Ethan hoisted Heather, barely clinging to life, high up and said coldly,

"I know you are here. If you don't come out...then I will kill her.."

Alan and the others heard Ethan's threat and realized they couldn't hide anymore. They stepped out and stood together, facing Ethan.

"What a surprise, you kid is still here? You are brave."

Ethan said, referring to Alan. Since Ethan had almost killed Alan last time, he thought anyone daring to confront him again was either stupid or suicidal.

Alan whispered to David and Bert,

"Tell Hannah and the others... plans have changed and Ethan has found us.

Alan faced Ethan again, trying not to show fear, but asked loudly,

"Let her go first! How did you know about our plan?"

Ethan tossed Heather aside indifferently and replied with a cold smile,

"Kid, do you think I only rely on brute force? There are many people who have resisted me... How could I not know what tricks you are playing... Come on... I want to see how you defeat me!"

Ethan wasted no time laying his cards on the table, leaving Alan and the others hesitant to make a move.

At that moment, David's walkie-talkie crackled with Hannah's voice saying,

"Plan B."

The three exchanged knowing glances at the mention of "Plan B," as if they already knew what to do.

"What? You don’t know how to defeat me, or should you wait for reinforcements to arrive?ok, I can wait"

With lightning speed, Alan, David, and Bert sprang into action. Alan hurled a metal sphere that transformed into a mechanical beetle attaching itself to his wrist, turning into a laser gun aimed at Ethan. David and Bert charged forward, David firing shots from his gun.

Ethan effortlessly dodged their attacks with a smirk, as Alan and David expected. Their job was to disrupt Ethan, while Bert, unnoticed, carried Heather and dashed towards the street gate.

Once Bert reached the gate, it lowered immediately, safely sealing them off, with Claire assisting from a distance.

Seeing Bert's successful rescue, Alan raised his right hand and shot out a grappling hook, using a powered skateboard to glide onto the rooftop of a nearby building, while David, in sync, climbed over a wall and took cover inside a house.

In the next moment, the gate on the overpass suddenly swung open, and several sprinters, previously trapped inside, charged out like unleashed tigers, heading straight for Ethan.

The activation of "Plan B" was a contingency discussed during the planning of the operation against Ethan. Alan had proposed it, brainstorming various contingency plans in case things went awry, but they never expected to put it into action.

Ethan donned a black mask, discarded his coat to reveal his black armor, and drew two daggers from his waist, twirling them skillfully.

With a sinister grin beneath his mask, Ethan said,

"Very good, this is interesting"

With lightning-fast reflexes, Ethan moved like a snake among the sprinters, effortlessly decapitating them one by one with his spinning blades. His actions rendered the fast-moving zombies useless before him.

Even as Alan seized the opportunity to fire off a few laser shots to disrupt Ethan, Ethan swiftly dodged them all.

Ethan's extraordinary speed was thanks to his vastly enhanced neural responses, making everyone else seem slow-motion to him, mere puppets in his hands.

" real?"

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

Alan's face turned grave as he realized this was Ethan's true strength, far beyond what they had faced on the bridge.

"What? This is the only way? How can you defeat me by just finding a few zombies? I’m disappointed"

Ethan scoffed, kicking aside the fallen bodies of the sprinters, brandishing his daggers with a look of bloodlust.

At that moment, David emerged from behind the wall, unafraid, and said to Ethan,

"Don't worry, we just want to hold you back!"

As David spoke, the gate Bert had entered slowly opened, and members from all five squads of the anti-Ethan alliance emerged, fully armed with over 70 guns, surrounding Ethan and blocking his escape route on the overpass.

Bert, among them, raised his gun and gave the order for everyone to aim at Ethan.

David held up his walkie-talkie, activating the speaker. Hannah's voice came through, saying,

"Ethan, you lose. Give up!"

As the camera zoomed out, Hannah, perched atop a high-rise building hundreds of meters away, aimed her sniper rifle at Ethan, ready to pull the trigger at any moment.

Upon hearing Hannah's words, Ethan clapped sarcastically and said,

"Ah, Princess... I knew it was you behind all this. Hank must be proud of your growth."

Hannah retorted without missing a beat,

"Stop talking! If my dad hadn't become like this, you wouldn't have the chance to rise up. You have done too many bad things and you should be punished＂

Ethan chuckled coldly in response and began to advance slowly.

"Are you sure you want to do this? Don’t regret it, it’s enough for me to kill you all by myself..

Unfazed by Ethan's threat, Hannah replied defiantly,

"you try!"

At her command, everyone opened fire on Ethan, including Alan, using his laser gun.

Just when it seemed Ethan had no way to dodge, he pressed a button on his wrist device, creating a plasma shield around him, deflecting all the bullets.

Before anyone could react, Ethan scattered several dozen automatic bombs around him.

"It's bombs! Run!

" someone shouted, but it was too late. The bombs exploded, injuring many, and chaos ensued amidst the smoke and debris.

Amidst the swirling smoke and chaos, everyone panicked, shouting,

"Where's Ethan?! Where is he?!"

Suddenly, like a ghost, Ethan appeared behind a member, his voice chilling as he said,

"Right here..."

With swift precision, he slashed the throat of one member after another before they could react. Ethan moved like a phantom, swiftly dispatching each one, like a relentless reaper, unstoppable and unforgiving.

The situation escalated as someone panicked and started firing wildly, adding to the chaos.

In less than two minutes, Ethan single-handedly wiped out the entire anti-Ethan alliance, truly a monster.

Hannah, though aware of Ethan's strength from childhood, was shocked by his actual killing prowess, throwing her off balance and disrupting her actions.

"Darn it! What do we do now!?"

Hannah exclaimed, trying to formulate a plan.

Alan, amidst the chaos and smoke, felt the tension rising.

"We can't go on like this, we must find a way!"

In a moment of desperation, Alan had a flash of inspiration and spoke through the walkie-talkie to Hannah,

"Hannah, when the smoke clears, can you take a shot at Ethan?"

Initially puzzled, Hannah responded,

"Sure, but what's your plan?"

"No time to explain. Just watch me!" Alan said

Alan extended his right hand, and Kabbi quickly transformed into its strongest form – the Sonic Cannon, on his wrist. Without hesitation, Alan launched himself into the air.

With a thunderous blast, a powerful shockwave dispersed the smoke.

As the smoke cleared, the scene was devastating, with casualties everywhere, and only Alan, David, and Bert's squads surviving.

However, Ethan was now exposed, standing in the center, seemingly stunned by who had the capability to unleash such power.

"Now!"

Hannah seized the opportunity, aiming her shot at Ethan.

The bullet flew hundreds of meters, hitting Ethan squarely in the chest, sending him spinning to the ground.

"We did it?" Bert exclaimed in disbelief.

Seeing Ethan down, Alan, David, and Bert exchanged incredulous looks. Even David, injured, trembled with joy and said,

"Is it true?... Did we take down Ethan? I can't believe it!"

Through her sniper scope, Hannah saw Ethan on the ground and breathed a sigh of relief, about to say

"Well done"...

But before she could finish, she froze.

Because Ethan was getting up.

He looked a bit unsteady, but it was clear his armor was incredibly resilient, enough to withstand the sniper shot, leaving only a small bullet hole.

With Ethan alive, everyone prepared for another round. Especially Alan, whose previous sonic blast had drained Kabbi's energy, leaving him unable to use the sonic cannon again. Instead, he had to rely on the less energy-consuming plasma blade for defense.

Just then, a figure descended from the sky, landing a heavy blow on Ethan before he could fully regain his footing. Without pause, the figure began pummeling Ethan relentlessly, finally restraining his hands. When Ethan lay still, the figure turned to the others, revealing himself as Alexander, the captain who had been missing until now.

"How's that? Timed it just right."

Alexander said confidently, holding Ethan down, prompting Alan, David, Bert, and even Hannah, who had rushed to the scene, to think they finally had it under control.

Though Ethan was captured, Hannah couldn't find it in herself to feel relieved. Besides the few still standing, everyone else had been killed by Ethan...

"This is just too brutal..."

The group looked somberly at the bodies scattered around, especially Hannah, who felt deeply guilty, kneeling down to touch one of the bodies, tears streaming down her face.

Seeing Hannah so distraught, Alan approached her gently, trying to console her.

"Hey... don't cry. Once someone's gone, they're gone. At least we managed to capture Ethan, living up to everyone's expectations..."

"What now? What to do with Ethan?"

David was the first to ask, looking at Alan, Bert, and Alexander.

As the leader of the five squads, Alexander paused for a moment and said,

"Alright, here's the plan. We'll lock him up..."

Alexander's words were abruptly cut off, his body trembling before he collapsed, his eyes rolling back.

The group barely had time to react when a blade suddenly protruded from Alexander's chest, staining his clothes red. As Alexander fell to the ground, gasping for breath, Alan, David, Bert, and Hannah stared in shock...

It was Ethan, standing calmly, bloodied dagger in hand...

Bert muttered in horror,

"Are you... a monster?"