NOVGO.NET Chapter 1091 - 1091: Killing Locusts!
Lady Kim’s eyes, sharp as polished jade, measured Kent from head to toe. She was tall, her robes of silver-white radiating authority, and behind her stood several cold-faced disciples of Celestial Light Mountain. She flicked her sleeve, and a folded set of white-and-gold robes, a disciple’s token, and a small storage ring floated toward Kent.
“These belong to you now,” she said. Her tone was polite enough, but her expression was distant, detached, as though speaking to a stranger she would soon forget.
Kent accepted the items without change in expression.
Then, Lady Kim’s gaze hardened. “Golden Heir or not, here you are a disciple like any other. Today you begin. Your task is simple: clean all the locusts that are damaging the herbal plantations of our mountain. Every day you must complete this task before you are allowed to attend the classes for learning. Fail, and you will not set foot in lecture halls.”
The disciples behind her smirked, exchanging looks. They bowed, but their eyes glittered with mockery.
Kent only inclined his head. “Very well.”
Lady Kim raised her brows slightly, almost as if disappointed he didn’t argue. “Do not take this lightly. This task humbles even those who call themselves proud.” With that, she turned and swept away, her followers trailing like shadows.
When Kent walked out toward the mountain gardens, a cluster of outer disciples lounging near the stairs began whispering.
“Locust duty… haha, they gave him punishment on the very first day.”
“They think he’s Golden Heir, but watch—by sundown he won’t even kill a hundred.”
“Even elders struggle with the swarms. He’ll quit, tail between his legs.”
Their laughter grew louder as he passed, but Kent didn’t even turn his head.
The gardens stretched wide across the slope, filled with thousands of rare herbs—spirit ginseng with glowing veins, moon orchids with petals like glass, phoenix grass that shimmered faintly with embers. Above them, the air buzzed with sound.
The locusts were thick, an endless black tide devouring leaves, blossoms, and stems. Each insect glowed faintly with demonic qi, their mandibles clicking like hammers. A normal disciple could swing for hours and barely thin their numbers.
Kent stepped into the swarm. His wives, watching from afar, tensed. Bai Qi whispered nervously, “That’s too many…”
But Kent lifted a single hand.
His palm glowed faintly, not with fire that scorched, but with a strange, pale-golden flame that seemed to breathe like a living thing. It was not wild, but calm. It danced quietly over his fingers, burning with silence.
The moment the first locust brushed against it, the insect flared to ash without sound. The flame leapt from body to body, catching each locust it touched. Yet the herbs—their flowers, their leaves, even their withered stalks—remained untouched. Not a single blade of grass bent under its heat.
“This…” Lin Lin gasped from the edge. “Nirvana Flame.”
Sophia’s eyes widened. “The flame that only chooses its prey… it burns corruption but spares purity.”
The swarm screamed, but the sound was drowned in the sudden whoosh of golden fire spreading through them. In moments, a tide of flame swept across the plantations, locusts collapsing into drifting ash.
Outer disciples peered over the walls, their mouths hanging open.
“He’s not using regular fire!”
“What kind of flame burns only locusts? Even the dried herbs aren’t touched!”
“This… this isn’t fair!”
Kent moved with slow steps through the garden, his flame expanding with each motion. It was like watching a tide sweep back to the sea, reclaiming the land. In less than an hour, thousands of locusts were gone. By noon, there was not a single black wing left in the air.
By nightfall, the garden stretched silent, every herb glimmering with renewed light, untouched by corruption. Even the faintest dried leaf was whole, as if blessed.
Kent stood at the center, his expression calm, his palm closing as the last flame vanished into nothingness.
—-
At dawn, the disciples of Celestial Light Mountain gathered in the training court, lining up in neat rows as Lady Kim entered with a scroll in hand. Her eyes scanned the crowd, then narrowed.
Kent stood among them, robed in white and gold, his expression as calm as ever.
Her brows drew tight. “Kent Hall. Did I not assign you a task yesterday? Why do you stand here?”
Kent met her gaze evenly. “The task is complete. There are no locusts left. So I came to listen to the gathering.”
Her lips thinned. “Complete? Overnight? Do you mock me?” Her voice cracked like a whip. “Locust duty humbles disciples for months, and you claim you cleared them all in one night?”
Around them, whispers erupted.
“He dares say that to Lady Kim?”
“Arrogant fool.”
“He hasn’t even touched the surface of this mountain’s trials.”
Lady Kim’s eyes glowed faintly, her voice cold. “If you speak lies before me, Golden Heir or not, I will see you disciplined.”
Kent’s voice didn’t waver. “I do not lie. There are no locusts.”
Her anger sharpened. She turned to the disciple at her side, a young woman in silver robes. “Go to the herbal gardens. Bring back locusts from the leaves.”
The disciple bowed quickly and darted away, her robe fluttering behind her.
The court buzzed with low laughter.
“He’ll be exposed in minutes.”
“Arrogant Golden Heir, caught lying on his first day.”
“Watch Lady Kim crush him.”
Even Amelia’s jaw tightened, her hand twitching toward her sword hilt, but Sophia shook her head. “Wait. He speaks calmly. That means he is certain.”
Minutes later, the disciple returned. Her face was pale, her hands trembling. She bowed deeply before Lady Kim, but her voice cracked.
“Matriarch… there are no locusts. Not one.”
The court fell silent.
Lady Kim’s eyes widened. “None?”
“None,” the disciple repeated, her gaze darting nervously toward Kent. “The gardens are… clean. Perfect. Even the dried stalks are untouched.”
A wave of shock swept the rows of disciples.
“What?!”
“Impossible!”
“How—how could one man cleanse them all overnight?”
Lady Kim’s lips pressed into a thin line. Her pride bristled, but the truth could not be denied. She turned her gaze slowly toward Kent. “What flame did you use?”
Kent’s answer was simple, his tone steady. “One that burns only what deserves to be burned.”
The crowd shuddered with whispers again. Bai Qi smiled faintly, Lin Lin’s eyes shone with recognition, and even Lily allowed the corners of her lips to curve.
Lady Kim’s eyes narrowed, her anger tempered by something colder—interest. For the first time, her voice softened. “Very well. You may attend the gathering. But know this: Celestial Light Mountain does not bend easily. If you wish to stand here, you must prove yourself again and again.”
Kent stared into her eyes with stoic look.