My neighborhood has time-traveled.

Chapter 18 The First Signs of Crisis

Li Hao glanced at the five people, but didn't try to take the headless corpse from them. He took a few steps, picked up the grasshopper's head from the ground, and said, "Let's go."

They quickly left with Li Wen.

"Hahaha, I got it!"

"If you're so capable, then don't run away!"

Huang Jingchen glanced at Li Hao and Li Wen who were fleeing, shouted loudly, and then bent down to pick up the grasshopper carcass the size of a watermelon from the ground.

It feels quite heavy when you get it.

"Wow, it's huge."

"Yes, I've never seen such a big grasshopper before." The group looked at the grasshopper in his hand and were all surprised.

This is definitely a mutation.

Huang Jingchen put the headless grasshopper carcass into the bag and said to the four men,

"I'll leave this grasshopper carcass here for now, and we'll divide it up when we get back."

The four nodded, having no objections.

On the other side, Li Hao led Li Wen to a place out of Huang Jingchen's sight.

"Brother, thank goodness you managed to snatch the grasshopper's head. Looks like they don't know the secret hidden inside."

"Hmm." Li Hao glanced at the grasshopper head in his hand; the head was as big as a fist.

It was the biggest grasshopper he had ever seen.

Even after its head was cut off, the grasshopper's mouth was still opening and closing, and its eyes were still moving.

"But it's still a bit frustrating that they stole the grasshopper's carcass. It's outrageous," Li Wen said indignantly, still feeling somewhat resentful.

"Don't worry, we'll get it back in a bit." Li Hao said, cutting open the grasshopper's head with a Damascus steel knife.

A piece of jade, about the size of a little finger, is visible.

Li Hao didn't stand on ceremony with his younger brother, throwing the food directly into his mouth, "crunch," biting it open, and swallowing it.

A surge of heat exploded within his body, spreading throughout his entire being.

Li Hao's face immediately turned red.

"Hoo~" He took a few deep breaths, feeling the power surging through his body.

I clenched my fist and could clearly feel that my strength had increased a lot.

Even the Damascus steel knife he was holding felt a little lighter.

"Walk."

Li Hao, along with Li Wen, carrying Damascus steel knives, chased after Huang Jingchen.

Along the way, using his infrared thermal imaging capabilities, Li Hao caught several more grasshoppers and mantises the size of fists.

Most of the small stones were given to Li Wen.

……

"Stop it!"

"Don't let it get away!"

"Damn! This praying mantis is huge, I have to catch it!"

Zhao Meng directed a dozen or so of his men to surround a praying mantis the size of a watermelon.

Zhao Meng stared at the mantis with excitement, his eyes glued to it.

Such a big praying mantis must have huge crystals in its head; eating it would be incredibly satisfying.

"superior!"

At Zhao Meng's command, more than a dozen of his underlings pounced on the mantis at the same time.

Before they could charge, the mantis extended its wings from its back, flapped them, and flew out of the encirclement.

It flew farther and farther.

"Don't let it get away! Chase after it!"

Zhao Meng was not about to let the prey escape, so he took the lead and charged to the top, determined to take down this giant praying mantis.

Li Hao and Li Wen spotted the giant praying mantis flying towards them at a glance.

"Brother, this one is huge too!"

Li Hao tightened his grip on the knife, staring intently at the falling mantis. "If Heaven grants a gift and you don't seize it, you will surely suffer the consequences."

He glanced at Zhao Meng, who was at the forefront, and his henchmen behind him.

He stomped his foot hard, took a few steps, and suddenly jumped up, swinging his Damascus knife in his right hand.

He still aimed for the mantis's neck.

The Damascus steel knife was swift, accurate, and ruthless; with a swift stroke, it struck the mantis that was about to fall to the ground.

The mantis's neck is separated from its body.

"You dare to steal it!"

Zhao Meng rushed over, shouting, his voice filled with anger.

"Walk!"

Li Hao picked up the mantis's head from the ground, then turned and ran away with Li Wen.

By the time Zhao Meng rushed to the headless mantis corpse, Li Hao and Li Wen had already made their escape.

"Damn it!"

Zhao Meng glanced at the headless mantis on the grass and gritted his teeth.

The most crucial thing, the head, was taken.

If such a large mantis were to eat the crystals inside, its own strength would definitely increase significantly.

Unexpectedly, it was stolen at the crucial moment!

"You just wait!"

He roared in Li Hao's direction and swung his machete forcefully, snapping a nearby bush in two.

Li Hao led Li Wen on a frantic run, arriving at a bush and crouching behind it.

"Hahaha, bro, Zhao Meng is probably going to be driven crazy by us." Li Wen laughed, feeling very satisfied.

"Remember to be wary of him in the future." Li Hao smiled. This kind of snatching food from the jaws of death was indeed exhilarating.

However, he did not regret it. Insects as big as watermelons are quite rare, and it was worth the risk.

Consuming the small pebbles from the head of this insect can rapidly enhance one's strength.

He believed that strength was the key, and that as long as there was enough strength, numbers were not a concern.

He tossed the mantis's head to Li Wen, "Here you go, eat it quickly."

The mantis opened and closed its mouth, and a pale green liquid flowed out of its mouth.

Li Wen didn't stand on ceremony. He used a Damascus steel knife to cut open the mantis's head, took out a stone the size of his little finger, and threw it into his mouth.

As he swallowed, his breathing immediately became rapid, and his face turned red.

He brandished his Damascus steel knife, his eyes gleaming. "Brother, I'm bursting with energy right now!"

Li Hao's infrared thermal imaging looked at Li Wen, and the color turned several shades redder.

"Okay, let's have some water and something to eat first, then we'll go later."

The two took out water and bread from their backpacks and sat on a rock.

Li Wen took a sip of water, ate some bread, and opened the bag. Inside was a small bag containing headless, dead insects.

"Brother, there are so many insects, how are we going to deal with them?"

Li Hao swallowed the bread, glanced at the insects in the bag, and said, "We usually stir-fry them, deep-fry them, dry them for preservation, or exchange them for points with Wang Hao."

Beside a bush.

The woman wearing glasses is picking kiwis with her husband and son.

"If it weren't for me, you definitely wouldn't have discovered this kiwi tree."

"You still can't do it without me."

"That ungrateful wretch! Next time I see her, I'll skin her alive!"

The woman picked the fruit while muttering to herself.

When her daughter was mentioned, her anger was reignited.

The daughter stole grain from the house and was then beaten in public—this was something that had never happened before.

She still couldn't swallow her anger.

"Mom! Dad! Come quick, there's a huge grasshopper here!" The young man stopped picking grass and stared intently at a clump of grass.

A grasshopper, about the size of a fist, was eating grass in the bushes.

"Hurry up and catch it! What are you waiting for?" The woman grabbed a kitchen knife and charged at the grasshopper.

Men and young people followed closely behind.

Sensing someone's arrival, the grasshopper leaped away on its hind legs and disappeared from in front of the three people, reappearing three meters away.

"Quick, after them!"

The three men, brandishing kitchen knives, gave chase.

One chases, one jumps.

Li Hao spotted a large grasshopper in the distance and brought Li Wen ahead to intercept it.

The grasshopper landed in front of the two of them.

Li Hao glanced at the three people behind the grasshopper.

Before the three arrived, he moved his feet, taking three meters in one step. The grasshopper jumped out, and he caught up instantly, slashing the grasshopper on the forehead with his knife.

The grasshopper's head rolled off.

Li Hao cut open the grasshopper's head, took out the small stones, and threw the corpse into a bag.

"Those are ours, how dare you steal them from us!" The woman with glasses blocked Li Hao's way.

"Yes, we found this big grasshopper first. How dare you steal our prey?" The young man walked up to them, panting heavily while holding his knees.

"Give it back to us now." The man with a thick beard pointed at Li Hao's bag, his tone forceful.

Li Wen pointed his Damascus steel knife at the three men and said bluntly, "What, do these grasshoppers have your names engraved on their foreheads? You say they're yours, so they're yours? I could say I've found all the grasshoppers on the entire grassland, and they're all mine."

Li Hao ignored him and left with Li Wen.

"Don't leave!" The woman with glasses ran up to Li Hao, spreading her arms to block their path. "You're not leaving until you hand over that grasshopper!"

"That's right, you're not allowed to leave." The man stood next to the woman with his son.

"Have you guys been drinking too much Tiger Balm? You're just spouting sarcastic remarks," Li Wen said disdainfully.

"Get out of the way." Li Hao raised his Damascus steel knife, pointing it at the woman, his eyes cold.

"Husband!" the woman said, looking at her husband.

"What are you doing! Trying to rob me!" The man raised a kitchen knife.

Li Hao swung his knife, and with a clang, the cleaver in the man's hand broke in two.

The scene terrified the man, woman, and young man, who involuntarily took several steps back.

"Get out of here if you don't want to die." Li Hao looked at the three of them coldly.

The woman wearing glasses was terrified and instinctively turned and left with her husband and son.

After walking a distance away, she came to her senses and pointed at her husband and son, cursing, "You two are useless! You're making me so angry!"

"I'll tell the property management that I absolutely must go back and tell them to get Manager Liu to stand up for us!"

……

The sun rose to its zenith, shining brightly.

Zhang Xiaonan and her companions were picking wild fruits by the bushes.

As the girl picked the fruit, she smiled and said to Zhang Xiaonan, "From now on, we'll be best friends."

"Mmm, she's my absolute best friend." Zhang Xiaonan smiled sweetly. Just then, she saw a colorful butterfly the size of a fist fly towards her. "So beautiful."

She reached out her hand.

A butterfly landed on her hand and fluttered its wings slightly.

The butterfly wings emitted a fine, crystalline powder, which drifted into her nose on the wind, and Zhang Xiaonan's eyes became hazy.

The glistening powder drifted into her best friend's nose, and her eyes also became dazed.

The two suddenly grabbed each other's hair and started wrestling.

With tears streaming down her face, Zhang Xiaonan said, "You never treated me like your daughter at all."

My best friend was in tears: "Why did you break up with me?!"

the other side.

The property management company.

A woman is picking wild fruit.

Suddenly I felt a pain in my calf.

Looking down, she saw a brightly colored little snake bite her and then quickly slither away.

"Ouch! I've been bitten! I've been bitten!"

She threw down the bag in her hand and screamed in terror.

He hadn't taken two steps before collapsing to the ground, his body stiff.

"This fruit is...poisonous." A girl ate an unknown fruit and suddenly went blind. She reached out and touched in front of her in a daze before collapsing to the ground with a thud.

……

The group of people digging for wild yams dug deeper and deeper. The yams were as big as an adult's body and had many interconnected parts. If they were all dug up, there would be at least several hundred kilograms of them.

Wang Hao laughed and said, "There are several hundred kilograms, enough for all of us to eat for ten days or eight months."

Another person said, "We can simply move it back and come out to dig up others later."

Just then, one of the men's shovels struck something hard. He looked down and asked, "What's this?"

There's a piece of red glass or plastic in the soil?

Before he could react, a centipede as thick as an arm suddenly sprang out of the ground and bit him hard on the back of his hand.

"what!"

"Centipede! A giant centipede!"

The man was so frightened that he hurriedly retreated, frantically shaking his bitten arm as waves of stinging pain continued to emanate from the wound.

He glanced at it and saw two small holes in the bite mark, which had already turned black.

The area around the wound was dark purple.

"Beat them!"

The group shoveled and cleavers struck the centipede with all their might, the clanging sounds like hitting copper or iron. The centipede crawled quickly on the ground and bit their thighs a few times.

"what!"

The crowd abandoned the yams and fled.

The centipede did not leave; instead, it slithered rapidly across the ground and crawled toward the person.

"Get out of here!"

Wang Hao grabbed the centipede and threw it away, but his hand was bitten in the process.

"Ouch!" He looked down and saw that the spot where he had been bitten had turned blackish-purple.

"Highly poisonous!"

After landing, the centipede disappeared into the grass.

Several people who had been bitten clutched their wounds and screamed in agony.

Waves of sharp pain and burning sensation kept coming from the wound.

"Hurry to the river."

"Wash them with water." Despite the excruciating pain, Wang Hao led the bitten people to a small river that had just been discovered nearby.

The Huang family group arrived at a large tree.

The tree is tens of meters tall, with its canopy spreading out.

"There isn't a single bird in this place, so I have no use for my bow and arrows."

The man held the arrow in his hand, looking utterly bored.

At that moment, he looked up and saw a huge wasp on the tree, about the size of a fist.

"It's not impossible, watch me."

He nocked his bow and arrow, raised it, and shot an arrow at the wasps. The arrow missed the wasps but grazed them and hit the nest.

"Buzz buzz buzz." One by one, fist-sized wasps swarmed out of the hive.

"It's a wasp! Run! Run!"

Hearing the commotion, everyone looked up and saw a large number of hornets flying out from above. Their expressions changed drastically, and they turned and ran.