Apocalypse: King of Zombies-Chapter 294: The hunt begins now

Outside San Bernardino.

The battle raged on. Over a thousand drones buzzed through the air, each equipped with flamethrowers.

Blazing torrents of fire spewed forth, forming a massive inferno that swept over the zombie horde like a deadly pesticide.

"ROOOAAARR—" The undead shrieked in agony, their bodies igniting into writhing human torches.

Below, the ground became a sea of flames.

Some drones, running out of fuel, deliberately dove straight into the densest clusters of zombies, detonating on impact with deafening explosions.

Meanwhile, armored vehicles crushed the undead under their treads, while Cyborgs tore through them with ruthless efficiency.

A small breach was finally ripped open in the relentless tide of zombies.

Then, several human figures burst from the inferno, their movements swift and precise as they leaped across the tops of armored vehicles.

It was Elias's squad.

"Captain! We made it out!"

Their bodies bore scorch marks, their faces smeared with soot. They panted heavily, clearly drained from the fight.

Elias exhaled in relief at the sight of his surviving teammates, but his expression quickly darkened.

"Damn it… Bison didn't make it."

"What?" The squad exchanged stunned glances.

Only now did they realize—Bison's massive frame was nowhere to be seen. His familiar voice, his easygoing grin… all of it flashed through their minds.

The big guy was gone. Forever.

"Bison was an S-Class Strength Awakener… and even he didn't survive?" The young man with the powerful right leg shook his head in disbelief, unwilling to accept the brutal reality.

The female Awakener beside him cast a wary glance at the zombie horde.

"That Zombie King from L.A. is still in there. But honestly? I doubt he's getting out either. No living thing can withstand an endless swarm like that."

"Let's hope so…" Elias muttered, but then—cough, cough!—he suddenly doubled over, hacking violently. His face had gone pale. The battle had drained his mental energy far too much.

Jacob's analysis from before echoed in his mind… That kind of cough is never a good sign.

Yeah. This wasn't just exhaustion. Something was seriously wrong.

Deep within the zombie horde.

Ethan's tachi never stopped moving. The blade, wreathed in flames, carved through the undead like a scythe through wheat.

With Elias no longer suppressing him with psychic resistance, the terrifying Domain of the Dead surged back to full power.

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A crushing force spread outward in an instant.

The densely packed zombies around him froze in place.

The air fell eerily silent.

Then—crack, crack, crack!—their bodies began to snap and splinter, as if their very bones were being ground to dust. One by one, they collapsed, lifeless.

As the undead crumbled, Ethan's figure emerged from the carnage.

"Kill."

His tachi slashed again, reaping another wave of zombies.

In mere moments, a vacuum of empty space had formed around him.

His sheer lethality was impossible to ignore—Elias and his squad had all turned to watch.

"What the hell…" One of them gaped in shock.

"Captain, that Zombie King from L.A.… he's not even trying to escape."

"Yeah. If anything, it looks like he's planning to wipe out the entire horde."

"…Is he insane?" Even Elias found it hard to believe.

Meanwhile, in the distance, Nightmare's forces were observing the battle.

Compared to the humans' interference, Ethan's slaughter was on a whole different level.

Scissorhands, standing nearby, spoke up.

"Boss, that guy's already taken out thousands of our zombies."

Nightmare didn't seem fazed.

"No big deal. I refuse to believe he's got unlimited energy. We'll just wear him down."

But just as he finished speaking—

From Mount Wilson, a sudden commotion erupted. Birds took flight in droves. Trees began to shake.

Then—

A guitar riff exploded through the air.

The melody surged, wild and electrifying, like the opening chords of a battle anthem.

"What the hell is going on?"

Nightmare's brow furrowed. Something was off.

Across the battlefield, Elias, Jacob, and the rest of the San Bernardino survivors turned toward the disturbance, a sinking feeling settling in their chests.

All eyes locked onto Mount San Antonio.

At first, it was just a few crows bursting from the dense forest, their wings flapping wildly as they shrieked into the sky.

Then—more.

A massive, swirling black cloud of them, blotting out the sun.

And then, the Zombie Kings arrived.

The first was impossible to miss.

A towering behemoth barreled forward like a runaway freight train, his sheer bulk shaking the earth with every step. Behind him, a squad of elite zombies followed, their faces twisted with bloodthirsty rage.

The giant roared, his voice booming across the battlefield.

"I am the Zombie King of East L.A.—Eastern Titan, Bulldozer! No one touches the boss while I stand!"

Beside him, a shadow flickered—moving so fast it was nearly invisible.

In the blink of an eye, it was at Ethan's side.

The darkness rose from the ground, shifting into the form of a pitch-black zombie with a nightmarish grin.

"I am the Zombie King of North L.A.—Northern Phantom, Shadow. And from the darkness, I strike!"

Then, without warning, the zombies surrounding Ethan froze in place.

A crushing psychic force swept through them, piercing their minds.

One by one, they collapsed, writhing in agony.

As the undead fell, a new figure stepped forward.

A thin, pale man, his eyes gleaming with eerie intelligence.

"I am the Zombie King of South L.A.—The Mind Reaper, PhD. And class is now in session."

And finally—

A gust of wind tore through the battlefield.

A blur of motion.

Before anyone could react, a woman materialized beside Ethan, her crimson eyes gleaming with predatory hunger.

"I am the Zombie King of West L.A.—Scarlet Reaper, Laura. And the hunt begins now."

Silence.

The four Zombie Kings stood together, their presence suffocating.

And they weren't alone.

From the forest, a massive undead tiger prowled forward, its muscles rippling beneath its rotting fur. Its glowing eyes scanned the battlefield, searching for prey.

Behind it, two more figures emerged—Sprout and Lil' Shroom, their twisted forms radiating unnatural energy.

The entire core force of the L.A. zombie nest had arrived.

Each of them exuded overwhelming power.

Even the weakest among them was at least A-Class—and some were far beyond that.

Nightmare's expression darkened.

"So this… is the true strength of the L.A. zombie nest?"

He clenched his fists.

These Zombie Kings were monsters.

Among his own forces, only Scissorhands and the now-dead Giant Boulder could have matched them in a fight.

And Giant Boulder was gone.

Beside him, Scissorhands scowled.

"Yeah, that's them. Those bastards kept stealing my crystal cores!"

Nightmare's eye twitched.

…Maybe he needed to rethink his earlier confidence.

But there was no turning back now.

Running wasn't an option.

Even if they were outmatched, they had to fight to the death.

Their only hope was that San Diego's Butcher Zombie King would arrive in time to tip the scales.

Nightmare exhaled sharply.

"We're going in."

"Got it!"

At his command, his elite zombies surged forward—including Scissorhands and the remaining Zombie Kings under his command.

The battlefield descended into chaos.

The two zombie hordes collided.

The undead went berserk, tearing into each other in a frenzy of violence.

And in the midst of it all—

Bulldozer rampaged.

His massive frame plowed through the battlefield, sending zombies flying like ragdolls.

Then, he reached a heavy armored vehicle.

He gripped the edges—and lifted.

"ROOOAAARR—!"

With a deafening roar, he hurled the multi-ton vehicle into the air.

It spun several times before crashing down, flattening a swarm of zombies into pulp.

Behind him, Sprout raised a hand.

"Vine Surge!"

The ground trembled.

From the earth, massive vines erupted, writhing like living serpents.

In an instant, they spread outward, covering everything in their path.

The once-dry, cracked battlefield transformed—lush green tendrils consumed the land, turning it into a twisted oasis.

And it was still expanding.Human or zombie—it didn't matter.

Everything was being swallowed.

Elias's face paled.

"This… this is an Absolute Domain?!"

...