Lin Xian firmly pinned the girl to the ground, preventing her from escaping easily.
"Since you're awake, why are you pretending to sleep? What exactly is your purpose!?"
The girl struggled fiercely, stubbornly replying, "I… I…"
Lin Xian's expression turned cold as he brought the blade across her line of sight. "Do you think I'll go easy on you just because you're a woman?"
Seeing the steel blade glinting with a chilling light, the girl's eyes widened in shock. She immediately pleaded, "I was wrong! Please don't kill me! Let go of me! I can barely breathe!"
At this moment, her face was flushed red as she was subdued by him.
Lin Xian frowned. He couldn't help but think, Wasn't this girl the one who blasted through my door earlier? How does she suddenly have no strength to resist now?
Just as he was pondering, the girl suddenly burst into tears.
"Ugh, ugh, please don't kill me! I'll do anything, as long as you spare me!"
A sharp, piercing pain shot through him. Lin Xian's expression darkened. D*** it! This girl is as cunning as I suspected, ambushing me when I let my guard down!
Enduring the pain, Lin Xian raised his blade and smacked her directly on the forehead.
A crisp sound echoed as the girl let out a sharp cry of pain before fainting on the spot.
Lin Xian was furious. At this point, he had no intention of showing any mercy. He went to the toolbox in the 3rd carriage and pulled out a bundle of nylon cable ties. After tying up the girl's hands and feet securely, he finally felt a little more at ease.
Leaning against the side of the carriage, he glanced at his ankle, where a bite mark stood out vividly.
"F***, am I going to turn into a zombie now?"
Unexpectedly, upon hearing this, the girl, with her head lowered, muttered angrily,
"You're the zombie! Your whole family are zombies!"
Lin Xian's gaze turned cold. "What, not pretending to faint anymore?"
"Speak up. What's your name? What's your purpose? Or you can choose to say nothing, and I'll throw you off the train right now."
He drew a short blade, his tone icy, leaving no doubt that he meant every word.
The train moved steadily forward. The walkie-talkie remained silent, and Teacher Chen hadn't sent any updates, which meant the tracks ahead were clear.
"My name is Kiki," the girl finally said.
Her tone changed completely—from the innocent and soft, cutesy voice she had used earlier to a much colder and indifferent one.
Hah, so it was all an act.
"How did you find me? What's your purpose? And why were you pretending to sleep this whole time? Don't make me keep asking questions—you should be well aware of your situation."
Kiki, with her head still lowered, sighed suddenly. Tied up as she was, she struggled to sit up, glaring at Lin Xian. Despite her face being streaked with tears and her eyes still red, there wasn't a trace of grievance in her expression. Her ability to cry and switch emotions on a dime was honestly impressive.
"What else? That day, weren't you the one waving a flag on the rooftop?"
Lin Xian frowned. "Are you telling me you were in that helicopter?"
"Of course," Kiki replied blankly, giving him a sidelong glance.
"Didn't you see? The helicopter crashed."
"I had nowhere else to go."
"You peeked at my underwear."
"What?" Lin Xian frowned deeply.
Kiki bit her lip and muttered quietly,
"Yes, I woke up the next day. But I didn't know who you were or where I was. When I opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was you…"
Lin Xian's expression shifted.
"And so I naturally assumed you were…"
"A pervert?" Lin Xian interjected.
"So, the reason you pretended to be unconscious was to steal food and ambush me?"
"Not exactly," Kiki said, looking aggrieved. "I just wanted to escape, but I never got the chance."
Lin Xian's expression shifted unpredictably before he finally spat out,
"Fine. You think I'm some psycho holding you captive, right? Then go ahead. Leave."
Lin Xian glanced at the setting sun outside and said bluntly,
"Since you're so smart, I'm sure you'll figure out a way to survive out there. Judging by your background, why don't you just have your father come save you?"
His tone was icy, carrying a hint of probing intent.
"My dad's dead," Kiki replied flatly, her voice devoid of any sadness.
The carriage fell silent for a moment.
"That has nothing to do with me," Lin Xian said, standing up decisively.
"Wait! I admit I initially wanted to run away, but now I realize I misunderstood you. Please, don't throw me off the train, okay?" Kiki pleaded hurriedly.
Lin Xian chuckled coldly.
"You didn't suddenly realize you misunderstood me. You just figured out you wouldn’t survive out there."
The girl was indeed clever, but Lin Xian remained calm and indifferent as he looked at her. "Sorry, you’re of no value to me."
Hearing this, Kiki panicked and quickly blurted,
"Wait, take me to Jinhai! My dad was the chairman of Linglong Group and a secondary investor in the Dawn Project. He had access to the Dawn Project's Saturated Rescue Program, and after his death, that privilege passed to me. If you take me to Jinhai, someone will come to get me. Then, I can provide you with any supplies you need—or even arrange for you to become a third-class citizen under the Dawn Project, allowing you to move into the underground city."
The orange glow of the setting sun filtered through the gridded armor of the 3rd carriage, retreating across their bodies as the train moved forward. Lin Xian frowned as he listened to her words.
He had indeed heard of the Dawn Project. During the initial stages of the Apocalypse, countless versions of this plan had circulated online. Some claimed it was an official underground city project meant to help people survive the end times, while others said it was part of a rogue starship program designed to preserve the flame of human civilization.
Speculation ran wild, accompanied by countless conspiracy theories, leaving the truth murky.
"Not interested," Lin Xian said flatly, his response completely contrary to Kiki's expectations. His tone remained as calm as water, and he directly rejected her offer.
"You don't believe me?"
"Even if I did, I'm still not interested," Lin Xian replied firmly, his eyes cold as they bore into her.
"Not only am I uninterested, I find this conversation boring. You might as well jump off yourself, so I don’t have to do it for you."
Whether Kiki's words were true or not, Lin Xian genuinely didn't care. Compared to the so-called third-class citizenship in some underground city, he had far more faith in his own ability. As long as he made good use of his powers, his chances of survival were high. At least higher than being buried underground, where he might lose all sense of autonomy.
Kiki’s eyes flickered with panic under Lin Xian's indifferent gaze, though she quickly concealed her emotions and sneered at him.
"Why aren’t you interested in the Dawn Project? Are you planning to rely on this train instead?"
"Let me be blunt: your plan is ridiculously naive. Have you even thought this through? The outside world is already collapsing. Without maintenance engineers, the planetary rail network won’t hold. One-fifth of the 320,000-kilometer track system is over oceans. What will you do if the tracks break? What if the train is damaged? What if supplies run out? What about storms, tsunamis, or earthquakes?"