Strongest Existence Becomes Teacher

Chapter 286: A Nest of Monsters

Zane quietly observed the dullahan standing before him.

The creature sat motionless atop its black horse, the severed head resting calmly in one hand. Yet what truly drew Zane’s attention wasn’t the monster itself.

It was the face.

Caelum’s face.

Behind him, the werewolf continued growling, blood dripping from its jaws while pure mana leaked from its body.

Then...

Zane sensed another presence.

His eyes shifted upward.

Standing on the roof of a nearby building was an enormous zombie-like man. Its body was grotesquely muscular, patches of rotten flesh covering its skin, yet just like the other two...

It emitted pure mana.

And...

It also possessed Caelum’s face.

"...Another Caelum."

Zane narrowed his eyes.

"Something really shady is going on."

He looked between the three creatures.

"A dullahan with pure mana."

"A zombie with pure mana."

"This is getting interesting."

A small smile appeared on his face.

"Although..."

"I could unveil everything with a single spell if I actually used my powers."

He shrugged.

"But solving a mystery the normal way is much more fun."

Before he could continue—

All three monsters attacked simultaneously.

The dullahan urged its horse forward, its massive bastard sword slicing through the air. At the same time, the zombie leaped down from the rooftop, crashing toward Zane like a falling boulder, while the werewolf disappeared into the darkness.

Zane simply took one step to the side.

The sword missed.

The zombie’s punch struck empty air.

The dullahan’s horse crashed directly into the zombie instead.

Boom!

Both monsters staggered.

"Hm."

Zane nodded.

"Nice teamwork."

The zombie roared and swung another massive fist.

Zane leaned backward just enough for it to pass in front of his face before casually stepping aside again.

This time the punch landed directly in the dullahan’s horse.

The undead horse was sent rolling across the street.

Meanwhile, the dullahan’s sword slashed toward the zombie’s shoulder instead.

For several moments, the battle looked almost ridiculous.

Every attack aimed at Zane somehow ended up striking another monster instead.

He barely moved.

One step.

A slight turn.

A tilt of his head.

The monsters continuously battered each other while Zane simply wandered between them.

Then...

A sharp killing intent descended from above.

The werewolf.

It had circled behind him without making a sound.

Pure mana condensed around its claws as it descended from the rooftops, aiming directly for Zane’s head.

The claws were only inches away.

Without even looking...

Zane lazily swung the back of his hand.

"...Oops."

BOOM!!

The upper half of the werewolf disappeared instantly.

Not exploded.

Not torn apart.

It simply ceased to exist beneath the overwhelming force.

A shockwave erupted outward.

Buildings trembled.

Clouds split apart.

Even the night sky seemed to shake.

Zane slowly turned around.

Then looked upward.

Far above...

One of the planet’s two moons now possessed a long crack stretching across its surface.

A bead of sweat rolled down his cheek.

"...Oops."

"I might’ve used a little too much strength."

A familiar holographic figure suddenly appeared beside him.

Tiny Eira stretched lazily.

"Wow, Boss."

"I just woke up after finishing a system update..."

"...and what a scene to wake up to."

Zane awkwardly scratched his cheek.

"What can I say?"

"I used a tiny bit of strength."

"They’re just really weak."

Eira slowly looked from the cracked moon...

Back to Zane.

"...Right."

Zane suddenly remembered something.

"Hey, Eira."

"We have that battle power measuring system, right?"

Eira folded her tiny arms.

"Yes, Boss."

"I specifically added the beeping sound because you asked me to."

"I also finished tweaking the calculations."

She sighed dramatically.

"But you’re so forgetful."

"You never even used it."

"Hehe..."

"Sorry."

"Sorry."

Before they could continue chatting, the remaining two monsters attacked again.

The dullahan swung its gigantic bastard sword.

The zombie threw another punch.

Bang!

Both attacks landed...

Yet it felt as though they had struck an indestructible wall.

Neither attack moved Zane even a single millimeter.

He slowly turned toward them.

"Wait a minute, you guys."

"I’m trying to measure your strength first."

"So I can adjust mine."

Then he looked toward Eira.

"Eira."

"Measure them."

Immediately, a translucent holographic window appeared before Zane’s eyes.

Beep... Beep...

Unstable Enhanced Dullahan

Battle Power: 2325 (Fluctuating)

Rating: A strange enhanced dullahan infused with pure mana. Highly unstable biology.

Another window appeared.

Beep... Beep...

Unstable Enhanced Zombie

Battle Power: 1370

Rating: A grotesque enhanced zombie infused with pure mana. Highly unstable biology.

Zane nodded.

"Makes sense."

"Now..."

"How much power am I currently using?"

The holographic display instantly changed.

Name: Zane Creed

Race: ?

Current Battle Power: 3,000,000 (Heavily Suppressed ++++)

Rating: Let’s not talk about that.

Zane stared at it.

"...No wonder."

"Wait."

"Let me lower it."

The number immediately began falling.

Three million...

One million...

One hundred thousand...

Twenty thousand...

Until it finally stopped.

A new window appeared.

Name: Zane Creed

Race: ?

Current Battle Power: 9001 (Heavily Suppressed +++++ )

Rating: I am still not talking about it.

Zane couldn’t help snickering.

"Perfect."

"Now it’s fair."

Eira stared at the number with sparkling eyes.

"B-But Boss..."

She pointed excitedly at the display.

"It’s..."

"It’s over 9000!!"

Zane immediately nodded.

"I understood that reference."

Eira grinned proudly.

"I’ve always wanted to say it."

Before either of them could continue—

The dullahan suddenly turned around.

The zombie did the same.

Without warning, both monsters began fleeing deeper into the city.

Eira pointed after them.

"Boss."

"Looks like they’re running away."

Zane watched them disappear into the darkness before smiling.

"Yeah."

"I know."

He started walking after them at a relaxed pace.

"Let’s follow."

"I want to see where they came from."

The chase quietly began beneath the moonlit sky.

Zane slowly rose into the air.

His pace wasn’t hurried.

Far ahead, the dullahan and the zombie continued fleeing across rooftops, seemingly unconcerned that someone was following them.

"Hmm..."

Zane glanced in the direction they were heading.

"They’re going toward..."

His expression paused for a brief moment.

"...where Selene is."

The relaxed smile on his face faded.

Just then—

He sensed something.

A familiar spatial fluctuation.

Without another thought—

Zane vanished.

...

The next instant, he reappeared elsewhere.

His purple eyes slowly swept across the scene before him.

Dozens of grotesque creatures surrounded the area.

Zombies.

Dullahans.

Misshapen undead beasts.

Every single one of them emitted pure mana.

And every single one of them...

Had Caelum’s face.

Some faces were intact.

Others were horribly twisted and distorted, as though someone had tried to recreate him over and over again before failing.

"...Well."

Zane quietly muttered.

"This just became much weirder."

Standing in the middle of those monsters was a slim young man.

Two gray horns protruded from his head.

His eyes bled thick black tears that slowly ran down his cheeks.

It was...

Jax.

Before Zane could observe further—

"Professor..."

A weak voice came from behind him.

Zane turned around.

Selene was leaning against a broken wall, her clothes torn in several places while bruises covered her body. She was breathing heavily, but despite her exhausted appearance, she was still conscious.

A faint smile appeared on Zane’s face.

"So..."

"You pressed the button after all."

Selene gave a weak nod.

"I..."

She tried to speak.

But Zane gently raised a hand.

"You can explain everything later."

His gaze slowly returned to the monsters surrounding Jax.

The smile on his face disappeared.

"First..."

"Let me take care of them."

"And then you can tell me exactly what happened here."