Rats across the world begin to have glowing red eyes and exhibit strange violent behavior. Max, Norman, and Virgil head to China, the location where this brewing problem seems to stem from. There they come face to face with Laoshu, the Emperor of the Rats who has somehow escaped from his prison and is bent on having dominion over the earth to rule with his fellow rats. Laoshu tricks Max into solving a puzzle that traps the Mighty One and his friends within a never-ending maze. While searching for a way out, the three encounter an archeologist named Kaiwan who reveals that while doing research on the legend of the Emperor of the rats, he had accidentally released Laoshu from his prison.

After Laoshu was freed, Kaiwan tells them that Laoshu took over his body by driving his spirit out. Now Kaiwan's spirit wanders around trapped within the maze. The archeologist learns that Max is the Mighty One and reveals that Max is prophesized in the legend to be the one that has the ability to