Virus King [Translation]

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"White Emperor is on the move!"

"After watching him for an entire day and night, I'm exhausted. I can't imagine how White Emperor himself must feel after fighting this long!"

"But why isn't White Emperor returning to the city? Why is he heading outside?"

"Wait, is he planning to escape?!"

The live broadcast, which had run for a full day and night, suddenly shifted as something changed on the screen. Novak leapt into the air, but instead of returning to the safety of the city, he moved directly toward the mass of zombies.

As speculative comments poured in, someone quickly interjected:

"White Emperor isn't running away. He's located the boss controlling the corpse tide and is about to execute a beheading strike!"

"How do you know that?"

"White Emperor said it himself! I just came back from the front lines!"

"Yeah, right. Even White Emperor must be exhausted by now! A day and a night of fighting—it's understandable if he's done. It's no surprise he's reaching his limit…"

Despite the skepticism, no one paid much attention to the complaints. After all, most viewers knew that if Novak were going to leave, he wouldn't do it at such a critical moment.

Still, many in the live broadcast were intrigued by the earlier comment.

"There's a controller behind this tide of corpses? What kind of boss is it?"

The viewer, fresh from the battlefield and still buzzing with excitement, eagerly shared what he had learned:

"White Emperor said it's a type of boss known as a 'lord.' It can command massive hordes of zombies. It's a mentally-enhanced mutant, the most powerful kind of regular zombie mutation!"

"So if the lord is killed, will the corpse tide end?"

"More or less…"

Novak, however, paid no attention to the discussions in the live stream. He continued leaping across rooftops and scaling walls with ease, quickly navigating the streets. The throngs of zombies below couldn't even touch him as he moved, agile and swift. Only mutated flying zombies might have posed a threat—but such creatures weren't likely to appear this early in the apocalypse.

From the very start of the city's defense, Novak had tasked Meimei with searching for the lord using her dream form, an ability that allowed her to traverse through dreams in search of the target. Although Novak was incredibly strong, searching for the lord's precise location among the zombie hordes would take too long, and he couldn't afford to neglect the defense of White Emperor City for too long.

Even though White Emperor City seemed capable of holding its own for now, the true value of the lord was far greater to Novak than simply surviving the corpse tide.

Meimei's dream form was unique—immortal, capable of reforming instantly even if destroyed, as long as her main body remained safe. In that sense, Meimei was practically invincible, making her ideal for the task of tracking down the lord.

After an entire day and night of searching, she finally uncovered the deeply hidden location of the lord.

To Novak's surprise, the lord was hiding in a place all too familiar to him.

Before the apocalypse, Novak had gained zombie blood and valuable evolution points from the affiliated hospital of De-Manila University, where he also met the young nurse, Aria. Now, it turned out that the first mutated lord was right in the same place—just a short distance from his home!

The De M-anila University Affiliated Hospital was situated right next to G-1 Street.

No wonder this Street had been suspiciously devoid of zombies!

A sly smile crossed Novak's lips. Summoning all his strength, he reached the hospital in under twenty minutes. The final confrontation with the lord was near.

"Meimei: Brother Novak, you need to hurry! That thing seems to have noticed your arrival and is trying to flee. My dream body was discovered and destroyed by it!"

Novak's eyes widened slightly in surprise. 

While Meimei wasn't strong in combat, her awareness in a fight was decent. More importantly, in the dream realm, her abilities were directly tied to her mental strength, making her formidable there. But for the lord to defeat her in the dream world? That seemed impossible.

His confusion was soon cleared as Meimei elaborated:

"Meimei: Brother Novak, be careful. There are two mutant zombies beside the Lord!"

Two more?! 

Novak's eyes narrowed in shock. How could that be?

Normally, mutated zombies wouldn't work together, especially creatures like the Roshan that devour their own kind. But with the lord, it wasn't impossible.

After all, the lord had the power to control zombies, even mutated ones. They weren't immune to its influence.

With that thought, Novak immediately calmed his excitement. 

Mutated zombies weren't dangerous only because their attributes were far superior to evolutionaries or even bosses in Secret Realms. Their unpredictable and bizarre abilities made them deadly foes.

Facing three variants together would require serious caution.

But why, if it was so powerful, was the lord trying to flee?

"Novak: What mutant are they?"

"Meimei: One of them is the tyrant you mentioned earlier, Brother Novak. It's fast and strong, and it's clinging to the rooftop. It killed my dream body before I could even react—it was too quick! The other one, though, hasn't made any moves. It's thin and black, standing right beside the mutant lord."

Novak's eyes gleamed with excitement. A blackened one? Could it be a heresy!?

If both a heresy and the lord were present, there might be a chance for Novak's zombie claws to evolve further!

With that, his journey to D-avao and the abyss would be much more secure.

This thought spurred him into action. Wasting no more time, Novak swiftly entered the hospital.

Even without specific skills, his heightened mental powers allowed him to vaguely sense the presence of several powerful entities drawing closer.

Soon, Novak was able to fully pinpoint their location.

They were in a restroom. The place seemed oddly familiar.

But what surprised Novak even more was when he slowed his steps and approached the restroom door. Upon seeing the figure at the end of the room, he froze for a moment.

The psychic mutant zombie—the 'Lord'—wasn't just any creature. It was none other than Aria's admirer, the pathetic "licking dog" from before the apocalypse began!

How ironic.