"True."
Er Dan nodded in agreement. Although he didn't understand why Chen Mang was willing to spend so many Murphy Stones on a Refrigerator, upgrading one to level 10 indeed required 8 Murphy Stones. How could he sell that?
It was like slapping a Quadruple Holographic Titan onto an underground water Tec-9.
The price was definitely high.
But it was far from fetching the price of selling the Murphy Stones individually. Selling in the green zone was really not cost-effective; he couldn't afford such a high price.
As for being able to exchange it for two boxes of cigarettes, that was purely because of his acquaintance with Chen Mang.
Speaking of which, he sometimes really admired himself.
Back then, he actually had some conflicts with Chen Mang. Chen Mang's maze had tortured him for a full half hour. In such a situation, most people would have sought revenge, yet he managed to maintain a good relationship with Chen Mang.
This kind of ability wasn't something everyone had.
Having an enemy like Chen Mang would make it hard to sleep at night.
But having a friend like Chen Mang made sleeping much more peaceful.
It's always better to have more friends than enemies.
"Alright."
Chen Mang changed the subject: "Let's not talk about that. Tell me, how did this happen?"
"That's a long story."
Er Dan took a deep breath, glanced around, and then said helplessly, "Can we talk in your train? It's really cold outside."
"You're not cold."
"But I really am. Look, my nose is running. If I catch a cold, it'll just waste resources."
He definitely wouldn't invite Chen Mang to his own train; that would be too presumptuous. In this post-apocalyptic environment, inviting another Train Conductor to your train was almost like sleeping with his wife in front of him—without some deaths, it wouldn't feel right.
But going to Chen Mang's train was fine.
He wasn't afraid.
Not far away, a crowd was still dismembering that Zombie in the snow.
In the 6th male advanced talent car.
"Hoo."
Sitting in his seat, Er Dan took a cup of hot water from Xiao Fang, glanced up at the 10 Heavy Machine Guns pointed inward from the ceiling, twitched his mouth slightly, and took a deep breath.
It was just like the time in the maze.
The car with the maze also had 10 Heavy Machine Guns pointed inward.
It was the same feeling.
Er Dan sipped the hot water, organized his thoughts, and then continued, "At first, I got some intel that in the 'Ice and Snow World' green zone, a big mountain had a landslide due to a blizzard or avalanche, causing a part of the mountain to collapse."
"Revealing a huge arm."
"That mountain was thousands of meters high. No train in this area could go up there, but my train can fly, so I thought I'd come and take a look. Maybe I'd find another Fortuitous Encounter map or something."
"When I arrived and saw that huge arm, I was truly shocked."
"Most importantly—"
"The Targeting Radar told me this Zombie was actually alive!"
"Imagine, such a big boss, sealed here, and still alive, not resisting. Killing this boss now would be a huge gain, right?"
"But the arm isn't a fatal part, so I used a Drill Bit to go deep into the mountain, trying to find the Zombie's head."
"I don't know if it was because of me, but the Zombie suddenly broke free, and then..."
"It turned into what you see now."
Er Dan sighed deeply and then said somewhat helplessly, "I almost died in this area, but it wasn't a total loss. I saved over 300 people, including dozens of children, gained over thirty points of Inheritance Value, and got more than 200 Slaves. Not bad."
"Children?"
Chen Mang frowned slightly.
"Yeah."
Er Dan nodded: "They're all around ten years old. This is the first time I've seen children in the apocalypse. They're all very well-behaved, not at all like the mischievous kids you'd expect. The apocalypse makes people grow up too fast; they all seem very mature."
"They're from a destroyed train."
"These children were probably taken from a school by that Train Conductor; they all seem to know each other."
"What are you planning to do with these children?"
"..."
Er Dan suddenly fell silent, and after a long while, he said with a complex expression, "When they joined the train, my Inheritance Value was already credited. I plan to have them try mining. If they're slow, I'll just support them."
"Many trains sell or abandon the children the moment the Inheritance Value is credited."
"You can only gain Inheritance Value once."
"These children have already added Inheritance Value to my train; they won't add any to other trains. Those who buy them are usually..."
"After the apocalypse."
"Under immense mental pressure, many people do things they would never do in peacetime. There are many ways to release psychological pressure, and I understand that, especially since Train Conductors are under even more pressure."
"I also play with women, several women."
"But I still think some too beastly behaviors cannot be excused by the apocalypse."
"People must retain some humanity, even if just a trace."
"After being sold, they won't have a good end."
"..."
Chen Mang frowned slightly, thought for a moment, and then said, "Give these children to me. I'll take care of them. For you, having so many extra mouths to feed is too much of a burden."
"You... you'll take care of them?"
Er Dan was slightly stunned: "They have almost no labor value; this is a hot potato!"
In the eyes of a heartless Train Conductor, this was a batch of wealth. But in the eyes of a somewhat humane Train Conductor, it was indeed a hot potato.
"Yes."
Chen Mang nodded. In his heart, he was sure he would break into space in five years. Once in space, the time span would become long. These people who grew up on the Stellar would be more loyal to it; they would be the backbone of the Stellar in the future.
A few dozen mouths were nothing to him.
Since they were young, they didn't need to mine. They could be slowly trained through combat training spaces and various ingredients, teaching both theory and practical knowledge. These people would become his trusted aides in the future.
"Brother, let me remind you again, they won't add any Inheritance Value to your train after joining."
Chen Mang nodded and then smiled: "I know. I'll take care of them. Do you have somewhere to spend your Inheritance Value?"
"Not for now."
Er Dan shook his head: "It can only be used in certain special Fortuitous Encounter maps like the 'Black Market,' or when encountering a Black Market Merchant. I'll wait until I meet a Black Market Merchant. They don't appear in fixed locations; it's all about luck. Who knows when I'll meet one."
"Thirty seconds."
"What do you mean?"
Thirty seconds later.
The cloaked Black Market Merchant walked through several cars to the 6th car, standing expressionlessly in front of Er Dan, his voice hoarse.
"Foolish human, congratulations on encountering the mysterious and elusive great Black Market Merchant. You can use your Inheritance Value to buy any product from me."
"Here is the product list."
"Please state the product you wish to purchase."
"Remember, say the product number. The great Black Market Merchant has no time for idle chatter."
"You have one minute to choose."
"..."
"..."
Er Dan stared at the translucent panel that suddenly appeared in front of him, dumbfounded for a long while, then looked at Chen Mang sitting beside him and muttered, "What is this?"
"The Black Market Merchant."
"But... why is he on your train?"
"Oh, he's a Train Crew member, joined the Stellar."
"Since when can the Black Market Merchant join a train? Isn't he supposed to be mysterious and elusive?"
"Isn't this mysterious? If you hadn't met me, would you have met this Black Market Merchant?"
"..."
Er Dan fell silent with a blank expression, then quickly selected two products. Looking at the blueprint in his hand and the retreating figure of the Black Market Merchant, he didn't know what to say.
The Black Market Merchant becoming a Train Resident.
These two words together were as incongruous as it gets!
"Brother, if only one train can survive this apocalypse, it will definitely be the Stellar."
"I hope so," Chen Mang smiled.
"Please take me with you when the time comes."
"Sure."
Half an hour later, the conversation was over.
Chen Mang escorted Er Dan out of the car.
"Brother." Er Dan looked seriously at Chen Mang: "My train is quite damaged, so I won't wait for you. I need to hurry back to the Shahe Plain for repairs. I won't say much more; I remember this life-saving favor, and I'll find a way to repay you in the future."
"You should leave as soon as possible too."
"There's something strange about the Ice and Snow World area. It's not right. Even in summer, this area remains this cold, with thick snow covering the ground. Many trains only stay here for the 'Snowman Monsters'."
"Be careful."
"Alright."
Chen Mang watched as Er Dan returned to his Azure Dragon Train, waved to him out the window, and then the train gradually became smaller in the sky until it disappeared from view.
After parting with Er Dan.
He looked at the huge Zombie corpse not far away, which had been completely dismembered, with only some flesh and blood still being processed.
Next to it on the snow were piles of human remains and train fragments, all dug out from its stomach.
"Sprinkle some water, make an ice tomb."
"Alright."
The temperature in this area was very low, and soon an ice tomb was formed. If no one destroyed it, this ice tomb would remain here indefinitely.
Chen Mang walked up, lit three cigarettes, and stuck them in the ground as a farewell.
Then he turned to Lao Zhu and said softly.
"We currently have 4 Resident cars. In the future, we'll reduce that to 1 Resident car. Everyone will live in the 'Space Gate,' and the remaining 3 cars will be repurposed for other uses."
"But there's no rush."
"I just created a 'Space Gate' in the 8th Resident car. Arrange for someone to put a Refrigerator in there as a dormitory for the children."
"Also, find a few former teachers to train the newly received children."
"The training can include firearms, close combat, mech control, train knowledge, basic literacy, and logic. You come up with the curriculum, including the history of the Stellar Train and the setbacks encountered during its development. Feel free to embellish a bit."
"I hope these children will grow up to have absolute loyalty to the Stellar and become its backbone."
"Understood?"
"Understood." Lao Zhu nodded seriously, then turned to arrange the matter, though his eyes showed a flash of admiration as he left.
Lord Mang was thinking far ahead.
If these children grew up on the Stellar, they would definitely be absolutely loyal to it and would be much better than someone like Biao Zi, who wasn't professionally trained, since they were trained from a young age.
But the upfront cost was huge, and it would take a long time to see any return.
Most Train Conductors wouldn't think this way. The fact that Lord Mang could think this far ahead showed he was confident in surviving the apocalypse.
Twenty minutes later.
The flesh of this level 6 Zombie had been completely dismembered and stored in the train's Refrigerator.
After being here for so long, there hadn't been another Corpse Tide.
Perhaps after this Zombie King died, the other Corpse Tides lost control and wandered around the Kunlun Mountains, or maybe they entered this area from another direction.
After handling the matters here.
Chen Mang controlled the Stellar Train, switched to the "Bunny Cloud" wheels, and flew high into the sky, heading deep into the "Ice and Snow World" green zone, towards the coordinates Er Dan had given him, where the Zombie King had broken free.
He wanted to see for himself.
As he went deeper into the Ice and Snow World, the blizzard became more intense. Along the way, he encountered a few trains, but their wheels weren't Wind-Fire Wheels or Spider Legs.
They were "Track Wheels" and "Sleds."
Basically, these two types of wheels.
Track Wheels could move directly, but Sleds couldn't. Trains equipped with Sleds had several "Tail Thrusters," using them as power to move across the snow.
The Armor of the trains he encountered was mostly damaged, showing that the Zombie King had a significant impact on this area. This area was small, much smaller than the Shahe Plain.
There were also many snow-capped mountains.
He could see several continuous snow-capped mountains, but they weren't as numerous as in the Kunlun Mountains area; there were still many flat areas. The actual terrain wasn't clear, but the snow was flat.
The snow here was very solid.
When you stepped on it, you wouldn't sink too deep; it might look like only a few centimeters, but the snow underneath could be several meters thick.
"Mining is going to be a problem."
Chen Mang frowned slightly, looking around. Staying here too long, snow blindness could also be an issue. This area felt even worse than the Kunlun Mountains area; keeping warm was another problem.
So far, the resource mines he'd detected were mostly on the mountain slopes; there were hardly any underground.
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