Chapter 165: Not Enough Fire (Request Monthly Tickets!)

What does that mean?

Lin Xian glanced at the strange plague plant; he had never paid it special attention before, but now, with Ding Junyi's reminder, he noticed the flower had indeed… become redder.

"It's not your imagination." Ding Junyi seemed to guess what Lin Xian was thinking, pulling out a mobile terminal and displaying a set of comparative data, handing it to Lin Xian.

"The red glow and the opening and closing of the pistil have changed significantly."

Lin Xian stared at the monitoring comparison on the terminal, his brow furrowing immediately.

"So what does this mean? Has the flower bloomed?"

Ding Junyi adjusted her glasses: "Plague Plant No. 1 spent 21 days in the lab before leaving the underground city. During that time, it showed no change at all. The first change occurred on the night we left Underground City No. 9. At first, I thought it might be entering a growth phase—but it wasn't. Then, last night, after we left Yubei Airport, its pistil opened and closed dramatically, and the red glow intensified by at least fifty percent."

Lin Xian was baffled: "And then?"

"That's all." Ding Junyi slipped her hands into her pockets, her expression calm. "Plague Plant No. 1 is a valuable asset on the train. I needed to inform you of this. If you want me to analyze it, I can only say there are many possible theories."

"For example, you just suggested it might be a sign of maturation—I lean toward that judgment too. But both changes correlate with major events we've experienced, and the red glow isn't consistent or predictable. So other theories exist: perhaps linked to environmental shifts, or to strange entities, or to dark-side energy."

Lin Xian nodded, glancing at the Hell Black Chrysanthemum: "As long as it doesn't turn into a monster on the train, I can accept anything."

As he spoke, Lin Xian seemed to remember something and immediately moved to Car No. 1, pulling a bottle of water from a storage cabinet.

This water had been collected by Chen Sixuan using a purifier before they entered Yubei City, stored in a plastic bottle to test the heteromorphic cube's ability to block dark invasion forces. But after entering Yubei City, they faced one trouble after another, and he'd completely forgotten about it.

He opened the bottled water and used a water quality detector to test it directly.

Beep.

A green light flashed on the detector. Lin Xian's brow lifted.

"As expected!"

Lin Xian stared at the heteromorphic cube mounted on the wall, his gaze intense: "It really can block contamination from dark invasion. It's truly a divine artifact. If so, even if more people board the train, we shouldn't worry about infections or internal chaos."

He exhaled, checked the time, and returned to the cockpit to prepare for departure.

"Everyone pay attention—the crows fear fire. Don't shoot later; it might attract more. Close all windows and follow the Infinite Number exactly."

Lin Xian broadcasted over the convoy's radio channel.

"Received." Everyone responded in unison.

"Lu Xingchen, it's your turn."

As soon as he heard the crows feared fire, Lin Xian immediately thought of Lu Xingchen. The Shu Qin convoy had no flame projectors; using guns against these beasts would waste bullets and risk triggering a chain reaction.

"Fear fire? Hehehehe—fire is the natural enemy of all demons and evil spirits. I am here to purify these monsters. Don't worry—I'll handle it."

Kiki and the others, hearing the self-indulgent voice over the radio, all frowned.

"This guy is so full of himself."

Da Lou, in Car No. 5, heard Lu Xingchen's voice over the radio and couldn't help glancing up at him in disbelief.

Lu Xingchen was standing before a large mirror, constantly adjusting various poses.

"Divine Crossfire!" Lu Xingchen struck a pose with both hands crossed at the fingers, then studied himself in the mirror: "No, no… not right."

Then he placed the cross before his left eye: "Looks a bit sleazy."

Then he moved it to his chest—but still wasn't satisfied: "Too sinister. Doesn't suit my style."

So he simply held both hands flat and made a pointing cross gesture—only to glance at his reflection and grunt: "Why does it look even more flamboyant now?!"

"Change it! Change it again…"

Da Lou: "..."

Clank.

The iron gate of the maintenance shed opened. The Infinite Number slowly pulled out, dragging two trains behind it. The rusted rails groaned. The seven vehicles in Shu Qin's convoy also started their engines. The occupants stared tensely as they rolled onto the roadway, then turned onto the tracks at the junction.

The Ring Star Mainline used wide, hard-metal tracks. Some sections allowed electromagnetic acceleration and magnetic levitation—cars drove over them as if on flat ground, with almost no resistance.

Caw-caw~

The vibration of the tracks instantly startled a vast flock of black corpse crows into flight, rising like a cloud of black dust, swarming toward the train.

"Everyone, pay attention—accelerate! The rear vehicles just follow, don't fall behind. We'll handle the crows!"

Whoo~

The twin-star 11R nuclear-powered electric locomotive's motor roared to life, joined by the frantic acceleration of the whale gas turbine engine!

On the other side, Lin Xian had positioned Lu Xingchen at the rear of the train to cover the convoy behind.

Thump-thump-thump~

The corpse crows startled from the roadside surged wildly toward the front of the Infinite Number. In an instant, black feathers and shredded flesh exploded everywhere, the crows shrieking ear-splitting cries as they threw themselves at the train without regard for their lives.

From the shattered corpses, countless black worms flew out, crawling over the front of the train and the windows, making viewers' scalps crawl.

!

"Little girl!"

Kiki had been specifically stationed up front by Lin Xian to handle this exact situation.

"Eww~" Kiki grimaced at the dense swarm of worms, pushing her hand forward—immediately, an invisible psychic shield blasted the black worms away. The crows that crashed into it bounced off the invisible air barrier, unable to get near the front of the train.

Seeing this, Lin Xian said: "Good! Keep it up!"

Lin Xian assigned Chen Sixuan and Kiki to drive and block the corpse crows ahead, while he rushed toward the rear cars.

Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh!

A sky-full of corpse crows rained down like an avalanche, slamming into the train's sides and roof. Above the rear convoy, the air was thick with flying crows.

"Fire Fist!"

Boom!

A massive pillar of flame erupted over the train's roof, sending searing heat waves surging forward. Countless crows were instantly engulfed, burning with white flames like gunpowder, accompanied by crisp popping sounds.

Puff-puff-puff-puff!

In an instant, chain reactions ignited across the sky, waves of fire spreading outward, swallowing the entire flock of crows!

"Aaaah!!!"

Many in Shu Qin's convoy screamed in terror at the blazing inferno—the heat pressed down violently.

Zip-zip-zip!

Several grappling hooks shot from the train, precisely latching onto the trailer frames of several vehicles. Lin Xian opened the hatch in the rear empty car and hooked all the vehicles onto the train's towing links!

"Not enough fire!"

Lin Xian shouted to Lu Xingchen.

"Then burn the whole city down!"

Lu Xingchen declared, leaping from the train door, stepping onto the towing chains Lin Xian had created, then spraying fire downward, using the recoil to blast upward!

He soared into the sky, gazing at the sea of crows like a black cloud, his eyes cold, lips curling slightly, hands crossed before his chest.

"Divine: Scorching Heaven!"

Boom!

Explosive flames radiated from his body like an exploding firecloud, searing heat surging upward!

Lin Xian frowned at the sight, muttering:

"This guy—never let him wear clothes again."

(End of Chapter)