Chen Mang's eyes flashed with horror as he gritted his teeth and stared at the Train Panel. He had only one thought now—to quickly upgrade to a Level 9 Train and escape the Zombie Basin. This was practically a death trap!
Given the digging speed of those Zombies...
At most, within another day, the endless horde of Zombies would burst forth from the ground!
And what was even more dire—
The entire Zombie Basin was essentially a massive volcano. The eruption point was at the very core and lowest point of the basin, except what it spewed wasn't lava, but an endless tide of Zombies.
He couldn't even estimate how many Zombies were hidden in that enormous underground cavern.
The Targeting Radar screen was completely dyed red. Just Level 9 Zombies alone, he had spotted dozens, along with many other Level 9 creatures he'd never seen before.
With so many Zombies surging out, every single Train in the Zombie Basin would be wiped out without exception—no one would survive!
The tunnel that ran vertically underground had thick steel plates lining both sides. Those were laid down by the Zombies as they built their human ladders.
Those steel plates could block detection from ordinary Targeting Radars.
But not his. His Targeting Radar was Level 20—far beyond what those plates could shield against.
Chen Mang quickly made up his mind. Returning to the Shahe Plain was out of the question. He needed to upgrade his Train to Level 9 immediately and flee to a high-level blue zone. He turned his gaze to the upgrade requirements for a Level 8 Train.
「Upgrade Conditions」:
All mandatory Vehicle Components must be fully crafted.
Consume 100,000 units of Level 2 Iron Ore.
All accessories in the Carriage must exceed Level 160.
Possess five Supermodel Effects.
He met all these conditions.
The Train Panel showed he still had 1.9 million units of Iron Ore.
Clearly, while he had enough resources to upgrade to Level 8, he definitely didn't have enough for Level 9.
He quickly dismissed the idea in his mind. Level 10 was a major threshold. Charging recklessly into a high-level zone without full preparation would only lead to endless dangers.
If he could upgrade his Train Armor to Level 9, he might survive this crisis.
Chen Mang's expression darkened as he looked at the "Carriage Steel Armor" component. The Stellar had 15 Carriages and 1 Locomotive. Upgrading each Carriage's Armor from Level 8 to Level 9 cost 500,000 units.
That meant he needed 8 million units of Iron Ore.
He was short by a staggering 6 million.
There was no way to make up this deficit in a single day—unless he could find a Level 4 Iron Ore deposit. With everyone working around the clock, they might mine 6 million units within 24 hours.
But how easy was it to stumble upon a Level 4 Iron Ore deposit?
His Train's Armor level was already considered high among all Trains. Upgrading defensive components was extremely resource-intensive. The last few "Level 8 Trains" he'd encountered only had Level 7 Energy Shields, and many Level 9 Trains merely had Level 8 or even Level 7 Energy Shields.
Chen Mang steered the Train back above ground, closed his eyes, and leaned back in his chair, gradually relaxing his expression. He forced himself into as calm a state as possible and began methodically assessing every resource and advantage his Train possessed.
He opened his eyes and gazed out the window at the howling wind.
The smoke lingered stubbornly near the ceiling of the train carriage.
He had found a solution.
First, announce this news widely. The Zombie Basin contained many Level 9 trains. These trains were generally high in attack but low in defense. Although they lacked Level 9 armor, they were capable of killing Level 9 zombies.
He too had the ability to kill Level 9 zombies.
But he didn't have enough copper ore.
The plan was to gather all the trains together. Each would contribute most of their copper ore to those trains capable of killing Level 9 zombies. These stronger trains would take responsibility for eliminating the Level 9 zombies, while the remaining trains collectively defended against the Level 8 and Level 7 zombies. As for lower-level zombies, no matter how numerous, they could only trap the trains in place without breaching their defenses.
This was the most ideal scenario.
Under this plan, most trains would survive.
The alternative was a last resort. If no one listened to him, his only option would be to accumulate 8 million units of iron ore as quickly as possible during this crisis. The fastest method, naturally, would be to plunder other trains.
As long as he could gather 8 million units of iron ore resources.
Whether the other trains survived or not, he couldn't say, but he would definitely make it through this crisis alive.
He steered the train to quickly depart from the area, retracing its path back to the open-air Level 2 iron ore deposit they had encountered earlier. Though it was only Level 2, under these circumstances, every bit counted. They would take whatever they could get.
Then, through the train radio, he sent out a pinned message.
「Stellar Train」: I have detected that the Zombie Basin is about to experience the largest Corpse Tide in history. Within a day at most, countless zombies will erupt from the center of the basin like a volcano.
The number of zombies could range from hundreds of thousands to nearly a million. There are no precise figures, but dozens of Level 9 zombies have already been detected.
This is a massive disaster that will affect all trains.
Only by uniting can we possibly avert this catastrophe.
I call upon all Level 9 trains to respond.
I possess the ability to kill Level 9 zombies.
If we eliminate all Level 9 zombies, the remaining zombies, no matter how numerous, will not be able to inflict significant damage on the surviving trains. My copper ore reserves are insufficient, and the same goes for other Level 9 trains.
I urge all trains to gather as quickly as possible and contribute their copper ore to those of us capable of killing Level 9 zombies.
We will stand at the forefront.
After sending the message, Chen Mang let out a quiet sigh. It was all too idealistic. For starters, it would be difficult to prove the impending "zombie outbreak." Other trains' radars couldn't detect the zombies at all.
Unless he was willing to open the train compartment doors and let every train's crew come aboard to see the screen of his Targeting Radar.
But leaving aside whether he was willing to do so,
even if he were, no Train Conductor would be willing to leave their own train and board another's. That would be tantamount to handing over their lives entirely.
And by the time people realized the truth of the matter, it would already be too late. There would be no time left for all the trains to gather and discuss a plan.
He had just sent this message. Since it was pinned and the Stellar Train had the highest number of supermodel effects, its reputation wasn't small, and many people noticed the message.
Most reactions were skepticism and confusion.
「Lv.8 Mechanical Train, Good Cat」: "Bro, maybe try a different approach. Just say you'll offer high daily interest if we leave our copper ore with you. That might actually tempt someone. But this? You're not even giving bait—just straight-up freeloading."
「Lv.7 Mechanical Train, Ziwei」: "Illegal fundraising is a crime, bro. Oh, right—it's the apocalypse. Never mind. Go ahead and ask if anyone's willing to give you any."
「Lv.9 Flesh Train, Tushen」: "If this were true, it'd be a dream. A full feast right there."
「Lv.7 Mechanical Train, Nepal」: "Seriously, bro? Don't scare me . I just arrived in this zone. If there are that many Lv.9 Zombies, my Lv.7 Train is dead for sure?!"
「Lv.8 Mechanical Train, Fierce Tiger Out of the Mountain」: "I feel guy might not be lying. The time limit's just one day—if it's fake, his reputation's ruined forever. Who'd buy from him then? He wouldn't spin such a huge lie for some copper ore. That's what logic tells me. But my gut? I hope he's lying."
「Lv.9 Mechanical Train, Only One」: "Stellar, send me your coordinates. If you're telling the truth, you should have the guts to meet me and talk."
「Lv.8 Mechanical Train, SpongeBob」: "I believe this guy, but... copper ore's hard to mine. Even if this is real, you should offer something in exchange. How can you just freeload? Our copper ore didn't fall from the sky."
Chen Mang had already parked the train by the Lv.2 Iron Ore deposit they'd encountered earlier. All residents had disembarked and started mining. Normally, after a full day's work, it would be rest time, but there was no room for that now.
He glanced at the Train Radio.
Every emotion was present—doubt, fear, confusion, helplessness, and even a few mocking remarks.
After a moment of silence, he sent a coordinate in the Train Radio.
「Stellar Train」: "Time is tight. There are 11 Lv.9 Trains in the Zombie Basin. I hope all 11 Train Conductors can rush to this coordinate as fast as possible. We don't have much time left."
Then he turned his gaze to a component inside the train.
The only purple-grade component on the Stellar Train, and the sole craftable component after upgrading to Lv.7. He'd crafted it but hadn't upgraded it. Its effect: freezing all living beings inside the train—except the Train Conductor—for half an hour.
Whether monsters, livestock, or outsiders—everything would freeze.
Every train above Lv.7 had this component. Under its deterrence, no one dared to board another train. But he could project the information from the Targeting Radar onto a screen when the time came.
The coordinate he gave was the core location of the 「Zombie Basin」.
Without a level 9 armor, Chen Mang wasn't keen on directly confronting these level 9 trains—at least not until things were clarified. If these people had ulterior motives, he'd be in trouble.
The cooldown period for the train stunt "Absolute Defense" was 10 days, and it was still cooling down with nearly three days remaining.
Perhaps these level 9 trains had seen more.
Or perhaps they were more timid.
He noticed that almost half of the level 9 trains had responded via the train radio. For safety, none of the trains would approach the coordinates directly. Instead, they scattered around the perimeter, leaving each other enough reaction time, and sent trusted representatives to communicate.
Truthfully, if Chen Mang's train had been level 9, they could have just communicated face-to-face in the "Combat Training Virtual Space."
Several level 9 trains had already announced their arrival at the coordinates.
By then, Chen Mang had recalled all residents back to the train and was maneuvering it toward the coordinates. He stopped at a distance of 15,000 meters. Xiao Ai jumped off the carriage alone, ready to meet them single-handedly.
As long as he remained within the targeting radar's range, Xiao Ai could maintain a connection with the robot.
Sending anyone else would be too risky—they might not make it back.
Xiao Ai was the best choice.
Even if something went wrong, it would only mean losing a robot. Xiao Ai's main body wouldn't die.
With the roar of the engine, Xiao Ai sped toward the coordinates on a dirt bike.
Chen Mang checked the targeting radar. Two level 9 trains were parked within its range. He scrutinized their accessory information—unsurprisingly, their weapon accessory levels were impressive.
Both even had purple-tier weapons. One train had upgraded all three of its "Doomsday Cannons" to level 10, which required six Murphy Stones.
"Doomsday Cannon" was a blue-tier accessory, normally capped at level 8. At level 10, it gained two "Supermodel Effects" that halved its energy consumption. A level 10 Doomsday Cannon was currently the most efficient accessory available.
Energy-efficient enough.
But only at level 10. At level 8, it fell short.
Both level 9 trains had their "Tycoon Energy Shields" uniformly at level 8.
Meanwhile, the train radio was still buzzing with arguments. Many were starting to believe him, especially after seeing so many level 9 trains respond. There were two main opinions.
The first was pure fear—emotional outbursts with no clear plan.
The second insisted that while surrendering copper ore was acceptable, it couldn't be free. They demanded other resources in exchange and an equal share of loot from zombie kills. They refused to let one party monopolize both the copper and the spoils.
When Xiao Ai arrived at the coordinates on his dirt bike, six men were already waiting. Each wore different attire, representing their respective trains.
Without wasting words,
Xiao Ai parked the bike and pulled out a screen from his pocket, displaying a recording of the "Targeting Radar" feed: "You can't detect it because your targeting radar isn't high enough level."
"The proof is right here."
"There's no doubt about this matter."
"The Stellar's proposal is for everyone to join forces, gathering all the trains together. Lower-level trains must surrender all their copper mines to us, while we take out the Level 9 Zombies, and the rest handle the remaining Zombies."
"Otherwise, we're all doomed."
Xiao Ai spoke decisively. His main body was on the train's control panel, allowing seamless communication with Chen Mang. What he said now was precisely Chen Mang's intention.
--Support me in for more chapters 35+ chapters in there