Chapter 26: Slaying the Rat King, Quelling the Rat Tide

On November 29, 2056, Xiao Yu finally arrived at City 0252, where the rat tide outbreak was the worst.

Along the way he also encountered dozens of small rat tides, each only numbering a few hundred thousand rat beasts; at their speed, they could not affect him at all.

The rat beasts in the previously encountered rat tides were not large, only about thirty centimeters tall.

But the rat tide in City 0252 was different.

Here, billions of rat beasts formed a black, endless mass that almost covered the entire city.

Strangely, the rat tide showed no tendency to expand outward; instead it kept contracting inward.

Xiao Yu carefully leapt onto the rooftop of a twenty‑story commercial building in the suburbs, took out a telescope, and finally saw clearly.

Within this rat tide there were three cores, each a skyscraper, and on each skyscraper a lone figure was constantly fighting as countless rat beasts surged up, resembling three black pyramids.

Those three figures must be the three War God‑level warriors trapped in the rat tide.

The sonic boom from the battle echoed throughout the city, and even Xiao Yu at the city's edge could hear it.

After discerning the cause of the rat tide's strange behavior, Xiao Yu did not act rashly and kept searching within the oppressive black tide.

A rat tide does not arise without cause; inside it there must be a Rat King leading the rat beasts, perhaps more than one.

Given the scale of the rat tide before him, to control billions of rat beasts the Rat King's rank should be at Lord Rank, perhaps even High Lord Rank.

The Rat King usually hides within the tide and does not reveal itself easily.

In the distant sky three deep‑blue shadows flew in; at first they seemed like some flying beast, but as the dark blue objects approached, Xiao Yu saw they were three flat, disc‑shaped fighter aircraft!

Modern military fighters are mostly of this flat, circular shape, because such a form is advantageous for both defense and offense when encountering flying beasts.

The fighters dived toward the rat tide, and when they were still about a hundred meters above the ground they hovered over the beast swarm; with the eyesight of a small fish, one could clearly see a huge gun barrel protruding from the aircraft's belly.

Endless scorching flames burst from the barrel, engulfing the rat tide below; the temperature, likely thousands of degrees, set countless rat beasts ablaze, killing them instantly.

After a long time Xiao Yu still found no trace of the Rat King; he guessed the Rat King might be hidden inside some building.

The building harboring the Rat King should have a good field of view, able to control the whole situation.

In City 0252, only three skyscrapers have such a clear view, and one of them sits at the center of the triangle formed by the three War Gods' positions.

Xiao Yu surmised that the cunning Rat King was likely hidden there.

That 200‑meter‑tall commercial tower was nearly thirty li away from Xiao Yu.

If Xiao Yu wanted to rush over, there were two options: fight his way through, risking the same entrapment that befell the other three War Gods.

The second option was to ride a fighter aircraft there.

Xiao Yu took out his satellite‑communication watch and opened the public channel.

"I am Xiao Yu of the Extreme Martial Arts Hall, my ID is 542658111XXX; I have an urgent matter and need fighter support."

Xiao Yu repeated the message into the watch over and over.

Soon a voice came over the public channel.

"Greetings, War God Xiao Yu! This is the Tiger Eagle fighter; your request has been received, the aircraft is heading over now."

One of the three fighters that were clearing the rat tide quickly adjusted its flight posture and flew toward the skyscraper where Xiao Yu stood.

Three minutes later the fighter hovered a dozen meters above Xiao Yu's head, and its rear hatch slowly lowered, forming a horizontal platform.

Xiao Yu pushed off with his feet and, whoosh, landed on the platform.

"Do not close the cabin," Xiao Yu said, "fly to the tallest building in the middle of the city."

Xiao Yu pointed to the center of the triangle formed by the three War Gods.

"Received," the fighter pilot acknowledged.

Three minutes later Xiao Yu jumped down from the fighter.

The building's name was still faintly visible: 'Crown Summer Tower'.

After dropping him, the fighter did not fly away immediately but circled the area, eliminating rat beasts.

The previously calm tower suddenly boiled with activity due to Xiao Yu's arrival.

Thousands of rat beasts surged from every part of the building, swarming toward Xiao Yu on the roof.

Each was several times larger than ordinary rat beasts.

Xiao Yu steadied his mind, "As expected, the Rat King must be hidden here."

The Black God Set instantly extended from his right hand to his whole body, exposing only his eyes and mouth. Both SS war blades unsheathed, instantly appearing before a roughly two‑meter‑tall primary Beast General‑rank rat beast; with a casual swing, the rat's head flew aside.

Xiao Yu wielded both blades; each swing cut down at least one rat beast.

Moreover, the slain rat beasts' bodies were consumed by the system under his mental control.

【Absorb rat-beast corpse to gain 1 Wish Point!】

【Absorb rat-beast corpse to gain 25 Wish Points!】

【Absorb rat-beast corpse to gain 3 Wish Points!】

…

【Absorb rat-beast corpse to gain 100 Wish Points!】

Thousands of voices kept echoing in Xiao Yu's mind.

Xiao Yu kept slashing downward from the rooftop; the lower he went, the higher the obstacles and the stronger the rat beasts he faced.

After nearly half an hour of fighting, Xiao Yu finally descended from the rooftop to the twenty‑fifth floor.

Xiao Yu encountered unprecedented resistance.

This floor had only twenty rat beasts, but each was over three meters long, with the three longest exceeding five meters.

Their long black fur reflected a cold sheen, as if covered in scales.

Xiao Yu was astonished; these rat beasts all possessed Lord Rank strength—seven were at primary Lord Rank, ten at intermediate Lord Rank, and three at High Lord Rank. He was unsure which of the three High Lords was the Rat King, or if they were all Rat Kings.

"Tiger Eagle, this is Xiao Yu. We've found a large number of Lord‑rank rat beasts; the Rat King should be among them. Call the other War Gods for support,"

"Tiger Eagle received. We'll immediately rendezvous with the three War Gods and provide support. War God Xiao Yu, please ensure your safety while maximizing kills."

After the rat-beast swarm discovered Xiao Yu, they surrounded him, and one Lord Rank rat beast after another launched an attack.

Numerous sonic booms kept ringing out.

Xiao Yu's heart stirred, his figure flashed like lightning, and in an instant he swept past every attacking rat beast.

All the attacking rat beasts were instantly flung backward, countless black-blue blood sprayed in the air, forming a blood mist.

Among them, two Primary Lord Rank rat beasts were almost cleaved in half, completely losing their lives.

【Absorbing the corpse of a Primary Lord Rank rat beast yields 2000 Wish Points!】

【Absorbing the corpse of a Primary Lord Rank rat beast yields 2100 Wish Points!】

The flesh and blood vanished, leaving only a pile of scales and other important materials on the ground.

While attacking, Xiao Yu flashed to the materials, and with a thought he stored them in his Space Ring.

Now Xiao Yu is only interested in the materials on Lord Rank monsters.

Wall after wall was shattered by the impacts.

The battlefield moved from the 25th floor, fought all the way up to the 28th floor, then returned to the 25th floor.

「Squeak~」

Three High Lord Rank rat beasts, each six meters in size, could no longer hold back; their speed had reached supersonic as they lunged at Xiao Yu.

「Pfft~」 Sonic booms kept ringing out.

Xiao Yu's body moved, instantly accelerating six times, shaking off the High Lord's pursuit, and he came beside a Primary Lord Rank rat beast; before it could react, his SS-class Battle Sword, after two consecutive accelerations, had already sliced its neck, the black-light rat head flying several meters away.

Xiao Yu moved his left hand, and the body of that Primary Lord Rank rat beast vanished.

One Primary Lord Rank rat beast after another fell under Xiao Yu's hands like chickens and ducks awaiting slaughter, which he dealt with first.

Seven Primary Lord Rank beasts were eliminated by him in under three minutes, turning into monster materials that entered his Space Ring.

「Xiao Yu War God, Lu Gang War God, Geng Zhi War God, Wei Chen War God have already arrived. 」

Three fighter jets hovered above the skyscraper.

「The Rat King is currently on the 25th floor, 」 Xiao Yu said: 「Not good, be careful, the building is going to collapse. 」

Just now, a High Lord Rank rat beast, while pursuing Xiao Yu, repeatedly smashed through four or five load-bearing walls.

The skyscraper tilted as if cut at the waist, starting from the 25th floor, and collapsed in less than a minute.

The three fighter jets hurriedly evaded the surroundings, while three black shadows shot out from the jets and flew into the skyscraper.

Countless rat beasts dodged to the side.

Thousands of rat beasts in the plaza below failed to dodge and were crushed into sludge.

The 25th floor suddenly became the top floor of the skyscraper.

The collapsing skyscraper kicked up a cloud of dust; suddenly Xiao Yu heard sonic booms behind him, and a five-meter-sized figure darted to his front.

「Pfft~」 Xiao Yu, whose nerves had been constantly tense, instantly dodged to the side of an Intermediate Lord, his SS-class Battle Sword undergoing six consecutive accelerations, and with triple sonic speed support, instantly slew the Intermediate Lord rat beast.

This was the tenth Lord Rank rat beast Xiao Yu had slain; during the recent building collapse, he took advantage of the rat beasts' panic and consecutively slew two Intermediate Lord Rank rat beasts.

「Lu Gang, Geng Zhi, Wei Chen, you three restrain those seven Intermediate Lord Rank rat beasts; I'll handle the remaining three High Lord Rank rat beasts. 」 Xiao Yu said.

The strongest person on the field was Xiao Yu; under the Sixfold Ninefold Thunder Blade, his strength was comparable to a first-stage planetary powerhouse.

「Intermediate War God Lu Gang saw the scene of Xiao Yu fighting the rat beasts, and thought: "Xiao Yu's strength is absolutely invincible War God level, not just the initial War God level as the data says; moreover, his movement technique has actually reached the Intent level, and he cultivates the Ninefold Thunder Blade as well, having already reached the sixth level! How is this possible?"」

Xiao Yu's title of Genius War God had long spread throughout Huaxia Nation, especially among War God-level martial artists, nobody was unaware of his information.

The three War God-level martial artists who had seen Xiao Yu's strength all replied in unison: "Good."

Lu Gang took the lead, charging at three Intermediate Lord Rank rat beasts; those three Lord Rank rat beasts also rushed at him; at the moment they closed in, Lu Gang's feet underwent four instantaneous accelerations, flashing past like a phantom; at that moment, his S-class Battle Sword underwent four consecutive accelerations, accompanied by endless sonic booms, slashing at one of the rat beasts.

After the rat beast suffered heavy wounds, it became even more frenzied; Lu Gang, additionally attracting three Lord Rank monsters, ran downward; any rat beast he passed, whether Beast General Rank, Beast Soldier Rank, or ordinary, was killed.

The massive Lord Rank rat beast kept charging, and hundreds of rat beasts that couldn't dodge in time were squeezed by the impact, falling from the skyscraper into the sea of fire below.

Geng Zhi and Wei Chen also used similar methods to each lure those two Lord Rank monsters downward.

On the 25th floor, only Xiao Yu remained, firmly staring at his three High Lord Rank rat beasts, as well as the countless rat beasts surging up from below.

「Pfft~」

「Pfft~」

Sonic booms rang out continuously, and the fierce battle lasted a long time.

The entire 25th floor was utterly destroyed, as if scraped away by a bulldozer.

One person and three beasts fought continuously from the 25th floor down to the 20th floor.

The three High Lord Rank rat beasts bore more and more wounds, and the air on the ground was filled with blood mist sprayed from their bodies.

「This will end your suffering! 」 Xiao Yu looked at the three severely wounded, mobility-impaired High Lord Rank monsters.

「Pfft~」

Taking a step, his feet instantly accelerated six times, Xiao Yu arrived before a High Lord like Instant Teleport; at the moment it howled, his SS-class Battle Sword slipped along its snout into its skull, and it instantly flipped backward, its whole body convulsing.

「Pfft~」

Thereafter, after six accelerations of his figure, Xiao Yu rushed to the left side of a High Lord whose left eye had been severely wounded, and his SS-class Battle Sword instantly stabbed into its skull.

「Pfft~」

Two consecutive sonic booms sounded, and the last High Lord was also slain by Xiao Yu.

With a thought, the thousands of rat beast corpses on the ground vanished; even the flesh and blood inside the three High Lord Rank rat beasts disappeared, leaving only three piles of materials, which were stored in his Space Ring.

By the time Xiao Yu descended to the 18th floor, he saw that Lu Gang had already slain two Intermediate Lord Rank monsters, the remaining one also severely wounded.

「Xiao Yu, go down and see if they need help; I'll take care of this one right away. 」 Lu Gang laughed.

「Good. 」 Xiao Yu nodded and continued walking down.

The floors below were also in a state of disrepair; Xiao Yu doubted the building could still hold up, which was absolutely a stroke of luck.

On the 16th floor, he encountered the corpse of an Intermediate Lord monster.

At the fifteenth floor, they encountered Wei Chen, who was entangled by thousands of large rat beasts and covered in blood all over; that Lord Monster was still relatively intact, actually unharmed, and occasionally ambushed Wei Chen.

Although Wei Chen was also a mid-level War God, wielding a war hammer, the cultivation technique he practiced was far inferior to the Ninefold Thunder Blade; compared to Lu Gang's strength, he was much weaker.

Xiao Yu flashed behind the mid-level Lord Rank rat beast, and his SS-class Battle Sword, after six accelerations, stabbed into the beast's spine at triple the speed of sound.

Given the Lord Monster's defense, it would be impossible to pierce its spine without Xiao Yu's SS-class Battle Sword combined with supersonic speed.

The battle sword pierced the rat beast's spine, severing its spinal nerves, and the mid-level Lord Rank rat beast instantly lost all movement.

Xiao Yu flashed to the monster's front, and his battle sword, with unmatched speed, pierced its eyes and skull.

Without the Lord's guidance, the rat swarm before them scattered and fled.

"Wei Chen, go help Lu Gang upstairs; I'll go check how Geng Zhi is doing."

As Xiao Yu continued rushing downstairs, the endless surge of rats that had been rising actually began to disperse.

When he descended to the tenth floor, he found Geng Zhi leaning against a weighing pillar, his left arm bandaged, and his stripped combat uniform streaked with fresh blood.

"Geng Zhi, you're injured!" Xiao Yu said, pulling out an emergency medical device from his backpack: "Let me help you."

"I was ambushed." Geng Zhi gave a bitter smile.

Half an hour later, the rat tide that had swept across a thousand miles began to gradually disperse, and countless rat beasts burrowed back underground.

Xiao Yu, Lu Gang, and the other four War Gods boarded a combat aircraft and returned to the Northern Military Region.

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(End of chapter)