I STACK ATTRIBUTES IN THE APOCALYPSE -MyOwnEdit-

The ancient proverb whispered through the desolate wilderness, "A general may fall before victory is won, and heroes weep tears that stain their robes."

In the untamed expanse beyond Nanxiang, Lu Ming faced a trio of zombies, his solitary figure radiating an aura of lethal intent. The zombies stood silent, their expressions masked but their thoughts racing.

For Lu Ming, this encounter meant one thing: battle.

For the zombies, it was a crossroads of fight or flight.

Their meticulously crafted four-person formation, honed within the Blood Flame Sect, boasted complementary abilities that could easily overwhelm opponents of Level 4 or 5.

Yet, their vanguard, Yamamoto Yuichiro, lay lifeless on the ground.

The spearhead of their strategy had been shattered before it could even fully form, leaving Hachima An and the remaining two zombies paralyzed with indecision.

But hesitation was a luxury they couldn't afford. The animosity between humans and zombies ran deep, and their encounter guaranteed a fight to the death.

Lu Ming, never one for subtlety, roared, "All of you must die!!"

A fierce roar ripped from Lu Ming's throat, shattering the tense silence. In a heartbeat, his body swelled, transforming into the monstrous Desperate State!

Air surged from his pores, enveloping the battlefield in an eerie mist. As the haze thickened, a fifteen-meter colossus emerged, six arms outstretched, four eyes blazing with fury. A faint blue luminescence, the hallmark of his fully activated Origin Power Armor, shimmered around his imposing form.

"All of you must die!!"

Lu Ming's voice boomed through the mist, raw with unrestrained rage. His Desperate State amplified his already formidable killing intent, turning it into a tangible force that pressed down on the zombies.

A lifetime of pent-up frustration and anger boiled over. He was tired of the world's cruelty, the endless cycle of violence that had been thrust upon him.

He loathed it.

Loathed the relentless onslaught of enemies.

He had been a law-abiding citizen, a peaceful soul who never sought conflict. How had he been dragged into this relentless struggle for survival?

The sudden pain coursing through his body further fueled Lu Ming's frenzy.

He turned to face the grotesque Yamanaka Hitomi, faintly sensing that the source of his pain originated from her.

The "Five Decays of a Celestial Being" had already taken effect.

This malevolent curse began by afflicting the physical body, gradually corrupting everything.

However... This was clearly a gradual process.

"Then I'll start with you!"

He flexed his arm and crouched, ready to strike.

The Explosive Fist hung in the air, a moment of suspended animation before the storm.

Suddenly, Hachima An's voice cut through the tension, "Attack!"

Escape was a fool's errand. Lu Ming would hunt them down one by one if they tried. Their only option was to fight back.

But Yamamoto Yuichiro was dead...

"There's only one way..." Hachima An thought grimly.

His eyes darkened, turning pitch black.

A voice, deep and resonating, poured from Hachima An's throat, carrying a strange power that compelled Lu Ming to meet his gaze.

"Look into my eyes!" Hachima An commanded.

A swirling vortex appeared in his obsidian gaze, a hungry black hole threatening to swallow Lu Ming's consciousness whole.

Time seemed to distort, the world around them blurring as Lu Ming froze, completely immobile.

Hachima An was the heart of their four-zombie unit.

His physical potential was immense, having surpassed Yamamoto Yuichiro in strength despite arriving in the Black Mist Zone later. A Level 5 Physique Realm zombie, he was the undisputed powerhouse among the Tokyo ghouls.

But his true terror lay in his special ability: the Eye of Void.

It was a devastating form of crowd control, trapping victims in a spiritual prison, their minds tormented by the endless void while their bodies remained paralyzed.

The price for such power was Hachima An's own immobility while the Eye of Void was active.

But that was a small sacrifice. He couldn't move, but his teammates could.

Hachima An's Eye of Void and Yamamoto Yuichiro's Destructive Death Ray were a lethal combination. The Eye of Void immobilized the enemy, leaving them helpless as the Death Ray obliterated their physical form. Together, they could effortlessly defeat even Level 9 Physique Realm experts.

But now, their strategy lay in ruins. Yamamoto, their strongest weapon, was gone.

"It doesn't matter!" Hachima An reassured himself.

With a strained effort, he turned his head towards Shin Kanazawa and Yamanaka Hitomi.

"Shin Kanazawa," he rasped, "tear him apart!"

Shin Kanazawa nodded grimly, summoning the Flame Demon Claw once more.

The attack connected, but Lu Ming's life value remained unchanged.

Even in his Self-Limitation State, Shin Kanazawa's attacks couldn't breach Lu Ming's defenses. In Desperate State, it was even less likely to cause any harm.

"Still not a problem!" Hachima An's confidence remained unwavering despite the failed assault.

Locking eyes with Yamanaka Hitomi in the distance, he spoke calmly, "We'll simply drag this out. We'll stall until the Five Decays of a Celestial Being takes full effect. I can hold him for several hours."

A sinister glint flickered in Hachima An's eyes as he continued, "Those trapped in the Eye of Void experience time differently than normal beings. A second here might feel like an entire day in their minds. A few hours could feel like decades!"

"The prolonged isolation will erode his consciousness, causing him to break down or even take his own life!"

"The advantage is mine!"

The Eye of Void wasn't just a support ability.

It was a weapon, a tool of torture.

The moment Lu Ming met Hachima An's gaze, his world spun.

In an instant, his vision blurred, and he found himself in a pure white void.

A sense of déjà vu washed over him. After a moment's reflection, he understood.

"This feels similar to learning Origin Power Skills and entering the Origin Power Skill Inheritance Orbe..."

Indeed, the sensation was eerily familiar.

Lu Ming didn't know the origins of the Origin Power Skill's Inheritance Orb, as its creation was a closely guarded secret of the major clans. However, it seemed the technique behind it might be connected to Hachima An's ability.

He wouldn't dwell on that now.

The pressing issue was...

"I'm still in the middle of a battle!"

Being pulled into such a place during a fight was undeniably dangerous.

Lu Ming prepared to unleash his most powerful attacks.

"Explosive Fist!"

"Atomic Sword Technique!"

"Apocalypse!"

His Weapon Transformation Technique activated, morphing his arm into various weapons. He swung his arm, unleashing his three deadliest moves.

But this space was strange, rendering his attacks utterly ineffective.

Lu Ming frowned, frustration gnawing at him. He refused to give up so easily.

He spent an entire day within this ethereal prison, trying every trick he knew, before finally collapsing onto the ground, defeated.

"I'm trapped..." he realized with a sinking heart.

Unbeknownst to him, only a single second had passed in the outside world.