Li Banfeng was chased by eight Bagworm Moths. After six lost interest, two continued the chase all the way to his own territory.
Once on his land, Li Banfeng immediately spilled blood, pleading for the protection of the Local Deity.
But the Local Deity didn’t show up.
The two Bagworm Moths entered the land and said to Li Banfeng with a grin, "Little Brother, we’ve been chasing you for a whole day. We deserve some kind of reward."
Clenching the key tightly, Li Banfeng thought several times about returning to his Portable Residence, but ultimately, he did not go back.
While Li Banfeng was contemplating his next move, he suddenly saw Ma Wu riding on Yanzi, blocking the two Bagworm Moths.
"You two slatterns, who let you run wild here?" Yanzi yelled angrily.
The other two Bagworm Moths were stunned. One said, "Who is this woman, and why is she carrying a man?"
"Having a man as a mount is truly disgraceful to our kind."
Yanzi got angry and said to Ma Wu, "Little Brother, I’ve been drained these past couple of days and couldn’t make you enjoy yourself. I’ll take these two slatterns off your hands. Let you have a good time."
No sooner had she finished speaking than Yanzi charged at the two Bagworm Moths.
Li Banfeng had always thought he would be at a disadvantage when facing two opponents at once, believing that all Bagworm Moths in Puluo State were equally formidable. But he hadn’t realized that there were also differences among the Straw Moth Ladies.
These two lived near Bitter Vegetable Manor and had only recently taken form. Their cultivation levels were quite different, and they were no match for Yanzi.
After a few exchanges, three massive bodies tumbled about, shaking the ground continuously.
Yanzi spat out insect silk, easily trapping one Bagworm Moth. Revealing her venomous fangs, she bit into the other moth. As the poison permeated, the bitten moth became immobile.
"Little Brother, help yourself," Yanzi said to Ma Wu, her face full of tenderness. "Even if you kill them, it doesn’t matter; I’ll find you new ones!"
Ma Wu looked stern as he approached the two Bagworm Moths.
The two Bagworm Moths trembled, unsure of what Ma Wu was about to do.
First, Ma Wu asked the one trapped in the insect silk, "What’s your name?"
The one bound in the silk replied honestly, "I’m Xianxian."
Li Banfeng took a deep breath.
Ma Wu asked the bitten one, "And what’s your name?"
"I’m Qiaocui."
Li Banfeng nodded repeatedly; he was impressed that even Bagworm Moths had such elegant names.
Ma Wu then looked at Xianxian. "Let’s start with you."
He began.
"Well, Old Five, this is my territory, shouldn’t we wait a bit..."
"Old Five, try not to make too much noise; there are quite a few people around..."
"Chuanzi, tell the Brothers to go back; there’s nothing to see here."
"Hey, centipede girl, are you looking for Wulang? You should go wait at his place; he’ll be done in a bit."
...
After subduing the two Bagworm Moths, Ma Wu asked about the events of the last few days.
"Old Qi, where have you been? You had me worried to death!"
"It’s okay. I’ve been roaming around the New Land and found some fresh spots."
Li Banfeng didn’t mention the incident at Bitter Vegetable Manor.
Li Banfeng inquired about the management of the New Land, and Ma Wu said, "Housing is easy and timber is plentiful. Right now, the key issue is food. The Orange Garden Master is generous, but with more people, we can’t keep asking him for food. I’ve been discussing prices with the garden owner these past two days, but he refuses to take any money."
"Even if he doesn’t ask for it, we must provide. We can’t take advantage of him." Li Banfeng wasn’t used to taking things without paying.
Ma Wu had made significant progress in his cultivation level and mentioned his advancement to the Second Layer. Li Banfeng commented, "I can see it. You’re much more vigorous than before."
"I plan to stay in the New Land for three years. Reaching the Third Layer should be no problem, and there’s even a chance for the Fourth!"
Everything else was normal, except for the Local Deity.
"Old Qi, you really did spill blood earlier?"
"I did."
"Then why didn’t the Local Deity show up?" Ma Wu didn’t understand.
They made numerous guesses, but none could be confirmed. Ma Wu only came up with one solution. "Let’s hold a ritual tomorrow to see what the Local Deity really intends. If it truly no longer protects us, we should move while the loss isn’t too great."
After they agreed, Ma Wu was about to prepare the offerings when a buzzing noise suddenly came from outside the house.
THROOOM!
The deep rumbling continued for over two minutes.
Li Banfeng had sharp ears but couldn’t discern the source of the noise.
Ma Wu had also never encountered such a situation and thought it was some peculiar creature.
"Old Five, go back to your land and tell the Brothers to stay alert," Li Banfeng instructed.
Worried for Li Banfeng, Ma Wu said, "Come back with me."
"Don’t worry about me; I’ll be there shortly."
After Ma Wu left, Li Banfeng opened his Portable Residence and informed his wife, "Something odd just happened in the New Land, a strange sound, like a continuous deep THROOOMING, and I’m not sure what creature has arrived."