Apocalypse: King of Zombies Chapter 1248: A Foundation for the Future

Exactly as Henry predicted, the so-called Celestial Stairway turned out to be an unbelievably intricate ritual circle.

The core of this ritual circle—the runic disk—sat firmly embedded in the 99th step.

Its complexity dwarfed the one they'd encountered on that earlier altar by leagues. This version was vastly more elaborate—thicker runes, profounder layers, and exponentially tougher to unravel.

Nine bizarre stones were inlaid directly into the runic disk.

Each one pulsed with horrifying energy—power levels that crushed any crystal core Ethan had laid eyes on, no contest.

Through True Sight, Ethan spotted something utterly mind-blowing:

These stones absorbed mysterious energy all by themselves.

Yet the intake was painfully sluggish. Without staring intently through True Sight for ages, Ethan never would have caught it.

No soul knew how ancient this space truly was, but after endless years of buildup, those stones overflowed with energy.

…Except now, they felt a tad emptier.

The surge of power that had flooded their bodies before? Straight from these stones.

Ethan pieced it together only amid his own upgrade.

Prior to that, he'd been totally stumped—where in blazes had such massive energy come from?

Now the truth stood clear.

Those “stairs” underneath?

Nothing special, just plain old steps.

The crushing pressure had all emanated from the runic disk. Get nearer, and it weighed down harder.

With the full runic disk crammed into his spatial storage ring, that pressure evaporated completely.

Back at Fallen Star City, he'd task Miles with replicating the staircase. Then slot in the runic disk.

And boom—Fallen Star City gains its own Celestial Stairway.

Sure, the mysterious stones' energy wasn't infinite—it could be depleted. No chance Ethan would let crowds queue up and suck it bone-dry.

Down the line, Fallen Star City could roll out a merit system—challenges reserved for those with ample contribution points.

Plus, though the Celestial Stairway rewarded energy only on first completion, repeats were still on the table.

Even sans rewards, it forged unbreakable willpower.

That pressure? Perfect for body tempering. Train against it steadily, and physical prowess would soar nonstop.

A gem like this?

No way Ethan would abandon it. His long “dawdling” at the top? Purely plotting how to extract the runic disk intact.

Chris and the rest lit up with excitement upon hearing Fallen Star City would soon boast its Celestial Stairway.

They knew full well what this meant for their stronghold.

It was the bedrock allowing Fallen Star City to truly ascend.

“Grace—thank you.” Ethan met her gaze, raw gratitude shining through.

Truth be told, he'd never imagined a simple favor from before would unlock such a colossal prize.

This expedition's haul rivaled their brutal half-year grind through the apocalypse. Absent Grace, they'd likely never have stumbled here.

Void Realms existed in droves, in fact.

The catch? Nearly all lay undiscovered—their entrances insanely concealed.

Take this spot. Who'd suspect it hid in some forsaken mountain ravine? Sans a guide, a lifetime's hunt yields zilch.

“Ethan, you really don’t have to,” Grace replied, eyes remarkably steady. “If it weren’t for you guys, the three of us would’ve died long ago. And honestly, what you earned here—you earned it yourselves. We just showed you the way.”

“Either way, we never would’ve found this place without you,” Ethan said firmly. “I’ll make it up to you.”

“What kind of reward?” Chloe asked, eyes gleaming brightly.

Ethan simply smiled. “You’ll see.”

Grace laughed. “If it’s something from Ethan, it has to be huge. I’m definitely not turning that down.”

“Hey, we’re basically family now.” Ethan chuckled. “If Sean ever gives you trouble, tell me. I’ll handle him.”

“Seriously?!” Sean stared wide-eyed. “What did I do to deserve that?”

“Alright,” Ethan said, waving them forward. “Let’s move. Everyone spread out and see if there’s anything else worth taking.”

“Got it!”

They scattered swiftly, combing through the Void Realm.

“Ethan, we’ve searched this place a bunch of times already,” Grace said. “There’s nothing left.”

“It’s fine.” Ethan grinned. “Let’s look again. At the very least, you guys never searched up top.”

Surprisingly, they did uncover loot—beneath the crumbled main hall above, a handful of stray weapons and a black box emerged.

Crafted from exotic material, the box screamed preservation for vital treasures.

Ethan cracked it open, swiftly spotting two weathered manuals arranged neatly within.

“Manuals?!” Everyone’s eyes blazed with excitement.

Ethan grabbed the items, skimmed through several pages, let out a helpless sigh, and stored them away.

Yeah… Miles would definitely need to crack this one.

“Alright,” Ethan announced, securing the box. “Time to move out.”

“Mm.”

The whole group nodded in unison, departing the Void Realm together and retracing their earlier path.

They had scarcely exited the mountain range when a crowd of people came dashing desperately toward them, running for their very lives.

Chasing close behind was a gigantic tiger barreling after them, narrowing the gap with terrifying speed.

One by one, the runners were overtaken.

Every time, the tiger's massive jaws clamped shut—and the unfortunate victim met a gruesome end in its bite.

Grace's face drained of color.

These were folks from her own compound.

“Over here!” Grace yelled, pulling her weapon free and readying herself for combat.

Not too far off, Jared and a handful of men crouched hidden behind a hillside, their faces etched with tension as they observed.

“Jared…” one man murmured anxiously. “Are you seriously going to let Grace and the rest get killed too?”

Jared scoffed. “They started it. They were so quick to surrender the entire compound to that guy, so I owe them nothing now.”

His eyes sparkled with thrill.

“With them gone, the compound belongs to me. I'll expand it—make it grander.”

“…But you like Grace,” the man ventured cautiously.

Jared chuckled softly. “So what? She's always despised me. Then she just runs off with some stranger.”

He ran his tongue over his lips, his voice chilling.

“In the apocalypse, emotions are worthless trash. Power and land are all that count.”

“Once I'm in charge of the compound, all the women there… I'll take my pick.”

“Exactly.” The other two chimed in right away, keen to flatter him. “We're your men from here on out.”

The crew fixed their gaze forward, thrumming with eager hype—yearning for the mutant tiger to slam into the mob and rip them apart in a spray of blood.

But the very next moment, shock locked every face among them.

For the ferocious tiger in full rampage halted dead right before the panicked escapees—

Then whipped around and fled in terror.

“What the hell?” Jared and his crew stood dumbfounded.

“It… it seems like something frightened it away,” one henchman stammered, gulping down fear.

“Impossible!” another barked. “That's a Tier 11 mutant tiger! What could possibly scare off a beast like that?”

Yet in the blink of an eye…

They'd have no option but to accept the unbelievable truth.