My Apocalypse Train

Translator: Anubis Translations

"Here's what we'll do," Chen Mang said after a moment's thought. "Take these two women down and give them a quick wash—don't use too much water. Then, tomorrow morning, announce to all the slaves that whoever mines the most ore will get first pick of these two women for the night."

"The second-place miner will get the other one."

"We have several women among the slaves, right? Tomorrow, carefully tally their mining output. If their efficiency is far below the others, don't have them mine anymore. Just assign them to the logistics team."

"Understood!" Old Pig nodded solemnly, pulled out a small notebook from his pocket, and recorded Chen Mang's orders. Only then were the two women led away by a couple of thugs.

Chen Mang didn't engage in much conversation with this newly appointed "thug leader." After exchanging a few brief words and learning the man's name, he dismissed Old Pig and Biaozi.

His first impression of Biaozi was that he seemed physically robust, with thick muscles and a tough-looking frame.

After they left, Chen Mang lay down on the bed inside the locomotive cabin and sighed softly. How nice it would be to have a smoke before bed.

He needed some mental stimulation.

But.

He couldn't find a single cigarette in Master Kun's locomotive. The old man didn't smoke at all. Once the train reached Tier 2, he'd have to make a trip to the city ruins to see if he could find some cigarettes.

As for finding a woman to satisfy his physical needs, he'd put that off until he found some cigarettes. Without a post-coital smoke, he simply couldn't get in the mood. Sex without that crucial final step was utterly devoid of pleasure.

Drowsily, he drifted off to sleep.

This was his fourth day in this world, and this night, unlike the previous three, brought him a deeper slumber.

He dreamed of many things:

Of roaring across the wasteland with unrestrained vigor, mastering the train's power.

Of the train being overwhelmed by a zombie horde, everyone devoured by the undead.

Of betrayal by his subordinates, leaving him utterly alone.

Even of the train soaring ten thousand miles into the sky.

Sha Sha Sha Sha Sha Sha.

Half-awake, Chen Mang was jolted awake by a rhythmic noise. Opening his eyes, he saw raindrops pattering against the locomotive cabin's glass, creating a soft, rhythmic sha sha.

It's raining.

The thought flashed through his mind, and he turned over on the soft bed, drifting back to sleep, feeling more rested than before. For some reason, rainy days always seemed to make him feel more suited to sleep.

But then—

He suddenly heard some inappropriate sounds, like the roars of animals?

The next moment—

Chen Mang instantly woke up, the sleepiness gone as he sprang from the bed and stood at the train control panel, looking around. In the pitch-black rain, he could vaguely make out a pack of wolf-like creatures surrounding the train, growling continuously. Though they hadn't attacked, the train was already surrounded.

"Damn it!"

His expression changed abruptly as he sat down at the control panel, merging his will with the train. Accompanied by the roar of the locomotive's engine, a growing push against his back, the train began to advance through the dark rain. At the same time, the Tier 5 Vehicle Blades surrounding the carriages extended and began to spin rapidly.

The whistling sound of the blades slicing through the air mixed with the low growls of the wolf-like creatures, transforming the once-peaceful rainy night into an atmosphere thick with murderous intent.

Then, the train gradually accelerated. The wolf-like creatures didn't dare block its path and scattered to the sides, but...

Screech!

The high-speed rotating blades sliced through any approaching wolves, cleaving them in two.

Even after reaching top speed, Chen Mang didn't flee far. This was where his mine was, and he needed to protect it; he couldn't run too far. Besides, he'd only counted twenty or thirty wolves—nowhere near as terrifying as a zombie horde. This was a manageable threat.

In terms of speed, these wolves couldn't compare to the train.

Though more agile, under Chen Mang's skilled handling, the train's repeated collisions quickly eliminated the last of the wolves, consigning them to the rain-soaked night.

With the danger neutralized, Chen Mang slowly brought the train to a halt. He left the locomotive cabin and stepped into the rain, approaching a wolf carcass. Expressionless, he bent down to examine it. By then, Old Pig, Biaozi, and their thugs had armed themselves and rushed down from Living Car No. 3, surrounding Chen Mang and keeping watch on their surroundings.

"Lord Mang!"

"..."

Chen Mang remained silent, his gaze fixed on the corpse of the starving zombie wolf beneath his feet. He had seen this creature before in the Newbie Guide—a zombie wolf, typically a Tier 1 monster. These creatures usually roamed the wilderness, scavenging rotting carcasses—zombie remains, human corpses, and the remains of other monsters.

While not particularly aggressive, despite being pack animals, their numbers never swelled to the catastrophic Tiers of a zombie horde. Even without being startled awake, these wolves would have struggled to breach the train's armor.

But...

This incident served as a stark reminder. The train urgently needed components like radar. Until that could be arranged, someone would have to stand night watch. This time, they'd escaped danger, but what if next time it was a full-blown zombie horde?

Trapped in the middle of a relentless horde, the train's very ability to start up would be in jeopardy.

Moreover, the Vehicle Blade's operation depended on the energy stone in the locomotive. Though the energy consumption was minimal, it couldn't run indefinitely. As time wore on, they would inevitably be overwhelmed and trapped by the horde.

"Biaozi."

Chen Mang stood in the pitch-black rain, tilting his head to look at Biaozi beside him and murmured, "Assign a few men to stand guard tonight. If this happens again, we might both end up dead here."

"Yes, this kind of mistake won't happen again," Biaozi replied in a hoarse, somewhat ashamed voice. He had actually arranged for someone to stand guard, but the other thugs hadn't listened to him. He could only assign his own man, Black Rat, to watch. But who knew that the damn bastard's mother would actually fall asleep!

He couldn't reveal this; if he did, Black Rat's life would be in danger, and he'd have to take the blame himself.

Although Lord Mang hadn't specifically ordered it, this was something he, as the leader of the thugs, should have arranged himself.

Just then—

Old Pig stepped forward, crouched in the rain, picked up a piece of torn wolf meat, sniffed it, and frowned uneasily. "Brother Mang, something's not quite right here."

"Normally, zombie wolves are considered among the weaker monsters in the wasteland. They usually don't venture too far into the wilderness, preferring to roam the city ruins in search of rotting corpses to eat."

"Only severely injured, sick, or elderly zombie wolves are driven deep into the wasteland by their packs."

"But these are all healthy, adult zombie wolves. Logically, they shouldn't be found in this location."

"Unless..."

"A more terrifying monster has appeared in the nearest city ruins, forcing them to migrate."

"If that's the case, the survivors in that city are in grave danger. Some may have already begun fleeing, but the rain-soaked wasteland will only serve as their grave."

"These survivors typically hide deep within the city ruins, making them difficult to find. By now, a train may already be en route to evacuate them."

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