If you were made a mascot, you would become a legend in the police force.

For the next two days, the entire municipal bureau was shrouded in a tense atmosphere, as if a storm was brewing.

The Huanhai Avenue sewer incident was classified as top secret and was jointly taken over by the military engineering corps and Bureau 749. The site was surrounded like an iron barrel, and not even a fly could get in.

Meanwhile, the "Special Biological Operations Division" enjoyed a rare period of leisure.

Li Tuantuan treated this as a paid vacation and lived a life of extreme decadence.

In the morning, he lounged in the heated pool in his office, enjoying imported cherries personally fed to him by Lin Wan, while watching the latest crime documentary on his waterproof iPad, emphasizing a balance between work and rest.

In the afternoon, he would bring steamed buns, gold beans, and coal briquettes to the city bureau's special police training ground to "instruct" the work.

The so-called guidance consisted of him lying down on the lawn in the middle of the training field, sunbathing and taking a nap. Meanwhile, Mantou was responsible for torturing those arrogant elite special police officers to the point of exhaustion.

Whether it was hand-to-hand combat, off-road running, or heavy loads, this SSS-level beast demonstrated overwhelming strength. The SWAT team's chief instructor came to Chen Jianguo every day complaining that the confidence of his elite soldiers was being shattered by a dog.

Li Tuantuan scoffed at this.

[Li Tuantuan's inner monologue]: A bunch of weaklings, you have the nerve to cry after being beaten by my dog? You should use that time to practice how to scoop poop for Mantou. Maybe one day Mantou will be in a good mood and teach you a couple of tricks about the "Ice Age".

Of course, while he was slacking off, he didn't forget his serious duties.

Whenever he had free time, he would go into the system shop and use his 1000 merit points to buy a whole bunch of low-level items that were specifically designed to counter undead creatures.

I bought a whole bunch of things, like "glutinous rice grenades," "garlic essential oil spray," and "spirited peach wood swords," filling my system inventory to the brim.

He had made all the necessary preparations and was just waiting for the analysis report from Bureau 749 to come out so he could immediately apply to lead a team back to that damned sewer and avenge Mantou.

That afternoon, Li Tuantuan had just woken up from her nap and was preparing to go to the cafeteria to "inspect" the menu for dinner.

The office door was suddenly pushed open from the outside.

Chen Jianguo walked in with a serious expression, followed by two unfamiliar men in black trench coats with cold and aloof demeanors.

These two men exuded an even stronger aura than Zhang Jianye from Bureau 749. Their eyes were as sharp as eagles, and every step they took was steady and powerful. They were clearly high-ranking figures who had held positions for many years.

"Tuantuan, Lin Wan, come here for a moment." Chen Jianguo's voice carried an undeniable air of authority.

Li Tuantuan's heart skipped a beat.

[Li Tuantuan's inner monologue]: Something's not right here. Looking at Old Chen's expression, it doesn't seem like he's inviting me to dinner; it looks like he's dragging me to the execution ground. Has my slacking off at work been exposed?

He swayed as he got off the boss's chair, and Lin Wan immediately stopped organizing the documents. The two of them and the bear walked to the conference table.

One of the middle-aged men, with a square face, took an encrypted tablet computer out of his briefcase and pushed it to the center of the table.

"Comrade Gun Gun, Comrade Lin Wan, please look."

His voice was deep and powerful, and he addressed Li Tuantuan directly as "comrade," a level of formality that clearly indicated he was no longer someone the municipal bureau could access.

The tablet screen lights up and begins playing a video.

The video was shot from a very high angle, as if from a drone high in the sky. Below the lens, the Qinling Mountains stretched endlessly.

However, deep within the mountains, in a vast, untouched canyon, a scene unfolded that would overturn everyone's worldview.

A colossal bronze gate appeared out of thin air in the center of the canyon.

The gate soared into the clouds, estimated to be at least three hundred meters high and over one hundred meters wide. Its surface was covered with ancient and mysterious patterns, none of which belonged to oracle bone script or any known ancient writing system, exuding an aura of barbarity and desolation.

The strangest thing is that the door seems to have been "squeezed" out of thin air, with no trace of foundation or building around it.

"This was discovered by chance three days ago during a routine scan by our military reconnaissance satellite," the square-faced man explained in a deep voice. "After joint analysis by geologists and historians, it can be confirmed with 100% certainty that this bronze giant gate does not belong to any known geological era or civilization on Earth."

Lin Wan's pretty face turned pale as she looked at it, and she couldn't help but cover her mouth.

The pupils under Li Tuantuan's dark circles had shrunk to the size of pinheads.

[Li Tuantuan's inner monologue]: Holy crap! This... isn't this a plot from a tomb raiding novel? A bronze door? The ultimate? How did this thing end up in reality?

The video continues playing.

Then, something even more chilling happened.

From all directions of the Qinling Mountains, countless wild animals, from the lowest level like rabbits and pheasants to the highest level like South China tigers and leopards, and even many rare species thought to be extinct, seemed to be summoned by some mysterious force, converging into torrents and surging towards the bronze gate.

They did not attack each other, nor did they fight for territory; all their wildness was suppressed at this moment.

They simply moved silently and devoutly toward that giant gate.

Finally, thousands of beasts stopped before the bronze gate, prostrating themselves on the ground and lowering their proud heads as if worshipping their gods.

All beasts came to pay homage!

The visual impact and psychological shock of this scene are a million times more terrifying than a few ghouls in the sewers!

"We call it the 'Tide of Beasts'," another man with an equally sharp demeanor said. "According to our monitoring, an extremely powerful energy field has formed around this door, constantly attracting all living beings in the Qinling Mountains. We tried sending drones to approach, but as soon as they entered within a hundred meters, all electronic devices immediately malfunctioned and crashed."

The square-faced man turned his gaze to Li Tuantuan, his eyes becoming extremely serious.

"Comrade Gun Gun, the incident in the sewers has been temporarily shelved after a joint assessment by headquarters and Bureau 749. This is because we have reason to believe that the undead creatures there and the appearance of this bronze door have some connection that we are not yet aware of."

"The National Security Council has now established a top-level special task force, codenamed 'Gatekeeper.' And you…"

He paused, then said, word by word, "Following a collective decision at the highest level, you will be appointed as the captain of the advance team for Operation 'Gatekeeper,' leading a team of top elites to be among the first to enter behind that door."

With a "boom," Li Tuantuan felt her brain explode.

[Li Tuantuan's inner monologue]: What the hell?! I'm made the team leader?! To explore this godforsaken place that sounds like it's going to wipe us out?! What a joke! I'm a national treasure, a mascot, not a suicide squad!

Without a second thought, he plopped down on the ground and started rolling around, making "whimpering" noises, trying to fool everyone by acting cute.

However, the square-faced man simply looked at him calmly and then said something that Li Tuantuan couldn't refuse.

"As the supreme commander of this operation, you will have the highest level of authority over the allocation of resources. This includes... granting you the freedom to obtain 'top-grade purple bamboo shoots'."

Li Tuantuan's rolling motion froze instantly.

He slowly got up from the ground, dusted himself off, and then, with utmost seriousness, gave the two big shots a very standard bear paw salute.

[Li Tuantuan's inner monologue]: Serving the people!