"We're surrounded by a swarm of rats."

Su Yu suddenly felt a chill run down his spine. A squeaking sound grew closer and closer. He whipped his head around to see a large rat leaping through the air toward him, baring a row of sharp teeth.

"Boss, look out!"

The black-clad bodyguard beside him threw a punch as fast as lightning, sending the large rat flying. It slammed into a stone wall, instantly turning into a pulpy mess.

That punch of his carried no less than a thousand kilograms of force.

"You and your big mouth really jinxed us," Yu Zitong said, his expression turning grim as he saw the horde of rats. He shouted, "Precious, come protect your master!"

Golden Pupils, who was still feasting, heard Yu Zitong's call and instantly appeared before him. Seeing the surrounding rats, it wasn't frightened at all. Instead, it grew excited, its golden fur bristling even more, radiating the aura of a king.

"Precious, go! Bite them all to death! Don't leave a single one!"

Yu Zitong gave the order. 'These rats have a death wish,' he thought. 'How dare they act so brazenly with my Golden Pupils here.'

"RAWR..."

The cat's aura was overwhelming. It let out a furious, savage roar at the swarm of rats. Suddenly, the swarm froze, completely intimidated.

There's an idiom about having the might of a tiger or wolf, but this cat was even more incredible. It had the majesty of a tiger and the power of a lion. With it standing there, who would dare make a move?

Besides, cats naturally have a certain intimidating effect on rats.

"Boss Su, don't be afraid. With my cat here, any number of rats is nothing."

Seeing that Golden Pupils had intimidated the restless swarm of rats, Yu Zitong smiled at the slightly pale Su Yu.

Su Yu quickly said, "We're counting on you, Master Yu."

"Rest assured, Boss Su. I guarantee that after today, not a single rat will be left to cause trouble on your construction site." Yu Zitong's eyes narrowed, his words brimming with domineering confidence.

Although there were now over a hundred rats, the problem wasn't yet too severe. Yu Zitong still held the upper hand.

Just then, with a roar like a tiger descending from a mountain, Golden Pupils charged into the rat swarm. It was a complete massacre. A mere cat, yet it carried the aura of a general taking an enemy commander's head from amidst a ten-thousand-strong army.

Not a single rat could withstand a single blow from the cat. The claws of Golden Pupils were incredibly sharp, delivering fatal wounds. The fat rats were either bitten to death in one go or torn apart by its claws.

In just a few breaths, over a dozen large rats had already died at the hands of this ferocious cat.

At times, one might even mistakenly think it was a miniature tiger.

Tu Xiao'an stared at the rampaging cat, a spark in his eyes. He nodded slightly. 'This cat is truly impressive,' he thought, 'brave and invincible.'

'If this cat reached Rank Two and became a Cat Spirit, it would be even more formidable.'

'For example, Haitang is what you'd call a housecat, with no ferocity. But this Golden Pupils is full of it, even fiercer than a tiger.'

'Haitang lived for one hundred and sixty years and still couldn't attain the Dao, but this cat right here definitely has a chance to do so in the future.'

'As long as it doesn't die prematurely.'

Despite Golden Pupils holding the line like an army of one, the expressions on Su Yu's and Yu Zitong's faces grew uglier.

Why?

Because the number of rats on the construction site was growing, increasing by the hundreds, even thousands. Although the newer rats weren't as large as the first wave, their sheer numbers were overwhelming.

No matter how powerful a single cat was, it was still just one. As the saying goes, two fists are no match for four hands.

Furthermore, a massive wave of new rats swarmed toward the four of them like a plague of locusts. In an instant, the ground of the construction site was blotted out. The entire space descended into chaos, filled with the frantic squeals of rats.

The entire construction site felt like it was about to collapse. A suffocating feeling washed over them as Su Yu and Yu Zitong stared with horrified eyes at the innumerable rats surging toward them.

"Boss, there must be a Rat Spirit hiding on this site, directing them from behind," the black-clad bodyguard said, remaining relatively calm.

But Yu Zitong shouted, "Precious, get over here!"

Leaving aside whether a Rat Spirit was truly in command, just dealing with the current swarm was enough to make one feel powerless.

They say there's strength in numbers. For any animal, once their population reaches a certain point, the effect is catastrophic.

Golden Pupils was still on a rampage, but it was surrounded by hundreds of rats and couldn't break free for the moment.

RAWR...

A terrifying wave of Qi erupted from Golden Pupils, blasting the hundreds of rats away. The sight was like a firework display exploding outward.

The cat was exceptionally fierce, but also extremely loyal. It wanted to return to Yu Zitong's side to protect him.

Unfortunately, just as it sent hundreds of rats flying, another wave immediately swarmed in and surrounded it again.

The number of rats on the site was still steadily increasing.

"Boss, get behind me!"

The black-clad bodyguard made his presence known. It was finally his time to shine. With his Iron Fists, he sent every pouncing rat flying, his legs constantly sweeping out in a flurry of motion.

Seeing that Golden Pupils couldn't get to him, Yu Zitong produced a longsword out of thin air, as if by magic.

He looked left and right, swinging the sword continuously, cleaving rat after rat in two. His mouth wasn't idle either. "Boss Su, with me here, no rat will get near you!"

As he spoke, he glanced at Tu Xiao'an. "As for you, you're on your own."

Tu Xiao'an just smiled faintly and shrugged.

The black-clad bodyguard and Yu Zitong flanked Su Yu, protecting him from the advancing army of rats.

"Brother Xiao'an, get over here!" Su Yu shouted, seeing that Tu Xiao'an hadn't retreated with them and was about to be engulfed by the tide of rats.

"Master Yu, go help my Brother Xiao'an! Don't let him get hurt! I don't need your protection!"

Although Su Yu knew Tu Xiao'an was a Martial Cultivator, he had no idea just how powerful he was.

The only reason he had sought him out was because he had an Awakened Snake.

Yu Zitong refused flatly. "He has nothing to do with me. Didn't you say he's also a Martial Cultivator, Boss Su? If he dies at the hands of these rats, he can only blame himself for being useless."

'Are you kidding me?' he thought. 'That kid is about to be buried by an army of rats. Go save him? That's suicide.'

"But we can't just let my Brother Xiao'an get bitten to death by rats!"

Su Yu grew anxious. Had he doomed the young man by asking him to come help?

In just a short time, the number of rats on site had grown to a despair-inducing level. This was a true rat plague. Their disaster had arrived.

Seeing this, the deaths of a few workers on the site previously seemed entirely plausible.

Because there were just too many rats here, and they were far too aggressive.

It made one question the idiom "timid as a mouse." The rats on this construction site were as bold as tigers, completely bucking the stereotype.

Rat infestations occur all over the country, and were even worse in ancient times. This is because rats reproduce incredibly fast. The average female produces 44.5 pups per year to add to the population. A single pair of adult rats can have 15,000 descendants after one year—ten generations living under one roof, so to speak.

As the saying goes: "One male and one female, two hundred fifty in three years."