The moment Ivy thought about how many sacrifices and schemes it had taken just to capture five superior beings previously, a cold fury surged inside her chest.

’That damned Ariana...’

For a brief moment, Ivy genuinely felt the urge to march to Ariana and kill her personally. Even while trapped in a coma, that woman still managed to create endless disasters for everyone around her.

"That bitch truly planned everything perfectly," Ivy muttered coldly under her breath.

Her expression turned increasingly aggravated as she lifted her gaze toward Silas.

"If all these superior beings have fully awakened," Ivy said grimly, "then the first thing they will try to do is open more portals. Once that happens, humanity will truly be finished for good."

Silas silently agreed with her assessment. The two of them immediately began discussing possible solutions with extreme caution.

After all, the superior beings were becoming harder and harder to control.

Meanwhile, while countless people struggled outside against visible dangers, Nora suddenly experienced a horrifying dream.

Inside the dream, she found herself standing in a strange dark place. Then she saw them.

Several strange-looking humanoid figures stood together in the distance.

Their appearances resembled humans, yet each of them possessed unnatural features.

One of them had a long black tail swaying slowly behind him, while another had pale silver eyes without visible pupils.

Nora’s heartbeat instantly accelerated.

The pressure radiating from them was so overwhelming that she almost wanted to scream.

However, no matter how hard she tried, her body refused to move. It felt as though invisible chains had restrained her completely.

All she could do was stand there silently and watch.

As time passed, the superior beings continued discussing something amongst themselves.

"That hybrid Ivy should be punished," one of them spoke coldly while narrowing his eyes. "Even though she carries superior blood, she still shelters those filthy low-level humans."

Another superior being gave a slow nod before replying with an icy voice.

"If someone like her is allowed to live, she will eventually become troublesome even for our race."

Nora’s face gradually turned pale as she listened to their conversation.

Soon, more and more superior beings gathered together.

An unbearable sense of dread slowly crept into Nora’s heart.

’If this continues... Ivy will die.’

The moment that thought appeared in her mind, the scene suddenly shifted.

It became evening.

Nora saw several figures silently surrounding Ivy from behind.

Before Ivy could even react, one of the superior beings from the earlier meeting stepped forward with a dagger in his hand.

The silver blade reflected a terrifying cold light. Without hesitation, he plunged the dagger directly into Ivy’s heart.

Nora helplessly watched Ivy’s body collapse onto the ground lifelessly while blood slowly spread beneath her.

"No!"

Nora abruptly jolted awake with a scream.

Cold sweat completely drenched her body while her breathing became uneven and chaotic.

Her trembling fingers clutched the bedsheets tightly as her chest rose and fell violently.

After quickly looking around the room, she realized it had only been a dream.

However, instead of calming down, her expression became even grimmer.

The dream felt far too real. Almost like a warning.

Without wasting another second, Nora immediately decided to gather the secret group.

The moment she secretly contacted everyone, none of them refused.

Soon, June, Ron, Felix, Alana, and Nora herself gathered at their hidden meeting location. After Nora explained the dream in detail, everyone fell quiet.

Ron was the first to react.

His expression stiffened before he slowly spoke, "So we’ve finally reached this stage..."

He lowered his head briefly before continuing in a solemn tone.

"Does this mean we should finalize the main plan now?"

The others silently nodded one after another.

Felix leaned against the wall while crossing his arms tightly.

"We still need to tell Ivy about the plan," he muttered seriously. "If she doesn’t even know what we are planning, then what is the point of hiding everything for so long?"

Everyone agreed immediately.

However, just as they prepared to leave and inform Ivy, Silas suddenly appeared.

The moment they saw his expression, the atmosphere instantly became tense.

Silas looked at everyone coldly before speaking in a low voice. "Not now."

Felix frowned slightly. "Why?"

Silas exhaled slowly before replying with visible irritation.

"Because the moment Ivy learns the full truth, she will immediately think about sacrificing herself."

The room instantly fell silent.

"You all know how she is," Silas continued while rubbing his forehead tiredly. "She would rather throw herself into danger than allow anyone else to suffer."

Felix immediately shook his head. "Ivy isn’t stupid enough to toy with her own life."

Silas suddenly let out a bitter chuckle. "You don’t understand her at all."

For a brief second, complicated emotions surfaced in his eyes.

’That silly woman...’

The more Silas thought about the countless sacrifices Ivy had made repeatedly, the more irritated he became.

His only wife was someone who constantly risked her own life without hesitation.

Even though he loved her deeply, he truly hated watching her place herself in danger again and again.

Seeing Silas’ increasingly dark mood, the others wisely decided to remain silent.

Meanwhile, Eric continued helping the country eliminate the remaining infected individuals.

As the final batch of zombies regained their consciousness after treatment, the government finally confirmed something humanity had desperately longed to hear.

Every zombie within the entire country had officially been dealt with.

Soon afterward, television stations that had finally recovered their broadcasting systems began spreading the news everywhere.

However, the government carefully avoided taking public credit.

When the contracts regarding the antidote had originally been signed, strict conditions were established.

One of those conditions clearly stated that the government could not claim ownership over the antidote or the cure.

Everyone knew perfectly well who truly deserved the credit. Helena, Alice, Victor, Jay, and a few other researchers. Especially Ivy.

The higher authorities had already reviewed countless reports regarding her accomplishments.

Whether it involved natural disasters, mutated creatures, viruses, or man-made catastrophes, Ivy had repeatedly managed to stand at the forefront and resolve them.

This caused several influential figures to develop complicated thoughts.