The Last Paragon in the Apocalypse
Chapter 59: The Aftermath

A heavy silence fell over everything—streets, pubs, restaurants, even homes. No one moved, no one spoke, and no one even dared to breathe too loudly. It just didn't make sense. In fact, it shouldn't have been possible.

When the mutated Zombie General appeared, everyone had braced themselves for an intense battle. They held their breath, expecting Klaus to struggle or even flee. But with a single slash, he not only killed the Zombie—he split it clean in half. The shock was too much for anyone to process.

Klaus, a mere Ascended warrior, had just taken down a Tier 5 Terror Mutated Zombie and walked away without a scratch. It defied logic. Yes, there were geniuses out there, fighters who could face opponents a level or two above them. But to kill something three realms higher with a single strike? That was unheard of.

Disbelief rippled through the crowd. Then, suddenly, the screens showing the battle went blank. The military had moved the satellite away.

As the scene of Ruin City faded from the screens, a new image appeared—a news anchor, looking serious. "Breaking news!" the anchor announced. "The young Ascended warrior, Klaus, has made his debut on the Union Warrior Ranking Chart, entering at number 807. Additionally, his rank on the City Chart is now 29, and on the Region Chart, he is ranked 98."

The moment the announcement was made, the world erupted into a frenzy once again. No one could remain idle. There was chaos everywhere, especially online. Klaus's fights had become the most trending topic, with countless videos circulating across the internet.

But while the world was buzzing with excitement over his incredible feats, the main character of all this chaos stood calmly in the central region of Ruin City, staring down at his sword. He had been staring at it for the last five minutes, deep in thought.

After another ten minutes of silent contemplation, Klaus muttered to himself, "I'll explore it later." With that, he placed the sword into his space ring. He then approached the fallen Mutated Zombie General, carefully extracting a dark Zombie Stone from its body.

"This is a high-tier stone," Klaus said with a grin, eyeing the dark stone in his hand. "Hehe, the boy's rich now." A Tier 5 Zombie Stone was something anyone would envy, and for good reason. Once someone reached the Grandmaster stage, they needed to form a Star Core to ascend to the Saint stage.

The quality of this Star Core was crucial—it determined one's future potential. Naturally, everyone sought to form the largest, most refined Star Core possible. But doing so required immense resources. Tier 5 monster cores were ideal for this purpose, but Zombie cores were even more valuable.

Not only did killing a Zombie give more experience than a regular monster, but Zombie cores also held significantly more energy.

Because of this, Zombie cores from Tier 4 and above were in high demand. With Klaus having slain hundreds, if not thousands, of Tier 4 Zombies, he now possessed a vast number of these prized cores.

Suddenly, the battlefield shifted. The ice that had covered it exploded, releasing a mist of freezing air that swept across the entire area. Within that mist, Klaus's Star Qi pulsed. As the mist spread across a 10-kilometer radius, every Zombie core on the battlefield stirred. They were drawn to Klaus, vanishing one by one into his space ring.

"My control over ice is still lacking," Klaus muttered to himself. He recalled the words of the senior who had guided him: understanding the essence of his elements—ice, and all the others—was crucial if he wanted to unleash true elemental attacks.

Klaus moved back across the battlefield, repeating his earlier actions twice more, drawing in every remaining Zombie core. Once satisfied, he left and returned to the small mountain where he had once formed his Ice Lotus skill.

"Looks like my status has risen again," Klaus said with a smile, noticing the change. "Oh, I'm on the Union Chart now. Hehe, it seems I've finally made my debut. Let's see who dares to look down on me ever again."

When Madam Fei had encouraged him to show everyone his power, no one expected his rise to be this explosive. Not only had Klaus entered the City Chart, but he had climbed to the top, and even more impressively, he had secured a spot on the Region Chart within the top 100.

In every city, there were millions of warriors, all striving for a chance to rank among the top. The Union Ranking Chart was reserved for only the top 1,000 warriors across the entire region. To make such a debut, one needed not just strength but also vast amounts of Military Contribution Points. Klaus had done it—he had made his mark.

This meant Klaus's points far surpassed those who had been hunting and killing monsters for years. Not only had he eradicated an entire region of the Ruin, but he had also wiped out two regions entirely. He had slain thousands of monsters, amassing a massive sum of points, which catapulted him to the top of the rankings upon his debut.

What Klaus accomplished in such a short time would take others months, if not years, to achieve. Normally, it would require a team of dozens of warriors to even attempt such a feat—and even then, they would barely manage it. Wiping out an entire region of a Forbidden Zone was something no one had ever imagined possible, not since the apocalypse struck.

Klaus was the first to achieve it, and he set the bar so high that even if someone tried to replicate his success, it wouldn't have the same explosive impact. His actions had redefined what it meant to be a top warrior, and the world was now watching.

Despite his incredible feats, Klaus couldn't help but frown as he stared at his status screen. "Hmm, after all this killing, I still need 7 million more experience points to level up and become a Master," he muttered, eyeing the progress bar with disappointment.

He had hoped that this battle would be the turning point, the push he needed to ascend to Master Warrior. But now, seeing how much experience was still required, he could only sigh.

Suddenly, his phone rang—now showing on the military tracking device Hanna helped him link his phone to. The name "Ohema" flashed on the screen.

"It's Ohema," Klaus said, quickly retrieving the phone. Before answering, he brushed his hair back, trying to look more innocent and cute.

"Hello, Ohema. Missing me already?" Klaus teased in a friendly tone as soon as her face appeared on the screen.

"Tsk, who's missing you?" Ohema replied with a slight blush. "By now, thousands of girls are sliding into your DMs, and you think I would miss you?"

Klaus blinked, confused. "Mmmh, what's a DM?" he asked, tilting his head slightly.

Ohema stared at him for a moment before bursting into laughter. "Oh right, I forgot you're new to all this," she said, still giggling. "Anyway, you're popular now!"

"It seems so. I guess this means I can enter the Selection for Celestial Mountain Academy," Klaus said, his voice filled with curiosity.

"Oh, absolutely," Oheme replied with a nod. "You're more than qualified now. Even without a recommendation, I'm sure the academy will reach out to you soon enough."

She paused for a moment, then raised an eyebrow. "But… aren't you worried you might have gone too far this time?"

Klaus looked at her, confused. "Gone too far? I only killed monsters and Zombies. It's not like I stole anyone's girlfriend," he said, genuinely puzzled.

Oheme sighed and leaned closer. "You're on the City, Region, and Union charts, Klaus. That alone is an insult to many prideful warriors. Think about it—if one day you woke up to replace your status pushed back or wiped from the charts by someone several Tiers below you, how would you feel?"

Klaus frowned but remained silent as she continued.

"You've not only pushed people down a rank but on the City Chart, you've entered the top fifty—a feat usually reserved for Saint Warriors and above. Do you see now why I said you might have gone too far?" Oheme's tone was gentle, but her words carried weight.

Klaus thought about her words for a moment, finally understanding the impact of his sudden rise on others. He could see what she meant now. Still, it wasn't his fault that people were weaker than him. "Well, that does make sense," Klaus said, nodding thoughtfully. "I guess I won't wipe out the other three regions just yet."

Ohema's jaw dropped. "Wait, you were planning to take out the other three regions?" she asked, eyes wide.

Klaus smiled and nodded. "Yeah, I was going to use the time to break through to the Master stage," he replied casually. "But since you mentioned I might be stepping on some toes, I'll postpone it for now."

"You... aren't you tired?" Ohema asked, still in disbelief.

Klaus chuckled. "Not at all. I could do this all day." If only she knew about his heaven-defying recovery ability that defied all logic—she probably wouldn't even be able to stand next to him without feeling overwhelmed.

"Then it's a good thing I called you," Ohema said. "You don't need to break through just yet. After the City Selection, there'll be a gift. Those selected will be given a vial of Mountain Dew. Wait until then and use the Mountain Dew to cleanse your body before you push yourself to the Master stage."

"What is Mountain Dew?" Klaus asked, his tone curious.

"It's a unique medicinal essence," Ohema explained. "It cleanses all impurities from the body, allowing a warrior to cultivate more easily and break through to higher realms. If you use it, your spiritual qi will become more refined and potent."

Klaus nodded thoughtfully. "I see. I'll take your advice and—"

Suddenly, Klaus paused, his attention shifting sharply to the left. His eyes narrowed.

Ohema noticed his change in demeanor and asked, "Klaus, what is it?"

"It seems I have some visitors," Klaus replied, a cold edge in his voice. "I'll call you later, Ohema."

Before she could respond, Klaus ended the call. A wicked grin spread across his face