Apocalypse: King of Zombies

Azure Scaled’s eyes widened in shock. Still alive?

That last strike was meant to be a killing blow, yet here this human was, standing again—and her aura was even stronger than before.

Mia’s body radiated a surge of blood energy, her figure drenched in filthy, clotted blood. She looked like a vengeful demon crawling out of hell itself. But instead of despair, her lips curled into a chilling, almost unhinged smile.

Then, with a single step, she vanished.

Her speed was now beyond what the naked eye could track.

For the first time, a flicker of fear crept into Azure Scaled’s heart.

”What the hell is this?” he muttered, just as a gust of wind slammed into him. In the blink of an eye, her blood-smeared face was right in front of him, that same manic grin plastered across it.

Instinctively, Azure Scaled raised his arm to block.

Mia’s fist shot forward. At this point, her body had surpassed the limits of any weapon. The sheer force of her punch compressed the air, creating a deafening sonic boom. The impact was like a missile detonating on contact.

”Boom!”

The sound reverberated as Azure Scaled Zombie King’s bones cracked and popped. The scales on his arm shattered like glass, and his massive body was sent hurtling backward. He crashed into a horde of lizard-like creatures behind him, scattering them like bowling pins, before rolling across the ground for dozens of feet.

The earth beneath him was gouged out, leaving a deep trench in his wake.

”So strong!” Azure Scaled gritted his sharp teeth, his body wracked with pain. His arm, in particular, was clearly broken.

If it weren’t for the resilience of his undead form, he doubted he could’ve survived that blow.

His body began to creak and groan as it rapidly started to heal.

Meanwhile, Zombie Fetus, standing off to the side, narrowed his pitch-black eyes, his brow furrowing. He had assumed Mia’s earlier actions were just the desperate flailing of someone on the brink of death. But now? She had just sent Azure Scaled Zombie King flying with a single punch.

”Useless!” Zombie Fetus spat, his voice dripping with disdain.

Dark mist began to pour from his body, swirling around him like a living entity. He unleashed his Death Miasma to its fullest extent, the black fog surging forward like a massive dragon, ready to consume everything in its path.

But as the miasma engulfed Mia, her blood energy only grew more frenzied. A strange, otherworldly crimson glow radiated from her body. Her hyperactive cells seemed to reject the paralysis effects of the fog entirely.

The miasma had no effect on her.

Mia crouched low, her legs coiling like springs before she launched herself forward with explosive force. The ground beneath her cracked and shattered as she propelled herself toward Zombie Fetus like a cannonball.

”What? She’s completely fine?” Zombie Fetus’s face twisted in shock. Realizing the danger, he quickly commanded the massive creature beneath him to intercept her.

Zombiezilla, the towering 200-foot beast, raised its mountain-like head to block Mia’s attack.

Mia’s fist collided with the creature’s jaw.

”Roooooar!” Zombiezilla let out a guttural howl as if struck by a meteor. Its massive head snapped backward uncontrollably, and its enormous body lost balance, toppling sideways.

”Boom!”

The colossal beast crashed to the ground with a thunderous impact. The earth trembled violently, sending up clouds of dust and debris. The sheer scale of the scene was overwhelming.

The humans watching from a distance were left speechless, their jaws practically hitting the floor.

”She’s insane!”

”Is this Mia’s full power?”

”No wonder they call her the Light of Humanity!”

”Unbelievable…”

Chloe and the others couldn’t hide their awe. They had thought Mia was on the verge of collapse, but instead, she had turned the tide, displaying an unstoppable might. In just a few moves, she had sent both Azure Scaled Zombie King and Zombie Fetus reeling.

Azure Scaled Zombie King, now covered in dirt and dust, spat angrily as he struggled to his feet. ”Pfft! Damn it!”

”This human is stronger than I thought,” he growled, his expression dark. ”We’ll have to work together to take her down. She can’t keep this up for long.”

”Fine,” Zombie Fetus replied with a nod. The black mist around him thickened, swirling into a massive, tornado-like vortex.

At the same time, Azure Scaled Zombie King began to gather his energy. A pale blue aura emanated from his body, growing in intensity like waves crashing against the shore—each one stronger than the last.

The two forces merged, their combined energy becoming even more overwhelming.

The air seemed to wail in protest, sand and debris swirling violently, carrying with them an aura of pure destruction.

And yet, in the midst of it all, Mia stood firm.

Her thin, battered frame was like an unyielding pine tree, standing tall against a storm. The blood energy around her pulsed rhythmically, like flames that only burned brighter and fiercer with each passing moment.

She took a step forward, her footfall steady and resolute, pushing against the crushing waves of energy. Then, without hesitation, she charged straight toward Azure Scaled and Zombie Fetus once more.

The humans watching from a distance were on edge, their nerves stretched taut.

”Mia’s taking on both zombie kings by herself!”

”Can she really hold out?”

”I don’t know…”

”...Let’s hope she can.”

Meanwhile, in the dark void, Ethan was still trapped. Though only three to five minutes had passed, it felt like an eternity.

This space had been torn open by Griff, a seemingly endless expanse of pitch-black nothingness. But in truth, it wasn’t as vast as it appeared.

Ethan couldn’t see Griff because there was no light. He couldn’t smell anything because there was no medium for scents to travel. And he couldn’t hear a sound because the void swallowed all vibrations.

Three of his five senses were completely sealed off.

For most living beings, this would’ve been a death sentence. They’d exhaust their energy and die here, unable to find a way out.

But Ethan was different.

He had the Domain of the Dead.

The Domain of the Dead had become his sixth sense, a tool that transcended the limitations of his physical body.

Ethan extended his domain outward in one direction, letting it spread as far as possible, like a radar scanning its surroundings. Sure enough, after a few moments, he detected something—an intruder in the void.

”Gotcha.”

Ethan’s eyes narrowed as he locked onto the disturbance. Gripping his flaming tachi tightly, he dashed forward, slashing horizontally into the darkness.

There was still no sound. No smell.

But his blade stopped mid-swing.

It had hit something.

Years of experience told Ethan exactly what it was—his blade had lodged itself in bone.

”ROAR!”

A deafening roar shattered the silence, and in an instant, Ethan’s hearing returned.

The endless darkness around him began to recede like a retreating tide, revealing the world once more.

Sunlight. Air. Trees. Blood.

And standing before him—a massive, grotesque bioweapon.

Ethan’s gaze sharpened as he took in the scene. His strike had severed Griff’s right arm, the blade slicing through his ribcage and lodging itself in his spine.

”Hmm… My instincts were spot on,” Ethan muttered, pulling his blade free with a sharp twist.

With a swift diagonal slash, he followed up. The sound of the cut was clean and precise—shhhk.

Griff’s massive body was split open, one side of him completely cleaved apart. Black, putrid blood sprayed everywhere, chunks of viscera spilling onto the ground. Griff let out a guttural, agonized howl.

Ethan activated the power of the Domain of the Dead, forming a barrier to shield himself from the splattering filth.

The scene unfolded before the eyes of the humans watching from afar.

”He’s out!”

”And he’s completely fine?”

”I knew it! I knew he’d make it!”

Their voices were filled with awe and relief.

Griff, on the other hand, staggered backward, his massive frame trembling. The gaping wounds on his body were catastrophic, and he could feel his life force draining away at an alarming rate.

Even so, he refused to fall—at least, not yet.

But his legs gave out beneath him. With a heavy thud, the monstrous creature collapsed to his knees, unable to rise again.

His grotesque face, once filled with rage and malice, now showed only despair and helplessness.

”Even after all this… I still can’t kill you?” Griff’s voice was weak, his tone laced with bitter resignation.

Ethan tilted his head, curiosity flickering in his eyes. ”Why do you hate me so much?”

Griff didn’t answer immediately. He stared at Ethan, his monstrous form trembling. Even now, after everything, Ethan didn’t even know who he was.

To Ethan, killing was just another day’s work. He hadn’t even spared a second thought for the lives he’d taken.

”You killed all my teammates,” Griff finally said, his voice hollow.

”Oh…” Ethan nodded, as if only now remembering. ”Yeah, I guess I did. There was that A+ grade triple-modified guy, right?”

He recalled the moment vaguely—using Grizzly’s communicator to taunt Griff with a single sentence.

”Well then,” Ethan said, his tone casual, almost indifferent. ”I guess I’ll send you to join them.”

...