[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-lord-of-the-proles":3,"chapter-lord-of-the-proles-lord-of-the-proles-chapter-153":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Lord of the Proles",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2290451,4478,"Chapter 153: Long-Awaited","lord-of-the-proles-chapter-153",153,"\u003Cp>After hiding for half an hour, Li Banfeng stepped out again; the head had long vanished.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Banfeng calculated: the head appeared roughly every six hours; at his current speed, he could never escape the thorn patch within six hours.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without his portable dwelling, what should he do if he encountered that head again?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only hide on either side in the thorn patch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Is hiding in the thorn patch safe?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not safe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>First, the lower ends of the thorn patch were all black—not from weathering, but burned black by that head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moreover, the head favored living flesh; it had developed a strong interest in Li Banfeng.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If Li Banfeng hadn’t hidden in his portable dwelling just now, the head would likely have tracked him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Within this thorn patch—more accurately, across this wasteland—Li Banfeng’s stamina was draining severely; he’d soon be caught by the head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He might be burned alive, or become the head’s plaything; whether the head could be gentler than Lady Suo’e was unknown.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A normal person could hardly escape this thorn patch unless he defeated the head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even defeating the head might not be enough.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Banfeng only wanted to leave this thorn patch quickly; he didn’t know if other living things lurked here.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Banfeng had trudged through this thorn patch for a full day and night; the head appeared four times, and he evaded each by ear and nose.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Doing this not only replenished no stamina, but also harmed his cultivation as a Dweller.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why not sleep inside his portable dwelling?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because it wasn’t safe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He wasn’t sure if other living things still roamed the thorn patch, nor whether they’d announce their arrival like the head, giving him time to hide.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He also didn’t want to leave the key lying in the thorn patch long, for he didn’t know if strange creatures might pick it up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The last encounter with the head had been three hours ago; exhausted, Li Banfeng had just wanted to rest when he heard wind again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Is the head coming again?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No, the sound was different.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The wind didn’t grow louder—it remained steady, at the same intensity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This wasn’t the sound of the head approaching.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moreover, Li Banfeng smelled no smoke.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Banfeng sprinted full speed; he knew what this wind meant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was nearing the edge of the thorn patch; he’d soon escape it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His body still heavy, Li Banfeng gritted his teeth and ran desperately; after more than half an hour, he found the thorn patch’s exit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Trees—ahead lay a forest!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Banfeng rejoiced, burst out of the thorn patch, and stepped into the woods.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He listened carefully with his thread-earring; the crawling sound still persisted, yet he could not locate the Iron Thread River.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Strange.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the thorn patch, Li Banfeng had always chosen paths near the Iron Thread River; the sound never ceased—why had it vanished the moment he left?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While he puzzled, his thread-earring responded: “Master, the noise comes from below.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Below?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Banfeng crouched, placed the earring on the ground, and listened intently.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The crawling sound indeed came from beneath—the Iron Thread River had become an underground stream.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was troublesome.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Had he chosen the wrong tributary before?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or was there a stretch of underground river along the correct route?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Looking back at the thorn patch, he had no desire to retrace his steps; under these conditions, Li Banfeng could only follow the earring’s sound, continuing along the underground river’s direction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After walking over thirty li, Li Banfeng’s pace quickened; his previously heavy body suddenly felt unshackled, much lighter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It seemed his physical condition hadn’t been the issue—it was some special force within the wasteland.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The reason was unknown, but Li Banfeng ran faster and faster.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet the underground river’s sound grew fainter; his thread-earring occasionally warned: “Master, the noise is growing deeper.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After another fifty li, the underground river’s sound vanished entirely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lost?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Truly lost this time?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What now?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It’s fine—there’s still a way…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the boundless forest, exhausted, Li Banfeng opened his portable dwelling, crawled onto the bed, and fell asleep.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Haichiling, Toudao Ridge—the crowd outside Shiwetian Restaurant was a sea of people.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Among them were Haichiling’s local aristocrats, wealthy merchants, members of major gangs, and some emaciated commoners.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bailer Men was the trademark of Lüshui City; Shiwetian Restaurant was Haichiling’s hallmark—it had one main hall and two side halls, five stories tall and three stories tall respectively, sprawling along the river, every hall and private room filled; rumor said it could hold three thousand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the restaurant had closed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Haichiling couldn’t even feed itself; all edible goods were hoarded by the aristocrats, and the restaurant’s supplies were tightly clutched by the owner, given to no one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What did these people want gathered outside the shuttered restaurant?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They were waiting for Lu Dongjun.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Dongjun was going to exterminate the mosquitoes today.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wan Jinxian had wanted to wait a few more days, but Lu Dongjun refused; pressure from all sides was immense—he needed to prove his strength.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Dongjun stood at the main entrance, ordering goods unloaded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dozens of servants carried twenty iron boxes and placed them before the restaurant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the boxes opened, the crowd erupted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Each box contained white rice; eyes locked onto it—especially the starving commoners, many of whom lunged to seize the grain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Guards shouted and kicked to maintain order; the desperate people didn’t fear blows—they only wanted food.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing the situation spiral, Lu Dongjun waved his hand; a powerful aura forced everyone backward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Gentlemen, this rice cannot be eaten—it’s laced with poison, specifically designed to kill these pests. Today, I, Lu Dongjun, will use this rice to…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before he finished speaking, a black cloud of mosquitoes surged from the sky.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Dongjun had claimed the noble families weren’t serious about exterminating mosquitoes—not because they were lazy, but because these mosquitoes weren’t ordinary; the moment they smelled grain, every mosquito within several li rushed to the source.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They swarmed the iron boxes, clung to the rice grains, and began sucking; within ten minutes, all twenty boxes were hollow shells.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was Haichiling’s insect plague—the terrifying plague that struck fear into all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A woman, clutching her child, endured the guards’ blows, reached the boxes, grabbed a handful of rice, and tried to feed it to her child—but what she held was only dust.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The woman wailed; the child cried with her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fed mosquitoes scattered, seemingly unaffected.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The crowd began to curse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What the hell is the point? Not a single mosquito died!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“All this grain wasted—why not give us even a bite to eat!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This man is evil—he doesn’t deserve to be head of the Lu family!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The outcry grew louder and louder; the out-of-control crowd surged forward to attack Lu Dongjun.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Dongjun wasn’t worried about this scene.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He coughed twice; the crowd fell silent again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Dongjun scanned the crowd, calmly saying: “I, Lu Dongjun, live on Toudao Ridge. I know many of you know my residence. In three days, if the insect plague on Toudao Ridge isn’t contained, come to my house and take my life!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The crowd was awed by his aura—except one beggar.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The beggar didn’t look at Lu Dongjun; he stared at the flying mosquitoes, watching them circle, land, and pair.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Haichiling had many beggars, but this one looked especially horrifying.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His body was covered in pus-filled sores—some oozed white fluid, some red liquid, others green pus.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His face was utterly deformed, unrecognizable; without close inspection, he looked identical to a Lüshui beggar.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The only difference: he had golden hair—he was a foreigner.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A bleeding sore leaked a trickle of green fluid.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cui Ti’s cheek twitched; he could barely hold on—he’d ingested Lüshui beggar pus, and it was corroding his body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He glanced again at the mating mosquitoes and murmured: “So my fellow disciples are here. It was him who made He Haiqin so ill.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After sleeping eight full hours, Li Banfeng awoke—but his wife hadn’t stirred.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Banfeng drank some water, ate something, and stepped out again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Food stores were sufficient, but water was running low; he had to save some for his wife—he must find an exit from Xin Di soon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What if he couldn’t find one?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Banfeng had a plan: if two days passed and he still found no exit, he’d set up the offering table and open a new land.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The local deity near the orange grove disliked Li Banfeng intensely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the local earth gods elsewhere probably don’t know Li Banfeng yet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had only cleared a square li of land near the orange grove; the local earth god wouldn’t go around gossiping over such a small matter—so long as this land’s earth god accepted him, water would be secured, and food could be dealt with later.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After walking through the forest for a full day, Li Banfeng stopped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He stood frozen for a moment, then suddenly lifted his head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This place… it feels familiar…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not just familiar—it’s truly where he’d been before; his memory of this place was too vivid.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Right here, something had hung down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The child of the Cloak Moth Lady!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Any Traveling Cultivator who has been here will never forget the way.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He followed his memory forward, walking faster and faster.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ahead lay a wasteland, and in the wasteland shone a single light.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Beneath the light stood two rows of wooden huts, each row containing seven or eight huts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the end of the first row stood a woman, wrapped in a red cotton coat, a lady’s cigarette clenched between her lips, as if lost in thought.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The woman saw someone approaching from afar; at first glance, the figure seemed familiar, but she couldn’t recall his name.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the man drew closer, she realized the bearded man wasn’t as familiar as she’d thought.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only when Li Banfeng removed his hat did the woman finally recognize him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Seventh Master, you’re back!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Banfeng nodded: “Long time no see, Yu the Shopkeeper.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This time, Li Banfeng finally understood one thing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why did the same Cloak Moth Lady appear both in the new lands of Mount Jiangyue and in Lanyang Village?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>PS: I’m starting to miss the Cloak Moth Lady—her kind of unconventional nature is quite bold.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1705,"2026-06-20T03:43:13.043Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","d7d5d2ed749e0cca6eeb86237305cfe7d3a08419addda392159d991cdb949d08","lord-of-the-proles-chapter-154","lord-of-the-proles-chapter-152",863,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Flord-of-the-proles-cover.jpg"]