Who else?

"Not only that, but a vast number of high-level mutant creatures will emerge in the oceans, attacking coastal regions!"

"The number of mutants within the zombie hordes will increase significantly, and fourth-tier leaders with intelligence will emerge to command the hordes!"

"After the death of awakened individuals, they will resurrect as mutants under the influence of the great catastrophe, retaining some of their intelligence to attack humans!"

Clark, sitting in the corner, slowly opened his eyes. He remembered the horror of the great catastrophe, and even today, he still shuddered when recalling it. 

With a global population of over a hundred billion, during the early stages of the great catastrophe, over ten billion people perished. Over the following two years, the population continued to decrease until it was less than a billion. 

Over 99.9% of the population had perished, giving rise to more than a hundred billion zombies. The tide of the undead nearly occupied over 90% of the land area. 

Hundreds of billions of zombies, oceanic natural disasters caused by colossal mutant creatures, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, numerous king-tier mutants, and even the appearance of extradimensional demonic beasts in the final year. 

Every single enemy was a never-ending disaster. If it weren't for the emergence of many superhumans during those dire times who established safe zones, humanity would have likely been wiped out long ago. 

Plus, the mysterious halt of the great catastrophe during its third year, when the assault from all the mutant creatures subsided. The entire human civilization might have been destroyed.

As the news spread, the crowd, who had initially been getting ready to disperse, found themselves rooted in place, looking at Dirk in disbelief.

"How is that even possible?"

Gerard took a deep breath, and Lenny behind him had an equally grave expression.

While the zombie outbreak at LJ City Academy had seemed insignificant to them, the current news was nothing short of despair.

"What evidence do you have to prove that what you're saying is true?"

"How could you possibly know this?"

"Who's to say you're not making up false information intentionally to achieve some goal?"

No one was willing to accept the facts presented by Dirk. The mere thought of such a scenario was met with deep resistance from everyone in the room.

The crowd grew agitated.

"The principal shouldn't listen to their nonsense!"

"He killed our people, and now he's making up lies to scare us?"

"Do they think they can intimidate us by fabricating stories?"

In an instant, the atmosphere in the room became tense. Dirk faced the same question as before, and he could only manage a bitter smile. Indeed, he still had no way to provide proof.

The only way to prove his point was to demonstrate overwhelming force and let his fists do the talking.

"I can kill all of you, so there's no need for deceit!"

Now, he understood Clark's perspective better. Just trying to prove, argue, and convince these people would be a waste of time, and there was no guarantee they would be convinced.

"Proof?"

"Deceit?"

Arnold suddenly stood up, his expression ice-cold.

"Proof? I can prove it by beating you to a pulp!"

"Such arrogance!"

Among the group of students, a tall and handsome young man named Edmund suddenly stood up. He had a confident demeanor and a striking appearance.

"I'd like to see if you have what it takes!"

"Spirit Blade!"

With a low shout, two dark blue energy blades materialized in Edmund's hands, exuding tremendous power and a stunning appearance.

The female students who had been serving tea in the meeting room couldn't help but look at him with awe.

"Edmund, the senior, has such a cool ability!"

The female students who had been curious and eavesdropping outside couldn't help but let out exclamations of surprise.

As one of the first awakened individuals in the academy, Edmund possessed formidable power, and his prestige among the student body was high even before the apocalypse. After awakening, he had become a spokesperson for the student group.

"Edmund, take him down!"

"Damn, they think they can scare us with a few ghost stories?"

"They mentioned a King-tier mutant. I bet you haven't even seen a Licker, have you?"

The crowd was filled with disdain, and they had no intention of backing down.

Dirk let out a sigh and focused his gaze on the rest of the crowd. It appeared that a fight was inevitable.

He communicated with his team through voice chat.

"Arnold, try to incapacitate them without killing."

"We haven't even presented our request for merging the entire academy yet. If we kill them now, we may lose any chance we have."

Arnold gave a wicked smile and nodded casually. He had originally planned to negotiate with these people calmly, but they were acting more arrogant by the minute.

Clark was right; people like this needed to be shown their place.

"Bear Transformation!"

"Rampaging Charge!"

Arnold let out a furious roar, and his body was enveloped in a violent crimson aura. In the meeting room, the two of them were just ten meters apart, and in an instant, they charged toward Edmund.

"Edmund, be careful!"

A cry for caution came from the ice elemental awakened individual standing nearby. He quickly condensed an ice spike to obstruct the bear's advance. Edmund's heart leaped, and as he turned his head to look at the alarmed girl, he suddenly found a black bear charging at him. He hastily defended himself and swung his Spirit Blade in a fluster.

Edmund had only faced zombies in his daily life, and when confronting mutants, it was usually as part of a group. He was no match for someone like Arnold, who had fought his way out of a sea of zombies. 

His ice spike shattered upon impact, and under the resistance of Arnold's Rampaging Charge, it had no effect. Arnold wore a wicked smile, and with his current level of defense, he could easily ignore such minor damage. 

His massive palm descended, and the rushing wind howled as he met Edmund's blue Spirit Blade head-on and slammed it into Edmund's chest.

"Chi!"

The Spirit Blade pierced the bear's paw, but it couldn't hinder Arnold's advance in the least.

"Bang!"

Edmund let out a miserable cry as his full power couldn't be brought to bear. Under the force of Arnold's single blow, his entire chest cavity was crushed. He was sent flying, and after hitting the wall, he lost consciousness.

A single strike killed him! The people who had been previously cursing were now struck dumb, like ducks with their throats gripped, unable to believe what they were witnessing.

The student who had launched the ice spike retreated in fear, fearing that he might be the next target of Arnold.

Arnold turned his head in all directions, and the instinctive retreat of the crowd made them take a few steps back. The second-strongest awakened individual in the student group had been killed in an instant. Having never experienced such violence before, they felt a chill down their spines.

"Who else?"

They were a bunch of cowards. So many people, and they were all intimidated by him alone.

Gerard, who had previously appeared composed, immediately hid behind his nephew, Lenny. He was just a regular person, and if it weren't for some students who hadn't yet adjusted to the new reality, no one would have paid attention to him.