Chapter 335: Sprint Through the Sandstorm

At 5 a. . in Akesai, a sandstorm howled, obscuring the stars with yellow dust, when suddenly the 15-kilometer-long United Train shuddered and roared, jolting everyone awake.

Lin Xian's voice exploded across the communication band, instantly throwing many teams into panic.

"What's going on?!"

"Are the monsters here?"

"Listen to Team Leader Lin—start the engines, now!"

"Forget everything else—get moving!"

In that chaos, voices from Shi Di and others came through the commander's channel.

"Lin Brother, what's happening?"

Lin Xian immediately said: "We must break through the No-Man's Land before nightfall, or it'll be too late!"

At this moment, Lin Xian couldn't quite explain it, but when he pieced together Chu Yan's words with the incidents involving Hu Lushou and Old Mo on the Wei River, plus Hu Lushou's report that forbidden objects in the No-Man's Land had drawn even Sacred Revelation agents, it became clear—Chu Yan's warning was no mere rumor!

Upon hearing Lin Xian, Chen Sixuan didn't hesitate; she ran ahead of him toward the Dragon-Class electric car and activated all the train's traction engines.

On Longshan No. 1, as the lead car, Shi Di made no judgment—he immediately ordered the driving team to initiate full startup.

"Don't ask questions—get every engine running at full power! All armed positions, stand by—enter combat state!"

The order cascaded down; the previously resting and sleeping cars of Longshan No. 1 sprang into rapid action. The intercontinental power cars ignited, and the giant steel dragon began to move slowly forward.

At the same moment, Hu Lushou, Lu Zhao, Xie Guan, and the other vehicle convoys were jolted awake by the chaos; seeing the departing United Train, they all started their engines, preparing to follow.

"What's going on…?" Hu Lushou stumbled out of his RV, snatching up his radio: "Why are we suddenly moving?"

"Emergency situation—we follow the train," Sun Chang had already ordered the convoy into motion.

The sandstorm now engulfed all of Akesai; the vehicle convoys couldn't see the road and were already in disarray, with collisions and scrapes occurring—but seeing the train accelerating beside them on the tracks, they had no time to react, only slamming their pedals down and charging after the rails.

"We can't see the road?!"

"Forget it—just follow the taillights!" Lu Zhao roared: "Follow the train—no one gets left behind!"

At this moment, everyone was terrified; in the sandstorm where even eyes couldn't open, the lights of train and convoy were swallowed one by one by the howling sand, leaving only faint glimmers moving rapidly across the Gobi.

For the train, this was an advantage—if the rails remained, direction wasn't an issue. But for this hundred-vehicle steel flood, it was hell. Drivers gripped their steering wheels; armored windshields were nearly opaque with sand, visible only through the faint red taillights of the lead vehicles and the onboard small radars.

And the United Train kept accelerating—disaster for the vehicle convoys.

The order "Break through the No-Man's Land before nightfall" reached every convoy; every heart pounded in their throats. The unknown dangers of the sandstorm remained unseen, but the sword of a 13-hour deadline to cross thousands of kilometers of No-Man's Land hung over everyone's heads!

"All vehicle convoys—deploy radar-equipped, obstacle-detecting heavy vehicles at the front, follow in single file to avoid getting lost or hitting obstacles—stick close to the train!"

On the comms, Qian Dele, with his vast driving experience, now directed the external convoys. Soon, the groups stabilized, lining up neatly beside the rails on the flat terrain, matching speeds under their leaders' orders, finally catching up to the tail of the United Train without being left behind.

The Mo Queen, Mo Nika's team reacted swiftly—all defense positions were manned; Mo Nika, clad in powered armor, patrolled from the rear, her face icy.

"Don't lower your guard."

On the Wuxian, crew members across all cars moved rapidly into position, weapons drawn, fire-control radars activated.

"Team Leader Lin!"

Shu Qin, Luo Yang, and others stood in the corridor of the living car, watching Lin Xian stride toward them with a grim expression, followed by Kiki, Fire Brother, and a group of others—all sensing an uncanny aura.

Lin Xian passed through the cars, arriving at the final Car No. 21.

In the dim light, 【Grace】 stood silently at the center; Lin Xian stepped inside, and the mechanical scan swept over her again.

His purpose here was simple.

If the voice that spoke to him from the Zero Element Core wasn't Chu Yan, then who was the "will" that warned him through 【Grace】?

The thought sent a chill through Lin Xian—【Grace】 inside the train was problematic!

So, as he launched the midnight escape, he came here first.

Through the Mechanical Heart's sensing, 【Grace】 remained powered down; only her quantum processor core was inaccessible to Lin Xian. But as long as he controlled the energy concentrator, he could confirm the robot posed no threat.

Gazing at that exquisitely crafted mechanical face, Lin Xian's heart tightened—he clearly remembered 【Grace】 had warned him in a distinctly human tone.

"Lin Xian, what's wrong?"

Kiki, seeing Lin Xian suddenly mobilize and come here to this robot, looked tense.

Lin Xian turned to Kiki: "How long until the fastest overwrite is ready?"

"At least another day, and the overwrite itself takes time," Kiki replied.

Scratch-scratch-scratch!

Lin Xian immediately forged an alloy cabinet, sealed 【Grace】 inside, then said to Lu Xingchen: "Fire Brother, you touched that golden bracelet for two days—did you feel anything strange?"

Lu Xingchen immediately understood Lin Xian's concern; looking at the Wuxian Ring on his wrist, he replied seriously: "Now that you mention it, I've felt a mental stagnation these past two days…"

"The dark invasion concentration on it is high. Be cautious—I suggest you don't wear it unless absolutely necessary," Lin Xian said.

Lu Xingchen nodded, indicating he understood.

Lin Xian then told Kiki: "We're going full speed ahead—Kiki, you and Luo Yang monitor the radar signals."

"Understood," Kiki replied seriously, sensing the gravity from Lin Xian's tone.

Now, in the sandstorm and under night, the entire train was blindly charging at extreme speed—any problem would be impossible to react to in time.

Boom! Boom!

Night fell like spilled ink soaking the sky; the United Train roared along the rails, its headlight piercing darkness instantly swallowed by rolling sand walls. Metal armor vibrated with a boiling hum under the storm's assault, as if the entire car were being repeatedly torn apart by invisible fangs.

Inside the following vehicle convoys, the noise was deafening; Hu Lushou in his RV gripped his radio tightly, nerves frayed.

"Are we keeping up? The train's fast—we can't lose it!"

"We're still keeping pace," Sun Chang replied simply. These survivors' vehicles weren't ordinary; on the flat Gobi, they could reach high speeds—but stability was the issue. At the United Train's current velocity, any slight deviation meant being lost forever in the sandstorm.

So every driver now stayed hyper-alert, maintaining safe distances, communication clear, eyes fixed on the lead car.

Soon, the entire United Train convoy surged past the Sand Snake Mouth zone, entering the boundless Akesai No-Man's Land. Sand rolled, iron wheels roared; all 22 train units' traction engines entered cruise speed. Lin Xian hadn't yet pushed the train past 200 km/h—the sandstorm was too fierce; going faster risked disaster.

All they could do was pray the sandstorm ended soon, so they could accelerate.

At this point, Lin Xian briefed all convoy leaders on the anomalies of the No-Man's Land and the disturbances in Star Abyss No. 5. He didn't mention his mental link with Chu Yan; instead, he combined Hu Lushou and Old Mo's experiences with rumors of forbidden objects in the No-Man's Land to form his own judgment. Since Lin Xian had interfaced with the Crimson World's AI robots via his mechanical ability, the others quickly understood why he'd made this decision when told the anomalies in Star Abyss No. 5 might be tied to Crimson World contact with the abyss's forbidden objects.

"Team Leader Lin, so because of that damn Crimson World's bullshit, we might get sucked into the Eternal Night again in the No-Man's Land?" Hu Lushou's legs went weak—he didn't want to relive that nightmare.

"Nothing in this world happens without cause," Qian Dele said calmly. "We've seen S-rank scouts—anything weird now wouldn't surprise me. Honestly, I'm growing fonder of trains—no need to think, just floor the throttle, solve problems as they come. Worst case? We die~"

On Longshan No. 1, Shi Di and Ning Jing, with their officers, urgently analyzed Lin Xian's report. Shi Di pressed his comm: "Regardless, don't delay—better to run early than late. Let's reach Quancheng first, then decide our next move!"

In the Wuxian's information center, key personnel gathered. Lin Xian said: "We won't stop. All blackout panels must remain closed—don't look outside. Our only goal is to run. So the entire convoy must rely on Longshan No. 1 to monitor the rail route and controls—I recommend multiple personnel, and those with high Soul-Resonance values, to watch."

"Leave it to me!" Shi Di said boldly. "Ning Jing and I will watch personally. Hu Boss, Lu Captain, Xie Captain—you all follow close behind!"

"Understood."

"Got it."

Dawn hadn't broken, tension mounting. On the Wuxian, Lin Xian told everyone: "Don't slack off until we reach Quancheng—everyone, stay alert at your posts."

Everyone nodded. Li Yi and Liang Lei spoke first: "Team Leader, rest assured—we'll manage the living car."

"Same here," Luo Yang and Shu Qin replied.

Now came relentless flight. Lin Xian made no further arrangements; key personnel returned to their cars on guard. He went to Car No. 12 to begin building an 1130 CIWS.

On the Wuxian, three weapon stations existed. Aside from the electromagnetic railgun in Car No. 2, Car No. 12 remained empty. Luo Yang and Xiao Bai lived here; yesterday, Lin Xian had already built the roof-mounted auto-weapons platform—now he only needed to assemble the 1130 CIWS.

The Wuxian currently had two electromagnetic railguns and one CIWS. Mid-car defenses were still weak. The railguns and 1130 served entirely different roles—when facing dense monster swarms or ultra-fast anomalies, only the 1130's 30mm tungsten-core penetrators could shred carbon-based lifeforms.

This communication with Chu Yan was the longest yet, and the closest they'd ever been—but Lin Xian now smelled danger in the air, and dared not hesitate.

What Chu Yan and the six others were doing at the White Deer Star Observatory, their purpose in entering the abyss—none of that mattered now. As long as they remained on humanity's side, it was irrelevant. That mental link—he'd find its cause eventually.

Holographic material streams poured from his hands; the Wuxian's second 1130 began assembly.

In Car No. 13, Shu Qin's team used an automatic bullet-pressing machine to load ammunition. Car No. 21's 1130 already held three ammunition cycles—yet each cycle lasted only "7 seconds." That "7-second man" firepower could clear entire waves of Snow Wraiths and Snow Demons.

The train roared forward; the sandstorm stretched hundreds of kilometers. Three hours had passed, yet outside, yellow dust still blotted out everything, sand grains like blades.

In all convoy channels, silence reigned except for the rumble of the vehicle convoys. The United Train sped silently through the No-Man's Land, time and direction lost. Only the sound of sand scraping armor and iron wheels rolling filled every car. Sparks flew from the rails. Five thousand souls fled in the pre-dawn dark—no one dared speak.

9: 0 a. . Dawn arrived.

The black sandstorm turned into a thick, murky yellow sky. In Longshan No. 1's cockpit, Shi Di sat at the center, several engineers tense at the rail detectors and radars. Outside the windows, nothing was visible—not even the rails ahead. They relied entirely on instruments. Still, every heart tightened—this speed, combined with a 15-kilometer train, meant any damaged track or boulder ahead would cause a catastrophic derailment.

Boom!

In that tense moment, a thunderous crash echoed through Longshan No. 1's midsection. Kinetic resonance jolted the entire train; the interior roared as if something had struck the hull.

Shi Di instantly pressed his comm, barking: "What's happening?!"

"Boss, something's outside!" came the reply from Car No. 20.

Boom!

Another crash—this time, Car No. 38, the living car. Crew members paled; armed personnel sprang to their feet. They felt it—something biological had slammed into the external grating armor.

"A-Bai!"

Ning Jing rushed to A-Bai Xiaoqing's car. A-Bai stood in the corridor, pointing backward.

"There's… a monster!"

Beep-beep-beep!

Simultaneously, in Car No. 3 of the Wuxian, the alarm light inside the Hell Black Chrysanthemum cultivation chamber began to buzz. Ding Junyi, focused on her work, glanced up and immediately picked up her comm to broadcast to the entire train.

"We've been marked by Dark Invasion—Level 3!"

In Car No. 13, Lin Xian had just heard Ding's report when a thunderous crash erupted against the car's side!

Boom!

Instantly, the original high-manganese steel armor of the former Sun Car dented inward. Several bulletproof windows shattered. Lin Xian was in the final stages of installing the 1130—he shouted:

"Luo Yang!"

Luo Yang rushed forward, his powered armor already on. He ripped away shattered glass, peered through the grating armor into the yellow storm, eyes blazing red.

Hum!

A beam of energy lashed out. The murky sand vortex outside erupted in dark red. A shriek, sharper than the sandstorm by orders of magnitude, tore in from outside—carrying a torrent of Dark Invasion energy that made the car's lights flicker violently.

"It's a strange entity!!!"

The biological capture instrument on Luo Yang's powered armor spun at maximum speed, alarms blaring continuously from outside the sandstorm.

Wuu!

At this moment, the electromagnetic railguns on carriages 2 and 6 of the Infinite had already risen; the fire-control radar of the 1130 close-in weapon system on carriage 21 and all Gatling cannons were activated by Kiki at once.

"There's something huge out there—looks like more than one!"

In an instant, the signal of the convoy's ambush spread throughout; Lin Xian switched frequencies: "Hu Boss, Captain Lu, on the right—watch out for the attack!"

"Aaaaaah!!!" Hearing Lin Xian's warning, Hu Lushou turned pale; ahead, Sun Chang had already seized two arc pulse cannons, and energy beams began charging along her arms.

"One o'clock, massive entity—armament ready!"

Wuu! Zii!

On the Infinite, both electromagnetic railguns had already pivoted their bases precisely through the hurricane of sand, fire-control radar locked, main cannons rising—suddenly, two brilliant blue beams roared forth!

Boom! Boom!

The ionization shockwave was instantly swallowed by the sandstorm; amid the swirling yellow dust, Lin Xian seemed to hear the thunderous pounding of massive footsteps—the ground itself trembled. A terrifying shadow surged rapidly toward the train, and as the wind howled, Kiki's Sentinel system immediately detected a claw, several meters wide, sweeping through the air!

Crash!

The armored roof of the Infinite shuddered under a massive impact; the arc pulse string dampers on the right side of cars 10 to 12 reacted simultaneously, blinding ionized sparks searing the air, melting adjacent gravel into molten crimson liquid.

Even so, the entire Infinite was struck by a force like a mountain—several carriages tilted sideways; the steel coupling links between the cabins groaned metallically, screeching and shrieking!

Not just the Infinite—right now, Dragon Mountain No. 1, the Joker convoy behind, and the central section of the United Train all issued emergency alerts simultaneously.

In carriage 2's information center, Kiki's face was grim; she rapidly used the Sentinel system combined with electro-optical targeting radar to track the unknown entity, gradually piecing together partial silhouettes of its torso.

"Watch out—humanoid giant, at least thirty meters tall!"

As soon as Kiki spoke, she rose to act.

On carriage 6, Da Lou and Huo Ge were already fully armed.

"There are allies behind us—watch out, don't hit them," Da Lou reminded Huo Ge.

Huo Ge's expression turned fierce; he nodded immediately.

In carriage 13, wind howled fiercely through the shattered windows, sand surging in; several PX05 robots had already prepared the newly manufactured 1130 ammunition pods. Lin Xian's face was grim—his left hand continued manufacturing, his right hand charged energy toward the window, ready to strike at any moment!

"Lin Team Leader, it's coming!"

Crash! Crash!

A deafening tremor erupted—the giant seemed to be sprinting through the sandstorm, charging straight at the Infinite with full force.

Simultaneously, all targeting-capable weapons on the entire United Train opened fire; fire blazed skyward through the sandstorm, countless yellow sand vortices churning violently.

Just as the shadow surged toward Lin Xian's carriage 13—shhk! Crash! Lin Xian's new 1130 completed its final assembly. The magazine motor spun, the roof opened, the 1130 CIWS rose swiftly—and even as the barrel still glowed hot, the cannon fired!

Duuuuu!!!

A storm of full-metal rounds erupted in an instant—eleven 30mm barrels roared at a frenzied rate of 166 rounds per second; a torrent of tungsten-core armor-piercing rounds, like thunder spears cast by gods, carved a crimson fireline across the roof.

The approaching giant entity met this barrage head-on—its massive claw, just breaking through the wind, was instantly pierced and obliterated into dust by tungsten steel rounds traveling at 1150 meters per second, reduced to black fragments.

In an instant, a piercing, agonized shriek vibrated the train's steel floor, causing it to resonate. The monster's vanished claw seemed to have inflicted unbearable pain. Just as Luo Yang and Lin Xian believed they had suppressed the creature, the sandstorm curtain outside the window visibly darkened; a tiny black hole, like a devouring tide, appeared in the distant sky—the pale yellow sand turned even darker.

Seeing this, Lin Xian and Luo Yang instinctively felt dread—the giant was using some technique!

"Fire Fist!"

Boom!

In the next instant, a colossal fireball exploded amid the sandstorm's swirling vortices; rolling waves of flame spread like wildfire, suddenly forming a crimson fire cloud hundreds of meters in diameter. Vast amounts of hot air blasted away surrounding sand and dust, creating a temporary windless zone in the area.

At this moment, Lin Xian, Luo Yang, everyone aboard the Infinite, and Lu Xingchen standing on the roof all saw the black giant on the desert plain to the right of the train.

It appeared as a withered humanoid form, crackling with electricity; its damaged right claw was regenerating under some eerie energy. Simultaneously, the giant floated upward, hovering in parallel with the train. At its head, a massive hole pulsed with thick, black, viscous light mist.

It was aiming directly at the Infinite!

(End of Chapter)