Evolving My Undead Legion In A Game-Like World - Chapter 536: Phantom Spear
Chapter 536: Phantom Spear
Michael swallowed, his thumb hovering uncertainly over the screen. His first instinct wasn’t the exam broadcast. Instead, a brief, irrational worry wormed its way into him.
“Did I… get hacked?”
The vibration didn’t stop. Michael almost pocketed the phone again when another ping cut through—different from the rest. A message.
He glanced down. The sender’s name made his brows rise.
Lily.
His cousin.
The message was short, just one line:
“Great one, unfollow everyone but me!”
Michael blinked.
He exhaled slowly, his thumb hesitating before tapping out a reply.
“Do you know what’s happening to my account?”
The reply came almost instantly, as if Lily had been waiting for his question.
“Because you’re famous, duh.”
Michael’s brows pinched together. His fingers tapped quickly.
“Famous? Why?”
The typing dots appeared, vanished, then returned before her answer popped up.
“You were on the broadcast today. The public one. Everyone saw you.”
Michael froze, his thumb hovering above the screen.
Broadcast.
His mind flickered back to the exam hall, to the federation’s earlier announcement that they’d be “expanding public awareness.”
Now, half-realization struck.
A sharp thread of confusion still wove into his chest. He knew the federation had been trying to involve the public more in supernatural affairs, but what did he have to do with that?
Michael leaned against the academy gate, phone still vibrating faintly in his grip as the notifications rolled on. His reflection shimmered in the glassy screen—face calm, but eyes betraying the storm underneath.
What he didn’t know was how far the federation had gone this time nor how spectacular he had been in the eyes of millions.
For the first time in their life they got introduced to part of a deep section of the supernatural world with him being one of the brightest nodes.
Now, his name was everywhere.
Michael still didn’t know the full picture of what was happening, but fragments of ideas clicked into place.
But he didn’t want to think about it now. His body wasn’t tired, but his mind felt heavy.
For now, the only thing he wanted was to get home.
He pushed off the academy gate, thumb moving across his phone to the ride-hailing app. The familiar icon opened, and a car was assigned in seconds. The screen pulsed with neat blue lettering.
[AI-Driver: Arrival in 2 minutes]
Michael slid his phone back into his pocket, still feeling the faint vibration of incoming notifications like a heartbeat against his thigh. He ignored it this time.
He had already realized why it felt like more eyes than usual were lingering on him when he stepped out of the academy gates. It wasn’t paranoia. The sudden fame explained it.
The car arrived almost noiselessly.
Michael ducked in, settling into the seat. The interior was cool and clean, the faint hum of the engine barely noticeable as the car pulled away from the curb.
Outside, Aurora’s evening lights shimmered to life. Towers glowed with holographic signs, drones zipped across the skyline, and traffic pulsed in clean, automated lines.
Michael leaned his head back against the seat, eyes half-closed. He didn’t bother checking his phone again.
The car glided through the city on silent wheels, carrying him away from bright academy.
Michael arrived home not long after, the AI-driven cab pulling smoothly into the quiet residential block. He let himself in, slipped off his shoes, and collapsed onto the sofa in his sitting room.
Lily was already there, perched on the arm of the sofa like she owned the place, her legs swinging with barely contained energy. The glow of her own phone lit her face, and her eyes shone with the kind of excitement.
“Look, look, look—this one’s going viral fast!” she said, shoving her phone at him before he could even lean back properly.
On the screen, a video clip played. It was him—Michael—in the second trial. His second fight, the one where he faced off against three others. The clip wasn’t raw feed. It had been cut, polished, overlaid with music that swelled dramatically right as his spear clashed against a shield. Slow-motion effects emphasized the moments where his movements blurred like mist, and where his spear tore through the chest of his opponent.
Michael stared at it in silence.
He couldn’t deny it. It looked… good. Better than he remembered it feeling, even. The camera angles, the replay loops, the cinematic filters—it was like something out of a drama rather than an exam. The clip ended with a freeze-frame of him standing tall, mist curling around his frame.
Lily practically bounced beside him. “Do you see this? You look like a total badass! Everyone’s eating it up. You’re trending across half the feeds in Dawn State.”
Michael tried to keep his expression neutral, but a small twitch pulled at the corner of his mouth. Inside, though, his thoughts were racing.
Aurora might have been different from Earth in so many ways—the monsters, the Awakeners, the Federation—but the internet? The internet worked exactly the same. Clips, edits, hype, and virality. It all spread like wildfire.
Michael leaned back into the sofa, arms crossing slowly as he watched Lily flick to another clip. His name, his face, his fights—they were everywhere. It wasn’t only him though. He saw a lot related to Brian too which almost ruined his mood.
Lily didn’t stop.
She flicked to another clip—this time of Michael’s clash with Brian. The editors online had gone wild with it.
“Look at this!” Lily burst out laughing. “They’ve already started calling you the ‘Phantom Spear.’ And Brian—” she giggled, “—Brian’s the ‘Crimson Tempest.’ Oooh, so edgy.”
Michael groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Lily…”
She leaned closer, grin wide. “Come on, Phantom Spear. Don’t pretend you don’t like it!’”
That was the last straw. Michael stood up slowly, his expression calm but his eyes dangerous. Lily’s grin faltered.
“…Wait. Brother?”
Michael cracked his knuckles. “You’ve got too much free time, Lily.”
Her squeal rang through the apartment as she bolted for the hallway. Michael gave chase, deliberately stomping louder than necessary as if announcing doom itself.
Lily’s laughter echoed back, bright and teasing. “You’ll never catch me, Phantom Spear!”
Michael smirked despite himself, lunging just as she reached her bedroom door. Lily slipped inside at the last second, slamming it shut with a triumphant click of the lock.
