Global Evolution: I Became A Zombie!-Chapter 214 - 210: Salvation or Damnation (2)

Bron slowly turned to face Blaze. At a glance, it seemed the ’god’ was there in flesh, but Bron noticed the squirming within his body. It wasn’t Blaze but a mere manifestation.

That’s what worried him even more.

A mere manifestation was strong enough to stop the hammer swing with his entire strength in it, then what would the real Blaze be capable of?

It wasn’t a surprise that the rest surrendered to him. The more Bron looked at him, the more he realized just how dangerous and eerily charming Blaze was. Just being around him made one want to bow and devote their life to him.

[You must be Timo’s protector.]

Bron heard Blaze’s voice even though the figure before him hadn’t said a word. He didn’t know how it was possible, but he knew his faith had begun to waver. If it hadn’t, then he wouldn’t be hearing a fraud’s voice in his head.

[You were speaking the truth, little Timo. He is an excellent specimen.]

"I don’t deserve your kind words, Your Excellency!" Timo smiled and immediately fell to his knees, his mind lost in the ecstasy of praise.

"Excellent... specimen?"

Bron’s will shuddered at those words. As someone who had been trained to have his emotions in control no matter the position he was put in, he couldn’t help but feel a strange emotion swelling in his heart.

It wasn’t hatred or anger, but something he hadn’t experienced in a long while.

...fear?

Blaze’s words made him feel like he was a well-fed pig, waiting for the buyer to slaughter him. He was livestock, mere food that was being marinated slowly.

Once again, he looked at Blaze, only to feel a strange calmness wash over him. Perhaps it was the realization that he stood at the end of the line.

Soon, he’d be forced to take a step ahead. From there on, either he’d die, which was the outcome he hoped for, or he’d turn like the mindless Pagonans behind him.

Just as he was about to take a step towards Blaze’s manifested form, his body lost all its strength, and he fell flat on the ground.

What is this!?

Bron wanted to scream, but other than his eyes, not a single cell in his body was under his control anymore. Watching him helplessly flailing around, Blaze squatted next to him, yanking his head by the hair to look at him.

[It’s a shame to have such an exquisite body, yet not a single brain cell in your head.]

Blaze wasn’t mocking him, but merely stating a fact. Concealing his disappointment, he casually waved his hand, and the body’s control was returned to Bron.

The forest wasn’t Blaze’s domain in name. It was his actual impregnable fortress. Everything from the soil, the trees, and even the air belonged to him. As such, he had left his mark everywhere.

The air, mixed with fog, carried the [Obedience Virus]. The same virus that gave Blaze absolute control over his subject’s body. The fog merely concealed its presence. That’s why Saint couldn’t notice it until it was already too late.

A normal person without a blessing would succumb and lose control over their body in mere minutes of constant exposure. But for someone like Bron, it took hours for the virus to accumulate and take over his nervous system.

As for why Blaze fought them, he had two reasons. The first was to test their usefulness. After all, he didn’t want burdensome slaves. The second was to accelerate the virus accumulation within their bodies.

After all, the more they fought, the more and quicker their breathing became. The more they breathed, the more virus they unknowingly consumed. It was a vicious cycle.

Only then did it dawn on Bron. No matter what they did, as long as Blaze was in his fortress, no one, not even the higher civilization they prayed to, could harm a single cell in his body.

"W-Why...?" Bron stuttered, his fingers clawing into the ground.

[Why?]

"Why didn’t you just kill us!?"

[Hmm... because it would be a waste? I’m many things, but wasteful isn’t one of them.]

Blaze casually strolled over to the rest, who immediately bowed their heads in reverence.

[You might be unaware of your own strength, but I’m not. I will cultivate you until you’re ripe. Whether you’re useful or not would determine your faith.]

Bron slowly returned to his feet, staring in the direction of the waging war.

"...is that why you’re not helping your devotees?" he asked.

[More or less. I gave them a decade to get strong. Now, it’s up to them to show me their worth. If they possess desirable traits, I’ll replant the seeds. If they are not, then they’ll serve as fertilizer for the next harvest.]

Any sane person would have felt a chill upon hearing those words. Bron should’ve too, but he didn’t. Instead, he found Blaze’s words logical and endearing.

For a moment, he even felt jealous of those being tested.

After all, if they performed decently, they would be rewarded by Blaze. They’d get stronger after proving their worth. While he... would wait for his turn to be tested.

What am I even thinking?

He shook his head vigorously, trying with all his might to push away any strange thoughts from his head. However, the more he wrestled with Blaze’s extreme views, the more he found them logical and somewhat... tousled.

Sure, his views were messy, but he found himself strangely attracted to them. Perhaps... he was their savior, just as Timo said.

In Pagona, there was only one god. A formless entity known as evolution. For years, they had carefully guided evolution for their own benefit, but what if that wasn’t the case?

What if they never understood what evolution meant?

What if... Blaze was the one who would push them on the right path?

Slowly, such thoughts took root within Bron’s mind and soul. Finally, he realized what the others had been experiencing. It wasn’t a surprise that everyone who met Blaze devoted their lives to him.

He was a god... not of decay, but of evolution.

Bron’s knees hit the ground again. But this time, it wasn’t in despair, but in reverence, in clarity.

"Please... guide me to the truth, Your Excellency."

Blaze looked at him and nodded.

These specimens would do just fine.