Global Awakening: Apocalypse Ender's Chronicle - Chapter 1004

Capítulo 1004: The Chance to Explore

The item they were looking at was not something really cool-looking or a weapon that seemed terrifying…

Instead, they were looking at a thick, folded parchment with a very high price on it, and the item name was “Sea Map.”

Seeing their interest, Rowan smiled and took the parchment.

The recruits leaned closer as he carefully unfolded it for everyone to see.

The map was thick, its surface was worn but surprisingly well‑preserved, as though it had been treated with some kind of resin to resist decay.

Shane couldn’t help but feel excited as it was opened and the creases smoothed out. At first glance, he recognized the left edge. It was the eastern landmass of the Fiend Continent, where they currently resided somewhere…

But the rest of the parchment was not focused on the continent at all. Instead, it stretched outward, depicting the vast eastern ocean in painstaking detail.

“There are indeed many islands out there…” Shane muttered with his low voice… He was filled with intrigue.

The recruits exchanged uncertain looks. To them, the sea was nothing more than a dangerous expanse beyond the fishing zone. They had never imagined that dozens, perhaps hundreds of islands lay scattered across it.

The map was unlike anything Shane had ever seen.

His System’s map only recorded places he had personally visited, a growing log of his travels. It was useful, but limited.

Even the maps he had purchased from other Survivors in the Marketplace were vague sketches, riddled with inaccuracies. This one, however, was different. It was precise, detailed, and felt alive.

It was definitely made by a professional cartographer.

He traced his finger across the parchment, following the outlines of coastlines and clusters of islands. Symbols were scattered across the ocean…

There were skulls, biohazard marks, spirals, towers, and dozens of other signs he couldn’t immediately decipher.

Some were clustered together, others stood alone in the middle of the sea.

“What do they mean?” Misha asked softly, her eyes fixed on a spiral mark near the center of the ocean.

Shane shook his head. “I can guess at some. Skulls mean danger. Biohazard signs… contamination, maybe. The dead fish and normal fish signs are also quite obvious… But the rest…” He frowned. “Without a legend, it’s just speculation.”

Indeed, signs with the drawn images of claw marks, octopus, lightning, wooden ship, black tower, white tower, and many others would only give them an idea, but they wouldn’t be sure about it.

Rowan smiled knowingly and produced another folded paper. He held it up between two fingers. “This,” he said, “contains the information you need to read the map. The meanings of the marks, the warnings, the opportunities. Without it, the map is only half‑useful.”

Shane’s gaze sharpened. He didn’t doubt this ‘npc’ Merchant since they had never been fraud before. Even in the two other Apocalypses he had participated in, the Wandering Merchants would never scam their customers.

“And the price?”

“Five thousand Zombie Cores,” Rowan replied smoothly. “And five thousand Experience Points.”

The recruits gasped. Those five thousand cores were already a fortune.

Even Shane’s expression hardened in shock. He didn’t expect that this merchant could also accept Experience Points for payments.

Nonetheless, it wasn’t a price that would deter him…

He studied the parchment again and knew that he had to take it himself.

A map of the ocean, with detailed legends… this wasn’t just a curiosity. It was a key. A key to expansion, exploration, and perhaps even dominance beyond the Fiend Continent.

He thought of his other shelters, Eclipse Domain, Springriver Manor, Floating Fortress, New Genesis Shelter… all of them were land-bound. They were thriving but limited. None had ventured into the sea. None had claimed the islands…

Perhaps, his Blue Haven Shelter would truly be his ticket to his island invasion.

If this map were real, if the information was accurate, then the eastern ocean was a frontier waiting to be seized.

Shane exhaled slowly, then nodded. “I’ll take it.”

Rowan’s smile widened. “Wise choice.”

Just like that, Shane paid with Zombie Cores, and the merchant made him touch a blue crystal to take his Experience Points.

The merchant handed over the folded paper, and Shane immediately opened it. The recruits crowded around, their eyes hungry for knowledge.

The paper was filled with symbols and explanations.

The spiral meant whirlpools, they were deadly currents that could swallow ships whole.

The black tower symbol marked ruins of ancient structures, places where treasures or artifacts might be found.

The flame symbol indicated volcanic islands, dangerous but rich in minerals.

The skulls were indeed warnings of powerful mutated Zombies ranging from Zombie King to Zombie Lord.

The biohazard marks denoted zones of corruption where the land itself was poisoned.

There were also symbols Shane took note of…

There was a crescent moon, a broken chain, a pair of wings. Each carried notes like “Unstable,” “Sealed,” “Forbidden.” There wasn’t much information as well on those parts, but aside from that, other signs, like treasure signs, were very clear.

The recruits murmured among themselves, excitement and fear mixing in their voices.

“Boss… are we really going out there?” one asked.

“Islands with ruins… treasures… this could change everything.”

“But whirlpools? Corruption? What if we don’t come back?”

Shane folded the papers carefully…

“We’re not rushing. First, we finish the outpost. You haven’t seen my Blue Haven Shelter and my other shelters yet, so I can understand your worry. But you only need to focus on this outpost… If you get stronger or maybe if this place stabilizes, you can also join the expedition group.”

Shane said as he also wanted to give them a chance for promotion instead of being stuck here forever.

Indeed, these ten Super Soldiers he had just recruited weren’t aware of his army, his warden units, his mech frames, his floating fortress, his several ships in the dockyard, and numerous powerful Survivors who would fight by his side…

The recruits felt curious about Shane’s plan, but they all nodded…

Seeing how confident their boss was, their earlier hesitation was replaced with determination.

The walls they had built were only the beginning. Now, with the map in hand, they realized their future wasn’t confined to the Fiend Continent.

“That’s a promise, Boss Shane!”