Cheng Ye's duty at Happiness City's gates is absolute: inspect every survivor, question each arrival, and seal out the infected before they breach the walls. Yet nothing prepares him for what lies beyond the checkpoint. The infected aren't mere husks—they're abominations shaped by something far worse. Deathwhisper tentacles writhe with obsessive hunger, dragging corpses back into consciousness. Death Dandelions spread contagion across two kilometers in a single breath. Fiery Sunflowers scorch reality itself with bio-annihilating radiation. Laughing Mandrakes feed on joy, growing grotesquely stronger with every creature's scream of laughter. How is he supposed to inspect *these*? Salvation arrives in the form of a Civilization Collector—a tool that rewrites the rules of survival. By cultivating a creature's cooperation, Cheng Ye can extract their essence: memories, possessions, techniques, attributes, powers, even entire structures. Every failed extraction grants action points to strengthen his arsenal, fortify his equipment, and expand his shelter. Then comes the impossible: the device can search for a spouse. When the city lord's wife materializes before him, Cheng Ye's world shatters.