The Dao Xuan Tianzun's grave tone immediately alerted Gao Chuwu and Xing Honglang.
Precautions this strict could only mean one thing.
This stuff was terrifyingly powerful.
Neither of them dared to delay. They quickly ordered the attendant to escort Gao Zhengjing away, then hurriedly changed into thick layers of clothing. On top of that, they somehow dug out two large glass covers and placed them over their heads.
This was already the absolute limit of protection their era could offer.
The Puppet Dao Xuan Tianzun personally checked them over, then instructed them to use strips of cloth to tightly seal the gaps between the glass covers and their necks. The cloth was crude, but it could at least block and filter things a little. For now, that would have to do.
Only after all that did he slowly place a Nongfu Spring bottle cap in front of them.
Inside the cap was diluted neem extract.
Gao Chuwu blinked.
"Oh? Is the Dao Xuan Tianzun rewarding us with more Happy Fat Water?"
Xing Honglang stared at him.
"The Dao Xuan Tianzun made us dress up like this before giving it to us. That clearly means it's poison. And your first thought is Happy Fat Water? Are you an idiot?"
Gao Chuwu nodded without hesitation.
"That's right. I am an idiot."
Xing Honglang fell silent.
Alright. Teasing was useless. At that moment, she truly understood what it meant for formlessness to triumph over technique. Against someone like Gao Chuwu, there was simply no winning. Xing Honglang could only concede defeat.
The Puppet Dao Xuan Tianzun spoke calmly.
"This entire pool of liquid is a potent poison. Locusts will die upon contact. Humans, if exposed in excess, will also suffer severe consequences."
Xing Honglang had once dealt with all kinds of illicit goods during her time as a salt smuggler. Poisons were nothing new to her. She instantly grasped the situation.
"I understand, Dao Xuan Tianzun!" she said seriously. "We will operate under strict protective measures, decant the poison into containers, and send it to the locust-stricken regions."
"To use it most effectively, it would be best to spray it from the sky."
Li Daoxuan let out a sigh.
"Unfortunately, you do not possess the means for aerial spraying. Hot air balloons are also unreliable for this purpose. Therefore, you will have to rely on manual spraying instead. As for how to do it, I trust you will find your own solutions."
Xing Honglang's spirits immediately rose. She clasped her fists.
"How can we keep relying on the Dao Xuan Tianzun for everything? Please watch our performance this time."
The Puppet Dao Xuan Tianzun nodded slightly.
With a few dull thuds, he placed several more large bottle caps filled with pesticide in front of Gao Chuwu and Xing Honglang. He also laid out pre-printed instructions for use.
Then his perspective shifted.
Wu Shen, Fan Shangzheng, and Bai Yuan were each given a portion of the pesticide, along with the same instruction manuals.
Henan. Luoyang. Governor's Yamen.
"My lord, we have caught the locusts you requested."
Several household servants rushed in, carrying a cloth sack. Something inside writhed violently, constantly distorting the shape of the bag.
Fan Shangzheng stared at it, his face full of disgust.
"This official asked you to catch a few locusts. Not an entire sack. Isn't that revolting?"
The servant grinned and tilted his head.
"It's not that bad. When they're not swarming, they're basically just big grasshoppers. I used to catch grasshoppers all the time when I was a kid."
Fan Shangzheng waved his hand impatiently.
"Enough. Bring one over. This official will test it."
The servant opened a small slit in the sack, reached inside, and pulled out a massive locust, presenting it in front of Fan Shangzheng.
The insect struggled fiercely. Fan Shangzheng frowned even harder.
He turned to another servant.
"Bring the divine medicine bestowed by the Dao Xuan Tianzun."
That servant immediately adopted an expression of deep reverence and carefully held out a small porcelain bottle.
This was the insecticide that Fan Shangzheng's men had decanted.
While repackaging it, they treated it like a celestial elixir. Not a single drop was allowed to spill. No one dared let it touch their skin.
Everyone wore protective gear and used wooden ladles, the kind oil vendors used, to carefully transfer the "divine medicine" into bottles and jars.
Fan Shangzheng personally uncorked the porcelain bottle, tilted it slightly, and allowed a single drop of the liquid to fall onto the locust.
This substance could instantly kill locusts when atomized. What would happen if an entire drop landed directly on one?
The locust thrashed violently for a brief moment, then stiffened.
Within seconds, it was completely motionless.
Fan Shangzheng felt both ecstatic and alarmed.
Ecstatic at the terrifying effectiveness. Alarmed for the exact same reason.
"The celestial elixir truly lives up to its name. Locusts die on contact," he declared. "You have all seen how potent this divine medicine is. If anyone were to ingest it by accident…"
The servants were instantly drenched in sweat.
"We wouldn't dare."
"Under no circumstances is it to touch your skin," Fan Shangzheng said sternly. "Memorize the Dao Xuan Tianzun's instructions one hundred times. After that, each of you will take ten buckets and head to the counties to poison the locusts."
One servant hesitated.
"My lord, how are we supposed to spray this medicine onto locusts in the sky?"
Fan Shangzheng glared at him.
"Do you expect this official to think of everything? What good are you otherwise?"
And so the higher officials passed the problem downward.
Those receiving it, naturally well-versed in the same art, passed it even further down.
At the very bottom were the common laborers. With no one left to pass the burden to, they had no choice but to rely on their own ingenuity.
What followed was a true spectacle.
All sorts of bizarre contraptions began to appear.
Some people drilled countless tiny holes into one end of thick bamboo poles, poured poison into the tube, and used plungers to force it out. Thin streams of poisoned water sprayed forth, essentially bamboo water guns using capillary action.
Others climbed to hilltops and waited for strong winds. From there, they scattered the poisoned water and let it drift downwind. Naturally, they had to make sure no one was standing downwind.
A few true geniuses decided to heat the poison in massive woks, hoping to evaporate it into a mist that would float into the sky.
The result was disastrous. The mist lost its toxicity entirely and failed to kill a single locust. A complete failure.
Even the militia's hot air balloons were borrowed by villagers. They climbed aboard and sprayed downward with bamboo water guns.
However, when the locust swarms arrived, they blotted out the sky. The balloons had to ascend extremely high just to avoid being overwhelmed. From that height, the poisoned water drifted off course as it fell, rendering the effort useless. Another failed attempt.
None of these crude methods could compare to modern aerial spraying.
Yet through sheer determination and numbers, they still achieved results.
In southeastern Shanxi and northwestern Henan, the locust plague was gradually brought under control.
As for southeastern Henan…
The star reporter of Gao Family Village, Miss Zhou Daya, the Flower Queen herself, once again arrived at Gubai Ferry.
She had brought back the most valuable footage before, and today was another day to deliver food supplies to Lao Huihui.
Once again, the Flower Queen volunteered to head straight to the front lines to record precious video.
By now, the people of Gao Family Village had interacted with Lao Huihui's forces many times. A certain level of trust had formed. The old tension was gone, replaced by relaxed conversation.
Lao Huihui clasped his fists.
"Instructor Jiang, Miss Zhou, Henan has been plagued by locusts recently. My troops have been harassed by swarms several times. It's been quite a mess. How are things at Xiaolangdi?"
Jiang Cheng smiled.
"Thank you for your concern. We're doing well. We've largely avoided the disaster."