Apocalypse: King of Zombies

”By the way, Ethan,” Maxwell said worriedly, ”we killed everyone the Cathay Republic sent. What if their Stage SSS fighter is furious enough to come after us himself?”

”Then we feed him to the Beast Sovereign and the others. What else?” Ethan replied with a shrug.

”What if he’s Tier 47?”

”As long as he’s still Stage SSS, he won’t be a match for the Beast Sovereign.” Ethan had complete confidence in it.

The Beast Sovereign had reached the absolute limit of Stage SSS. Within that Stage, it was practically invincible.

Of course, if Ethan reached Tier 47 himself, the title of strongest Stage SSS would belong to him instead.

He probably wouldn’t even need to reach Tier 47. At Tier 46, his absurdly powerful skills would be enough to crush the Beast Sovereign.

”That’s good. Very good.”

Seeing how confident Ethan was, everyone finally relaxed.

”Still, leaving the Cathay Republic around will only be an eyesore. I should find time to wipe them out. They attacked the Atlas Federation, so they’ll have to face the consequences,” Ethan said coldly.

”I don’t think we need to rush, Captain,” Miles said. ”The Void Realm passage will reopen soon. If we leave them alive, they might draw away some of the Void Realm creatures.”

Ethan considered it, then shook his head.

”If we don’t eliminate them completely, they’ll remain a threat. With a Stage SSS fighter protecting them, they might survive the coming disaster. Then they’ll be back to cause trouble for us again. Better to deal with them now.”

”Besides, I’m curious about that Stage SSS fighter of theirs. I might as well go meet him.”

”All right. As long as you’re sure you can handle it.” Miles nodded.

”Yeah. We’ll leave it for tomorrow.”

”Tell the kitchen to prepare plenty of good food. It’s been a long time since we’ve had a proper meal.”

”Don’t worry. We already made the arrangements,” Maxwell said with a laugh. ”There’ll be more than enough.”

”Good.”

That evening, everyone ate their fill before heading to bed.

Miles had made sure every member of the Fallen Star Squad had a private mansion, while Ethan’s Commander’s Residence was especially luxurious.

After spending a month away from home, sinking into a soft bed felt incredible.

During their month on the Eldoria Continent, they had often gone several days without sleep. Even when they did get some rest, it was usually in a cave, and they could never let their guard down.

Their last few days at the Aurelian settlement had been somewhat more comfortable, but the Aurelians’ rock-hard beds couldn’t compare to the one at home.

Besides, they still couldn’t sleep without a care in Aurelian territory. They didn’t trust the Aurelians completely.

Back home, they could finally let down their guard, sleep soundly, and enjoy some private time together.

At midnight, Ethan and the others were awakened by the commotion outside.

When they stepped out, they found the entire population of New Atlas beneath the night sky, gazing at the stars and absorbing mysterious energy.

Only then did Ethan and the others realize how long it had been since they’d absorbed mysterious energy beneath the Nine-Star Dipper.

The Nine-Star Dipper didn’t exist over the Eldoria Continent. Mysterious energy was always present there and could be absorbed at any time, but it wasn’t nearly as concentrated as it was on Earth at night, when the Nine-Star Dipper appeared.

”Come on. Let’s go up to the roof and absorb some too,” Ethan said with a smile.

At their current Tiers, absorbing mysterious energy from the stars would provide almost no improvement. Still, it had been a long time since they’d enjoyed an atmosphere like this. Any progress was better than none.

Meanwhile, the Beast Sovereign was resting with its eyes closed in the lake of a vast park when its eyes suddenly snapped open in shock.

The crystal core in its mind, which had shown no activity for countless years, had stirred.

It was slowly absorbing mysterious energy.

The discovery almost made the Beast Sovereign leap straight out of the lake.

On the Eldoria Continent, no matter how much mysterious energy it absorbed, the crystal core had been unable to take in a single trace.

Yet here, the crystal core was absorbing mysterious energy on its own.

That meant the Beast Sovereign could continue raising its Tier here.

And that meant it had a chance to break through to a higher Stage.

Its entire body trembled with excitement.

It had been stuck at its current Stage for so many years that it had long since given up hope. Who could have imagined that coming here would give it another chance to advance?

Its talent had never been the problem. The Eldoria Continent itself had imposed a limit that made reaching a higher Stage impossible.

Only here could it break through.

Thank goodness I followed Ethan, the Beast Sovereign thought. Otherwise, I would’ve been trapped at the same Stage for the rest of my life.

But why can I break through here? Could this world be the primary world? Why else would it be connected to so many others?

The Beast Sovereign pondered the question for a long time but found no answer. In the end, it shook its head and joined everyone else in absorbing mysterious energy.

They continued throughout the night.

At five in the morning, the Nine-Star Dipper faded from view. As if by unspoken agreement, everyone in New Atlas returned to their rooms to get some more rest.

Ethan and the others did the same. They didn’t get up again until ten.

”Man, it feels good to be home.” Ethan stretched, looking completely content.

”It does,” Mia agreed as she straightened his clothes. ”No matter how powerful someone becomes, they still need a home. Even the strongest person gets tired.”

”Yeah. I like this.” Ethan affectionately rubbed her head.

”If I want our lives to stay this peaceful, I’ll have to keep getting stronger. Once you’re strong enough, no one dares to mess with you.”

”Don’t put too much pressure on yourself. You’ve already done more than enough. With our current strength, we have nothing to fear even if the Void Realm passage reopens,” Mia reassured him.

”No. We still can’t let our guard down.” Ethan’s expression turned serious. ”Earth is connected to too many Void Realms. Who knows how many of them are on the same level as the Eldoria Continent? There could be many worlds even stronger than Eldoria.”

”Whether those worlds have fighters beyond Stage SSS or not, there must be plenty who have reached the limit of Stage SSS like the Beast Sovereign. If several of them attack us at once, we still won’t be able to hold them off.”

”So the danger hasn’t passed. Our trip to the Eldoria Continent only improved our chances of survival. In the end, we still have to rely on ourselves.”

”Yeah, but I believe in you. I know you’ll get us through whatever comes and take humanity all the way to the top,” Mia said firmly.

”All the way to the top, huh? You really do dream big.”

”Of course. You’re the man I chose,” Mia said proudly.

”...”

”I get the feeling you’re complimenting yourself.”

”Come on. Let’s get something to eat, then go wipe out the Cathay Republic.”

”Okay.”