Chen Mang crushed the cigarette at his fingertips, which was about to burn out, took a deep breath, and exhaled the heaviness from his chest. Finally, he looked up at the starry sky above him before turning back to the train.
He placed the string of stars above into the vast galaxy.
Extremely insignificant.
So insignificant that if there weren’t this Doomsday Abyss, perhaps the annihilation of this planet would go unnoticed, without anyone catching the message those stars conveyed.
Back inside the train room, Chen Mang sat alone at the control panel, lost in thought for a long time. The impact of this matter on him was indeed significant, even greater than the impact of crossing over to this world.
Doomsday descended a year ago.
Calculating from the onset of Doomsday, the timeframe amounts to four years.
Within those four years, he must forge the train to be powerful enough, even capable of flying out of the Naiyi Star System and wandering in the galaxy, to truly escape this apocalypse.
He looked down at the train’s control panel. Is it really possible to build the train to such an extent within four years? Even if the train’s maximum capacity allows it, how much resources would it take? Is this really something achievable?
Chen Mang glanced at the train panel, seeing 12,827 units of iron ore, and temporarily set these thoughts aside to begin today’s construction.
The first thing he did was consume 3,500 units of iron ore to upgrade the "Blade" to Level 10. The resource demand for upgrading white-grade accessories is vastly lower than that for high-grade accessories.
After upgrading to Level 10.
The most obvious change was that the blade widened again to 120 centimeters, while the blade itself became thinner.
He tested it and found that thinning the blade didn’t affect its hardness.
On the control panel, he’s able to see the integrity status of each train accessory, and up to this moment, all his accessories are in 100% intact condition, except for the "Blade", which is in 97% integrity.
Since there’s visible integrity data, it indicates repairability, yet Old Pig is unclear on how to repair it, and there’s nothing in the Newcomer’s Guide. The Train Captains of "Bloodthirsty Bull Train" and "King of Electronic Music Train" are equally clueless.
A reduction of two to thirty percent in integrity doesn’t affect normal use, and if integrity drops to sixty or seventy percent, it won’t matter then; the priority will be survival.
Upon reaching Level 10.
He acquired the first accessory blueprint, and the white-grade vehicle accessory "Blade" finally acquired its second supermodel effect.
"Blade Level 10 Supermodel Effect": When the blade spins rapidly, numerous high-voltage currents will flow on its surface, causing massive damage to carbon-based organisms but accelerating the Energy Stone consumption.
He’s quite satisfied with this supermodel effect; during close combat involving the train, it can more effectively ensure train safety.
When the accessory reaches Level 5, the first supermodel effect unlocks; at Level 10, the second one; at Level 20, the third one.
Thus, when resources are scarce.
Upgrading to Level 10 is the most cost-effective choice.
Obtaining two supermodel effects with minimal resources, even for white-grade vehicle accessories; at Level 10, with two supermodel effects, it’s not inferior to some blue-grade vehicle accessories, just with different focuses.
The higher the upgrade, the more resources consumed.
Though he can upgrade limitlessly, most accessories really don’t need endless upgrading. For instance, the "Spider Legs" accessory is now at Level 13; it can already freely maneuver on a 90-degree cliff.
If upgraded to Level 31 in the future, it could hang upside down and progress on ceilings.
Going beyond that is pointless; there can’t be a 360-degree cliff, or even a 720-degree cliff. Further upgrades would only unlock supermodel effects corresponding to levels, rendering accessory enhancements almost meaningless, reducing the upgrade’s cost-effectiveness significantly.
But maybe in a high-dimensional world, a 720-degree cliff might exist.
He simply can’t imagine it.
This is already beyond human imagination.
After upgrading the "Blade", he aimed for the "Moldy Bread Production Line", although he wanted all "Wagon Steel Armors" to reach Level 3. Once at Level 3, they’d completely immunize against damage from Level 3 monsters.
By then, even if his train stays in place, the Level 3 Cannibal Spider Boss Monster couldn’t harm him at all.
However, upgrading armor consumes extremely costly resources; just upgrading one wagon to Level 2 requires a full 5,000 units of iron ore. These green-grade vehicle accessories he’s planning to upgrade in the coming days; for the first two days, he’ll prioritize upgrading white-grade accessories to Level 10, gaining corresponding two supermodel effects.
Then save resources, to upgrade all "Wagon Steel Armors" to Level 3.
This way, he can mine safely at the bottom of the Doomsday Abyss, and should any monsters attack, with Level 3 armor, as long as the monster’s level doesn’t exceed Level 3, or even Level 4, he can escape easily.
Thereafter commence by upgrading other accessories.
Chen Mang tentatively upgraded the "Moldy Bread Slice Production Line" to Level 5; upon seeing the upgrade fruits of the production line and that supermodel effect, he paused, then couldn’t help but laugh; his guess turned out correct.
Prioritizing upgrading this "Moldy Bread Slice Production Line" was indeed the right choice.
Then, without hesitation, he quickly upgraded it to Level 10.
Altogether consuming 4,400 units of iron ore.
Chen Mang walked into the second cargo wagon, first glancing at the bread slices produced by the production line. The bread was soft and exuded a milky aroma, with jam filling in the middle, looking exceptionally tempting.
Where does this stuff still have any relation to moldy bread slices?
Unfortunately, he doesn’t really like sweets.
Otherwise, his future meals would need to shift to these bread slices; this looks way better than his buns, although...
Chen Mang picked up this freshly produced, warm jam-filled bread slice and took a bite, his expression satisfied as he couldn’t help but smile: "Actually, the taste is quite nice."
Upgrading accessories doesn’t change accessory names, meaning the name of this accessory and the food don’t match at all anymore.
This isn’t the most critical issue; if this was the only effect, he wouldn’t spend so much iron ore.
The most crucial thing is those two supermodel effects.
"Moldy Bread Slice Production Line Level 5 Supermodel Effect": The produced bread contains large amounts of vitamins, providing various vitamins, ensuring nutritional balance and health maintenance for consumers.
"Moldy Bread Slice Production Line Level 10 Supermodel Effect": Long-term consumption increases internal virus antibodies, decreases the risk of viral infections like colds and flu, and slightly enhances physical qualities.
As for the "Constant Star Train".
These 101 slaves are currently almost his greatest wealth; should any slave become bedridden due to severe illness or unable to work briefly, it would pain him greatly.
And the upgraded "Moldy Bread Slice Production Line" can resolve this issue to the maximum extent.