Los Angeles.
Genesis Biotech Branch Office.
"All in!"
"You're done, I've got a full house."
"Oh really? Haha, sorry..."
"Four aces!"
Nathan's office was buzzing with excitent, crowded with his secretary and a group of colleagues gathered around, laughing and chatting loudly.
You can spend your days worrying, or you can spend them having fun. Since you're still alive, might as well chase happiness.
Ring ring... Ring ring...
Suddenly, the satellite phone on Nathan's desk rang.
"Huh?"
Nathan froze, surprised. It had been ages since this phone last rang.
Who could be calling ?
He quickly picked it up.
"Who is it? Make it quick."
"Oh! Mr. Nathan, judging by your tone... sounds like you're pretty busy lately?" Sophia teased sarcastically.
Nathan imdiately recognized the voice.
"Oh, it's you. What do you want? If it's nothing important, I'm hanging up."
"Of course it's important. What's your rush?" Sophia sounded puzzled.
Just then, Nathan's secretary urged impatiently, "Mr. Nathan, hurry up..."
"Hmm???" Sophia clearly heard the voice on the other end.
"Nathan, what exactly are you doing right now?"
"I'm playing poker," Nathan answered honestly.
"..." Sophia fell silent for a mont. "You'd better actually an poker..."
"What do you want?" Nathan pressed impatiently.
"Ahem!" Sophia cleared her throat, regaining her composure.
"The bounty hunters who accepted the Zombie King mission have arrived in San Bernardino. We're planning a full-scale counterattack to clear out the zombies in the surrounding area."
"What does that have to do with ?" Nathan asked, confused. He was sick of hearing about "clearing zombies."
Sophia continued, "Of course it involves you. When I retake Los Angeles, don't forget to open the gates and welco ."
"Heh, we'll talk when you actually get here."
"Fine. We'll see about that. I'll definitely co, and I hope you'll still have this attitude when we et face-to-face," Sophia threatened before abruptly hanging up.
Beep—beep—beep—
Nathan stared at the phone, hearing only the dial tone.
"What a psycho..." he muttered, annoyed, and put down the phone. Then he flipped over his cards.
"Straight flush!"
...
Ethan had no idea about any of this, nor did he care. All he needed to do was stay ho, absorb crystal cores, and keep evolving.
After all, strength was everything.
Only then could Ethan feel truly safe.
In the face of absolute power, all sches and conspiracies were aningless.
That day, a red-eyed crow flew in from outside, landing on Ethan's windowsill and tapping the glass with its beak.
"Shroom wants you... Shroom wants you..."
"Oh?" Ethan thought for a mont. Lil' Shroom had been closely monitoring movents from San Bernardino and Rancho Cucamonga. If she was looking for him, sothing must be up—probably soone causing trouble again.
In a flash, Ethan vanished from his spot, instantly reappearing on the street below.
Lil' Shroom was leading a group of mimics, wobbling adorably as she approached, the little mushroom on her head swaying gently.
"Hehe! Boss!" she greeted cheerfully.
"Hey, what's up?" Ethan asked casually.
Lil' Shroom quickly reported, "San Bernardino seems to have launched a counterattack recently. A bunch of Awakeners have co out of the city, clearing out zombies from Rancho Cucamonga that have been harassing them."
"Also, so humans have been frequently scouting around Angeles National Forest. They've got these third-generation liquid cyborgs that can detect my mimic disguises. Those things don't have flesh or blood, so I can't infect them. They're kind of a pain."
"Hmm, I see..." Ethan thought for a mont. "Did they hurt you?"
"Nah, not really. They don't dare get too close, just poking around the edges," Lil' Shroom replied.
Ethan frowned slightly. This wasn't good. Today they were just poking around the edges; tomorrow they'd be knocking on his front door.
Besides, the Awakeners from San Bernardino had always hidden inside their city, too scared to venture out. Now they suddenly had the guts to launch a large-scale counterattack? Sothing must've changed.
Who gave them the courage?
"Wait a second..."
Thinking about San Bernardino reminded Ethan of sothing important—he still hadn't returned their "gift."
The special souvenir from Japan: Devourer Ants.
Ethan felt a bit embarrassed. Ever since he'd returned ho, he'd been so busy absorbing crystal cores and evolving that he'd completely forgotten about sending his return gift.
Leaving it this long was pretty rude.
Ethan considered himself a polite zombie.
He had to make it right.
Besides, these third-generation cyborgs had been around for a while now, and he still hadn't seen one up close. It was about ti he paid them a visit.
Bringing a gift along to visit was just good manners, after all.
"You stay here and watch the house. I'm heading out for a bit," Ethan instructed.
"Okay, got it!" Lil' Shroom nodded seriously.
Ethan took out a small transparent container filled with Devourer Ants—tiny insects less than a milliter long. Sensing fresh flesh nearby, they frantically slamd against the container walls.
Ethan glanced in the direction they were desperately trying to reach—straight toward Nina, the strongest human employee in his territory.
"Relax, you'll get your al soon enough," Ethan reassured them, holding the container as he vanished from his spot.
He moved swiftly along the familiar route, down the highway, across the river bridge, and through the ruined cityscape. He'd traveled this path several tis already.
As he reached the outskirts of San Bernardino, he imdiately sensed nurous human presences. Clearly, they'd been very active lately, running around everywhere.
Ethan stood atop a large rock, gazing toward San Bernardino in the distance. Though the buildings weren't tall, lights flickered throughout the city, making it look like a beast lying in wait.
On the open fields outside the city, zombies were running wildly, clearly agitated by sothing. Rancho Cucamonga's Nightmare had been relentless, never giving up on harassing the humans.
"Man, zombies that obsessed are bound to lose their minds," Ethan muttered casually.
Of course, there were also plenty of humans out there, locked in fierce battles with the zombies. Shouts and screams filled the air, and the fighting was intense.
One particular spot stood out, with a large number of humans and zombies clashing. Awakeners unleashed colorful bursts of energy, explosions echoing across the battlefield.
Zombie roars pierced the air, shaking the surroundings.
Among them stood a towering, muscular figure. Even from a distance, Ethan recognized him imdiately. It was one of Nightmare's strongest subordinates, a strength-type Zombie King second only to Scissorhands.
This Zombie King was known as "Giant Boulder," an A-class powerhouse with a massive physique and mutated skin that looked polished and incredibly tough.
Especially that huge, shiny head of his—it practically reflected the moonlight.
"Wonder who polished that head so shiny..." Ethan joked to himself.
Wherever a Zombie King appeared, humans would inevitably gather.
"Guess I'll start there..."
With that thought, Ethan vanished once more, heading straight toward the chaos.
...
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