The ground near the entrance was quickly broken through.
"Roar!"
Bulldozer let out a deep, guttural growl and was the first to charge in.
He grabbed a chunk of granite from the ground and hurled it into the crowd with terrifying force.
The massive rock crashed down with a dull thud, instantly taking out two survivors. Blood splattered everywhere.
"Hehehehe…"
The female zombie following close behind let out a chilling, eerie laugh.
One of the survivors seized the moment, swinging a machete straight at her head.
But her speed was unbelievable.
With a swift motion, she raised her hand, her razor-sharp claws slashing through the man's forearm in an instant.
"Ahhh—!"
His agonized scream echoed through the room.
The excruciating pain caused him to drop the machete, which clattered to the floor.
The female zombie caught the blade effortlessly, her lips curling into a sinister smile.
In the next moment, she swung the machete down with precision, slicing clean through the man's neck.
Blood sprayed everywhere, painting the scene in horror.
"Holy shit! That zombie knows how to use a weapon!"
"This is insane! This doesn't make any sense!"
"What do we do? We don't stand a chance against them!"
The survivors' morale shattered in an instant.
And then, things got even worse. A crossbow bolt suddenly flew in from a distance, piercing straight through another survivor's skull.
Everyone turned to look, only to see the Doctor Zombie calmly reloading another bolt into his crossbow.
"This… this is a massacre!"
The survivors completely broke down, dropping their weapons and scattering in all directions.
By the time Ethan stepped into the fortress, the battle was already over.
Corpses littered the ground, and the air was thick with the stench of blood.
The entire fortress looked like a slaughterhouse.
Ethan walked in slowly, his steps steady and deliberate. Behind him, three subordinate zombies followed in perfect formation, moving with the precision of a well-trained squad.
Before long, they reached a room.
In the center of the room was a pile of extinguished ashes from a fire, surrounded by scattered bones. The bones bore unmistakable human teeth marks.
Ethan's gaze swept over the scene, and he immediately understood what had happened here.
From the corner of the room came the faint sound of labored breathing.
Following the sound, Ethan walked over and found a woman lying on the ground.
Her legs had been sawed off, the stumps crudely wrapped with strips of cloth and rubber bands to stem the bleeding.
Her face was pale, her breathing shallow, as if she could die at any moment.
When she saw Ethan and his zombie subordinates, there wasn't a trace of fear in her eyes. Instead, there was a flicker of relief.
Ethan understood her expression immediately.
She was begging him to end her suffering.
Bulldozer stepped forward and granted her wish without hesitation.
In the fortress's final room, Warren and Damian were huddled together, trembling.
"Warren, what do we do? They're going to break in any second!" Damian's voice was filled with despair.
Warren took a deep breath, trying to steady himself.
"These zombies clearly still have human intelligence. Maybe… maybe we can negotiate with them."
"Negotiate?" Damian froze for a moment, then quickly nodded in agreement. "Yes! If we can negotiate, we might still have a chance to survive!"
Warren continued, "Besides, I knew Ethan before all of this. Maybe… maybe he'll spare us for old times' sake."
A glimmer of hope reignited in Damian's eyes.
"Warren, you're incredible! Not even the apocalypse can stop you from working your connections!"
Just as Damian finished speaking, Ethan's figure appeared at the far end of the hallway.
His footsteps were steady and deliberate, echoing through the silent corridor like the ticking of a countdown to death.
Behind him, the three zombie subordinates followed in perfect synchronization, exuding an oppressive, suffocating aura.
Gulp.
Warren's throat tightened as he swallowed hard. His lips were cracked, cold sweat dripped from his forehead, and his heart pounded so fast it felt like it might burst out of his chest.
"Wait! Ethan! Don't kill me! You remember me, right? It's me, Warren!"
He practically shouted, his voice trembling as he tried to mask his fear. With thirty feet still between them, he couldn't wait any longer to beg for his life.
Ethan stopped in his tracks, his gaze landing on Warren.
His eyes were cold and empty, as if he were examining something utterly insignificant.
After a moment, he gave a slight nod, clearly recognizing the familiar face.
"Oh."
Ethan's response was chilling in its simplicity.
His tone was flat, devoid of any emotion.
The three zombies behind him didn't immediately attack, which sparked a glimmer of hope in Warren's heart. A strained smile crept onto his face, as if he'd just grabbed onto a lifeline.
"Ethan, you remember, don't you? I bought your farm back then, and I even lent you a lot of money! We've got history, man!"
Warren forced a smile, desperately trying to appeal to their past relationship.
Ethan frowned slightly, as if he were considering something.
After a brief pause, a cold smirk tugged at the corner of his lips. His voice carried a hint of mockery.
"So… you're my creditor, huh?" He paused, his tone suddenly turning icy. "Then I have even more reason to kill you."
Warren's face instantly turned ashen, his body stiffening as if he'd been struck by lightning.
"W-wait, Ethan! That's not what I meant—"
But it was too late.
The three zombies behind Ethan lunged forward with terrifying speed and ferocity.
Their claws tore into Warren and Damian's bodies, ripping them apart in a brutal frenzy. Blood sprayed across the walls, and their screams were cut short almost instantly.
The two didn't even have time to struggle before they were devoured.
The fortress fell silent.
There were no survivors.
...
Ethan scanned the area, methodically gathering any useful supplies from the fortress. His movements were calm and unhurried, as if the massacre moments ago had been nothing more than routine.
Once he was done, he left the blood-soaked ruins with his three zombie subordinates in tow.
Nina was sitting in the cab of a box truck, waiting nervously.
Her hands gripped the steering wheel tightly, her knuckles white. Even from inside the truck, she could hear the screams and desperate cries coming from the fortress. The thick metal walls couldn't block out the horror, and her imagination filled in the rest. She pictured the scene inside—something far worse than the slaughter she'd witnessed back at the school.
When Ethan finally emerged in front of the truck, his white shirt was still spotless, not a single trace of blood on him. It was as if nothing had happened.
He opened the door and climbed into the passenger seat.
"Where to next, boss?" Nina asked cautiously, her voice trembling slightly.
"Home," Ethan replied curtly, his tone unnervingly calm.
The box truck rumbled to life, pulling away from the fortress and heading toward Ethan's residence.
...
Nina was assigned to live in the house next to Ethan's.
From that day on, her life changed completely.
Every day, she worked tirelessly—washing Ethan's clothes, cleaning the house, doing the dishes, and scrubbing every speck of dust off the floors.
She knew that even the slightest hint of laziness could mean death.
But Ethan wasn't entirely unkind to her.
Every day, he provided her with human food—bread, vegetables, and, on days when he was in a good mood, even frozen steak or seafood to give her a rare treat.
Compared to the survivors outside, Nina gradually realized just how lucky she was.
At least she didn't have to sleep in the open or worry about where her next meal would come from.
As time passed, Nina slowly adapted to this new way of life.
She even began to feel that surviving in this building was far safer than being out in the chaotic, dangerous world beyond.
...
Meanwhile, Ethan's body was undergoing astonishing changes.
With his massive intake of meat, his evolution was accelerating at an incredible pace.
His appetite was insatiable—he consumed over a hundred short tons of beef alone, not to mention countless amounts of chicken and pork.
Ethan could feel his strength growing day by day.
His muscles became denser, his reflexes sharper, and even his thoughts seemed clearer and more focused.
Still, he wasn't entirely sure just how powerful he had become.
That was, until ten days later, when his body underwent a dramatic transformation.
Deep within his skull, a crystalline core began to form, clear and radiant. At the same time, a faint crimson glow flickered in his eyes, hinting at some unknown, terrifying power.
"My head feels so itchy…" Ethan muttered under his breath, a strange smile creeping across his face.
"Looks like… I'm about to awaken my abilities."