"I, Angus, a platinum-ranked hunter graced with the honor to serve the most formidable warrior to have set foot on this earth, have been the faithful guardian of the fortress city known as Miracle for over thirty years. In this momentous time, in the final breaths of my existence, I embrace my duty to annihilate these creatures until my last breath, regardless of the consequences!"

The dazzling crimson light of the sword intensified, bathing the city in a scarlet glow.

Slash!

Without hesitation, he performed the most powerful strike of his life, causing the sword to cleave through the air with immense force!

"Grooaaa-"

Chas!

His battered and worn sword shattered into countless fragments upon impact with the head of the gigantic zombie, but he did not lament his action.

He had severed that repugnant, putrefied head in two!

"Hahaha, in the end, humans have proven to be more powerful!" exclaimed Angus amidst laughter, with tears and mucus covering his face, as he stood on the zombie's clavicle.

"Hrrgghh!"

"Groarr!"

"Urrraaahhh!"

"S-sh*t..."

Unfortunately, his joy quickly faded when a multitude of deformed and grotesque creatures emerged from within the body of the gigantic zombie.

Dozens and dozens of zombies with strange forms emerged from the cut he had made!

Though they varied in appearance, they all shared one unsettling characteristic: they were equipped with advanced technology implants embedded in their putrid bodies.

"F*ck off! This is why even those far more powerful than me fell victim to this abomination. This zombie is a living hive!" Angus shouted, his face revealing a mix of helplessness and desperation.

"Groarr!"

"Uuuurrrrgh!"

Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!

Angus threw away the hilt of his sword and quickly drew his pistol, firing bursts of blue energy in a desperate attempt to annihilate as many enemies as possible.

However, his bravery was quickly overwhelmed by the overwhelming number of foes pouncing on him, leaving him no room to escape!

"Ahhhh, you cursed bastards!"

Angus could only helplessly witness as he was bitten from all sides, feeling his flesh torn apart in unimaginable pain. In his final moments of life, he pressed a button on the side of his pistol, causing a dazzling blue light to concentrate within.

In his mind, a fleeting memory of his younger self observing the backs of a group of people, particularly a man with black hair radiating great confidence, as if nothing in the world could stand against him, briefly flashed.

Tragically, that beautiful memory crumbled before his eyes, like a sandcastle swept away by the relentless waves of despair.

"Go to hell!"

Angus's anguished cry reverberated throughout the city, leaving behind a haunting echo. His eyes, clouded by uncontrollable tears, reflected an ineffable mix of fury and self-loathing.

Boom!

Suddenly, the pistol exploded, generating a massive dome of energy that engulfed hundreds of meters around him!

After a few minutes, the dazzling blue light completely faded, leaving behind a colossal crater that marked the spot of the explosion. Now, there remained a desolate landscape devoid of any signs of life.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"Arrrrrghh!"

"Hrrgghh!"

"Brrrraaawwl!"

But soon enough, an uncountable horde of deformed and putrid figures emerged from every corner of the city, rushing toward the epicenter of the explosion.

Their arrival unleashed a sinister symphony of roars that resonated throughout the urban area.

Although it lasted only for a few minutes, it didn't take long for the city to sink back into a gloomy silence, only occasionally interrupted by the whisper of the wind, intertwining among the debris and vines.

Whispers that seemed to recount the forgotten secrets of an extinct race, the last echoes of humanity...

Sadly, there were no witnesses to mourn the departure of the last human, only the sepulchral silence of the place where he fought until his last breath.

In contrast, within the depths of the boundless cosmos, distant from the confines of planet Earth...

Leaving behind the tragic fate of Angus, the crimson destiny of another human who lost their humanity long ago is about to reach its final stretch.

On a remote and sinister planet, red as if drenched in blood, a male human figure was seated atop a towering mountain of corpses of terrifying demons, each one bearing horrifying and abominable forms.

This was Ethan, a demon who had long abandoned and left behind his former human identity.

The last corpse upon which he sat was that of a gigantic wolf-like demon, but with a spine-chilling mutation: instead of one head, it had five, each one shattered and crushed.

Bloody fragments and twisted remnants of the heads hung from their necks, emitting a nauseating stench.

In the midst of this eerie scene, the man held in his hand a dark reddish-black mist, an accursed and sinister essence that seemed to pulsate with malevolent energy.

With an expression of ecstasy and thirst for power, he slowly brought the mist towards his mouth and greedily absorbed it as if it were a delicacy.

As the mist dissipated in his hand, a sensation of supernatural power seemed to flood him, his eyes gleaming with indescribable malevolence.

"Delicious!"

His muscular body momentarily swelled to more than twice its size, his veins snaked like tangled rivers, and his bones crackled like breaking branches. However, this fleeting transformation quickly faded, leaving his body as it had always been, although his aura was heavier and more imposing.

"This exhilarating sensation of strengthening is sublime! It's a shame it's the last time..."

"Uuuhh..."

Covered in dirt and blood, Ethan lazily stretched as if there was nothing in the world to worry about.

Whooosh, whooosh!

Four imposing black wings, of considerable size and resembling those of a bat, unfolded on his back. They flapped eagerly, generating powerful gusts of wind that unleashed chaos around him.

With his indifferent gaze, he surveyed his surroundings while calmly stroking the fur of the demonic wolf as if it were a pet.

Before him lay a desolate scene, a reflection of the place where he was seated. Grotesque mountains rose with countless demon corpses, while rivers of blood meandered through the barren ground.

The unbearable stench of death and decay swirled in the air, clinging to the skin and filling the lungs.

Chunks of decaying bodies and organs lay silently on the dark, red earth.

A dense crimson mist covered the sky, creating the impression of being alive and breathing, as if it were the embodiment of evil.

This type of scenery was not exclusive to his surroundings but extended throughout the planet. It was common to see almost everything reduced to rubble and dust, as if a supernatural force had mercilessly laid waste to the mountains, forests, and everything in its path.

"How refreshing it is to contemplate the artwork I have created over the years. Those trees, in particular, are my greatest achievement. Ahh... the fruit of so much effort, I suppose," declared Ethan with a smile of happiness, revealing his sharp, white teeth.

In the distance, gigantic twisted and deformed white trees stood tall like monstrous creatures, their branches resembling sharp claws reaching towards the sky.

Upon them lay the skeletons and decaying remains of countless demons, as if death itself had taken hold of the vegetation.

Rrrrrrrrumble!

Suddenly, everything began to shake violently, as if the entire world was on the brink of collapse!

The crimson clouds in the firmament twisted into horrifying whirlwinds, dark and thick lightning snaked through the sky like malevolent dragons. In an instant, everything transformed as if it were the imminent end of the world.

"Roaaaaarrrr!"

From the depths, as if emerging from the very core of the world, a deafening roar of fury resounded, shaking every corner and unleashing gigantic waves of blood that swept away everything in their path.

"Hahaha! So, there's still one more left! And it turns out to be much more powerful than all those pathetic demons who thought themselves invincible!" Ethan laughed loudly as his crimson eyes gleamed with delight.

Craaack!

Hundreds of meters away from him, a fissure opened and rapidly expanded, forming an opening tens of kilometers long with an undetectable depth, as if it were an infinite abyss.

"Amazing, astounding power!"

His body soared majestically into the sky, his demonic wings waving in perfect harmony as everything around him plunged into the depths of the fissure.

Nevertheless, his face reflected immense joy as he carefully observed the creature emerging at a slow pace.

It was a demon of colossal proportions, its macabre and malevolent appearance instilling terror in any living being bold enough to meet its gaze.

Its eyes were two dark and deep pits, devoid of pupils or iris, and its skin was covered in a kind of infernal armor that seemed to glow with an intense red radiance.

Two enormous membranous wings sprouted from its back, and its long body, shaped like an Eastern dragon, was covered in sharp blade-like spikes.

"Well, well... a giant worm? Interesting. I suppose it could be entertaining, considering it appears quite powerful. And who knows, perhaps by absorbing its essence, I can achieve an enhancement that will take me to truly astonishing heights!"