Even after accepting the contract, Li Ke didn't rush headlong toward the waypoint. Instead, he systematically sold his remaining three stacks of robotic turret ammo to clear inventory space. After purchasing a fresh batch of raw components from the Trader's catalog, he quickly whipped up a backup iron pipe machine gun before finally taking off toward his destination.
He didn't spot a single stray zombie along the way. His path was framed entirely by charred, blackened ruins left behind by the Blood Moon inferno.
There were undoubtedly salvageable supplies buried deep beneath the soot, but unearthing them wasn't a job he could finish in a day or two. Consequently, Li Ke didn't waste a single glance on the debris, driving his focus solely toward his primary objective.
Because the distance was remarkably short, it took him only a handful of paces before he ran straight into a massive, floating yellow exclamation mark suspended in mid-air, gently swaying against the wind.
Seeing such an aggressively game-like element physically superimposed onto real-world physics felt profoundly surreal, but there was no question about his intent—he needed to test this mechanism.
"Alright. Let's see how this world handles instance resets."
Taking a stabilizing breath, Li Ke mentally interacted with the glowing quest marker. In that fraction of a second, he had braced himself for two potential glitches: either a wave of infected would materialize out of thin air, or the system would instantly flag the contract as complete. Instead, a literal house slammed into existence right before his eyes.
Yes, a whole house.
The scorched crater of ash vanished instantly. In its place stood a pristine, wooden bungalow, its doors and windows heavily reinforced with sheet iron plates. Li Ke stood entirely frozen for two solid seconds before peering through a gap in the window frame, spotting a lone infected standing completely motionless inside, locked in its default idle animation.
If his memory served him correctly, he had thoroughly looted this exact location just days prior. He specifically remembered finding a tin of luncheon meat on the dining table; now, that same table held two or three tins of canned peas.
"Well, damn... Talk about some spectacular news!"
This meant they would never have to worry about a critical resource shortage again!
A wide grin split across Li Ke's face. Excitement surging through his veins, he confidently unslung his pipe machine gun, aligned the sights with the sleeping zombie's head, and pulled the trigger.
The deafening crack of gunfire shattered the silence of the cabin, instantly alerting every single sleeper nesting inside. But his initial target never even had a chance to react; its skull exploded into a violent spray of crimson fluid and brain matter, painting the floorboards behind it.
The very next second, several snarling infected burst from the adjacent bedroom and a hollowed-out closet, their rotting frames shambling with sudden, feral aggression toward his position.
Li Ke executed a series of calculated, single-shot bursts, methodically shattering their skulls one by one until not a single threat remained standing. Executing a clean vault over the window sill, he breached the interior to sweep and clear the remaining rooms.
Fascinated, he noticed that a couple of bright red blips had suddenly materialized on his directional compass HUD. Whenever he maneuvered himself near one of those markers, a hidden, lurking zombie would invariably be waiting to ambush him.
"So the quest system grants a built-in radar overlay too? Fantastic..."
Muttering to himself, Li Ke raised his weapon and fired again, popping the skull of the final sleeper before letting out a clean sigh of relief.
The quest tracker in his peripheral vision immediately updated to reflect a successful completion state. However, Li Ke didn't make a frantic break back to the Trader. Instead, he systematically scoured the newly materialized POI from top to bottom, stripping it of every available resource a second time.
Unfortunately, the drop rates remained underwhelming. Aside from a handful of canned goods and some basic fabric garments, he failed to uncover anything of significant strategic value.
Marching back into the safety of the Trader's compound, Li Ke finalized the contract at her counter. The very next instant, a premium reward matrix popped into existence right before his eyes, accompanied by the smooth, professional cadence of the merchant's voice line.
"Thank you for taking care of that job for me! I honestly didn't know what I was going to do. Here is your reward—please choose one."
Li Ke focused his gaze on the completion screen. The fixed interface rewards displayed 4,500 Experience Points, 600 Duke's Casino Tokens, and an invaluable Skill Point.
Beneath those sat two item-reward slots. One held a standard Wrench, while the other displayed a fully stocked Medical Supplies Crate.
He couldn't help but click his tongue in sheer disbelief. It had only been a handful of basic zombies, yet the payoff was incredibly lucrative. Considering that starting a quest completely reset a building's status parameters, if he targeted high-tier, resource-dense structures, wouldn't he absolutely roll in profits?
Running quests in this world was practically a license to print money!
So running trader contracts is the true core gameplay loop of this world? Then again, there probably aren't many regular humans left who could survive long enough to unlock this mechanic.
Glancing down at his level indicator, Li Ke couldn't resist complaining about his own progression curve.
He hadn't unlocked the quest system until reaching Level 51. To hit that milestone manually, a normal person would have to slaughter thousands of infected one by one. If he hadn't lucked out by setting that massive trap and triggering the apocalyptic explosion at the gas station, he wouldn't even be within spitting distance of Level 51 right now!
And that was despite his exceptionally high adaptability compared to most corporate drones.
"This world really is an absolute nightmare for ordinary folk..."
Muttering his complaint, Li Ke selected the Wrench without a single shred of hesitation. While the Medkit looked like something that would provide an immediate safety net for his current physical state, checking the item data confirmed that the Wrench was the ultimate strategic choice.
He had no way of crafting one yet because the recipe schematic remained locked. However, this tool was the literal foundation for salvaging advanced materials. According to the item description, it allowed him to dismantle electronics and appliances to harvest mechanical parts—the exact components required to craft high-tier machinery.
"Excellent. Next step is to keep grinding the queue."
Stepping back up to the counter, Li Ke accepted the next resource-fetching contract from the female merchant.
But staring at his newly accumulated pool of two unallocated Skill Points, he hesitated for a brief moment. Tapping open his character attributes matrix, he experimentally assigned one point into Fortitude, eager to see just how much a mechanical upgrade would alter his actual physical body.
The system point slotted into Fortitude effortlessly. The very next millisecond, a torrent of strange, intoxicating energy erupted deep within his core. The systemic exhaustion brought on by his heavy physical labor vanished into thin air in an instant. Not only that, but he felt his respiration and motor control grow significantly more robust and powerful.
Virtually every single cell in his body was screaming in sheer euphoria, eagerly welcoming the biological transformation. The sudden rush left him acting purely on instinct, driving him to immediately dump his second, remaining Skill Point straight into Fortitude as well.
An even more intense wave of pure physical comfort—nearly triple the strength of the first surge—swept violently through his body, forcing him to drop to his knees as he gasped for air.
He felt better than he ever had in his entire life. It was as if he had been magically de-aged back to his sixteen-year-old self—the golden era when he could pulling two-day all-nighters without blinking, or watch adult videos and go six or seven rounds back-to-back without breaking a sweat!
He had officially returned to his physical prime!
But the biological upgrades didn't stop there. As he straightened his posture, he noticed his back straightened out effortlessly, and his visual acuity had sharpened dramatically.
As an office worker, he had always suffered from a moderate degree of myopia. But now, looking out into the distance, his vision was crystal clear; he could effortlessly read the fine details of objects over fifty meters away!
Hurriedly pulling open his collar, he inspected his torso. While the soft midsection that Erina loved to mock was still somewhat visible, the "little brother" that had been left entirely exhausted and limp from his recent physical trauma was now bristling with boundless vitality, standing proudly at absolute attention. A surging wave of primal, masculine desire flared up within his gut, practically screaming at him to go forth and unleash some holy white energy!
Throwing an experimental punch into the open air, the kinetic snap felt completely alien compared to his old self, even though he had thrown it with maximum force. He could easily tell that this wasn't his true ceiling, let alone his absolute limit. If he wanted to, he could throw dozens of consecutive full-power strikes without slowing down!
He realized that his metabolic energy consumption during physical actions had drastically decreased!
This was no longer the frail, useless corporate white-collar drone who had spent years chained to a desk.
He was now a highly lethal corporate white-collar drone!
"This is... POWER!"
Li Ke tightly clenched his fist, his mind buzzing with an unbridled surge of absolute confidence. If he ever crossed paths with Erina again, he was absolutely going to use this raw, overwhelming strength to completely dominate her in the bedroom!
"What a waste. My internal attributes scaled up, but my actual physique didn't change a bit."
Gazing down at his still slightly protruding midsection, Li Ke let out a helpless sigh.
He had always been deeply envious of those textbook bodybuilders. Unfortunately, his reflection still displayed the exact same frail, out-of-shape white-collar frame. It looked like if he actually wanted an aesthetic physique out here, he would still have to put in the manual labor to actively train his muscles.
"Then again, considering the daily grind in this place, it won't be long before survival forces a good physique onto me anyway."
Muttering his complaint, Li Ke threw his clothes back on and geared up to leave.
Right now, he was bursting with infinite energy and sharp focus. It was the perfect opportunity to blast through every single contract the female Trader had on the board. He needed to verify whether her job queue would dynamically refresh or hit a hard daily gate.
If it didn't refresh, he would pivot immediately to strip-mining and excavating his underground tunnel system. If it did refresh, he would just keep grinding the contracts. After all, elevating his personal parameters was the absolute core priority; becoming stronger meant faster digging, more efficient mining, and far smoother combat loops against the infected!
But the absolute millisecond he took his very first stride forward, a sudden, horrifying sensation of rigid flesh frictioning violently against a metallic trouser zipper shot straight through his physical core and into his very soul.
He collapsed instantly to his knees, biting back a guttural shriek of agony to save whatever remaining scraps of his dignity he had left.
"Hiss—! Why the hell is that thing so aggressively energetic right now?! Also... does this count as falling at the very first hurdle?"
Sprawled face-down on the asphalt, Li Ke forcefully suffocated his own groans, his thoughts dissolving into a string of frantic complaints.
If only he were still wearing his original wardrobe. Unfortunately, the vast majority of his custom civilian clothes had been shredded into useless rags during the explosion, and it was entirely obvious that Kiri and Tsunade had explicitly cut the fabric open to evaluate and treat his wounds.
When his vitals had been in a critical state earlier, the plumbing down there had been completely dormant. But now that his attributes were fully charged, the sudden friction had delivered a catastrophic critical hit to his lower half.
He tried to manually shift the positioning to alleviate the pressure, but it was completely useless. Changing into a fresh pair of trousers wasn't a realistic option either, primarily because the Trader's basic inventory didn't offer any clothing choices on the catalog.
"..."
Li Ke glanced down at his own hand — rough, covered in calluses and blisters. It was clearly not suitable for something as delicate as a zipper. With a helpless sigh, he shifted his gaze toward the female merchant who had been quietly smiling at him the entire time.
"Sorry… I don't have any other choice."
He took a deep breath, the heavy pressure in his chest making it difficult. He closed the door to the small room firmly, then used his coat to block the window, sealing off any possible view from outside. After making sure they were completely isolated, he turned back to the woman and gave her a respectful bow.
"I'm about to do something inappropriate to you. If you object, please blink twice."
The female merchant remained perfectly still, her eyes calm and unwavering.
"…Understood. Then I'll borrow your ass for a moment. Don't worry! I'll just rub against it. I won't put it in."
Li Ke nodded, his voice slightly hoarse from tension. He stepped around the table and moved behind her. His hands reached for the waistband of her tight denim shorts. Slowly, he unbuttoned them, the metallic sound of the zipper echoing softly in the quiet room as he pulled it down.
He tugged the shorts down over her wide, shapely hips. The fabric peeled away reluctantly, revealing her smooth, plump ass cheeks. They were full and perfectly round, with a soft, pale glow under the dim light. He continued pulling the shorts all the way down her thighs, letting them pool around her ankles along with her panties.
Her bare ass was now completely exposed — soft, juicy, and incredibly tempting. The deep, inviting cleft between her cheeks looked warm and inviting.
Li Ke couldn't wait any longer. He freed his aching, throbbing cock from his pants. The thick, heavy shaft was already rock-hard and leaking precum from the tip. He pressed forward, sliding his burning length between her soft, pillowy ass cheeks.
The moment his cock nestled into the warm, fleshy valley, a deep groan of relief escaped his throat.
"Haaa…"
The sensation was heavenly. Her ass was incredibly soft yet firm, the smooth skin enveloping his cock perfectly from both sides. He began to move his hips slowly, sliding his thick shaft up and down between her cheeks. Every thrust caused her plump buttocks to jiggle and squeeze around him, creating delicious friction along his entire length.
The head of his cock occasionally brushed against her tight, hidden hole, sending sparks of pleasure through both of them, but he kept his promise and didn't push inside.
"Fuck… this feels so good…" he muttered under his breath, his hands gripping her soft hips tightly as he continued rubbing himself between her warm, fleshy ass cheeks with increasing urgency.