Chapter 17: Connecting the Electric Locomotive

Beep, beep.

Lin Xian cut off the watch’s alert; after two consecutive nights without rest, his mind was already hazy.

Listening to the strange sounds outside and smelling the stench wafting from the freezer, Lin Xian finally endured until 16:00 the next day.

Daylight had come.

But it was already afternoon, leaving only two hours and forty-five minutes until darkness.

Lin Xian, who had never lowered his guard, peered out through the observation window; the warehouse was now brightly lit, and he finally saw the scene outside.

The main door of Freezer No. 1 had been ripped open, the heavy door—made of stainless steel and composite materials—bent in unnatural curves, the floor splattered with crimson blood, and chunks of flesh hanging everywhere on the door and ground; several zombies still wandered outside, some gnawing on half-eaten corpses.

Lin Xian recognized a familiar tattoo on the corpse—it must have belonged to that middle-aged man—and a surge of satisfaction rose in his chest.

Good riddance.

Those who played fishing games in the apocalypse deserved to have their entire families wiped out.

Lin Xian’s gaze turned cold; he quickly pulled out the walkie-talkie and asked about the situation on the other end.

“Chen Laoshi, are you alright?”

Chen Sixuan, who had spent the night in terror, finally exhaled in relief upon hearing Lin Xian’s voice and responded immediately.

“I… I’m fine. What about you?”

“I’m fine too.” Hearing Chen Sixuan was unharmed, Lin Xian relaxed slightly; he kept scanning outside, confirmed the terrifying insect was gone, then continued speaking to her.

“I’m coming back right away. Stick to yesterday’s plan. There’s an electric locomotive on Track Four—make sure you coordinate with me.”

“Got it!”

With that, Lin Xian opened the freezer door again and, through the gap, fired a wind lance that shattered the chain!

The zombies outside, hearing the noise, immediately shrieked and lunged toward him.

Lin Xian swung his blade and fired several wind spears in quick succession, effortlessly dispatching the zombies.

Due to last night’s commotion, too many zombies had gathered; only when he stepped out of the warehouse door did he realize at least dozens still wandered outside.

He thought for a moment, then slipped quietly to Freezer No. 1, an empty construction materials warehouse; there, he unleashed several rapid wind spears, creating noise that quickly drew the dozens of zombies on the platform toward him.

As long as no strange creatures appeared at night, Lin Xian’s abilities made handling them relatively easy.

Soon, he sprinted down the platform to the Star-7F electric locomotive he’d seen yesterday, activated his Mechanical Heart, and opened the automated cockpit door.

He then disconnected the coupling, severed the gangway connection, and the traction motor emitted a low rumble as it slowly pulled the massive electric beast away from the platform.

On the other side, Lin Xian also severed the connection between Car No. 1 and the Whale-03E; after completing the sequence repositioning, with Chen Sixuan’s coordination, he precisely coupled the Star-7F electric locomotive to the second position.

Thus, the “Infinite” now had five cars: the lead car was the armored Whale-03E heavy gas turbine locomotive—the cockpit—while the Star-7F electric locomotive, positioned second, served as the kinetic energy recovery and power storage unit; behind it came Cars 123, the living quarters.

The Star-7F electric locomotive was twice as long as the Whale-03E, giving it a futuristic appearance; both locomotives were designed with gangways connecting them, allowing personnel to walk from front to rear.

But since it was a last-minute addition, Lin Xian hadn’t had time to upgrade the electric locomotive’s armor; after completing the connection, there was no time left—before darkness fell, he activated the new “Infinite” and set it moving eastward along the Jiangyu Line.

Clatter, clatter. The train rolled forward steadily.

Lin Xian increased speed to around 80 km/h; simultaneously, due to the added load, his stamina drained much faster.

“Between here and Beiwan Station, there are no tunnels, the terrain is flat, but watch out for falling rocks blocking the tracks,” Chen Sixuan reminded him while recording the speed.

Lin Xian nodded. “Alright. If anything happens, I’ll stop immediately.”

“How about that group from yesterday?”

How did that group from yesterday turn out?

Lin Xian glanced at Chen Sixuan. “None of them were good. They set traps to rob and kill. Last night, the zombies devoured them all.”

Chen Sixuan’s expression shifted slightly; she knew Lin Xian had skills, but hearing he’d killed an entire family still made her pale. In such a short time, a peaceful, safe world had turned into a hell of life-or-death.

For Chen Sixuan, a pampered rich girl raised in a highly educated family, this was still hard to accept.

For Chen Sixuan, a wealthy young woman raised since childhood in a highly educated family’s sheltered environment, this was still hard to accept at first.

“Zzz~ This is the Oasis convoy, final broadcast, final broadcast: If you have supplies, weapons, or any special ability, join us for a chance at survival. Only by sticking together can you stay warm. Don’t harbor illusions…”

“Zzz~ The 312 Avenue exit from the city is completely blocked. Detour via Linye Road. The Dongcheng District is swarming with hordes—don’t fire your guns lightly, or no one will get out…”

“Zzz~ Jiangcheng Bunker welcomes all psychics and beauties. We’re entrenched in Jiangcheng’s military nuclear bunker, over three hundred strong, clearly divided, capable of withstanding the Extreme Night…”

“Zzz~ Final broadcast today: I’m at Nameless Community A-Block, Unit 1304. Plenty of supplies. Safest apocalypse shelter. Only accepting beautiful women aged 16–30. Two spots left…”

“Zzz~ Yubei City Patrol Battalion report: Yan City and Fengcheng have both entered Extreme Night. Along the Lianshan Mountain Range from the east, the area stretching from Jiang City and Luolin City to Hechi and Minjiang, 100 to 300 kilometers, has experienced a massive outbreak of strange entities. Radiation index unknown…”

On the radio, Yan City and Fengcheng, not far from Jiang City, had both fallen. According to survivor reports, if one could escape 200–300 kilometers eastward, they could regain one hour of daylight.

This allowed for a rough estimation of the Dark Tide’s consumption rate of the third “Star Abyss.”

Two or three hundred kilometers might sound short, but in this apocalypse—transportation paralyzed, zombies everywhere, death and terror waiting with every nightfall—escaping even that distance was no simple feat.

Two or three hundred kilometers might sound close, but in this post-apocalyptic world, with transportation paralyzed and zombies everywhere, stepping into night meant endless terror of death—escaping two or three hundred kilometers was by no means simple.

“If the survivors’ reports are accurate, if we cross Yushan today and reach Beiwan Station, we should see daylight around 16:30 tomorrow.”

“If the survivors’ intelligence is accurate, if we cross Yushan today and reach Beiwan Station, we should be able to see daylight around 16:30 tomorrow.”

Lin Xian, seated in the driver’s seat, shook his head. “We must stop as soon as it gets dark. I have no confidence driving at night. Road conditions, visibility—all are problems.”

Here, Lin Xian realized he might need radar or drones to survey the route; otherwise, driving blindly could lead to derailment or catastrophic crash if he hit a broken track or boulder.

As he said this, Lin Xian began to think he might need to equip radar or drones to help him assess road conditions; otherwise, driving blindly, if he encountered a broken track or a boulder blocking the way, he might at best derail, at worst lose the vehicle and his life.

(End of Chapter)

(End of chapter)