As someone in sequence 001, I also want to give up today.

Lin Wanwan's clear and firm voice stood out particularly well among the somewhat flustered children.

Her statement, "This is an unexpected situation; just follow your master's orders," carried a composure beyond her years.

This helped calm down the children who were about to cry.

The teaching assistant leading the group gave Lin Wanwan a grateful look and quickly greeted her.

"Yes, yes, students, don't panic, listen to instructions! Everyone line up, one after another, we're going to the indoor training hall!"

With the help of their teachers and senior high school students, the children began to leave the observation area in an orderly manner.

Although her little face still showed fear, at least she didn't run around.

Lingdang held Lin Wanwan's hand tightly as they moved with the group, and couldn't help but ask in a low voice.

"Wanwan, aren't you afraid? A horde of monsters!"

Lin Wanwan pursed her lips, a hint of nervousness in her large purple eyes.

But her tone still tried to maintain her "Starry Sea Witch" persona.

"Observer, fear stems from the unknown. We haven't even seen the beasts with our own eyes yet, so what is there to fear? Besides, we have many teachers and senior students protecting us here, so we will surely be safe."

She paused, then added in an even lower voice.

"Moreover... I vaguely sensed just now that the energy fluctuations mentioned in the broadcast did not seem to originate from powerful individuals, but rather... an extremely large number of weak energy aggregates, which were scattered and rapidly moving and spreading."

The bell was taken aback and carefully sensed the surroundings.

Her spiritual perception after the split was already much more acute than that of children of the same age.

I was so focused on the drills that I didn't notice anything amiss, but now that I've calmed down, I've definitely noticed something unusual.

From the outskirts of the school, and even further into the city, came countless, densely packed, surging waves of extremely faint but terrifying bio-energy reactions!

Individual energies are so weak they are almost negligible, probably only at the edge of F-class, but their numbers... are so numerous they are terrifying!

Moreover, these energy reactions are moving rapidly, and the presence of metallic substances seems to be rapidly diminishing wherever they pass.

"Are they... are they mice? There are so many!"

Bell shivered, not out of fear, but from the instinctive discomfort caused by the sheer number of them.

"The form may be similar, but the energy properties lean towards 'metal' and 'devouring'..."

Lin Wanwan frowned slightly. Despite her young age, she possessed an exceptionally rich knowledge base (thanks to the deliberate cultivation by her mother and Su Wenjin, as well as her own immature "research").

"Could it be... 'Gold-Eating Rats'? But how can there be so many of them? And why are they appearing in the city?"

They were right.

At this moment, Jiangcheng is caught in a sudden, absurd, and troublesome crisis.

---

Jiangcheng Special Abilities Branch, Command Center.

Li Yu and Chen Zhe had rushed back immediately, their faces grave as they watched the constantly updating surveillance footage and energy distribution map on the big screen.

The images show scenes on streets, in alleys, and even on the walls of residential buildings.

Countless grayish-brown "gold-eating rats," larger than ordinary rats, with short, thick tails and teeth gleaming with a metallic glint, spread like a gray tide.

They gnaw on everything made of metal—lampposts, bicycles, car shells, security windows, manhole covers…

Wherever it passed, the metal disappeared at a speed visible to the naked eye, leaving only broken non-metallic parts and debris scattered all over the ground.

"Initial estimates suggest the rat population exceeds one million, and they are still emerging from underground! They are mainly concentrated in the sewer system and underground pipe network!"

A technician reported urgently.

"Their individual energy responses are extremely weak, only at the F level, and they are usually hidden deep within pipes, making them difficult to detect through conventional monitoring. Now, for some unknown reason, they have suddenly rioted en masse and surged onto the surface!"

"Damn it!"

Chen Zhe slammed his fist on the control panel, golden flames flickering in his eyes.

"How can there be so many? It's like they appeared out of nowhere! There was absolutely no warning beforehand!"

Li Yu closed her eyes, and her immense S-level mental power spread out like mercury, instantly covering the entire Jiangcheng.

Her perception was countless times clearer than that of Lingdang and Lin Wanwan.

"The underground... has been almost completely hollowed out."

Li Yu opened her eyes, and a headache appeared on her usually calm face.

"Sewers, abandoned pipes, deep subway tunnels... everywhere are the nests and passages of these guys. They've built a vast underground kingdom, just like ants."

"They were in a low-energy dormant state before, with their energy stored up to the extreme, so much so that even I would have had difficulty detecting them unless I specifically looked closely. Now... they have been disturbed by something, or perhaps they have reached some kind of 'cycle,' and they have all awakened."

"What do we do now?"

The branch director, an elderly man with gray hair, asked in a deep voice.

"The rat population is too large, too scattered, and mainly concentrated in densely populated areas. Mass destruction skills cannot be used, as they would affect civilians and buildings. Cleaning them up one by one... is too inefficient; by the time we finish, Jiangcheng's metal infrastructure will be essentially unusable."

"What about the general public?" Li Yu asked.

"Communication signals are severely disrupted, with rats prioritizing the destruction of signal towers and cables, resulting in a significant loss of communication in most areas. We are attempting to maintain critical contact using backup lines and specialized communication equipment."

The technician answered.

"The good news is that the gold-eating rats seem to be only interested in metal, and they won't attack living creatures unless actively attacked. There have been no reports of injuries or fatalities so far."

"But the bad news is... the economic losses are incalculable, and many people may spontaneously attack out of panic. If the rats are provoked, the consequences will be unimaginable."

"Immediately activate the city's public address system backup plan, using telepathic broadcasts and drones to inform residents to remain calm, close doors and windows, stay indoors, and especially not attack the rats!"

Li Yu quickly gave the order.

"All members of the Superpower Bureau, police, and auxiliary forces will be deployed in small teams to prioritize the protection of critical facilities (such as substations, water plants, and hospitals)."

"Secondly, we evacuated the trapped residents and attempted to use non-metallic methods (freezing, earthen walls, sound waves, psychological deterrence, etc.) to drive away or restrict the rats' activity area, buying time for subsequent cleanup!"

"What about the school?" Chen Zhe asked.

"I have notified all schools to activate the highest level of emergency response plan, open protective barriers, and organize students to move to safe areas."

Li Yu rubbed her temples.

"But our school's training grounds are semi-open, and the barrier needs time to fully activate. Hopefully, the rat swarm hasn't spread over there yet..."

She had barely finished speaking when an emergency communication came through.

"Instructor Li! This is the high school training ground! We've been attacked by a massive swarm of rats attacking the outer barrier! The rats are too numerous, and the energy barrier's consumption is increasing rapidly! Requesting backup! Also... the preschool students are moving to the indoor facility, but rats have appeared near the transfer route as well!"

Li Yu's expression changed: "Hold on! We'll be there soon! Chen Zhe, you stay here to coordinate everything, I'm going to the school!"

"Be careful!"

Chen Zhe nodded. He knew that Li Yu's consciousness-splitting technique was better suited to dealing with a large number of weak enemies, and the situation at the school was more urgent.

Li Yu's figure flashed and disappeared from the command center.

---

Outside the high school training ground of the school.

The team, which should have been evacuating in an orderly manner, was now in chaos.

It's not that the children are disobedient, but that reality is too impactful.

When the first wave of gold-eating rats, like a gray tide, emerged from drains, ventilation ducts, and even cracks in the floor tiles.

It spread like spilled ink, quickly covering the lawns, roads, and parts of the building exteriors around the training ground.

The terrifying sound waves created by the dense, rustling, and grating sounds of metal being chewed turned many high school students pale, let alone the preschoolers.

"Ah—! Rats! So many rats!"

"They're coming! They're eating the fence!"

"Teacher! The door! The door is surrounded by them!"

Screams and cries rang out again.

The high school teachers and some senior students have spontaneously organized themselves to build a defense line using various supernatural abilities.

Fireballs, water arrows, and wind blades can indeed clear out a small area of ​​the rats, but they are quickly replaced by even more rats.

The earthen wall was raised, but it was quickly gnawed through by rats.

The ice surface slowed down the rat swarm, but it was extremely costly.

The teaching assistant responsible for protecting the preschool children was sweating profusely with anxiety.

The entrance to the corridor leading to the indoor training hall in front of them was already covered by a surging "gray blanket".

There were thousands of gold-eating rats frantically gnawing on the metal door frame and nearby pipes.

"Back up! Everyone back up!"

The teaching assistant shouted, trying to use his telekinesis to push the swarm of rats away.

However, telekinesis is ineffective against such a large number of targets with weak individual energy, like trying to sweep sand off a beach with a broom.

Zhou Yan stood at the front of the group, his fists burning with flames, but his face was very ugly.

His flames are powerful, but he doesn't dare to unleash them at full power here, for fear of burning down buildings and injuring people.

Moreover, there were too many rats; as soon as one batch was burned to death, another batch would come, and his mental energy couldn't keep up.

"This won't do! The barrier won't hold for long; the rats will break through!"

"A teacher said anxiously."

Just then—

"Buzz—"

A soft yet resilient semi-transparent energy barrier rapidly unfolded around the training ground.

It encompasses the entire venue and a portion of the surrounding area.

The school's protective barrier has finally been fully activated.

The gold-eating rats that crashed into the barrier were bounced back, but they immediately began gnawing at the barrier's energy structure with their teeth.

Although far less efficient than biting metal, a large number of them still cause ripples in the barrier.

"The barrier has activated! We're safe for now!"

The teachers breathed a sigh of relief.

But the problem remains unresolved.

They were trapped in the training grounds and surrounding areas by the barrier and the rats, unable to access the safer indoor facilities.

The barrier's energy is finite, while the outside is constantly being consumed by the million-strong rat horde.

"We need to find a way to open up a route to the indoor venue, or hold out and wait for reinforcements."

"It was a high school teacher who said in a deep voice."

The children were gathered in a relatively safe area in the center of the venue and looked after by several teachers and students.

But panic continues to spread.

The bell stood close to Lin Wanwan, and the two little girls looked at the chilling gray ocean outside the barrier, their faces turning pale.

The notebook and pen in Lingdang's hand had long since disappeared.

"Wanwan...so much...ten thousand times more terrifying than Zhou Yan's flames..." Lingdang's voice trembled.

Lin Wanwan held her hand; her fingertips were a little cold, but she still tried her best to analyze.

"Observer, this rat pack is behaving strangely. While gold-eating rats are fond of metal, they usually avoid humans and would not gather in such large numbers in a city. There must be a trigger or... a commander."

Her words reminded a teacher nearby.

The teacher, who was in the biology department, frowned upon hearing this.

"A commander? The Gold-Eating Rat is a low-level beast with limited intelligence, usually acting on instinct. Unless..."

"Unless there is a higher individual, or it is influenced by some force."

Another teacher chimed in, his expression even more unpleasant.

Just then, the barrier suddenly fluctuated violently!