After upgrading the Wind-Fire Wheel to level 5, the speed of the Stellar Train had significantly increased. It was already quite fast, and in a few more days, once it reached level 10, it would become even faster.
This was the first time in a long while that the Stellar Train had truly left the Doomsday Abyss.
A few days ago, when they had left the abyss to pick up the Goblins, they had only lingered at the edge of the cliff, not truly departing from the Doomsday Abyss.
Deep down, he still held a sliver of hope.
Perhaps...
Perhaps he really would encounter a new monster boss. With the current strength of his train, as long as it wasn't some ridiculously overpowered level 3 boss, he felt confident he could take it down, even if it took a bit longer.
Even if he didn't get the first kill, the rewards from simply defeating a boss would still be substantial.
He had been quite satisfied with the rewards he got from killing that level 3 Man-Eating Spider boss last time.
Inside the train.
Chen Mang gazed into the distance. Without the headlights, the road ahead was almost pitch black. He lightly pressed the accelerator, not daring to go too fast.
The adrenaline rush made his arms tremble slightly. Although the train currently had level 3 armor, and not many things in the wasteland could collide with it, the lack of a Gyroscope—a yellow-tier accessory—meant that if the train tilted too much, it could still tip over.
This accessory was one of the craftable items available after upgrading the train to level 3.
What puzzled him, though, was that something as basic and ordinary as the headlights wasn't among the craftable accessories for level 1, level 2, or even level 3 trains. Could it really be a level 4 train accessory?
Or perhaps the blueprint for it could only be randomly dropped in the wild?
Whatever the case.
He drove across the wasteland for half an hour, during which both the Targeting Radar and the Resource Detection Radar remained eerily quiet, with no activity whatsoever.
"Big haul tonight..."
But the more this was the case, the more excited Chen Mang became. His eyes narrowed as he stared intently into the dark depths of the wasteland. Logically speaking, it was impossible to not encounter a single monster in the wasteland for half an hour.
Unless...
Yes, just like last time, when a boss appeared, the sheer pressure it exuded would cause all the monsters in the wasteland to hide.
There was definitely a big haul in the wasteland tonight.
Just then—
"Beep, beep, beep."
The Targeting Radar was the first to sound, followed closely by the Resource Detection Radar. The radar detected a level 1 Iron Ore deposit not far away, and beside it was a parked level 1 train.
"Tch."
Chen Mang suddenly laughed, as if he had thought of something. The external sound system of the train blared with loud DJ music, the volume cranked to the max. Like a gust of wind, the train roared past the level 1 train, honking three times.
In the blink of an eye.
Both the train and the Iron Ore deposit were left far behind.
As for how he identified it as a level 1 train—it was quite obvious. It only had three carriages, with no armor or heavy machine guns. Clearly, it was a level 1 train, a complete newbie.
He had no intention of stopping to seize the ore.
On one hand, he couldn't really bring himself to care about such a small level 1 deposit. On the other hand... back when he had just built the Stellar Train and was mining in the wasteland, a level 2 train had roared past him without trying to steal from him.
His worldview and values had been shaped in his previous life.
But as he integrated into this world, the ethos of this place had subtly influenced his actions.
If that level 2 train had tried to rob him back then, he would have surely done the same to this level 1 train now.
But since that train hadn't robbed him, he didn't mind emulating that senior, teasing the newbie a little.
"..."
Having satisfied his mischievous streak, Chen Mang suddenly thought of something, and the smile on his face slowly froze.
This scene felt so familiar.
Back then, that level 2 train had roared past him in the same arrogant manner, heading off to fight a boss, only to return in shame.
Now, he was also preparing to go hunt a boss.
Surely, he wouldn't...
He quickly shook his head, dismissing the chaotic thoughts in his mind. Thinking about such things late at night was just bad luck.
On the Iron Ridge Wasteland.
Beside an Iron Ore deposit, a small train with only three carriages was parked. Inside the train, a young man with dyed white hair stared intently in the direction where the train had disappeared. Only after letting out a sigh of relief did he grit his teeth and mutter.
"This guy... really knows how to steal the show!"
"Dammit..."
"Why can he be so brazen in the wasteland? Doesn't he fear that the music might attract monsters?"
When he had clearly seen the appearance of that train earlier, his heart had nearly leapt out of his throat.
A full eight carriages, each covered in thick black armor, including the locomotive. On top of the carriages were four heavy machine guns with large calibers. If that train had wanted to rob him, he would have had no means of resisting.
If the train were to fall, everyone might survive, but the Train Conductor would inevitably die.
However, the other party seemed to have come with goodwill.
No intention of robbing him.
One day—
He, too, would be like that, blasting deafening music, controlling his train as it roared arrogantly and recklessly across the wasteland.
Inside the train.
The young man with dyed white hair clenched his fists, silently resolving to make this train, which he had only encountered once, his goal.
But when he looked at the train panel, which showed the 49 Survivors, his face was filled with worry.
Before the apocalypse, he had been a junior in college. After the catastrophe, he and his classmates had hidden in the university's air-raid shelter, which had enough food, water, and other supplies. They had stayed there, quietly waiting for rescue.
But the rescue never came.
A few days ago, a monster had broken into the shelter. After gathering his courage and killing it, a Train Token had unexpectedly dropped. After discussing it, they decided to embrace the new era, no longer hiding in the air-raid shelter, but instead building their own train to survive in this new world.
As the class monitor and the only one who had killed a monster, and with the Train Token in his possession, he had naturally become the Train Conductor.
But...
When he had finally, after great effort, found an Iron Ore deposit, his classmates had been slacking off every day, only managing to mine two or three units of Iron Ore. He had to step in every day, personally mining around 10 units himself.
He kept trying to reassure them, but the resentment among the group grew.
Some had even gone on strike.
He didn't know how to handle it and could only keep trying to persuade them, making sure everyone understood that if the train didn't quickly upgrade to level 2, it would break down in the wasteland. But his efforts had little effect.
Many of them thought it would be better to return to the air-raid shelter. The food there could last another five years, and by then, the world would surely have returned to peace, and rescue would come. There was no need to risk their lives wandering the wasteland, especially when it was so exhausting.
If another monster happened to break in along the way, he could just kill it.
"...If it were you."
The young man stood inside the train, gazing in the direction where that train had disappeared, murmuring in a daze, "If you were in my position, what would you do? Since you have such a powerful train, you must have a good solution."
"I've explained all the reasoning."
"But they won't listen."
"The logic is so simple—it's about life and death for every one of us. But... why won't they listen?"
Meanwhile—
"Huh?"
Inside the Stellar Train, Chen Mang, sitting at the control panel, looked at the dark swarm of Zombies rushing toward him in the distance, accompanied by the constant beeping of the Targeting Radar. He was momentarily stunned, then couldn't help but laugh.
"I really did run into it."
"This is fate."
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