10.000x Doomsday Survival

7. Defying the Heavens

The static from the satellite radio in Axel's new command room sounded incredibly harsh. Lieutenant Maya, now dressed in a brand new tactical uniform acquired from the rebate, stared at the monitor screen with a tense face. Beside her, Scarlett remained busy typing complex codes while Elena prepared medical supplies for emergency reserves.

"Master Axel, this message is verified to be from Central Command in the Eldoria Capital. They are utilizing the Clean Slate protocol. That means any city with an infection rate above eighty percent will be leveled by tactical nuclear warheads," Maya explained in a calm yet firm voice.

Axel took a sip of his hot coffee. He stood in front of the massive window, which was now reinforced with ten-centimeter-thick anti-radiation glass. "A clean slate, huh? They really think human lives out here are just numbers on paper. Anya, how much time do we have?"

"Calculating launch sequence and ballistic missile velocity, we have exactly twenty-one hours and forty minutes remaining, Master," Anya's voice echoed through the room.

"Scarlett, is our electromagnetic shield strong enough to withstand a nuclear blast?" Axel asked.

Scarlett stopped typing and turned her head. The dark circles under her eyes proved her lack of sleep, but her eyes sparkled with burning enthusiasm. "If it is just a standard nuke, it might hold. But the radiation and shockwaves will cause our system to overload in a matter of seconds. I need a Star Crystal Core to upgrade the shield to the Planetary tier. The problem is that material only exists inside the energy research center in the Central District. That is roughly one kilometer away from here."

[Ding! Emergency Mission: Protect the Fortress from Nuclear Threat!]
[Instruction: Retrieve the Star Crystal Core in the Central District and expand the fortress territory to a one-kilometer radius!]
[Reward: Stage 2 Fortress System Upgrade and Skill: Gravity Control!]

Axel smiled. "What an absolute coincidence. Anya, prepare our new military forces. We are going to conduct a massive expansion."

"Understood, Master. One hundred and twenty Iron Fist military personnel have been equipped with rebate-acquired laser rifles. They are ready to move out in five minutes," Anya replied.

Axel walked over to Scarlett. He pulled a small box from his inventory. It contained the Star Technology Manual he had obtained from a previous rebate. "Scarlett, study this on the way. If you need any additional equipment, just tell me."

[Ding! You have given the Star Technology Manual to SSS-Grade Target Scarlett Thorne!]
[Triggering 2,000x Critical Rebate!]
[Congratulations! You have obtained a Portable Automated Workshop Device and the Anti-Matter Cannon Blueprint!]

"This is absolutely insane! With this device, I can assemble any component right inside the truck!" Scarlett hugged the box in sheer delight.

Axel turned his head to face Maya. "Maya, you are taking command of the ground forces. Use the most efficient tactics possible. I do not want to lose a single soldier. Remember, every surviving troop is an asset to our fortress."

"Understood, Master. The forces will advance in a diamond formation. We are going to wipe out every zombie along the route to the Central District," Maya delivered a crisp, firm military salute.

They all descended to the ground floor. Over a hundred soldiers stood in perfect formation in the apartment lobby. They no longer looked like ragged mercenaries. Dressed in sleek black nanofiber uniforms and carrying laser rifles that emitted a bright blue light, they looked exactly like an army straight from the future.

"Move out!" Maya shouted.

The massive doors of the fortress swung open. Axel led the charge at the very front, gripping his Spear of the Thunder God. The moment they stepped outside the fortress radius, thousands of zombies swarming the perimeter instantly charged at them.

"Fire!" Maya commanded.

The high-pitched hum of laser fire echoed in perfect unison. Blue beams of light sliced through the darkness of the night, piercing clean holes right through the heads of every approaching zombie. There was no deafening roar of gunpowder. There was only the sharp sizzle of burning flesh and the heavy thuds of bodies collapsing onto the asphalt.

[Ding! Your forces killed 500 zombies. Contribution Points +500.]

Axel did not stand idly by. He leaped directly into the densest cluster of the zombie horde. He twirled his spear rapidly, generating a miniature lightning storm that incinerated hundreds of zombies in a single sweeping rotation.

"Boss! A reconnaissance helicopter detected in the sky!" Valerie shouted while keeping watch from atop a tactical truck.

Axel looked up. A helicopter bearing a golden wing emblem, the official insignia of the capital's elite forces, was flying dangerously low. They were clearly monitoring the area in preparation for the bombing.

"Anya, are they the enemy?" Axel asked.

"One SSS-Grade target detected inside that helicopter, Master. Status: The pilot is currently attempting an emergency landing because the helicopter's engine is being attacked by flying-type zombies," Anya explained.

"Flying zombies?" Axel looked up at the sky again. Sure enough, dozens of creatures resembling giant bats with human faces were violently tearing apart the helicopter's rotors.

The helicopter began trailing thick black smoke and swerved wildly. It plummeted straight toward the energy research center building they were targeting.

"Maya, double time! We have to get there before that helicopter explodes!" Axel roared.

They sprinted, shattering the zombie blockade. Axel's strength, now fully leveled up to five, was absolutely unmatched. Every single strike of his spear crumbled structures and obliterated crowds of monsters. Within ten minutes, they arrived right in front of the research center building.

The helicopter had crashed in the front courtyard, colliding with several parked cars and catching fire. Axel sprinted straight toward the wreckage. He tore open the crumpled cockpit door with his bare hands.

Inside sat a woman dressed in an incredibly sleek combat pilot suit. She wore a highly advanced helmet, but the visor was shattered, revealing a pair of piercing emerald green eyes.

[Scanning Target]
[Name: Seraphina Moon]
[Age: 23 Years Old]
[Genetic Potential: Grade SSS Sky Queen]
[Status: Leg trapped, minor bleeding.]

"Do not come any closer. I have strict orders to shoot anyone who approaches a military asset," Seraphina whispered, struggling to reach her fallen pistol.

Axel let out a soft laugh. He lifted the heavy section of the cockpit crushing Seraphina's leg as if it were nothing but a sheet of paper. "Orders from the capital hold absolutely no weight here, Pilot. Now choose. Do you want to burn to death right here, or come with me and live a little longer?"

Seraphina was completely stunned by Axel's immense physical strength. She let go of her pistol and let out a heavy sigh. "Who are you? Why do your forces have laser weapons? Not even the elite troops in the capital have this many advanced units."

"I am Axel. The future owner of the Eldoria Continent," Axel stated, carrying Seraphina effortlessly out of the helicopter.

He pulled out a bottle of Star Evolution Serum and offered it directly to Seraphina's lips. "Drink this. It is infinitely better than whatever medical supplies you have in that chopper."

Seraphina hesitated at first, but she saw undeniable honesty in Axel's eyes. She drank the serum. Instantly, the severe wound on her leg healed completely, and she felt an explosive surge of boundless energy.

[Ding! You have administered the Star Evolution Serum to SSS-Grade Target Seraphina Moon!]
[Triggering 5,000x Critical Rebate!]
[Congratulations! You have obtained the Phoenix-01 Stealth Fighter Jet and the Skill: Flight!]

"Insane. I can fly?" Axel felt a slight itch on his back. However, he did not sprout wings. Instead, he felt absolute control over the gravitational field surrounding him.

[Ding! Seraphina Moon is deeply amazed by the Host's power. Loyalty: Fifty Percent.]

"Master Axel, the flying zombies are attacking again in the thousands!" Maya shouted from the troops' position.

The sky above the research center was suddenly blotted out by thousands of flying zombies. They looked exactly like a dark storm cloud preparing to descend and tear Axel's forces to shreds.

"Seraphina, you said you were a pilot, right?" Axel asked, setting Seraphina down on her feet.

"Yes, but my helicopter is completely destroyed," Seraphina answered sadly.

Axel smirked widely. He snapped his fingers. Suddenly, straight from the system's dimensional storage, a pitch-black fighter jet boasting an incredibly futuristic design materialized in the courtyard. The aircraft lacked conventional rotors. Instead, it was equipped with plasma jet engines blasting bright blue flames.

"Is that the Phoenix-01? But that aircraft was only a theoretical concept in the capital's top-secret laboratories!" Seraphina gaped in absolute shock.

"It belongs to you now. Get in there and clear the sky of that flying trash. I am going inside to retrieve the Crystal Core," Axel ordered.

Seraphina immediately sprinted toward the jet. "Leave it entirely to me, Boss! I will show you exactly why they call me the Sky Queen!"

The fighter jet executed a vertical takeoff with lightning speed. A booming sonic pop shattered the air as Seraphina began slaughtering the flying zombies using the aircraft's twin plasma cannons.

Axel turned his attention to the energy research building. "Maya, secure the outer perimeter. Scarlett, Elena, follow me inside. We have less than twenty hours to install this nuclear shield."

They stepped into the pitch-black building. Right in the center of the lobby, a massive blue crystal pulsating with bright energy was being guarded by a monster significantly larger than a Crusher. Its grotesque form resembled a giant spider covered entirely in multiple human heads.

"Anya, what the hell is that thing?" Axel asked.

"That is a Level 3 Mutant designated as a Hive Mother. She is siphoning the energy from the Star Crystal to hatch thousands of zombie eggs every single minute," Anya explained.

Axel tightened his grip on his spear. Crackling electricity from his body began to arc across the floor. "Perfect. I can test out my new Gravity Control skill on her."

Axel leaped forward. It was no ordinary jump. He was literally hovering in mid-air. He aimed his open palm directly at the Hive Mother. "Kneel before me, you burden to this world!"

Instantly, the gravitational force surrounding the Hive Mother multiplied a thousandfold. The giant monster's body was brutally flattened, crushed so hard against the concrete that the floor shattered. The sickeningly crisp sound of snapping bones echoed loudly.

"Insane. This power is literally a cheat code," Axel muttered.

He descended smoothly and drove his spear straight through the Hive Mother's heart. The monster exploded into a pool of highly corrosive black fluid. Axel retrieved the glowing Star Crystal Core resting right behind the carcass.

"Scarlett, here is the prize. Now let us get back to the fortress and install it!" Axel declared.

"Right away, Boss!" Scarlett replied, securing the massive crystal.

They marched out of the building. Up in the sky, Seraphina had completely eradicated every single flying zombie. Maya's forces had also successfully secured the expanded territory and planted the fortress signal transmitters at every street corner.

[Ding! Fortress Territory expanded to a One-Kilometer Radius!]
[Congratulations! You have obtained the Reward: Star Energy Power Plant!]

Suddenly, a blindingly bright light erupted from the direction of the Horizon Apartments. The light expanded at breakneck speed, forming a massive transparent dome that completely covered the entire one-kilometer radius. Every single streetlamp that had previously been dead instantly flared to life. Electricity surged vibrantly back into the entire district.

"We actually did it," Elena whispered in awe, gazing up at the dome of light.

Axel checked his wristwatch. "The nukes will be arriving in exactly ten hours. Anya, activate the missile energy absorption mode. If they want to throw nukes at us, we are going to absorb the entire blast and turn it into raw fuel for our fortress."

"Understood, Master. The God Fortress is now in status: Invincible."

Axel smiled coldly. He stared toward the capital city in the far distance. "You want to play with nukes? Fine. I will show you exactly how this game is supposed to be played."

However, right amidst his victory, Anya delivered a brand new warning. "Master, a satellite signal has been intercepted. They did not launch just one nuclear missile. Ten separate warheads have been locked directly onto our precise coordinates. It appears someone in the capital desperately wants you dead."

Axel narrowed his eyes. On the satellite feed, he spotted an older man in a general's uniform flashing a highly cynical smirk. Standing right beside the general was a red-haired woman holding a military nuclear control tablet.

[6th SSS-Grade Target Detected: The Nuclear Strategy Genius.]

"Highly interesting," Axel muttered. "Tomorrow, I will not only deflect those missiles. I am going to personally collect that red-haired girl and make her a permanent addition to my goddess collection."

Ten nuclear missiles tore through the Eldorian sky, creating a terrifying visual of a secondary apocalypse. The entire world fully believed Axel would be reduced to ash. Yet the exact moment those missiles made contact with the fortress dome, the outcome nearly gave every single general in the capital a fatal heart attack.