He slumped against the back of the chair and told everything he knew.
"Fifty years ago, a colossal meteorite fell from the sky and slammed into the center of the continent."
"Scientific institutions around the world flocked to study it."
"But no one realized the meteorite carried a cosmic energy we can't comprehend."
"That energy spread across the planet from the impact crater."
"The first people who couldn't endure the exposure became the initial wave of zombies."
"The world's order collapsed overnight; at first, armies and weapons held them back easily."
"But later, for reasons unknown, the zombies kept growing stronger—evolving."
In the interrogation room, Zack's voice, filled with despair and numbness, echoed slowly.
"As the zombies evolved, modern military tech lost its bite; ordinary guns couldn't even pierce a first-rank Mutated Zombie's hide."
"Some humans also absorbed that mysterious energy, yet instead of turning into zombies they became Awakened Ones."
"Afterward, we discovered that powerful Mutated Zombies drop special energy crystals when killed."
"Those energy crystals can be absorbed directly by us Awakened to strengthen ourselves."
"Anyone who absorbs a crystal first will never turn into a zombie, no matter how much energy they take in later."
"Gradually, led by powerful Awakened, humanity built survivor bases of every size and gained a shaky foothold in the apocalypse."
Across from him, the Shadow Marine Warrior relayed every word in real time through an encrypted channel back to the Command Center.
Each syllable was logged and analyzed with precision.
"What is your current power scale? And the greatest destructive force you've seen?"
The Shadow Marine Warrior asked in a tone devoid of emotion.
Hearing the question, Zack's last shred of hope crumbled.
All his earlier guesses were confirmed in that instant.
The mysterious, aliens opposite him definitely weren't from this world. He knew humanity, what was left of it, was done for.
He drew a deep breath, abandoned all resistance, and began to explain in detail.
"After the Awakened appeared, we ranked strength from first to fifth rank."
"But the strongest person I've ever met was only fourth rank."
"Describe the destructive power of each rank."
The Shadow Marine Warrior pressed.
"Also, what rank are you?"
"I'm a second-rank speed-type Awakened."
Zack answered honestly.
"We treat mindless, wandering zombies as rank zero."
"First-rank variants start to show different abilities."
"Some gain immense strength, others tough hides; overall they're still manageable with heavy machine guns."
"At second rank, both zombies and Awakened improve massively in every aspect."
"Take me: my speed far exceeds an ordinary person's, and a second-rank defense-type zombie can shrug off most gunfire."
"At third rank—"
When he reached this point, terror flashed in Zack's eyes.
"Third rank is a qualitative leap: strength, speed, and defense reach terrifying levels; shrugging off several small missiles is effortless."
"As for fourth rank, I really don't know."
"All I know is that the Tyrant you're fighting is a peak third-rank just a step away from fourth."
"Ordinary missiles barely scratch it."
"Missiles can only deal 'a bit' of damage?"
Steve frowned at the screen where the Tyrant was tanking tank shells yet still rampaging.
That strong?
General Randy's face was equally grave; he thought of the DF-17 he'd just ordered deployed.
"So our tactical missile might not be decisive after all."
"Not necessarily."
Steve shook his head, eyes calm and rational.
"He only said ordinary missiles, and noted 'some damage,' not zero damage."
He pointed at the screen and spoke in a low voice.
"If one round won't do, use a hundred; if ordinary warheads fail, use bigger yields."
"I refuse to believe anything can survive a saturation strike of a hundred enhanced tactical missiles—we'll just erase it and the surrounding terrain from the map."
"Theoretically, yes..."
General Randy voiced another concern.
"Last time, merely deploying a Thermobaric Bomb drew their attention."
"If we launch a hundred tactical missiles, every survivor base in the region will look this way."
"Moreover—"
He paused, his expression turning graver.
"From Zack we can confirm this world still holds fourth-rank, maybe even fifth-rank, powerhouses."
"We know nothing about their strength."
"Since humanity hasn't wiped out the zombies yet, it means, at the top-tier, humans are likely still outclassed; otherwise they'd have counter-attacked long ago."
"Such a commotion benefits no one, human or zombie."
"Right. People who've endured the apocalypse and discover a peaceful world—what they might do is obvious."
Steve nodded in agreement.
Understanding the lay of the land came first.
He immediately ordered the communications officer beside him.
"Have him keep asking—does anyone in this apocalypse possess fifth-rank power?"
The order was relayed instantly.
In the interrogation room, the Shadow Marine Warrior's voice sounded again.
"Does a fifth-rank being exist?"
Zack nodded heavily, awe flickering in his eyes.
"Yes. On the entire continent, only three survivor bases are confirmed to have fifth-rank powerhouses."