Translator: AnubisTL
Chen Mang immediately spotted Erdan's "Azure Dragon" train hurtling through the blizzard high above.
"I'll try it," he muttered, glancing at his copper ore balance. He had 825,000 units remaining, and a Tier 6 missile cost 300,000 units to craft.
Whoosh
Chen Mang took a deep breath and stopped overthinking it. He wouldn't know if it would work unless he tried. Besides, the zombie had been roaring non-stop. If he could precisely launch a missile down its throat and detonate it inside, the impact would be devastating.
But one missile probably wouldn't be enough. He'd need two.
Soon enough, after consuming 300,000 units of copper ore, a Tier 6 Groundburst Missile was crafted.
Sha Sha Sha
With the whirring of mechanical gears, a missile, entirely black, slowly rose from Carriage 14. It angled skyward, ready to launch at any moment.
"Can we shoot it down its throat?" Chen Mang asked Xiao Ai, his voice low and serious.
"Yes," Xiao Ai replied without emotion, her answer short and decisive.
On the open-air Carriage 14, hydraulic supports resembling vertebrae held the missile aloft. With a thunderous roar, a deep blue flame erupted from the missile's hexagonal nozzle, instantly raising the temperature around the train to a scorching peak.
A missile launched from the train, piercing through the air and targeting the colossal zombie trapped in the blizzard.
The missile's fiery trail cut through the storm like Satan's brush dipped in pus, slashing across the night sky with mesmerizing allure.
Then, under Chen Mang's unwavering gaze, the missile followed a perfect, graceful trajectory, striking the zombie's mouth with pinpoint accuracy. It plunged straight down its throat like a deepthroat, disappearing entirely.
Perhaps because the zombie's throat was unusually large, the massive foreign object caused no visible swelling or distortion.
The next moment—
"BOOM!!!"
A deafening explosion ripped through the heavens and earth. Compared to the previous missile strike, this blast sounded more muffled, the compressed explosives within detonating deep within the zombie's throat.
In an instant, the zombie's head was blown sky-high.
Its neck snapped instantly.
Countless orange-red flames erupted from the severed neck.
Three seconds later, the headless zombie, still running on momentum, seemed to finally register what had happened. Its body crashed heavily to the ground, sending crimson-stained snow flying into the air in a spectacular display.
"..."
Chen Mang glanced at the data stream constantly scrolling across the control panel screen—the AI's calculations for the missile's trajectory—and chuckled, looking at the headless zombie lying in the snow in the distance.
"You don't need to show me all this. I wouldn't understand it anyway."
"I'm just worried you wouldn't realize how hard I'm working."
The zombie lay motionless in the snow, unable to rise again. A torrent of thick, crimson blood gushed from its neck wound, staining the snow around it.
Blood and white snow—the combination was truly striking.
The blood-stained snow resembled grilled meat wrapped in lettuce—refreshing, satisfying, and less gruesome than pure blood. It retained the unique coolness and crispness of the snow.
He'd initially thought it might take two Tier 6 missiles. After all, this zombie was the largest monster he'd ever seen. But to his surprise, a single missile that struck its mouth was enough to bring it down completely.
On the target acquisition radar, the red dot representing the zombie was fading, signifying its demise.
The next moment—
The words on the light curtain at the border of the two zones changed:
"The zone ahead is the Green Zone, the Ice and Snow Paradise."
"The highest-level monsters that can exist here are Tier 6. Your current train is Tier 5, so the danger level is relatively low. Please proceed with caution."
The lockdown has been lifted!
At that moment, the Azure Dragon Train, which had been speeding through the air, suddenly veered toward the Stellaris. Erdan's excited shout came over the walkie-talkie.
"Wait a moment."
Chen Mang shook his head with a smile. He immediately steered the Stellaris into the zone ahead. Once they were close enough, the powerful magnet sucked up the zombie's dropped items into the train.
No other trains were nearby. He didn't need to worry about anyone trying to steal his loot. Even if they tried, they wouldn't stand a chance.
Erdan wouldn't steal from him, of course. If Erdan were that kind of person, Chen Mang wouldn't have come to save him in the first place.
Just then—
The Azure Dragon Train made a sharp turn and landed beside the Stellaris. Erdan, bundled in a military greatcoat, jumped out of the locomotive cabin with an excited grin. Standing in the snow, he shouted up to the Stellaris's locomotive cabin, "Brother, come down and have a chat!"
Each word he spoke sent a cloud of hot breath billowing into the frigid air.
"Huh?"
Erdan suddenly realized he couldn't see anything inside the Stellaris's locomotive through the glass. He couldn't help but ask incredulously, "Brother, did you really upgrade that yellow-grade dust-free glass accessory to Tier 5?"
"Just recently, a train conductor was crying on the train radio, saying he thought the Tier 5 overpowered effect would be something amazing, but all he got was a one-way window effect. He wasted so much iron ore for nothing."
As the words fell, Chen Mang pushed open the locomotive cabin door and jumped down. He leaned on his cane as he stepped through the snow to reach Erdan. He pulled out two cigarettes, lit one for himself and offered the other to Erdan. After exhaling a long breath, he looked at the massive zombie lying in the snow nearby and sighed.
"Brother, did you have your fortune read when the apocalypse came?"
"This zone was perfectly fine until you arrived. Why did so much trouble suddenly start?"
"Well..." Erdan mumbled awkwardly, "It's not entirely my fault. It's a long story. I'll tell you later. But Brother, I have to admit, I'm a little envious. S-rank potential really is something else."
"Even Tier 6 trains are still using cannons, Brother, and you've already got a Tier 5 train missile."
"It's like a dimensional strike."
"Too bad I haven't seen the Misanthrope Train's Large Firepower Accessory on the Sha River Plains, but it definitely can't compare to yours, Brother."
Then, with a serious expression, he turned to Chen Mang and said, "Thanks, Brother. If you hadn't come, I probably would have been slowly worn down to death in this zone."
"How much copper ore did that missile cost? I'll reimburse you."
Chen Mang glanced at Erdan and replied casually, "300,000 units of copper ore."
"..."
Erdan remained silent for a moment before continuing, "We can talk about reimbursement later. I've already used up all the copper ore in my train. Brother, I'll remember this kindness. If you ever need me, just say the word."
"As long as it's not something that would send me to my death, I'll come immediately."
"I thought you'd say you'd brave mountains of knives and seas of fire without hesitation."
"That would sound a bit fake. After all, who isn't afraid of death?"
"But..."
Erdan tightened his military overcoat and glanced at Chen Mang, who was wearing thin clothes. A flicker of confusion crossed his eyes. "It's so cold. Aren't you cold dressed like that?"
"Not too bad."
Chen Mang patted Erdan's shoulder and smiled. "The Clothing Customization Production Line accessory is at Tier 10 now. It has a Temperature Lock effect. I won't get too cold standing here for a while. What about you? Haven't you upgraded it to Tier 10? That overpowered effect is pretty useful."
"..."
Erdan's lips twitched slightly, but he remained silent. Even if he suddenly possessed a thousand murphy stones, he would never spend eight of them on the Clothing Customization Production Line accessory just for a Temperature Lock effect. He'd rather wear more layers!
"Alright," Chen Mang said, pointing at the massive headless zombie nearby. "We'll talk later. I have something to take care of. I need to cut up this zombie and collect its parts before they freeze."
"Wait," Erdan said, looking bewildered at the zombie. "Brother, you're not the Flesh Train. What do you need this thing for?"
"Just keep it for now. It might come in handy later. After all, a zombie this size isn't easy to find, and it could be useful for trading with the flesh train in the future."
"Wait, bro," Erdan said, confused. "When you kill zombies, don't they drop 'corpse meat'? That's the material with units that's crucial for upgrading the flesh train. Sure, the flesh train does eat that corpse meat as a snack, but it doesn't need this much!"
"Really?" Chen Mang silently glanced at the distant zombie. He'd always assumed the flesh train upgraded directly with flesh. He'd collected quite a bit recently, but after a moment's hesitation, he turned toward the locomotive cabin. "Let's just store it for now. It might come in handy."
Ten minutes later.
Chen Mang had built thirty ordinary carriages, each equipped with a Tier 50 vehicle blade ten meters wide. The Stellaris train, like a giant python, circled the massive zombie, constantly burrowing underground and emerging directly beneath it.
Soon, the zombie was completely dismembered.
Once the vehicle blades were forcibly removed from the carriages, they instantly shattered into fragments that shimmered with cold light.
All the vehicle blades on the thirty ordinary carriages were forcibly removed, shattering into countless fragments.
Then, the train residents disembarked, picked up the fragments from the ground, wrapped a corner of each in cloth, and began meticulously carving large chunks of flesh from the giant zombie's body, ensuring they were no larger than a refrigerator door.
Any piece that met the size requirement was instantly sucked into the train's refrigerator by a powerful magnet.
After the monster died, its defenses had significantly weakened, making the carving process relatively effortless—even easier than when they had dissected the Tier 3 man-eating spider.
Thinking back...
He had killed many monsters, but the Tier 3 man-eating spider had probably suffered the most gruesome death at his hands, being slowly tortured to death.
He then controlled the Stellaris, activating the Geothermal Core Furnace. The locomotive transformed into a massive, blood-red maw filled with countless spinning gears, devouring the thirty ordinary carriages that had already been detached from the train.
Afterward—
Chen Mang had just jumped down from the locomotive cabin and walked over to Erdan. Leaning on his cane, he chuckled. "Sorry about that. I've been through hard times before, so I always think the first time I see a zombie this big, this rare, I should collect it. You never know when it might come in handy."
"Oh, right."
He turned his head and waved to Old Pig standing nearby. "Get some people to dig out some of this snow. Keep it clean. Find the pure stuff and freeze it in the refrigerator. We might need it later."
"Yes, sir." Old Pig nodded solemnly before striding away.
"..."
Erdan, who had been standing nearby, completely dumbfounded, sniffled and looked at Chen Mang with disbelief. "Brother, have you always played like this?"
"How can we both be train conductors, yet our train operation styles are so completely different?"
"No, how can you even play the game like this?!"
"It's not too bad," Chen Mang said with a chuckle. "It's really nothing special."
Whew
Erdan took a deep breath, tightened his military greatcoat, and said with a complex expression, "Having a lot of refrigerators is really nice."
Even if he wanted to cram all this stuff into the train, he couldn't. He did have a yellow-grade "Space Gate" accessory, similar to Chen Mang's Tier 10 Refrigerator, but he wouldn't waste such a precious space filling it with zombie flesh and blood.
A Tier 5 "Space Gate" wasn't cheap.
He couldn't bear to spend the money.
But the main reason wasn't whether he could afford it or not—it was that the damn thing was useless! What good would it do to stuff so much zombie flesh and blood into the train?
He didn't even want a flesh train!
Erdan was now completely convinced that Chen Mang had started from scratch, with no powerful backers. Only someone who had built their wealth from nothing would develop such a frugal mindset. Those with wealthy patrons wouldn't care about such things.
"I'll send you a few refrigerators later. They're quite useful. Take a few."
"No."
Erdan shook his head solemnly. "That wouldn't be right. You came all this way to save me and used up so much of your copper ore. I haven't even repaid your kindness yet. If you gave me refrigerators too, wouldn't I just become a beggar?"
"But..."
Erdan paused, then his eyes flickered with temptation. "How about I trade something with you? I recently got two crates of cigarettes, each containing 250 packs. I'll give you one crate for two refrigerators. How does that sound?"
Chen Mang raised an eyebrow, put his arm around Erdan's shoulder, and said with a smile, "How about I give you six refrigerators in exchange for two crates of cigarettes? You can keep fifty packs for yourself. After all, you don't let your slaves smoke, and you and your management team don't need that many, right?"
"Deal!"
Erdan responded almost immediately, his voice firm as if afraid Chen Mang would change his mind. Then he couldn't help but grin. "Thanks, Brother. These six refrigerators are a huge help."
"By the way, Brother," he said suddenly, his expression turning serious. "Even though we have Storage Boxes and space gates, which maximize the train's space, the Tier 10 Refrigerator's function is irreplaceable in many situations. Have you considered selling some at the gathering?"
"Selling?" Chen Mang shook his head. "Refrigerators are white-grade accessories. Upgrading one to Tier 10 requires at least eight murphy stones. Do the math yourself—how much should I charge?"
"I've thought about selling them, but not in the Green Zone. They can't afford the price."
"I'll wait until we reach the Yellow Zone."
(End of the Chapter)
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