The Ultimate Tycoon's System Audit

Chapter 7: Ghost Shareholder

Morning sun rose over the city, casting a bright, clean light over the wet streets of Han City.

Jin stood on the rooftop of his modest apartment building he managed to secure after last night. breathing in the crisp, fresh air. He felt incredibly different. The constant, crushing fatigue that had weighed down his chest for five long years was entirely gone, replaced by a deep, vibrating energy. His posture was straight, his vision was sharp, and the constant ache in his lower back from scrubbing floors had completely vanished.

He looked down at his phone. The notification from his banking app was still there, glowing softly on the cracked glass screen.

Account Balance: $11,000,000 USD (14.8 Billion Won).

Jin let out a low, quiet breath, watching the steam disappear into the morning air. The System had delivered exactly what it promised. But he knew that simply having money wasn't enough to survive in the cutthroat corporate world. Director Kang was a man with massive corporate power, high-priced legal teams, and deep political connections. If Jin just threw this cash around blindly, Kang's lawyers would freeze it before sunset.

To completely dismantle a giant like Cheonji Logistics, Jin had to strike precisely where it hurt the most—their pride, their wealth, and their upcoming, heavily publicized IPO.

Ding!

A bright, glowing red interface snapped open before his eyes, floating seamlessly against the backdrop of the city skyline.

[ SYSTEM STATUS: ACTIVE ]

[ CURRENT LIFESPAN: 44 days, 12 hours, 05 minutes ]

[ CURRENT MISSION: EXECUTE CORPORATE AUDIT ON CHEONJI LOGISTICS ]

[ ACTIVE SKILL: EYE OF TRUTH (PASSIVE) ]

"System," Jin thought, focusing his mind on the glowing red interface. "How do I use this money to bring down Cheonji Logistics without alerting Director Kang's legal teams or drawing the attention of the financial authorities?"

[ DING! SUGGESTED PROTOCOL: THE GHOST SHAREHOLDER. ]

[ ACCESSING SYSTEM SUB-SYSTEM: CORPORATE FINANCIAL DECRYPTION. ]

[ CHEONJI LOGISTICS IS CURRENTLY UNDERGOING A PUBLIC IPO VALUATION OF 500 BILLION WON. HOWEVER, THE EYE OF TRUTH DETECTS THAT 40% OF THEIR RECORDED REVENUE IS COMPLETELY ARTIFICIAL. IT IS BUILT ENTIRELY ON AN INFLATED SHELL COMPANY CALLED 'BLUE OCEAN HOLDINGS'. ]

Jin's eyes narrowed into sharp slits. As a former low-level clerk who spent years sorting through basic shipping invoices in the basement office, he knew how Cheonji Logistics operated on the surface. But a regular employee like him had never been granted access to the company's highest-level corporate structures.

"Blue Ocean Holdings..." Jin muttered aloud, a cold realization washing over him. "That's Director Kang's personal shell company, isn't it? He uses it for the high-end VIP contracts."

[ CORRECT, HOST. DIRECTOR KANG HAS BEEN ROUTING FICTITIOUS FREIGHT TRANSACTIONS AND FAKE SHIPPING MANIFESTS THROUGH BLUE OCEAN TO INFLATE CHEONJI'S EARNINGS REPORT. IF BLUE OCEAN'S FABRICATED VALUES COLLAPSE, CHEONJI'S IPO WILL CRASH IMMEDIATELY. ]

[ CHOOSE ACTION: PURCHASE DISTRESSED SHORT OPTIONS OF BLUE OCEAN HOLDINGS. TO MAXIMIZE THE SYSTEM MULTIPLIER, THE ENTIRETY OF THE FUNDS MUST BE UTILISED. COST: $10,000,000 USD. ]

Jin didn't hesitate for a single second. Five years of being stepped on, mocked, and left to die in the rain had taught him that hesitation only led to ruin. "Do it. Short the entire thing."

[ DING! INITIALIZING ANONYMOUS OFFSHORE INVESTMENT TRUST: 'SOVEREIGN CAPITAL'. ]

[ BYPASSING DOMESTIC WALL STREET TRACKERS... UNTRACEABLE ENCRYPTION APPLIED. ]

[ PURCHASING 13.5 BILLION WON WORTH OF DISTRESSED SHORT-SELL OPTIONS. ]

[ TRANSACTION COMPLETE. HOST IS NOW THE LARGEST GHOST SHORT-SELLER OF CHEONJI'S ENTIRE SUPPLIER NETWORK. ]

Jin smiled coldly, his thumbs resting inside the pockets of his worn-out jacket. In the brutal world of high finance, short-selling meant he was placing a massive bet that the company's stock would drop. When Director Kang's corporate fraud was eventually exposed to the public, the stock would plunge straight to zero. The moment it hit rock bottom, Jin’s $10 million bet would automatically multiply into hundreds of millions of dollars in pure profit.

Kang was stepping onto a stage built of lies, completely unaware that Jin had already pulled the rug out from under his feet.

Jin looked down at his clothes. He was still wearing his old, faded blue jeans, a pair of scuffed sneakers, and a simple black hoodie with a frayed zipper. He didn't rush out to buy a luxury sports car, and he didn't immediately move into a high-rise penthouse. To keep Director Kang, Min-ah, and her greedy mother completely off his trail, he needed to maintain his cover. He needed to look exactly like the same "penniless, broken clerk" they had discarded like trash.

His phone suddenly vibrated violently in his palm, the loud buzzing cutting through the quiet morning air. A text message from an unregistered number flashed across the screen.

“Jin, you absolute bastard! How dare you do that to my daughter at the hotel?! You completely ruined her beautiful engagement night! Director Kang’s high-priced lawyers are already drafting the paperwork to put you in a maximum-security prison forever! You better watch your back, you poor dog, because you are going to rot!”

Reading the frantic, venomous words, Jin could practically hear Min-ah’s mother screeching at the top of her lungs.

Jin didn't bother typing a reply. He didn't get angry, and his heart rate didn't even spike. A calm, indifferent expression remained on his face as he simply tapped the screen to delete the message and permanently block the number. They still thought they were the ones holding all the cards. They still honestly believed they had the power to threaten him, entirely ignorant of the fact that their survival now depended on his mercy.

Walking down the concrete stairs of his apartment building, Jin pulled his black hood low over his eyes. The stage was set, the financial trap was locked in place, and Director Kang was about to proudly march his entire empire right into the slaughterhouse.