Apocalypse: King of Zombies

”Skinny Pete, summon something!” Ethan looked to him, hoping Astral Conjuration might finally give them a lucky break.

”Got it!”

Skinny Pete immediately activated Astral Conjuration.

A dimensional rift opened above the battlefield. Moments later, a tiny creature emerged from it, its translucent green body sparkling like crystal.

Ethan’s face fell.

Of course. He really needed to stop relying on luck.

The creature was only at the peak of Tier 41. At that level, it couldn’t make any difference in a battle like this.

But then Skinny Pete spoke up. ”Boss, I think this thing has a special ability!”

”Oh? What can it do?”

”It has a healing-type ability. It can merge with another creature and keep healing them from inside. The healing effect is really strong!”

”Healing…” Ethan looked at the crystalline green creature, then toward the battlefield. An idea came to him. ”Skinny Pete, have it merge with the marked woman.”

”Huh? Why not use it on one of us?”

”It wouldn’t help. If those Voltari attack us, they can kill us in one hit. But if it heals the marked woman, she might hold out a little longer. That’ll give us more time to find an opening.”

”Okay.”

Skinny Pete immediately ordered the creature toward her.

Henry might have been able to save the marked woman as well, but that part of the battlefield was too dangerous. If he went over there, he wouldn’t make it back.

The green creature was incredibly fast. It shot into the battle before anyone could react and vanished into the marked woman’s body.

Her face changed, but surprise quickly gave way to delight.

The instant the creature merged with her, her injuries began healing at an astonishing rate.

The six Voltari paid it no attention and continued their relentless assault.

Before long, however, they realized something was wrong.

The marked woman had clearly been on her last legs, yet she refused to go down. In fact, her condition seemed to be improving.

They exchanged glances. The green figure that had entered her body was probably responsible, and the realization darkened their expressions.

”What now?”

”Keep attacking. We can’t let her recover. I don’t know what that thing is, but I sensed its energy just now. It isn’t very strong. It can’t keep this up for long.”

”Got it!”

The six launched another barrage of attacks.

The Voltari were formidable fighters. Six at Tier 46 were more than capable of killing a Tier 47 opponent.

The green creature’s healing had helped the marked woman recover, but she was still being overwhelmed. At most, it could keep her alive a little longer. It couldn’t change the final outcome.

Watching from a distance, Ethan shook his head helplessly.

”Looks like I still have to step in.”

He had little confidence against a Tier 46 opponent, especially one with such a devastating lightning-type ability.

But he had no choice.

Of the four battles against the Tier 47 Voltari, only Abyron held a slight advantage. All three Tier 47 Outland Beasts were losing ground.

The Voltari’s lightning attacks were particularly effective against them. The beasts could keep their opponents occupied, but defeating them was out of the question.

”Emily, buff me. Mia, use Power Transfer,” Ethan said quietly.

”Okay.”

Both women activated their abilities at once.

Feeling his strength rise again, Ethan finally gained a little confidence.

He teleported into the battle and dragged one of the Tier 46 Voltari—along with the Dread-Eyed Lion, who had been watching from nearby—into the Deadlock Dimension.

There was a reason Ethan had chosen the Dread-Eyed Lion.

Chris and the others couldn’t survive a single attack from a Tier 46 fighter.

This Voltari wasn’t like the Gildari they had fought last time, who had possessed no ranged attacks. One lightning strike from this opponent could reduce Chris and the others to ash.

Ethan couldn’t risk bringing them into the Deadlock Dimension, but he still needed someone whose mental energy he could borrow. That made the Dread-Eyed Lion his best option.

At the peak of Tier 43, it should at least survive one or two attacks.

”What’s going on?”

Both the Dread-Eyed Lion and the Voltari fighter were momentarily disoriented after entering the Deadlock Dimension.

”Don’t worry about it. Just lend me your mental energy when I need it!”

Ethan appeared in front of the Voltari fighter and swung his Poleaxe. Dense black light covered the weapon as it came crashing down.

The Voltari stared at him in disbelief, then sneered.

”You’ve got some nerve. Don’t blame me when you get yourself killed.”

He prepared to reduce Ethan to nothing with a single attack.

Against a mere Tier 42, he had every reason to be confident.

But when he tried to activate an ability, he found that he couldn’t mobilize his mental energy.

The Voltari frowned. Even so, he didn’t retreat. He simply clenched his fist and met Ethan’s Poleaxe head-on.

Even without his abilities, why would a Tier 46 fear some Tier 42 piece of trash?

Ethan had no intention of trading blows with him.

He activated Soulbane Gaze. The Voltari froze for an instant, and Ethan shifted the Poleaxe past his fist and slammed it into his head.

Boom!

The full-powered Annihilation Strike shook the entire Deadlock Dimension. A massive wound split open across the Voltari’s head, and the impact sent him flying into the dimension’s spatial barrier before he crashed to the ground.

The Dread-Eyed Lion stared in shock.

It had known Ethan was strong. The last time Ethan had challenged it to a fight, it had refused because it didn’t believe it could beat him.

But it had never imagined Ethan was this powerful.

He had seriously injured a Tier 46 with a single blow. If that attack had landed on the Dread-Eyed Lion, it would already be meeting the Grim Reaper.

Unfortunately, a Tier 46 wasn’t so easy to kill.

The Voltari climbed back to his feet moments later. Blood poured from the enormous wound in his head, leaving him looking horrific.

”You… Very good. I’ll kill you!”

His voice sounded almost demonic as he lunged at Ethan.

”Little lion, I’m borrowing your mental energy!”

Ethan immediately began draining the Dread-Eyed Lion’s mental energy.

Feeling it rapidly vanish from its mind, the Dread-Eyed Lion instinctively tried to resist. Then it remembered Ethan’s warning and quickly stopped, allowing him to take what he needed.

The Voltari appeared in front of Ethan in an instant. The restriction on his mental energy had already disappeared, and an enormous bolt of purple lightning came crashing down.

”Absolute Stasis!”

Ethan activated his ultimate without hesitation.

He appeared above the Voltari’s head, raised his Poleaxe, and unleashed another full-powered Annihilation Strike directly at the existing wound.

Bang!

The Poleaxe tore through the wound and buried itself deep inside the Voltari’s skull.

Absolute Stasis ended with Ethan’s weapon still lodged in his head.

The Voltari stood motionless as his life force rapidly faded.

The Dread-Eyed Lion stared blankly.

”That’s it? He’s… dead?”