Apocalypse: King of Zombies

”Huh? What’s that noise?” The old man furrowed his brows, his face darkening slightly as if he’d overheard someone muttering something about not letting him continue his research. A faint trace of anger flickered across his expression.

But the young female intern suddenly froze, her eyes widening in terror as she stared past the old man, her gaze fixed on something behind him. It was as if she’d seen a ghost.

Because, out of nowhere, a figure had appeared behind him.

And in their hand, they held a long, gleaming tachi.

The blade shimmered with a cold, deadly light, razor-sharp and brimming with murderous intent.

The old man sensed something was wrong. He began to turn his head to look behind him, but he only managed to turn halfway before a sharp schlick echoed through the room. His head was severed cleanly from his body, flying through the air.

Blood gushed from the stump of his neck as his headless body collapsed to the ground with a heavy thud.

Ethan had ended him with a single stroke.

”Aaaaah—!”

The female intern let out a piercing scream, her voice trembling as she stared at the gruesome scene before her.

The other researchers in the room turned toward the commotion, their faces quickly draining of color as they took in the sight.

”An intruder!”

”How did he get in here?”

”Quick! Sound the alarm!”

On the wall nearby, a red button glowed ominously. The female intern snapped out of her shock and bolted toward it.

She was an Awakener who had developed a Neurocore, and her speed was nothing to scoff at. The button was just within reach, and her heart raced as she stretched out her hand to press it.

But just as her fingers were about to make contact—

A suffocating pressure enveloped her. Her outstretched hand froze mid-air, her body trembling violently. A crackling sound echoed as her limbs stiffened, and her vision went black. She crumpled to the floor like a puppet with its strings cut.

”This... this can’t be...”

The remaining researchers stared, their eyes wide with terror.

But their fear was short-lived.

Ethan’s tachi sliced through the air with deadly precision, cutting them down one by one as if they were nothing more than chickens in a slaughterhouse.

Their bodies fell into pools of blood, their pristine white lab coats quickly soaking up the crimson liquid, blooming like grotesque red roses.

Ethan, however, had no interest in admiring the macabre scene. He turned his gaze toward the vault.

”Time to open the treasure chest...” he muttered to himself. He had no idea what he’d find inside, but he couldn’t help hoping for something like a ”Golden Legendary.”

Gripping his tachi, Ethan bent down and used the old man’s severed head like a grotesque oversized lollipop. He held it up to the scanner by the vault door.

[Facial recognition... Identity confirmed.]

With a soft hiss, the vault door slid open, releasing a blast of icy white mist. Whatever was stored inside clearly required a controlled temperature.

As the mist dissipated, rows upon rows of vials filled with liquid came into view.

Just as he’d suspected.

Inside were samples of the X Virus and Y Virus, neatly paired and numbering in the hundreds.

There were also various grades of zombie viruses, though the highest grade only reached B-level.

And then there were the stacks of research documents, piled so high they resembled small mountains.

Ethan wasted no time. With a wave of his hand, he collected the X and Y Viruses first—those were the most valuable. Then he stepped closer to examine the research documents.

The papers detailed countless human experiments—over a thousand, by the looks of it.

Some described injecting live subjects with zombie viruses, meticulously recording the transformation process from human to zombie, down to the exact timing.

The methods were nothing short of barbaric.

The data showed that, on average, humans infected with a zombie virus would undergo zombification within three to five minutes. Of course, the exact timing varied depending on the individual’s physical condition and the virus’s grade.

Beyond the human experiments, there were other types of trials documented, but most of it was beyond Ethan’s comprehension.

After all, he hadn’t spent much time in school. He was, as he liked to put it, a ”Zombie King with limited education.”

”When it comes to fire,” Ethan muttered, a smirk tugging at his lips, ”I just point and watch it burn...”

The crystal core embedded in his tachi began to glow, and flames roared to life, dancing along the blade.

He brought the fiery weapon down onto the stacks of research documents. The moment the flames touched the papers, they spread rapidly, consuming the documents in a growing inferno.

These records had to be destroyed.

Ethan turned and began walking out of the lab, casually grabbing a vial of zombie virus on his way. The label on it read: Grade B.

”You guys love experiments, right? Let me help you run one,” he said with a smirk.

In the corner of the lab was a filtration system that supplied water to the entire safe zone. Ethan strolled over to it, his movements unhurried.

Using his Domain of the Dead ability, he manipulated the pipes, breaking the vial of Grade B zombie virus directly into the water supply.

The virus spread like a drop of black ink in clear water, swirling and dispersing rapidly.

Now, all that was left was to wait. The virus would ferment, and soon, a grand feast would begin.

”Mm...”

A faint sound broke the silence.

Ethan turned his head toward the source and saw a young girl sitting up on one of the lab’s pristine white beds. She was awake.

Her hands covered her mouth, her eyes wide with terror as she stared at Ethan. She had clearly seen everything he’d just done.

”You... you’re poisoning the water?” she stammered, her voice trembling.

”Yep,” Ethan replied nonchalantly, giving a small nod. ”Just trying to do a good deed.”

”...” The girl was speechless. She glanced around the room, taking in the bodies strewn across the floor and the roaring flames consuming the vault.

He had killed people, set fires, and poisoned the water supply—and yet he had the audacity to call it a ”good deed.”

Ethan continued, his tone calm and matter-of-fact. ”I’m helping you get revenge, aren’t I? The zombie virus is about to spread. You’ve got two choices: turn into a zombie, or become zombie food.”

”Uh...”

The girl froze, her mind racing. She understood what was about to happen, but there was nothing she could do to stop it.

If she became food, it would be excruciatingly painful.

But if she turned into a zombie, she might at least have a chance to bite the Awakener who had brought her here.

Her decision came quickly.

She pulled the medical tubes off her body and climbed out of bed. Slowly, she walked over to a sink and stared at her reflection in the mirror.

Her face was gaunt, her skin dark and sallow, her hair brittle and yellowed. She looked malnourished, barely clinging to life.

How was this any different from being a zombie already?

With a resigned expression, she turned on the faucet.

...

Genesis Biotech’s experiments had been disturbingly precise: humans infected with the virus would undergo zombification within five minutes.

It didn’t take long for the blood-soaked feast to begin.

The outbreak started inside the lab.

An elderly professor had just taken a sip of tea and was in the middle of lecturing his students about zombies.

”Zombies can generally be categorized into five main types,” he explained. ”Body-enhancement types, strength types, agility types, psychic types, and special types. The first three are relatively straightforward. But if it’s a psychic type, there’s a high chance it could evolve into a Zombie King with strange and formidable abilities.”

”Oh...” The students nodded attentively.

”And what about the special types?” one of them asked.

”Special types... well, those are even more extraordinary. They—” The professor suddenly broke off, coughing violently.

”Professor, are you okay?” one of the students asked, concern etched on their face. ”You’ve been working too hard. Maybe you should rest.”

”I’m... I’m fine,” the professor wheezed, though his breathing had grown labored. The blood vessels in his eyes were visibly swelling, turning an alarming shade of red.

”Professor! Professor!” The students began to panic, their voices rising in alarm.

But the professor seemed dazed, his body swaying unsteadily as if he might collapse at any moment. He couldn’t hear their words anymore.

”Quick! Get him to the infirmary!” one of the students shouted.

Two male students rushed forward to support the professor, each grabbing an arm.

”Raaagh—!”

A guttural roar erupted from the professor as he suddenly lunged forward, sinking his teeth into one of the students’ necks.

Blood sprayed everywhere...