Chapter Twelve: The Preemptive Deployment Plan

[Current Mechanical Heart Level LV.1 210/500]
[Tip: Upgrading the Mechanical Heart grants special skill rewards. At levels 3, 6, and 9, a mysterious awakening can be attained.]

[Basic Attributes]
[Strength: LV1 27/50]
[Speed: LV1 8/50]
[Defense: LV0 18/30]

[Current Basic Skills]
[Mechanical Devour LV.1 278/300]
[Mechanical Manufacture LV.1 112/300]
[Mechanical Scan (Passive)]
[Mechanical Repair (Passive)]
[Mechanical Operation (Passive)]

[Special Skills]
[Wind Cannon LV.1 12/100]

"That’s strange. I used the Wind Cannon twice on that white monster, so why did the proficiency increase so much?"

Lin Xian stared at the Wind Cannon proficiency, now at 12, his mind filled with doubt. He had expected it to increase by just one point each time, but suddenly it had jumped by a large margin.

“Could it be that in critical moments, one’s mastery of a skill can improve dramatically?”

After much thought, Lin Xian found this hypothesis quite plausible.

Meanwhile, devouring a small-displacement truck had brought him immense benefits: 30 points of mechanical energy, 10 points of devour proficiency, and even an increase of 12 attribute points!

It was an absolute windfall.

"Damn it, if I had a whole parking lot, I’d just grind non-stop, 996 style, no breaks..."

Lin Xian grumbled in frustration.

But he knew this was merely wishful thinking.

Given the earlier circumstances, if not for some extraordinary luck, he couldn't explain how he had survived.

That monster must have stood beside him for some time, as he had indeed heard some sound beforehand.

Perhaps because he remained perfectly still and silent, the creature hadn't attacked immediately.

Otherwise, he would have been reduced to a spicy skewer by now.

As they say, high risk often brings high rewards.

Devouring a single vehicle took Lin Xian at least an hour and a half, requiring sustained focus and considerable physical effort. Now, under the influence of the Dark Tide, daytime in Jiang City lasted less than four hours.

There simply wasn’t enough time or opportunity for him to devour slowly. Once night fell, who knew what horrors might emerge.

“Maybe I could tow a freight car and devour it slowly at night…” The thought crossed his mind briefly.

But he quickly dismissed it.

“Ugh, no, that won’t work! An empty freight car is just an iron frame, the returns wouldn’t be much unless it was a locomotive…”

“But a locomotive weighing hundreds of tons would take ages to devour. Plus, there’s the question of whether I’d have enough stamina.”

Lin Xian had considered many possibilities over the past few months, but practical application proved far more complicated than theory.

3:00 PM

Suddenly, the sky brightened as Jiang City welcomed a brief dawn.

The entire city was silent and desolate. Lin Xian gazed northwest toward the distant intercity line, where a grim gray-black shroud still enveloped the area, as if trapped in a massive storm.

He knew that direction led to Lucheng and Dingzhou, the earliest areas to vanish on the Day of Revelation.

Because there lay the core of the third “Star Abyss.”

Compared to those places, the ruined Jiang City was almost fortunate, having granted many citizens time to flee. Even now, some survivors clung to life.

Lin Xian recalled a past trip to Lucheng, where the rice noodles and barbecue had been unforgettable, tempting him to linger.

Yet all these cultural symbols of humanity had instantly turned to ash under the apocalypse.

Sunlight filtering through the armored gaps of the train window fell upon Chen Sixuan’s face. She slowly opened her eyes, seeing Lin Xian welding the bed frame, and startledly sat up, apologizing with a heavy heart:

“Sorry... Lin Xian, did I oversleep?”

“It’s okay.” Lin Xian didn’t look back. “You didn’t seem well, and last night was unusual. That creature might come back, so I didn’t wake you.”

Even in daylight, Lin Xian remained uneasy.

That white giant might not be stopped even by his steel fortress. Having Chen Sixuan keep vigil at night would have been useless.

The urgent task was to continuously strengthen the defenses of the “Infinity” and rapidly improve his own strength.

“You... didn’t sleep at all?”

Lin Xian finished welding the steel bed frame, stood, and handed Chen Sixuan a bottle of water. “Today we’ll pass through Jiang City’s freight loading area. It could be troublesome, so prepare yourself mentally.”

“All right.” Chen Sixuan nodded earnestly, still feeling guilty. “I’ll stick with you today.”

“No need. I have something else I need your help with.”

Lin Xian led Chen Sixuan to the cockpit. He had already started the “Infinity,” which began to move slowly forward. As they traveled, he explained:

“This main road merges into the Jiang-Yu line without switching tracks. If all goes well, I plan to tow an electric locomotive today. I’ll get off in advance to operate the track switcher. When connecting the cars, I’ll need you to operate the coupling commands for me.”

He pointed at several control buttons, patiently explaining to Chen Sixuan:

“This releases the lock, this aligns the couplers, this locks the brake gates, and this tests the pathway...”

These technical terms were not unfamiliar to Chen Sixuan. Raised with her father’s railway knowledge, she understood the process of coupling train cars. Yet hearing about it was different from hands-on experience.

She listened intently, afraid to miss any detail.

Coupling was complicated for Lin Xian, mainly because he couldn’t control two cars simultaneously with the Mechanical Heart’s power. To switch tracks, he had to get off and manually operate the track switcher.

Once he stepped off, the “Infinity” lost its power source. The only way to move it was by physically pushing it forward, while the brake gates and couplers of the towed electric locomotive had to remain unlocked.

In this powerless state, he had to run back and forth.

Also, if they found such an electric locomotive, it had to be placed behind the gas turbine, before the first car.

The front of the Whale 03E was armored, and the heavy gas turbine was more robust than an electric locomotive, so it could only be second in line.

Overall, the operation was complex. Lin Xian alone would take at least a full day to manage it. With Chen Sixuan’s help, he could save more than half that time.

Clang, clang.

The train slowly departed the main urban area, heading toward Jiang City Station.

Upon leaving the city, the view suddenly opened up, revealing several main roads leading out of town.

But in an instant, both Lin Xian and Chen Sixuan’s expressions changed.

The roads were jammed solid with tens of thousands of cars, completely blocking the way. Pools of blood, severed limbs, burning car frames, and scattered luggage and clothing testified to the hellish conditions beyond the city.

The darkness had passed, but not a single living soul remained—only hordes of wandering zombies filled the hills and fields.

“Those who could run have already fled. The rest are trapped.”

The exit roads were completely blocked. Unless you had a tank or knew some secret path, the only way out was on foot.

But with the polar night approaching, daylight was down to barely three hours. How far could one walk on foot?

And even if you escaped the city, what then when night fell?

The monsters lurking in the darkness left even Lin Xian powerless, let alone ordinary people.

Staring at the grim scene on the roads, Chen Sixuan’s eyes trembled slightly. She then looked toward the clear railway ahead, deeply grateful to know Lin Xian and to be aboard this train.

The slowly moving train caught the attention of some survivors hiding nearby. Quiet glances fell upon it, and whispers began.

“A train? How is that possible?”

“Where did it come from...?”

“Stop! Stop!” someone shouted loudly from a building.

“Take me with you! I have supplies...!”

“Keep your voice down, or you’ll attract zombies!”

“Quick, close the windows!”

Clang~

Some even hurled stones at the train, shouting frantically,

“Stop! Let me on the train!”

“Are they going to steal our stuff?” Chen Sixuan asked nervously, hearing the stones strike.

“They’re definitely not here to be friendly,” Lin Xian replied coolly.

In the apocalypse, fighting to survive and compete for resources was nothing unusual.

Survival Rule #3: Better to kill a fellow traveler than let poverty kill you.

“Lin, look...” Chen Sixuan’s voice was sweet, and every time she spoke, Lin Xian’s resolve to save others grew stronger. In this life-or-death escape, having such a woman by his side lifted his spirits. It reminded him of school days when Chen Sixuan, wearing black-rimmed glasses, frowned seriously as she explained vocabulary to him.

Lin Xian looked up at her voice and suddenly his pupils contracted sharply.

It was snowing.

Outside the train, snowflakes drifted down, melting into tiny droplets on the window.

“Is winter here?” Chen Sixuan’s large eyes stared blankly at the falling snow, speaking softly to herself.

By the calendar, winter was still months away.

But Jiang City had been growing colder these past days. Now, with the gentle snowflakes falling, Lin Xian’s heart tightened. His worries were not unfounded.

Besides darkness, zombies, and strange phenomena, another disaster was arriving with the changing climate.

A natural disaster.

If the biting cold and snow arrived, the trouble would be more than just cold—humans would need more food to maintain body heat, and the train would require more energy to operate.

Extreme cold might even necessitate a heating system onboard.

“Damn…” Lin Xian cursed silently. He had planned to find a refrigerator to store food, but it seemed that plan was no longer necessary…