10.000x Doomsday Survival

8. Radiation Becomes Nutrition

The sky above the city of Cyber-Vane, typically pitch-black, suddenly flared a blinding white. Ten streaks of fire descended from the atmosphere, tearing through the clouds with a deafening roar that shattered the windows of distant buildings. Those were ten tactical nuclear missiles launched directly from the Eldoria Capital.

Up on the roof of the Horizon Apartments, Axel stood with absolute calm. The fierce wind generated by the missiles' friction battered his face, yet he did not even blink. Beside him, Scarlett continuously monitored her holographic tablet, drenched in cold sweat.

"Boss, the first nuclear missile will make contact in exactly ten seconds! The Star Crystal shield is already operating at maximum saturation capacity. I have absolutely no idea if this is going to hold or if we are all going to be turned to ashes in a single second," Scarlett's voice trembled violently.

Elena, Valerie, Maya, and Seraphina were also gathered on the roof. They all gripped their respective weapons tightly. Elena looked the palest. She knew perfectly well that there was no cure for nuclear radiation if the shield failed.

"Relax. Anya, execute the Nuclear Feast protocol. Let us show those old fools in the capital exactly how to utilize their special delivery," Axel commanded casually.

"Understood, Master. Activating the Nuclear Energy Conversion System. Synchronization with the 100x Rebate System initiated," Anya's voice echoed with pure tranquility.

Ten seconds later, the first missile slammed directly into the transparent dome blanketing Axel's territory.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The sound of the explosion was nothing like an ordinary blast. The blinding white light, which should have instantly incinerated all organic matter within a radius of dozens of kilometers, was completely halted at the surface of the blue dome. Instead of exploding outward, the nuclear fireball was forcefully sucked straight into the energy grids of the fortress shield.

The Horizon apartment building shook violently, but the vibration felt more like a heavy car engine revving up. Every single electrical cable in the district hissed loudly, radiating a brilliant blue light.

[Ding! Massive influx of nuclear energy detected!]
[Triggering Auto-Rebate in the Energy Source Category!]
[Congratulations! Ten Nuclear Warheads have been converted into 1,000 Star Fusion Battery Units and 1 Eternal Energy Heart!]

"Holy shit! They actually turned into batteries!" Axel burst into loud laughter.

Through his system vision, Axel watched the fortress energy indicator, which had previously sat at a mere ten percent, instantly skyrocket to one thousand percent. The energy reserves overflowed so massively that Anya was forced to discharge the excess power into the ground. The discharge created violent arcs of blue lightning that struck down zombies lurking outside the dome.

"Insane. Did the nuclear missiles just disappear? There is no radiation? No fallout dust?" Seraphina gaped in sheer disbelief as she stared at the sky slowly returning to pitch black.

"Those missiles did not disappear, Seraphina. They were just converted into premium fuel for our fortress," Axel answered. He turned to Anya. "Anya, display the satellite feed from the Capital. I want to see the looks on their faces."

A massive hologram materialized in the center of the roof. The screen displayed a highly advanced control room. An elderly general with a chest full of medals, General Ironwood, was glaring fiercely at the monitor in front of him.

"Why is there still a signal transmitting from the Cyber-Vane coordinates?! Where is the explosion?! Did the missiles fail?!" General Ironwood roared on the screen.

Beside the general stood a young woman with long red hair, busily typing on a giant computer terminal. Her face was incredibly beautiful, but deep dark circles lined her eyes. She wore black-framed glasses that made her look even more like an absolute genius.

"General, the satellite sensors indicate absolutely zero radiation levels. However, there is a massive spike in energy at that exact location. It is almost as if. As if our missiles were completely devoured by them," the girl's voice sounded flat but laced with intense curiosity.

Elena, who had remained silent the entire time, suddenly stepped forward toward the hologram. Her eyes widened completely, and her body trembled violently. "Aria? Is that you, Aria?"

Axel immediately turned his head toward Elena. "You know her, Elena?"

"She is my biological younger sister, Axel! Aria Vance! She is a nuclear physics genius who was kidnapped by the capital military two years ago! They told me Aria died in a laboratory accident!" Elena sobbed, pressing her hands against the holographic screen.

Axel smirked widely. "The sixth SSS-Grade Target is actually your own sister? The world truly is incredibly small."

[Scanning Target Remotely.]
[Name: Aria Vance]
[Age: 19 Years Old]
[Genetic Potential: SSS-Grade Nuclear Goddess]
[Status: Held hostage, heavily controlled via a neural chip implanted in her neck.]

"Anya, can you hijack their audio feed so Elena can speak directly to her?" Axel asked.

"Affirmative, Master. Connection established."

"Aria! Aria, it is me, your sister! Listen to me!" Elena screamed toward the hologram.

In the capital's control room, Aria Vance abruptly stopped typing. She clutched her head as if fighting off an excruciating pain. She turned toward the satellite camera with a completely blank stare. "Sister. Elena? That is impossible. The General told me you had already turned into a zombie."

"He lied! I am perfectly healthy, Aria! I am right here, inside Axel's fortress! Axel saved my life!" Elena shouted again.

General Ironwood instantly realized his communications had been hijacked. He violently grabbed Aria by the hair and pressed the muzzle of his pistol directly to her head. "Keep your mouth shut! Whoever you are out there in Cyber-Vane, listen to me very carefully! You might be able to withstand a nuclear strike, but you will never survive my impending orbital bombardment!"

Axel stepped right in front of the camera. His face looked incredibly terrifying on the capital's monitor screens. "Hey there, old General. My name is Axel. You just committed two massive, fatal mistakes. First, you tried to bomb me. Second, you just laid your filthy hands on the hair of the sister of one of my goddesses."

"Why the hell should I care?! I am going to obliterate all of you!" General Ironwood roared.

"Anya, lock onto Aria Vance's precise position. Send the exact coordinates directly to Seraphina," Axel commanded with absolute coldness.

"Lock established, Master. Location: The Underground Facility of the Eldorian Parliament Building," Anya replied.

Axel turned his attention to Seraphina. "Seraphina, how fast can your Phoenix-01 reach the Capital?"

"Utilizing the massive nuclear energy reserves we just absorbed, I can engage the plasma turbo mode. Fifteen minutes, Boss," Seraphina answered with a fierce, bloodthirsty smile. She was absolutely itching to slaughter the capital's elite forces.

"Perfect. Maya, Valerie, you two are going with Seraphina. Your mission objective is simple. Bring Aria back here alive. As for the rest? You have full permission to level whatever you want over there," Axel declared.

"Axel, I want to go too! Please let me go pick up my sister!" Elena begged, grabbing Axel's hand tightly.

Axel gently stroked Elena's hair. "Elena, you are a doctor. Your job here is to make absolutely sure Scarlett does not pass out from exhaustion while upgrading the fortress. Trust me, Aria will be back here long before breakfast."

Axel then pulled a small black box out of his dimensional space. It contained the High-Tier Star Evolution Serum he had just obtained from the nuclear rebate.

"Seraphina, take this with you. The exact second you find Aria, inject this directly into her. It will completely destroy that neural chip in her neck and grant her the power to fight back," Axel said, handing the box to Seraphina.

"Understood, Boss! Moving out right now!" Seraphina, Valerie, and Maya immediately sprinted toward the landing pad on the fortress roof.

The Phoenix-01 fighter jet took off with a massive sonic boom that instantly ruptured the eardrums of every single zombie within a five-kilometer radius. The jet tore through the sky like a brilliant blue meteor, heading straight for the Eldoria Capital.

Axel sat back down in his chair. He watched the hologram of General Ironwood, who was still raging on the screen. "Scarlett, while we wait for them to return, we might as well begin the stage two fortress renovations. I want this building equipped with a laser cannon capable of shooting straight to the moon."

"Right away, Boss! With these nuclear batteries, I can build absolutely anything!" Scarlett replied, her energy fully renewed.

Ten minutes later, Anya delivered an update. "Master, the Phoenix-01 has officially entered the Capital's airspace. Fifty enemy fighter jets have been detected in active pursuit. Seraphina is requesting authorization to deploy the Black Hole Bomb."

Axel smirked. "Authorization granted. Tell her not to leave a single loose bolt flying in the Capital's sky."

Suddenly, on the monitor screen, a massive pitch-black explosion erupted high above the Eldoria Capital. The central military's fighter jets were violently sucked directly into a miniature black hole, vanishing completely from the radar without a single trace.

"Insane. That is a literal mythological weapon," Axel muttered.

However, despite his forces being actively slaughtered, General Ironwood laughed loudly on the screen. "Axel! Did you honestly think fighter jets were my only weapon?! Take a look behind you!"

Axel snapped his head around immediately. On the horizon, arriving from the exact opposite direction of the Capital, a colossal shadow was flying low, heading straight toward his fortress. Its form resembled a gargantuan jellyfish made entirely of pulsating flesh, measuring nearly a full kilometer in width.

"Master, a Level 4 Mutant Zombie detected: The Sky Devourer! That creature is the absolute king of all flying zombies, and it is highly attracted by the massive nuclear energy we just absorbed!" Anya shouted in warning.

Axel tightened his grip on his Spear of the Thunder God. Violent arcs of electricity began surging from his body, tearing his tactical shirt to shreds. "So the General intentionally bombed me just to use my base as bait for this monster? Highly interesting."

Axel turned to Scarlett and Elena. "Both of you, get down to the core shelter room right now. I will personally handle the General's new little pet."

Axel vaulted directly off the roof of the apartment building. He flew straight up, rocketing toward the Sky Devourer. Amidst an apocalypse that was rapidly growing more insane by the minute, Axel felt his spirit burning brighter than ever before.

"System, if I feed my lightning to a monster of that massive size, what exactly will the rebate be?" Axel asked internally.

[Answer: The Host will receive the Active Skill: God of Lightning Transformation and 1,000 Tons of SSS-Tier Monster Meat!]

"Perfect. Let us throw the absolute biggest barbecue party in the entire history of Eldoria!" Axel roared. He shot forward like a streak of brilliant blue lightning, plunging straight into the gaping maw of the colossal monster.

Axel breached the stomach of the Sky Devourer and discovered something entirely unexpected. Deep inside the monster's core, a completely naked woman was tightly bound by the beast's thick, fleshy veins. Just as Axel raised his spear to sever the heart, the woman opened her eyes and spoke. "Finally. The true owner of the system has arrived."