Chapter 369: Arrival of Shuguang City

6: 0

Jinhai, the underground construction base of the Lianbang Starport glowed brightly; massive mechanical arms crossed and operated beneath the dome, building a star-class starship weighing three hundred thousand tons—its scale equivalent to three Ford-class aircraft carriers, dwarfing even the Dreadnought-class aerospace warships. Welding sparks rained down like a storm, illuminating the holographic progress display floating in midair—"021 Star-Class Starship · Construction Progress 92%."

Suddenly, all engineers' communicators lit up with the same alert.

"Lianbang Chairperson Authorization Access—Clearing Channel."

The airlock doors slid open with a hydraulic hiss, and a tall man strode in with a group, instantly lowering the noise level across D7 Starport. He wore the deep navy uniform of the highest administrative official of Shuguang City, leading the group with shoulders straight as the prow of a warship's armor-piercing blade; a dark silver blue-star emblem on his collar glinted with metallic chill under the cold light.

This man was Chu Zhaonan, former Chairperson of the Blue Star Lianbang Council and Lord of Shuguang City.

Fifty-two years old, his rugged face bore a touch of scholarly weariness; his brows were sharp, yet his gaze was unexpectedly gentle.

"The confirmed location of Silent City is 230 kilometers south of Luling. Vice Chairman Zhou has already departed from Shuguang City aboard a transport ship under the escort of the Seraphim Team, accompanied by Wen Dong of Linglong Group and Jian Xuwēi, head of Fenge Group. They're taking the Jinhai Clearway, then turning north, and are expected to pass through here in thirty minutes."

His secretary whispered the report as Chu Zhaonan halted before a silver-black colossal stellar engine being moved into position. He scanned it, then spoke loudly:

"Progress is too slow."

The chief engineer's neck broke into cold sweat: "The radiation shielding material shipment was delayed, Chairperson."

"Notify Wen Hui's starship construction team to speed up. Star Abyss No. 5 is showing new anomalies."

"Understood, Chairperson."

Immediately, Chu Zhaonan, surrounded by his entourage, boarded a special military transport ship prepared to return to Shuguang City. No sooner had he sat in the command cabin than a middle-aged man with a mechanical ocular implant and a suit leaned in and whispered:

"Chairperson, Silent City is coming to Jinhai. Should we strengthen defenses?"

This man was Luo Ming, former lead of the Angel Project, now head of Shuguang City's Psionic Division: the Seraphim.

"Defend against whom?" Chu Zhaonan smiled gently. "Humans?"

"They're here to cooperate. They've rescued many along the way. We desperately need their mechanical production capacity—we should welcome them with open arms."

Hum.

The transport ship shuddered slightly, then lifted slowly, racing toward Shuguang City under the starry night. Inside the command cabin, besides Seraphim Chief Luo Ming, sat Xu Yan, the Council President and head of the Underground City Committee—a lean, silver-haired old man in a suit. He glanced at the radar map and spoke:

"Vice Chairman Zhou intends to use starship construction contracts to keep Silent City near Shuguang's outskirts. Besides providing production capacity, it would also bolster defense along the northwest toward Star Abyss No. 5. His planning is thorough."

"That's his concern." Chu Zhaonan lowered his gaze; a flash of coldness passed through his eyes, then he spoke calmly: "Such a heavy burden must be exhausting for Vice Chairman Zhou."

"I'm worried Silent City and Shuguang will clash," Xu Yan said bluntly. "Silent City has been drawn into Star Abyss No. 5—they've surely uncovered something. Their accusations will turn toward us."

"Let them accuse."

Chu Zhaonan finished speaking, picked up his mobile terminal, and scrolled through reports, murmuring: "News came from Jinhé East Sea: Phoenix Society's Tiānzhèn Ship just appeared on atmospheric radar. It's clearly part of the global chain reaction triggered by Star Abyss No. 5."

"Tiānzhèn Ship? Ye Lan?" Xu Yan frowned.

"We don't know if it's Ye Lan or Li Heping," said Luo Ming, Seraphim Chief. "Phoenix Society only has the 83 Iron Guard Brigade stationed at Yongcheng Port, guarding their Emperor Project's Unit Two and Three. The only vessel coming from the Northern Dawn Center is the Tiānzhèn Ship and the Enterprise from the North American Alliance—all flying under cover of night. They sense things are spiraling out of control."

"It's Ye Lan," Chu Zhaonan said with solemn gravity. "If it were Li Heping, he'd have brought at least five interstellar heavy fleets. Our outposts would've been erased by now…"

He stood, clasped his hands behind his back, and walked to the viewport, speaking loudly:

"They're not here to wage war. But notify Lu Tianye—he should prepare."

"Ye Lan… the Dawn Center's commander himself came? And the North American Alliance?"

Xu Yan's gaze sharpened: "It seems Zhou Mingyuan and Yurius are escalating things further!"

Xu Yan's expression darkened. He knew well about Shuguang City's secret cooperation with the Deep Red World. The leadership of Shuguang City appeared stable and harmonious, but as Council President, he saw clearly: Chu Zhaonan had devoted all his energy to the Far Star Project. Aside from the Shuguang Garrison, the Seraphim, and starship construction, every other matter—from small to large—was handled by Vice Chairman Zhou Mingyuan. It wasn't factional strife; it was that Chu Zhaonan, in the face of the apocalypse, had simply lost interest in governance.

As for cooperation with the Deep Red World, Chu Zhaonan had turned a blind eye. His goal was absolute: the Far Star Project must succeed. Even if only one Far Star-class starship escaped, it would be a victory for civilization's survival. How many died, who they allied with, how many resources were consumed—none of it mattered.

From this perspective, Chu Zhaonan was a ruthless pragmatist. He knew better than anyone how the Lianbang had collapsed, how countless underground city projects had failed. Darkness could not be defeated. Saving tens of millions and holding onto Blue Star was impossible in his eyes. But preserving a single seed? That was still a chance.

That's why he focused solely on the Far Star Project, tolerated Zhou Mingyuan and Linglong Group's Wen Hui secretly cooperating with the Deep Red World, and remained unmoved by Shuguang City's oppressive rule and extreme suppression—all for the sake of success at any cost.

Inside the command cabin, silence hung cold and heavy.

Chu Zhaonan closed his eyes slightly, took a deep breath, then shifted topic:

"Forget them for now. How is the Breakthrough Team doing?"

"Progress is good. They're scheduled for their third test flight tomorrow," replied Luo Ming, Seraphim Chief.

"Speed it up. Tell Chu Jing—he must break through the Veil of Heaven within thirty days. Otherwise, replace him."

Cough~

Xu Yan cleared his throat, speaking gently: "I heard Colonel Chu Jing has moved into the research institute. If not for Luo Feng and the others holding him back, he'd volunteer as the test pilot himself."

"Is that so? That brat's getting worse."

Chu Zhaonan's gaze flickered slightly; his sharp tone softened as he turned to Xu Yan: "Old Xu, arrange an extra batch of vegetable juice for them. I've said it before: all resources must be funneled into the Far Star Project."

"Understood."

Xu Yan nodded.

Chu Zhaonan turned back to the two, his expression tightening. The shadows of the lights slid slowly across his face as he spoke in a low tone:

"I have a feeling Zhou Mingyuan and his group have gone too far. Ye Lan's arrival is a warning. We don't have much time left."

"Will Phoenix Society declare war on us?" Luo Ming asked, frowning.

"Before, no. Global chaos has kept Phoenix Society busy with mobilization and disaster relief—they had no time for internal purges. Now… I can only say: don't underestimate Ye Lan or Li Heping. I know their methods best." Chu Zhaonan spoke calmly, his polished shoes clicking sharply against the floor as he continued:

"But all their scheming is futile. Our underground city plans won't work. Their 'One Year and 96 Days' prediction is a joke. At the current expansion rate of Star Abyss No. 5, they won't even last six months. To preserve the flame of human civilization, only…"

Crack, he strode to the table and slammed his palm down, the sound sharp and piercing.

He strode to the table and slammed his palm down, voice icy and clear:

"Die to Live!"

Silent City, Landing Zone Three.

Silent City, Third Flight Docking Zone.

A mechanical broadcast echoed beneath the dome; Lin Xian and Kiki stepped out of the airlock to see a battered civilian airship entering the port, its two rows of ion thrusters still glowing dull red, its armor plating scarred with horrific damage.

The mechanical announcement echoed beneath the dome. Lin Xian and Kiki stepped out of the airlock to see a battered civilian airship entering the port. Its twin ion thrusters still glowed dull red; its armor plating was riddled with horrific wounds.

These weren't the marks of ordinary ground-based grotesques with fangs and claws—they were inflicted by some colossal airborne creature. One gash nearly split the airship in half; the jagged metal edges still pulsed with potent dark-invasion toxins, sending chills down the spine.

"It even made it back? Lucky," Kiki muttered, staring at the massive tear. "Looks like the sky's even more terrifying than the ground."

"On the ground, there's terrain, buildings to hide behind. In the sky, there's nothing." Lin Xian recalled the colossal atmospheric mica he'd seen in Yubei—a single tentacle sweeping through, crushing skyscrapers into dust. If not for their luck, the Infinite Ship had been crushed that night on Dalaoshan.

"So I was thinking—the satellites and space stations must be gone. I wonder what happened to the Southern Gate and the Moon Ring." Kiki said.

Lin Xian walked as he replied: "The Moon Ring was our Dragon Nation's largest lunar project platform, built with over a hundred nations. Its diameter exceeds three hundred kilometers. Such a massive structure hangs in the sky, invisible—was it blocked by something?"

"I'm serious," Lin Xian said solemnly. "Outside the Star Abyss, the sky is visible—but that Sky Veil blocks aircraft. Doesn't that seem strange? What could possibly be obscuring the entire Blue Planet?"

"I'm serious," Lin Xian said gravely. "Outside the Star Abysses, the sky is visible. But the Veil of Heaven blocks all aircraft. Isn't that strange? What exactly is obscuring the entire Blue Star?"

"Could it be some cosmic monster?" Kiki scoffed. "Then we'll have to pierce the Veil to find out."

Lin Xian nodded, fell silent, and headed straight for the docking zone Hu Lushou had mentioned.

Before he even reached it, he saw a massive Dragon-class transport ship docked inside. Its hull was intact, with only minor damage to the armor and side heat fins, plus some crude repairs. Hu Lushou stood nearby with Sun Chang and his men, fanning himself happily as he gazed at the ten-thousand-ton vessel. Seeing Lin Xian approach, his eyes lit up.

Hu Lushou trotted over with his golden teeth grinning, and as soon as he reached Lin Xian, he blurted, "Oh my, you've finally arrived! I thought you weren't interested in such a huge thing."

Hu Lushou trotted over, his golden teeth gleaming. "Oh, you've finally arrived! I thought you weren't interested in such a big thing!"

"I'm very interested," Lin Xian said, scanning the transport ship. "I'll dismantle it tonight. Hu Boss, thank you immensely."

"Dismantle… dismantle it??" Hu Lushou pointed at the ship behind him, stunned. "Why dismantle such a treasure? It can fly!"

"I know," Lin Xian smiled at Hu Lushou. "But it can also crash."

"Ahh… that…" Kiki's words left Hu Lushou speechless.

"That's true… but this…" Hu Lushou looked pained. He'd spent five hundred blood essences to acquire this vessel. With it, he could've loaded his entire convoy and fled all the way to Dawn Center—or even the poles.

Of course, only if he had the guts.

Hu Lushou knew well: in the apocalypse, larger aircraft were more burdensome, especially for ordinary survivors. Riding one was like cycling into a horde of zombies—iron-clad bait for monsters. Most survivors wouldn't dare use such vehicles. Even a wheel on this transport would've been better. But that was impossible. That's why he'd gotten it so cheaply.

In short: few dared sell it. Fewer dared buy it.

Still, it was a ten-thousand-ton aircraft. Had he known it'd be dismantled, he'd have just handed over the five hundred blood essences directly to Lin Xian—better than wasting them.

Lin Xian understood Hu Lushou's thoughts. But to him, this vessel was far more useful than blood essences. He'd been desperate for something to devour and level up. So he said directly:

"Old Hu, I'm dismantling this to build a train. A flying train. Safer than a transport ship. I know you want to join us—fine. I'm forming an alliance. Your convoy can join. But the condition: you follow my orders completely."

Hu Lushou's eyes widened, his golden teeth practically sparkling. As soon as Lin Xian finished, he nodded frantically like a chicken pecking grain:

"OK, totally OK! One hundred percent, ten thousand percent—I'll follow every single order of Team Leader Lin! You have no idea, Lin Team Leader, how your insane moves have completely conquered me, old Hu! Just now you said… the… the…"

"Flying train," Sun Chang reminded.

"Yes, yes! Flying train!!" Hu Lushou's eyes bulged. "If anyone else said that, I wouldn't even listen. Flying train? What kind of joke is that?"

"But coming from you, Team Leader Lin? I, Hu Lushou, believe it one hundred percent! You just led a five-hundred-carriage train out of a Star Abyss! My god, that's legendary! I'm convinced. One hundred percent convinced. From now on, if you say east, I won't go west. Deal?!"

Hu Lushou's flattery was so thick even Kiki couldn't bear it. She gave him a disgusted look: "Hey, you're serious about this?"

"Absolutely serious!"

"By the way," Hu Lushou grinned and leaned close to Lin Xian. "Team Leader Lin, you mentioned an alliance. What exactly is it? Could I… help out in some way?"

"I haven't decided yet. Just think of it as joining the Infinite Ship." Lin Xian said plainly. "As for what you'll do…"

He glanced at Hu Lushou's group of black-suited men, then smiled at Hu Lushou: "Just keep doing what you do best."

Lin Xian turned to walk toward the transport ship. Halfway there, he stopped, turned back, and studied Sun Chang—the woman with mechanical arms thicker than her thighs, her face stern and silent. Then he asked Hu Lushou:

"I never asked: what's your relationship with Sun Chang?"

Hu Lushou blinked, then said seriously: "Didn't I say? She's my wife."

"Divorced," Sun Chang added.

"So what?" Hu Lushou looked confused. "The world's ending. You planning to find another man?"

Sun Chang gave him a cold look, then crossed her mechanical arms, expression icy:

"I'm not interested in men."

Lin Xian, Kiki: …

Lin Xian was deeply shocked—he had always assumed Sun Chang was just Hu Lushou's deputy, never imagining she was his wife.

After all, Hu Lushou, a slender man barely 1. meters tall, was hard to imagine with a wife nearly 1. meters tall, with sun-kissed skin, bulging muscles, and a pair of unmatched mechanical arms—a Jīn Gāng Bā Bǐ standing before Lin Xian, her presence even overshadowing the building…

Watching the couple bicker back and forth, Lin Xian's eyelid twitched slightly, then he said nothing and turned to board the transport ship; Kiki followed right behind.

"Whoa, I never thought Sun Chang was Hu Lushou's wife—I've learned something new today…" Kiki said, trailing behind.

"No wonder Sun Chang never acted like a regular deputy—now I get it." Lin Xian smiled, recalling how she'd repeatedly humiliated Hu Lushou—it all made sense now.

"Lin Xian, are you planning to directly devour this transport ship right here in broad daylight?"

Kiki asked Lin Xian as they walked down the internal corridor of the transport ship.

"Piece by piece—start with the nuclear propulsion engine," Lin Xian told Kiki. "Tell Hu Lushou to seal off the docking area for maintenance. Nothing else is needed—just get everyone out."

Kiki nodded. Immediately, Lin Xian went to the ship's power compartment just as he had in Qingshui Town, leapt into the nuclear engine room, and began mechanical devouring.

"Last time, I only had time to devour the nuclear reactor. This time, I'm taking out the engine, the propulsion array, and the entire transport ship!"

【Devour Progress: 1%】

A holographic screen flickered open before him. Lin Xian's eyes glowed with eagerness—since acquiring his Mechanical Heart, this was the first time he'd devoured something so massive. The largest before had been the nuclear-powered locomotive group, but that was only a few hundred tons.

This Dragon-class transport ship weighed over ten thousand tons. Even just its metal structural components would yield massive materials.

At Berth 24, the Dragon-class transport ship sat motionless. No one knew it was slowly disintegrating from within, becoming fuel for Lin Xian's Mechanical Heart.

10: 0

The dim sky suddenly brightened. The once neon-drenched, silent city was now bathed in sunlight; decks across Quiet City stirred to life.

Boom!

Under command from the main bridge, the treads of Quiet City, long mired in valley mud, roared to life. Countless propulsion arrays along both sides of City One unleashed powerful thrusts. With its overall weight reduced, the colossal mechanical floating city began slowly advancing eastward, shaking the earth and trembling the heavens.

Ugh! Ugh!!

As the thunderous roar echoed, countless zombies erupted from forests and villages along the route. But against this mountain-like moving metropolis, the zombies were like flies on a map—crushed into the mud beneath the treads, or merely trailing behind in a sea of howls and cries, posing zero threat to the city.

Meanwhile, over a hundred personnel at Quiet City's communication tower were busy, receiving messages, data packets, and reports from all directions via darknet radios and communicators. Once granted entry clearance, convoys could speed up via the rear landing platform, undergo inspection by Quiet City's guards, and enter the city's interior.

In a short time, numerous survivor convoys had begun pouring in. It seemed the news of Quiet City's departure from Star Abyss had spread overnight through long- and short-wave broadcasts across Luling and Jinhai—survivors were converging in droves.

At this moment, on the Cloud Deck, a large Federation transport ship descended slowly under the escort of several aerospace warships.

Outside, Qian Suxun and Tianye Lan stood with a group of Quiet City's mechanical guards, their expressions grim, watching the transport ship's "Federation Dawn City" emblem, waiting in silence.

"They're not here for a friendly visit," Tianye Lan said, facing the strong vortex.

Qian Suxun remained calm: "Doesn't matter. Until Jishi reveals their collusion with the Crimson World, there won't be a fight. Besides, the Phoenix Society's Dawn Center has also sent representatives—who's holding whom hostage isn't clear yet."

"Suxun, be polite."

At that moment, Wangyue Jinsi walked past them calmly, dressed in a plain robe.

"Alright~"

Wangyue Jinsi stood before the two, watching the people disembark from the transport ship, then suddenly said to Qian Suxun:

"Open the ACS real-time surveillance feed. Someone from Dawn City might interest you."

Qian Suxun smiled upon hearing this.

"Understood."

Meanwhile, deep inside the engine room of the Dragon-class transport ship at Berth 24 on Deck 3, Lin Xian was in the midst of mechanical devouring when he suddenly received a message window from Wangyue Jinsi.

He opened his eyes. A holographic image appeared before him.

A high-spec transport ship had opened its hatch, and several figures of obvious stature stepped down. Lin Xian frowned slightly. At the front stood a man in his fifties, his temples lightly streaked with gray, his hair meticulously combed—a deliberate display of authority. Faint laugh lines creased his eyes, as if he'd long habitually worn a gentle smile. His lips were neither thin nor thick, always slightly upturned, radiating paternal kindness even when silent.

Lin Xian instantly felt he recognized the man—not because he knew him personally, but because he'd only ever seen him on television news.

Behind him stepped out a woman. Lin Xian's gaze sharpened instantly—she was the only person in this group he recognized.

Jian Xuxi!

(End of Chapter)