Chapter 115: Shadow King

Zone 1, Command Center.

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

The projection took up an entire wall, showing the unfolded terrain of the planet. Most of the map was covered by purple “High Risk” zones, red “Danger” zones, yellow “Caution” zones, and blue “Alert” zones—these corresponded to areas controlled by Tier 5, Tier 4, Tier 3, and Tier 2 zombies respectively.

The ruined city where Jiang Li had first landed was in the yellow “Caution” zone on this map.

Of course, the Tier 3 zombies there had already vanished and no longer met the yellow-zone standard. It should be blue now, but in this era, information transmission was extremely difficult, and the map hadn’t been updated.

The four-colored zones covered most of the world, indicating that the majority of the planet had fallen to zombies.

There were only five white “Safe” zones, representing the five human territories. Among them, Zone 1 had the largest surrounding white area—equal to the combined white zones of Zone 2 and Zone 3.

Calling white zones “safe” wasn’t absolute either. Humans had once had eight white zones, each protected by a Tier 5 powerhouse.

But it wasn’t just humans who had Tier 5 fighters. Zombies, too, had their share. With intelligence equal to humans, Tier 5 zombies could form strategies—like teaming up to attack human cities.

That was how Zones 6 through 8 fell.

Of the three Tier 5 enhancers from those zones, two were torn apart and devoured, and one turned into a Tier 5 zombie.

What made zombies most terrifying wasn’t their strength, but their infectivity. If not for the current antibody serum that could save those not fully zombified, human territory would be even smaller.

“If the five zones united, humanity might truly be safeguarded.”

The Shadow King sighed. He had long been working to unify the five zones, but had made little progress. And now, something even worse could be on the horizon. Humanity was like a candle in the wind, on the verge of being snuffed out.

His gaze wasn’t on land, but the sea.

Zombies that had caused global downfall had come from the sea. Now, the zombies threatening humanity’s extinction were also coming from the sea.

Recalling the ocean report brought back by the reconnaissance team, the Shadow King opened his palm and massaged his temples with his thumb and middle finger.

The sea was colored black—signifying the unknown.

The other Tier 5 enhancers didn’t care much about the ocean. They believed the most dangerous whale tide had already landed and that nothing in the sea could still pose a threat to humanity.

They weren’t entirely wrong. In the ten years since the apocalypse began, there hadn’t been any disasters from the sea as severe as the whale tide. The zombies that came ashore were just stronger sea creatures, not world-ending threats.

But the Shadow King had always been wary of the ocean, convinced something was happening out there that no one knew about. So he had sent a team to investigate.

Ten Tier 4 enhancers went out. Only two returned. They brought back data—and a disaster.

A Tier 6 zombie was about to emerge in the sea.

“But maybe… this is also a chance for unity.” The Shadow King tried to stay optimistic. The other four Tier 5s had never believed there was danger in the sea. But now there was hard proof—no way they could ignore it. The five of them could go together, and stop that Tier 6 zombie from being born!

“But that b*stard Long Tu…”

The Shadow King’s expression darkened at the thought of Long Tu from Zone 3. He was pure scum—self-indulgent, exploitative. If it weren’t for his combat prowess and the fact that Zone 3 still needed him, the Shadow King would’ve killed him already.

Other than Long Tu, the other four Tier 5s were all doing their best to restore order.

“Report!”

“Come in.”

A subordinate entered the command center and said respectfully, “Your Majesty, Zone 3 is here.”

The Shadow King frowned and barked, “What do you mean ‘Zone 3 is here’? Did Zone 3 grow legs and walk over here?”

His blood energy surged—hot and fierce—oppressively powerful to those nearby. With his current emotional state, the pressure was even greater. The subordinate’s knees nearly buckled.

Swallowing hard, the subordinate stammered, “No legs… Zone 3 flew over. It’s right outside. You’ll understand if you go take a look.”

The Shadow King knew his men wouldn’t lie, but his rational mind couldn’t accept it.

When he stepped out of the command center and saw a massive Sky City flying toward Zone 1, his eyes widened. He had no choice but to believe.

But… how?

In theory, he could move a city too. The problem was, a city wasn’t a single piece—it couldn’t just be lifted whole.

Even if Zone 3 had somehow become a single structure, flying was another matter entirely!

“All units, on alert!”

He gave the order. They didn’t know what Zone 3 was planning. Long Tu was scum. Just because it was Zone 3 didn’t mean they could let their guard down.

He had every reason to be cautious. If Zone 3 had meant well, why didn’t they contact Zone 1 beforehand?

If their city hovered directly over Zone 1 and landed—he didn’t even want to imagine the consequences.

Zone 1 had strict discipline. No one panicked. Following orders, they aimed missiles at Zone 3’s city, ready to fire the moment the Shadow King gave the command.

But he didn’t order an attack. Instead, he soared into the sky to see for himself.

Even if Zone 3 meant well, there was no way he’d allow a city to hover over Zone 1—it was far too risky.

But before he could reach them, the city began descending—slow and steady—landing near Zone 1 without making a sound.

“Shadow King?”

A stranger in traditional robes walked out of the city, hands behind his back and smiling faintly. His bearing was noble, righteous, like a deity descending to the mortal realm—completely out of place in this apocalyptic world.

The Shadow King’s first impression wasn’t that he was a powerhouse—but an exiled immortal.

Behind him followed a man and a woman. The woman was pretty but unremarkable.

The Shadow King gave Ye Du a second glance. The guy had his nose in the air, trying hard to look like “I’ve seen it all, I’m not surprised,” but came off more like “I’m just a tagalong, but I’m cocky.”

Ye Wu, embarrassed, kicked Ye Du, and only then did he regain a normal expression.

The siblings were actually both thrilled. But after following Jiang Li for so long, they’d learned to control their expressions. The Shadow King was their idol—they’d only ever seen him on big screens. Seeing him in person was a dream come true.

“Yes, I’m Luo Ying.” The Shadow King didn’t dare act arrogant toward the stranger—it might be this very man who made Zone 3 take flight. “May I ask where Long Tu is?”

“Let me introduce myself, I’m Jiang Li,” the stranger said with a smile. “As for Long Tu—he’s dead.”

……

In Zone 1, whether it was unenhanced ordinary people or Tier 1 and 2 enhancers, everyone greeted the Shadow King when they saw him. He returned every greeting with a nod. Jiang Li could tell—the people respected and admired him deeply.

He also noticed many enhancers returning fully loaded from outside the city. They kept part of the brain cores for themselves and traded the rest for contribution points—which cost three times as much here as in Zone 3.

Zone 1 had set up an Enhancer Guild, giving them a platform to communicate and build trust. This allowed them to form well-balanced teams, learn from each other’s strengths. Betrayals still happened, but much less often than in Zone 3.

Fresh vegetables, meat, and eggs were available. Among the five zones, Zone 1 had the most abundant food supply—and the lowest prices.

In addition, the Shadow King had people researching how to make more efficient use of brain cores to produce more powerhouses, how to break the zombie virus, and whether those who had turned into zombies had any chance of turning back.

Jiang Li knew that once someone became a zombie, there was no turning back. The moment they turned, they were truly dead—not even Jiang Li could bring them back.

All of Zone 1 gave Jiang Li a feeling of optimism, growth, and hope—it was worlds apart from Zone 3.

“What I’ve heard wasn’t an exaggeration—Zone 1 really is a great place.” Jiang Li nodded, feeling at ease leaving Zone 3 in the Shadow King’s hands.

“Forgive me for bringing Zone 3 here without warning. I hope you don’t mind.”

In his heart, Luo Ying thought, Don’t mind? I’d be crazy not to mind.

“You’re the new ruler of Zone 3?”

Jiang Li shook his head. “I’ve never been a ruler. It’s not in my nature. The previous ruler of Zone 3 was Long Tu. Now it’s you.”

“Me?” Luo Ying was stunned. He thought, at most, Zone 3 would form an alliance with Zone 1. Who would’ve thought he’d suddenly become the ruler of two zones?

How did a Tier 5 enhancer like me end up in charge of two zones?

“And you are…?” Luo Ying hesitated to ask. The sight of Zone 3 flying over had been too shocking—this was already beyond the limits of human capability.

“Jiang Li, from another world.”

“Another world?”

Jiang Li patiently explained, “Each universe is a world. There’s endless void between worlds. You can think of it like blowing bubbles—worlds are bubbles, and the void is the air between them.”

“Can I go to your world?” Luo Ying stared at Jiang Li with burning eyes. Jiang Li’s world had to be extremely powerful. He wanted to learn there and then return to solve the zombie crisis.

Jiang Li shook his head and replied tactfully, “Your strength isn’t enough yet. Based on your world’s cultivation system, you’d need to reach Tier 7 to survive briefly in the void. Tier 8 to freely travel between worlds.”

“T-Tier 8?!” Luo Ying was stunned. He had never heard of the void or the chaos it contained. As the strongest Tier 5, he had always thought his powerful physique could handle anything.

He could only put the idea of world-hopping aside for now.

“But if I can find a tower, maybe your idea of crossing worlds wouldn’t be impossible.”

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

That didn’t make sense.

“To be precise, it’s a tower-shaped Buddhist artifact, blessed by the Buddha himself. But it runs away every time it sees me.”

“Why?”

“Maybe… it’s afraid I’ll crack its skull?” Jiang Li wasn’t too sure. Back then, he hadn’t hit it that hard—just nearly smashed a few immortal artifacts. But somehow, the Brahma Tower was so traumatized it developed a psychological shadow and fled at the sight of him.

“Lately I’ve had some doubts about combat techniques. Since sir is clearly extraordinary, would you be willing to give me some guidance?” Now that he knew Jiang Li was a powerhouse from another world, Luo Ying respectfully changed how he addressed him.

Jiang Li chuckled. Of course he could see that Luo Ying was still a bit suspicious of him. Asking for guidance was clearly just an excuse to test him.

But that was fine. Jiang Li thought Luo Ying was a promising talent. In the Nine Provinces, he would’ve had the potential to reach the Soul Formation Stage. Giving him a few pointers wouldn’t hurt.

Jiang Li pressed down on Luo Ying’s shoulder. Before Luo Ying could react, he found himself already in an open area.

He immediately dropped the idea of testing Jiang Li—the gap between them was too huge.

Luo Ying placed his left palm behind him, right fist forward, taking a stance.

“Sir, be careful. This move is called Flying Dragon Mountain-Crushing Fist—it can shatter mountains and cut rivers!”

With a loud shout, he unleashed his full power. This was a technique he had developed by combining countless martial arts styles, integrating it with his own physique, inspired by watching rivers and mountains. He had refined it through many battles with zombies, and only recently perfected it.

The muscles along his back swelled, limbs tense. His muscles and bones rubbed together, producing light crackling sounds.

His toes gripped the ground, ankles pushed upward, calves locked, waist twisting, shoulders, elbows, and wrists all exerting force simultaneously. His entire body surged like a dragon lifting its head, overwhelming and mighty.

As he threw the punch with all his strength, his already strong blood energy boiled over. This meant he was in peak condition—a state every Tier 5 enhancer envied.

But Jiang Li silently shook his head. Having abundant blood energy wasn’t bad—but it should be restrained. When not in battle, letting it leak out was wasteful. Luo Ying clearly had too much to control, which was why others could sense it—and why his subordinates trembled.

Jiang Li didn’t dodge or defend, letting Luo Ying punch him.

Luo Ying’s punches had never failed to break things—even other Tier 5s would cough blood from a direct hit. He wasn’t exaggerating when he said the technique could crush mountains and cut rivers—he’d done it before.

But when his fist hit Jiang Li, it was like punching the earth. No, even tougher than earth. Luo Ying froze. If he punched the ground, the earth would at least tremble. But striking Jiang Li? Not even a ripple!

He was knocked back by the rebound, but Jiang Li grabbed his wrist and pulled him back.

“Restrain your blood energy,” Jiang Li said, pressing a few acupoints on Luo Ying.

Luo Ying immediately felt the previously uncontrollable blood energy draw back into his body, leaving him full of strength.

He was overjoyed and was about to thank him, but Jiang Li said, “Throw a punch. Remember how this feels.”

Luo Ying kept punching. Every blow broke the sound barrier, stronger than ever!

Even though Jiang Li still didn’t budge from the hits, Luo Ying knew—he had become stronger!

What he didn’t know was that he hadn’t actually struck Jiang Li. A thin film of energy covered Jiang Li’s body—imperceptible to most—which blocked all attacks.

“Thank you for your guidance, sir.”

Luo Ying gave a deep bow to Jiang Li. This wasn’t just a favor—it was life-saving. Now, he had a little more hope of surviving the mission to stop the zombie evolution in the sea.

“Sir, you are merciful. I know you have no obligation to help us, but this is my personal plea,” Luo Ying said solemnly. “Please lend us your strength to stop the sea zombies from evolving.”

“I’m listening.”