Translator: AnubisTL
Inside the starting point shop, the train conductors began chattering excitedly.
One train conductor tried to push open the door, but found it wouldn't budge. A line of text appeared on the nearby screen:
[Open on Mondays only, operating all day.
Visitors are prohibited at other times.]
The middle-aged man who had spoken first quickly scanned the room. In a corner, he spotted a "Self-Service Machine." Each train conductor could take up to 20 Neon City Entry Tickets for free.
However, they could only claim them once per week.
Beside the machine, another screen displayed several lines of text:
"Visitor Invitation Reward"
[Please enter your train's name.
1: Invite a new visitor who has never been to Neon City before. When the visitor enters Neon City and provides your train's name, both you and the visitor will receive a 500 stellar coupon reward.
2: Special rewards will be granted when you invite 10, 50, or 100 visitors.
3: Each visitor can only be invited once.]
"..."
The middle-aged man's eyes lit up as he watched the scene before him. He quickly grabbed twenty entry tickets and stuffed them into his pocket. This is just the new user reward, isn't it?
This is easy!
Just go to the gathering, and I can probably recruit a whole bunch in minutes. Simple as that.
Stellar coupons must be the currency in this fortuitous encounter map, he thought, glancing at the exchange machine he'd spotted nearby.
The machine's display clearly read:
One unit of iron ore = 1 stellar coupon
One unit of copper ore = 1 stellar coupon
Currently, only these two resources can be exchanged. Stellar coupons can be used for purchases within Neon City.
Stellar coupons can also be exchanged for iron ore and copper ore at an equal ratio.
The man began counting on his fingers, muttering to himself.
"So, for each person I recruit, I get 500 units of iron ore. If I recruit twenty, that's 10,000 units of iron ore—basically like mining an entire Tier 1 Iron Ore deposit in one go!"
"I'm gonna make a killing!"
"Can things really be this good?!"
Just then, a commotion erupted from the crowd.
The tall woman from earlier was now pressed against the glass, pointing excitedly at a shop across the street. "There's a 'Mechanical Train Parts Store' here! Look at their sign—they're having a Monday sale on murphy stones: only 1 million stellar coupons!"
"1 million stellar coupons... that's just 1 million units of iron ore! What a bargain!"
"Seriously! Damn!"
"Huh?" The middle-aged man from before leaned closer, looking confused. "What's a murphy stone? Is it really a bargain to buy one for 1 million units of iron ore? How long would it take to mine that much?"
"It's a great deal," the tall woman said earnestly. "I've bought murphy stones for as little as 700,000 units of iron ore, but they're rare and prices fluctuate wildly. If you need one urgently, the price can skyrocket. I've paid as much as 1.8 million units of iron ore for a single murphy stone. But if you're not in a rush and can take your time collecting them, you might stumble upon a bargain."
"It's all about luck," the man replied.
"But here, there's a fixed price. If you need one urgently and others are charging too much or don't have any in stock, you can always come here."
"And you probably don't realize this, but you probably wouldn't even dare use a Heavy Machine Gun right now, would you? Copper ore is expensive. But if you upgrade your Doomsday Cannon to Tier 10 using murphy stones, the ammunition consumption becomes much lower—even lower than that of a Heavy Machine Gun."
"Heavy Machine Gun? I haven't even crafted one. I run away whenever I see zombies these days."
"Just keep running for now. I was the same way when I was starting out. You'll eventually grow stronger through running."
"There's a Flesh Train Parts Shop over there. It's rare to see them finally treating us flesh trains like people. But I can only exchange stellar coupons for iron ore, and we flesh trains can't obtain iron ore. How am I supposed to get those stellar coupons?"
"I have no idea. Looks like they still don't consider you flesh trains to be people."
"You flesh trains often go boss hunting and get a lot of murphy stones, right? There's a recycling shop over there. You can sell your murphy stones and then use the stellar coupons to buy things at the Flesh Train Parts Shop."
"Damn, you're right! You just reminded me. I still have a bunch of mechanical train accessory blueprints I haven't sold yet. I'll dump them all into that recycling shop later."
"..."
Standing by the floor-to-ceiling window of Sun City's tallest building, Chen Mang gazed down with a complex expression. The conversation from the initial meeting echoed through the audio system beside him, allowing him to hear every word.
He had finally made his choice.
He would exchange stellar coupons for iron ore at a one-to-one ratio.
This would undoubtedly create some initial pressure, but as he upgraded his train's accessories, the demand for iron ore would only increase. He needed a massive supply to upgrade his train and survive this apocalypse.
That's why he had always aimed to make Neon City as big as possible.
As big as it could possibly get.
As long as no unforeseen events occurred, such as someone inciting a crisis of trust that led to a mass exodus of people simultaneously exchanging stellar coupons for iron ore, he wouldn't face a cash flow crisis. By operating steadily, the city would naturally grow.
After all, his Neon City was unique in this apocalypse!
It was 11 p.m. on Sunday night, with only an hour left until Monday. Clearly, the train conductors had no intention of leaving. They were waiting for the doors to open on Monday. Many of them had already entered and exited Neon City multiple times.
"Lord Mang."
Xiao Ai stood nearby, explaining helplessly, "Those train conductors who keep coming and going are all on Tier 1 or 2 trains. Either they haven't installed the Train Auxiliary AI accessory at all, or their AI is too low-level."
"They don't dare leave their trains for long."
"They're afraid of being surrounded by a zombie horde or of the people below causing trouble and rioting."
"Mm."
Chen Mang nodded. This was a problem, but one he couldn't solve. He could only wait for these people's trains to level up and resolve it themselves.
Soon—
Midnight arrived. With a crisp click of the shop door's lock, the train conductors from the starting point shop poured out in a rush. Xiao Ai stood nearby, silently recording the bugs that had appeared and any loopholes in the rules.
In this world, everything started rough. No one would ever devise a perfect plan from the outset. They'd start with a rough outline and refine it as they went.
Neon City was no different.
Tonight marked Neon City's first official trial run.
Chen Mang, watching everything unfold, felt a twinge of nervousness.
"This really wasn't the Stellaris, was it?"
A young man frowned, scanning the bustling streets. He was a Tier 8 Mechanical Train from Zombie Basin, and if there was one thing that had left the deepest impression on him lately, it was the Stellaris.
Moreover, the city's currency was called the stellar coupon.
His first thought had been that the Stellaris was behind this. But after stepping out of the starting point and seeing the surging crowds and brightly lit city, he began to doubt himself.
After all...
A city of this scale couldn't possibly have been built by the Stellaris.
He looked down at the "Neon City Entry Ticket" in his hand.
Special Item: Neon City Entry Ticket
Item Effect: Entry ticket to the fortuitous encounter map 'Neon City'. Can be crushed at any time and location to enter this map. Maximum of 10 train crew members allowed.
This was a genuine special item, no doubt about it.
It even had panel information.
The Stellaris couldn't possibly have manufactured special items, could it?
That made no sense.
The young man didn't dwell on it. He simply followed the crowd into the Mechanical Train Parts Store, where he froze in place, his eyes widening in confusion as he gazed at the dazzling array of goods on the walls.
This has to be the Stellaris, right?
It's you, Chen Mang!
The shop was packed with merchandise, but some items were strikingly familiar, like the Space Pouch and the Tier 10 Refrigerator.
The Stellaris had sold these very items in the Zombie Basin back then. He'd even bought several Space Pouches himself.
Soon, he saw information appear on the screen below the list of items:
Tier 10 Refrigerator: White-grade accessory with absolute preservation and Cosmos-like storage capabilities. Its interior spans 100 square meters, making it ideal for storing goods or even people. Price: 100,000 stellar coupons. Sold on consignment by Train No. XX.
"Consignment, huh?"
The man nodded thoughtfully. That made sense. It must be the Stellaris train selling it. He'd wondered who else would have something like that.
"All good stuff..."
The Boss of the Tier 2 train, a weathered middle-aged man with no thugs in tow, stood alone in Neon City, surveying the Mechanical Train Parts Store. His eyes were filled with resignation.
All good stuff.
But he couldn't afford any of it. The prices were simply too steep, a bit too unfriendly for his budget. By now, many train conductors had already left the store and vanished into Neon City.
Clearly, they were going home to get more money.
Soon—
At the starting point, seven or eight train conductors returned, this time followed by thugs carrying Storage Boxes on their shoulders. They tossed the boxes into the wall's passage, and empty ones were quickly sent back out.
As the train conductor placed his wristwatch next to the extremely valuable one, the numbers on the watch began to flash rapidly, finally settling on 1,870,000.
"Whew!"
The tall woman, her eyes gleaming with excitement, waved her hand, leading the seven or eight burly thugs towards the Mechanical Train Parts Store. "Let's go shopping!"
Just then, a beggar suddenly blocked the woman's path, saying meaningfully, "Young lady, I haven't eaten in days. Would you be willing to give me some stellar coupons so I can get a meal?"
"Any amount will do."
"Come back here!"
The woman, her face contorted with impatience and ready to curse, suddenly stopped herself. She yanked the beggar back, her expression strange as she hesitated for a long moment before finally saying, "Here's 1,000 stellar coupons for a meal. Will that be enough?"
"Plenty, plenty!"
"Um... how do I give it to you?"
"Just touch your smartwatch to mine, then enter the amount and confirm."
The entire process was remarkably simple and quickly completed.
"Thank you, kind sir."
The ragged beggar immediately leaned on his cane and continued down the street.
"Wait!"
The woman, witnessing the scene, hastily stopped him, her voice tinged with urgency. "Old man, what happens next?"
"What happens next? I'm going to eat. I'm starving."
"You!"
The woman's expression darkened, and she was about to strike, but a glance at the patrolling armed robot nearby and the rules she'd seen when entering the fortuitous encounter map made her grit her teeth and swallow her anger. She'd thought she'd stumbled upon a hidden quest.
Turns out it was just a scam!
"..."
Standing beside a towering building, Chen Mang watched the scene unfold, a slight smile curving his lips. The beggar was a little Easter egg he'd designed.
If someone chose to donate, there was indeed a tiny chance of receiving something valuable in return—but the odds were incredibly slim.
As for the armed robot...
It was the Armed Black Hole Robot he had brought from the train.
In reality, the wristwatch did more than just store stellar coupons. It also contained a small energy device that would deploy an energy shield when attacked—of course, this was meant to defend against attacks from other train conductors, not his own armed robots.
But displaying a few armed robots seemed more direct.
It would discourage any ill-conceived notions from petty troublemakers.
"Looks like we're off to a good start?"
Chen Mang took the tablet Xiao Ai handed him. It showed that 3.89 million stellar coupons had already been distributed—in other words, 3.89 million units of iron ore had already been deposited.
With only thirty-odd train conductors, this was an excellent result so early in the process.
Let's take it slow.
Our goal: to earn a hundred million a day!
"The results are quite promising so far, and it's also quite friendly to lower-tier trains. While they can't afford to buy anything, they can earn stellar coupons by recruiting new users, which they can then exchange for iron ore."
"For them, it's another source of iron ore."
"For us, it means a lot of new users."
"Mm."
Chen Mang nodded, handing over the Tablet. After observing for a while longer, he murmured, "Let's go. Once we finish upgrading Erdan's train, we'll head to the Purple Zone."
"Alright."
There was nothing more to observe here for now.
Back in the Stellaris's locomotive cabin, Chen Mang picked up the walkie-talkie and spoke to Old Pig: "Find someone obedient, efficient, and capable of staying in Neon City for an extended period."
"Understood."
Information transmission between Neon City and the Stellaris was slow.
Chen Mang needed a physical body for Xiao Ai to monitor the situation in Neon City. However, Xiao Ai wasn't a train crew member, so crushing the Neon City Entry Ticket wouldn't do anything. Therefore, he needed a train crew member to stand guard beside Xiao Ai, carrying a refrigerator.
In case of emergencies, they were to immediately stuff Xiao Ai into the refrigerator, exit Neon City, and report the situation to him.
It was a special assignment.
(End of the Chapter)
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