Apocalypse: King of Zombies

”Hmm???”

LORN’s expression twisted in confusion. What the hell did he mean by that?

”ROOOAAARRR—!”

A thunderous roar suddenly erupted from the distance, shaking the ground beneath their feet. Dust clouds billowed into the sky as a stampede of massive figures surged forward.

Leading the charge was a hulking Zombie King, muscles bulging like steel cables—none other than Bulldozer, one of Ethan’s most fearsome lieutenants.

Behind him thundered a terrifying menagerie of oversized zombie beasts: undead tigers, zombified elephants, mutated crocodiles, and more.

”Told you—I’m the real main force,” Bulldozer growled, eyes gleaming with bloodlust.

Because of their sheer size, these beasts couldn’t travel through underground tunnels like the others. They’d been stationed in a remote border town, bored out of their minds for weeks, practically itching for a fight.

Now that the final battle was underway, they’d finally been unleashed—and they were pumped. The bloodlust in the air was thick enough to taste.

But what really made jaws drop was what came next.

Perched atop the backs of these monstrous beasts were elite zombies—cold-eyed, sharp-minded, and deadly. Each one cradled a sleek, metallic firearm that shimmered with a silver sheen, pulsing faintly with crystal core energy.

These were Crystal Core Firearms—cutting-edge tech weapons that consumed massive amounts of energy. Ethan hadn’t even used them during the battle against the Pied King.

But this was the final showdown. Time to bring out the big guns.

”…What the hell is that?” LORN stared, dumbfounded, completely thrown off.

Elite zombies riding giant beasts, armed with high-tech crystal-powered weapons? The whole scene looked like something out of a sci-fi fever dream.

Who the hell came up with this?!

Bulldozer charged into the battlefield like a wrecking ball, sending enemies flying in every direction. Behind him, the elite zombies atop their beasts opened fire.

FWOOM! FWOOM! FWOOM!

A barrage of energy blasts rained down like a storm, slamming into the Canadian zombie horde.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Explosions rocked the battlefield. The ground quaked, smoke and debris filled the air. In a single coordinated volley, dozens—maybe hundreds—of Canadian zombies were blown to pieces.

Blood and gore sprayed across the field. Severed limbs flew through the air. Smoke curled from the charred remains.

Some Canadian zombies tried to fight back, but the moment they got close, they were crushed under the feet of the rampaging beasts—flattened into bloody paste before they could even lift a claw.

The combination of giant beasts, elite zombies, and crystal-core firepower was like a fleet of heavy tanks rolling straight through the enemy lines.

”This… this is actually happening?” Malcolm gawked from the aircraft above, completely stunned.

They’d been making progress—slowly grinding down the American zombie horde with a war of attrition, surrounding them, clawing back from an early disadvantage.

He’d just been about to order a full counterattack.

And then this tank battalion from hell showed up.

”Why the hell do they have Crystal Core Firearms?!” Malcolm couldn’t wrap his head around it.

Sophia’s expression was equally shaken. She knew where those weapons came from—Ethan had seized a massive cache of them when he took down Genesis Biotech’s North American HQ, Richard’s old stronghold. Over ten thousand units.

She’d expected him to use them eventually… but not like this.

”A zombie army with this kind of coordination and tech? That’s not something anyone could’ve predicted…”

And the combo was devastating: crystal-core volleys from above, beastly trampling below, and waves of regular zombies pouring in behind. It was textbook combined arms warfare—zombie-style.

The Canadian horde didn’t stand a chance. They were being slaughtered.

”Scarlet Moon,” Malcolm said urgently, ”you know more about these weapons than anyone. Is there any way to stop them?”

”There’s only one way,” Sophia said, eyes narrowing.

”Oh?” Malcolm raised an eyebrow. Maybe she really did have a plan. No wonder Adoptive Father had made her Number Thirteen.

”What’s your idea?”

”Tell our horde to hold the line. Just survive. Once the enemy burns through their crystal core energy and the beasts run out of stamina, they’ll have to stop.”

”…That’s it?” Malcolm muttered, but the more he thought about it, the worse it sounded.

So basically… wait until the enemy gets tired?

That’s the plan?

Was that even going to work?

But at this point, there was no other option. They had to keep fighting and pray that the Genesis Biotech Cyborg—LORN—could take out the American Zombie King.

Once that bastard was dead, his army would lose morale, and the tide of battle could finally turn in their favor.

Ethan stood still, eyes locked on the battlefield below. Bulldozer’s arrival had flipped the tide in an instant, but his expression didn’t change much.

Because this wasn’t even close to his final hand.

If everything was going according to plan, Logan—stationed at the northern U.S. border—would be joining the fight soon with his own forces.

And let’s not forget the mechanical zombie army handcrafted by PhD, still waiting in reserve.

This war? It was far from over.

It was a goddamn endless meat grinder.

LORN’s face darkened as he watched the Canadian zombie horde get torn apart. The realization hit him hard—he’d been played.

That so-called ”cooperation” from the American Zombie King? Total bullshit. Ethan had never intended to fight side by side. He’d just kept his cards close to his chest, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

”Well played, asshole… You’re a real piece of work.”

”You’re not so bad yourself,” Ethan replied coolly. ”I should probably thank you, actually. You helped me wipe out a good chunk of the Canadian horde.”

LORN’s jaw clenched.

That mechanical army he’d brought in? Nearly thirty thousand strong, fully charged, each one capable of taking on ten enemies at once—and they self-destructed when they were done. In the end, they’d taken out over two hundred thousand Canadian zombies.

And now he realized he’d been used like a disposable pawn.

”You son of a bitch… I can’t believe you were hiding all that!”

”Oh, I’ve got plenty more where that came from,” Ethan said, voice light, almost teasing. ”Stick around—I’ll show you everything.”

”Hmph.” LORN scoffed, trying to mask his frustration with disdain.

”You should know better than anyone,” he said coldly, ”when individual power reaches a certain level, numbers don’t mean shit. I don’t care how many minions you’ve got—they can’t touch me.”

”That so?” Ethan raised an eyebrow, and the air around him began to shift.

The Domain of the Dead surged to life, its oppressive energy swelling, thickening, warping the space around him like a storm about to break.

Because in the end, this battle wouldn’t be decided by armies.

It would come down to king versus king.

The Canadian zombies were already finished. They were never a real threat.

Ethan had only one target now—LORN.

And that high-grade crystal core inside his body? That was just the cherry on top.

As his aura exploded outward, Ethan made the first move. He launched himself forward like a missile, the Domain of the Dead crashing down with him like a divine punishment, a force of nature made flesh.

”Terra Bulwark!”

LORN shouted, and a deep yellow light flared around him. He activated his earth-elemental power again, this time going all in.

The ground in front of him convulsed violently, then erupted upward. A massive wall of earth surged from the ground, growing taller and thicker by the second.

It didn’t stop at a few feet—it kept rising, over a hundred feet tall, then more, until it resembled a towering mountain range, dense and immovable.

The entire terrain shifted under its weight, reshaping the battlefield.

Ethan’s line of sight was completely blocked. But he didn’t hesitate.

He sheathed his black katana and reached behind him, pulling out a strange, ancient-looking stone tablet.

Light shimmered across its surface. Four Radiant Crystals embedded in the slab pulsed with energy, and strange, glowing runes lit up one by one, radiating a terrifying power.

Ethan raised the tablet high, then hurled it forward with a sweeping arc.

It tore through the air like a comet, trailing a brilliant white tail behind it—like a dragon made of light, roaring toward the mountain of earth.

The Domain of the Dead surged with it, fusing with the tablet’s power.

Together, they descended like judgment from the heavens.

…