New Food Has Appeared! Charge!!!

In front of the West District Abandoned Mine Pit.

After a deafening explosion, dust seemed to rain down from the sky. Now and then, tiny, scorching rocks struck the onlookers, drawing startled cries and coughs from them.

Only Li Wei and his Gnoll Miner Group stood as still as a forest, watching mountains crumble before them.

But Li Wei didn't lead the miners charging inside right away. Doing so might get someone killed—and that would be a stupid way to die.

A breeze stirred the air, carrying away the vast clouds of dust. A Circular Tunnel more than ten feet across came into view.

What was even more alarming was that after the Great Fireball appeared out of nowhere and blasted open the tunnel, the surrounding cliff walls had melted into a glassy, liquid state from the heat. A pool of molten lava had collected at the bottom, glowing a terrifying red. But it was visibly dimming by the second, hardening into a black, sturdy crust like asphalt.

Huozi, the Gnoll Leader, was about to lead his tribe inside when Li Wei held him back.

Huozi's keen ears twitched. Sure enough, he heard the patter of many footsteps, along with another kind of chattering noise.

Before long, densely packed red dots appeared in the pitch-black tunnel. At the same time, the chattering grew louder.

As the creatures at the front emerged into the light, everyone finally got a good look at them. They were rats about the size of Goblins, standing upright on their hind legs. Their eyes gleamed with menace and undisguised hunger, as if they might pounce on someone and devour them at any moment.

"The Cavens Rat nest! I remember now—the Duergar said they once held off a Rat Tide Riot for Zelandia. So it really happened! Run! Run for your lives! Those Demons have actually let them out!"

At the same time, the Broken Iron Bucket in the heart of Zelandia was struck, letting out a panicked clang.

Screams erupted all around. The onlookers were instantly terrified by the Vast Rat Tide and fled in a panic. Even some of the human laborers and Half-blood Goblins hired by Hogg Mining tried to run, but the Gnoll Warlords stopped them.

"Deserters will be executed!"

The human laborers and Half-blood Goblins turned ashen at his words.

The Orc Brothers, however, remained fairly calm. They seemed to think that with their Brute Force and endurance, they could hold out for a while even against the rat tide.

The Drow Boy on the other side didn't run either. Instead, he pulled off his cloak, tied it into a rope, and secured the girl to his back. With a Stone Knife in each hand, he stood on guard, his eyes repeatedly darting toward Li Wei and the Gnolls, who remained as calm as a mountain. He seemed to be trying to figure out what gave them such confidence.

Just then, Li Wei's muttered voice seemed to drift over from the front.

"So they really are bamboo rats. Those damned Dwarves got their intel mostly right."

But Li Wei's voice immediately grew excited and fierce. He shouted:

"Brothers! Do you see them? New food has appeared! We've got dinner for tonight! For roasted bamboo rats! Charge!!! Awoo~"

"New food! New food! Roasted bamboo rats! Agoo!" Pipim, perched on Li Wei's shoulder, heard the words "new food" and began waving his Coral Fork, spitting as he let out a howl that sounded like nothing on earth.

The man and the merman shot toward the Rat Nest like meteors. To keep from frightening the rats away, Li Wei deliberately suppressed his Dragon Might as much as possible, terrified that even a hint of it might escape and cost them their dinner.

As soon as Li Wei plunged into the rat tide, he swung his weapon in a great pinwheel. Like a Max Level Swordsaint entering the fray and unleashing a [Pseudo-Blade Storm], he tore into the horde like a red-hot iron pressed into cheese. The entire Rat Tide erupted into chaos.

"Red Fang Tribe! For the honor of our Master—" Huozi raised his blade and began the slogan, but halfway through, he realized it didn't sound quite right. It could even lower Master's dignity. So he hurriedly changed it to:

"For dinner! For Braised Rat Meat! Charge!!! Awoo!"

Then he led the Gnoll Warriors, their eyes bloodshot from the thought of food, into the rat tide as if they'd cast Mass Bloodlust. They cut the rats down like vegetables.

They looked less like soldiers setting off to war or opening a new mine and more like burly construction workers charging into the Communal Cafeteria at mealtime, afraid the food would be gone if they were a second too late.

Come on, they were just a bunch of rats weaker than Goblins. So what if there were a lot of them?

Quite a few of them had survived the meat grinder that was the Riverbank Battle. Even now, they couldn't forget the terrifying sight of their Master dropping out of the sky onto his backside and letting out a Dragon Roar that instantly sent six thousand Goblins into a panic.

They were afraid Li Wei might lose control and let even a little Dragon Might slip out, scaring the rats away. Before that happened, they needed to stock up on as much food as they could.

And this was probably one of the few opportunities they'd ever have to get such a huge haul for free. The Cavens Rats, having suffered such a terrible loss, probably wouldn't dare show themselves in great numbers again after today.

The Orc Brothers and the Drow Boy didn't know the whole story, but the deafening din and terrifying battle intent still shook them.

Orcs were easily affected by the emotions around them. Seeing how fiercely their allies were fighting, they immediately flew into a frenzy and charged in, smashing every rat they saw.

The Drow Boy stayed at the back of the main force. Whenever he spotted a rat that had strayed from the group, he thrust his blade into its throat, killing it with One-hit Kill.

The human miners and Half-blood Goblins, who had been trembling in fear of the rat tide, stared at the completely opposite scene in bewilderment. After thinking it over, they gritted their teeth and followed the others.

They couldn't be weaker than a child, after all.

As the mad Gnolls poured into the mine, an eerie silence fell over the area in front of the West District Abandoned Mine Pit.

The refugees who had been trampling one another in their scramble to flee didn't know who turned around first. Then they saw a sight they would never forget for the rest of their lives.

A group of Gnoll Warriors had charged into the endless rat tide, risking their lives to defend Zelandia.

But the roars and shouts that came from inside at intervals somehow didn't sound quite right.

"Our hunger is greater than yours!!!" That seemed to be the voice of Hogg, the Gnoll Boss.

"Ha-ha! Roasted rat meat! Boiled rat meat! Rat barbecue! Braised rat meat! Stewed rat meat! Golden-braised rat meat! Cured rat meat! Dried rat meat!" Looks like another one's gone mad.

"Boss, please stop! I was hungry again the moment I finished breakfast! Awoo, awoo!!"

"Damn it! Don't kill them all! Leave some alive for breeding! We'll make our living raising bamboo rats from now on!" Li Wei shouted furiously as he watched the rat horde dwindle and begin to scatter.

A while later, Duergar Tiger arrived with several thousand troops after ordering the East Mine Area to halt production. What he saw was a scene of spectacularly bizarre revelry.

Clang.

The Old Dwarf's hammer slipped from his hand and hit the ground. Watching the Gnolls partying like they were at a feast, he murmured:

"Dinggelian's hammer, where did this band of cutthroats come from? I should've heard of them. Looks like the sky over Zelandia really has changed."

"Guild Leader! What should we do now?" a Dwarf beside him asked, swallowing hard.

"What else? Grab your hammer and get in there! If we're any later, there won't even be rat soup left for dinner!"

Tiger had spent decades negotiating with the Drow, and he quickly adjusted his attitude. Then, as if he'd suddenly remembered something important, he shouted:

"Quick! Get Nuoli, who went to the Upper City for help, back here! Now! Hurry!"