Silverlight Tower, Top Floor
The air on the top floor twisted and rippled — space itself warping like a whirlpool frozen mid-spin.
A heartbeat later, Alex stepped cleanly out of the vortex.
Silverlight Tower had long since become a nest of the infected, a festering hive crawling with Ashen City's strongest zombies. And as fate would have it, the instant Alex arrived, two evolved predators were already lurking in the shadows.
One was a towering Tyrant — a mountain of muscle cords, its skin hardened into mottled armor. The other was a Phantom zombie, thin and wiry, its jagged tailbone swaying behind it like a scorpion's stinger.
The instant Alex's boots touched the cracked marble floor, hunger overpowered instinct. Both monsters lunged at once.
Whoosh!
The Tyrant struck first. A fist the size of a steel drum hurtled toward Alex, a blow strong enough to reduce concrete to powder.
But Alex didn't move. Even as the gale from that punch washed over him, he calmly raised his left hand. The gleam of vibranium alloy flashed across his glove.
Bang!
The clash thundered through the hall, the floor trembling as if struck by a war gong.
The Tyrant — three meters tall, armored in sinew and rage — was flung backward like a rag doll. It slammed into a support pillar with a deafening crash. Stone burst into shards, raining down as its arm bent into a grotesque angle, bone shattered from wrist to shoulder.
There was no pause.
A sharp hiss cut through the stale air. The Phantom vanished, reappearing in a blur before Alex, its skeletal tailbone lashing forward like a barbed whip.
Months ago, a second-level Phantom had been enough to butcher Alex's entire squad in a city mall.
Now?
Swish!
Alex didn't even draw the Wushuang Sword. He simply pressed thumb and middle finger together, forming a sword gesture. A thin arc of condensed sword energy shimmered at his fingertips — and lashed out in a single, perfect stroke.
The Phantom froze mid-attack. A thin red line split its grey flesh.
A heartbeat later, the creature fell apart, cleaved cleanly in two. Its halves hit the floor with dull thuds, like sacks of rotten meat.
Not a drop of blood touched Alex's boots. His power was precise, absolute.
He exhaled slowly, his gaze flicking from the corpses at his feet to the ruined corridor ahead.
It wasn't so long ago that a Phantom like this had forced him to flee for his life. Back then, he had been half-starved, half-trained — a survivor clinging to scraps of borrowed strength.
But now?
The Asgardian bloodline pulsed beneath his skin. The Sacred Heart Art steadied his veins. The Mind Stone's cold flame sharpened his thoughts.
He was no longer the same man.
Alex knelt, driving his gloved hand through the Tyrant's fractured skull. Bone split like dry bark. Inside, nestled deep in the grey pulp, lay a crystalline core — clear and cold, the size of a polished marble.
He held it up between his fingers. The crystal caught the emergency lights, gleaming like frozen lightning.
"Crystal core? What an unexpected find."
Alex turned the glass bead–sized crystal in his palm, pleasantly surprised.
There was no time to appraise it. A fresh wave of zombies surged toward him, snarling.
With a thought, the Wushuang Sword leapt from his back into his hand. Power flared along the blade as he swung in a wide arc.
Whoosh!
A devastating slash tore through the air. Everything within ten meters was cleaved apart in a single stroke.
Dozens of zombies charging him were bisected instantly. The sheer force radiating from that one blow spoke of absolute dominance.
Without giving their leader a chance to react, Alex extended his hand, tracing a swift circle in the air. Runes sparked and spun — a portal unfolded before him.
He stepped through without hesitation.
As his figure vanished, the magic dissolved. The top floor of Silverlight Tower fell silent again, littered with corpses.
-------------------
Eighty Kilometers West of Greenridge Base
An off-road motorcycle tore across the wilderness like a hunted cheetah. Its engine roared in protest, throttle nearly floored, every vibration screaming strain.
The rider crouched low to cut through the wind, his eyes wide with panic as he fought to steady the bike.
Behind him, a streak of black light streaked closer — relentless, hungry.
The shadow resolved into a massive panther. Its fur shimmered with pitch-dark luster, each stride silent yet impossibly fast.
The Black Cloud Leopard.
As the gap closed, the beast opened its jaws. A cyclone of wind gathered, compressing into a spiraling spear of raw force.
Boom!
The wind spear shot forth, screaming toward the fleeing man.
Catching sight of it in his rearview mirror, the rider's face twisted in horror. He abandoned the bike in desperation, leaping clear an instant before the spear struck.
Crash!
The motorcycle exploded into shards, crumpling into scrap.
The man rolled across the dirt, coughing blood. As he staggered up, the shadow of death loomed over him. The Black Cloud Leopard was nearly upon him.
In terror, he slammed both palms onto the ground.
Rumble!
A wall of solid earth erupted before him, thick and heavy.
Bang!
The leopard's claws smashed into it. What should have been sturdy stone crumbled instantly, reduced to rubble under the beast's might.
Chi-chi-chi!
But before the killing blow fell, sparks flared in the air above. Tiny embers wove together, opening into a swirling wormhole.
A figure stepped out as the portal collapsed behind him. Through its fading shimmer, hordes of zombies could still be seen snarling on the other side.
Alex had arrived.
"Roooaaar…"
The Black Cloud Leopard froze, instincts screaming. Its predatory eyes narrowed as it pawed at the ground, uncertain. Even a beast could sense the suffocating threat radiating from Alex.
"Huh? An Awakened One… with spatial abilities?" The man who had nearly been torn apart stared at Alex in shock.
Among Awakened, no matter the world, space-wielders were feared and revered.
Alex's gaze fell on the beast. His lips curved faintly.
"A third-level evolved beast… the Black Cloud Leopard?"
His eyes flickered, half amused, half grim.
He couldn't decide if his luck was good or disastrous.
Tier 3 zombies and evolved beasts were the greatest threat to Greenridge Base — catalogued in detail by its scouts. The Black Cloud Leopard wasn't just any Tier 3.
Creatures with crystal points above 100 and below 999 were all considered Tier 3. But the gap between them was vast — a Tier 3 at 100 points was nothing compared to one at 999.
And the Black Cloud Leopard? It boasted nearly 700 crystal points.
A monster among monsters.
Its power was on an entirely different level.