Chapter 500: A mechanical zombie?

“Charge!”

With Big Ears’ roar, the massive Zombie Horde behind him let out a deafening howl. Several crocodile beasts, each over thirty feet long, led the charge, smashing through the outer walls of Genesis Biotech like battering rams and storming inside.

There were still some defense systems in place, but they barely slowed the monsters down. Chaos erupted almost instantly—screams, panic, people running for their lives. It was total mayhem.

…

Out on the battlefield, as the fourth-generation Cyborgs entered the fray, Genesis Biotech finally managed to hold the line against the pressure from the Zombie King. The Awakeners regrouped, rallying to push back the relentless assault of the Zombie Horde.

“Hell yeah! That’s what I’m talking about!” Richard shouted, his face lit up with excitement.

But just then, his assistant came scrambling out of the armored vehicle, panic written all over his face. “Richard! Bad news! We just got word—our headquarters is under attack by zombies!”

“What?!” Richard froze, his expression darkening.

How the hell did that happen?

But then it clicked. He gritted his teeth. “Those bastards found a backdoor into our systems?!”

“People at HQ are calling for help. Should we pull some troops back to support them?” the assistant asked urgently.

Richard’s brow furrowed. The battle here was reaching its peak—pulling forces now would weaken their front lines. One wrong move, and the whole operation could collapse.

Good intentions don’t win wars.

Besides, the folks back at HQ were mostly office staff. Replaceable. They could always hire new ones later.

As for the headquarters itself? They could take it back after they won this war.

“Block all distress signals from HQ. As far as we’re concerned, we never got them.”

“What? But—” The assistant was stunned.

Richard’s eyes were cold and resolute.

“Do it. Now.”

“…Yes, sir.” The assistant bit his lip, then nodded. He understood exactly what Richard was doing—burning the ships, going all in. There was no turning back now.

If they lost this battle, they were all dead anyway.

On the battlefield, both humans and zombies had gone completely berserk.

Some of Genesis Biotech’s Awakeners, realizing they’d been infected, broke away from their squads and charged straight into the Zombie Horde, fighting to the death in suicide runs.

Their determination was clear—they were ready to die for victory.

“To die for humanity’s future is my honor!”

“Any ground is sacred if you fall fighting for what you believe in!”

“Kill!”

The war cries echoed across the field.

But the Zombie Horde was endless—thick as a swarm, covering the hills and valleys. Everywhere you looked, it was nothing but enemies. Grotesque faces, twisted in rage, like a nightmare that wouldn’t end.

The battlefield was so massive, there was no real formation anymore. Ethan’s elite zombies soon emerged from the horde—his trump cards. Among them were towering bio-engineered monstrosities, the kind of creatures you only unleash when you’re going all out.

These elite zombies were fast, agile, and terrifyingly strong. Their bodies could take direct hits from Crystal Core Firearms without flinching.

They tore through Genesis Biotech’s lines like a blade through paper, carving open a breach.

Everywhere, zombies were pouncing on soldiers, ripping into flesh. Screams filled the air—raw, desperate, and unending.

In the thick of it, Zombie King Laura was locked in combat with Cyborg Unit T-07.

She moved like lightning, vanishing in a blink. Her alloy-clawed right arm slashed across the Cyborg’s chest with a screeching metallic grind, sparks flying as she tore through its armor.

The Cyborg’s outer shell split open, and even its reinforced endoskeleton was gouged with deep, jagged grooves.

Its eyes glowed green, tracking Laura’s movements, calculating her trajectory. Then it unleashed a blast of fusion energy—its most powerful attack—hurling it straight at her.

Laura twisted mid-air, dodging with razor precision.

“Zigzag Blitz…”

She didn’t stop. Her speed exploded, leaving behind a trail of afterimages—so fast it looked like there were multiple versions of her surrounding the Cyborg.

T-07’s green optics flared brighter, pushing its processors to the limit. But even its advanced targeting systems couldn’t keep up with her anymore.

The Cyborg froze, standing stiffly in place—like a human overwhelmed and paralyzed by fear.

Several of Laura’s afterimages closed in at once, her alloy claws slashing in a relentless flurry. In just a heartbeat, she unleashed hundreds—no, thousands—of strikes.

The air filled with the screech of metal on metal—zzzzzzzz! Sparks exploded from T-07’s body as its liquid-metal armor was stripped away, layer by layer, like peeling the skin off a machine.

Then, with a final, vicious swipe, Laura’s claws went straight for the thinnest part of its neck.

SKREEEE—

A harsh metallic screech rang out as T-07’s neck was nearly severed. Its head snapped back, the green glow in its eyes flickering—then dying out completely.

From the torn metal at its neck, arcs of electricity crackled and danced, smoke curling into the air. A moment later, the heavy body collapsed backward with a thunderous crash.

“Damn… Laura’s gotten even stronger,” Chris muttered, crouched behind a massive boulder with a few others, quietly watching the chaos unfold.

He couldn’t help but think back to his days at the Los Angeles Academy of Survival. His students used to ask him all the time: Who’s the strongest Zombie King in L.A.? He’d never had a clear answer—until now.

If we’re talking raw one-on-one power, there’s no question. It’s Laura. High agility, brutal offense, and pure, unrelenting violence.

After taking down T-07, Laura glanced at the mangled cyborg’s body. It was all metal and tech—looked pretty advanced. She tilted her head, already thinking about having PhD tear it apart and reassemble it into a custom exosuit for herself.

Then her glowing eyes swept across the battlefield again, locking onto the remaining Cyborg units.

T-01 through T-07…

Guess I’ll collect the whole set.

Richard watched in horror as T-07 went down. His heart clenched. That was one of his most powerful weapons—his trump card—and now it was scrap metal.

His face darkened even further when he got a good look at Laura.

“What the hell is that…?”

“A mechanical zombie?”

“There’s actually something like that out there…?”

He was stunned. The L.A. Zombie Horde wasn’t just a chaotic mess—it was a damn freak show. Every kind of monster imaginable. And now, apparently, they had tech-savvy zombies too.

These things aren’t just mindless anymore… They’re turning into mad scientists.

Genesis Biotech’s Awakeners were clearly outmatched. Their casualties were piling up fast, and the tide was turning against them.

But the real outcome of the battle would be decided by the top-tier fighters.

Ethan and Sable’s clash had taken over nearly half the battlefield. Their fight alone was more intense than the combined chaos of hundreds of thousands of zombies and tens of thousands of human soldiers.

Two Absolute Domains clashed, their destructive forces rippling outward, warping the very air around them.

It looked like the end of the world.

But Ethan wasn’t meeting Sable head-on. He danced around her attacks with ghostlike grace, slipping through every strike like smoke. His movements were fluid, untouchable—impossible to pin down.

Sable’s chest rose and fell, her breathing heavy. He was burning through energy fast—his powers were draining her with every second.

And he was getting desperate.

The Zombie Horde was closing in, overwhelming the Awakeners. If they fell, there’d be no one left to stop the tide. No survivors.

He had to kill Ethan. Fast. That was the only way to win.

Meanwhile, Richard and his remaining forces were barely holding the line, buying his time—carrying the weight of everyone’s hopes on their shoulders.

“Hey! You call yourself a Zombie King? Then fight me head-on! What’s the matter—too scared to stop running?!”

Ethan didn’t even blink. “Nope. I’m good.”

He said it casually, like he couldn’t care less.

…