Translator: AnubisTL
"..."
Inside the locomotive cabin, Chen Mang gazed upward at the fighter jet circling overhead, quietly admiring it. He loved these things; they looked authentic.
His train, capable of exceeding 3,000 km/h, required at least Tier 10 Armor to prevent disintegration.
This was primarily because he lacked an energy shield. With a Tier 10 energy shield, that would have sufficed.
Meanwhile, his fighter jet had Tier 0 defense and a maximum speed of 5,040 km/h, yet it faced no armor restrictions.
The only cost was energy stones.
Nightfall arrived swiftly, nearing midnight.
The top 1,000 residents by ID number had already entered Neon City in orderly succession, while the rest remained on the train.
Inside Neon City, almost precisely at midnight, numerous train conductors arrived with their thugs, some newcomers and others veterans, all timing their arrival perfectly.
"So bustling," a young man murmured as he materialized at the spawn point. His eyes widened in awe at the sight before him, his body freezing in place. He had never seen such a vibrant and populated fortuitous encounter map, one that almost evoked a pre-apocalypse nostalgia.
"Hah..."
The young man took a deep breath, scanned the shops lining the street, and immediately began exploring. Based on his experience, fortuitous encounters were rarely found in plain sight.
He had read countless online game novels.
In those stories, fortuitous encounters always lurked in hidden places.
After a full thirty minutes of searching, the man's eyes suddenly lit up, drawn to a particular shop:
[Mechanical Train Confessional]
The name alone sounded extraordinary!
This has to be something.
He cautiously glanced around, noticing the area was relatively deserted, before quickly pushing open the door.
The shop's interior was decorated in stark black and white.
There were no store clerks, only a meditation cushion on the floor and a screen beside it displaying information about the establishment.
"When your heart is burdened with guilt over something you've done, you may come here to confess."
"Confession is divided into three tiers."
"1. Standard Confession: 100 points per minute."
"2. Advanced Confession: 1,000 points per minute."
"3. Extreme Confession: 10,000 points per minute."
"Ten thousand points per minute?"
The young man glanced down at the balance on his wrist-mounted terminal: 1,000,000 points. This was what he'd just exchanged for iron ore, equivalent to 10,000 units of iron ore per minute. This is quite expensive, he thought. I wonder what kind of reward I'll get.
He gritted his teeth and chose the most expensive option: Extreme Confession. He knelt on the meditation cushion and began to confess with fervent sincerity.
Meanwhile, the train conductors guarding the entrance to the Mechanical Train Confessional exchanged knowing glances, amusement flickering in their eyes.
"Ever since I got scammed by this place, my favorite thing to do whenever Neon City opens is to stand here and watch newcomers fall for it."
"True. Who would expect such a shady place to exist in Neon City?"
"The main problem is how well-hidden this shop is. Imagine finding an extremely secluded shop on your first visit here—wouldn't you naturally wonder what secrets it holds?"
"Exactly."
"But maybe it's just my imagination, but I do feel significantly lighter after confessing. It's like paying for confession actually makes it more effective than the free kind."
"You're just being a masochist."
A moment later:
"It's been ten minutes already. Is this guy ever coming out?"
"Yeah, what kind of sins could he possibly have committed to need ten whole minutes of confession?"
"He's out! That con artist beggar just happened to wander over here. Think he'll fall for it again?"
"Definitely."
The young man emerged from the Mechanical Train Confessional, his face ashen and fists clenched. He cursed inwardly, What the hell kind of scam is this? Paid confession with no reward?
Believe me, I'm about to trash this whole place!
This is pure fraud!
Just then—
A ragged beggar, leaning heavily on a cane, shuffled forward, his voice trembling. "Young man," he croaked, "I haven't eaten in days. Would you spare some stellar coupons for a meal?"
"You..."
The young man hesitated, his expression conflicted. If this had happened earlier, he would have given without a second thought—it would have seemed like a fortuitous encounter. But after being scammed once, he sensed something was off.
Still, after a moment's hesitation, he asked, "Would 100 stellar coupons be enough?"
A hundred stellar coupons wasn't much to him. If he got scammed, so be it. After all, this was the first person he'd encountered in the fortuitous encounter map who could actually speak to him. He wasn't sure if the beggar was an NPC or something else entirely, but he figured it was worth a shot.
"Enough, enough," the young man replied.
"You're a kind soul, young man," the beggar said, his voice trembling. "This stone has been useless to me. Take it as a gift."
The beggar shakily pulled a stone from his tattered robes and handed it over.
"A stone?" The young man paused, then his voice rose in disbelief. "A murphy stone?! Holy shit!"
He turned to say something more to the beggar, but the old man had already shuffled away, leaving only his enigmatic silhouette behind.
Mom, you won't believe this, but I just spent 100 stellar coupons on a murphy stone.
Yeah, the kind worth nearly a million.
"What's going on?!"
"Is that really a murphy stone?"
The train conductors who had been watching the scene unfold now crowded around, staring at the murphy stone in the young man's hand. "How come? I gave him 1,000 stellar coupons last time and got nothing!"
"You only gave him 1,000 stellar coupons? I gave him 10,000!"
"That's called good deeds bring good fortune."
The young man chuckled, tucking the murphy stone into his pocket as he strode away.
The train conductors watched his retreating figure, silent for a long moment before beginning to analyze the situation.
"So, we should give him 100 stellar coupons? Giving 100 was the right amount?"
"No, it's not that. The Mechanical Train Confessional isn't useless after all! It temporarily boosts a person's luck, we just didn't know it!"
"I think it's because after leaving the Mechanical Train Confessional, your sins are temporarily cleansed. That's when you can trigger the beggar's interaction!"
"In short, the process is: first enter the Confessional, then encounter the beggar, right?"
After reaching a consensus, the train conductors exchanged knowing glances, each seeing a path to wealth in the other's eyes.
They seemed to have grasped the Dao!
Sun City, seventh floor.
Chen Mang stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing at a nearby hotel. Once abandoned, he had transformed it into a wedding hall.
A wedding hall offers a fixed "wedding setup."
Wedding arrangements fall into two categories:
Customized: A Wedding Planning Company handles the on-site setup, which is dismantled immediately after the ceremony. This option is typically more expensive, with prices starting around 10,000 yuan (approximately $1,400 USD) and no upper limit, especially when including the "Four Heavenly Kings" (a traditional Chinese wedding ensemble).Wedding Hall: Hotels have encroached on the Wedding Planning Companies' territory by offering pre-arranged, elegant setups in dedicated halls. Every couple marrying there uses the same backdrop, making it slightly more affordable. The downside is that if you share the same county as your husband's ex-girlfriend, she might have also held her wedding at the same venue, as evidenced by photos posted online.
For the same price, the latter option tends to look more impressive.
The hotel below had been converted into a wedding hall to host the weddings of two couples from the train and would later serve as a venue for weddings from other trains.
"Lord Mang," Uncle Li said, standing beside him with the "Suggestions Log" in hand. "The past few days of operation have been relatively smooth, but we've received numerous suggestions. Many people are criticizing the 'Mechanical Train Confessional,' calling it useless and a scam."
"How could it be useless?" Chen Mang murmured calmly, leaning on his cane. "Didn't it provide a space for him to be alone and reflect on his actions? Besides, how can you call it a scam? I went in there myself when I first came to Neon City."
"Any other issues?"
"Some people are cursing the beggars."
"That's just an Easter egg. Next."
"And some are criticizing Li Shiji's lottery system design."
"What's the profit margin?"
"It accounts for 17% of the total profit."
"That's quite high."
"Mm-hmm."
"Is it still purely random?"
"Still purely random, but Li Shiji's team is considering running internal tests on pseudo-randomness soon."
"Why?"
"Because some people are incredibly lucky and keep winning big prizes after just a few tries."
"Handle it as you see fit. First, have Old Pig arrange for the residents to take their seats, then proceed with the wedding."
"Understood."
Inside Neon City, a crowd gathered in front of a hotel, their eyes fixed on the information displayed on the screen.
"Anonymous Train: Today, two couples who obtained their 'Doomsday Marriage Certificates' will celebrate their Golden Wedding here."
"The ceremony will begin in ten minutes."
"Welcome everyone! Tier 14 Train residents who attend will receive Lucky Money, limited to the first three."
"P.S.: Our establishment handles Golden, Silver, and Bronze Wedding ceremonies for 'Doomsday Marriage Certificates.' Prices vary based on the wedding tier and whether you bring your own residents or use our hotel's residents. Please consult our staff for detailed pricing."
...
"Neon City is developing faster and faster," a middle-aged man remarked, standing at the hotel entrance and gazing in a daze at the young woman standing beside the screen, her demeanor remarkably dignified. When he first arrived in Neon City, he could count only a few dozen people at a glance.
Barely anyone at all.
Yet in such a short time, the population had exploded, and the variety of shops had multiplied.
He immediately approached a staff member and said, "I'm from the Tier 14 Mechanical Train. I'm here to show my support. Is there Lucky Money?" TL: Paper money they throw to bring luck.
"Yes," the staff member replied with a smile, handing him a red envelope. "This envelope contains a chip. Simply touch it to your wrist device to claim the Lucky Money."
"How do I book a Golden Wedding? I'd like to reserve one."
"This wedding is scheduled to end at 01:00. You can reserve the 01:00-02:00 slot. You'll need to provide your own Doomsday Marriage Certificate. If you require residents from our side, the price is 580,000 stellar coupons."
A Golden Wedding requires 1,000 witnesses.
However, the witnesses don't need to be survivors from any specific train. The residents of Stellaris are perfectly acceptable.
This price isn't bad at all, the man thought to himself. 580,000 stellar coupons for 500 Legacy Value and 20 Reputation Value—that's a pretty good deal. "Book me the 01:00-02:00 slot."
"Certainly, sir. Payment here, please."
Drinks and refreshments were plentiful, of course.
Even the flowers were iron ones, but after being painted, they looked surprisingly good.
Meanwhile—
Inside Carriage No. 2 of the Stellaris train, four Combat Training Virtual Spaces stood silently. Xiao Ai calmly handed four Doomsday Marriage Certificates to Zhang Yiren, who stood beside him, and instructed, "The moment I activate the Combat Training Virtual Spaces, shove a Marriage Certificate into each person's hand. Got it?"
One certificate for each man and woman.
"Understood," Zhang Yiren replied, his voice trembling slightly with unease. "President Ai, is this really that important?"
"What's wrong?"
"Lord Mang had me write two romance scripts back then, but he never said what they were for. I thought... I thought..."
"Enough with the nonsense."
Xiao Ai shook his head. "The train conductor has already set up the wedding venue. If anything goes wrong now, you might as well go make another movie and play Louis XVI again—with you as the male lead this time."
In the next moment, the Combat Virtual Training Space opened.
Two couples emerged from the training space, dazed. As soon as they saw each other, their eyes instantly reddened, and they embraced tightly.
"Xiao Yue, I love you."
"I love you, Xiao Yue."
"Xiao Yue, don't you love me?"
They were all hugging each other.
Except it was four people hugging together, creating a rather chaotic scene. Xiao Ai couldn't quite sort out the relationships at first, but Zhang Yiren, standing beside him, didn't care about the confusion. He immediately thrust Marriage Certificates into everyone's hands.
Fortunately, the Marriage Certificates glowed red simultaneously, indicating that the marriages were valid. All that remained was to hold the wedding ceremony to obtain the Legacy Value.
"Not bad," Xiao Ai said, taking a Marriage Certificate from Zhang Yiren. After glancing at it, he handed it back. "Take these Marriage Certificates and the two couples to Neon City to find Lord Mang. You've done a decent job."
"So, this is the relationship between the four of them?"
"Um..."
Zhang Yiren hesitated before forcing himself to explain, "It's... complicated. Basically, in the script, all four of them had very convoluted histories. Each of them had been in love with the other three."
"Don't blame me," he added defensively. "Lord Mang specifically told me to make it as convoluted as possible."
As they gradually regained consciousness, the two couples realized they had been living through a very long dream. Their gazes toward the other three were complex, their lips parting slightly but ultimately remaining silent. Everything was conveyed in unspoken understanding.
The wedding ceremony was perfect.
The 1,000 marriage points and 40 Legacy Value points were credited to their accounts. Before the Stellaris residents could even rest, they were soon preparing for a second wedding.
However...
The two couples didn't seem to be getting along very well.
"Now that we're married," a young man said, cornering a woman in a dimly lit alley of Neon City, his expression serious. "That means we're officially family in this apocalypse. We'll be living on the Stellaris for a long time."
"It's the apocalypse. I'm not asking for much."
"I just want to know if you used to work as a prostitute."
"Just because I have tattoos?" the woman snapped, her face flushed with anger and humiliation.
"Yes, just because you have tattoos."
The young man stated firmly, "It's not that I discriminate against women with tattoos. It's just that the overlap between tattooed women and prostitutes is too high. Seventy percent of tattooed women are prostitutes."
"Bullshit! Don't judge the entire industry based on your narrow-minded views."
Chen Mang handed the tablet back to Xiao Ai, who stood beside him. He had no interest in this conversation. After all, they were already married, and he didn't know how to get a divorce anyway. If things fell apart, they'd just take it to court and find twenty residents to serve as jurors.
The losing party would be executed.
Simple and efficient.
Through the Mechanical Eye, Xiao Ai could monitor every corner of the city.
"Remember to send robots to fine people who urinate or defecate in public."
"This is outrageous!"
"There's a public restroom right there! They have no manners whatsoever."
"Understood."
Xiao Ai nodded, indicating he had noted the instruction. "Uncle Li and the others are worried that if we start fining people, they might stop coming, and we'll lose customers."
"Everything fades away. We can't relinquish control just to retain customers. The initiative must remain with us. Only after securing that foundation should we consider increasing passenger numbers. Impose fines where necessary. Losing a few train conductors won't impact Neon City in the slightest."
"Understood."
Time passed quickly.
Soon it was midnight, and Neon City's business day had ended. Now it was time for the residents of the Stellaris to relax. Of course, with the meager resources they possessed, they couldn't afford much in Neon City.
They couldn't afford anything, really.
Mostly, they just gazed at Neon City's dazzling skyscrapers.
That was about it.
The rest was left to Old Pig and his crew. They set up a large gathering in the plaza, complete with singing, dancing, and movie screenings. Everyone seemed to be having a blast, but Chen Mang wasn't fond of crowds.
He retreated to the locomotive cabin alone.
The cabin felt eerily quiet now. Such a massive train, yet so few people remained—it felt almost empty.
Just then—
"Lord Mang, have some fruit."
Chen Mang glanced sideways at Xiao Fang, who was approaching. Suddenly, the locomotive cabin felt a little more lively. He casually asked, "Aren't you going to Neon City to have some fun?"
"I thought I should stay in case you need me when you get back tonight, Lord Mang. Otherwise, there'd be no one to run errands."
"Hmm, you're a thoughtful girl."
He turned to look at Xiao Fang. Her delicate features and slender figure were top-notch—quite pleasing. But what he liked most was her personality.
"You've thought this through thoroughly."
"Bring me a basin of hot water and massage my feet. I've been standing all day, and they're really sore."
"Yes, Lord Mang."
Chen Mang settled into his chair and checked the train upgrade requirements.
Upgrade Requirements: Consume 60,000 units of Tier 3 Iron Mine; total tier of all accessories must exceed Tier 240; possess over 500 survivors; have three pairs of train residents married via the 'Doomsday Marriage Certificate'; and have one child under the age of 16.
He met all the requirements. It seemed the Mining Robots couldn't completely replace survivors after all, since the train upgrade still required a minimum number of survivors.
After consuming 6 million units of iron ore, the familiar notification box appeared on the control panel screen.
[Your train has been upgraded to Tier 15.
More craftable accessories have been unlocked.]
"Phew..."
Chen Mang exhaled softly as he sat in his chair. The train had finally reached Tier 15, placing it in the Purple Zone. Tier 15 was the highest possible tier for a train; to advance further, they would need to enter the Red Zone.
The moment the upgrade completed, a sudden, peculiar sound echoed through the locomotive cabin.
It was faint, yet strangely sticky, like the bleating of a sheep: "Baa-baa."
He instinctively glanced at Xiao Lu, who had been unconscious in the adjacent chair. The little creature had awakened, wriggling and mumbling with its mouth pursed, emitting a series of odd noises.
"Little guy, you're finally awake!"
Chen Mang scooped Xiao Lu into his arms, examining him closely. The creature's eyes were still half-closed, likely from sleeping too long, but its mouth was already making soft, grinding sounds. Held in Chen Mang's arms, Xiao Lu kept nuzzling its head against his chin.
"Hey!"
The ticklish sensation made Chen Mang chuckle. He pressed Xiao Lu's head down. "Stop nuzzling! It's ticklish."
"Let's see if you've changed at all since waking up. You look exactly the same! After eating so much iron ore, you should be more useful. If enemies attack, can you protect me?"
This was his special carriage, the "Giant Beast Car." Every time he upgraded the train, he would allocate a portion of the iron ore to Xiao Lu.
He felt a twinge of regret that Xiao Lu had awakened.
He had initially hoped Xiao Lu might be more than just an S-Class Cosmic Behemoth cub, perhaps even an R-Class cub. Now it seemed he had been overly optimistic; after all, such a tier didn't even exist. It was merely a hypothetical level he had imagined.
In the next moment—
As if understanding his thoughts, Xiao Lu rolled to the ground, then hopped out the window. Before landing, its body instantly expanded into a massive green sphere, easily over ten meters in diameter.
Still fluffy.
It opened its cavernous maw, revealing at least a hundred heavy machine guns lining its throat, before turning its muzzle toward the open air. With a deafening tutututu, a storm of steel erupted from its mouth like a raging torrent! Then it jumped back onto Chen Mang's lap.
Chen Mang, his expression complex, cradled Xiao Lu in his arms and pried open its jaws, peering at the miniature machine guns lining its throat. "Doesn't it hurt?"
Xiao Lu shook his head.
The effect of the "Giant Beast Car" was to accelerate the growth of Cosmic Behemoth Cubs and grant them combat capabilities even in their juvenile stage. Normally, Xiao Lu wouldn't possess any offensive abilities at this stage.
But now that he had become a Giant Beast Car, he possessed the offensive capabilities of a "Built-in Security System."
"You can even grow bigger! That's amazing!"
"What do you usually eat?"
"Human food?"
"You don't eat that?"
"Energy stones, then?"
"Not those either?"
"Iron ore?"
This time, Xiao Lu nodded.
"Alright," Chen Mang said, lifting Xiao Lu into the air with a smile. "You're quite the gold-guzzler, aren't you? For now, I don't have much information about Cosmic Behemoths, so you'll have to make do. Once I reach Tier 18 and learn more about your kind, I'll figure out how to properly nurture you."
"Cosmic Behemoths..."
"Born to live in the starry sea—just hearing that sounds incredible."
"Even though you could grow to 10 meters just now, your seniors used to devour entire stars! You still have a long way to go to catch up to them."
Xiao Lu pouted, a hint of disdain flashing in his eyes.
"Tsk, still pouting? You think you'll be stronger than them when you grow up?"
"Alright, I look forward to seeing what you'll become. I've always wondered how a Cosmic Behemoth eats a star."
Sitting nearby, Xiao Fang cradled Chen Mang's pale, soaked feet in her lap and carefully trimmed his toenails with a blade. She couldn't help but smile at the banter between Lord Mang and Xiao Lu, having rarely witnessed such tenderness from him.
"You know how to do pedicures?" Chen Mang asked, holding Xiao Lu in his arms and smiling at Xiao Fang. "My nails haven't been trimmed in ages. I used to cut them often because of ingrown toenails, but after the medical bay cured it, I stopped bothering."
"Were you a pedicurist before the apocalypse?"
Time to find a replacement.
Xiao Fang's job is obsolete.
"No," Xiao Fang replied without looking up, concentrating on her work. "Lord Mang, have you forgotten? When you first asked my name, I told you I was an elementary school teacher. Cutting ingrown toenails too often only makes them worse."
"The deeper you cut, the more awkwardly the nail grows back, creating a vicious cycle."
"I used to enjoy watching videos of donkey hoof trimming before the apocalypse, so I picked it up along the way."
"..."
Chen Mang stared at Xiao Fang, his expression unreadable.
"Lord Mang," Xiao Fang said hastily, a hint of anxiety in her voice. "Did I say something wrong?"
"It's fine."
He was in a good mood. They were practically the only two left in the train; even Ji Chuchu and the others had gone inside to play. The locomotive cabin window remained open, letting the night wind sweep in, creating a chilly yet refreshing sensation as it mixed with the warm air.
He liked this feeling.
Winter was almost over.
He glanced down at Xiao Lu, who was constantly dodging his touch, and asked casually, "How's the elementary school teacher job?"
"Not great. It's a real mixed bag."
Xiao Fang had finished trimming her nails. After washing her feet again, she dried them and began gently massaging them. "The elementary school teacher community is really diverse. Some are fresh college graduates, others got easy jobs through their powerful husbands, and then there are people like me—just drifting along."
"There's a lot of showing off among colleagues."
"I've always been indecisive. From childhood, I've just followed my family's arrangements. They told me to come here, so I did. I passed all the exams smoothly along the way."
"What about your parents?"
"They're dead."
"Did they die in front of you?"
"Yes. My father killed my mother, then took his own life."
"Driven to suicide by despair?"
"No. Right after the outbreak, my father drove my mother to the school to pick me up. There were so many cars jammed at the gate. At first, people were still trying to follow the rules, letting those with power and influence go first. But as the situation grew more desperate, no one cared about that anymore."
Xiao Fang's voice grew somber. "Later, the car became stuck. During the escape, both my parents were injured by zombies while protecting me. The wounds weren't severe, but they were afraid they'd turn into zombies and attack me. So my father killed my mother first, then himself."
"I thought zombie bites didn't cause infection?"
"Yes, but in pre-apocalypse films, it was almost universally assumed that any injury would lead to infection. That's why I hate those filmmakers so much. If it weren't for them, my parents wouldn't have died."
"..."
Chen Mang picked up the mineral water from the table, took a large gulp, and then lit a cigarette. He didn't know how to respond. He thought, At least wait to see if you mutate before killing yourself. Why rush? If all else fails, you could have tied yourself up.
The courage to end one's own life with such resolve was truly unwavering.
Wait, this cigarette tastes off.
He frowned slightly and took another drag to confirm. The taste was definitely wrong. He coughed lightly and swallowed, feeling a faint soreness. It was likely tonsillitis or a throat infection from a cold.
How strange.
His body should be in near-perfect health. How could he even get sick? He'd have to get it fixed in the medical bay later.
For some reason...
Perhaps it was the pleasant night breeze.
He was actually enjoying sitting there, massaging his feet while chatting casually with Xiao Fang about everyday matters. It brought a sense of ease and contentment, a rare feeling in the apocalypse.
"My condolences, Uncle. He was a true..."
The voice cut off abruptly.
Chen Mang quickly withdrew his right foot, looking bewildered at Xiao Fang, who was sitting on the stool, leaning forward with her mouth slightly agape. "What are you trying to do?"
"I..."
"Did Ji Chuchu teach you this?"
"I was just about to comfort you, even managed to blurt out 'my condolences,' and you pull this on me?"
Xiao Fang lowered her head, sitting there in frightened silence.
"Forget it," Chen Mang sighed, waving his hand. "No more chatting. Go downstairs. I'll call you if I need anything."
He genuinely enjoyed these casual chats.
Normally, no one ever talked to him about such things.
But...
It was clear that once he sat in this position, no one would ever simply want to chat with him out of genuine camaraderie.
"I just..."
"Just thought Lord Mang has been working too hard lately and wanted him to relax a bit."
"Working hard? Where?"
Chen Mang waved his hand dismissively. "What work do I even do around here? You guys handle everything."
"It's mentally exhausting."
"With so many people on Stellaris, and considering future developments, Lord Mang, you have to worry about everything."
"Bullshit," he cursed, his lips parting slightly as if to say more, but he couldn't help nodding. "There's some truth to that, I guess. Alright, get going. And stay away from Ji Chuchu and her crowd from now on."
"What kind of blogger trims donkey hooves with their mouth?"
"I used to enjoy watching people gnaw on chicken feet," Xiao Fang added softly as she picked up the footbath and headed for the door, sensing Chen Mang wasn't angry.
"You're so infuriating, you make me laugh."
Chen Mang watched Xiao Fang's retreating figure, shaking his head and chuckling. That girl's quite something. He then turned to the control panel. After the train upgraded to Tier 15, the control panel had undergone corresponding changes.
(End of the Chapter)
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