"But there is something very special about this one."
A trace of wariness flashed in Sovereign Yor's eyes as he spoke of the zombie leader.
"It was born with an irresistible aura of leadership—a presence so potent it can ignore level differences to forcibly bolster other undead. We witnessed it once before; at the time, it was only a Third-Order, yet it commanded Fifth-Order mutants as easily as its own limbs."
"A Third-Order controlling Fifth-Orders?" Randy, standing to the side, couldn't hide his surprise.
"What's even more terrifying," Yor continued, "is that we suspect the abnormal explosion in zombie strength over the past year is due to its existence. It seems to possess a method for accelerating viral evolution.
The Fifth-Order guardian that protected it was only at the early stage of its rank when we first scouted them. A year later, that same zombie had already reached the mid-stage of the Fifth-Order."
"The speed is unnatural. After witnessing that growth, we no longer dared to venture into the northern wastes to clear them out. No one knows how many Tier 5 monsters that King has accumulated under its command by now."
A brief silence fell over the hall. However, the worry Yor expected to see on Steve's face never appeared. Instead, an intrigued smile tugged at the corners of Steve's mouth.
"A means to accelerate evolution? Interesting."
Steve laughed inwardly. No matter what methods you have or how many Fifth-Orders you command, as long as you are a zombie—as long as you are a carbon-based lifeform—you are ultimately raw material for my forge.
Furthermore, if he could capture a Fifth-Order zombie and begin extracting its high-level genetic code... then the world wouldn't be facing his current Tier 4 legion, but a true Tier 5 army endowed with immortal characteristics. That would be the true turning point.
"Very good," Steve said, nodding toward Randy. "George, send a detachment to Indomitus Base to finalize the transition. Don't waste too much time. We will assemble our main force and march north with the full army. I want that King brought to me."
"Understood," Randy replied, his eyes gleaming with excitement as he began deploying troops through the command interface.
After arranging the military movements, Steve looked back at Sovereign Yor, his tone softening slightly. "Thank you for the intelligence, Sovereign Yor. Rest assured, we are a civilization that values order; we have no interest in terrorizing your civilians."
At this point, Steve's tone shifted, becoming more clinical. "As for your high-level Awakened, those at the Fifth-Order will receive resources from me to continue fighting in their original bodies. For warriors below that rank, we will establish specialized connection pods at your base. You will only need to lie inside to remotely control the 'vessels' we have prepared for you."
"The greatest benefit of this arrangement," Steve said, emphasizing every word, "is that even if the body you control is torn to pieces on the battlefield, your original physical self remains untouched. You are effectively immortal in combat."
Buzz!
The realization hit Sovereign Yor like a physical blow. He jerked his head up, eyes filled with shock.
"Prepared bodies... remote control... death without consequence..."
He looked at the surrounding zombies with their uniform appearance and expressionless faces, then thought back to the endless tide of "monsters" they had fought. So that's it, he thought. This is the truth about these visitors.
They never fought with their true selves; these creatures were merely their drones. Yor felt a chill of realization. A civilization with uniform equipment, overwhelming strength, infinite resurrection, and absolute safety for the pilots—this was a perfect machine born for war.
"Fortunately... fortunately we surrendered," he whispered to himself. If they had remained enemies, they could have killed ten thousand of these monsters, only for the opponent to return the next day unscathed. It wasn't a war; it was an exercise in futility.
Meanwhile, on the only path leading toward the Outpost Base...
The Grandmaster of Indomitus, a legendary swordsman known as Yasuo, was rushing forward with two Fifth-Order companions and several thousand elite Awakened.
"Faster! We must reach the front!" Yasuo urged, his figure a blur of motion.
They had traveled from the distant southern outposts. Due to the communication blackout, they were still unaware that the Divine Judgment Base had been wiped out and that their own headquarters had already surrendered.
Suddenly, Yasuo skidded to a halt. The ancient longsword in his hand leaped from its scabbard, letting out a resonant, metallic cry. He stared ahead solemnly. A massive, violent aura was rushing toward them like a tidal wave.
"A Fifth-Order! And the presence is... immense."
Before his voice could fade, the horizon erupted in dust.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Accompanied by rhythmic tremors that shook the earth, a fifty-meter-tall titan of molten obsidian and lava crashed through the sandstorms, looming over the Indomitus reinforcement group. Behind this titan marched over a thousand super zombies.
"What kind of monstrosity is that?!" the two Fifth-Order companions gasped.
"It doesn't matter," Yasuo replied, his battle intent boiling over. As a master of his rank, he possessed an indomitable spirit. "If it blocks the path, we cut it down. Kill!"
Without another word, the two sides collided.
Randy's consciousness was currently inhabiting this Fifth-Order Iron Golem. Although he lacked Steve's elemental finesse, the raw statistics of this body were terrifying. Absolute strength met absolute defense. Randy simply ignored the humans' tentative attacks, swinging a fist the size of a house in a simple, devastating arc.
Dong!
The air itself detonated. The sheer wind pressure forced Yasuo to dodge, striking back with a lightning-fast sword slash against the Golem's arm.
Clang!
Sparks flew, but the blade left only a shallow mark.
"His skin is like adamant!" the swordsman hissed, his hand going numb from the vibration.
On the other flank, the other two Fifth-Order powerhouses tried to support their leader, but they were pinned down by the relentless zombie swarm. This legion used the same tactics that had broken Zeus: pestering, stalling, and absolute fearlessness. No matter how many times they were blown apart, a flash of golden light would see them resurrected on the spot with full health.
On the main battlefield, Yasuo teamed up with a fellow master, finally exploiting the Iron Golem's slower movements. They moved in a synchronized blur, a sword and a heavy blade slashing fiercely at the Golem's knee joint where the obsidian plating was thinner.
Crack!
A fissure split the magma-block shell.
"There! It's wounded!" Yasuo shouted, hope surging in his chest.
However, in the next heartbeat, a scene unfolded that drove them into the depths of despair.