Apocalypse: King of Zombies

At that moment, Ethan had just finished collecting Edward and the cat’s corpse.

From a distance, he heard screams echoing down the street, followed by the frantic sounds of people running. It was easy to sense the presence of humans—and the zombies chasing after them.

Without hesitation, Ethan started walking in that direction.

It didn’t take long for him to arrive at a basement that had just witnessed a massacre. The stench of blood was overwhelming. The once-pristine white walls were smeared with dark, dried blood, and the floor was littered with bodies in grotesque positions. Some of the corpses had been half-eaten, leaving behind a horrifying scene.

”Guess I’ll take whatever leftovers I can get…” Ethan muttered, unfazed. With a wave of his hand, he collected all the ”food” into his storage.

After finishing up, he returned to the street. Scanning the area, he spotted more bodies scattered along the roadside—not far from where he stood. Judging by the scene, these were likely people who had just been caught and killed by the zombies while trying to escape.

So, Ethan continued walking, casually ”collecting” corpses along the way.

...

Meanwhile, Blaze and Pointed Nose were still running for their lives. The crystal cores in their heads were worth ten times more than the bodies of ordinary survivors. They were the real targets of the Zombie King’s relentless pursuit.

As they ran, both kept glancing over their shoulders, a growing sense of dread gnawing at them.

”Why do I feel like… something’s watching us?” Blaze muttered, frowning.

”Don’t say that, man! You’re freaking me out!” Pointed Nose replied, his face tense with anxiety.

But deep down, he could feel it too—something terrifying was closing in on them.

”Let’s just keep moving!”

”Yeah…” Blaze nodded quickly, picking up his pace.

But up ahead, zombies were already wandering the street. Their noses twitched as they caught the scent of the two men. In unison, the zombies turned their heads, locking their lifeless eyes on them.

”Raaaghhh!”

The zombies let out guttural roars, as if suddenly awakened, and charged at them with feral aggression.

”Damn it!” Blaze cursed under his breath. He had no choice but to fight his way through. Without hesitation, he activated his fire ability.

Raising his hand, a blazing flame erupted from his palm, surging forward like a fiery dragon and engulfing the zombies in its path.

The zombies caught in the flames were quickly reduced to charred remains, leaving behind only piles of ash and the acrid stench of burnt flesh.

Pointed Nose wasn’t idle either. As a Strength Awakened, he relied on brute force. With a few powerful punches, he sent zombies flying, his movements swift and brutal.

”Phew, at least they’re just regular zombies,” Pointed Nose said, relieved.

”Don’t let your guard down,” Blaze warned. ”Finish them off quickly. We don’t want to trigger a full-blown zombie horde!”

”Got it.” Pointed Nose nodded. He delivered an uppercut to one zombie’s jaw, sending it airborne before it crashed back to the ground with a sickening thud.

But just then, a sharp sound cut through the air—whoosh. Something darted across the sky, its shadow stretching ominously across the ground under the moonlight.

”What the hell was that?” Pointed Nose’s eyes widened in alarm.

Blaze’s face turned pale with fear. ”It’s… it’s a mutated Zombie King!”

”What?!”

Pointed Nose’s expression instantly grew tense. ”You mean that thing’s been tracking us this whole time?”

”Kehehehe… Found you…”

A figure descended from the sky, landing with a heavy thud. Behind him, a pair of skeletal wings folded back with a series of unsettling cracks. In the moonlight, he took on the appearance of a young man—but his emaciated frame was horrifying. His skin clung tightly to his bones, and his hands were nothing but exposed white bone, gleaming eerily in the dark.

”Blaze, is this the Zombie King? What’s his level?” Pointed Nose asked urgently.

Blaze hesitated, his eyes darting nervously. ”He’s… uh… he’s not that strong. Just a B-level.”

”Oh, that’s not too bad.” Pointed Nose nodded, slightly reassured. Some zombies looked terrifying, but their levels didn’t always match their appearance.

Since his own strength was above B-level, he felt confident he could take this Zombie King down.

”Leave this to me!” Pointed Nose said, his body tensing as he gathered his strength. Then, like an enraged bull, he charged straight at the skeletal figure.

The Bone-Claw Zombie King tilted his head, watching the charging man with mild curiosity.

”This… food… is actually coming at me on its own? Who gave him the courage?”

With that, the Zombie King clenched his bony hand into a fist and swung it toward Pointed Nose.

Pointed Nose didn’t even try to dodge. Seeing how the Bone-Claw Zombie King looked like a walking skeleton, as thin as a matchstick, he figured it didn’t have much strength. He decided to take the hit head-on.

”BAM!”

The sound of their fists colliding was like two sledgehammers smashing together. Pointed Nose, as a Strength Awakened, had a powerful physique, but the moment their fists connected, his arm let out a sickening crack. His bones shattered instantly, twisting his arm into an unnatural shape.

His body was flung backward like he’d been hit by a speeding train, flying dozens of feet through the air before crashing into a wrecked car. The impact crumpled the vehicle, and only then did he finally come to a stop.

”Hsss…”

The searing pain was unbearable, nearly causing him to pass out. He couldn’t move a muscle—his body was completely paralyzed.

How is it this strong?!

Pointed Nose couldn’t believe it. How could the Bone-Claw Zombie King, with its frail, skeletal frame, unleash such terrifying power?

Wait a second!

This thing couldn’t possibly be just B-level!

Realizing something was off, Pointed Nose turned his head toward Blaze, only to see him sprinting away in the distance. Blaze had taken advantage of the fight to make his escape, and his silhouette was already fading into the darkness.

”FUCK! That bastard set me up!”

It was obvious now—Blaze had lied about the Bone-Claw Zombie King being B-level. He’d done it to give Pointed Nose the confidence to fight, buying himself time to run.s had their own way of killing without lifting a finger—betrayal.

The Bone-Claw Zombie King wasn’t about to let Blaze get away. Just as it was about to give chase, a figure appeared on the rooftop above—a half-human, half-cat old woman. Her sharp eyes were also locked on Blaze’s fleeing figure.

The Bone-Claw Zombie King tilted its head and glared at her. ”Hey, old hag, why are you everywhere I go? That’s my prey!”

”Ha! So what if you saw him first? Whoever catches him gets to keep him,” the cat-faced old woman sneered, clearly unimpressed.

The Bone-Claw Zombie King frowned. The two Zombie Kings had never gotten along.

”You’ve already caught a few humans, haven’t you?” it asked.

”Only children make choices,” the cat-faced old woman replied smugly. Her meaning was clear—she wanted them all.

But before the argument could escalate, another figure appeared at the corner of the street. It was the Pregnant Zombie King, her body covered in blood and her expression wild with excitement. She, too, was here for Blaze.

”Well then,” the Bone-Claw Zombie King said, narrowing its eyes, ”why don’t we see who gets to him first?”

”Fine by me. Let’s see what you’ve got!” The cat-faced old woman smirked.

”Bring it on!” The Pregnant Zombie King licked her lips, clearly eager for the hunt.

The Bone-Claw Zombie King’s skeletal wings began to creak and shift, preparing to unfurl. But just as it was about to take off, it froze mid-motion. Its expression turned strange, almost confused.

Blaze’s scent had suddenly vanished.

”What the…? Where did he go?” the Bone-Claw Zombie King muttered, scanning the area.

”Something’s not right,” the cat-faced old woman said from the rooftop, her expression growing serious. ”The humans I killed earlier… their bodies are gone. And a few of my cats have been killed, too!”

Hearing this, the Pregnant Zombie King immediately turned to look back in the direction she’d come from. She sniffed the air, her nose twitching. The scent of blood on the street had noticeably faded.

The Bone-Claw Zombie King glanced at her. ”Don’t tell me your kills have disappeared too?”

”…Yeah, it looks like they have,” the Pregnant Zombie King replied, her brow furrowing.

The three Zombie Kings felt a chill run through them. In an instant, all the prey they’d killed had vanished without a trace, as if it had been swallowed by thin air.

Even in the zombie world, this was something deeply unsettling.

...