Eric said, "Who cooked? This is good."
He was a bit surprised that amidst the apocalypse, they produced delicious food. They really did not hold back for this supper.
Jasper raised his hand with a flushed face, feeling embarrassed.
"Thank you, Emperor."
Eric nodded. He soon felt satisfied, even though there was still food left on his plate. Nevertheless, he knew it was the perfect time for discussion.
"Evolution… Mutation… Energy… Crystals. These are not foreign to you all, but it should be new, right?"
Everyone nodded, silently heaving a sigh of relief to finally know about the power behind the Emperor, or more or less, know something that perhaps only the Emperor has knowledge of.
"Let us start with Energy. I am a bit sensitive when it comes to my surroundings, so I was surprised that a sudden thick concentration of Energy, something that you might not be familiar with, suffused my room. It turns out, it spreads in the real world.
Those who could not withstand its properties mutated, becoming a zombie you might know."
In fact, this is more or less similar to evil qi the evil cultivator cultivated. If it has become too much, they become a demon similar to an evolved zombie.
With Eric's memories, Ixcahua was easily able to connect the energy and qi.
"The Energy did not leave, it has become like an oxygen. Hence, humans, zombies, animals, every living thing will continue to evolve exaggeratedly. There might be a day that every mammal can fly."
Everyone gasped. Their eyes widened. Evolution… In fact, such words were not unfamiliar to them.
Eric seemed to have read their mind as he continued, "By Charles Darwin's theory, species change over time through natural selection. Organisms with traits that help them survive in their environment are more likely to pass those traits to their offspring, leading to gradual adaptation. It's pretty similar. "
He grinned. "It's just that, Evolution is sudden and powerful, causing the world to enter the apocalypse. However, do note that the apocalypse is not completely helpless, the future relies solely on us."
Everyone understood the gravity of his words, nodding solemnly.
Eric smiled at them and continued, "As for the humans who mutated into zombies, the Energy they failed to assimilate on their body gathered in a focal point, where it helped them gather more energy for evolution, eventually leading to their rebirth.
It's pretty similar to the strange and massive zombie. By the way, their names are Ravager Zombie and Bulwark Zombies respectively. I'll write a Zombie Compendium later and will continue to update it if we encounter more bizarre zombies."
Everyone nodded without asking him how he would gain information from them just by fighting, even naming them.
Eric continued, "Anyway, the Energy became crystalized to the point it was the most filtered and concentrated energy, which enabled us to evolve after eating them. By the way, I speculated that we will also have an Evolution Crystal inside our body once we evolved, for it was not only the zombie who underwent rebirth, we evolved."
Everyone gasped. They stared at each other and could not help but feel disgusted at the thought of having a solid crystal inside their body, particularly on their head.
Eric did not give them time to process their thoughts as he continued, "Once we evolve, we will awaken abilities. For the Bulwark Zombie, it awakened Shockwave Slam, which I underestimated. For the Ravager Zombie, its claws vibrated at a high-frequency, able to not only tear through the flesh but ruin it."
They felt a chill run down their spine, recalling the claws of the Ravager Zombie. If it hit me… They could not even dare to imagine how excruciating it would be if the claws pierced through their flesh.
Wait, he knows yet he blocked it with an open palm. He's so confident. At this point, they began to admire the Emperor more.
Eric certainly grasped their thoughts, but he ignored it and continued, "However, evolution also comes at a price. If you failed to control the energy inside you, to let it completely adapt to your body, and then attempted to evolve by eating higher stage crystals, then I'm afraid…"
Eric's face turned grave. "You will mutate."
Everyone gulped. Their hearts raced. However, they dismissed the idea of not undergoing Evolution as it could only be the way to fight against monstrous zombies and ensured their survival.
After all, with the Emperor leading the way, who possessed rich knowledge about evolution, then their worries would be superfluous.
"However, as you already understand. I will ensure your safety on the evolution. I will forbid anyone to eat any crystals without my approval."
They nodded solemnly.
Eric smiled. "Anyway, the energy inside the crystals is not only to awaken our abilities, but it is universal."
Jasper and Andrew nodded frantically since Eric already said it to them.
Eric continued, "It can be an electric generator, or any element. In addition, I have also discovered one of its uses…"
Eric glanced at Samantha and said, "You don't have to worry about purifying the contaminated water anymore. With the Energy on the Evolution Crystals, it can purify all the impurities in the water. I will design a blueprint and will give it tomorrow."
Samantha gasped. She said, "R-Really?" She then felt hesitant to ask many questions in her mind.
Eric merely smiled and replied, "Yes. You should save the question because the blueprint will explain everything. Jasper, you should help her."
Eric felt his throat dry after talking for a long time, but he only took a sip of the water, leaving half left. He stood up and said, "I'm full. Thanks for the food. I still have some extra water left. Transfer it to the bottle of water and send it to my room. I still have to exercise, so I will enter seclusion.
I will call Zoe if I need something. My tasks for tonight and tomorrow until I leave my room are for you all to decide to eat the crystals. If you do, do it one at a time. Observe your roommates, in case they'll mutate."
He did not hold back on his warning as he turned around and proceeded to his room.