Chapter 031: Rapid Progress, Waiting for the Hare to Return!

Su Rui, who had been feeling quite smug and satisfied with his performance, felt his spirits plummet after hearing Gu Xiaoyuan’s words.

"Yu Le, did you just use a combat technique?"

Yu Le did not answer immediately. He stepped forward to examine the Bristle Demon Rat he had flicked into the air and watched fall to the ground. Only after confirming it was dead did he nod and say, "Yes, but I’ve only just mastered the basics."

Just?

"If I’m not mistaken, you just used the 'Light-Step Sway' given by Brother Ling and the 'Sticky-Clothes Flick' given by Meng Huai, right?" Gu Xiaoyuan pressed.

Yu Le nodded. "Is there a problem?"

Su Rui looked like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. "You learned those in one night and already mastered the basics?"

"And two of them, at that?"

From their tone, Yu Le finally realized that not everyone mastered combat techniques as quickly as he did.

But this was no time to dwell on that. Having dealt with the three Bristle Demon Rats, the trio hurried toward the position where Han Yuesu and her partner were holding their ground.

They encountered no further obstacles along the way, but as they neared the defensive point, they could hear the continuous, piercing squeaks of a massive swarm of Bristle Demon Rats from a distance.

Su Rui was about to rush forward when Gu Xiaoyuan stopped him. "Are you trying to get yourself killed?"

"Aren't we reinforcements?" Su Rui asked, confused.

Gu Xiaoyuan rolled her eyes. "Follow me."

Instead of foolishly charging in, the three took a detour, climbed a side staircase, and crouched down to look below. A terrifying scene met their eyes.

Based on the terrain Gu Xiaoyuan had scouted earlier, she had directed the two of them to retreat to a position that was easy to defend but hard to attack.

From their current vantage point, they couldn't see Han Yuesu and her partner; they could only see a dense, pile-up of Bristle Demon Rats surging into the narrow entrance like a human pyramid. Because of the clutter, all they could see were backs and twitching rat tails.

Gu Xiaoyuan’s expression darkened. "There are at least fifty of them!"

Fifty!

Even though they were only Rock-Realm Bristle Demon Rats, this was far more than the thirty or forty mentioned in the Security Bureau's intelligence!

Crucially, this did not include the fourteen rats cleared by the previous two teams, nor the many that Geng Xiao’s group was currently facing. This meant the number of Bristle Demon Rats that had entered the gas plant had reached over a hundred!

Su Rui frowned and sniffed the air. "Do you guys smell something strange?"

Directly above the staircase where they were standing was a ventilation duct. Gu Xiaoyuan and Yu Le caught the scent too, but now was not the time to worry about it.

"This is tricky. With so many rats blocking the way, it’s unrealistic for the three of us to just charge in!" Gu Xiaoyuan said, feeling a headache coming on. She considered several methods, but dismissed them all.

"I have a way," said Yu Le, his eyes locked on the swarm below. "But it requires someone to take a risk." He scanned the other two, his gaze finally settling on Su Rui.

Su Rui’s face turned pale. "You... what are you trying to do?"

Yu Le whispered his plan. Gu Xiaoyuan’s eyes lit up, but Su Rui began to tremble.

"My brother, if we do that, I'm afraid..."

"Then let Xiaoyuan go."

"Fine, I'll go," Gu Xiaoyuan said without hesitation.

Su Rui immediately reached out, his expression serious. "A dangerous task like this should naturally be handled by a man. Isn't it just attracting these stinking rats? I don't believe I can't do it."

*Wow, aren't you brave!*

Yu Le smiled. "Don't worry. With your agility, as long as you do as I say, nothing will go wrong!"

For the sake of the team, the cowardly Su Rui bravely stepped up. He walked slowly toward the stairs, and as he reached the corner, he couldn't help but look up and whisper, "If I die, tell my mother I wasn't a coward."

He was met with two eye-rolls.

Su Rui headed down the stairs, while Yu Le moved in the opposite direction.

"Hey, you stinking rats! Your grandfather Su Rui is here! Who dares to fight me?"

His trembling voice echoed behind the chattering swarm, startling some of the more timid rats. When they turned and saw a lone figure, a green glint appeared in their eyes. Clearly, they had marked Su Rui as their target.

The baiting worked perfectly. Before Su Rui could say another word, groups of Bristle Demon Rats turned and pursued him.

"Oh, crap!"

Fortunately, Su Rui’s reflexes were fast. He turned and ran, but he still got swiped on his backside, his pants torn, sprinting ahead in a panic.

"Dead rats, stinking rats! Come and get me if you can!"

*Squeak, squeak!*

Su Rui didn't need to look back to know that a large number of rats were following him. He felt a chill down his spine, but he pushed his agility combat technique, "Shadow-Sweep Step," to its limit.

Scrambling and sliding, he finally reached the spot Yu Le had designated. Looking at the pillar ahead, Su Rui was almost in tears. "Brother Yu, Uncle Yu, save my life!"

"Move aside!" Yu Le’s voice came from above.

Su Rui rolled to the side. At that exact moment, the thick pillar in front of him collapsed with a roar.

*Squeak, squeak!*

The swarm chasing Su Rui tried to stop, but the rats behind pushed those in front, creating a chaotic pile-up.

In their terrified gazes, the "Dragon-Subduing Rod" (Fu Long Diao) expanded until it was as large as a pillar, then slammed down!

*BOOM!*

Half the plant trembled, and the surrounding debris and facilities collapsed.

Once things quieted down, Su Rui peeked out from his hiding spot. Seeing the result, he jumped up in excitement. "Brother Yu, you’re incredible!"

Yu Le had lured the rats into the narrow passage, then enlarged his life-weapon to crush them in one fell swoop.

"Finish off the ones still alive," Gu Xiaoyuan reminded them.

"You got it!" Su Rui crushed a nearby rat's head, and Yu Le leaped down from above.

In short order, aside from a few lucky rats that had scattered in fear, the rest—whether they had been flattened into jerky by the rod or had their lower bodies pinned—met their end at the hands of the trio.

"Uncle Yu is so amazing! You took out thirty-two of them in one go!" Gu Xiaoyuan chirped happily.

There was no time to waste. Yu Le retracted his weapon, and leaving a trail of rat carcasses behind, they headed toward the warehouse, which only had one entrance.

At the door, seven Bristle Demon Rats hissed warnings at the approaching trio.

"Be careful, the one with the missing eye is a Ninth-Rank Rock-Realm beast," Gu Xiaoyuan analyzed, doing her part.

Yu Le’s gaze locked onto the rat with a bloody hole where its eye should have been. It was the most dangerous of the seven, and judging by the wound, it looked like it had been inflicted by Meng Huai’s "Wind-Rising Spear."

"Brother Yu, what now?" Su Rui asked nervously.

This was much tougher than the previous group. Fortunately, the rats hadn't initiated an attack yet.

Having come this far, there was no other option.

Yu Le said concisely: "Kill!"

He threw the slender rod forward. The rats guarding the door were momentarily confused, stupidly reaching out their claws to catch it.

Then... "Big, big, big!"

The rod grew rapidly, pinning three rats instantly. The remaining four, seeing the danger, retreated a step and escaped the fate of their brethren.

"Show-off!" Su Rui praised. Yu Le had truly mastered the use of his life-weapon.

Yu Le had already charged forward. Picking up the rod, he smashed the heads of two of the retreating rats right in front of the others, while the last one was blown to bits by the following Su Rui.

"Two against four, are you scared?"

"I'm here too! Charge on, Uncle, Xiaoyuan is right behind you!"

With the Healing Spirit circling overhead, the two who had already survived several brutal battles grew rapidly, charging forward without a hint of fear.