But, taking this male beetle's corpse away wasn't going to be easy.

Trying to pick it up with bare hands was just asking for a poison debuff.

So what to do?

Hank Fowler thought for a moment, then his gaze shifted to a small tree nearby. He quickly snapped off two branches.

"Ow! What the hell, man?! I didn't even do anything to you! Why you gotta hurt me?" the small tree yelped.

"Shut your trap!"

Hank Fowler snapped back, his voice cold. "I'm the boss of this island. Everything here belongs to me, including you. Snapping off a couple of branches is nothing. Piss me off, and I'll rip you out, roots and all."

The small tree, thoroughly cowed, didn't dare to utter another word.

Hank Fowler gave the tree a look, then proceeded to yank off a leaf.

"Argh! You're pulling my hair! That's going too far, man!"

The small tree howled in pain.

Hank Fowler, without a word, brandished the entrenching tool in front of the tree.

The small tree, immediately intimidated by Hank Fowler's display of dominance, didn't dare to make another sound.

"Freaking masochist,"

Hank Fowler snorted, then used the two branches like chopsticks to pick up the male beetle's corpse, placing it on the leaf.

He carefully wrapped the corpse with the leaf and stuffed it into his pocket.

Having done all that, he headed straight for a patch of thatch grass not far away.

Just as he got close, a cacophony of voices erupted from within the grass.

"Hey guys, someone's here to harvest us!"

"Seriously? Awesome!"

"I've been waiting for a hundred thousand years for this day! Come and get me!"

"Harvest me first! My legs are long, straight, and white, and I've got a great figure! I'm totally your type!"

"You little slut, what are you babbling about? You're a grass, not a human, get your priorities straight!"

"You're a disgrace to our thatch grass family!"

"Being related to you is the biggest shame of my life!"

"Mind your own business! Hmph!"

Hank Fowler was a bit puzzled. He was here to harvest this thatch grass, which meant they would die. So why were they begging him to harvest them?

Seeing Hank Fowler hesitate, the thatch grasses grew restless.

"Hurry up and cut us already!"

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

"With so much excellent thatch grass right in front of you, are you not tempted? What are you waiting for!"

"Swing your sickle wildly, young man!"

"Are you blind? That dude's got a shovel, not a sickle!"

"Don't get bogged down in the details!"

Hank Fowler snapped back to reality and stopped overthinking. He swung the entrenching tool with gusto.

Thwack, thwack, thwack...

After a dozen or so swings, a large swathe of thatch grass fell before him, easily over a hundred stalks.

Hank Fowler gathered the fallen grass and tied it into a simple bundle.

Just as he was about to continue his assault, the entrenching tool suddenly spoke up. "Hey, give it a rest, will ya? I'm a shovel, meant for digging, not for cutting grass. Can you show a little respect?"

"What respect does a shovel need?"

Hank Fowler scoffed, then swung the entrenching tool at the thatch grass.

Crack! Seven or eight stalks snapped and fell to the ground.

"Human, watch out!"

"Giant locusts are coming!"

Just then, the voices of the thatch grass echoed in his mind.

Hank Fowler froze, his gaze fixed on the thatch grass patch.

The previously calm grass began to sway, rustling sounds filling the air.

In the blink of an eye, hundreds of giant locusts emerged from the grass.

Each of these locusts was huge, at least four inches long, with bodies that were either green or yellowish-brown.

They swarmed together in a dense mass, like a moving green tide, creating a truly horrifying spectacle!

"Brothers! This human is destroying our home! Can we stand for this?"

"No way!"

"So what are we gonna do?"

"Get him!"

"Yeah, kill him!"

In an instant, all the locusts turned their attention to Hank Fowler, their eyes filled with murderous intent.

"You think a bunch of small fries like you can take me? Do you even have the skills?"

A smug grin curled Hank Fowler's lips.

"Brothers! This human is too arrogant!"

"Everyone, attack! Kill him!"

"Those who destroy our home must die!"

"Charge!"

With a deafening roar, hundreds of locusts swarmed towards Hank Fowler like a living rain.

"Drop dead!"

Hank Fowler swung his entrenching tool, striking with brute force.

Thump, thump, thump...

With a series of sickening thuds, seven or eight locusts were swatted away, landing on the ground, motionless. Whether they were dead or just knocked out was anyone's guess.

"Haha!"

Hank Fowler let out a wild laugh and swung his trusty Digger again.

A dozen more locusts were smashed to the ground.

Just as Hank Fowler was about to launch another attack, a sharp pain suddenly shot through his calf.

"Huh?"

Hank Fowler frowned and looked down to see a giant locust clinging to his foot, its mandibles sunk into his leg.

Riiip!

A tear appeared in his pants, and a bloody gash opened on his skin. Crimson blood gushed out, quickly staining his pant leg.

A wave of intense pain washed over him.

"Holy crap!"

Hank Fowler was both shocked and furious.

He hadn't expected the bite force of a mere locust to be so terrifying.

If he let this go on, who knew what would happen?

"Get off!"

Hank Fowler stomped his foot, sending the locust flying.

He had planned to finish it off right then and there.

But before he could, another locust jumped onto his crotch.

Seeing this, Hank Fowler's eyelids twitched violently.

If his little buddy got bitten...

The consequences were unthinkable!

Without hesitation, Hank Fowler grabbed the locust.

At the same time, the giant locust bit into Hank Fowler's finger, tearing a half-inch gash.

"Hiss!"

Hank Fowler sucked in a sharp breath, enduring the pain as he slammed the giant locust onto the ground.

But before he could deliver the killing blow, the other giant locusts swarmed him.

Given the terrifying bite force of these creatures, Hank Fowler made a tactical retreat!

Even the best tiger can't handle a pack of wolves!

Better to avoid their attacks for now.

The giant locusts didn't give up, chasing after Hank Fowler relentlessly.

They pursued him for over sixty feet before finally giving up, unable to catch him.

"Brothers! We won!"

"We finally drove off that damn human!"

"As long as we stick together, we fear no enemy!"

The locust army, basking in their victory, marched back to the thatch grass in a triumphant procession.

"That was close!"

Hank Fowler let out a long sigh, his face etched with lingering fear.

He was lucky to have escaped so quickly. If he had been surrounded by those locusts, even if he didn't die, he would have been severely injured. That would have been a disaster!

Hank Fowler stood there, waiting patiently.

His goal was to get thatch grass.

He couldn't leave without it.

After a short wait, when the locust army had fully returned to the thatch grass, Hank Fowler stealthily approached.

Just as he reached the edge of the grass, a locust sentry spotted him.

"Brothers! Bad news! That damn human is back again!"