Xi Yu asked.

The smile on Wei Kangming’s face vanished, but he quickly composed himself. “Although there will be an impact, it’s not a major issue. We can have neighboring counties support us, and the capital will surely help resolve this issue as well.”

“So you are short of food?” Xi Yu’s tone was certain.

Wei Kangming nodded helplessly.

“I see the affected areas suffered heavily, and you’ll harvest nothing from the first half of the year. Since you can’t farm for the time being, why don’t I hire you to raise poultry for me?” Xi Yu revealed his purpose.

“Raise poultry—mutated poultry?” Wei Kangming’s eyes nearly popped out of his head.

These words coming from Xi Yu’s mouth felt incredibly out of place.

Xi Yu nodded with certainty. “It doesn’t have to be chickens; ducks or geese are fine too. You raise them for me for half a year, and you can resume farming in the second half of the year. Of course, I won’t have you do it for free; this grain will serve as your wages.”

He currently had a vast amount of food, and he needed a large quantity of mutated poultry, so this could be considered mutual assistance. Primarily, he wanted to help them, and his stored food could be put to use. Furthermore, he wouldn’t suffer a loss; as long as the poultry could be raised, he would only gain more.

With a wave of his hand, a massive quantity of grain appeared before him. This was the food he had seized from the Drance Federation—hundreds of tons of it—and though he had only taken out a few tons now, it still shocked Wei Kangming.

Wei Kangming’s eyes widened, and he swallowed hard.

“You calculate how many are willing to raise poultry for me, and I’ll provide two pounds of grain per person daily. As for feed, you don’t have to worry; I can provide it.”

The millions of mutated locusts in his space couldn’t be eaten by humans, but they were perfectly fine for chickens, ducks, and geese. He had been worried about how to handle the locusts, so this solved both problems.

Actually, he had wanted to bring them to Xichuan Province directly to help build his breeding farm, but they might not be willing to leave their homes, so he hadn’t mentioned it.

Xi Yu thought of the locusts killed last night, which couldn’t be wasted, and said to Wei Kangming, “County Seat Wei, see if you can arrange people to collect the dead mutated locusts outside. Ten pounds of locusts for one pound of grain; do you think anyone is willing?”

Wei Kangming felt he was going mad; who wouldn’t be willing? He even wanted to go collect them himself.

Soon, Wei Kangming ran off excitedly to arrange it, but he returned even faster to find Xi Yu.

Wei Kangming was both excited and troubled. “Lord Dragon, too many people want to raise poultry; the entire county wants to do it. But some don’t want grain—they feel it is an honor just to help you.”

“That won’t do,” Xi Yu shook his head, unable to accept such a thing. He pondered.

Wei Kangming looked at Xi Yu’s handsome face and found it hard to link him to the white dragon; if he hadn’t witnessed it himself, he truly couldn’t imagine interacting with the divine dragon so closely, let alone speaking with him.

Xi Yu quickly made a decision. “How about this, County Seat Wei? My grain isn’t unlimited, so I can’t supply hundreds of thousands of people. Let the affected villagers help me with the work, while others can raise poultry, and I’ll purchase them. Two chickens… no, one pound of poultry for two pounds of grain; how about that?”

He had originally wanted to trade pure meat directly, but he knew the allure of pure meat; once everyone scrambled to raise poultry, it might turn a good thing into a bad thing.

Wei Kangming nodded quickly; this was certainly fine.

This filled him with gratitude toward Xi Yu; with his help, Baiji County wouldn’t have to burden the capital. Currently, the entire nation was short of food, and such a massive deficit would have been a heavy burden on others.

As Wei Kangming left in high spirits, Xi Yu discovered that his Food Sacrifice ability was actually on the verge of fully condensing early because of what he had just done.

This made him look forward to it with great anticipation—what kind of ability could manifest at F-class, and how would it be related to the citizens of Baiji County?