Apocalypse: King of Zombies

Central Region…

The fighting had moved from the open plains into the mountain ranges.

With the Beast Sovereign critically wounded and gone, the remaining Outland Beasts lost all desire to continue the battle and fled back into the mountains.

This time, however, the pinnacle races had no intention of letting them escape so easily. They pursued them deep into their own territory.

Fortunately, the mountain ranges belonged to the Outland Beasts. With the terrain on their side, they had no reason to fear their pursuers.

But against Stage SSS fighters, terrain offered little protection.

Once the Beast Sovereign left the battlefield, the intelligent races’ Stage SSS forces instantly surpassed those of the Outland Beasts. Several Stage SSS Beast Lords had also died buying time for their ruler to escape, widening the gap even further.

The remaining Stage SSS Outland Beasts barely managed to escape after a massive centipede at the peak of Tier 46 released a powerful cloud of poison, holding back the enemy Stage SSS fighters for several seconds.

The centipede’s fate was easy to imagine.

Its crystal core was harvested, and its body was hacked into dozens of pieces and divided among the fighters below. They would probably take the remains home to use as materials.

The Stage SSS Outland Beasts that escaped didn’t fare much better. The pinnacle races continued hunting them relentlessly.

Veilmist Range…

Once considered forbidden territory by every intelligent race, the Veilmist Range had been a place even Stage SSS fighters entered with extreme caution.

This was the Beast Sovereign’s home.

Now, however, the sounds of battle echoed throughout the entire range. Large numbers of intelligent fighters had clearly invaded the mountains—something that would’ve been unthinkable before.

The Veilmist Range was shrouded in mist year-round, severely limiting visibility and making it an ideal hiding place. Many powerful Outland Beasts had retreated here, including most of the surviving Stage SSS Beast Lords.

The pinnacle races’ Stage SSS fighters had followed them into the range and were conducting a full-scale search. Battles were breaking out everywhere.

The Patriarchs of several of the strongest races were also inside the Veilmist Range.

They weren’t searching personally. With so many subordinates combing through the mountains, they only needed to wait until someone found a target, then step in.

”Still no sign of the Beast Sovereign or that human?” the Celestials Patriarch asked with a frown.

”Nothing. We’ve mobilized every race in the Central Region, but no one has found any trace of them,” the Stoneborn Patriarch said helplessly.

Killing the remaining Stage SSS Outland Beasts was important, but the Beast Sovereign was still their primary target.

As long as the other Beast Lords remained somewhere on the Eldoria Continent, they would eventually be found.

But until the Beast Sovereign was dead, the pinnacle races would never feel safe.

”With its enormous body and those injuries, the Beast Sovereign shouldn’t be that difficult to find,” the Celestials Patriarch said. ”How could it have vanished without a trace?”

”Could it have already left the Central Region?” the Thundari Patriarch asked.

”It’s possible. That dimensional rift was clearly some kind of spatial transportation ability. It wouldn’t be surprising if they were transported out of the Central Region.”

”You don’t need to worry too much,” the Soulkin Patriarch said. ”The Beast Sovereign’s soul suffered catastrophic damage. Even if it survives, it’s effectively crippled. It can no longer threaten us.”

The others nodded.

As far as they knew, soul wounds couldn’t be healed. Among the thousands of races on the Eldoria Continent, not one possessed an ability capable of treating them. The injured could only rely on their souls to recover slowly over time.

Given the extent of the Beast Sovereign’s injuries, recovering on its own was practically impossible.

There was little reason to fear it anymore.

The Celestials Patriarch still frowned. He couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong.

”Intensify the search. Notify every race in the other regions and order them to find the Beast Sovereign and the humans. We need their location, no matter what it takes.

”And that human possesses spatial-type abilities. He must be eliminated as quickly as possible.”

”Agreed.”

Orders were soon sent from the Central Region to every other region.

After the Central Region’s Outland Beasts retreated into the mountains, the beasts in the other regions followed suit.

The intelligent races across the Eldoria Continent felt as if they had been granted new lives. None of them had expected the war to end so suddenly.

Before long, however, they received new orders from the pinnacle races. They were to search for a human and the critically wounded Beast Sovereign. Anyone who found them would be heavily rewarded.

And a full search didn’t mean looking only through their own territories.

They were expected to enter the mountain ranges as well.

The races that had only just escaped the war complained bitterly, but no one dared disobey the pinnacle races.

Besides, the promised reward was tempting.

And so, the races that had barely stopped fighting were forced into action again.

The Western Region was the sole exception.

Most of its races had already been wiped out. The pinnacle races hadn’t sent reinforcements or even bothered to ask about them. Every plea for help had gone unanswered.

Now that the pinnacle races needed something, they suddenly remembered the Western Region existed.

Did they really think the survivors were that easy to use?

Besides, with so few people left, who would dare enter the depths of the mountain ranges to search? That would be suicide.

They had barely survived. All they wanted now was to escape the war, hide somewhere safe, and live in peace.

The Aurelian Patriarch received the order as well. He immediately turned around and reported everything to Ethan.

Ethan casually waved a hand.

”Just ignore them.”

”Understood.”

Solren nodded and resumed healing the Beast Sovereign.

…

Time passed quickly.

Two and a half days went by.

Early on the third morning, Ethan got up as usual and headed toward Henry and the others to check on the Beast Sovereign’s recovery.

He had given himself a break over the past few days and spent the time resting.

For one thing, every race on the continent was searching for him, so it was better to stay out of sight. The rest of the squad was also focused on improving their strength, which meant someone needed to keep watch in case the enemy found them.

And, admittedly, the Aurelian women really were excellent dancers.

Ethan had only just reached the treatment area when he heard a deep, unfamiliar voice.

”Where am I?”

His eyes lit up.

He teleported directly in front of the Beast Sovereign.

”You’re awake?”

”You!” The Beast Sovereign recognized him immediately.

”You saved me?”

”Yeah.”

This was no time for false modesty.

”I pulled you out of the battlefield and went through a great deal of trouble to find someone capable of healing your injuries.”

The Beast Sovereign examined its condition, and shock filled its eyes.

It knew exactly how severe its wounds had been.

The damage to its soul alone should have permanently crippled it, yet now even that injury was almost completely healed.

He had even cured the wounds to its soul.

Ethan’s claim that he had gone through tremendous hardship clearly wasn’t an exaggeration.

The Beast Sovereign fixed its enormous eyes on him.

Then it lowered its proud head.

”Thank you.”

Those two words carried more weight than any speech.

It was the Beast Sovereign, ruler of the Eldoria Continent’s countless beasts and one of the most powerful beings in the world. It had never bowed its head to anyone.

But this time, it did.

Because Ethan hadn’t merely saved its life.

He had saved every beast race on the Eldoria Continent.