Chapter 138: Taking Action Against the Locust Disaster Threat

At this moment, Ning Jinli also felt a thin coolness falling on her forehead.

Sure enough, it really started to rain.

Even though only a few scattered drops fell, this was the first rain in the area in over half a year.

"It's raining! It's raining!" the surrounding villagers shouted loudly.

Some people danced excitedly, some raised their arms toward the sky, and some knelt on the ground to bow.

Soon after, the raindrops grew more numerous and denser.

The rustling sound was endless.

Seeing this, it seemed the rain would keep intensifying.

"Hahaha! Finally… finally it's raining!" Xiao Qidi shouted, laughing toward the sky, "Come on! Make it even heavier!"

Boom—

A muffled thunder rumbled in the sky.

A massive thick cloud mass began to churn, pulling the surrounding thin clouds together as well.

At this very moment, elsewhere in Lin Xian Cheng.

The villagers working in the fields stopped their tasks, eyes wide as they looked up.

The soldiers in training also, involuntarily stunned, raised their heads.

The old, young, women and children inside heard the commotion and rushed outside.

Wow!

The rain suddenly grew heavier, like a waterfall pouring down from the sky.

"It's raining!"

"Heaven finally sent rain! Fellow villagers, come out and see!"

All the townsfolk cheered, calling friends, swarming like a hive to the open areas.

The sound of the downpour and thunder could not drown out their excited shouts.

"Jinli! You did it!" Xiao Qidi, standing in the pouring rain, excitedly hugged Ning Jinli's waist and spun several times on the spot.

If he hadn't held her so tightly, Ning Jinli feared she would be flung away.

"Stop, stop, stop… I'm getting dizzy!" Ning Jinli shouted.

Xiao Qidi, his face beaming with joy, stopped, cupped Ning Jinli's face, ignoring the crowd of villagers around, and pressed a strong kiss onto her.

The downpour struck the ground, stirring up a haze, making everything around blurry.

The two, drenched like boiled chickens, clung tightly and kissed each other……

……

That afternoon and the whole night, the rain kept falling.

It didn't stop until the next morning.

This rain was larger than Ning Jinli had expected.

Fortunately, before this, Lin Xian Cheng had built many canals to channel groundwater, preventing flooding or landslides on the slopes.

One part of the water nourished the earth, the other filled ponds and ditches.

When the sun rose, the world seemed freshly washed inside and out, with no speck of dust; the air smelled of soil and plants, and the sky was blue like a huge sapphire mirror.

Xiao Qidi did not relax from his joy over the rain; he kept a crucial matter in mind—the locust disaster threat in the Yuguo Border Region outside Lin Xian Cheng.

In a residence specially built for Xiao Qidi to live here.

Xiao Qidi, holding a Long Sword, drew a rough map on the courtyard ground.

"Jinli, look," he said to Ning Jinli standing beside him, "My toe point here is Lin Xian Cheng; to the west‑northwest is the hometown of those Yuguo Villagers from a while ago. According to my inquiries, they said the locusts there have become uncontrollable. I think, if we don't handle it, it could easily affect Lin Xian Cheng."

Ning Jinli stared at the map, nodded, "Exactly. Once the locust numbers reach disaster level, the places they reach will have no grass left. Lin Xian Cheng now is full of tender plants only three months old and ripening crops, all the locusts' favorite food. We must prepare in advance."

"You must have a way, right?" Xiao Qidi winked at her.

Ning Jinli curled her lips, "Of course, and don't you forget who I am."

Xiao Qidi chuckled, "Then tell me quickly."

Ning Jinli looked around, then lifted her head and tilted her face slightly.

Xiao Qidi instantly showed a puzzled expression, glanced at her, and looked around in a circle.

"Ah! You really are…" Ning Jinli pointed at her own cheek.

Xiao Qidi hurried forward and lowered his head.

Ning Jinli smiled and closed her eyes, waiting for him to kiss her.

But after two seconds, no kiss came.

She opened her eyes instantly, only to see Xiao Qidi, head down, eyes wide, scrutinizing her face.

"Your face…" Xiao Qidi furrowed his brow slightly, "I don't see any problem, does it hurt?"

"Ah, you big fool!" Ning Jinli helplessly massaged her temples, "Enough, enough, let's get to business. Pick some of those villagers who can operate drones, form a Mie Huang Team, and we can handle the locusts with drones."

"Drones can eliminate locusts?" Xiao Qidi said in surprise.

"Yes, come on, Ning teacher, let me give you a short science lesson," Ning Jinli said, hands behind her back, pacing, "Locusts like dry conditions and dislike moisture. Before they multiply enough to cause a large disaster, we can change the environment to reduce their breeding and hatching."

Xiao Qidi immediately said, "So we also use drones to perform artificial rainmaking?"

Ning Jinli nodded, "A child can be taught."

"But," Xiao Qidi said doubtfully, "what if those places have no clouds? You know, we here waited a long time before a cloud finally appeared."

Ning Jinli smiled lightly, "So using drones for artificial rainmaking is just one method. Another method is to spray pesticide directly."

Xiao Qidi quickly asked, "Is the pesticide toxic to humans? If we eliminate the locusts but make those areas poisonous, it would be a loss."

"Don't worry," Ning Jinli said confidently, "We have a pesticide specifically for locusts; it's mildly toxic to the environment, humans, and other animals, but as long as we control the dosage it decomposes after a few days. Moreover, the locusts of your era have no resistance, so we can greatly reduce the amount, ensuring no environmental damage."

"Alright, I'll dispatch personnel right away; the Artificial Rain Catalyst and the Pesticide, those two, I'll leave them to you." Xiao Qidi finished speaking, then strode off briskly.

"Sigh, you kid…" Ning Jingli made a goofy face at his back, muttering and teasing, "When you get busy, you even forget your girlfriend!"

Ning Jingli kept teasing, but it didn't delay the business at all.

Here Xiao Qidi spent half a day organizing the Mie Huang Team, which included several hundred civilians proficient with agricultural Drones, as well as several hundred Xuanjia Armor Armor Armor Armor Army troops.

After all, the place they were to go, though not far from Lin Xian Cheng and outside the Yuguo Border Pass, was still within Yuguo territory.

Sending several hundred Xuanjia Armor Armor Armor Armor Army with them could both help and, should they encounter enemy forces, serve as guards.

On the other side, Ning Jingli quickly procured the catalyst and the Pesticide.

All preparations were complete.

Finally, Xiao Qidi selected two of the Yuguo Villagers who had fled earlier to act as guides, and the Mie Huang Team set out.

Besides deploying the Mie Huang Team, Xiao Qidi thought other nearby places near the Yuguo Border Region, beyond Lin Xian Cheng, should also be prepared as a precaution.

The Xi Tun Guan area had long been so remote and barren that the court paid it no heed; although nominally part of Daxuan Beiyuan County, in practice no one governed it.

Though the region was large enough, it had no county, only He Wan County of the Beiyuan County bordering it.

Therefore, the place that needed preemptive measures was foremost He Wan County.

While Xiao Qidi was studying the map of the area around Xi Tun Guan in the courtyard, he suddenly noticed a problem.

"Strange, something seems off." Xiao placed a Sheep Skin Map on the stone table before him, furrowed his brows, grabbed the milk tea Ning Jingli had just bought for him, gulped it down while chewing the pearls and shaking his head, "Something's off, something's off."

"What's up with you?" Ning Jingli leaned over for a look.

The Sheep Skin Map was of unknown age, hard to decipher, and its marked locations and extents were vague; she couldn't make sense of it.

"Hmm…" Xiao Qidi set down the milk tea, "The pearls are a bit too hard today."

Ning Jingli was slightly taken aback, "After all that effort, you say what's off is this? I thought…"

"No, no, no," Xiao said, "I just realized that the Yuguo Border Region villagers who fled earlier seem to have chosen a farther route over a nearer one."

"Hm? What do you mean?"

"Look here."

Xiao Qidi jabbed the map with his index finger, "Their village is roughly here, the Yuguo Border Pass over there, and this spot is Xi Tun Guan."

Ning Jingli said while looking, "It seems their village is indeed a bit closer to us, that's right, matching their description at the time."

"Now look here," Xiao Qidi moved his finger upward, stopping at the spot labeled He Wan County.

Ning Jingli carefully examined the vague border line on the map, muttering, "Their village also seems quite close to He Wan County, about the same distance from us."

"That's the crux of the matter," Xiao Qidi lightly tapped his finger, "As everyone knows, the Xi Tun Guan area is the most barren part of Daxuan, no one cares about it, let alone it's been dry for half a year. Even the most remote villages on the Yuguo Border shouldn't be unaware of this."

"But He Wan County is different; it hasn't suffered drought. I haven't been there, but I've heard its people live peacefully and prosperously."

"The fleeing Yuguo villagers, to survive, risked heading into the relatively nearer Daxuan Realm, which makes sense, but why didn't they choose to go to He Wan County?"

After hearing this, Ning Jingli thought for a few seconds and asked, "You don't still suspect those hundreds of villagers have ulterior motives, do you?"

Xiao Qidi shook his head, "No, that's not it. If I doubted them, I wouldn't have selected a few to serve as guides for the Mie Huang Team."

"Since they have no other purpose…" Ning Jingli frowned, "Then some irresistible factor forced them to come to Xi Tun Guan."

Xiao Qidi added, "Or perhaps they dared not go to He Wan County."

Ning Jingli said, "Just call them over and ask."

"That's exactly what I intended," Xiao Qidi nodded, then immediately sent men to bring several Yuguo refugees before him.

"Commoner… we pay respects to His Majesty, we pay respects to the Fairy." The Yuguo Villagers knelt in the courtyard before Xiao Qidi and Ning Jingli.

"Stand up." Xiao Qidi waved his hand, glanced at the Sheep Skin Map on the stone table, "I have a question I'd like to ask you."

"Yes, His Majesty."

Xiao Qidi did not beat around the bush; he asked directly the question he had just discussed with Ning Jingli.

"Your Majesty, I report," a refugee answered, "It's because our village and He Wan County of Daxuan are separated by a stretch of land that belongs to neither Daxuan nor Yuguo."

"Oh? Where is it?"

"At… um… this…"

The refugee scratched his ear and chin, unsure how to describe it.

Xiao Qidi asked him to come closer and point it out on the map.

He carefully gestured with his fingertips a few times.

"So that's it," Xiao Qidi nodded slightly, "The map was too vague; I didn't know there was such a stretch of land."

The refugee continued, "If we commoners want to go to He Wan County, we can only first enter Xi Tun Guan, and after passing the pass, go through the Daxuan Realm to get there."

Xiao Qidi asked again, "Why not go straight through there?"

The refugee answered with a worried face, "Your Majesty may not know, but that place occasionally has nomadic tribes wandering about; even the bandits that roam the Daxuan and Yuguo border regions dare not enter lightly. If we ordinary folk go in, it's fine if we don't encounter a tribe, but if we do… then…"

Xiao Qidi's brows tightened, "Nomadic tribes from the distant north have always been dangerous. Yet the Xi Tun Guan area and many surrounding places have been dry for half a year; nomads don't farm, they only follow water and grass. The chance of meeting them here is probably even lower than finding water. So, be honest with me, is there any other reason?"

The refugee before him flickered with hesitation, shook his head and said, "No… nothing."

Xiao Qidi sensed his oddness and calmly looked at the other refugees, "Really nothing?"

The others immediately tucked in their necks.

Xiao Qidi squinted, slammed the table hard, "Still dare to hide it from me?"

The refugees, terrified, fell to their knees, their faces pressed to the ground, trembling all over.

Ning Jingli leaned close to Xiao Qidi's ear and whispered, "They're already timid; this situation still feels like they're living under someone else's roof. Moreover, you're the ruler here; don't keep frightening them."

Xiao Qidi thought for a moment, then softened his voice, "You may speak freely; whatever the reason, I will not blame you."

"This…" a refugee said stiffly, "Your Majesty, we… we are afraid that speaking out would displease you."

"Is that so?" Xiao Qidi grew more interested, "I assure you, I will not get angry. If even I don't believe it, Jinli Fairy is here as a witness; you should trust it, right?"

Ning Jingli added, "Just speak up; if he gets angry, I'll punish him."

Only upon hearing these words did the refugees' expressions ease considerably.

"His Majesty, Fairy," a refugee said solemnly, "We do not go directly to He Wan County by passing through that place; besides fearing possible encounters with nomadic tribes, we are also... afraid of the county officials of He Wan County!"