Apocalypse: Transmigrated with an Overlord System-Chapter 288: The Ultimate Mission

Liora froze in her steps.

Her vision blurred as the glowing text flashed right before her eyes.

[New Mission Alert...]

[The Ultimate Mission: Save the world from the Zerg Invasion]

Her heart skipped a beat.

"Save... the world?" Liora muttered under her breath, stunned. "What does that even mean? What invasion? What happened to the world? And what—what are Zerg?!"

Her mind spiraled into panic as she bombarded the system with endless questions. The words tumbled out in her head faster than she could even catch them.

But the system’s reply came, calm and merciless.

[Host, you should look outside the window. Then you will understand. The world is not the same as it was two weeks ago. In just one week, tremendous changes have appeared—not only on the Blue Planet, but across the entire Spire. The invasion has already surrounded the world. And this is only the beginning... They are coming with even greater speed.]

Liora’s entire body stiffened.

The world is not the same...? The Spire itself is in their clutches?

What was the system even saying? Was there truly something out there that could threaten everything?

Her chest constricted with fear, but her legs moved on their own. She dashed straight toward the window, ignoring Zhou Yinuo’s startled voice behind her.

"Liora? What’s wrong? Wait—!"

But Liora didn’t wait. She pulled the curtains aside with trembling fingers and flung the window open.

And the sight that greeted her nearly stopped her heart.

The sky was no longer blue or even dull grey. It was an ominous, twisted black, streaked with red light that writhed like living scars across the heavens. Shadows moved within the clouds—no, not shadows. They were alive.

Her breath caught in her throat.

Monstrous creatures floated in the sky, blocking out the light. Their bodies were twisted and ugly, covered in hard, shiny shells that glimmered in the faint light. Some were massive, their wings stretched wider than spaceships, beating slowly with a heavy, unnatural sound. Others were smaller, crawling along the air in swarms, their hooked limbs twitching restlessly.

Their faces—if you could even call them that—were covered in mouths full of sharp fangs, drooling with acid that hissed as it fell, evaporating before it touched the barrier below. Their eyes glowed like molten fire, unblinking, staring hungrily at the base.

Every single one of them radiated an aura of hunger. Of endless, insatiable hunger.

Liora staggered backward, her hands clutching the windowsill so hard her knuckles whitened. Her whole body trembled.

And then she noticed it.

The only reason those creatures weren’t already inside was the dome.

A shimmering barrier of violet light stretched around the entire base, wrapping it in an impenetrable shield. The Zerg hurled themselves against it, screeching, clawing, and gnashing their teeth, but not a single one managed to pass through. The sound of their strikes echoed in her ears, a screech like nails dragged across her soul.

She couldn’t breathe. Zhou Yinuo stumbled in behind her.

Yet... she did not look surprised.

Her expression was calm, almost resigned, as if this scene outside was something she had already accepted.

Liora’s chest tightened. She turned to Zhou Yinuo with wide, questioning eyes, desperate for some denial, some reassurance that this was a nightmare. But Zhou Yinuo’s expression told her everything. It was not a lie. It was real.

Everyone knew...everyone but her.

Because she had been unconscious for weeks, cut off from the world while it had changed into something unrecognizable.

Her throat felt dry as she forced the words out in her mind because she knew only the system was capable of answering her questions. "System... how did this happen? How did these Zerg appear here? I know they are not creatures from our world..."

The system’s reply was immediate, its cold voice echoing in her mind.

[Host is correct. The Zerg are not of this world. Our world only breeds mutated species—zombies, or beasts. But these... these are different. They are invaders from another dimension. And the reason they are here now... is because someone has opened a portal to their world.]

Liora’s blood ran cold.

Another dimension. A portal. Someone had brought these nightmares here on purpose.

Her gaze returned to the sky outside the barrier, where the monstrous creatures swarmed endlessly, pressing against the dome, their eyes glowing with hunger.

Atlas, Yun Shou, Liang Zihan, Mei, and all stumbled into the room, drawn by Zhou Yinuo’s voice and the heavy crash of the window opening. Their eyes went first to Liora, then to the open window, and in that instant...they knew.

The silence that followed was suffocating.

Liora turned her gaze to Atlas, her lips trembling. "Atlas... what happened? What are these... things?" She also wanted to know how much they are aware of the situation.

For a moment, he said nothing. His jaw tightened, his chest rising and falling with a long, heavy breath.

Then he spoke, "It is exactly what you see, Liora. These monsters suddenly appeared within weeks. And with their sheer number... it is impossible to fight them. They are endless."

Liora’s knees nearly gave way beneath her. Her heart pounded against her ribs, as though it wanted to tear free from her chest. Endless?

Atlas stepped closer, his eyes dark with exhaustion. "What you see here... this is not even a fraction of what appeared in the Spire. This blue planet is far from there, yet still, they reached us. The Spire was their main focus—and now, living there peacefully... has become almost impossible."

Liora’s eyes widened, her whole body trembling. The Spire... invaded.

Her voice cracked as she asked, "Is this... why you brought Dad and Eli here?"

Atlas nodded slowly with grim expression.

Tears pricked her eyes. Her voice wavered as she whispered, "Then... are they all right? Are they safe?"

But before Atlas could even answer, Liora was suddenly pulled into a crushing embrace. Strong arms wrapped around her, holding her as if they would never let go.

"Aeris..." The familiar voice trembled against her ear. "You’re finally awake..."