Translator: AnubisTL
Later...
Chen Mang turned to face Old Pig, who was charging toward him with a pickaxe, ready to strike. He casually asked, "You're going to attack me?"
"Huh?"
Old Pig froze momentarily before hastily explaining, "No, Brother Mang! I was going to attack that slave!"
Earlier, in the mine...
Everyone had thrown away their pickaxes. Who would bother carrying such a thing while fleeing for their lives? It was unclear where Old Pig had obtained his pickaxe; perhaps the thugs had temporarily stored some in the seventh carriage, and Old Pig had picked one up.
Chen Mang chuckled inwardly, not taking it seriously. He could clearly see through Old Pig's intentions; he was simply trying to tease him before death. But this guy seemed completely devoid of a sense of humor.
And...
He found Old Pig quite interesting. With death clearly imminent for everyone, what was the point of clarification? They could always discuss things after they were all dead.
At that moment...
He had reloaded another magazine and resumed firing without even aiming. As the train's speed slowed, the nearest zombie was now less than half a meter away.
He could even clearly observe the zombie's appearance.
Completely hairless, his body was deathly pale, with dark blue veins clearly visible beneath the skin. His pupils were an extreme pitch black.
He looked utterly terrifying.
Bang! Bang!
Gunshots rang out incessantly.
"Hey."
After emptying another magazine, Chen Mang took a deep drag from the cigarette dangling from his lips. Leaning against the train door, he rapidly reloaded the magazine while glancing sideways at Old Pig. "Any last words before you die?" he asked casually. "Even though we've only known each other for a short time, we've shared some fate."
"Heh."
Old Pig's face was contorted with fear, but he forced a smile, trying to maintain his composure. "No last words really. The apocalypse has been here for over a year now. I've long accepted my fate."
"My only regret is that I didn't give you one less cigarette, Brother Mang, back at the start. I'd like to have a smoke before I die."
"Tsk."
Chen Mang couldn't help but chuckle, handing over the nearly burnt-out cigarette. "So you really only had two after all. Here, nine bullets left. I'll kill a few more zombies and save two for us. That way, we can go out with a bang."
Old Pig didn't say a word, but his eyes lit up. He snatched the nearly burnt-out cigarette, took a deep drag, and his tense expression gradually relaxed. Amidst the swirling smoke, he slowly closed his eyes, then smiled as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders.
"Feels good," he murmured.
Meanwhile, the other slaves in the carriage were huddled in their corners, their faces etched with despair and helplessness as they awaited death.
Chen Mang even saw a few of them, in their final moments, scramble onto his straw mat and sit down. Clearly, these desperate souls wanted to feel the texture of the straw mat before dying. What's there to fear now that death is inevitable?
The carriage's speed had slowed to a crawl. It was estimated to coast for no more than ten seconds before grinding to a complete stop.
By then, many zombies had already leaped onto the carriage's undercarriage, relentlessly clawing at the metal with their razor-sharp nails.
Huff.
Chen Mang exhaled softly, continuing to fire into the swarming horde.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Just as he had three bullets left, he suddenly felt his birthmark on the back of his left hand grow hot. With a flicker of his consciousness, a translucent, milky-white panel materialized before him.
Newbie Train Conductor Mission 3: Kill 10 zombies within three months. Completed.
Time taken: Less than one day.
Rewards: Rare Train Token x1, Handheld Zombie Perception Blocker x1.
Chen Mang glanced at the panel before him and was only slightly taken aback before quickly realizing what it was. This was the Train Conductor Panel he had activated last night, which contained three rookie missions. Only after completing these missions would the rest of the panel's functions be unlocked.
But the situation was urgent, and he hadn't had time to think about this. After all, the rewards were unknown; he hadn't anticipated what killing ten zombies would get him.
He hadn't expected...
A Rare Train Token—this must be better than an ordinary Train Token, but he had no time to care about that now. The zombie horde had completely surrounded his carriage. Even if he were given a whole train right now, he couldn't break through. The wheels would jam instantly; there was no room to even get started.
But this Zombie Perception Blocker was different. This thing could save his life!
Sensing a token and a walkie-talkie-like device appear in his coat, he immediately pulled out the walkie-talkie and gripped it tightly.
Another panel materialized before him.
Special Item: Handheld Zombie Perception Blocker.
Item Effect: When activated, it blocks Tier 1 zombies' perception of all living beings within a small radius for 1 hour. Can only be used once every 24 hours.
There was only one button, green in color.
At that moment, the zombies were almost about to break into the carriage. Chen Mang had no time to think. He violently pressed the green button on the walkie-talkie.
The next moment!
All the zombies outside the carriage froze in place like headless flies that had lost their target, but they quickly scattered and continued to lunge towards the carriages ahead!
It wasn't just their carriage that had been abandoned.
Unless something unexpected happened, it seemed that all the carriages except the locomotive had been abandoned.
"Phew..."
Seeing this, Chen Mang let out a soft sigh, a glimmer of relief surfacing in his eyes after narrowly escaping danger.
Damn it!
He had already prepared himself for death, yet here he was, unexpectedly alive again? How had he survived this?!
The area covered by the effect seemed substantial, at least enough to envelop their entire carriage, but it only blocked Tier 1 zombies' perception. He could only hope that there were no higher-tier zombies in the zombie horde.
The carriage was like a small boat on a stormy sea, constantly at risk of being overturned.
And it would only last an hour. If the zombie horde didn't retreat within that time, they would still be in grave danger.
But...
If he could survive this horde, he wouldn't just have the Rare Train Token. He'd also have nearly a hundred slaves in this carriage. He could practically start his business right away!
Chen Mang turned to look at the slaves inside the carriage, their faces twisted with fear and confusion. Suddenly, he grinned widely.
Truly, fortune and misfortune are intertwined.
This was a good thing.
He just hoped the zombies didn't eat bread or other food. That way, after the horde retreated, he could search the other carriages for scattered food resources. He'd also need to dismantle those heavy machine guns and install them on his new train.
He clearly remembered that the heavy machine guns weren't mounted on the locomotive.
The only regrettable thing was...
Those guys who beat him with police batons probably wouldn't survive. A bit of a pity, and it had hurt quite a lot.
(End of the Chapter)
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