Chapter 829: Nothing to fear

The sudden arrival of the Guard Mechs and the Saber Corps flipped the battlefield on its head again, pushing the Zombie Horde’s advantage even further.

Even the elite bloodline warriors directly descended from the mutant beast overlords couldn’t hold their ground.

Sure, they were fierce—but at the end of the day, they were just wild beasts from the mountains. They’d never seen tech like this before. The firepower left them completely stunned.

“Why the hell do zombies have weapons like that?!”

“How should I know?!”

“They’re cheating! This isn’t a fair fight!”

“…”

The mutant beast overlords roared in frustration, unwilling to accept what was happening.

They believed that if it came down to raw strength, those zombies wouldn’t stand a chance.

But on the front lines, Big Ears and his crew were scanning the battlefield, looking for a worthy opponent.

“The top-tier zombies are already out there. Guess it’s our turn to shine!”

“Let’s blow ’em to pieces!” Shrimpy muttered, slinging a Crystal Core Firearm over his shoulder.

Ethan had captured a bunch of these weapons, so he figured—why not hand them out and let the boys have some fun?

Suddenly, the trees ahead rustled. A Horned Panther had been hiding, managing to avoid the elite zombies’ slaughter. Now, spotting Big Ears and the others, it crept out from the underbrush.

Its beastly instincts told it these zombies were weaker.

“Finally… found some easy prey.”

“Hm?” Big Ears raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. He could understand the signals the Horned Panther was giving off. “Why is there always some dumbass who thinks they can take me?”

“Then let me show you who’s really gonna die!” the Horned Panther snarled, its body blurring as it lunged forward with impressive speed.

“We Horned Panthers are built for speed—and this horn on my head? Harder than stone. What’ve you got to stop me?!”

“Oh…” Big Ears didn’t even bother replying. He just pulled out his Crystal Core Hand-Cannon.

The moment the panther leapt into the air, suspended mid-pounce, Big Ears pulled the trigger without hesitation.

BOOM!!!

A thunderous blast ripped through the air. Fire exploded mid-sky, and the Horned Panther didn’t even have time to react before it was blown to pieces.

Chunks of its body rained down—half of it even got stuck in a tree.

“Done and dusted.”

Big Ears tucked the still-smoking Hand-Cannon into his waistband, the bulge obvious.

Ssssss…

Still hot.

Behind him, Locomotive stared in disbelief. “That thing was fast as hell. You still managed to hit it?”

“Damn right,” Big Ears grinned smugly. “It’s all about technique…”

“…”

Zombies might not be as physically powerful as the savage Xenobeasts one-on-one, but once you gave them weapons? Whole different story.

Big Ears and his squad could now take down Xenobeasts with ease.

And the other elite zombies armed with Crystal Core Firearms? Even more brutal. They fired in rapid succession, energy blasts raining down like a meteor shower.

The ground ahead shook violently, explosions echoing nonstop.

Several massive beasts were torn apart under the concentrated fire.

Using high-tech weapons against the mutant beast horde was like bringing a gun to a knife fight—pure overkill.

Ethan’s Zombie Horde kept pushing forward, steamrolling everything in their path. The mutant beasts were getting crushed, their numbers dropping fast.

It was starting to look like the Xenorift continent’s fighting species were on the verge of extinction.

The Direwolf King threw back its head and let out a mournful howl, a cry of grief for its fallen kin. The sound was raw, filled with sorrow and rage.

“It’s our turn now! This battle’s dangerous, sure—but there’s no turning back!”

“Right! Defending our land, even if it means dying, is an honor!” the Titan Bison King roared. It dropped from its upright stance to all fours and charged forward like a living storm.

The thing was nearly 40 feet tall—like a mountain of muscle—but it moved with surprising speed and agility.

Beside it, a shadow flickered and vanished in a blur—faster than the bison. It was the Horned Panther King, known for its lightning-fast reflexes.

Its slit-pupiled eyes locked onto one target.

Laura.

“You’re fast—but don’t think I’m slow!” the Horned Panther King snarled, eyes gleaming with bloodlust. In a blink, it kicked into another gear, its body blurring into a phantom streak.

Laura had just finished off another Horned Panther when her instincts flared. She snapped her head toward the incoming threat, eyes narrowing. In a flash, the blade in her hand morphed into five razor-sharp steel claws.

Without hesitation, she darted forward to meet the charge head-on.

She and the Horned Panther King clashed mid-air, claws slashing in perfect sync.

CLANG!

A shrill metallic screech rang out—like steel grinding against steel.

Laura didn’t manage to land a killing blow. Clearly, this wasn’t just any beast. The Horned Panther King was no pushover—an SSS-class powerhouse, one of the top-ranked among the mutant beast overlords.

Not far off, the ground trembled violently as two titanic figures collided like battling gods.

Titan Bison King and Bulldozer were locked in a brutal melee.

Even though Bulldozer stood nearly ten feet tall, he looked downright puny next to the mountain-sized Titan Bison King. And in terms of raw power, he was clearly outmatched.

He could only hold his own thanks to the eight biomechanical tendrils sprouting from his back, which lashed out to parry the beast’s crushing blows.

Titan Bison King brought down a massive claw, and Bulldozer’s tendrils shot up to intercept.

BOOOOM!

The impact cratered the earth beneath them, sending shockwaves rippling outward.

But among all the mutant beast overlords, the strongest by far was the Direwolf King. As the so-called “Claw of the Mountain God,” he was the top lapdog—pampered with the best resources, the most power.

Naturally, the Direwolf King had chosen to face off against a Zombie King worthy of his strength: a Voidborn Undying—none other than the Overlord of Eastreach Bloodveil.

The two were evenly matched, blow for blow.

Even if the Direwolf King had a slight edge, it wasn’t enough to tip the scales. Neither could gain the upper hand. The fight had turned into a stalemate—a deliberate one.

“Perfect,” the Direwolf King thought, eyes flicking toward the depths of the jungle. The ground was shaking harder now, rhythmic and thunderous.

Something massive was coming.

Their god… was about to descend.

With each mutant beast overlord now locked in combat, the Zombie Kings were effectively tied up. The pressure on the mutant beast horde was easing. If they could just hold out a little longer—just survive until the Mountain God arrived—they could flip the entire battle.

But Ethan had no intention of letting that happen.

His gaze swept across the battlefield, sharp and calculating.

Now that the mutant beast overlords had joined the fray, there was no way he was letting them walk away alive.

He waited for the right moment—and now, it had come.

His eyes locked onto Titan Bison King.

Bulldozer, despite being a Zombie King, hadn’t yet evolved into a full-fledged Voidborn Undying. He was struggling. If this kept up, he might not survive.

“Guess I’ll start with you…” Ethan muttered.

He stepped forward—and vanished into the void.

Back on the battlefield, Bulldozer was sent flying again. Titan Bison King had slammed him with a sweeping claw strike. His biomechanical tendrils had tried to block it, but the force was too much. He crashed into the dirt, groaning.

“Damn it…” Bulldozer gritted his teeth, frustration etched across his face.

If only he’d reached SSS-class already…

Titan Bison King snarled, growing more savage by the second. “You’re not even worth my time. Crawl back to Necroterra where you belong!”

With that, he lunged again, dropping to all fours and charging like a runaway freight train.

Bulldozer clenched his jaw, forcing himself to rise, ready to meet the charge.

But then—Ethan appeared.

His form shimmered into existence, calm and unshaken, stepping between Bulldozer and the oncoming beast.

“Uh…”

Even Bulldozer was stunned.

Titan Bison King skidded slightly, caught off guard. His momentum slowed.

What the hell was Ethan doing here?

Up until now, Ethan had barely lifted a finger. Most of the mutant beast overlords had practically forgotten he was even on the field.

Now, seeing him step in, Titan Bison King’s irritation flared. But he didn’t stop.

He remembered what the Mountain God had said: The Voidborn Undying might be strong, but they weren’t invincible. Not as terrifying as the legends made them out to be.

Nothing to fear.

So he kept charging.

…

Here’s a redemption code for everyone: