The planet called Earth continued to orbit the sun whether humans existed or not. Days passed peacefully, the natural cycle undisturbed by the destruction that had befallen its surface.
In Japan, winter had arrived. Snow fell heavily, blanketing the ruined cityscape in a pure and silent white layer. Unfortunately, this year there were no bright Christmas decorations adorning the streets, no children's laughter, only silence wrapped in white.
"So this is what they call snow, huh... This is the first time I've seen it."
Floating in the air at a height of 200 meters with Divine Dividing, Azlan, whose hair had grown long enough that he had to tie it in a ponytail, reached out his hand to touch the snow falling from the sky.
The white flakes melted on his warm palm, the gentle cold sensation making him smile faintly, contrasting with his hot memories of war zones filled with dust and explosions.
[It's unusual for you to be melancholic, Azlan. What's wrong? Don't tell me you want a woman to warm your bed?]
The blue light wings on Azlan's back flickered in sync with Albion's joking voice.
"Don't tease me, Albion. Women only slow down my training." Azlan answered briefly, his gaze returning below, to the city covered in thin snow.
It had been three months since Azlan started training in Senjutsu. Not only that, he had also adapted to the Mystic Eye of Heavenly Eye, though he hadn't yet reached the stage of full control.
The changes in him were drastic. His current self could easily defeat his self from three months ago with just one hand.
[Oh yeah, are you going to patrol as usual? Maybe you'll find another person from another world.] Albion asked curiously.
In these three months, Azlan had found human corpses several times in relatively fresh condition. Based on their clothing and belongings, they were clearly not from this world.
Albion was an ancient being who had lived for thousands of years. His insight and experience were immeasurable. With just a few comparisons, he determined that Aki Tomoya and the human corpses Azlan found did not originate from this world, but rather each of them came from different worlds.
As for why they were summoned to this post-zombie apocalypse world?
Albion didn't know the cause due to lack of information, but he suspected there was a greater power behind it.
"Who knows. Visitors from other worlds don't come every day. And besides, every time I find them, they're already dead at the hands of zombies."
Azlan shook his head slowly, snow clinging to his tied hair.
"Honestly, I don't understand how they could die by zombies. After all, zombies have now entered their final phase; their bodies are rotting and weak. They're no longer as fierce as before."
"As long as someone is brave enough, using an iron rod or wooden plank is more than enough to defeat zombies."
Azlan himself was living proof. He survived and even thrived.
[Of course there's a difference!]
[Your mentality isn't something ordinary people living in peace possess. When facing danger, their first instinct isn't to fight, but to run! Fear and panic can paralyze.]
Albion had witnessed so much human history, understanding this psychology well.
"Let's end this topic. It's time for me to train."
Azlan shifted his gaze downward, to the highway covered in thin snow.
Directing his right hand downward, he compressed his Ki, forming a faintly glowing energy ball, then shot it at the highway.
*BOOM!*
The earth-shaking explosion shattered the city's silence. The roar was immediately answered by the howls and growls of hundreds of zombies emerging from their hiding places, swarming toward the source of the sound. A sea of bloodthirsty living dead moved below.
"..."
Seeing the sea of zombies below, Azlan was not intimidated in the slightest. He deactivated Divine Dividing, and his light wings disappeared, leaving a cold wind gust.
*WHOOSH!*
His body was immediately pulled by Earth's gravity. He fell freely from a height of 200 meters, wind roaring in his ears.
*BUZZ!*
Just before hitting the ground, a faint but powerful whitish energy aura enveloped his entire body—Touki.
Touki was part of Senjutsu. Touki was the basic form or result of Ki control taught in Senjutsu training.
Generally, Touki could only be awakened by those who had undergone rigorous training and perfected their martial arts abilities to the peak. This allowed someone to project their unlimited vitality and life force outward, transforming it into a visible layer of energy.
This pure energy could strengthen the internal and external aspects of the body, enhancing someone's physical capabilities, increasing attack power, defense, and speed to superhuman levels.
Touki was one of Azlan's achievements in learning Senjutsu over these three months.
*BAM!*
Azlan landed hard, crushing several zombies beneath him into pulp with the force of his impact. Both his feet landed firmly on top of the pile of corpses, surrounded by a sea of howling zombies.
"Well, let's begin."
He rose, his Touki glowing. This was his daily training—fighting, surviving, and honing his new powers amidst the threat of death.
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
Ten minutes later.
Azlan stood in the middle of hundreds of scattered zombie corpses, his body still enveloped in remnants of glimmering Touki.
Black blood and bodily fluids stained the snow around him. He let out a long breath, but not a breath of relief—rather deep disappointment.
"Weak... Too weak!"
"They couldn't even scratch my Touki! How can I become stronger if I only fight weak enemies like this? No matter how many times I do it, the strong oppressing the weak is extremely boring."
[There's no other choice. Except for zombies, there are no other living creatures that can match you in this world. Besides, this is an ordinary world without supernatural beings. Azlan, you've even fought bears and tigers barehanded and won. You know yourself that currently, you are the strongest here.]
Albion's voice echoed in his mind, his tone neutral but reminding him of the bitter reality.
"The strongest, huh... This title is completely meaningless in this world."
Instead of being pleased, Azlan grumbled because his strength was stagnant. There were no opponents who could stimulate his potential to develop further.
He needed strong opponents—something that could push him to his limits.
"Hyaaa—"
That female scream full of fear immediately banished all of Azlan's plans to go home and rest. His eyes, which had almost closed with boredom, suddenly opened wide, narrowing with sharp focus.
"That's a human voice! Moreover, one that's still alive!"
[Azlan! Quickly save her!]
Albion urged, his voice rarely sounding this urgent.
"I know!"
The memory of finding Aki Tomoya too late flared in his mind. He wouldn't let that tragedy repeat itself.
*WHOOSH!*
With an explosion of energy from his Touki, Azlan's body shot like a bullet, leaving tracks in the snow. He covered a distance of several hundred meters in just seconds, his energy-enhanced feet stepping with inhuman speed.
He arrived at the end of a street and saw the source of the sound. A young girl with shoulder-length blue-green hair was trapped in a dead-end alley.
Behind her, the exit was blocked by five zombies moving slowly but inevitably approaching. The girl had reached the end of the road, her back against the cold brick wall, her face pale and filled with unstoppable horror.
"...!!!"
Without thinking twice, Azlan activated his Mystic Eye of Heavenly Eye. In his mind, he saw various streams of possible futures that the girl would experience.
First precognition: The girl tried to climb the wall, but her hands slipped due to cold and fear. Before she could try again, the first zombie grabbed her ankle, pulling her down. The others immediately swarmed, biting and tearing her apart. Blood splattered on the brick wall.
Second precognition: She tried to slip past the zombies, but one of them accidentally dropped its rotting body, trapping her in the corner. Sharp teeth chewed her still-living flesh.
Third precognition: She ran straight, but the zombies chased, the girl stumbled and fell, trampled to pieces.
Fourth precognition: She screamed for help louder, but no one came. She fell due to panic, and the zombies devoured her in that position.
Infinite possibilities rolled like a fast film, each ending in failure or death.
So, Azlan forced those infinite possibilities to collapse into a single future—a future where he saved her. His Heavenly Eye guided him to the most optimal action.
Instead of running through the alley entrance blocked by zombies, Azlan's body shot to the side. His feet stepped on the wall of the building beside the alley, running vertically on the snow-covered brick surface at an impossible speed.
He bypassed the zombies, landing lightly and perfectly between the girl and the approaching threat.
"Hold on tight." Azlan said in a calm but firm voice, not caring about the fear in the girl's eyes. "Oh yeah, close your eyes."
The girl, stunned by the sudden appearance of a young man with super abilities, could only nod obediently.
"Mm."
She not only closed her eyes tightly but also wrapped her trembling arms around Azlan's neck, holding on tight.
With the girl safe in his embrace, Azlan slaughtered the zombies toward his exit, his movements like a deadly dance in the narrow alley.
*BANG!*
He kicked the first zombie into the wall, its bones breaking with a loud crack, snow flying.
*BANG!*
The second he struck with his elbow, his Touki making the blow shatter the skull like fragile glass.
*BANG!*
The third zombie jumped, but Azlan rotated his body, throwing it into the wall with ki force that slammed it to pieces.
*BANG!* *BANG!*
Four and five he handled simultaneously—one punch hitting the rotten chest, the other kicked into the air before falling and being stomped until crushed.
Every movement was efficient, the Heavenly Eye ensuring no wasted attacks, snow mixing with black blood around his feet as he shot out of the alley, leaving the motionless corpses behind.
With the threat neutralized, Azlan, still carrying the girl, walked out of the dead-end alley calmly, leaving the corpses he had just created.
He had changed fate.
But who was this girl?
And where did she come from?
Those questions now spun in his head.