Chapter 115 - Chapter 115: Chapter 115 Shadow King

Chapter 115: Chapter 115 Shadow King

Translator: 549690339

Zone One, Command Centre.

The universally acknowledged strongest human, the Shadow King, was staring at the projected map, frowning in deep thought.

The map projection occupied an entire wall, showing the unfolded state of the planet. It displayed the “high-risk” purple zones, “dangerous” red zones, “alert” yellow zones, “caution” blue zones that made up most of this map. These corresponded to the control areas of fifth-level, fourth-level, third-level, and second-level zombies respectively.

The ruined city where Jiang Li first landed belonged to the “alert” yellow zone on this map.

Of course, the third-grade zombies there have already disappeared. The zone didn’t meet the yellow-standard requirements anymore, and it should have turned blue. However, in this era, the transmission of information was a very difficult task, so the map hadn’t been updated yet.

The four-color zones spread across the globe, indicating that a significant portion of the planet had fallen into being the gathering place for zombies.

“Safe” white areas were only five in number, representing the five major human regions. The white zone around Zone One was the largest, equivalent to the sum of the white zones of Zone Two and Zone Three.

Although the white zones were considered safe, they were not absolutely safe. Once, the humans had eight white zones, each protected by a fifth-level powerhouse guarding each city.

However, it wasn’t just the humans who had fifth-level powerhouses.

Zones Six to Eight fell in exactly this way.

Of these three fifth-level enhancers, two were eaten by zombies, and one turned into a fifth-level zombie.

The most tricky aspect of zombies was not their power, but their infectiousness. If it were not for the development of the antidote, which could save those who haven’t completely turned into zombies, the human territory would be even smaller.

“If the five zones could unite, the safety of all mankind can be guaranteed.”

Shadow King sighed. The strategy of promoting the integration of the five zones had not yielded results. Now, there might be even worse things happening, leaving humanity like a candle in the wind, at risk of being extinguished at any moment.

Shadow King’s attention was not on land, but on the ocean.

The zombies causing the world’s downfall originated from the ocean. Now, the zombies causing mankind’s extinction also originated from the ocean.

Thinking of the ocean report brought back by the scouts, Shadow King opened his palm and rubbed his temples lightly with his thumb and middle finger.

The ocean was marked black, symbolizing the unknown.

Other fifth-level powerhouses didn’t pay much attention to the ocean. They thought that the most dangerous whale group was already on the shore and there wouldn’t be zombies in the sea that could overturn mankind.

Shadow King always dreaded the ocean. He felt that there must be unknown changes happening in the ocean, which prompted him to dispatch a team to investigate.

Of a small team composed of ten fourth-level powerhouses, only two returned alive. They brought back both information and bad news.

A sixth-level zombie was about to be born in the ocean.

“However, this could also be an opportunity for unity.” Shadow King tried to see the brighter side. Now that there was solid evidence of the danger in the ocean, the other four fifth-level powerhouses had no choice but to believe. The five of them could join forces and go out to sea, to prevent the birth of the sixth-level zombie!

“But that bastard Longtu…”

The Shadow King remembered Longtu from the Third Zone, and a murderous intent started to rise in him. That person was the worst among the bad ones, indulging in sensual pleasure, enslaving others. If not for his combat effectiveness and his role in protecting Zone Three, he would have killed him already.

Apart from Longtu, the other four were doing their best to restore the original order of human society.

“Report! ”

“Come in.”

The subordinate who entered the commanding center said respectfully to the Shadow King: “King, Zone Three is here.”

Shadow King frowned and scolded the subordinate: “Speak properly, what do you mean by Zone Three is here? Does Zone Three have legs to run here?”

Shadow King was full-blooded, hot and bright, exerting a tremendous pressure on others. His fluctuating emotions now made it even more intense, causing the subordinate’s legs to go weak, almost falling to his knees.

The subordinate swallowed hard and said in an unbelievable tone, “It didn’t grow legs, Zone Three flew over. It’s outside. If you go out and see, you will know. ”

Although he knew that his subordinate wouldn’t lie, logically speaking, Shadow King still couldn’t believe what the subordinate said.

When Shadow King walked out of the command center, and with wide-open eyes, he saw the grand city in the sky flying towards Zone One, he had to believe the scene before his eyes.

But what’s the rationale behind this?

Theoretically, he could move a city as well, with the difficulty lying in the fact that a city isn’t unified, and it’s impossible to lift the entire city up.

Taking a step back even if Zone Three was a unified entity, it shouldn’t have been outrageous enough to be able to fly!

“All preparations!”

Shadow King ordered his subordinates to get ready for battle. The methods of Zone Three were unknown, and Longtu was not a good character. They couldn’t let their guard down just because it’s Zone Three.

Shadow King had reasons to be cautious. A city was moved over. How could Zone Three possibly not contact Zone One in advance?!

If the city of Zone Three flew over Zone One’s head and then landed … Shadow King didn’t dare to imagine that scene.

Zone One was strictly disciplined, and the subordinates did not panic. They obeyed Shadow King’s orders, aiming the missiles at Zone Three, just waiting for Shadow King to give the order, and then they would fire.

Shadow King didn’t attack rashly. He rose into the sky to see what was going on.

Even if Zone Three had good intentions, it absolutely couldn’t let a city fly over Zone One’s head. The risk was too great.

But before Shadow King could get to Zone Three, Zone Three gradually descended and halted firmly near Zone One. The whole process didn’t even make a sound.

“Shadow King?”

A strange man in ancient costume came out of the city of Zone Three, smiling with his hands behind his back, giving off an ethereal demeanor. His righteous and open nature made him seem in control of everything, like an immortal being, which was strikingly at odds with the apocalyptic environment where all the people were fearful for their lives.

Shadow King’s first impression of the strange man was not that of a warrior, but of a banished immortal.

Behind him were a man and a woman. The woman, apart from being beautiful, didn’t have anything worth noticing.

Shadow King looked at Ye Du for a while longer. Ye Du was showing off an expression of “I’ve seen a lot and won’t be surprised anymore,” but in reality, it looked more like “I’m a follower but I’m very arrogant.”

Ye Wu felt embarrassed and kicked Ye Du, and only then did Ye Du’s expression return to normal.

The siblings were actually both very excited, but after following Jiang Li for a long time, they learned to control their expressions. Shadow King was their idol, whom they had only seen on the big screen in the past. Now, they finally saw him in person.

“Yes, I am Luo Ying.” In the face of the stranger, Shadow King did not dare to be negligent. It might be this man who made Zone Three take off, “May I ask where Longtu is?”

“Let me introduce myself, I am Jiang Li.” The strange man smiled, “As for

Longtu, he’s already dead.”

In Zone One, both ordinary people who had never been enhanced, and those at the first and second stages of enhancement, greeted the Shadow King as they passed him, to which the Shadow King always nodded in response. Jiang Li clearly saw the respect and admiration people had for the Shadow King.

Jiang Li noticed that, from time to time, enhanced individuals would return from outside the city with harvested resources, keeping some of the brain cores for themselves and exchanging the rest for contribution points, which were three times more valuable here than in Zone Three.

Zone One established a guild for enhanced individuals, fostering trust and enabling them to share knowledge and form effective teams. Even though betrayals still occurred, they were significantly less frequent compared to Zone Three.

Moreover, the Shadow King financed research on how to more efficiently use brain cores to create more powerful warriors, how to counteract the zombie virus, and whether those who had turned into zombies could possibly revert to their former selves.

Jiang Li knew that it was impossible for a zombie to revert back to its human form. The moment a person became a zombie, they were essentially dead, and even he could not bring them back.

The overall atmosphere of Zone One was optimistic, positive, and full of hope, a stark contrast to Zone Three.

“Everything I heard was true. Zone One is indeed a wonderful place,” Jiang Li affirmed, feeling relieved with his decision to leave Zone Three in the Shadow King’s charge.

“I hope you do not mind that I brought Zone Three with me.” Luo Ying thought with a smile, ‘Mind? It’s more like a miracle!’

“Are you the new ruler of Zone Three?”

Jiang Li shook his head: “I’ve never been a ruler; it doesn’t suit my personality. The previous ruler of Zone Three was Longtu; now it’s you.”

“Me?” Luo Ying was shocked. He had assumed that at most Zone Three would form an alliance with Zone One. He never expected that he would become the ruler of two zones in the blink of an eye.

You’re saying that I, a Stage-Five enhancer, am now ruling over two zones?

“What exactly are you…?”

Luo Ying hesitated to ask, the scene of Zone Three flying over was too spectacular and had greatly exceeded the realms of human possibility.

“Jiang Li, from another world.”

“Another world?”

Jiang Li patiently explained, “Each universe is a separate world, with endless voids between them. You can think of it like blowing bubbles; each world is like a bubble, and the void is like the air.”

“Could I travel to your world then?” Luo Ying asked eagerly, looking at Jiang Li unblinkingly. He believed that Jiang Li’s world must be incredibly advanced. He wanted to travel there to learn more and come back to solve the zombie problem.

Jiang Li shook his head and gently replied, “Your strength is not enough yet. According to the cultivation system of your world, you would probably need to reach the seventh stage to briefly stay in the void, and the eighth stage to traverse through the void and travel between worlds.”

“Eight… the eighth stage?!” Luo Ying was taken aback. He hadn’t heard of the void before, and he didn’t know how dangerous the turbulent void could be. He thought that as a Stage-Five enhancer, with his strong physical body, he wouldn’t have any issues.

He had no choice but to put aside his thoughts of world travel for now.

“However, if I can find a certain tower, your desire to travel between worlds might not be impossible.”

“A tower?” Luo Ying didn’t understand how a building could help him travel between worlds.

This didn’t make sense.

“To be precise, it’s a Buddha treasure taking the form of a tower, blessed by Buddha. However, it seems to avoid me.”

“Why?” Luo Ying was curious.

“Perhaps it’s afraid I’ll break it,” Jiang Li replied uncertainly. During their last encounter, he hadn’t exerted much force, merely almost shattering a few immortal artifacts. Somehow, though, he seemed to have left a deep psychological trauma on the Fantian Tower, which now avoided him at all costs.

“I have some doubts about my combat techniques, and since you come from an extraordinary place, would you be able to guide me?” Having learnt that Jiang Li was a powerful figure from another world, Luo Ying decided to change the way he addressed him.

Jiang Li chuckled. He could tell that Luo Ying was still dubious, using the pretense of guidance as a method of testing.

Even so, Jiang Li felt that Luo Ying was a promising candidate. If he were in the Jiuzhou world, he would have the potential to reach the Body Integration Realm, so guiding him could prove beneficial.

Jiang Li placed his hand on Luo Ying’s shoulder. Before the latter had time to react, he found himself transported to an open area.

Luo Ying immediately put aside his suspicions, realizing the stark difference in their abilities.

Luo Ying positioned himself, placing his left palm behind him and his right fist in front.

“Be careful, Master. This move is called the Flying Dragon Shattering Mountain Fist, capable of breaking mountains and splitting rivers!”

With a loud cry, Luo Ying exerted his full strength into his punch. This was a technique he had developed by integrating all the fighting styles he had learned, accounting for his unique physique and the observations he had made of the mountains and rivers. It was refined through continual battles with zombies, perfecting it into its current form.

The muscles on Luo Ying’s back bulged, his limbs were taut, and the friction between the muscle and bone produced a slight crackling sound.

He dug his toes into the ground, pushed up on his ankle, keeping his calves straight. His waist twisted, his shoulders, elbows, and wrists exerted force simultaneously, and his entire body seemed to be a proud dragon head, powerful and imposing.

As Luo Ying struck out with all his might, his vigorous vital energy boiled over, signifying his peak condition which all Stage-Five enhancers would envy.

Jiang Li, however, shook his head subtly. While it was good to have vigorous vital energy, it was essential to keep it restrained unless in battle, otherwise it would be too wasteful. Clearly, Luo Ying was unable to control his excessive vital energy, causing it to radiate outwards and intimidate his subordinates.

Jiang Li stood still, allowing Luo Ying’s fist to strike him.

Luo Ying’s fists could obliterate anything in their way. Even Stage-Five enhancers who got hit would cough up blood. His boasts of being able to break mountains and split rivers were not empty words — he had genuinely accomplished such feats.

However, when his fist made contact with Jiang Li, it felt as though he was punching solid ground, no, something even more sturdy than the earth. Luo Ying was stunned; even when he punched the earth, it would reverberate but when he hit Jiang Li, the latter didn’t even flinch!

Luo Ying was sent flying backwards from the recoil, but he was plucked out of the air by Jiang Li, who grabbed his wrist and pulled him back.

“Conserve your vital energy.” Jiang Li took action, pressing a few acupoints on Luo Ying’s body.

Luo Ying distinctly felt his uncontrollable vital energy returning to his body, filling him with power.

Overjoyed, Luo Ying was about to express his gratitude when Jiang Li instructed, “Strike again. Remember this feeling.”

Luo Ying repeatedly threw punches, each one causing a sonic boom, their power even surpassing his previous strikes!

Although his punches still had no effect on Jiang Li, he knew beyond a doubt that he had become stronger than before!

What Luo Ying didn’t know was that his strikes hadn’t even made contact with Jiang Li. There was a thin layer of forcefield around Jiang Li, difficult for the average person to detect, that blocked all attacks.

“Thank you for your guidance, Master.”

Luo Ying bowed deeply to Jiang Li. This was a token of his gratitude for both his guidance and his life-saving advice. It gave Luo Ying additional hope in his mission to stop the zombies from evolving in the sea.

“Master is kind, I know you have no obligation to help us.

“I’m listening..”