My Apocalypse Train

Translator: AnubisTL

"Listen to me," the Bloodthirsty Mad Bull Trainmaster said, his expression serious as he looked at Chen Mang. "I'm not pulling your leg, brother. She's definitely valuable. Otherwise, I wouldn't have brought her to the Gathering."

"I know the Train Conductor of the King of Electronic Music train will be here later."

"That dwarf can't resist tall women. This woman will fetch a high price from him. I saw on the Train Radio that he also has Spider Silk for sale."

"If you trade this woman, you'll definitely get all the Spider Silk he has."

"If you offer Iron Ore, he might not be willing to pay a high price. But if it's Spider Silk, he'll be thrilled."

"..."

Chen Mang couldn't help but chuckle. "Didn't you just say Spider Silk was a rare material? Why is it suddenly worth less than Iron Ore?"

The man coughed awkwardly.

"Spider Silk is rare, yes, but it has limited uses compared to Iron Ore's versatility. You should understand that."

"Deal," Chen Mang said with a smile, sealing the trade without further discussion.

He actually knew the King of Electronic Music train conductor had this particular taste. On the Train Radio that day, a conductor had announced he had a 1.78-meter female slave waiting for a suitable buyer. Chen Mang had noticed the King of Electronic Music train conductor had briefly appeared during that announcement. This meant the King's Spider Silk supply was now secure, since Chen Mang's slave was even taller, standing at a full 1.87 meters. He had originally planned to trade a Train Token for the silk.

The King of Electronic Music train conductor still hadn't arrived.

Chen Mang imitated the other conductors and found an empty spot to sit down. He also grabbed a wooden board and wrote:

Stellaris

Selling Train Tokens, Seeking Spider Silk

He wrote "Stellaris" specifically for the King of Electronic Music train conductor, to help them recognize each other. He was quite satisfied with the trade he'd made with the Bloodthirsty Mad Bull Train. His initial expectation had been to trade the Handheld Zombie Perception Blocker for the Spider Silk.

The outcome had exceeded his expectations.

And he'd gained a woman in the process.

He had already received 4,500 Units of Spider Silk. He needed a total of 8,100 Units to upgrade his Spider Leg accessory to Tier 13.

Not long after, Chen Mang saw a dwarf man striding toward him, followed by seven or eight thugs. Before Chen Mang could say a word, the dwarf's eyes were already fixed on the tall woman behind him. He spoke slowly, word by word:

"Brother, name your price. I'll buy this woman."

Chen Mang sighed inwardly. He had thought the dwarf had recognized him, but it seemed he had simply spotted the woman in the crowd and made a beeline for her. He could only point his cane at the wooden board displaying the three characters: "Stellaris."

The dwarf followed the cane's line of sight and immediately realized who Chen Mang was. His face lit up with a wide grin.

"So it's you."

"Looks like you've done your homework on me."

"Then let's get straight to the point."

"I have 1,800 Units of Spider Silk. I'll trade it for this woman."

"Too low."

Chen Mang shook his head, speaking seriously. "Do you know how much I paid to buy this woman? A woman who's 1.87 meters tall—do you know how rare that is?"

The dwarf frowned slightly, then fell into deep thought for a moment.

"How much Spider Silk do you need in total?"

"3,600 Units."

"If I give you 3600 Units of Spider Silk, can I have that woman?"

"Yes."

"Wait here. Several trains joined me last time when we hunted man-eating spiders in Taiping City. I'll contact them now. Give me a few hours, and I'll be right back."

Without further ado, the dwarf turned and strode out of the Gathering.

Five hours later.

The dwarf returned, placing 3800 Units of Spider Silk in front of Chen Mang's stall. He took a deep breath, then glanced at the tall woman behind him, licking his lips impatiently. "Is it done now?"

"Pleasant transaction," Chen Mang said, shaking the dwarf's hand to seal the deal.

By this point, the Gathering had largely dispersed. Night would fall in a few hours, and half the trains had already departed.

Chen Mang still hadn't sold his Train Token.

Only a handful of people had inquired, and the highest offer he'd received was just 2000 Units of Iron Ore. Most train conductors bought these tokens as insurance—a safeguard in case their train crashed, giving them a chance to rise again.

But since it was merely insurance, they weren't willing to pay a high price.

Chen Mang wasn't in a rush to sell.

For Chen Mang, 2,000 Units of Iron Ore wouldn't solve any major problems—it was barely two days' worth of production from his slaves. He decided to keep it.

Whoosh

Standing at the edge of the Stellaris train, Chen Mang watched several trains roar into the distance. The Gathering had concluded, and for him, it had been a perfect curtain call.

He had gathered more than enough Spider Silk, with 200 Units to spare.

Now, it was time to upgrade his Spider Leg and venture into the Doomsday Abyss in the wasteland.

It was worth noting that the entire Gathering had passed without a single conflict. There wasn't even a verbal argument, let alone a fight. Everyone had shown remarkable restraint, and no one had needed to maintain order—the consensus had been self-enforced.

Each train conductor had a trading need.

Anyone who violated this unspoken rule would find it nearly impossible to trade with other conductors for a long time afterward. Anyone daring to break the consensus would become a public enemy.

With no significant power disparity among the participants, this consensus proved quite effective.

Chen Mang had also witnessed the diverse and varied nature of the trains.

As night fell over the wasteland, under a sky ablaze with stars, the Stellaris train, like a long dragon, hurtled into the distance like an arrow shot from a bow!

After entering the coordinates of the Doomsday Abyss into the control panel, Chen Mang drove the Stellaris through the night for about four hours, finally arriving at the abyss just as dusk approached.

Inside lay a Tier 2 Iron Ore deposit.

One Unit of Tier 2 Iron Ore was equivalent to ten Units of Tier 1 Iron Ore.

With the Stellaris' current slave population, they could extract approximately ten thousand Units of Iron Ore per day. In just five days, they could trade for Ji Chuchu.

Once he returned from the Doomsday Abyss, he could upgrade the train's armor to Tier 3, all accessories to Tier 5, and unlock an Overpowered Effect for each, transforming the Stellaris into a fully equipped Tier 2 train!

When he returned from the Doomsday Abyss, the zombie horde that had once chased him relentlessly would be as easy to slaughter as cutting grass.

No matter how many zombies there were, it wouldn't matter.

When the power disparity reached a certain point, numbers lost their significance.

Finally, after another half hour, the Stellaris successfully reached the edge of the Doomsday Abyss.

"..."

Chen Mang stepped out of the train, leaning on his cane as he gazed at the abyss before him. It stretched for thousands of meters and was nearly forty meters wide. He looked toward the distant horizon.

The surroundings were deserted.

Under the starry sky, there was a sense of extreme, desolate beauty. In a peaceful era, this place might have attracted many campers.

At the bottom of the bottomless abyss lay a Tier 2 Iron Ore deposit and a Tier 1 Copper Mine, like shy maidens waiting to be cherished.

(End of the Chapter)

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