Apocalypse: King of Zombies

Following directions from the Satellite Operations Control Center, Ethan avoided most of the Void Realm races and continued toward New Atlas with the Aurelians and Azure Nereids.

They still crossed paths with a few groups along the way, but with two Tier 47s and one peak Tier 47 escorting them, most Void Realm creatures kept their distance rather than risk provoking them.

After another two hours, they finally arrived at New Atlas.

The sight of its brightly lit skyscrapers finally convinced both races that Nerissa had been telling the truth. Buildings dozens of stories tall towered over the city, illuminated by dazzling lights that drew every eye.

None of them had ever seen a city like this.

”It’s magnificent! And so beautiful!” Seraphine marveled. ”I never imagined a city like this could exist!”

”Indeed. I’ve never even heard of such a place, much less seen one. As expected of Lord Ethan’s home,” Solren said with equal admiration.

Seraphine gave him a speechless look.

The old man never missed an opportunity to flatter Ethan.

The people of New Atlas had already been informed of their arrival and gave them a warm welcome. Miles then had accommodations arranged for them.

With that, the Aurelians and Azure Nereids officially settled in New Atlas, adding considerably to the city’s strength.

Once both races had been taken care of, Ethan joined Miles, Maxwell, and the others in the conference room.

”What’s the situation outside?” Ethan asked.

He had been gone for more than four hours. A lot could have changed in that time.

”Fighting is still going on in many places,” Miles reported. ”However, several powerful races have moved into our former compounds. It looks like they plan to settle there permanently.”

”Commander, there’s something I don’t understand,” Maxwell said. ”Earth doesn’t seem to have any special treasures. Why are these Void Realm races so determined to come here? Why would they choose to settle on Earth?”

”Mysterious energy,” Ethan replied. ”I’ve been to Eldoria, and the mysterious energy there is nowhere near as dense as it is on Earth. I suspect most other worlds are similar to Eldoria.”

”Earth’s mysterious energy only becomes active at night, after the Nine-Star Dipper appears, but absorbing it for a few hours here provides as much benefit as spending half a month in Eldoria.”

”The dimensional rifts opened right as the Nine-Star Dipper appeared, when Earth’s mysterious energy was at its densest. Most Void Realm creatures would have sensed it as soon as they entered Earth. That’s why they want to stay.”

”That explains it...” Everyone nodded.

No wonder so many races were flooding onto Earth.

”Have we found any especially powerful ones?” Ethan asked.

”We have.” Their expressions turned grim.

”We’ve identified several races within the Atlas Federation whose strength is comparable to the Voltari’s. We don’t know their exact capabilities, but each of them has dozens of Stage SSS fighters. Three have already settled inside the Federation.”

”Where?”

”One has taken over the former Goldcrest City, another has occupied the Heartland City compound, and the third is in Nova City.”

”Our people evacuated those compounds, but most of the buildings were left intact. Several Void Realm races fought over them, and those three races came out on top. They moved in immediately afterward.”

”Other compounds are still being contested by races from different worlds, but no clear winners have emerged yet.”

Miles continued, ”Aside from those three, we’ve discovered two other powerful races that haven’t tried to settle anywhere. One is roaming around hunting Beasts. The other is hunting powerful members of other races.”

”They’re hunting other races?” Ethan frowned.

Hunting Beasts made sense, but why would anyone go around hunting other intelligent races?

”Yes. From what we’ve observed, their ability is unusual. After killing their opponents, they release some kind of black energy that covers the entire battlefield. By the time it dissipates, nothing remains of their victims but bones.”

Miles’s brow furrowed.

”We can’t see what happens inside because the black energy blocks our view, but I suspect they possess some kind of devouring ability.”

”Based on our observations so far, they’re also the strongest race we’ve encountered. They have more than seventy Stage SSS fighters. They will almost certainly become our greatest threat.”

”More than seventy?” Ethan’s eyes widened.

”At least seventy,” Miles confirmed gravely. ”Probably more.”

Ethan slowly exhaled.

With so many races arriving from different Void Realm worlds, some of them were bound to be terrifyingly powerful.

There was no way this disaster would be easy to survive.

At this rate, Earth would eventually become divided among rival powers.

Its mysterious energy was so dense that everyone wanted a foothold here, but Earth only had so much territory. Conflict was inevitable.

And as Earth’s native inhabitants, humanity would likely bear the brunt of it.

Earth is my home. I won’t let you run wild here forever. Sooner or later, I’ll drive every last one of you out.

”By the way, Miles, have we found any Stage SSS Beasts?” Ethan asked.

”We have. Quite a few, actually.”

”Tell me.”

”Based on the satellite footage, Stage SSS Beasts are probably present in many of the mountain ranges. We’ve already identified at least five inside the Blackpine Wilds in Rivermark State.”

”There are also several Stage SSS Beasts roaming outside the forests with Beast hordes, hunting Void Realm races.”

”At the same time, races from the Void Realm are hunting Beasts in several regions. The closest case is in Northforge City, where one group is currently surrounding a Stage SSS Beast. It looks like they’re about to kill it.”

”If you want to intervene, Commander, I think that would be our best target.”

”Based on our analysis, the Beast should be Tier 44. The race attacking it specializes in fire-type abilities. They have four Stage SSS fighters, and their strongest is also Tier 44.”

”That sounds perfect.” Ethan’s eyes lit up. ”Send me the location. I’ll head there immediately.”

”All right.”

As soon as he received the coordinates, Ethan left New Atlas with Abyron.

He had only just returned, yet he was already heading out again. As Commander, he barely had a moment to rest.

But after learning how dire the situation had become, he couldn’t afford to slow down. He had to seize every opportunity to increase his strength.

Only then would he be ready for whatever came next.

Fortunately, humanity still held several advantages over the races from the Void Realm.

The satellites were their greatest asset.

With them, New Atlas could monitor the major foreign races throughout the Atlas Federation in real time.

And knowing the enemy’s movements could make all the difference.