The first creature that arrived was a mutated rat.

At first glance, it looked terrifying enough to make an ordinary survivor collapse from fear.

Its body was enormous, nearly the size of a small motorcycle. Thick cords of muscle bulged beneath its skin, while patches of jagged bone protruded from various parts of its body. Its mouth was filled with long yellow fangs that seemed capable of biting through steel, and its bloodshot eyes burned with a savage hunger that made it resemble a nightmare more than a living creature.

The moment it entered the street, it immediately noticed the Mother Mantis.

More specifically, it noticed the strange basketball-sized sac beneath her.

The creature lowered its body.

Its claws dug into the cracked asphalt.

A deep growl escaped from its throat.

The sound reverberated through the street like a warning.

Yet despite all of that...

The Mother Mantis did not react.

Not even slightly.

It remained standing over the sac.

Its crimson body was perfectly still.

Its forelimbs remained lowered.

Its attention appeared completely fixed on the surroundings.

To the rat, it probably looked like negligence.

To Clayne, however, it looked like confidence.

Absolute confidence.

The rat finally lost its patience.

Its muscles suddenly tensed.

Then it launched itself forward.

The speed was astonishing.

The creature crossed several meters almost instantly.

Its jaws opened wide.

Its claws stretched forward.

Everything about its attack carried enough force to tear apart an ordinary human.

Then...

A crimson flash appeared.

The movement was so fast that even Clayne nearly missed it.

A faint slicing sound echoed through the air.

The rat’s body froze.

For a brief moment, nothing happened.

Then its body separated neatly into two halves.

The upper portion continued flying forward.

The lower portion fell toward the ground.

Blood sprayed across the street.

The creature died before it even understood what had happened.

Clayne blinked.

The Mother Mantis had already returned to its original position.

Its blade-like forelimb remained spotless.

The entire exchange had lasted less than a second.

Then another rat arrived.

This one was different.

Its body was slightly larger.

Thick layers of hardened bone covered its head and shoulders.

Its claws appeared stronger.

Its eyes appeared more aggressive.

The moment it saw the corpse of the first rat, it released an enraged screech.

Then it charged.

The outcome was identical.

Another crimson flash.

Another clean cut.

Another corpse split perfectly in half.

The second rat never reached the Mother Mantis.

The battlefield returned to silence.

Clayne narrowed his eyes.

The Mother Mantis was stronger than he originally expected.

Much stronger.

The heavenly tribulation-enhanced dried mango had clearly transformed the insects far beyond what he had anticipated.

Then a third rat appeared.

Unlike the first two, this one did not immediately attack.

Instead, it stopped.

Its eyes carefully observed the battlefield.

It looked at the Mother Mantis.

Then at the corpses.

Then at the strange sac beneath the Mother Mantis.

Its gaze moved repeatedly between the three.

Several moments later, another rat emerged from the distance.

The newcomer immediately prepared to lunge.

However, before it could move, the third rat released a sharp growl.

The sound carried a different meaning.

It was not threatening.

It was not hostile.

It sounded like a warning.

The newcomer froze.

Then it looked toward the corpses of the first two rats.

Its eyes lingered there.

Several seconds passed.

Eventually it stepped backward.

Clayne immediately frowned.

The realization made him uncomfortable.

Very uncomfortable.

"They’re learning."

The words escaped his mouth before he realized it.

The rats were not acting purely on instinct anymore.

They were observing.

Analyzing.

Communicating.

Adapting.

That was dangerous.

Extremely dangerous.

A powerful beast could be killed.

A powerful beast with intelligence was an entirely different matter.

Soon more rats arrived.

One became three.

Three became five.

Five became ten.

Ten became twenty.

The numbers continued increasing.

Every new arrival stopped after seeing the corpses.

None of them attacked recklessly.

Instead, they gathered.

Watching.

Observing.

Waiting.

Clayne immediately understood what was happening.

His expression darkened.

These creatures were coordinating.

They were preparing.

They were waiting for sufficient numbers.

The Mother Mantis could kill one.

It could kill ten.

It could probably kill dozens.

But what about hundreds?

What about thousands?

Soon the street was filled with rats.

The pressure steadily increased.

Even Clayne began feeling nervous.

The Mother Mantis still remained motionless.

Protecting the sac.

Protecting whatever terrifying creature was developing inside.

The atmosphere became increasingly tense.

Then suddenly...

The entire swarm moved.

Thousands of rats surged forward simultaneously.

The sight resembled a living flood.

A black tidal wave exploded across the street.

Claws scraped against concrete.

Teeth snapped.

Bodies collided.

Within moments, the Mother Mantis completely disappeared beneath the mass of attacking creatures.

Even the sac vanished from sight.

Everything became buried beneath an enormous pile of flesh and fur.

The rats climbed over one another.

Bit one another.

Pushed one another.

The entire swarm transformed into a writhing mountain of bodies.

Clayne immediately acted.

His fingers flicked forward repeatedly.

Fragments of concrete shot through the air.

Each one traveled like a bullet.

Each one carried enough force to shatter skulls.

The first projectile pierced through a rat’s head and continued into another.

The second shattered ribs. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

The third exploded a skull.

The fourth tore through multiple bodies.

Blood erupted across the battlefield.

Dozens of rats died.

Then hundreds.

The street became covered in corpses.

Yet the swarm continued advancing.

More climbed over the dead.

More attacked.

More arrived.

The sheer number made the scene resemble a nightmare.

Clayne continued firing.

Again and again.

Again and again.

The projectiles tore through the swarm relentlessly.

The battlefield became increasingly chaotic.

Then...

Something exploded from within the mountain of rats.

Bodies suddenly flew into the air.

Blood sprayed everywhere.

Chunks of flesh rained down onto the street.

The entire mass violently burst apart.

And from within emerged the Mother Mantis.

What happened next completely stunned Clayne.

The Mother Mantis was no longer merely fighting.

It was slaughtering.

Every movement produced death.

Every swing of its forelimbs created corpses.

Its crimson blades moved so quickly that they became afterimages.

One slash pierced through multiple rats simultaneously.

Another slash severed several heads.

Another strike impaled a creature and launched it through the swarm.

The battlefield transformed into an execution ground.

The rats screamed.

The rats bled.

The rats died.

Yet the Mother Mantis never stopped moving.

Its attacks flowed together seamlessly.

Every strike was precise.

Every strike was efficient.

Every strike was lethal.

The creature looked less like an insect and more like a weapon designed exclusively for killing.

A rat attempted to attack from behind.

Its body was instantly divided into pieces.

Another charged from the front.

Its skull exploded.

Several attacked together.

All of them died before landing a single hit.

The crimson figure continued advancing through the battlefield.

Its forelimbs danced through the air like twin executioner’s blades.

The more it killed, the more terrifying it became.

Eventually, fear spread through the surviving rats.

The intelligent creatures finally understood something important.

They were not hunting.

They were being hunted.

The remaining survivors attempted to flee.

The Mother Mantis chased them.

One died.

Then another.

Then another.

The massacre continued until silence finally returned.

The battlefield was now covered with bodies.

The road resembled a sea of blood.

The Mother Mantis stood at the center of it all.

Victorious.

Covered in gore.

Covered in flesh.

Covered in blood.

Then it raised its head.

A powerful hiss erupted from its mouth.

The sound echoed throughout the surrounding city.

Nearby monsters immediately became silent.

Even Clayne felt the pressure behind that cry.

His eyes narrowed.

"This is a beast empowered by the insects, who ate my dried mango fruit!"

Next, a dangerous light appeared within them.

The Mother Mantis had proven its strength.

Unfortunately for it...

That only increased Clayne’s desire to kill it.

He slowly raised his hand.

Then he attacked.

Fragments shot forward like bullets.

One after another.

The projectiles screamed through the air.

The Mother Mantis reacted instantly.

Its forelimbs moved.

A sharp metallic sound erupted.

The first fragment was deflected.

Another fragment arrived.

The second was blocked.

A third arrived.

Another successful defense.

A fourth.

A fifth.

A sixth.

The Mother Mantis intercepted every single one.

Its blades moved so quickly that Clayne could barely follow them.

The creature stood over the sac like an unbreakable guardian.

Every projectile was knocked aside.

Every attack failed.

Clayne refused to believe it.

His attacks could easily pierce undead skulls.

His attacks could blast through concrete.

His attacks could tear apart mutated creatures.

Yet this thing was defending against all of them.

His eyes became serious.

Then he increased the intensity.

More projectiles.

Greater speed.

Greater force.

Greater frequency.

The barrage became relentless.

The road exploded repeatedly.

Dust rose into the air.

Fragments scattered everywhere.

The air itself seemed to scream beneath the assault.

For three entire minutes, Clayne attacked continuously without pause.

The bombardment never stopped.

The Mother Mantis never retreated.

The battle became a contest between offense and defense.

Eventually, Clayne stopped.

Not because he was exhausted.

Not because he had given up.

But because he was genuinely surprised.

The Mother Mantis was still standing.

Its shell contained scratches.

Its blades trembled slightly.

Yet it remained alive.

It remained protecting the sac.

It remained glaring toward him.

Clayne slowly lowered his hand.

His eyes remained fixed on the creature.

For the first time since his cultivation increased dramatically, he had encountered something capable of resisting him directly.

The realization excited him.

Very much.

A grin slowly spread across his face.

"You can handle that?"

The Mother Mantis remained silent.

Yet somehow, its posture felt like a challenge.

Clayne laughed.

Then an idea appeared in his mind.

Without hesitation, he turned around and rushed toward the Tiny World.

Several minutes later, he returned.

This time, he carried something different.

Fragments.

Small fragments.

However, unlike ordinary concrete, these had absorbed Spiritual Qi within the Tiny World.

These fragments had been nourished.

Tempered.

Strengthened.

The moment he looked at them, anticipation filled his heart.

His eyes gleamed.

His lips curled upward.

He slowly raised his hand.

Then aimed directly at the Mother Mantis.

The creature immediately sensed danger.

Its body became tense.

Its forelimbs rose.

Its eyes locked onto him.

Meanwhile, Clayne smiled wider and wider.

Then he spoke in a tone filled with confidence.

This time, he truly believed the outcome would be different.

This time, he believed the Mother Mantis would die.

And immediately afterward, the first spiritually empowered fragment exploded from his fingertips like a miniature cannon shell, carrying a level of destructive force far beyond anything he had unleashed before.