I Am a Hero With A Hundred Abilities-Chapter 61: Ch 60. New Zone

He barely dodged, As Angel's fist pulverized the spot where he had just stood. The entire floor cracked beneath the pressure.

Ethan gritted his teeth.

{"King of Force!"}

His aura erupted again—an intense pulse of gold and white as he surged forward.

Angel met him in kind.

As Their fists collided like two titans clashing.

BOOM!

The shockwave rippled outward, a seismic blast echoing through the sealed Maw chamber.

Ethan flew backward once more, this time his body skidding across the floor, bouncing from the momentum until he stopped beside Mirveil's bound form.

He gasped, pain rushing up his arm.

His gauntlet was shattered. His fist—bloody and swollen.

Angel stood unscathed.

Unmoving. Unshaken.

He took slow steps forward, expression devoid of emotion like a machine built for war.

Ethan sat up, eyes locked on him.

"This guy's tough…"

There was no fear in his gaze—only cold, precise analysis.

'There had to be something preventing the noise from reaching outside for no reinforcements to have come up to this point. Angel must have have done something.'

'But how would he escape with Mirveil? with the chaos he caused it would be difficult.'

Ethan shoved the thought away.

"No. Not now." He could think of Angel's thought process later now there was only one thing to do.

He opened the Aethermark Interface, blood dripping from his fingertips.

With a thought, he activated the Sanctum of Beasts—its cooldown finally over.

"Let's turn the tide."

****

As Guardian Angel walked toward Ethan, his monstrous hand twitching with anticipation, a flicker of unease washed over him. Something was wrong.

The world felt Too quiet and still.

Without warning, he surged forward.

But it was too late.

Ethan's voice echoed in the void.

"Sanctum of Beasts… activate."

The world lost all color.

Everything turned to grayscale.

Time itself froze—Angel's charging form suspended mid-step, Mirveil motionless, even the dust in the air locked in place like a painted canvas.

A glowing system interface shimmered into existence before Ethan.

[SANCTUM OF BEASTS ACTIVATED]

Choose number of Entry Passes to use (Max: 5)

Ethan didn't hesitate.

"Five."

The interface vanished.

Suddenly, a suction force wrapped around him, pulling his body upward with tremendous speed. The battlefield remained frozen in time as Ethan vanished from the scene.

---

Ethan's consciousness snapped back.

He stumbled forward, vision still swirling, knees buckling slightly.

He found himself standing in a dusty old parlor—the inside of a crumbling, abandoned house. Cobwebs clung to the ceiling corners, old cracked floorboards groaned beneath his feet, and the furniture—what little remained—was overturned or broken.

A dusty fireplace sat cold and unlit, its mantle cracked. The air was musty, filled with the scent of age and something… foul.

Ethan looked around, eyes wide.

"What happened to the altar…? This isn't the usual sanctum…"

Something was off. Deeply off.

He could feel it—an unnatural presence in the air. The sanctum always carried the scent of beasts, the thrill of primal combat.

But this… this place felt hollow.

Still reeling from the dimensional shift, Ethan staggered to the window.

It was night, outside.

A dense, fog-covered forest surrounded the house—shadows stretched long and black between dead trees.

The moon above was blood-red, casting a sickly glow over the landscape.

And then—movement.

A figure walking slowly just outside.

Ethan was startled by this.

"Wait… someone?"

He rushed out of the broken house,.trying to see who it was after all he was supposed to be the only person with access to the sanctum. novelbuddy.cσ๓

But the moment he got close, a stench slammed into him like a wall—rotting flesh, bile, and decay. He gagged and covered his face instantly.

As the figure turned.

It had sunken and rotting eyes. It's flesh was torn and it's mouth agape with dripping gore.

"It's a zombie…?!"

Ethan's hands sparked with effort—trying to call upon Force Might.

But there was Nothing.

"I… I can't use my abilities!?"

Panic surged but Ethan calmed his mind as he was about to defend himself.

The zombie lunged at Ethan

shrieking.

Before it could reach Ethan, something blindingly fast charged from the trees.

CRACK!

A silver horn speared through the zombie's skull, lifting it clean off the ground. It was flung away like trash, landing with a thud in the leaves.

Ethan looked up.

His eyes widened in joy.

"Gray!!"

The massive gray wolf, sleek and battle-worn, padded up to him. Its golden eyes shone with loyalty and recognition.

Gray licked Ethan's face as he laughed and patted the wolf's head.

"It's really good to see you, buddy…"

Suddenly, a system notification flickered into his vision.

****

The cold night air still clung to Ethan's skin as Gray stood at his side, fur bristling slightly with unease.

Then, like a ripple through reality, a shimmering interface materialized in front of Ethan's eyes.

---

[WELCOME BACK TO ZONE TWO OF THE SANCTUM: ZOMBILAND]

---

Ethan blinked.

"Zombiland? What a… peculiar name."

The interface flickered again, unveiling more information:

---

[ZONE DESCRIPTION]

Zone Two: Zombiland

A forsaken city overrun by the undead—zombies of various forms, strengths, and intelligence roam its crumbling streets.

From feral crawlers to cursed colossi, no corner of this zone is safe.

Survive. Adapt. Overcome.

[ZONE OBJECTIVE]

To gain 1 Ability Point:

Defeat the Five Primes of Zombiland, located in five distinct regions.

Primes Defeated: [0/5]

---

Another panel slid into view.

---

[IMPORTANT NOTICE]

The Store and Rebirth Altar are housed in the central forest cabin (Current location).

Your companion (Gray) has been summoned to assist.

Warning: All abilities have been revoked for the duration of your stay in Zombiland.

The Sanctum must attune your essence with the Rebirth Altar. As only one body may retain your unique ability, and the altar cannot replicate an ability-bound body, the system has revoked your powers to reduce the metaphysical strain.

You must survive with skill, instinct, and your beast alone.

---

Ethan stared at the notification in silence, everything suddenly making sense.

"So that's why I can't use my abilities…" he muttered, eyes narrowing. "In order to use the altar, my abilities had to be revoked… Makes things a lot harder…"

He exhaled.

"But I didn't have any powers the last time I was here either. And I survived. Hell… I did more than that."

A fire lit in his chest. Determination and Grit.

Turning back toward the abandoned house, Ethan and Gray made their way inside. The musty parlor welcomed him again, but now something had changed.

His eyes widened.

The once-empty ruin now held structures that hadn't been there before. A glowing, rune-etched stone altar now sat at the back wall, pulsing faintly.

A shimmering holographic storefront floated in the air beside it—its shelves filled with weapons, armor, and consumables he'd never seen before.

"All of this… wasn't here last time…"

The Sanctum of Beasts had evolved.

And so had the challenges.

---

Ethan stood in front of the floating store interface, eyes narrowing at the outrageous prices that blinked across the spectral shelves.

Weapons, armor, tools—all far beyond reach.

The cheapest blade: 200,000 points.

A reinforced utility kit: 500,000.

And the top-tier equipment? They skyrocketed past a million.

Even basic food—though modestly priced—looked meager and sparse.

His eyes shifted down to the ring on his finger, the same storage ring he'd received back in Zone One thanks to the newbie discount.

"It's a good thing I still have this…" he muttered, tapping the silver band.

Curious, he flicked his interface open and checked his point balance.

[Balance: 0 Sanctum Points]

A sigh escaped his lips.

"Figures. My points from the previous zone didn't carry over… Not that they could've bought anything here, but still—would've been nice not to feel completely ripped off."

He stepped away from the store and turned his gaze to Gray, who stood alert nearby, tail swaying gently.

Ethan pulled up Gray's stats:

---

[Companion Information]

Name: Gray

Species: Stormborn Lupir

Age: 1 Year

Current Strength: Stable

Position in Food Chain: 3rd out of 6

[Evolution Pathway Available]

> Evolution Requirement: 0 / 100,000,000 Points

(Points must be manually allocated to evolution.)

Unique Traits may manifest upon evolution.

> Bond Strength directly affects Growth Potential.

---

[Traits]

Predator's Dominion – Locks enemies in place with sheer presence.

Windrazor Fang – Launches wind blades with every bite.

Stormpiercer Horn – Channels lightning through the horn to fire devastating arcs.

---

Ethan couldn't help but smile.

"Gray… it seems all our efforts in the last zone weren't wasted after all."

Though Gray had been a Prime in Zone One, here in this more advanced zone, being third in the food chain was an impressive start.

It meant Ethan wasn't walking into Zombiland at the bottom.

He reached out and patted Gray's sturdy flank, the warm fur bristling with static energy beneath his hand. The bond between them pulsed in quiet understanding.

Ethan stepped up and swung himself onto Gray's back, settling in.

"Alright, buddy—just like old times," he said with a grin. "Why don't we gather some points… before dinner?"

With a powerful lurch, Gray sprinted forward into the moonlit forest, his lightning-charged paws kicking up sparks as they disappeared into the undead night.

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A/N I will release 3 extra chapters if I get 200 power stones or 100 Golden tickets.

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