Chapter 64: Decisive Execution |
"Use this to cut!" Lin Xian’s words carried a chilling resolve.
Unlike the GK03 electric blade gifted by Kiki, the steel-slaying greatsword was Lin Xian's own design, created during his spare time. Aside from its sharpness, it lacked complex mechanical features. However, it was exceptionally suited for Luo Ye, as Lin Xian had forged it using reinforced tungsten-titanium alloy!
With Lin Xian's current mechanical manufacturing skills, as long as the structure wasn’t overly complex, his crafting speed could reach astonishing levels.
Luo Ye instinctively caught the weapon. The sheer weight and overwhelming power of the sword ignited his fighting spirit. With veins bulging from his arms and a roar in his throat, he gripped the blade tightly and launched himself at the white giant!
Meanwhile, Lin Xian held his tungsten-titanium GK03 electric blade, his focus razor-sharp as he awaited the perfect moment.
"Raaaah!"
The white giant let out a deafening screech, sensing danger. Seeing its legs ensnared by the iron chains, it bellowed angrily. With legs nearly three meters long, it kicked violently and leapt forward, claws outstretched toward Lin Xian and Luo Ye.
"Go!" Lin Xian shouted, charging forward with his blade. His figure blurred into a streak of white light.
Backlash!
With a roar, Luo Ye summoned all his strength, propelling himself forward. His bulging muscles seemed ready to burst as he swung the greatsword with such force that the blade glowed red-hot, roaring as it cleaved through the air.
Screeeech!!!
Inside the carriage, Chen Sixuan held Kiki and Luo Shasha tightly. She pressed the emergency brake button on the white remote. The Huanxing 7F electric locomotive, weighing hundreds of tons and speeding forward, screeched to a halt. Metal wheels locked against the rails, emitting intense friction that instantly heated the tracks and wheels to a fiery red.
The tremendous inertia caused the white giant to lose its footing, sending it hurtling forward. At the same moment, the dropped anchor caught on a pile of roadside rubble, yanking the iron chain taut and jerking the giant’s neck forward.
This was the moment Lin Xian and Luo Ye had been waiting for!
Before the train had fully stopped, the two leapt into the air.
In a flash, twin blades struck as one!
Slash!
Two sharp sounds rang out simultaneously.
Buzz...
The sword blades hummed as if singing in delight. A massive head was sent flying into the sky.
Silence fell over the night.
...
Only the sound of the wind and the faint hiss of the cooling rails remained on the train roof.
The white giant’s decapitated body collapsed onto the tracks below, while its severed head landed with a thud on the roof, its maw still clutching half of Tang Hai’s arm before rolling off into the abyss.
Thump, thump!
Lin Xian and Luo Ye’s hearts pounded fiercely, blood surging with adrenaline. Neither could believe their first joint effort had ended with such a spectacular kill!
Lin Xian collapsed onto the roof, breathing heavily, while Luo Ye bent over, using the massive sword as support. The life-and-death battle had nearly claimed their lives.
Huff... huff...
As their adrenaline faded, exhaustion and pain took over.
Lin Xian's chest ached with a fiery intensity. He realized he had spent almost 10 hours devouring the short-haul freight locomotive earlier, followed by this grueling fight. Without the stored energy from the Huanxing 7F locomotive, he wouldn’t have had the strength to execute the Backlash maneuver or complete the emergency brake.
Broken rails, Tang Hai, the zombie horde, the white giant, the iron chains, the forged sword, the emergency stop...
Everyone’s efforts had been perfectly synchronized—a level of teamwork Lin Xian had never anticipated.
As his mind drifted, a realization struck him: his mechanical abilities weren’t suited for hand-to-hand combat.
He should focus on creating high-energy weapons, combat mechs, and defensive armaments for himself, his team, and the train. That was the true path of his power. Betting his life on a few skills day after day was a waste of his mechanical potential.
Lin Xian’s expression darkened as he stood abruptly.
“Luo Ye.”
“Yeah!”
Lin Xian pointed at the white giant’s corpse by the roadside. “Check if there are any of those red beads. I’m going to check on Kiki.”
Having pushed his abilities to their limits, Kiki's life now hung by a thread. Without pausing to catch his breath, Lin Xian rushed toward the train carriages.
“How is everyone?”
The interior of the train was a mess. After jumping the broken rails, derailing, and battling the giant, the carriages were in utter disarray. Lin Xian ignored the chaos and sprinted toward Car No. 1.
“We’re okay, but Kiki…”
Shasha’s small face was full of panic. Lin Xian’s gaze shifted to Chen Sixuan, who was desperately wiping blood off Kiki’s face.
“She’s still bleeding! Her heartbeat’s getting weaker. What do we do?!”
Lin Xian’s face darkened as he approached to inspect. Kiki’s face was pale, her features covered in blood, and she looked utterly miserable.
“She must have overexerted her abilities…” Lin Xian frowned deeply. He had no idea how to handle this.
“Shasha, has your brother ever experienced something like this before?”
Shasha shook her head, then rummaged through a small medicine box and showed it to Lin Xian. “No, but I have some medicine…”
The box contained a mix of brightly colored pills, their origins unknown, with no labels. Lin Xian’s brows furrowed at the sight.
A box of antibiotics they had traded for at a communal bonfire wouldn’t help in this situation either.
“Wait, Lin Xian,” Shasha said suddenly.
Chen Sixuan felt Kiki’s life slipping away and couldn’t hide the panic on her face.
“The... that ability, didn’t you all mention... those red beads?” she stammered, her words disjointed from anxiety.
Lin Xian’s pupils shrank. “You mean the eerie blood crystal?”
“Yes!” Chen Sixuan’s lips were dry as she exclaimed nervously, “Do you think it’ll work?”
Lin Xian immediately understood her implication, and it struck a chord with him. If anything on this train could help with abilities, it would be that.
“Luo Ye!”
Lin Xian stood up and opened the blackout panel, only to see Luo Ye holding the greatsword and flashlight, searching the white giant’s corpse.
Shasha realized the urgency and sprinted outside. “I’ll help look!”
“No time!” Chen Sixuan screamed. She placed a hand under Kiki’s nose and found no signs of breathing.
Lin Xian made a decisive move. He grabbed the eerie blood crystal from the radio and hurried back. But as he held it, doubt crept in.
How was he supposed to use it? Should it be swallowed?
No time to hesitate! Lin Xian clenched his teeth, pried open Kiki’s mouth, and placed the blood crystal inside. But as soon as it touched her, something extraordinary happened.
A surge of crimson mist erupted from the crystal, rushing into Kiki’s throat and nostrils in an instant!
Witnessing this, both Lin Xian and Chen Sixuan were stunned.
They stared intently at Kiki lying on the ground. The air grew eerily silent.
Suddenly—hissssss!
A sharp inhalation broke the silence. Kiki, unconscious moments ago, took a deep breath. The inky blackness in her eyes seemed to recede slightly.
“It’s working!” Chen Sixuan shouted, her voice trembling with both terror and excitement.
Lin Xian quickly checked Kiki and found her breathing had resumed, albeit faintly. Relief washed over him as he exhaled heavily, glancing at his trembling arms and feeling the powerful thrum of his heart.
System Notification:
Devour Successful: +300 Mechanical Source Points, +150 Mechanical Devour Skill Proficiency. Bonus Rewards: Strength +20, Speed +5, Defense +20!
Lin Xian had just achieved his most significant upgrade yet by successfully devouring a short-haul freight electric locomotive, even though it was only a smaller model. Devouring its mass—hundreds of tons—had come at a tremendous cost.
“The locomotive added so much strength and defense! Definitely a thick-skinned and strong machine,” Lin Xian muttered.
“Killing Tang Hai and the white giant also boosted my stats significantly…”
“And my mechanical manufacturing skill has leveled up!”
System Update:
Mechanical Manufacturing upgraded to Level 2.
This upgrade greatly enhanced his crafting speed using materials from the decomposition space. While firearms remained complex due to the lack of gunpowder, simpler constructs like electromagnetic cannons were now conceivable—though he still lacked blueprints for such advanced weaponry.
Reflecting on the battle, Lin Xian decided he needed to prepare more straightforward mechanical tools for emergencies, such as hooks, shields, and ground spikes. These items were simple to craft but could prove invaluable in critical moments.
Opening the holographic interface of the Mechanical Heart, Lin Xian was surprised by the updates:
Mechanical Heart LV.2 (420/1000)
- Strength Level: 2 [73%] (Capable of lifting 200kg)
- Speed Level: 1 [89%] (Maximum 10m/s)
- Defense Level: 1 [71%] (Reinforced bones, resilient skin)
- Mechanical Awakening: Locked
Skills:
- Mechanical Devour: 2 (478/500) - Improves devouring efficiency.
- Mechanical Manufacturing: 2 (30/500) - Enhances crafting efficiency.
- Passive Skills: Scan / Repair / Decompose.
Special Skills:
- Wind Cannon (Common): Level 2 (78%)
- Ice Shield (Common): Level 1 (69%)
- Backlash (Rare): Level 1 (30%)
“This much defense in one go?!” Lin Xian marveled at how his stats aligned with his enemies. Killing Tang Hai and the white giant, both known for their tough skin, had significantly bolstered his defense stats.
“Lin Xian,” Chen Sixuan called worriedly, “She’s still not waking up. What do we do?”
“Wait a bit longer,” Lin Xian replied, standing up. “The white giant’s body must have more of those red beads. Bring another one, and we’ll try again. If it still doesn’t work, we’ll stop at Yu Chi instead of heading straight for Mount Daluo.”
“Stop?”
“Yes!” Lin Xian nodded decisively. His gaze was sharp.
“Yu Chi City may not be big, but it has malls. The train is badly damaged after this fight. If Kiki doesn’t wake up, I’ll take Luo Ye and the others to scavenge materials to repair and upgrade the train. We’ll also use the radio to check for nearby convoys.”
“If these red beads are effective, we’ll trade resources for more. If one isn’t enough, we’ll get two. If two aren’t enough, we’ll get four!”
After this battle, Lin Xian’s perspective shifted subtly. With mechanical manufacturing upgraded, he needed to enhance the train’s weaponry and defenses.
His original goal had been to explore Underground City No. 9, but with Kiki’s condition precarious, he decided it was better to redirect to Yu Chi City for now.
If he could produce ammunition, he could upgrade their arsenal significantly.
With his core stats nearing their next breakthroughs, mechanical devour about to hit Level 3, and the Mechanical Heart’s first awakening within sight, Lin Xian knew he had to push forward with a new plan.
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