In the wilderness, loneliness is inevitable.
Even though there are many people on the train, it's rare to see other trains on a daily basis. The entire train drifts like a lone boat on a vast ocean. No one knows what they'll encounter next, or whether they'll even see tomorrow's sun.
When dawn broke.
The slaves in carriages 4 and 5 woke up. The train beneath them was speeding across the wasteland. They didn't know their destination, only that if there was a mine, they would work; if not, they would stay in the carriage.
Finally—
When the train came to a gradual stop, the slaves stepped off and found themselves back at the familiar mine from the previous day.
The Corpse Tide had receded.
They had returned.
The middle-aged man, who had lived in decent conditions before the apocalypse, looked out at the familiar mine and tucked the cigarette he'd been fiddling with back into his pocket. He patted the shoulder of the young man beside him with a smile, "Let's go. Grab your pickaxe. Time to work."
The young man had been chatting with him over the past few days, and the two had become quite familiar.
"Alright."
The young man was happy to follow this uncle, listening to his stories of his glorious past before the apocalypse—a world he had never experienced.
Before the apocalypse.
Capital had labeled him as a "small-town youth."
He didn't particularly like this label. He tried to voice his opinions online, seeking recognition, but the label changed—to "social waste."
The small-town youth label sounded better.
Still, he harbored resentment. Someone had to be the waste, so why couldn't it be him?
As dawn broke and the train stopped at the mine from the previous night.
A new day of mining began once again.
The enforcers also started their daily patrols and rounds near the train.
Inside the train.
After finishing his breakfast, Chen Mang sat at the control panel, secretly eavesdropping on the conversations of the Train Conductors in the Train Radio. This was his only form of entertainment; for now, there was nothing else.
The women on the train didn't quite meet his standards.
He wasn't desperate enough to settle for just anyone.
However, the Bloodthirsty Mad Bull Train had sent him a private message late last night, saying they had encountered dozens of Man-Eating Spiders and had harvested a lot of Spider Silk. They promised to trade more of it with him later.
Good.
Chen Mang glanced out at the enforcers patrolling outside and the slaves who had already descended into the mine. Everything was steadily moving in a better direction.
On the other side of the wasteland.
Inside the King of Electronic Music Train, a Dwarf Man sat at the control panel, idly scrolling through the Train Radio. A few days ago, after being driven out of Taiping City by a Level 3 Man-Eating Spider, he hadn't returned to that area.
Luckily, he had found a mine and had been stationed there, mining for the past few days.
And just now—
He saw a Train Conductor in the Train Radio mention that they had a female slave who was 1.8 meters tall, waiting for a suitable buyer at the upcoming gathering. This stirred something in him, a ripple in his previously indifferent heart.
"1.8 meters…"
The Dwarf Man murmured. He had always been this way, far shorter than the average person. Before the apocalypse, he made a living as an NPC in a "Land of Little People" theme park.
The park had many dwarves like him, on display for tourists.
Perhaps those with disabilities often had some psychological issues.
He was obsessed with tall women. Before the apocalypse, he had never dared to think about it. But after the apocalypse, last month, he had luckily obtained a Train Token and, through some opportunities, gained control of a fairly capable train.
With power, many previously unthinkable desires began to surface.
He liked women who were tall—it gave him a sense of conquest. No matter how tall they were, they would still have to submit to him.
The more a person lacks something, the more they pursue it.
After a moment of silence.
He sent a private message to the person in the Train Radio, agreeing to meet at the gathering to discuss the trade. He currently had two women, the tallest being only 1.76 meters, far shorter than this 1.8-meter-tall one. Add high heels, and she'd be nearly 1.9 meters.
A giant.
He liked that.
Just then—
A Train Conductor suddenly announced in the Train Radio that the Level 3 Man-Eating Spider in Taiping City had died, its body almost completely devoured by the Corpse Tide, leaving only an empty shell.
No photos—photos couldn't be sent in the chat room.
But the coordinates of the spider's corpse were included.
"Huh?"
The Dwarf Man input the coordinates into the control panel and found that they seemed to be along the route he had taken during his escape. Moreover, the location wasn't far from the Level 1 Iron Ore mine.
He remembered encountering a train mining near the Level 1 Iron Ore during his escape.
He had wanted to warn the train to flee back to the mine to survive, but since it was a Level 1 train without a Train Radio, he couldn't contact them, and the matter was left unresolved.
Given that train's speed, there was no way it could have outrun the Level 3 Man-Eating Spider.
It must be in hell now, building trains.
Perhaps some big shot with Level 3 Vehicle Components happened to pass by and killed the Level 3 Man-Eating Spider boss?
But why?
Given the spider's size, a Level 3 heavy machine gun would barely be enough. At least a Level 3 Automatic Cannon would be needed. Wasting so many shells just to kill a boss? Completely not worth it. Do you have so much Copper Ore to spare?
Although the boss's drops must be good, they couldn't possibly compare to the resources spent.
The man shrugged and didn't dwell on it. He planned to stay here and continue mining for the next few days, then head to the gathering to sell the batch of Spider Silk he had harvested, along with the Spider Leg blueprint.
Someone in the chat room had mentioned wanting to buy Spider Silk last night.
He'd contact them later.
He wondered how much Spider Silk they could take off his hands. After all, those who wanted Spider Silk were mostly looking to craft the Spider Leg, a green component that only required 600 units of Level 1 Fine Spider Silk to fully upgrade.
His Spider Leg had long been maxed out.
Inside the Stellar Train.
Chen Mang had thought that after last night's incident, today would be uneventful.
Like after your phone is stolen, there should be a period of safety—your phone couldn't possibly be stolen again so soon, right?
How could something so bad happen to one person so frequently?
But—
When noon arrived.
Chen Mang saw dozens of red dots slowly approaching on the Targeting Radar. Grabbing his Telescope, he looked out the window and saw twenty to thirty ragged survivors supporting each other as they approached.
Upon spotting his train parked in the wasteland, the survivors seemed to have found their target, their faces filled with unmistakable excitement as they quickened their pace toward him.
"Huh?"
He frowned. The nearest city ruins were in Taiping City. It had taken him about five hours to drive here from Taiping City at full speed. How had these survivors made it here?
On foot?
Had they not encountered a single monster along the way?
But he didn't have time to ponder these questions. All he knew was that a batch of slaves had delivered themselves to his doorstep. He needed to intercept them first. Grabbing the walkie-talkie, he barked, "Biao Zi, intercept this group."
"Search them thoroughly. Disarm them."
"Those who resist will be shot on the spot."