"I'm not talking about that. I mean, if the Stellar Train were to face an extremely dire crisis, Uncle Li, which carriage do you think it would prioritize abandoning?"
"It's really hard to guess."
"It definitely can't be Carriage No. 15, the Breeding Carriage, right, Uncle Li?"
"..."
Uncle Li suddenly fell silent, his lips twitching slightly before he finally spoke. "If it ever comes to that, are you stupid? Don't you know to run to the front carriages?"
The expanded Stellar Train had now become a colossal behemoth.
But...
Inside the nearly 100-meter-high train tunnel, it still looked like a tiny toy, not particularly eye-catching. This time, the Stellar Train wasn't heading south—it was speeding north!
Its destination? The Mechanical City Ruins!
Though the ruins had been scavenged by many trains countless times, leaving almost nothing behind, Chen Mang was certain the Mechanical City accessible through the train tunnel still held treasures. No one had been here before.
It was worth noting.
So far.
The Stellar Train was the most expanded train he had ever seen. Other trains had expanded too, but none as extensively as his. Though he also struggled with iron ore shortages, at least he didn't face the same overwhelming pressure as other trains when it came to upgrading defensive components.
Billions of units of iron ore...
Just thinking about it gave him a headache.
The train raced through the tunnel, the incandescent lamps along the walls glowing steadily as always. He had passed through this tunnel many times—it was all too familiar.
After about an hour or so.
The incandescent lights on both sides of the tunnel began flickering, replaced by flashing red warning lights.
This meant... he had arrived.
Sure enough, soon enough, a massive train elevator appeared on the left side of the tunnel, large enough to accommodate his entire train. Surprisingly, this wasn't the end of the tunnel.
"..."
Chen Mang narrowed his eyes slightly but didn't dwell on it. Instead, he took out a Level 2 Energy Stone and dropped it into the funnel extended by the train elevator. As the elevator doors slowly opened, the Stellar Train rolled inside.
He could only hope the journey ahead wouldn't require any iron ore.
There was none left.
Absolutely none—the train was completely empty.
If he really needed iron ore, he'd have to urgently sell something over the Train Radio or ask the Traveling Frog for a loan. Without at least a few million units of iron ore stocked in the train, exploration just felt unsettling.
The elevator began ascending rapidly.
It was massive.
Even a 400-meter-long train fit inside with plenty of room to spare.
Meanwhile, the Targeting Radar showed that the area above ground was the "Red Zone"—the Mechanical City Ruins—where three or four other trains were currently scavenging.
The elevator continued rising.
"Ding."
With a chime, the train elevator came to a stop. The walls of the elevator slowly retracted into the ground, revealing the train in a vast, flat indoor plaza buried a thousand meters beneath the Mechanical City.
Was this... a laboratory?
Flickering incandescent lamps on the walls, dried bloodstains on the floor, shattered glass containers in the distance, and toppled monitors—everything suggested this place wasn't exactly safe!
"Roar!"
At that moment, a hoarse roar erupted as hundreds of zombies suddenly charged out from the rooms surrounding the square, sprinting wildly toward the train!
However...
The train was too high.
Only a few zombies managed to climb up using the Wind-Fire Wheels, gripping the uneven surfaces of the carriage exteriors. The majority could only vent their frustration by jumping up and down helplessly on the ground.
"Level 4 zombies?"
Chen Mang frowned slightly. It had been a long time since he'd seen zombies of such low level. But just as he was about to press a red button on the control panel to eliminate them, Xiao Ai's voice suddenly echoed through the train compartment.
"Train Conductor, Uncle Li wants these zombies for research. He says since this is an almost sealed environment, these zombies must have survived here for a long time. There must be something unusual about them."
After a pause, Xiao Ai added,
"I thought this was urgent enough to bypass the flashing light alert."
"Understood."
Chen Mang withdrew his hand and instead picked up the walkie-talkie. "Biao Zi, get down there and capture them alive."
"Copy that!"
Biao Zi's response came swiftly through the walkie-talkie.
Though transmitting orders via the Iris Chip was faster and more convenient, Chen Mang still preferred using the walkie-talkie sometimes.
The battle ended quickly.
Biao Zi and his team, clad in mechanized armor, efficiently broke the zombies' arms and legs before bundling them up like crabs and tossing them into the Breeding Carriage.
They then proceeded to explore the surrounding rooms as ordered.
One of the zombies was brought to the train compartment.
"..."
Chen Mang stood up and walked over to examine the zombie, its eyes milky white and lips tinged with blue. If not for Uncle Li's reminder, he wouldn't have noticed that these zombies had clearly been here for a long time—there wasn't a trace of fresh blood around their mouths, meaning they hadn't fed in ages.
How did they survive without eating?
Pure starvation?
Do zombies not starve to death?
They didn't look emaciated either.
"Don't move!"
Suddenly, Xiao Ai's excited voice blared through the compartment.
"Are you fucking trying to get yourself killed?!"
Startled, Chen Mang turned and glared at the Train Auxiliary AI on the control panel before cursing. He tossed the gun he'd just pulled out onto the table—he'd nearly shot the zombie out of reflex.
For safety, he always carried a Tidal Gatling Gun in his pocket.
"Train Conductor," Xiao Ai continued, voice trembling with excitement, "Biao Zi and the others found a warehouse full of materials. They were about to start rummaging through them, but I told them to stop."
"The materials in that warehouse are all 'Fiber Copper Mold Sheets'!"
"What are they for?" Chen Mang frowned, studying the footage transmitted by the Mechanical Eye on the control screen. The warehouse wasn't large—about the size of a basement beneath a residential building. He'd never heard of this material before and had no idea what it was used for.
"The receiving end of the Cosmic Receiver is made from this material!"
"Got it."
Chen Mang calmly pulled out his walkie-talkie. "Leave the cargo untouched for now. Wait until we've secured the entire area before returning. Teams Two and Three, disembark immediately. Team Two will guard the cargo. Team Three, explore the other sectors."
With that, the orders were given.
He couldn't help but smile as he looked at the images on the screen. With this batch of materials, he could manufacture more "Cosmic Receivers"—far superior to "Solar Energy Panels."
After consuming millions of units of iron ore to upgrade the "Solar Energy Panel" to level 100, he discovered it could yield 180,000 units of iron ore daily.
His first thought was simple:
Scale up.
Anyone in business knows the process is straightforward. First, create a viable business model—one where an initial investment of 100 units can break even and then generate steady profits. The next step is simply to amplify that model.
Business may sound complicated, but it's essentially about expanding from 0 to 1, then from 1 to 100.
The problem is, 70% of people fail at the 0-to-1 stage, and even those who succeed often struggle through setbacks.
So his immediate instinct was to stockpile iron ore and manufacture 100 "Solar Energy Panels." In the short term, the Train's progress would stall, but once completed, the daily income would skyrocket to 18 million units of iron ore!
Compound interest upon compound interest—a post-apocalyptic capitalist's dream!
Unfortunately, most components in the Train could be replicated, but this particular one was limited to a single unit.
His newborn plan was strangled in its cradle.
Yet, just as despair set in, an unexpected opportunity arose. While duplicating Solar Energy Panels was impossible, replicating Cosmic Receivers—an idea he'd never even considered—had somehow become feasible.
"Not bad."
Chen Mang grinned as he surveyed the warehouse full of materials. He wasn't sure how many receivers they could produce, but his expression soon darkened with anger.
The outermost materials had been gnawed to scraps!
No doubt the work of those damned Zombies.
"It's fine, Train Conductor. These materials don't need to be intact. Even if parts are chewed up, the remaining portions are still usable. No major impact."
"That's good."
After a pause, he added, "Can you... hear my thoughts?"
"Of course not. But I can infer them from your expression."
"Don't do that next time."
"Understood."
Chen Mang sat in the Train's control room, watching the footage of Biao Zi and the others exploring the area. The space wasn't large—just an underground Laboratory, though its exact purpose remained unclear.
By now, the area had been fully cleared.
Only one elevator led upward—the sole entrance and exit. The Train couldn't fit inside; the elevator could hold at most twenty humans. It wasn't a "Train Elevator."
Every last Zombie had been eliminated.
The horde that had rushed out earlier comprised nearly all of them. Any stragglers hiding in dark corners had since been wiped out by Biao Zi's team.
"All clear!"
Biao Zi, who had sprinted to the base of the control room, looked up and shouted.
Soon—
The control room door slid open.
Chen Mang stepped out calmly, leaning on his cane with one hand and cradling Xiao Lu in the other. He walked through the air as if descending an invisible staircase, his feet never faltering. Without turning his head, he murmured softly:
"Let's check that warehouse."
"."
Biao Zi stood rooted to the spot, his eyes wide with shock. It took him a good while to snap out of it before he hurriedly responded and rushed to catch up. The rest of the team members behind him rubbed their eyes in disbelief, wondering if they were sleep-deprived and seeing things.
Lord Mang...
Did he just walk in mid-air?
Without any armor, flying through the air?
Lord Mang really is a Cultivator.
Inside the underground laboratory.
Chen Mang leaned calmly on his cane as he walked across the plaza toward the warehouse, his face expressionless and his eyes indifferent. But inwardly, he couldn't help but chuckle.
A ladder?
Him, a Train Conductor, Lord Mang, turning his backside to his subordinates and climbing down a ten-meter ladder?
Far too undignified.
He hadn't even planned to come down at first. But then, he thought of a brilliant solution.
Using the Mechanical Heart, he forged two pieces of steel and stuffed them into his shoes, then made a few more to tuck into his belt. By remotely controlling the Powerful Magnet through his cane and coordinating his movements, he successfully created the visual effect of walking in mid-air.
Perfect.
If he hadn't stuffed some steel into his belt, he might've lost his balance.
The level 100 "Powerful Magnet" attachment was truly excellent—highly recommended. Every Train Conductor should have one!
By now—
They had reached the warehouse entrance. Biao Zi strode ahead, overtaking Lord Mang, and pulled the door open first before announcing, "Lord Mang, this is the warehouse."
"..."
Chen Mang surveyed the vast stockpile of materials before him and nodded in satisfaction before waving his hand with a smile. "Move everything to the Armor Research Center in Carriage No. 2. Be careful—don't damage anything."
"Yes, sir!"
Then he proceeded to another warehouse, much larger than the first. This one was filled with piles of Iron Ore—all level 3!
Each piece of Iron Ore was equivalent to 100 units.
The warehouse held a massive stockpile, though none of it was stored in Storage Boxes—just left scattered across the floor.
"..."
Chen Mang stared impassively at the Iron Ore as Zhang Yi and Zhang Er swiftly loaded it up. Finding a warehouse full of Iron Ore should've been a cause for celebration, but he couldn't quite bring himself to feel happy.
Because over half of it had been eaten.
Yes—eaten by those damned Zombies!
Damn it!
They should've just stayed dead like proper Zombies. What business did they have eating Iron Ore? That's not even on their menu! Aren't Zombies supposed to feast on flesh? Why the hell are they eating Iron Ore?!
If not for those Zombies, all the Iron Ore in this warehouse would've been his.
Soon, the inventory was complete.
[Train Conductor, this warehouse contains 3.4 million units of Iron Ore.]
[The Zombies consumed roughly 12 million.]
"...Hah."
Chen Mang took a deep breath, trying his best to suppress his fury. Damn it all... 12 million units of Iron Ore, gone. He hated Zombies!
With that, he turned and strode back toward the train.
As he approached, he effortlessly floated through the air and landed smoothly inside the train cabin.
Not bad.
He'd secured a batch of materials and 3.4 million units of Iron Ore. With over 3 million units as a safety net, he could venture forth with much greater peace of mind. Still, he could've had so much more if not for those cursed Zombies!
As for that single-person elevator—no need to bother with it now.
According to the Targeting Radar, that single-person elevator leads directly to the outskirts of the Mechanical City Ruins. There probably isn't much left to explore in the Mechanical City anyway—it's been thoroughly picked over by so many people.
Next, I'll check out the Train Tunnel to see what lies ahead.
Only by taking the road less traveled can one reap uncommon rewards.
When others take the water route, you take the land route.
When others take the land route, you take the water route.
Following the crowd may keep you fed,
But going against the grain is how you strike it rich.
Of course, there's also a good chance you might starve.
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