Chapter 421

"This… what kind of powered armor is this?"

Kiki, seeing the flying powered armor, first thought: "It looks kind of cute."

Everyone stared in surprise; Shizumi was even more baffled: "This… is it for me?"

"Did you make this specially for Shizumi?" Chen Sixuan asked, equally puzzled.

"Not entirely, but sort of."

Lin Xian said: "This powered armor was modified from the original Dancer One's drive system, integrated with a computational system and defensive plating. Besides extreme mobility and defense, it has an intelligent system that can adaptively engage in combat during emergencies."

"So it's more like a mecha?"

"Yes. Shizumi's strength is support, but her mobility is limited. Others can assist her normally, but she often needs to act on her own. This armor solves many problems—helping her perform mobility maneuvers and even improving her own movement skills."

Shizumi's expression froze slightly, then she let out a long, "Oh…"

Though surprised, hearing Lin Xian's explanation, she grew intensely curious.

"It can assist my movements?"

"Yes, and it includes a full combat motion system," Lin Xian smiled. "But don't misunderstand—it's not exactly what you think. You can adjust the level of AI integration. Its main purpose is to help you adapt to the battlefield and learn techniques."

Shizumi's eyes lit up; she understood Lin Xian's intent and immediately said:

"Usually, during combat, Long Zhijie and Lu Tianye always look out for me, and Xun even assigned a mecha just to protect me. But… I… I also want to improve my own combat ability…" Her voice grew quieter, but it was clear: Lin Xian's powered armor gave her the chance to keep up with the battlefield. Though it sounded semi-autonomous, every journey begins with a first step. Jinshi had placed her and Long Zhijie on the Infinite Train precisely because he hoped she would grow.

Seeing that Shizumi understood his intent, Lin Xian nodded, then continued addressing the group.

"Also, I've integrated the intelligent systems of our squad's powered armors, with Viola as the central processor and communicator. This allows us to exchange and process information fastest, and directly request firepower support from the Infinite Train."

"Firepower support?"

Lin Xian nodded, looked at the group, and snapped his fingers.

Whoosh~

Behind them, the roofs of several Infinite Train cars slowly opened; electromagnetic cannons and rows of missile launchers rose into position, even two Hyperion directional constraint cannons.

"So all this time you weren't tinkering with the Skytrain—you were upgrading the Infinite Train," Qian Dele stood up, adjusted his sunglasses, and remarked with interest: "Not bad. With this firepower, our squads might even stand a chance against an S-class."

"Not sure if we can win against an S-class, but with these powered armors and the Infinite Train's enhancements, our survival rate against them should have improved significantly."

Xiang Ningjing nodded: "Lin's deployment is comprehensive. Let's proceed this way."

"Y-yes," Shizumi said, nodding, and walked up to the powered armor.

"Good," Lin Xian said into his earpiece. "Ning-jie, Mo Queen, Qian Dele—you three squads scout in three directions. I'll move the Infinite Train forward."

"No problem."

Instantly, everyone moved. Dozens of powered armors hummed to life as they donned their suits. The Black Dragon Armor-clad figure from the building also advanced. The three squads quickly synced signals—each member's location and vital signs now clearly displayed on the shared interface.

Lin Xian stored his nanotech powered armor in the Black Star Forge space, allowing instant retrieval and automatic attachment. Seeing the three squads disperse, he immediately began consuming the train cars blocking the path. Time was short—about an hour remained until dusk. He had Kiki use telekinesis to forcibly separate the trains ahead, then the Infinite Train slowly advanced through the gap.

Lin Xian reached the bridge's summit. As the Infinite Train moved forward, he continuously consumed empty carriages. Below, the tracks were choked with abandoned trains and debris—silent, desolate.

Standing on the bridge, he watched the sunset paint the docking port and Haiyan City in dull gold, while monitoring the footage returned by each squad.

The setting sun glowed on the rails of the docking port. Abandoned train cars lay scattered haphazardly along both sides, their rusted hulls whispering of post-apocalyptic desolation.

"So many trains—perfect as consumption material."

As Lin Xian consumed the carriages, he observed the surroundings of the docking port.

The Ring railway stretched straight across the sea to a seaport. In addition to the train station, it housed a massive cargo container terminal. Scattered around were a few small islands with dead trees. Beyond the port lay a crescent-shaped urban zone, spreading inland along a valley, now appearing as a cluster of cities beneath a crimson sunset.

Before the Awakening Day, Lin Xian was familiar with these cities—he'd visited some, others he'd studied online. He'd once come to Haiyan Island before university, for tourism. Back then, its white sand beaches were beautiful; planes landing revealed beaches packed with amusement rides.

Now, as the Infinite Train slowly entered along the docking rail, the coastline was littered with floating trash. The beaches were strewn with body fragments. The entire city was in ruins—a deep loneliness settled in his chest.

"If not for Dawn City, we'd forget how few people are left in this world."

Lin Xian said to Chen Sixuan over the comms.

"Blue Star is huge. Tens of millions isn't many. So many cities are empty. This place looks the same," Chen Sixuan said from inside the Infinite Train's cockpit.

Lin Xian sighed: "It's been less than a year. I remember Professor Jin telling us in geography class—if humanity vanished, all skyscrapers would collapse within two hundred years, brick and concrete would turn to rubble within a thousand, iconic stone structures would fade to indistinct outlines in ten thousand years. Even plastics and glass, if given a million years, would vanish. After a hundred million years, space debris and nuclear waste would be gone too…"

"But a hundred million years—for Blue Star, or the entire universe—is perhaps just an instant."

Kiki couldn't help replying: "Here we go again with the musings. Didn't you say we're living day to day, that every extra day is a bonus? Do we really need to think about a hundred million years?"