Chapter 718: Let’s end this here

Not even an agility-type Zombie King could escape this slaughterhouse.

One by one, the Zombie Kings had fallen here.

Now, only a few loyal subordinates remained by Gravestone’s side. He scanned the battlefield, rage simmering in his chest.

“Idiots! Every last one of them!”

“If they’d just listened to me, maybe—just maybe—we could’ve made it out. But no, they had to charge in and get themselves killed!”

“We’re still here, boss! We believe in you!” one of his lieutenants said, trying to rally him.

“Good. Then I’ll get us out of here,” Gravestone replied without hesitation.

“Which way do we run?” another Zombie King asked, looking lost.

Gravestone’s eyes, glowing with a fierce light, swept across the chaos. The first thing he checked was Ethan’s position—because out of everything on this battlefield, that was the one thing he truly feared.

“Isn’t it obvious? We run in the opposite direction of that Voidborn Undying freak!”

“Got it!”

His subordinates responded instantly.

They bolted in the direction opposite Ethan, using the chaos of the Zombie Horde and the terrain to block his line of sight.

“Move! Fast!”

They did everything they could to stay out of sight.

These weren’t just any zombies—Gravestone’s inner circle included several SS-class powerhouses, so their speed was nothing to scoff at.

Neither the Zombie Horde nor the Guard Mechs could stop them. The tech-based weapons were powerful, sure—but against SSS-class Zombie Kings, they were still outmatched.

As they ran, Gravestone kept glancing back. Ethan hadn’t moved. He was still standing in the same spot, watching the battlefield like he hadn’t even noticed them.

Gravestone felt a surge of relief. A grin tugged at the corners of his mouth. Once the rocky terrain finally blocked his view of Ethan, he stopped looking back and focused entirely on escaping.

“Perfect. That guy didn’t see us.”

“Damn, boss, that was genius,” one of his men said, full of admiration.

They kept running for a long while, and the lack of pursuit behind them let them finally breathe easy.

Along the way, they casually took out a few stray zombies—but something was off. Instead of the usual black, infected blood, these corpses released wisps of white fungal threads when they were killed.

“Huh? Boss, what the hell is this stuff?” one of the Zombie Kings asked, puzzled.

“Who cares? As long as they’re not blocking the way, just keep moving!” Gravestone barked.

But just as he said that, one of the Zombie Kings caught something out of the corner of his eye—and his face went pale.

“Wait… Boss, look ahead!”

“What?”

Gravestone frowned and looked up—only to see a lone figure in white standing atop a massive boulder in the distance.

Handsome face. Calm expression. Eyes still fixed on the battlefield.

It was Ethan.

Gravestone’s eyes went wide with horror, like he’d just seen a ghost.

“How the hell is he here?!”

“No idea! Did he get ahead of us somehow? What do we do now?” his men were starting to panic.

Gravestone didn’t even hesitate.

“Turn around!”

“R-right!”

The group of Zombie Kings immediately obeyed, spinning on their heels and sprinting back the way they came—using the same tricks as before to try and vanish into the chaos once again.

But this time, they didn’t get far before grinding to a halt again—because up ahead, that same white-clad figure had appeared once more, standing in the exact same pose as before.

Gravestone’s eyes widened in disbelief, his brow furrowed so tightly it looked like it might snap.

His brain was practically overheating.

“What the hell is going on?!”

“Boss, he’s back again! Should we turn around again?”

“Turn around my ass! We’re switching directions—pick a new one and run!” Gravestone snapped.

He was starting to suspect that at least one of those Ethans had been a fake. But whether it was the first or the second didn’t matter—if they just changed direction entirely, they could still get out.

The other Zombie Kings nodded in agreement. Sounded like a solid plan.

So they veered off, sprinting in a third direction, hoping this time they’d finally break free.

But once again, they didn’t get far before something happened that made every undead heart skip a beat.

There he was again—Ethan.

Standing not far ahead, but this time, his posture had changed. He wasn’t just watching anymore. His cold, indifferent gaze was locked directly on them.

“That’s enough. Let’s end this here.”

“…” Gravestone’s face went blank, a dark shadow falling over him. He didn’t say a word. But deep down, he was starting to realize something—maybe… maybe those other two weren’t real at all.

Meanwhile, back in the Solaris Citadel lab, PhD was watching everything unfold on the monitors. Every move Gravestone made had been tracked and calculated.

“Target’s in the kill zone. Initiate encirclement pattern,” he ordered calmly.

On the battlefield, the Guard Mechs—previously lined up in a straight formation—suddenly began to shift. They moved with mechanical precision, forming a perfect circle, linking end to end.

And right at the center of that circle—was Gravestone.

But the encirclement wasn’t meant to attack him directly. No, the real purpose was to cut off his reinforcements. The surrounding Zombie Horde was now completely blocked, unable to push forward.

“You’re Gravestone, right?” Ethan said, his voice low and steady. “Well, standing here… it’s only fitting. This’ll be your grave.”

“…” Gravestone looked around, and sure enough, the battlefield had changed. The once-surging Zombie Horde was gone, held back by the Guard Mechs.

And now, flanking Ethan, appeared Bulldozer and Laura—both wielding high-tech weapons, their designs sleek and intimidating.

Then came Sprout, Gorewood, Petal, and Lil’ Shroom—the four fusion-type plant Zombie Kings. Each one radiated raw power and deadly intent.

And they weren’t alone.

The Japanese Iron Trio. The Dune Twins. One elite after another emerged from the shadows, surrounding Gravestone and his crew in a tightening ring of death.

Of course, if the goal had just been to kill Gravestone, they wouldn’t have needed to go this far. This wasn’t just a takedown—it was a live combat drill.

Because when they eventually headed to Heartland, they’d be facing tens of millions—maybe even hundreds of millions—of zombies. This was a test run: use the Guard Mechs to isolate the horde, then eliminate the Zombie Kings with precision.

The Guard Mechs were powerful, but limited in number. Every deployment had to count.

Unfortunately for Gravestone, he was the unlucky bastard caught in the middle of this rehearsal.

He never imagined he’d walk into a trap this elaborate.

His subordinates were just as stunned, glancing around with wide, terrified eyes.

“Boss… didn’t you say you could get us out of here? How the hell did we end up in a damn death trap?!”

“They’re too damn smart,” Gravestone muttered, still shaken. “Every move, every step—it’s like they predicted everything. With that kind of brainpower, we never stood a chance.”

“So… is there any way out of this?” one of his men asked, voice trembling.

“…There is,” Gravestone said, eyes darting as he thought fast.

His followers looked at him with renewed hope. That’s our boss—always got a plan, even in the worst situations.

Then, without warning, Gravestone stepped forward.

And dropped to his knees with a loud thud.

He bowed his head low in submission—a gesture that, in the zombie world, meant total surrender.

“Don’t kill me! I surrender! I’ll serve you—I swear! I’m a Voidborn Undying, I could be a huge asset to you…”

Ethan looked down at him, expression unreadable.

Voidborn Undying? Sure, technically. But Gravestone was bottom-tier. No real high-level combat ability. His only strength was being hard to kill.

And worse—he was unpredictable. If they brought him along to Heartland and he pulled some stunt mid-battle, it could screw everything up.

All things considered… he wasn’t worth the risk.

Not even worth more than an SSS-grade crystal core…

…