After casually tossing the note aside,
Chen Mang strode out of the Space Gate without looking back, not pausing for even a moment.
The audacity of asking for a reward! As the "Train Auxiliary AI," doing your job is the bare minimum. The "Targeting Radar" accessory has been working nonstop since its creation without demanding any rewards. Just because you're an AI doesn't mean you get special treatment!
In both his lifetimes, Chen Mang had never uttered such embarrassing words.
And he wasn't about to start now.
"..."
Only Xiao Ai remained, standing inside the Space Gate with a resentful gaze, watching as the note fluttered through the air before slowly drifting to the ground. After a long pause, he finally stepped forward to pick it up again.
"Xiao Ai, your wisdom is like an endless treasure that intoxicates my soul. You are the brilliant stars that illuminate the night sky of my life. You are my storm and shelter, a companion whose presence I'll never forget on this shared journey..."
It went on for over two hundred words.
Was it embarrassing?
Xiao Ai pondered seriously. To him, these were just sincere words of praise. Why had the Train Conductor reacted so strongly? Could it be a difference between human and AI thought processes?
He'd have to take some time to reflect on this.
Soon—
The Stellar Train emerged from the Goblin Tomb. After 48 hours of continuous mining, they had gathered over 6 million units of Iron Ore. There simply wasn't much left to mine—it was like parents giving their child a monthly allowance of 100 yuan when they were young.
As a child, it felt like an endless fortune, impossible to spend, eagerly awaiting the start of each month when the allowance would refresh.
But as an adult, a 100-yuan allowance became practically useless.
For now, he held off on distributing the "Neon City Free Entry Tickets." He'd taken a quick trip to Neon City over the past couple of days and found that the renovations weren't complete yet. The workload was substantial, and the earliest estimated completion was still about 10 days away.
Relocating and refurbishing so many shops was no easy task.
This also made him realize that even within the Goblin Tomb, one could still enter Neon City by crushing an entry ticket.
The Stellar Train rested quietly on the desolate plains of Crisis Valley, resembling a mechanical serpent so vast that neither its head nor tail could be seen.
It was early morning.
The residents were finally resting—truly resting this time. After a month of nonstop mining in the cave at the end of the Train Tunnel, they'd only gotten one night's break before being dragged into another 48-hour mining spree in the Goblin Tomb.
Even iron men would struggle to endure such relentless labor.
"..."
Chen Mang stood alone by the floor-to-ceiling window on the second floor of the train compartment, a cigarette between his fingers as he gazed at the distant horizon. Xiao Fang stood quietly beside him, holding an ashtray.
Xiao Fang had been staying in the train compartment almost exclusively these past few days. The space had grown much emptier, and with only one person around, it felt devoid of life. Having someone else there made it feel a little more lively.
He was deep in thought.
The "Neon City" project was extremely important to him—arguably the most crucial strategic plan for the Stellar Train in recent times. He was contemplating whether to establish a solid anchor for the "Stellar Coupons."
Namely, iron ore.
If Stellar Coupons and iron ore could be mutually exchangeable—meaning the Train Conductor could trade iron ore for Stellar Coupons or vice versa—then as long as credibility was maintained, the coupons would become an exceptionally stable currency.
If he were a merchant, this idea would be flawless. He could use this method to invigorate the entire Neon City.
But—
He wasn't. He was a train conductor surviving in the apocalypse.
Even if his current development was going well, venturing into higher-tier zones would still leave him treading cautiously.
The iron ore he obtained couldn't be stockpiled indefinitely—it had to be spent. While he could certainly reserve 10 million units of iron ore for circulation in Neon City, which would generally suffice, the moment a significant number of people simultaneously exchanged Stellar Coupons for iron ore, he would face only two outcomes.
First, failing to provide the iron ore, leading to a complete collapse of credibility and the subsequent abandonment of Neon City as a trading hub.
Second, scrambling to gather the required iron ore, which would nearly halt the development of the Stellar Train in an instant and deal a severe blow to its resources.
Two paths.
He was still weighing his options. There was time before the plan's official implementation, allowing him to deliberate at his own pace. No need to rush.
"..."
Xiao Fang stood quietly beside him, holding an ashtray, occasionally stealing glances at Lord Mang's legs. Her heart fluttered faintly—for some reason, she found Lord Mang's focused expression incredibly handsome.
In that moment, Xiao Fang's heart skipped a beat.
But she didn't dare let it race too much.
After all, even someone like Yan Yao—a woman of that caliber—had failed to stir Lord Mang's heart.
Lord Mang was purely a career-driven man.
Men like him often prioritized their ambitions above all else, making it difficult for them to genuinely fall for a woman.
Before the apocalypse, it might not have been so absolute.
But in these end times, expecting a career-driven man to hold you and swear eternal love was as absurd as trying to win favor over Empress Ma.
"Xiao Fang."
"Xiao Fang?"
Only then did Xiao Fang snap out of her daze, lifting her head to meet Lord Mang's gaze. Noticing his slightly furrowed brow, she hurriedly whispered, "Yes, Lord Mang?"
"Fetch me a bottle of water."
"Right away!"
After taking a sip of the mineral water, Chen Mang returned to the control panel and sat down, his eyes fixed on the screen as his mind settled on a decision. After sending a private message to Er Dan, he pushed the control lever forward.
The Stellar Train hovered above the ground, moving steadily at a moderate pace.
Acceleration was swift.
In less than a second, the train's speed reached 328 km/h, yet the ride remained smooth—so stable that not even a ripple disturbed the water on the table. High speeds consumed more energy, and when time wasn't pressing, conserving resources was paramount.
His destination—
The westernmost edge of Crisis Valley: the "Frozen Wasteland."
Crisis Valley bordered four zones in total—two Blue Zones and two Green Zones.
His target this time was one of them.
He planned to head to the Purple Zone in 10 days, by which time the Neon City would have completed its modifications. Then he could first distribute entry passes across these three Blue Zones before following the Train Tunnel to issue more in the Shahe Plain and Iron Ridge Wasteland regions.
The path from the White Zone "Iron Ridge Wasteland" to the Blue Zone "Crisis Valley" was a straight line.
In other words, if one wanted to travel upward from the Iron Ridge Wasteland, the only destination was Crisis Valley—there were no alternative routes. His initial user base would be limited to this scope, with little room for expansion.
He needed to find a way to reach people in more regions to secure a sufficient number of users.
About three hours later.
He once again saw the familiar boundary between zones. Four massive characters hovered on the luminous screen marking the transition, and two lines of text reappeared on the control panel display.
-
"Next zone: Blue Zone, Land of Extreme Cold."
"Maximum monster level: 12. Current train level: 12. Low danger coefficient."
-
Crisis Valley didn't border any Purple Zones. To reach other Purple Zones beyond it, one had to travel to the two Blue Zones to the west and east—the "Land of Extreme Cold," which intersected with six zones.
One White Zone, one Green Zone, three Purple Zones, and one Yellow Zone.
The temperature here was brutally low.
As soon as they entered the zone, Chen Mang, seated inside the train, felt waves of cold air seeping into the cabin. Frost rapidly formed on the train's surface, and the screen displayed the temperature as "-58°C."
A bone-chilling cold.
Water would freeze instantly—that was the bare minimum.
If someone were foolish enough to lick the Train Armor, they'd likely lose half their tongue. Though, admittedly, the taste wasn't bad—sweet, with a hint of warm metallic rust.
"..."
Chen Mang stared at the information on the screen. The extreme cold of this region affected all aspects of the train's operation. At the very least, residents couldn't mine normally under these conditions.
A full day of mining would guarantee one or two frozen corpses.
This was no joke.
Especially when the warming measures were insufficient.
This region had almost no trains—and consequently, no mines—only monsters that thrived in icy environments. It mostly served as a transit area, though trains occasionally passed through to hunt monsters.
Monsters here had a chance to drop train components like "Sleds" or "Snow Machines" upon death.
Just then—
"Toot toot!"
A train whistle sounded in the distance, and soon the Traveling Frog came speeding into view. As it approached the Stellar, it gradually slowed before smoothly entering the Stellar's front section as the first-floor door opened.
Shortly after.
Er Dan, covered in frost, took the elevator from the first floor to the second floor of the train cabin. Striding toward Chen Mang, he exhaled warm breath and said, "Lord Mang, you asked for me."Gotta say," "Returning to the Stellar feels like coming home—total sense of security.""
"Mhm."
Chen Mang nodded, swiveled halfway in his chair to face Er Dan, and said with a smile, "I see you haven't found the Serendipity Map either. Take a break for a while. Over the next ten days, you and your crew can go relax in the Resident carriages."
"After ten days, we'll prepare to head to the purple zone."
"And right now, your Train is only Level 10 with Level 9 Armor, right? During this time, you'll need to upgrade your Train to Level 12 and boost your Armor as well."
"No big deal. Take your people and go. Lao Zhu will handle your reception."
"Got it!"
Er Dan grinned and nodded emphatically. "Lord Mang, you really understand my bunch of blockheads. They've been itching for this for a long time."
"I'll take them up now."
Soon—
Er Dan led his thugs back up the elevator to the Train's first level. "What's wrong with you lot? Greet Lord Mang properly! Why are you just standing there?"
"Greetings, Lord Mang!"
Over a dozen thugs bowed deeply in unison, their faces filled with reverence and excitement as they addressed Lord Mang.
"Mhm. Go enjoy yourselves."
"Thank you, Lord Mang!"
The thugs followed Er Dan into Elevator No. 2, their eyes wide with wonder as they took in the sights. Carriage No. 2 was massive—10 meters wide, 10 meters tall, and 30 meters long.
This was no ordinary carriage.
It felt like standing inside a space station—an enormous one at that. Large production lines filled the space, most idle, with only a few actively churning out item after item.
Apart from them, the entire area was deserted.
It was eerily quiet.
Embedded in the ceiling-like structure were 100 Heavy Machine Guns and dozens of Mechanical Eyes, the density of surveillance higher than a hotpot restaurant's.
"Egg Lord."
One of the thugs trailing behind spoke up, sounding a bit disgruntled. "Why'd you have to say 'Why are you just standing there?' when telling us to greet Lord Mang?"
"We weren't just standing there. We were about to say it, but you cut us off."
"It was supposed to be our initiative, but you made it seem like we were forced. What if Lord Mang thinks we're disrespectful now?"
"Huh?"
Er Dan turned his head sideways, exasperated. "Man, I swear you've got a one-track mind."
"Let me ask you—back before the apocalypse, when relatives visited, didn't your Mom tell you to greet them quickly and not just stand there? Were you actually just standing there? Wouldn't you have greeted them even if she hadn't said anything?"
"You know why?"
"Figure it out yourself if you don't get it. Damn, just shut your trap and follow me."
Three minutes later.
Er Dan led his crew to Carriage No. 5, the Women's Elite Quarters.
This carriage was divided by a corridor. On the left side were rows of hard bunks and activity spaces. He knew only two of Lord Mang's women lived here.
"Guess I should make a suggestion to Lord Mang," Er Dan muttered under his breath, eyeing the door still 30 meters away.
They should get some bicycles for the Train. Otherwise, just getting from Carriage No. 5 to No. 11 would take forever.
Normally, he wouldn't walk this slowly.
But honestly—
It was just too damn fascinating.
This was his first time walking from one end of the Stellar Train to the other, making him unable to resist glancing at everything, finding it all novel. The first few carriages were mostly empty.
It wasn't until they reached Carriage No. 7 that Lao Zhu came forward with a cheerful grin, looking at the group.
"Next, I'll take you all on a tour inside the train."
"Lord Mang said we're all on the same side, so no need to be too formal. Even though you don't have Iris Chips, you're still direct descendants of the Stellar, sharing its glory and disgrace. Come, this way."
The further back they went, the more people they saw in the carriages.
Many residents could be seen moving about inside.
Lao Zhu led the way, explaining as they walked, "Not many residents are active right now—most are asleep. Everyone was mining all night yesterday."
"On normal days, there'd be more residents moving around here."
"But most of the time, everyone's active area is still inside the Space Gate."
(End of Chapter)