Dawn after the night of carnage brought no hope. The sky above Seoul remained smeared with ash. The thick fog hugging the ruined streets did not carry away the biting cold; instead it dragged the stench of scorched ozone, charred mutant flesh, and congealed black blood deep into every crack in the concrete. The parking plaza in front of Mega Mall Seoul reeked of death.
Deep inside the fortified walls and car barricades, in the silent executive suite on the third floor…
Kang Shi-hun lay submerged in the deepest sleep of his life. On the king-sized bed covered with pristine white sheets, his body was perfectly still, like a marble statue. Yet inside, a cellular storm raged. Spending 1,000 days of lifespan to reach Level 4 was not a simple purchase—it was a complete shedding of his old species. Every bone, every tendon, every muscle fiber was being torn apart and rebuilt to support limits far beyond human. Shi-hun had shut down his conscious senses so his body could evolve undisturbed.
The King of Ash was in seclusion, leaving the outside world to turn according to the board and pieces he had set in motion.
And those pieces… did not disappoint him.
06:00 a.m. — Atrium, Floor 1
The cold rising from the tiled floor dragged the fifty survivors from their nightmares. They lay huddled on cardboard and rags. Even though they had eaten fresh bread and clean water until their stomachs were full, the memory of fighting a thousand-strong horde still haunted them. Many woke with cold sweat, hands instinctively groping for the machetes beside them.
Wary eyes swept the brightly lit hall powered by the backup generator. They had survived another night, but the question burning in every mind was: what fresh hell awaited them today?
Then a sound shattered the silence.
Click… click… click…
Not the heavy stomp of combat boots, but the crisp, measured rhythm of Italian leather soles descending the escalator like a slow waltz—elegant, graceful, and somehow making everyone's skin crawl.
Every head snapped upward in unison. A tall young man in a perfectly tailored black suit descended with unhurried grace. His black shirt had three buttons undone, revealing a powerful chest. His posture was flawless, radiating absolute authority.
The crowd instantly bowed their heads in terror. Some dropped to their knees on the cold tiles. They remembered the man who had shouldered an RPG and blown a giant monster in half last night—the man who decided who lived and who died.
But the four women in tailored executive suits—Ji-ah, Su-jin, Min-ah, and Yu-jin—who had already lined up to receive orders, felt something completely wrong.
The man had the exact same handsome face, height, build, and even the same crease on his suit sleeve as Kang Shi-hun. But the "smile" and the "eyes" were different.
The Shi-hun they knew had bottomless black eyes—empty, emotionless, like a black hole ready to devour everything. The man now standing before them, one hand casually in his pocket, wore a faint smile at the corner of his mouth and eyes that sparkled with mischievous, predatory delight. It was the gaze of a hunter enjoying the sight of prey struggling in a maze—alive, playful, and dripping with poison.
"Good morning, ladies of the executive board, and all you diligent little ants," the young man greeted them with a slight, courteous bow. His voice was smooth, melodic, pleasant to the ear—yet it sent ice down every spine.
Yu-jin frowned, fists clenching unconsciously. "Boss…? Why are you—"
The man raised a black-gloved finger to his lips. "Shhh… No confusion, my beautiful assistant. The real boss is resting peacefully in the third-floor suite after fighting all night to protect your fragile little lives. As for me… I am Number One." He smiled wider. "The Meat Clone granted the honor of acting as Proxy Manager and personal butler while the boss sleeps."
A sadistic grin spread across Number One's face as he scanned the fifty survivors whose jaws had dropped in utter shock. A human could clone himself from thin air—and this clone had intelligence, speech, humor, and a smile? The power of the man called Kang Shi-hun had long surpassed any sane law of this world.
"Please erase the image of those brainless meat puppets that only stood there as bullet sponges," Number One chuckled softly, brushing imaginary dust from his sleeve. "I have thoughts, intelligence, and… tastes of my own. The only thing identical to the boss is my hatred for parasites that suck blood, flesh, and labor from others. Now that everyone is wide awake, shall we get to business?"
Number One walked to the central glass table and snapped his fingers. "The boss has ordered me to establish a Merit System to govern this kingdom." His tone turned serious, yet his words still carried a teasing edge. "From this moment onward, there will be no such thing as 'free food,' 'pity,' or 'mercy' inside Mega Mall Seoul. Every drop of sweat, every ounce of effort, every achievement will be evaluated and converted into 'points'…"
He pointed at Yu-jin. "You, Yu-jin, as secretary, will record everyone's points with absolute strictness. These points are the only currency here. They can be exchanged for fresh bread straight from the oven, clean water, medicine, winter clothes, or even a softer mattress. However—"
His gentle voice suddenly turned razor-sharp, cold as a blade pressed to the throat.
"Anyone who slacks, anyone who is lazy, anyone who secretly naps, or anyone who becomes a burden… will have points deducted. If your points go negative, you will lose rations and water. And if you still refuse to be useful… I will ask the boss for permission to sever your tendons, hang you upside-down at the main gate, and let the others enjoy the show every evening."
The crowd swallowed hard. Terror gripped their hearts. This butler in the black suit seemed to take far more pleasure in torture than the real boss, who killed in cold silence.
"Alright, let's divide the work while the sun is nice and bright." Number One turned to the four executives. "The boss prepared equipment for you before he went to sleep, and we have a major project."
He gestured to one corner of the atrium. There sat a pile of supplies the real Shi-hun had summoned from the shop and left behind: more than ten wheelbarrows, wide-headed shovels, industrial gloves, dust masks, welding machines, and thick coils of cable.
"Ji-ah, Uncle Hwang—you are Group One. Select twenty people. Your job is to clear the front parking plaza. Haul every piece of zombie meat and bone to the rear disposal pit. Then scrub every last drop of blood from the concrete. I do not want the boss smelling decay when he wakes."
"Understood," Ji-ah nodded. She knew how back-breaking the cleaning would be, but it was the only way to earn points.
"As for Su-jin and Min-ah…" Number One turned to the two combat women, his eyes growing serious. "The boss wants this place turned into a true fortress. Last night's car barricade was too fragile. We must build reinforced concrete walls around the entire domain. The problem is—we have no construction materials left."
Su-jin frowned. "What do you mean? Can't the boss just summon everything?"
Number One shook his head with a smile. "The God's Shop is not a magical Doraemon pocket, ladies. The boss cannot summon anything he has never disassembled and recorded as a blueprint first. Therefore, Group Two's mission is to go out and gather building materials."
Number One pointed through the shattered windows into the fog. "Two blocks away is an abandoned condominium construction site and a hardware store. Su-jin, Min-ah—select the strongest twenty men. Take the wheelbarrows and walk through the fog. Bring back as much cement, bricks, and rebar as possible. When the boss wakes, he will disassemble the junk to record the blueprints. Only then will real magic begin."
Min-ah's face paled. "Walk outside in this fog? Zombies could be hiding everywhere!"
"Correct. It is dangerous." Number One picked up a machete the boss had summoned and twirled it playfully. "That is why the boss prepared weapons for everyone going outside. Grip those blades tight and sever the neck of anything in your path. This is the highest-point mission. Anyone who returns with cement will receive double rations."
Su-jin took a deep breath and tightened her grip on her machete. "Understood. I'll lead them myself."
"Every second is lifespan… begin moving!" Number One clapped twice, sharp as a dictator's command.
08:30 a.m. — Outside Mega Mall Seoul, in the fog
Su-jin and Min-ah led twenty strong men pushing empty wheelbarrows into the freezing mist. Every hand clutched a machete, bayonet, or iron pipe until palms were slick with sweat.
The main road was littered with wrecked cars. The silence was oppressive. Visibility of only a few dozen meters made every step tense.
Crunch… scrape…
Dragging footsteps echoed from the left alley. Three rotting office-worker zombies staggered out of the fog, drawn by the scent of living flesh.
"Stay in formation! Take them down!" Su-jin ordered.
Two burly men gritted their teeth and charged. Machetes flashed. One zombie's head flew off in a spray of black blood. Su-jin followed up, smashing another down with the flat of her blade before stabbing through its skull.
Meanwhile, on the quiet third-floor suite, Kang Shi-hun remained fast asleep, breathing steady. Yet in his subconscious, the blue system window worked silently and continuously.
[Ally eliminated enemy with system-provided weapon: +1 day]
[Ally eliminated enemy with system-provided weapon: +1 day]
[Ally eliminated enemy with system-provided weapon: +1 day]
Shi-hun's lifespan slowly increased, one point at a time. While he slept peacefully on a soft bed, every drop of enemy blood spilled by his ants using weapons he had paid for flowed back to him as passive income. This was true farming—lifespan earned without lifting a finger.
Hours passed. Su-jin's group fought through obstacles, killing over fifty zombies along the way, until they finally broke into the abandoned construction site and hardware store. They loaded half-empty bags of hardened cement, rusted rebar, and old concrete blocks onto the wheelbarrows until they overflowed, then pushed them back through the fog, battered and exhausted.
14:00 p.m.
On the third-floor suite, Kang Shi-hun's eyelids slowly opened. The black eyes that had carried accumulated fatigue were now cold, sharp, and brimming with power. The agony of Level 4 evolution had vanished. His body felt light yet packed with overwhelming strength—STR 14 and SPD 14.
He checked the system window. The corner of his mouth lifted slightly.
[Current lifespan: 421.5 days] (increased from his subordinates' farming)
He rose from the bed, cleaned himself with bottled water from the shop, donned a fresh black suit, straightened his collar, and walked out refreshed.
When Shi-hun reached the second-floor balcony and looked down, the atrium was spotless—no trace of blood remained. Group One sat resting, eating bread in exhaustion.
Shi-hun descended the escalator to the front parking plaza. The landscape had transformed. The thousand corpses were gone. The plaza was clear. And in the center sat a huge pile of construction waste—bags of hardened cement, rusted rebar, and muddy concrete blocks—stacked on more than ten wheelbarrows.
Su-jin and Min-ah's group sat panting beside it, covered in zombie blood and cement dust.
Number One hurried over and bowed ninety degrees. "Good afternoon, boss… Your ants followed orders to the letter. Sample materials for wall construction—cement, rebar, and bricks—are standing by for your 'study.'"
Shi-hun nodded. He walked to the worthless-looking pile. Every survivor watched in silent curiosity, wondering what the boss would do with rock-hard cement and rusted steel.
Shi-hun removed his leather gloves and placed his bare, powerful hand on the hardened cement bags and rebar.
"System. Disassemble all construction materials."
WHOOOOOOSH!
The parking plaza trembled faintly. The tons of cement, rebar, and concrete blocks on the wheelbarrows shook, then exploded into a storm of blue-and-gold pixels that swirled like a miniature tornado and vanished completely into Shi-hun's palm.
The crowd stood frozen, mouths agape, barely breathing at the miracle before them.
System messages flooded Shi-hun's vision.
[Blueprint unlocked: Portland Cement]
[Blueprint unlocked: Deformed Rebar]
[Blueprint unlocked: Lightweight Concrete Block]
[Mass Disassembly bonus: Advanced Structural Mastery]
[Construction material purchase price reduced by 95% | Current price: 0.01 days per ton]
Shi-hun smiled in satisfaction.
"Uncle Hwang, Su-jin, Ji-ah—gather your people here," Shi-hun commanded, voice echoing. "It is time to build our castle walls."
He swept his hand through the air and opened the God's Shop.
[Purchase: Portland Cement × 50 tons]
[Purchase: Deformed Rebar × 20 tons]
[Purchase: Lightweight Concrete Blocks × 10,000 units]
[Total cost: 2.0 days | Remaining lifespan: 419.5 days]
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Golden light flashed repeatedly across the vast plaza. When it faded, what appeared left everyone on their knees in awe.
Hundreds of fresh, soft bags of usable cement. Stacks of gleaming, rust-free silver rebar. Perfect pallets of lightweight concrete blocks—brand new and neatly arranged—replaced the garbage pile as if by real magic.
"God help us…" Uncle Hwang whispered, tears in his eyes. "Premium-grade materials like this… we could build a nuclear bunker!"
Shi-hun turned and walked back into the mall, leaving Number One in charge.
"The boss has given you the bricks and cement…" Number One smiled wide, sadistic eyes gleaming. "Now use your sweat and labor to build concrete walls around Mega Mall Seoul… Make them tall and thick enough for the boss to sleep soundly. Otherwise, tomorrow morning, I will use you as sand in the concrete mix!"
The construction of the strongest fortress in the apocalypse—under the logic of the system and rule by fear—had officially begun.