Nekomi Momo, Berserk Chick, Pig King, and Lone Wolf failed the challenge.
But after exiting the dungeon—
A surprise awaited them.
"Ho… holy shit!"
"We struck it big this time!"
Pig King shouted excitedly, waving his arms wildly as he pulled out a Soul Core."Look at this! Look at what dropped!"
[Charger Soul Core] — Three-Star Gray Soul Core!
Everyone stared in shock.
Berserk Chick cursed loudly, "Failing the run and still getting a Soul Core is already ridiculous, but it's the Charger's Soul Core on top of that? You fat bastard, what kind of cursed luck is this?!"
Lone Wolf added, "You're buying today. I want a bottle of Miracle City liquor."
Pig King laughed so hard he nearly choked. "Done! Absolutely done!"
Dungeon Soul Core drop rates were notoriously unpredictable.
There were simply too many influencing factors.
Among them, the dungeon lord could control some variables and influence drop rates to a certain extent. However, that control always had both an upper and lower limit.
It was impossible to guarantee Soul Cores every run.
And equally impossible to suppress drops entirely.
Judging by the adventurers' experience in the Apocalypse Surge dungeon, this dungeon's Soul Core drop rate had clearly been tuned to the maximum.
What defined a truly fair dungeon?
This did.
Beyond that, Soul Core drop rates were also influenced by many other factors.
First clears and first kills of monsters significantly increased drop chances.
Time spent inside the dungeon, exploration coverage, number of enemies killed, and mental energy output all affected the drop rate. Overall performance mattered. The better the performance, the higher the chance.
So what lowered drop rates?
First and foremost—challenge failure.
Insufficient exploration, low adventurer rank, and higher rarity monster Soul Cores all reduced the odds to varying degrees.
Pig King was the first adventurer to ever kill a Charger, which should have boosted the drop rate considerably. But since the run ended in failure, the probability should have been extremely low.
Precisely because it was such a low probability—
The surprise was overwhelming.
It was like casually killing a trash mob in a game and having it drop equipment rarer than a boss could drop.
That instant surge of excitement was priceless.
The Charger was a three-star normal monster, and among monsters of the same tier, its quality was exceptionally high.
That single Soul Core was worth at least fifteen to twenty regular zombie Soul Cores—roughly equivalent to over half a year's income for an adventurer from Blackstone Town.
No wonder everyone was losing their minds.
"The monster tiers in Apocalypse Surge are becoming clear now."
"Regular zombies are one-star."
"Hunters, Smokers, Boomers, and Spitters are all two-star monsters."
"The Charger is a three-star elite—and currently the strongest monster we've seen."
"I'm really curious," someone said, "does Lord Ren still have more up his sleeve? Will even stronger monsters appear?"
Nekomi Momo snorted. "Of course he does. Don't underestimate Lord Ren."
Just then—
"Everyone, come look!"
"Hammer Bro's team is about to pull off a massive zombie burn!"
What?
Burning zombies?
Interest flared instantly.
At that moment, Blackstone Hammer King, Lonely Blade, Wind in Sleep, and Shirasawa Yukari's team were inside the dungeon. Somehow, they had obtained two barrels of gasoline and piled up large amounts of flammable debris to create a trap.
They lured in a massive horde of zombies—
And set it ablaze.
In an instant—
Flames roared skyward.
Dozens—nearly a hundred—zombies were engulfed in fire, including two special infected. All of them were reduced to charred corpses.
The watching adventurers went absolutely wild.
"So damn satisfying!"
"That was beautiful!"
"I didn't know you could play it like this!"
"What a gorgeous open-air barbecue!"
"Just watching is exhilarating!"
"This is exactly how zombies should be dealt with!"
The four cleared the area cleanly and stepped onto the street.
"This run looks promising!"
"Hahaha, Lord Ren definitely didn't expect us to pull this off!"
Just as they were congratulating themselves, a heavy, rhythmic thudding echoed from ahead—accompanied by a beast-like roar.
"What was that sound?"
Before anyone could react, a small car came flying like a cannonball.
It slammed down—
Crushing Shirasawa Yukari instantly.
She never even understood what happened before she was flattened into a bloody smear.
"Shit!"
"Monster incoming!"
The remaining three didn't even have time to mourn. They raised their weapons immediately.
Then—
It appeared.
A humanoid muscle monster burst into view.
Inside the dungeon and among the spectators outside—
Everyone was stunned.
It was a gigantic zombie, far larger than the Charger. Its entire body was composed of dense, armor-like muscle radiating explosive strength.
Standing there—
It looked like a living wall of flesh.
The visual impact was overwhelming.
Its arms were five or six times thicker than a normal human's, as thick as water tanks. The muscles twisted violently, capable of tearing apart or lifting multi-ton vehicles.
Its fists were coated in hardened keratin, shaped like massive hammers. Even steel would be flattened beneath them.
Its face was grotesquely twisted. Bulging eyes filled with bloodshot veins radiated pure madness.
This monster was the embodiment of brute force and savagery.
Wind in Sleep froze.
Lonely Blade muttered, "That's… a zombie?"
Blackstone Hammer King screamed, "You've got to be kidding me! Can this get any more ridiculous?!"
The Tank Zombie charged.
The entire street wailed as concrete shattered beneath its feet. Streetlights snapped like matchsticks.
Bullets bounced uselessly off its body.
There was no suspense.
Up close, the Tank killed effortlessly.
One punch—Lonely Blade dead.One punch—Wind in Sleep dead.
Then it grabbed Blackstone Hammer King as he tried to flee, seized one leg, and tore him apart in a brutal public display.
Team wipe.Challenge failed.
Blackstone Hammer King exited the dungeon.
He said nothing.
Hands trembling, he lit a Miracle City cigarette and smoked in silence.
Berserk Chick laughed. "Looks like getting ripped apart by a muscle monster wasn't very pleasant."
Lone Wolf asked with concern, "Hey, Hammer Bro… you okay?"
"Where's the lord? Get him out here!"
After finishing the cigarette, Blackstone Hammer King finally spoke."Have him explain what the hell that thing was. Don't tell me that's just another zombie."
Wind in Sleep tried to calm him. "It's horrifying, yeah—but look at it another way. That monster's value is insane. At least a five-star monster. If its Soul Core drops…"
Berserk Chick's eyes lit up. "That thing's huge and brutal—my favorite type. I'm getting that Soul Core."
Pig King nodded. "Suddenly, my Charger Soul Core doesn't feel that impressive."
"If that thing drops—"
"We'd be rich."
Fear quickly gave way to greed.
The Tank Zombie's strength was undeniable.
It was almost certainly a top-tier five-star monster.
The adventurers' blood boiled as excitement drowned out fear.
"Kill the muscle freak!"
"Make it drop its Soul Core!"
"One beefcake thinks he can stop us? Dream on!"
"Today, the adventurers of Blackstone Town will teach the lord a lesson!"
Nansyliya had spent most of the day in the dungeon hall, watching everything unfold.
From initial indifference—
To surprise—
And finally, sheer shock.
If she hadn't seen it herself, she wouldn't believe a dungeon lord could create something like this.
A living, breathing world.
Every run felt like a life-or-death adventure.
Bloody. Intense. Exhilarating.
Addictive.
And the Tank Zombie's appearance pushed the atmosphere and morale to their peak.
She had visited many dungeons before—
She had never seen anything like this.
This human lord's wellspring of inspiration was utterly alien.
He didn't belong to any known human faction.
Miracle City was unlike any dungeon she had ever seen.
It was absolutely worth investigating further.