Chapter 54: Special Use of Lemon Juice

On the other side, Hayden Hanson also took out The Frozen King. He pinched the last Ice Crystal Core in his hand. Although reluctant, he decisively shoved it into the loading chamber. This was a top-quality Second Tier Ice Crystal Core, his absolute last resort for survival. If the Mutant Rats ended up destroying a large section of the wall and swarmed in, he would have no choice but to fire this final shot.

His heart felt incredibly heavy. The sheer number of Mutant Rats was overwhelming; even if he could kill a large batch in a short time, more would likely rush in to fill the gap. When that happened, even if he laid down his life, he wasn’t sure he could protect Sev Steele and her four children. He was running out of time anyway, so he wasn’t afraid of dying tonight. But Sev was still young, and the children were all under eight years old. They deserved a bright, beautiful future—a very, very long one.

***

Bloodcurdling screams echoed one after another; it seemed more and more people were falling victim to the horde. Inside the house, the walls were crumbling bit by bit. Seth Jennings’ face was deathly pale. Her Ability was almost completely depleted, leaving her powerless to continue reinforcing the structure. There was nothing more she could do. They could only wait for the Mutant Rats to break through and engage them in brutal hand-to-hand combat.

Sev tightly secured the metal security windows once again. In the structure of the house, the windows were the most vulnerable points. Without sturdy metal bars, they would be breached in mere minutes. The atmosphere in the room was heavy and suffocatingly tense as everyone kept their ears pricked, listening intently. The Mutant Rats were primarily attacking the kitchen wall, likely sensing that the scent of living humans was the thickest and most concentrated there. Sev decisively locked the door to the adjacent bathroom. That way, even if the creatures burrowed through the bathroom wall, they wouldn’t be able to harm anyone immediately, giving the group a brief buffer to react.

The hardened outer layer of the front wall was finally gnawed through. The sound of metal being chewed echoed into the room—the alloy layer embedded within the wall was under attack. First Tier Mutant Rats indeed couldn’t bite through the alloy, but Second Tier Mutant Rats had the power to leave deep teeth marks in it. The alloy walls surrounding the Safe Zone were over twenty centimeters thick. Even for Second Tier Mutant Rats, chewing through them was an incredibly difficult task. However, when building houses in The Slums, the authorities had been unwilling to spend too much and had only sandwiched a measly one-centimeter-thick alloy layer in the middle of the walls. As long as a Second Tier Mutant Rat chewed open a gap, the remaining First Tier Mutant Rats could slowly expand the hole bit by bit. This particular rat tide clearly had Second Tier Mutant Rats mixed in. It was only a matter of time before the alloy layer was completely breached.

The sheer number of Mutant Rats that had flooded into the courtyard was staggering. If the people inside rushed out, they would instantly be overwhelmed and torn apart. They could only huddle indoors and watch helplessly, which gave the horde ample time to burrow through.

The first hole finally appeared in the wall. It was the size of a fist. Through the gap, everyone could clearly see a Mutant Rat with its jaw unhinged. Its sturdy, razor-sharp incisors acted like twin blades, frantically gnawing at the edges of the hole. As it chewed, its crimson eyes stared greedily through the opening at the people inside, thick saliva dripping from the corners of its mouth.

Seth reacted with lightning speed. The Triangular Spike in her hand thrust straight through the hole, plunging right into the Mutant Rat’s wide-open mouth. Her strike was clean and decisive, instantly piercing its throat. As she yanked the Triangular Spike back, dark blood spurted out. Before the creature could even let out a squeak, its head rolled to the side and it collapsed. But the other Mutant Rats showed no fear, immediately charging forward to continue gnawing at the edges of the hole. After Seth successfully stabbed three of them to death, a second hole was chewed open in the wall nearby. Hayden naturally moved to block the new breach. Wielding his long blade, he stabbed the burrowing Mutant Rats to death one after another.

Doctor Jenkins hadn’t moved this entire time. Suddenly, he pointed at the wall on the left side of the master bedroom and shouted, "Quick! They’re about to break through over there!"

Hearing this, Sev dashed over without hesitation, gripping two daggers. In her Left Hand was the S Level Alloy dagger Doctor Jenkins had given her, while her right hand held her original chipped Blunt Dagger. Firestone charged right behind her. Rusty followed suit, clutching a stick in his Left Hand and a Spray Bottle in his right. Zephyr, holding his own Spray Bottle, stayed behind Hayden and Seth. His mother had told him earlier that he and Rusty would each be responsible for supporting one side to maximize their defensive power.

Doctor Jenkins remained steadfast beside Rose. She was the one he absolutely had to protect tonight, even if it cost him grievous injuries.

By the time Sev rushed to the wall bordering the master bedroom, she could already hear the sound of it being chewed away in several places. She became even more convinced of Doctor Jenkins’ remarkable abilities. The surroundings were filled with the chaotic noise of humans battling Mutant Rats, along with the harsh scratching sounds of the front wall being gnawed. In such a deafening environment, even Hayden and Seth—both seasoned mercenaries—had failed to notice the problem with this side wall. Yet, Doctor Jenkins had detected it ahead of everyone else.

A few dozen seconds later, two holes were chewed through the wall simultaneously. Sev felt that these giant rats were truly cunning. They were pulling a classic bait-and-switch; the assault on the front wall was likely just a diversion, while this side wall was their true main target.

The two holes weren’t far apart. Sev didn’t hesitate. Her Left Hand struck first, followed closely by her right. Her Left Hand lacked strength, but the superior weapon made up for it. The weapon in her right hand was inferior, but she put seventy percent of her physical strength into the thrust. Two agonizing screeches rang out as both giant rats were instantly taken down.

From behind her, Firestone and Rusty’s muffled cheers echoed, "Mom, you’re amazing!"

Just as the words left their mouths, Rusty’s face drastically changed. He pointed at a third hole over a meter away. "O-over there! They broke through there too!"

Firestone reacted with incredible agility this time. Gripping his long stick, he viciously shoved it straight into the third hole. A Mutant Rat’s painful screech echoed back. Although it was impossible to tell if it was dead, it was definitely injured. This was the boy’s very first time fighting a Mutant Beast, and this minor victory caused his confidence to soar immensely!

However, shortly after, a fourth hole was gnawed open. Sev was guarding the two holes that were closer to each other, allowing her to manage both sides simultaneously. But if she stepped away, there was no guarantee that the rats backing them up wouldn’t widen the breach. Once the hole was large enough, all of their defenses would be practically useless. When that happened, they would be completely trapped on all sides.

"Leave this hole to me!" Rusty shouted loudly, a ruthless glint flashing in his eyes. He wasn’t as strong as Firestone, but he had a Spray Bottle in his hand. He was holding a mixture of diluted lemon juice and half a bottle of Blue Tears. No one knew if this spray would actually work. But he decided to test it out before the Mutant Rats could fully force their way in. Rusty aimed at the fourth hole and pressed down hard with his finger. A foul-smelling, dark green mist sprayed outward.

Seeing the color of the spray, Rusty froze for a split second. He clearly remembered that the liquid inside the bottle had been deep blue before his mom filled it. How had it turned dark green? Before he could figure it out, he heard the rat at the hole let out an ear-piercing scream.

"SQUEAK—SQUEAK—"

The screeches rang out one after another, sounding far more agonizing and drawn-out than those of the Mutant Rats that had been stabbed to death earlier. Rusty thought to himself, "Could this spray be corrosive? Maybe it can’t kill a Mutant Rat instantly, which is why it’s screaming so miserably?"

He waited patiently for a brief moment, wanting to see if any new Mutant Rats would fill the gap and continue gnawing at this hole. However, one second passed, then two... Dozens of seconds passed. His mother had already killed another four Mutant Rats, and even Firestone had forcefully jabbed his long stick a few more times. But at his hole, there wasn’t a single trace of movement.