Apocalypse: King of Zombies

The woman’s face was filled with disbelief, but seeing her daughter’s improved condition, she couldn’t deny it—Abby really did seem much better.

”Abby, are you really not in pain anymore?” she asked, her voice trembling with hope.

”Mm-hmm...” The little girl nodded obediently, then looked up at Ethan with wide, grateful eyes.

”It was this big brother who saved me.”

”The parasite in your daughter’s body has been removed. She’s not going to die,” Mia said as she stepped forward, her expression calm. She had already expected this outcome—after all, with Ethan’s abilities, as long as he was willing, this was well within his power.

Hearing Mia’s words, the woman finally let out a sigh of relief. Overwhelmed with joy, she hugged her daughter tightly.

”Oh, thank God! Thank you, thank you!” she sobbed, holding Abby close as tears streamed down her face. The two clung to each other, crying tears of relief.

Nearby, Chris and the others watched the scene unfold, their hearts touched. Some of them even felt their eyes sting with emotion.

None of them had expected this.

Ethan had saved the little girl.

At that moment, Chris felt a deep admiration for Ethan, almost to the point of reverence. He was so moved that, for a fleeting second, he even had the absurd thought of sacrificing himself just to show his gratitude.

The woman quickly composed herself. Pulling Abby along, she knelt down in front of Ethan, bowing repeatedly in thanks.

”Thank you! Thank you so much! You’re such a good person.”

”It’s nothing,” Ethan replied casually, though he hadn’t expected to be called a ”good person.”

The woman suddenly had an idea and urged her daughter, ”Abby, give Uncle Ethan a hug to thank him!”

”Uh, no, that’s really not necessary,” Ethan said, waving his hands in refusal.

”Pfft!” Even Mia, who was usually so cold and reserved, couldn’t help but let out a soft laugh, her smile dazzling.

Sean, standing off to the side, raised an eyebrow in surprise.

Well, this is rare, he thought. She actually smiled.

Ethan turned to the group and said, ”Alright, there’s nothing else to do here. You all should head back.”

”Okay,” Mia nodded, though her gaze drifted toward the direction of Santa Monica. ”There are still a lot of mutated beasts, zombies, and members of the Black Hand Legion out there. They could show up here at any time.”

”Let them come,” Ethan said nonchalantly. He didn’t see it as a problem.

Mia seemed to remember something. ”Oh, by the way, if you’re planning to attack the zombie nest across the river, count me in.”

”Sure,” Ethan replied. He hadn’t planned on leaving her out anyway.

At this point, Chris, still fired up from earlier, felt the need to contribute as well. ”Count me in too! I want to help!”

Ethan glanced at him. ”Oh? But... I don’t really have anything that needs moving.”

”....” Chris was speechless, feeling like he’d just been completely dismissed.

And with that, they said their goodbyes.

Mia and her group gradually disappeared into the distance.

By now, the rain had stopped. The clouds parted just enough to reveal half of the setting sun, its golden light spilling over the damp city, casting everything in a hazy, amber glow.

Brandon, deep in thought, turned to Chris. ”Uncle Chris, do you think Ethan is really the King of the Zombies? The internet says he’s a bloodthirsty monster who’s killed thousands of people. But honestly, he doesn’t seem like that to me. I mean, he even saved my life.”

”Hmph! That’s because he doesn’t see you as an enemy. Or... maybe he doesn’t even see you as a person,” Chris added with a smirk, as if Ethan might think of Brandon as nothing more than a small animal.

Brandon: ”...”

Meanwhile, Ethan had already returned home.

He sank into the couch, grabbed a wine glass, and poured himself a drink. Taking a small sip, he leaned back, savoring the moment.

Outside the window, the sounds of flesh being torn apart echoed through the streets. It was the prey he had brought back earlier—over twenty corpses, now being devoured by the zombies under his control.

The fading sunlight bathed the scene in a crimson glow, painting a macabre picture of blood and carnage.

Ethan pulled out his phone and began scrolling through the latest news.

”Breaking News: Local shelters are now receiving waves of refugees. Large quantities of supplies have been successfully transferred.”

”The shelter’s wireless signal has been boosted to maximum range. Any survivors who can connect to the signal, please head to the shelter immediately.”

Santa Monica’s shelter had been flooded by seawater, scattering tens of thousands of survivors. They were now fleeing in waves toward Los Angeles.

For those who could connect to the shelter’s signal, it was a beacon of hope.

But out of the tens of thousands of survivors...

Ethan estimated that fewer than a third would make it out alive.

The official shelter website didn’t have anything particularly useful, so Ethan switched over to the Genesis Biotech website to see if they had anything interesting going on.

As soon as he logged in, he wasn’t disappointed. The site was buzzing with activity, and the first announcement, written in bold red text, immediately caught his eye:

”Important Notice: After extensive research, our company has successfully developed the ’Human Evolution Serum,’ which can transform ordinary survivors into Awakeners within 24 hours, allowing them to form a Neurocore.”

The comments section below the announcement was exploding with activity, far surpassing any other post on the site.

It wasn’t surprising—most survivors were just regular people, desperate for any chance to become Awakeners. Naturally, this news had everyone’s attention.

”Holy crap! They actually did it! Genesis Biotech is insane!”

”I want to buy one! Do they deliver?”

”Deliver? Are you out of your mind? It’s the apocalypse—who’s gonna ship it to you?”

”What’s the price? How do we buy it?”

”I talked to someone on the inside. They said it costs three B-grade crystal cores for one dose.”

”F*! Three cores? Are they trying to rob me blind?”

”....”

Ethan couldn’t help but marvel at how good Genesis Biotech was at doing business. A single dose of the Neurocore Evolution Serum for three B-grade crystal cores? That was daylight robbery.

Still, he had to admit—technology really was a goldmine in times like these.

But this wasn’t bad news for Ethan. If this serum became widespread, the world would soon be filled with ”cherries” ripe for the picking.

He scrolled further down the page and saw another announcement:

”Yesterday, our company successfully captured a B-grade mutant beast, the Silverback Gorilla, weighing over 5 tons. Whether used for food or research, it holds significant value.”

Ethan raised an eyebrow. There were no Silverback Gorillas native to Los Angeles. It must have escaped from a zoo or some other facility during the typhoon.

”Our company has also detected traces of several other mutant beasts. We will be dispatching the Beast Hunter Squad to capture them in the coming days.”

”Additionally, the second-generation Doom Hunter cyborgs developed by our company are now operational. They are highly effective in ensuring survivor safety. To the refugees fleeing from Santa Monica, we welcome you to seek shelter with Genesis Biotech.”

It was clear that these announcements were just a way for Genesis Biotech to flex their strength—bragging about their evolution serum, capturing massive mutant beasts, and deploying advanced cyborgs. All of it was just a ploy to lure the refugees from Santa Monica into their fold.

”Still haven’t learned your lesson, huh? Running around causing trouble again...” Ethan muttered to himself.

He remembered how Genesis Biotech had previously formed the so-called Operation King Hunt Squad to hunt him down, the so-called Zombie King. That had ended with him wiping out several of their teams. And now, they’d created the Beast Hunter Squad to hunt mutant beasts.

But their confidence wasn’t baseless.

Ethan recalled something Justin had told him before: the second-generation Doom Hunter cyborgs were created through experiments on Awakeners. Their abilities could be transferred or grafted onto the cyborgs.

In other words, these second-gen Doom Hunters didn’t just have Awakener abilities—they might even have more than one. Their power far exceeded that of the first generation.

At the time, Ethan had been curious about one thing: how many crystal cores would a cyborg like that have inside them?

It seemed like it was time to find out.

...