Deep in the night, Xiao Xun lay alone at his desk, poring over a map, and muttered to himself, "Continuing like this is not a solution. Better to take the initiative than to wait for death."
He then turned to Bai Yang beside him and said, "Return to the border defense line and check the progress of the arsenal's construction. Without heavy weaponry, we're no match for them."
After hearing Xiao Xun's instructions, Bai Yang activated his magic array with both hands and vanished from the spot.
Just as Xiao Xun put down the map and prepared to sleep, he heard squeaking sounds in his ears.
Terrified of mice, he sat up abruptly, his body covered in a cold sweat, and looked around, "Why are there still mouse sounds? Weren't they all caught this afternoon?"
The room was dimly lit, and Xiao Xun saw a mouse as large as a cat emerge from somewhere. Its fur was bristling, and it stood before Xiao Xun like a hedgehog.
*Swish, swish, swish~*
The quills shot towards Xiao Xun like steel needles. He performed a rolling dodge and leaped onto the table.
The steel needles were firmly embedded in the underside of the table. Seeing this, Tian Xie raised his sword and thrust it directly at the mouse. However, the Steel Quilled Mouse was incredibly fast, and it turned and burrowed into a hole.
Taurus, seeing the needles shot by the Steel Quilled Mouse, exclaimed, "Look, these needles are exactly the same as the ones that killed our teacher."
The Twelve Star Envoys, except for Bai Yang, gathered around. They had been responsible for handling the High Priest's body, so they remembered these needles vividly.
Just as these dozen or so people were seething with righteous anger, a messenger rushed in, "Your Highness Sviin, a great disaster has befallen us!"
Xiao Xun, standing on the table, pointed at him and said, "No need to rush, speak slowly. What happened?"
"Rats are everywhere in the city. There's a type of red-furred rat that attacks people on sight, and they swarm in large numbers, instantly devouring a living person into a skeleton."
Xiao Xun was stunned, "What! How can there be such powerful rats?"
Cancer said to Xiao Xun, "My lord, these might be the man-eating rats of the Scourge Legion."
Xiao Xun's heart trembled upon hearing this, "I've heard of piranhas, but man-eating rats?"
The Commander of the Great Army, covered in wounds, ran in, "Your Highness Sviin, you must make a decision quickly! Chaos has erupted outside."
Without him needing to say anything, Xiao Xun could already hear the wails from all over the city.
These man-eating rats were fast and small, and armored knights couldn't defend against them at all. Fire mages had to surround themselves with flames to avoid being bitten.
Xiao Xun slammed the table, "Ah! I sent Bai Yang to the border. If he were here, he could have found the beast race immediately to seek their help."
Taurus patted his chest, "My lord, why don't I go?"
Cancer said, "Let me go instead!"
Aquarius then stepped forward, "I can summon some exotic beasts, but I don't know if they'll be effective against these rats."
Xiao Xun clapped his hands, "How could I forget about you? Quickly, summon a group of cats to help us catch these rats. Even if they can't catch them, scaring them off would be good."
Aquarius drew a summoning array in the air. A massive blue light shot up into the sky. The red-furred rats surged towards Xiao Xun like a tide, their speed astonishingly fast.
The blue magic array's light disappeared, and countless owls emerged from its center. They each seized a red-furred rat, and with a powerful squeeze of their talons, the rats were instantly disemboweled.
The streets were filled with blood-red skeletons, and fresh blood flowed through the city's aqueducts into the sewers. The scene was like a living hell.
Despite being mentally prepared, Xiao Xun, faced with this sight and the accompanying stench, couldn't help but lean against a nearby lamppost and vomit.
This was the cruelty of war, the pain that every soldier who experienced the battlefield had to endure and face. After going through it, one would naturally grow.
Just as Xiao Xun thought the crisis in the city was over, a messenger reported that large numbers of rats were swarming from the 'One-Line Sky' direction outside the city gate. The largest were as big as lambs, and the smallest were still larger than ordinary mice. Besides the red man-eating rats, there were also black Steel Quilled Mice resembling hedgehogs and giant moles skilled at digging.
The magic cannons and firebombs on the city walls were hurled at the rat horde. The firebombs created a wall of fire in front of the city gate, temporarily halting the rat swarm.
However, the moles soon exploited their advantage, digging through the earth, with the rats behind them following.
These giant moles were not only massive but also possessed incredibly sharp claws, and the hard autumn soil could not withstand their powerful talons.
Xiao Xun wondered if these rats were deliberately attacking Kache or seeking revenge for the rats from that afternoon.
Xiao Xun pointed at Taurus, "You go drive the battle chariot out and inform Botu of our situation here. Have them send reinforcements. Tell him we have rats aplenty here; if they're late, they'll be gone."
Taurus nodded and turned towards a magic chariot nearby.
Then, Xiao Xun ordered the Commander of the Great Army to command all citizens to ascend the city walls.
Upon hearing the order, the people dared not delay and flocked towards the city walls, with fire mages covering their retreat.
Xiao Xun remembered that rats feared sunlight and thought they just had to hold out until dawn.
He clasped his hands together, praying to the heavens, and muttered, "Please don't be cloudy, please don't be cloudy..."
While people climbed the city walls using stairs, the rats did not. In no time, countless rats began to scale the walls, their speed astonishing, as if walking on flat ground.
Xiao Xun roared, drew out the Yan Mo Blade he had obtained as a spoil of war, and began hacking at the swarm of rats.
The safest place in the entire city was where the two-headed dragon Borgard resided, as the rats were extremely fearful of this giant winged 'lizard.'
However, for the sake of grain security, Xiao Xun had Borgard guard the granary.
Just as the Phoenix Army was struggling to kill rats, their arms numb, and feeling despair, a fireball flew from the horizon at an incredible speed, emitting a blindingly bright light, as if a meteor had fallen.
Xiao Xun watched the fireball approach from a distance. He didn't know if it was friend or foe, but the rats seemed to fear this fireball greatly, retreating in a frantic tide.
When the fireball struck an open space within the city, it emitted a radiance brighter than sunlight.
Everyone instinctively covered their eyes or sought shelter in areas not illuminated by the light.
As the light gradually receded, three figures appeared: one woman and two men.
The two men were heavily armored, though not in iron but in leather. They wore bronze helmets that resembled the helmets of the Chalcedonian people from that world, obscuring their faces. They held round shields in their left hands and spears in their right.
The woman wore heavy armor, with fiery red hair cascading over her shoulders, adorned with no decorations on her head. A shining golden longsword hung at her waist, and a shield as tall as her back protected her head from behind.
Xiao Xun curiously kicked a charred rat corpse in front of him and stepped onto the city bricks, "Who are they?"
Pisces said, "My lord, if I recall correctly, they are dressed in the attire of the Radiant Sun Tribe."
Upon hearing the name, Xiao Xun immediately remembered reading about it in the book "Forbidden Arts of Chaos Magic." However, in his memory, they were called the Sun God Tribe, so perhaps the naming was different.
"Are they the ones from Near Yang Peak?"
Pisces nodded, "Precisely, my lord. Do you know them?"
"No, I've only heard of them. So, they are the legendary Divine Race?"
The Commander of the Great Army walked over, "Legendary might be an exaggeration. It's just that their ancestors comprehended high-level fire magic and recorded it. Consequently, everyone is at the level of Archmage, and they thus call themselves the Divine Race."
Xiao Xun looked at the three figures and nodded, "So that's how it is. Everyone an Archmage, they do indeed have the right to be called a Divine Race."
He started to walk down towards the city walls, but the Commander of the Great Army stopped him, "Your Highness Sviin, we don't know if they are friend or foe yet. It's best to be cautious."
Xiao Xun looked at the Commander of the Great Army who was blocking him, "Whether they are friend or foe aside, they helped us drive away those detestable rats. For that alone, I should go and say thank you."