Chapter 157: Closing the Net

In a vast pine forest, Li Banfeng sat on the back of a woodlouse, slowly making his way through.

A woodlouse, also known as a pill bug or sowbug, is a common multi-legged insect found in damp places. This particular woodlouse was enormous, its back over two meters long and more than one meter wide, capable of carrying both people and luggage.

Not only was it enormous, but it also possessed sentience; this woodlouse could speak and was a very honest old man. He carried Li Banfeng through the red pine forest, charging him only fifty yuan in Huanguo currency.

Li Banfeng, being a generous person himself, immediately gave the woodlouse a hundred. He was curious, though: where would this woodlouse spend the money he'd earned?

"Young man, you don't understand," the woodlouse replied, "We have our own villages. There's food and shelter there, and markets. There are plenty of places to spend money. Cough, cough, cough..."

The weather was very cold and the wind was strong, making the old woodlouse cough repeatedly. Li Banfeng felt rather apologetic, seeing the old woodlouse's advanced age yet still sitting on his back. It wasn't that he was too lazy to walk a few steps; the old woodlouse had explained that he could carry Li Banfeng along this path without issue, but if Li Banfeng walked alone, he would encounter serious trouble.

The Wine Gourd confirmed the woodlouse's statement: "This is an Iron-Skinned Pill Bug. I saw one once when I was young, somewhere else. In the New Land, Iron-Skinned Pill Bugs are a rare benevolent species. Near his dwelling, all sorts of creatures show him a measure of respect."

"Sister, aren't you still young?" Li Banfeng asked, touching the Wine Gourd.

"Your mouth is sweeter than honey," the Wine Gourd replied, spraying a puff of wine mist.

While Li Banfeng was chatting with the Wine Gourd, the old woodlouse asked, "Young man, who were you just talking to?"

The woodlouse couldn't hear the Wine Gourd's voice, so Li Banfeng casually explained, "I'm the kind of person who likes to talk to himself."

"I have a daughter who has the same problem," the woodlouse offered. "The village doctor said she had hysteria, and she got better after three doses of medicine. You should go see our doctor sometime; this illness needs to be treated early, and it can be cured."

"Your village has a doctor?"

"Of course it does! She's skilled in medicine, beautiful, and a top-notch young woman!"

What kind of girl was this?

After traveling for a full eight hours, the woodlouse passed through the red pine forest, and as he had promised, they encountered no trouble along the way. Jumping down from the woodlouse's back, Li Banfeng gave him an additional fifty, bringing the total to one hundred and fifty. The old man felt uncomfortable about the extra payment and politely refused several times, but Li Banfeng insisted.

The old man sighed and said, "Young man, you're a good person. Ahead is Golden Shrimp Pond; you've come to catch shrimp, haven't you?"

Li Banfeng shook his head, "What's so good about those shrimp?"

"The shrimp in the pond are alive, but once you catch them, they die. After two hours of being dead, they turn to gold. In the past, many people came to catch shrimp, but then Bloodfang Mountain suddenly emerged, and no one dared to come anymore. If you're going to catch shrimp, don't be greedy. You must release the small ones and only catch a dozen or so at most. Whatever you do, don't provoke the Shrimp King. The Shrimp King is over a hundred feet long and can drag a person into the pond with a single hook, chewing up even their bones."

Li Banfeng thanked him and turned to leave. The old woodlouse continued waiting for business at the edge of the forest.

A centipede climbed onto the woodlouse's back, curled a silver dollar with its antennae, and handed it over. The old woodlouse tested the quality of the silver dollar with his antennae and said to the centipede, "Brother, I don't have change for such a large amount."

The centipede laughed, "Just keep it for now. It's not my first time doing business with you; it'll save me from paying every day in the future."

The woodlouse carried the centipede into the red pine forest, and they chatted and laughed the whole way.

Li Banfeng brushed the snowflakes from his body and arrived at the edge of a cliff. The cliff face was densely packed with countless caves, even more concentrated than the insect eyes on Li Banfeng's body. According to the map's markings, the seventh row from the bottom up, and the sixth cave from left to right, was his destination.

The cliff was difficult to climb, so Li Banfeng decided to rest for a day and enter the cave tomorrow. He took out a Golden Yuan Pill and consumed it along with a Blue Leaf Pill, then sat quietly at the base of the cliff. After more than ten minutes, Li Banfeng's body became numb. Numbness was not a concern, as the Tang Blade, Pendulum, Wine Gourd, and Filament Earrings were all by his side. However, he didn't dare to return to his Portable Abode to take medicine. His wife's breathing hadn't been very even last night, and based on normal sleep patterns, it seemed she was about to wake up.

Upon taking this pill, according to Li Banfeng's calculations, he would advance to the third layer of Journey Cultivation. Next, he would face a challenge: he must learn the third-layer Journey Cultivation technique, *Tread Through Ten Thousand Rivers*.

In Toudao Ridge, part of Haichi Ridge, every household in the city was cleaning with brooms, mops, and rags. Wiping dust and emptying trash were secondary; the main task this time was to clear away mosquito corpses. The entire Toudao Ridge was covered in mosquito corpses; even after being cleaned at night, another layer would accumulate by morning.

Lu Dongjun had once said that the mosquito corpses didn't need to be bothered with. But the people of Toudao Ridge tirelessly collected every mosquito corpse they saw, piled them up, and then burned them, believing this was the only way to permanently eliminate future troubles. Moreover, the process itself was quite satisfying.

As for Lu Dongjun's other instructions, they were naturally to be obeyed. When Lu Dongjun told them to queue for food at the train station, they all went in an orderly manner, queued honestly, and not a single person tried to snatch anything. When Lu Dongjun told them to make beautiful clothes for the New Year, everyone who had a little spare money went to the Lu family's textile shop to buy cloth, practically buying out the largest textile shop in Haichi Ridge. Lu Dongjun was preparing to open factories; some provided the land, others arranged for equipment, and many more waited to work in the factories. When Lu Dongjun wanted to expand his businesses, local gangs and factions, big and small, gathered all the enterprises that had faltered during the insect plague and sold them to him at low prices. This was their way of pledging allegiance to Lu Dongjun. All the local factions wanted to pledge allegiance to Lu Dongjun. Lu Dongjun was now considered the god of Haichi Ridge. This was because he had wiped out the mosquitoes in Toudao Ridge! Ever since he sprinkled medicated white rice at the Food for Heaven restaurant, the mosquitoes in Toudao Ridge quickly became extinct!

Late at night, Lu Dongjun, reeking of alcohol, returned to his residence, drank a cup of tea, and asked Wan Jinxian, "Old Wan, when are we going to make our move in Erdao Ridge?"

Wan Jinxian handed Lu Dongjun a list: "Master, there's no rush with this," he said. "We haven't even started managing the businesses in Toudao Ridge yet. I've helped you select these dozen or so shops; please take a look first."

Lu Dongjun pushed the list aside. "Don't bother me with these trivial matters," he said. "I've already told the accountant that all business matters are to be handled by you. Let me tell you, you need to pay more attention to Erdao Ridge. I've already discussed it with the outer provinces tonight; within five days, the mosquitoes in Erdao Ridge must be exterminated!"

Wan Jinxian nodded. "You can rest assured about that," he said. "But I heard that both the He family and the Ma family have sent people to Haichi Ridge. I'm worried they're coming to reap the benefits."

"Let them come," Lu Dongjun sneered. "Let's see if anyone in Haichi Ridge pays them any mind!"

"Many people from the Three Heroes Gate and Qingyun Association have also arrived," Wan Jinxian added.

Lu Dongjun spat. "Let them all come, damn it," he snarled. "I'll wait for them one by one!"

"Old Master Chu has arrived," Wan Jinxian continued. "He's not here to cause trouble; he's here to discuss business with you. Since we've taken over many businesses, he also wants a share."

Lu Dongjun chuckled, "He wants to get rich with us? Fine, include him. Old Master Chu has always been a sensible person; it's just his sister who's too reckless in her actions!"

"The Hundred Flowers Gate and the Jiangxiang Gang also want to discuss business with you..." Wan Jinxian prompted.

"Talk, they can all talk," Lu Dongjun declared. "As long as they're sensible, they'll get a share of the profits with me. But there's one condition: I'll sell them shares in the businesses I acquired at three times the price—only shares, and at a minimum of three times. If they don't want to buy, then forget it! If they want to open new businesses in Haichi Ridge, that's fine too, but they have to give me half the shares. If they don't want to, they can open today and have their shops smashed tomorrow. Anyone who's not convinced can damn well try me."

Wan Jinxian bowed his head. "Master, I'll obey your commands," he said.

Lu Dongjun shook his head. "Don't come to me for every little thing," he said. "I'm busy enough dealing with reporters every day. Old Wan, these matters are for you to handle!"

Outside the residence, He Haisheng bought an evening newspaper from a newsboy. The local Haichi Ridge newspaper had its entire front page dedicated to Lu Dongjun, with extensive news about him also on pages two and three. He Haisheng observed the layout of the residence, pulled up the collar of his wool coat, and silently disappeared into the night.

At the Lu family's grand residence, "Monkey" Qiu was also reading the newspaper; news from Haichi Ridge had already reached Greenwater Bay. The eldest son of the Lu family, Lu Yuanshan, asked, "Uncle Qiu, should we make a trip to Haichi Ridge?"

Qiu Zhiheng shook his head. "No, it's not the right time yet," he replied.

Lu Yuanhai said, "If we don't go now, we'll lose all our businesses in Haichi Ridge."

Qiu Zhiheng put down the newspaper. "The businesses are already lost," he said. "The shopkeepers in Haichi Ridge have already handed over their ledgers to Lu Dongjun."

Lu Yuanshan glanced at Lu Yuanhai. It seemed Qiu Zhiheng also had many informants in Haichi Ridge. But Qiu Zhiheng was not worried about the current situation. "We're not the only ones who lost businesses," he said. "The He family, Ma family, and Chu family all suffered heavy losses. Let's wait and see who loses their patience first."

Lu Yuanshan then brought up another matter: "The leader of the Three Heroes Gate has sent me another invitation. Should I go or not?"

Qiu Zhiheng nodded. "Go," he said, "but don't promise him anything. Talk to him slowly, and wait until there's a result regarding Haichi Ridge before saying anything more."

At Yuezhou Third Hospital, He Jiaqing sat up in his hospital bed. Beside him, a man's voice was whispering, "Lu Dongjun is very prominent now. He has completely taken over Toudao Ridge, buying businesses large and small at low prices and selling high, making a fortune."

He Jiaqing's expression was calm. He then asked, "What about Erdao Ridge?"

"Many families in Erdao Ridge have also come to pledge allegiance to Lu Dongjun."

"What's the use of pledging allegiance?" He Jiaqing scoffed. "What about their families' assets?"

"They haven't handed over their assets," the voice replied.

He Jiaqing frowned. "Not handing over their assets and just pledging allegiance with empty words is all nonsense," he declared. "These people constantly play these tricks; they're all damn scourges of Proluo Province! Can Erdao Ridge still be taken?"

"Highly unlikely," the voice responded. "Let alone Erdao Ridge; even Toudao Ridge can't hold out."

"If they can't hold out, then don't," He Jiaqing ordered. "Tell Old Wan to close the net."