Chapter 51: Mutual Aid Bonfire (Mid-Month Plea for Monthly Votes)

Jiang City had been swallowed by Eternal Night, and long-wave signals had been lost over twenty days ago; to obtain the latest world updates and escape the strange encroachments of Eternal Night, he had no choice but to find every possible way to flee eastward.

Although his mechanical heart held immense potential, its functionality far outweighed its combat power at first—take that giant insect, for example; if Lin Xian had been driving a car, he would have died long ago in some remote mountain corner.

“Hey, I think you’re more capable than I imagined.”

At that moment, Kiki suddenly spoke.

Lin Xian gave a bitter smile. “Go rest inside—you’ll need to keep watch in the second half of the night.”

“Got it!”

Kiki smiled, turned and took two steps away, then suddenly looked back.

“By the way, can you also drive other machines besides the train?”

“Probably. What do you mean?”

“Like powered armor—I mean fully intact ones, like the Warrior-2 and Warrior-3 light assault models, or even the Destroyer heavy military assault type. If you could get one of those big beasts, you wouldn’t have to fear fighting those giant insects anymore.”

Lin Xian’s gaze stirred slightly. “I want to too—if the chance ever comes...”

How many times hadn’t he imagined this? Who would willingly chop at insects with a knife?

Who wouldn’t want to pilot a Gundam?

Forget heavy equipment—even advanced mechanical combat units would do, but he’d rarely even seen such things, let alone blueprints.

Vrrrm~

At that moment, the silent wilderness echoed with the sound of a motorcycle. Lin Xian and Kiki both tensed and turned to look.

In the distance, a bright beam of light flickered steadily, the noise growing louder. Hearing the commotion, Chen Laoshi and the other three rushed over from the distant carriage.

“Motorcycle? What’s this about?” Kiki stepped back behind the armored vehicle.

Lin Xian’s eyes narrowed. Seeing only one vehicle approaching, he didn’t immediately halt his absorption.

With Da Lou and Kiki here, he wasn’t as panicked.

Suddenly, the motorcycle’s headlight flashed twice, paused, then flashed twice again.

Two short, one long—it was using light signals. Lin Xian frowned. “They seem to be signaling friendliness, but don’t let your guard down.”

He gestured to Chen Laoshi and the others in Car 5, signaling them not to show themselves.

“Hey~~ Don’t shoot!”

Hundreds of meters away, the rider began shouting. Soon after, the motorcycle kicked up snow dust as it crossed the wilderness and entered the train’s light range.

Screech~

The motorcycle executed a smooth tail-slide stop at the base of the track slope. Two people sat on it—a man and a woman.

The man stopped the bike, removed his helmet. He looked to be in his early thirties, with a light stubble, and striking features. The woman wore leather jacket and pants, two pistols holstered on her thighs, her expression cold.

Lin Xian watched them warily. “Who are you?”

The man raised both hands, smiling.

“Don’t be tense—we mean no harm. Let me introduce myself: Jiang Yun, leader of the Wind Chaser Chedui . This is my second-in-command, Ren Huiyan. I noticed you after you left Beiwan and entered the Congshan .”

Jiang Yun’s gaze swept over Lin Xian and Kiki, then rested on Da Lou at the entrance of Car 5, his eyes filled with surprise.

“I was right—I knew there was more than one psychic.”

Hearing this, Lin Xian and the others instantly changed expression. Who was this man? How could he spot psychics at a glance?

“What do you want?”

Kiki narrowed her eyes, sizing them up, and asked bluntly.

“Of course we have something to say.” Jiang Yun pointed ahead along the tracks. “Thirty kilometers ahead is Quan Pass City. Over a dozen caravans are stationed there—all drawn from the 7th frequency band. I’ve organized a Mutual Aid Bonfire there. Are you interested?”

Jiang Yun smiled. “It’s where nearby survivors gather to exchange goods, information, that sort of thing. In this world, who hasn’t run into trouble?”

“Oh~ You actually light bonfires to gather? Aren’t you afraid of monsters?” Kiki looked astonished.

“No thanks,” Lin Xian said immediately, declining.

“Don’t be so tense, friend.” Jiang Yun studied Lin Xian with a measured gaze, calm. “You’ve clearly faced plenty of trouble on the road—armored train, huh? Most main rail lines are still open because the Lianbangzheng Phoenix Association is still moving troops. If you have an electrical or bio-symbiosis psychic ability, this could be a good option.”

“By the way.” Jiang Yun pulled a small object from his coat pocket and placed it in his palm. It was a tiny dark red glass bead. “The Phoenix Association calls this the Strange Blood Essence. We wanderers usually call it Red Bean. I’m guessing your radio picks up no signals at all—otherwise you’d have caught the 7th frequency band or Phoenix Association’s long-wave signals. Wrap copper wire around this, connect it to your radio antenna. It resonates with dark, strange energy and can pick up ionized signal waves from it.”

“But... be careful.” Jiang Yun weighed the red bead in his fingers, his expression complex. “Using this doesn’t just let you hear human signals...”

“Huh?! So you can receive long-wave signals?!” Kiki’s eyes widened. “Where did you get these red beads?”

At that moment, the cold-faced woman on the motorcycle finally spoke.

“Kill any dark entity in the night—you get one.”

“Exactly.” Jiang Yun nodded, his gaze sharpening. “Looks like you really don’t know. The Phoenix Association transmits many critical messages on LW01 long-wave. We wanderers mainly use AM07 and AM09. Information there is relatively safer, but still verify carefully—under the apocalypse, there are plenty of people with ill intent.”

!

He put his helmet back on, glanced at Lin Xian. “Don’t worry, friend—it’s just an invitation. Come or not, it’s your choice. If you need anything, drop by. You might find nearby region intel, food, water, weapons, supplies, equipment, psychic evolution—anything you can think of, someone’s trading it. Also, our Mutual Aid Bonfire sites usually conduct Soul-Dispelling Value tests, which slightly reduce encounters with dark entities, though they may attract zombies. If you come, don’t bring trouble with you.”

Vrrrm~

Without another word, the man twisted the throttle and rode off.

“Wow, so survivors can gather like this? Looks like some people already have devices to detect Soul-Dispelling Values.” Kiki looked at Lin Xian in surprise. “Are you interested?”

“Of course.”

Lin Xian’s expression steadied. Jiang Yun was right—he’d been too tense.

Since leaving Jiang City, he’d faced nothing but trouble, never a moment’s peace, so he’d reflexively refused Jiang Yun’s offer.

But now, hearing his words, he realized attending the Mutual Aid Bonfire was necessary.

“What a shame—we didn’t search properly for those red beads after the giant insect and the giant spider.” Kiki looked regretful.

Lin Xian looked at her. “Your data didn’t mention this?”

Kiki rolled her eyes. “Didn’t I tell you? That’s an early initial report. The situation changes daily. We know things the authorities don’t—like that special fog we encountered in Beiwan, which isn’t in their records.”

“That’s true.”

Lin Xian nodded. “We need to get one of those red beads. And I’m also interested in what he said about Soul-Dispelling Value detection... and psychic evolution.”

Food and water weren’t his top priority right now. The real problem was charging blindly forward without enough information.

“Chen Laoshi.”

Lin Xian called out to Chen Sixuan. “Let’s start the electric railcar and head to Quan Pass Station. Kiki, Da Lou, Shasha—stay on guard.”

“Got it.” Chen Sixuan nodded and immediately set to work.

“Yay!” Kiki grinned and dashed toward her information center.

Da Lou and his sister raised their rifles, alert.

Vrrrm!

The “Infinite” shuddered violently in the night, then began moving slowly forward.

New book ranking—requesting monthly votes and follows. Please read to the final chapter and bookmark the book.

The people of Mancheng thank you deeply!

(End of Chapter)