"So far, mental energy has been quite normal. We haven't encountered anyone like Li Shiji."
Upon hearing this, Biao Zi expressed some regret, "Someone like Li Shiji is definitely not something we can force. Such a freak of talent is hard to come by a second time. But someone like the Third Squad Leader would be fine too. Among so many people, are they all just mediocre?"
"Mediocrity is the norm. Someone like Li Shiji is an outlier."
It was destined to be extremely busy. Allocating those over 1,900 survivors was no small task. For the next three days, these survivors wouldn't need to work, but of course, they wouldn't get any food either.
Each day, they would only receive basic food supplies to ensure they didn't starve.
This was also part of the Stellar Train's basic procedure. Newcomers joining the train would first go hungry for three days, allowing them to observe the lives of other train residents during this period. After three days, they would be informed of the Train Rules and the promotion process.
Over time, they would gradually integrate.
The next day, day two.
The train had already stopped beside a level 3 open-pit iron ore mine. The train residents had started disembarking to mine, while Chen Mang sat inside the train, gazing at the blueprint for the "Cardiotonic Injector Production Line."
A yellow-tier accessory.
Consuming 46,000 units of iron ore, it could be crafted and upgraded to level 10.
"Cardiotonic Injector Production Line Level 5 Supermodel Effect": Consumption halved.
"Cardiotonic Injector Production Line Level 10 Supermodel Effect": Consumption halved.
This injector was the same one Biao Zi used in the Biohazard map, a single-soldier supply that was extremely useful during field missions. Upgrading it had no additional effects, and the original cost was 1,000 units of iron ore to produce one injector.
After two consecutive supermodel effects, the price dropped to 250 units per injector.
He produced three for each guard, storing them in the pockets of their tactical uniforms. During field missions, this item could effectively ensure survival rates.
He looked at the line of text on the control panel screen, the reward he received after successfully clearing the "Geocentric Nuclear Bomb" fortuitous encounter map.
"You successfully escaped from the 'Geocentric Nuclear Bomb' fortuitous encounter map."
"You have received the following rewards."
"1 million units of iron ore, 1 million units of copper ore, 1 million units of wood."
An extremely straightforward reward.
This was the most straightforward reward he had ever seen from a fortuitous encounter map, but it was still quite useful. Except for the 1 million units of wood, which had limited applications beyond clothing production, it was better to have it than not. It might come in handy someday.
Producing a set of high-precision clothes only required 500 units of wood.
After some thought, Chen Mang sent another pinned message on the Train Radio.
"Selling clothes with warmth effects, accepting bulk custom orders, settled in copper or iron ore."
The temperature was dropping, and the clothes produced by other trains' "Clothing Customization Production Lines" didn't have temperature-locking effects. Making slaves work in the cold wind was quite challenging.
However, after a while, no one inquired, far from the enthusiasm when he was selling cigarettes.
Soon, Chen Mang realized the situation. Whether making short sleeves or cotton coats, the material consumption was the same—1 unit of wood.
Those trains had no need to purchase warm clothing.
They could just make cotton coats. If it was cold, they could layer a few more coats, spending only a few extra units of wood. There was no need to use iron ore to buy clothes with temperature-locking effects. Although wearing less would make work easier, clearly, no train conductor was willing to pay for such minor efficiency gains.
So he sent another message.
"Selling Murphy Stones, bring your price, remote transactions available."
This time, the Train Radio exploded. Almost instantly, four people initiated private chats with him. Clearly, the demand for Murphy Stones was higher.
Chen Mang looked at the four items in his hand, nodding in satisfaction. After some filtering, he sold 10 Murphy Stones, leaving him with 6.
Although Murphy Stones were powerful.
They only made a significant impact when you had a certain quantity, at least three or four. Otherwise, their effect would be minimal.
With two, you could give green-tier accessories a level 5 supermodel effect and blue-tier accessories a level 10 supermodel effect.
They could also upgrade defensive or offensive accessories, allowing you to skip the next transitional defensive or offensive accessory, saving a lot of resources.
For example, directly upgrading the "Energy Shield" to level 7 or 8 would eliminate the need for the "Tycoon Energy Shield." When the train later reached level 9, you could directly use the next defensive accessory, saving a lot of resources in between. All the resources needed to craft the "Tycoon Energy Shield" would be saved.
The 10 Murphy Stones he sold brought him—
600,000 units of iron ore, a green-tier vehicle accessory blueprint, a small card, and... an entrance ticket to a fortuitous encounter map.
The blueprint was for the "Cigar Production Line."
The small card was somewhat similar to the one given to him by the "Ten Steps to Kill One Person" train.
"Special Item": Dungeon Access Card.
"Item Effect": When in the 'Eternal Prison' fortuitous encounter map, this card can open a dungeon door within the map.
That laboratory access card had already given him a taste of success, so when the other party offered this item in exchange, he quickly agreed. It had been sitting unused in a drawer, collecting dust.
But if it ever came in handy, it would be a stroke of luck.
Better to let this item collect dust in the drawer than the Murphy Stones.
As for the other fortuitous encounter map ticket, it was quite special.
"Special Item": Neon City Entrance Ticket.
"Item Effect": Entrance ticket to the 'Neon City' fortuitous encounter map. When this ticket emits a red light, crush it to enter the map.
Besides the 600,000 units of iron ore and the "Cigar Production Line," the other two items were just collecting dust.
Who knows when they might be useful.
He stuffed the access card into a drawer and placed the other "Entrance Ticket" under the walkie-talkie on the table, so he wouldn't miss it if it emitted a red light while in the drawer.
That walkie-talkie was something he brought back from the "Underwater Labyrinth." It hadn't matched him with an opponent yet, as no train had chosen the S-class mechanical train's job-change mission.
But he wasn't in a hurry.
There would always be someone bold enough. He was sure of that.
The Stellar Train currently had level 7 armor.
Upgrading one carriage's armor from level 6 to 7 cost 200,000 units, and from level 7 to 8 cost 300,000 units.
Thus, the total cost to upgrade the Stellar Train to level 8 armor was 4.8 million units.
The train's current iron ore balance was 4.844 million units.
Without much thought, Chen Mang immediately spent 4.8 million units of iron ore to upgrade the Stellar Train's armor to level 8.
The Stellar Train's 15 carriages, including the locomotive, were all at level 8 armor. If they encountered another crisis like last night's "Geocentric Nuclear Bomb," he wouldn't even need to use the train stunt "Absolute Defense." He could just tank it and remain unscathed.
At most, some external accessories might be damaged and need repair.
Level 8 armor could completely nullify attacks of level 8 and below.
Of course, the downside was that the train's iron ore balance was now only 44,000 units.
For a train with over 3,000 residents, this amount of iron ore wouldn't last long in case of any incident. Fortunately, being in the yellow zone, level 3 iron ore wasn't too hard to find.
The train was currently parked beside a level 3 iron ore mine. Once this mine was fully exploited, they would gain another million units of iron ore.
His "Steel Train Armor" was a green-tier accessory, so the material consumption for upgrading was quite economical.
If it were an energy shield, the resource consumption would be much higher.
You could see that among those level 8 trains, only one had a level 7 "Tycoon Energy Shield," while the rest were at level 6, and even one level 7 train's energy shield was at level 5.
Defensive accessories consumed the most resources in all areas, without exception.
"Is that the Stellar Train?"
On a hill not far away, a man stood beside a train, holding a telescope and gazing at the train mining iron ore below, murmuring, "It really seems to be that one."
He had gathered information from the "Shahe Plain." The slaves on the Stellar Train all wore orange-red clothes.
The slaves near that train in the distance were indeed wearing orange-red clothes.
After confirming, the man returned to the train compartment and sent the coordinates to the "Wild Bull" train. The Wild Bull train had already announced on the Train Radio that anyone who provided the Stellar Train's coordinates and helped them locate it would receive 100,000 units of iron ore on the spot.
That was quite a sum.
Since he had encountered the Stellar Train, there was no reason to let this wealth slip away.
He was nearly 10,000 meters away from the Stellar Train. At this distance, the Stellar Train's "Targeting Radar" probably wouldn't detect him, but he could observe the Stellar Train through the "Telescope" in his hand.
He was in an invincible position.
"Telescope," a white-tier accessory that a level 1 train could craft.
Ordinary, unremarkable.
After obtaining the Targeting Radar, basically no train conductor was willing to use a telescope anymore.
The telescope in his hand was picked up in some fortuitous encounter map, and it was level 10. He didn't know which idiot had spent 8 Murphy Stones on this accessory. It made his heart bleed, but it didn't matter since he got it for free. It was quite useful.
When the distance was great and there were no obstructions, he could use the telescope to observe.
The Train Radio soon received a reply from the "Wild Bull."
"Good! Today, if I don't kill him, he won't know how I got my name!"
The man hesitated, then picked up the telescope again to look at the Stellar Train. The 10 Doomsday Cannons outside the carriages were clearly high-level. Honestly, he felt the Wild Bull might not be able to handle the Stellar Train.
But he had to provide some emotional support since he was about to receive payment.
The man glanced at the Targeting Radar. The Zombies were approaching again, so he had to leave. He pushed the control lever and quickly departed.
The level 3 iron ore mine below was originally his.
But shortly after he started mining, the Zombies forced him to leave. He had planned to escape the Zombie encirclement and then return to continue mining, but upon returning, he found the Stellar Train had already started mining his iron ore.
Chen Mang casually glanced at the departing train on the Targeting Radar screen—a level 7 train with a level 6 "Tycoon Energy Shield." It posed no threat. He didn't know why it had been observing him for so long.
Thousands of red dots were rapidly approaching the Stellar Train.
It was a Corpse Tide.
Although it was a small Corpse Tide, there was a level 8 Zombie, the highest level Zombie he had ever encountered, much higher than the "Mechanical Zombie King." The Mechanical Zombie King was labeled as level 7, but in reality, it was only level 6.
The Mechanical Zombie King had left a deep impression on him, standing as tall as a skyscraper, incredibly domineering.
This level 8 Zombie seemed much smaller in comparison.
About 13 meters tall, it was a giant among the Corpse Tide, but compared to the "Mechanical Zombie King," it was much weaker.
Chen Mang gazed at the control panel screen, deep in thought. The train was now at level 8 armor, so the level 8 Zombie couldn't breach the train's defenses. There was no danger, but the question was how to kill it.
Using the "Doomsday Cannons"... Hmm... Save some copper ore.
Use the train stunt "Death Spin" instead.
Let's see how the level 50 Drill Bit and level 50 Car Blade fare against the level 8 Zombie.
When the Corpse Tide was still nearly 10,000 meters away, the Stellar Train initiated, gradually accelerating, charging straight toward the Corpse Tide, aiming directly at the level 8 Zombie in the center!
The train suddenly leaped into the air, the level 50 Drill Bit and level 50 Car Blade fully extended from the carriages, spinning at high speed, crashing straight into the Zombie!
The width of a single Car Blade was 10 meters.
Two Car Blades made it 20 meters, plus the train's width. At a glance, it looked like a 20-meter-wide steel blade spinning rapidly, moving so fast that the train itself became invisible, only the flashes of cold light visible.
The level 8 Zombie roared, spewing a large blob of green mucus onto the train.
That was all it could do. The next moment, the high-speed spinning train crashed into the level 8 Zombie's chest. The moment the Drill Bit touched its skin, chunks of flesh began to scatter in the air.
The level 8 Zombie's physical strength was formidable.
It wasn't instantly pierced, but that was the only consolation.
Three seconds later, the Drill Bit had forced its way 30 centimeters into the Zombie's body.
In pain, the level 8 Zombie roared, swinging both fists to smash the train spinning like a drill bit on its chest, its fists crashing onto the Car Blades.
"Clang! Clang! Clang!"
The sound of Car Blades colliding with bones rang out, the Zombie's arms shattering instantly, blood splattering everywhere.