Zhou Changwang naturally couldn't continue casting spells while fighting with a knife.
But just sidestepping to dodge wouldn't affect his casting of the Geng Metal Finger magic.
Squeak, squeak, squeak...
The Spirit Locust King screeched wildly, paused for a moment, then once again turned and lunged at Zhou Changwang.
Its two knife-like forelegs flashed with a cold glint under the sunlight.
Moreover, with its screech, it seemed as if the surrounding Spirit Insects heard the call and were quickly drawn, rushing in this direction...
The Insect King could indeed summon groups of insects.
Zhou Changwang remained calm, focusing on forming the rune structure, while also paying close attention to the Spirit Locust King's movements.
Upon seeing this, he deftly sidestepped to dodge again.
Then, the Geng Metal Finger he finally formed dashed out under his control.
Geng Metal Finger +3
Whoosh!
It landed directly on the neck of the Spirit Locust King, separating its head from its body.
Even with its tenacious vitality, when its head was separated, it still swiped its forelegs vigorously, creating two small blade auras that sliced through the air and cut the weeds in the Spirit Field, but they were already no threat.
As for the Spirit Insects summoned by it, they once again scattered and hid within the Spirit Field at the moment of its death.
"Finally dealt with it.
This Insect King is indeed much more troublesome than ordinary Spirit Insects."
After confirming its death, Zhou Changwang tossed it into a cloth bag.
Seeing its size, comparable to four or five ordinary Spirit Locusts combined, a hint of satisfaction appeared on his face.
However, when his gaze fell on the Attribute Panel, he was taken aback.
"The proficiency of Geng Metal Finger is peculiar."
Upon comparison, he found that the proficiency of this round's Geng Metal Finger had increased by 3 points.
3 points aren't much.
But this means that his Dharma Cultivation can 'accelerate.'
After all, one spell increases by three points, two spells by six points... When the quantity is large, it can save him a lot of time and Spiritual Power.
"What's the reason then?"
Lost in thought, Zhou Changwang quickly understood.
Combat!
Because of combat!
Indeed, compared to previous routine casting—even when pest controlling, it was about gathering the spell and aiming directly at the target. Casting spells in battle, while ensuring the successful gathering of magic, also requires aiming at the target in motion, which is indeed much harder.
"This is a bit difficult to make a rule of."
Zhou Changwang shook his head in resignation.
Just at this moment, Xu Zhong returned from afar with lunch.
Zhou Changwang also took the opportunity to stop pest control and returned to the field embankment.
"Spirit Rice, Black-Horned Bull Meat Stir-fried with Red Spirit Flower... Fellow Daoist Xu, this is quite sumptuous."
Zhou Changwang exclaimed in amazement upon seeing the lunch Xu Zhong brought.
Setting Spirit Rice aside, it's eleven pounds for one Lower-Grade Spirit Stone. The Unicorn Bull, although the lowest level among Demon Beasts and farm-raised, its flesh is quite expensive. You could only buy three to five pounds for one Lower-Grade Spirit Stone. The Red Spirit Flower is also considered a spiritual material and can be used as medicinal cuisine, costing fifteen Broken Spirit per pound...
In other words, this meal is worth forty to fifty Broken Spirit, equivalent to half a Spirit Stone.
"Fellow Daoist Zhou has been so helpful in my pest control; naturally, I shouldn't be stingy."
Xu Zhong said with a laugh, accepting the cloth bag from Zhou Changwang in turn, and then upon seeing the contents, his eyes widened in amazement and he exclaimed, "This, this, this... Is this an Insect King? And a Spirit Locust King at that?"
He was indeed shocked.
He had considered that Zhou Changwang had powerful pest control methods; he had witnessed the other's swift and efficient actions before, which gave him confidence that the threat to his Spirit Field would be resolved.
Because of this, he had given Zhou Changwang a bottle of Primordial Qi Pill to restore Spiritual Qi, and the lunch he brought was intentionally lavish, with Spirit Rice and meticulously prepared Black-Horned Bull Meat with Red Spirit Flower.
He hadn't expected Zhou Changwang to bring him such a great surprise.
Slaying an Insect King.
This undoubtedly indicated that Zhou Changwang's pest control skills were higher than he had imagined.
"This Spirit Locust King is worth ten times an ordinary Spirit Insect. Slay one, and I will count it as ten.
Adding the other Spirit Insects, how about I give you two Lower-Grade Spirit Stones?"
Xu Zhong quickly calculated the value and then spoke.
He had already anticipated that his five acres of Spirit Field would have a reduced yield, but even if the yield halved, the remaining harvest would be enough for him to repay the debt to the Spirit Plant Hall, hence his generosity.
"That won't be necessary.
One Spirit Locust King can count as five ordinary Spirit Insects."
Zhou Changwang said, waving his hand.
The saying goes, when you accept favor from others, you can't ask for more. Previously, he took a bottle of Primordial Qi Pill from Xu Zhong and now ate the Spirit Rice, so he was embarrassed to take advantage of more.
"That's fair enough."
Xu Zhong agreed with a nod at these words.
The Spirit Rice combined with Black-Horned Bull Meat created gentle Spiritual Qi in his stomach, making him feel warm and comfortable, longing for a good rest and a lazy nap.
However, Zhou Changwang didn't want to waste the Spiritual Qi, so he sat cross-legged and began circulating the Five Elements Technique to absorb and refine the Spiritual Power within.
One circulation, two circulations, three circulations...
Five Elements Technique +3
Cultivation Level +1
As he opened his eyes,
his Spiritual Power was once again restored to perfection, and even his cultivation level saw some improvement.
At this time, Old Xu returned from lunch at home, calling out to inquire about the pest control results from afar.
Upon seeing the Spirit Locust King, his eyes widened, exclaiming in surprise.
...
The afternoon passed in pest control and the use of Primordial Qi Pills for recovery.
The results were very satisfying!
By the end of the day, he had harvested one Insect King and forty-seven Spirit Locusts in Xu Zhong's Spirit Field.
As promised, Xu Zhong handed five Lower-Grade Spirit Stones to him in turn.
Of course, besides Xu Zhong's Spirit Field, he didn't forget his own three acres, and the regular pest control there yielded six Spirit Insects as well.
"Today was truly rewarding."
Zhou Changwang touched the five Spirit Stones in his pocket and then set his gaze on the bag full of Spirit Insects.
The bag, though made from the shed skin of some serpentine Demon Beast with good elasticity, was then bulging and quite heavy.
"If no tradesmen come to the Spirit Land to make purchases tomorrow, I'll have to make my way to the Independent Cultivator Marketplace myself."
Zhou Changwang carefully placed the bag in the corner of the room and took out a small wooden box.
Opening it, three small black seeds the size of a pinky finger lay quietly within.
These three black seeds were given to him by Chen Yushu, a Spirit Plant Master he knew during his early visits to buy Spirit Rice.