I did have some pesticide, but only two boxes barely a drop in the bucket for a tree this size.
Still, something was better than nothing.
I donned an N95 mask, goggles, and rubber gloves.
I poured all the pesticide into a big bucket, then filled a large sprayer.
I taught Da Rong how to use it, showing it where to spray.
Pesticide was scarce we had to ration it.
I posted online, offering to buy more. No one replied.
As I considered offering rare goods as bait, Da Rong’s branches suddenly whipped around in alarm.
“What’s wrong, Da Rong?” I asked.
Da Rong couldn’t answer, but its branch nudged my waist, urging me toward the villa’s center.
I was confused and tried to look back.
The sky had darkened thick, ominous clouds loomed.
Was it another storm?
No, something was off.
Breaking free from Da Rong’s grip, I grabbed my binoculars.
What I saw made my blood run cold.
It wasn’t clouds it was a massive swarm of insects!
A plague of bugs!
Fear shot down my spine. I’d never seen anything like this.
My first thought was for Da Rong.
A few bugs had already made it uncomfortable what about this swarm?
The insects advanced like a tidal wave, closing in fast.
I quickly told Da Rong to gather all its aerial roots to protect its trunk.
The canopy was a lost cause, but banyans can regrow from any root, so the roots were vital.
Da Rong kept urging me to take shelter in its heartwood, but I couldn’t leave it.
The villa’s walls and windows were made of special materials bugs couldn’t bite through.
But Da Rong didn’t know that, and kept pushing me until it finally bundled me inside.
Moments later, a dull, thunderous noise erupted the insects had arrived, battering the trunk.
I sat on the floor, hugging my knees, my heart heavy.
The floor vibrated Da Rong was fighting hard.
Each second in the darkness felt endless.
Oddly, I wasn’t worried for myself I just feared Da Rong wouldn’t make it.
What if… I shook my head, refusing to think further.
I searched online and found videos of the insect plague.
The footage was shaky but clear.
A cloud of bugs swept past, stripping lush plants bare in seconds.
This wasn’t just locusts multiple species had banded together.
Some ate leaves, some gnawed branches together, they devoured everything.
The once rampant greenery vanished as if erased.
Some commenters called it nature’s way of restoring balance.
I didn’t care about the big picture I just wanted Da Rong to survive.
The shaking grew worse Da Rong was reaching its limit.
Desperate, I racked my brain for a solution.
Then, a wild idea struck me.
Da Rong had once absorbed other plant seeds and instantly grown their fruit.
What if it absorbed pesticide could it gain the same properties?
I raced to the storage room, remembering I still had half a bucket left.
By flashlight, I found it thankfully, it hadn’t spilled.
“Da Rong!” I called. A limp branch curled around my hand.
“Hurry, just like before absorb this and use it.”
I plunged the branch into the bucket, urging it on.
I didn’t know if my crazy idea would work, but Da Rong had already created so many miracles I hoped for one more.
I waited anxiously as the light outside slowly brightened.
Suddenly, swathes of insects dropped from the sky more swarmed in, only to fall like rain.
It worked! Tears of relief welled up.
Eventually, the swarm passed.
Looking out the window, I saw not a trace of green only bare, brown earth.
Da Rong was exhausted, its vitality sapped by the ordeal.
I fed it every last bit of fertilizer I’d gotten with my seeds, hoping it would recover soon.
When I picked up my phone, a message in the village group chat made my heart skip.
It was a video, barely a minute long.
During the swarm, Da Rong had thrown caution aside its branches lashed out in every direction, desperately swatting the insects.
Someone hiding indoors had filmed the whole thing.
Doomsday Plant Battle - Chapter 5
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