Apocalypse: King of Zombies

Miles’s eyes lit up the moment he saw the books in Ethan’s hands.

”Captain, did those come from the storage ring?”

”Yeah,” Ethan nodded.

”Well, I’m wide awake now!”

Miles snatched the two books and dove right in, his curiosity fully piqued.

He’d always had a thing for this kind of stuff.

It didn’t take long before his expression shifted—eyes wide, jaw slightly slack.

Ethan caught the look and leaned in, itching with anticipation. ”Figured something out? What are they?”

Miles took a deep breath, clearly trying to contain his excitement. ”Captain, we might’ve hit the jackpot.”

He tapped the covers with a finger. ”From what I can tell, one’s an Energy Absorption Technique, the other’s a Body Refinement Technique.”

Ethan’s eyes lit up. ”Now that’s what I’m talking about!”

He’d been hoping for something like this—a guide, a manual, anything to help them stop fumbling around in the dark. And now, here it was.

”Yeah, judging by the content, they’re basically instructions on how to get stronger. I’ll translate them for you,” Miles said, already pulling out a pen and some paper.

The books weren’t thick—just a few pages each.

Miles worked through them steadily, translating while mentally piecing things together. Whenever he hit a symbol he didn’t recognize, he left a blank and moved on, planning to circle back and deduce it later.

Honestly, the guy was a genius. No wonder he was their brain.

Three or four hours later, he handed over the finished translations.

Ethan took them and started reading carefully.

Just like Miles said, the first book was indeed an Energy Absorption Technique. It explained how to actively draw in mysterious energy by channeling the power of the fully lit stars in the constellation diagram inside the mind—boosting one’s Tier in the process.

The content was eye-opening.

No wonder their absorption rate had always felt sluggish. They’d been doing it wrong.

Even after reaching Stage D (Tier 6), Ethan still couldn’t absorb mysterious energy as fast as the zombies. Now he knew why—they’d been absorbing passively this whole time.

But with this method, they could flip the switch—go from passive to active. That alone would speed things up dramatically.

And if they combined that with consuming crystal cores? Their power growth would leave the zombies in the dust.

The best part? This technique wasn’t just for high-Tier Enhanced.

According to the book, as long as someone had activated their constellation diagram—even if only a single corner was lit—they could use this method to absorb mysterious energy and grow stronger.

Which meant low-Tier Enhanced wouldn’t have to rely on high-Tier crystal cores to break through anymore. They could level up on their own.

Ethan’s heart surged with hope. If this method could be taught and spread, humanity might actually stand a chance in this apocalypse.

The only catch? It wouldn’t work for regular people. The technique required a constellation diagram in the mind, and ordinary folks didn’t have one.

”Looks like we’ll still need to find some Tier 1 crystal cores,” Ethan muttered to himself.

The second book, the Body Refinement Technique, was all about pushing the human body past its natural limits.

What surprised Ethan was how similar it was to what they’d already been doing—stargazing at night to absorb mysterious energy.

This technique also relied on the stars—specifically, the nine stars of the Nine-Star Dipper. It used their power to refine the body.

Turns out, they’d already been on the right track. They just hadn’t figured out the proper method, which was why their progress had been so slow.

Even with Ethan’s [True Sight] ability, he’d only been able to increase his strength by about 60 pounds a day.

But this book laid out exactly how to maximize the effect.

If Ethan’s guess was right, following the method in the book could at least double or triple the results.

His heart thumped with excitement.

They really had struck gold this time.

”Captain, if the stuff in these books actually works… then we’re going to be unstoppable!” Miles said, just as fired up.

Ethan nodded. ”Yeah. Either way, we’re testing it out tonight.”

”Hell yeah.”

Midnight.

Right on cue, everyone climbed out of bed without a word. It was a habit the Fallen Star Squad had built over time—no alarms needed.

Ethan and Miles gathered the team and explained everything about the two books. The moment they finished, the whole squad lit up with excitement.

Without wasting a second, they rushed up to the rooftop, buzzing with energy, and began training according to the Energy Absorption Technique.

Almost immediately, they could feel it—the mysterious energy around them surging into their bodies at a noticeably faster rate. At least twice as fast as before.

That alone had everyone fired up.

Then they tried the Body Refinement Technique. The results were just as impressive.

The best part? The two techniques could run simultaneously.

The Energy Absorption Technique worked by channeling the power of the stars in their mental constellation diagram to absorb mysterious energy and raise their Tier. The Body Refinement Technique, on the other hand, used the power of the Nine-Star Dipper in the night sky to strengthen the body itself.

The two didn’t interfere with each other. It just required a bit of multitasking—but that wasn’t a problem for this crew.

So they trained, fully immersed—boosting their Tiers while refining their bodies—until the nine stars of the Nine-Star Dipper finally faded from the sky. Only then did they stop, the energy flow tapering off.

Ethan took a moment to feel out the gains. A grin crept across his face.

This one night had been worth two of their old ones, easy.

Before, going from Tier 8 to peak Tier 8 would’ve taken over twenty days. With the technique, that timeline had been cut in half—ten days, maybe less.

And the strength boost from the Body Refinement Technique? That was the real kicker.

He used to gain maybe 60 pounds of strength in a night. Last night, he’d added over 200.

”Try feeling out the strength increase from the Body Refinement,” Ethan said, glancing at the others.

”I already did,” Chris replied, clearly pleased. ”I’m up by about 90 pounds.”

Ethan nodded. Even with both techniques in play, his [True Sight] still gave him an edge when it came to drawing power from the Nine-Star Dipper.

”Miles,” Ethan turned to him, ”how’s the loyalty level of the ten thousand Enhanced in the compound? Can we trust them?”

”No issues there. They’re solid,” Miles replied confidently.

”Good. Tomorrow morning, pass down the Energy Absorption Technique. Get their strength up as fast as possible. As for the Body Refinement Technique… let’s keep that between us for now.”

”Got it. I was actually wondering how we were going to get enough Tier 6 crystal cores to level them all up. But now, with the Energy Absorption Technique, they can grow on their own,” Miles said, clearly relieved.

”Exactly. Get some rest. Over the next few days, focus on raising the Enhanced strength inside the compound. Once that’s done, wipe out every last zombie in Redwood County,” Ethan said. ”The rest of us will handle the mutant beasts in the nearby mountains—clear the threats so you can focus on building up the compound.”

”Understood. Captain… sounds like you’re planning to leave Redwood County?”

”Yeah,” Ethan said with a nod. ”There aren’t many zombies left here. That’s great for the compound’s development—but not so great for our growth.”

”Even with the Energy Absorption Technique, combining it with crystal cores is still the fastest way to level up.”

”Plus, now that we know the Void Realm exists, we need to go find it. If we can get our hands on more resources, it’ll help us all get stronger.”

”Fair enough. Then you guys go. Leave this place to me,” Miles said firmly.

”Thanks. I’m counting on you.”