Just a second ago, the view outside the restaurant's transparent glass was of a bustling commercial street teeming with pedestrians.

The next second, it was engulfed in thick fog, as if a heavy, dense net had been cast between heaven and earth.

No colors other than gray and white could be seen, and no sounds could be heard—only dead silence remained.

Most of the restaurant's patrons instinctively stood up; some anxiously and frantically peered outside, while other fools in denial turned to question the restaurant staff, asking if they had replaced the windows with LCD screens for some kind of special effect.

Before anyone could answer this idiotic question, a massive dark shadow pierced through the dense fog with lightning speed, fiercely slamming into the concrete wall above the restaurant.

BOOM—

Debris flew, and the building shook.

Amidst the panicked screams of the diners, the enormous dark shadow crashed right in front of the main entrance, landing on its side. Its back, covered with long black spines, faced the restaurant.

URGH AH...

A dull, inhuman, beastly roar sounded. The windows trembled, and water glasses swayed.

Everyone, including Wei Linglan, felt a chill run down their spines. A cold, paralyzing fear seeped into their hearts, as if mercury were coursing through their veins.

The monster slowly stood up and turned around.

It was a giant rat the size of a minivan, entirely black. The hairs on its back stood on end like sharp swords. Its abdomen was unnaturally swollen, as if stuffed with countless water-filled balloons, undulating constantly.

URGH...

The giant rat howled softly, baring its yellowed incisors. Its sharp nose twitched and wrinkled from pain and anger, forming deep creases.

With eyes as red as taillights, it stared unblinkingly at everyone inside the restaurant. Its proportionately enlarged and muscular forepaws unconsciously clawed at the tiled pavement, effortlessly shattering the tiles into countless fragments.

[Mission Trigger conditions have been met]

[Mission Type: Standard Mission (Team Cooperation)]

[Mission Name: Fog Escape]

[Mission Objective: Escort 132 individuals from Yongyi Pavilion Restaurant to 149 Hoshan Road]

[Mission Time Limit: 2 hours]

[Mission Reward 1: 3 Experience Points * final number of arrivals]

[Mission Reward 2: 5 Game Coins * final number of arrivals]

[Mission Reward 3: 1 Rare Quality Random Item]

[Mission Failure Penalty: None]

The System prompt sounded in Wei Linglan's ears, and her expression changed drastically. No longer caring about her image, she yelled at the patrons near the door, "Get away from there!"

Even without her warning, those seated near the main entrance had already scrambled to their feet, fleeing in a chaotic mix of crawling and running.

Although they didn't know what was happening with the fog outside, the minivan-sized giant rat certainly didn't look like the type to peacefully coexist with humans.

The crowd's tide-like retreat seemed to enrage the giant rat. It shrieked and charged toward the entrance. Its fat, bulging belly scraped against the ground, looking as if its thin abdominal skin would be torn open by the scattered debris at any moment.

BANG—

The door shattered on impact, glass fragments flying inward. The massive rat, its neck caught in the doorframe, couldn't fully enter the restaurant. It thrashed its forepaws, completely shredding the red carpet on the floor.

The restaurant descended into chaos. Everyone ran toward the kitchen, crowding the aisle. Cries and shouts rose one after another—the closer to the entrance, the louder the screams.

Wei Linglan's parents were so frightened they turned pale. Even Wang Congshan, who had been sitting at the back, ran over without bothering to maintain her disguise, her face deathly white. In the panic, she nearly fell flat on her face. Fortunately, Li Ang pulled her up just in time to prevent her from being trampled by the crowd surging from behind.

ROAR—

With the giant rat's shrill roar, dozens of sharp spikes on its back shot out like crossbow bolts. They flew in a neat row and embedded themselves deeply into the wall beside the doorframe.

The black spikes, lodged in the reinforced concrete, quickly turned from black to red and then violently exploded.

Dust and debris filled the air as bricks and stones collapsed. The giant rat, still standing its ground, shook the gray dust from its back. It turned its gaze toward the crowd squeezed into the aisle, the black spikes on its back trembling incessantly, as if it were about to skewer them all like a shish kebab.

The situation was critical. Still dressed in a long skirt, Wei Linglan took a deep breath. She pushed her parents, Li Ang, and Wang Congshan down into their seats. Then, from the void (actually her inventory), she pulled out a German-made, tactical camouflage HK416 automatic rifle equipped with a grenade launcher.

Before her shocked parents could react, Wei Linglan leaped onto a table. Her ethereal skirt billowed as she quickly shouldered the rifle. She then aimed and started shooting at the giant rat.

The loud report of the 5.56mm rifle bullets drowned out all the cries. One copper bullet after another struck the giant rat's head with precision.

Although the hail of bullets failed to completely penetrate its thick fur and skin, it still tore bloody gashes, forcing the rat to shut its eyes, lower its head, and lift its forepaws to block the barrage.

Wei Linglan maintained suppressive fire. Seizing a moment when the rat lowered its head, she quickly switched to the grenade launcher and pulled the trigger.

A grenade flew over the crowd's heads and hit the giant rat square in the head. A thunderous explosion followed. The rat's facial skin burst open, and it stumbled backward several steps.

Before it could steady itself, Wei Linglan quickly took out an Mk19 grenade launcher with a tripod from her inventory. She planted one foot on the table and the other on the seat beside Li Ang. Crouching, she raised the grenade launcher, took quick aim, and steadily squeezed the trigger, firing ten high-explosive rounds.

The Mk19 grenade launcher, originating from the United States, has a fifty-year history. Its improved models remain favored by various forces. Its M430 dual-purpose high-explosive grenades not only have a firing rate of over 350 rounds per minute but can also penetrate 5mm of armor.

The giant rat, still a creature of flesh and blood, didn't even have a chance to deploy its back spikes before it was engulfed by the high explosives. Cornered against the wall, it was blasted into a bloody pulp.

Fortunately, the restaurant patrons had already retreated, avoiding the 15-meter casualty radius of the M430 high-explosive rounds. At worst, they were merely knocked to the ground by the shockwave, left dizzy, seeing stars, and with ringing in their ears.

Fragments of the giant rat's demolished limbs lay scattered everywhere. Wei Linglan pursed her lips as she retracted the Mk19 grenade launcher's tripod from the seat.

Sitting in their seats, Wei Linglan's parents were dumbstruck. "Linglan, you..."

Li Ang, equally dumbfounded, stared at Wei Linglan. She stood on the tabletop in her flowing white dress, looking like a goddess of war. "Lanlan, you..."

Wang Congshan, beside him, almost couldn't catch her breath. Seriously, dude? You're still acting at a time like this?! So damn dedicated to your role!