Chapter 67: Lunch

Clang!

Clang…

In the deep-night platform of Yushan Station, a heavy train was undergoing armor reinforcement under several bright lights.

After each carriage’s armored roof was welded, Lin Xian would rest; there was still at least three days before polar night covered the area, and after crossing Yuchichi and passing Dalaoshan, they would essentially enter Yubei’s territory.

After several days of frantic flight, the squad had temporarily put some safe distance between themselves and their pursuers.

At 15:05, the sky brightened.

Inside Yuchichi Station, “Infinity” was now half-covered with armored roofs welded by Lin Xian and Daliu; he had also taken time to install wheel-wing armor on both locomotives—wheel-wing armor was relatively simpler and used less steel.

More than half of the heavy train was now covered in black armor, radiating a heavy, metallic aura.

Lin Xian and Daliu had worked all night, nearly collapsing from exhaustion, yet still hadn’t finished.

“How is she?”

In Carriage 1, Lin Xian and Daliu entered one after the other; Shasha was holding the radio while watching over Kiki, while Chen Sixuan was boiling a pot of soup and a can of braised pork on a cartridge stove atop the iron table Lin Xian had built.

The carriage was filled with rich aromas; on the table were also cans of cola and fruit preserves taken from Tang Hai’s outpost. Lin Xian, drenched in sweat, grabbed a can, hissed open the lid, and gulped down half of it—the icy, sweet fizz of the cola instantly made him feel refreshed all over.

“Some zombies are gathering outside again,” Shasha opened the sunshade, watching the zombies drawn by the sounds of vehicle assembly and welding, and smiled comfortably. “Without those big monsters, these zombies don’t seem scary at all.”

Creak… creak…

Scratching sounds began to rise outside the carriage.

“Don’t worry,” Lin Xian said calmly, gazing out the window. “Once we have enough materials, I’ll armor the entire Infinity with tungsten-titanium alloy—let those beasts just stare helplessly.”

The heavy fortress was gradually taking shape; once he acquired better mechanical blueprints and improved his mechanical fabrication, the train could be further refined.

Chen Sixuan glanced nervously outside, saw the zombies posed no threat to the train, and relaxed, returning to her cooking.

Last night everyone had fought hard, and Lin Xian and Daliu had worked all night, so she took this rare chance to prepare hot meals to replenish everyone’s strength.

Whoo~

Inside Carriage 1, the overhead heating system turned on, and the carriage quickly warmed up.

Although the heating system consumed a lot of power and caused moisture loss, and water-based heating would be better, distant water couldn’t quench immediate thirst—Kiki was still unconscious, and to withstand the extreme cold, they had to use it.

“Wow, smells amazing~”

Shasha stared longingly at the stove before Chen Sixuan, murmuring, “It’s been so long since we’ve eaten something like this.”

“Are you siblings among the first to flee after the polar night began?” Lin Xian asked, sipping his cola.

Shasha shook her head, her eyes dimmed.

“Even earlier—because only my brother and I remained, we just kept running, kept running…”

“That’s impressive.”

Chen Sixuan said, “You’re so young and still had the courage to run out. Unlike me—I hid indoors for nearly two months.”

Lin Xian smiled. “Your family must’ve had plenty of food to let you last that long.”

“You’re teasing me again. At first, lots of people brought me things…”

She glanced at Lin Xian, then lowered her head, stirring the meat in the pot with a spoon.

This wasn’t a topic worth discussing—those who fawned over her at the start of the apocalypse and those who sneered at women like her when survival became a matter of life and death were the same kind of people.

“Lin Brother, I think your ability is the strongest in the world,” Shasha widened her eyes at Lin Xian, gesturing wildly. “You can conjure up this massive steel fortress out of nowhere—you’re literally my god!”

“Such a sweet mouth,” Lin Xian chuckled. “Wanting extra pieces of meat?”

“Hehe~” Shasha grinned mischievously, then pouted and frowned. “Too bad Kiki Sister is asleep—she won’t get to eat her favorite fruit preserves today.”

“Lin Xian, I feel she’s in a deeper coma this time.”

Speaking of Kiki, Chen Sixuan frowned slightly, carrying the pot over to say.

After all, they were comrades who had shared hardship; she still worried about Kiki’s condition.

“I can tell,” Lin Xian nodded.

“We need more strange blood essence—see if it can help her recover. Also, the Dark Radio and Spirit-Detection Device both require this stuff…”

In that sense, this stuff really was hard currency.

“After this, we’ll enter Yuchichi City together—split into two groups. Chen Laoshi and I will go to the city’s power substation. Daliu, you and your sister head to the electronics market.”

Daliu nodded.

Shasha widened her eyes. “Lin Brother, tell me exactly what to look for—I’ll fill the train to the brim.”

“Anything…”

Lin Xian said gravely. “Bring back every electrical or mechanical item you can carry—preferably intact. Besides food, prioritize household supplies.”

!

“We don’t have many blankets, and everyone has few clothes—anything that provides warmth, including tableware and kitchen tools, can be taken.”

In ordinary towns, he didn’t expect to find weapon parts or large quantities of food—these had long been looted countless times by survivors.

But for Lin Xian’s ability, useless appliances could be devoured; on the train, he could even equip a kitchen, and even a washing machine could be useful.

This was a condition ordinary convoys couldn’t imagine.

“Got it.”

“So we’re staying here today?” Chen Sixuan asked.

Lin Xian thought for a moment, then said:

“Unless something unexpected happens, we won’t leave until I’ve installed all the armor and ice-breaking shields, and we’ve checked on Kiki’s condition…”

Actually, Lin Xian wanted to wait until nightfall.

Without strange blood essence, the Dark Radio couldn’t function, and “Infinity” had fallen into silent-isolation mode—extremely unsafe as they prepared to enter Dalaoshan and Yubei City.

Meanwhile, Kiki might need the power of strange blood essence to recover.

So he considered whether he and Daliu should actively hunt for strange entities at night. The large strange blood essence dropped by the white giant suggested it had either absorbed Tang Hai’s ability or was not a common-level entity.

Otherwise, it wouldn’t have dropped such a massive essence—while the smaller ones traded at the Mutual Fire were likely easier to handle. If lucky, he might find some entities he and Daliu could defeat during the night and obtain more strange blood essence.

The moment this idea formed in his mind, his spine prickled.

Who among survivors had the courage to actively hunt strange entities?

“At the latest, until tomorrow morning.”

Lin Xian said. “If daylight comes at 16:05 tomorrow, we’ll have three hours to take the southern route through Dalaoshan. If not, we’ll head straight to Yubei or retreat and take the northern route.”

Chen Sixuan nodded, fully approving Lin Xian’s plan.

With Kiki still unconscious, an extra day’s rest in Yuchichi was beneficial—they’d been fleeing nonstop since leaving Jiangshi, and even the Beiwan escape had lasted less than a day of rest; the train needed repairs in many places.

Now, after Lin Xian reapplied the armor, the train’s overall safety level had risen another notch.

New book, seeking follows and monthly votes!

(End of Chapter)