Chapter 545: Radiation Zombie

According to Aiden, there were indeed some humans who refused to live under Monroe’s rule and chose to flee into the radiation zones.

So yeah, it was totally possible that Gunner had captured some of them.

They kept moving, deciding to follow the path the Vampire Horde had taken during their charge. Since the vamps had already cleared the way, it would save them a lot of unnecessary trouble.

Mia had always admired Ethan’s “scheming bastard” ways. The guy could turn literally anything into an advantage.

Along the way, they passed the corpses of several vampires. Clearly, there had been skirmishes. Some of the vampires had their skulls shattered, their Neurocores or crystal cores ripped out. It was brutal—gruesome enough to make your stomach turn.

After a long trek, they reached a city that had been hit hard by a meteor storm. The place was a wasteland of rubble and ruin.

Crumbling skyscrapers lined both sides of the street, groaning and creaking as rusted steel twisted and warped under its own weight.

Then, with a final thunderous crash, one of the buildings gave way completely, collapsing into a pile of bricks and debris.

It was only a matter of time before the whole city was swallowed by sand and wind.

“Human civilization’s getting wiped off the map,” Chris muttered, the others nodding in agreement.

The streets were deserted and falling apart. Weeds and shrubs had taken over, growing wild through cracks in the pavement. The buildings were covered in fractures, like the city itself was slowly being eaten away by time.

Aiden stood off to the side, looking around with a wistful expression. “Before the world went to hell, this place used to be booming. I came here all the time. Just a couple blocks up was the Crazy Horse Revue—best adult show in the whole city.”

“Oh yeah? Crazy Horse?” Chris raised an eyebrow, smirking. “You rich guys really paid to watch half-naked women dance and then gave it a name that sounds like a damn circus?”

Aiden shrugged. “Dude, that wasn’t just dancing. That was art. Lights, rhythm, body language… every show was a visual masterpiece.”

Chris snorted. “Right. And I’m sure you were there for the cultural experience.”

Aiden grinned. “Hey, who says I wasn’t?”

As they joked around, a low, guttural growl echoed from a nearby street.

“Hold up. Something’s out there,” Mia warned, instantly putting everyone on alert.

They froze, scanning the area carefully. Since Gunner and his vampires had passed through here, it was unlikely there’d be any major monsters left. Probably just a few stray zombies that had wandered in.

And sure enough…

The growling got closer, and a massive zombie lumbered into view. It stood at least ten feet tall, its skin rotting and stretched tight over bulging muscles. Its face twisted in a permanent snarl.

But the real shocker? It had two heads. And sprouting from its torso were over a dozen arms—some thick and muscular, others thin and feminine, all mismatched and grotesque.

Its veins pulsed with glowing blue blood, visible beneath the skin like neon wiring.

“Holy shit,” someone muttered.

The group stared, stunned. A zombie with glowing blue blood?

Clearly, this thing had gone through multiple mutations to end up like this.

“Evolution’s got no chill…” Ethan murmured under his breath. Was this what radiation did to the infected?

He tried sending out a brainwave pulse to communicate with the creature, but all he got back was static—chaotic, jumbled thoughts. No consciousness, no reasoning. Just pure, ravenous instinct.

“RRAAAHHH—!”

The Radiation Zombie let out a furious roar. The scent of human flesh had triggered something primal in it. To the creature, they were walking, talking gourmet meals.

It lunged forward, legs pounding the ground, all its arms reaching out like some nightmare straight out of hell.

“Blood Burst!” Brandon shouted, activating his awakened ability.

The zombie’s massive body shuddered, but the blue blood didn’t even break the surface. It barely flinched.

Mia didn’t waste the opening. In a blur of motion, she darted forward, Stellar Fang flashing in her hands.

Shing—! The blade sliced clean through its necks. Both heads flew off in a spray of glowing blue blood, and the hulking body crashed to the ground with a thunderous thud.

The Radiation Zombie had been powerful, no doubt about it—but against Ethan’s crew, it didn’t stand a chance.

“Too bad… it’s useless,” Mia muttered, giving the corpse a quick once-over. Her pretty face twisted in mild disgust. The crystal core it dropped was glowing faintly, but just like the others, it couldn’t be absorbed.

Ethan, however, kept staring at the body, eyes narrowing like he was piecing something together. “All those arms… it’d be a damn shame not to give this to Laura.”

Mia noticed he wasn’t moving and raised an eyebrow. “Hey! What are you scheming now? Don’t tell me you’ve got a use for this thing too?”

“Think about it,” Ethan said, his tone thoughtful. “What if the radiation from those special meteors could trigger limb regeneration?”

“Limb regeneration? Seriously?” The others looked at him, stunned.

Ethan nodded. “Remember when we killed that Radiated Giant Sandworm? We cut off its tentacles, and they grew back. Maybe the radiation has regenerative properties.”

“But if someone gets exposed to that kind of radiation, their mind goes haywire,” Mia pointed out. “They lose all reason—just become mindless, flesh-eating monsters.”

“Yeah,” Ethan admitted. “The side effects are brutal. That’s why it’s just a theory for now. It’s not ready. But if we can find a way to isolate the regenerative effect without the mental collapse… it could be huge.”

“Every scientific breakthrough starts with a crazy idea,” Elara said, her eyes lighting up. “It’s not like we’re gonna solve it overnight, but I think you’re onto something.”

She glanced at Ethan with admiration. If he wasn’t the Zombie King, she thought, he’d probably be one of the top scientists in the world.

But the most excited one in the group? That was definitely Griffin.

“So you’re telling me… there’s still hope for my boys?” he asked, voice tight with emotion.

“Hope?” Brandon snorted. “Man, if this works, you could grow seven or eight extra limbs if you wanted.”

Griffin’s eyes practically sparkled.

After tossing the idea around for a bit, they decided to shelve it for now. It was still way too early to test anything, but if they could pull it off… it’d be a game-changer.

No more worrying about lost limbs or permanent injuries.

They pressed on.

The road ahead was littered with more corpses—some vampires, some Radiation Zombies. It was clear Gunner had fought his way through here, and it hadn’t been easy.

But he was relentless, cutting a bloody path through the ruins of the city.

Ethan and the others followed the trail, occasionally running into stray monsters—twisted, mutated things they’d never seen before. Some had too many eyes, others had no faces at all.

Luckily, none of them were particularly strong. The team took them down without much effort.

But the deeper they pushed into the radiation zone, the more intense things got. The monsters’ blood turned a brighter, more vivid blue, glowing like bioluminescent ink.

Elara’s scanner beeped rapidly in her hand, the readings spiking.

“Radiation’s getting stronger,” she said. “We’re close to the center.”

Then, just ahead—across a barren, windswept plain—a thunderous roar shattered the silence. It was followed by more howls, snarls, and the unmistakable sounds of a massive battle.

Ethan narrowed his eyes, scanning the horizon.

“Looks like we’ve caught up to Gunner…”

…