Apocalypse: I Built the Infinite Train

"Wuu~"

At the massive center of the beehive, countless maintenance drones drifted slowly by. Overhead, a white-painted high-tech mechanical arm rotated and paused at each level's partition, operating automatically.

Inside the circular surveillance hall, by the cabin elevator, a woman was curled up on the ground, trembling like an addict in withdrawal. Some broken fungal threads had fallen from her body and shattered when her head knocked into them. They no longer seemed active.

KIKI's words made everyone's expression—including Luo Yang's—change in shock. Lin Xian looked at her. “You know her?”

KIKI nodded, brows furrowed. “If I'm not mistaken, this woman should be called Tang Yun.” She glanced at Lin Xian, her tone less than pleased. “She’s... the wife of that father's brother.”

Lin Xian asked, “Biological brother?”

“Yup.”

“So that makes her your aunt, doesn’t it?” Lin Xian said.

KIKI shrugged. “Kind of. I don’t have much impression of any of them, but this one... is okay, I guess.”

Lin Xian understood. He knew KIKI’s background: her biological father was the chairman of the Linglong Group, the head of Jinhai’s most powerful conglomerate. Before Apocalypse Day, Linglong was one of Dragon Nation’s top real estate empires and a global top-ten shipping group. Technically illegitimate or not, if not for the apocalypse, KIKI would be high society’s elite heiress.

If this woman really was her aunt, then she had to be a central figure in the Wen family. For such a person to appear here... was suspicious, to say the least.

The woman continued convulsing on the floor. She was wearing a white garment—if it could be called that. It looked more like two flaps of lab coat fabric, barely covering anything. She was practically naked, shivering on the floor.

Just then, KIKI jabbed Lin Xian with her elbow and glared at him. “What are you staring at?”

Lin Xian frowned and gestured to KIKI. “She’s still got fungal threads on her head. She might already be a fungal corpse.”

“So... take her out?” KIKI asked bluntly.

Lin Xian observed for a moment. Despite her convulsions, the woman’s vitals seemed normal. Plus, for a ‘relative’ to show up here, it was worth some caution. He turned to the group.

“Keep your distance for now.”

He raised his hand, and mechanical light flickered. In moments, he assembled a transparent mechanical isolation pod, then said to KIKI, “Put her inside.”

KIKI got the message and used psychic power to move Tang Yun into the pod. Lin Xian then hit his communicator and summoned Ding Junyi.

Once that was done, Lin Xian turned to KIKI and said, “Your dad joined the Dawn Project, but your second aunt became a member of the Descent Faction’s Crimson World, trying to become immortal. Don’t you think that’s strange?”

“It is weird... but I don’t care about them.” KIKI turned to Lin Xian, her eyes glinting mischievously. “But I know what you’re getting at.”

Lin Xian nodded subtly. He, Chen Sixuan, and KIKI had already discussed that once they escaped Abyss Zone No. 5 from Yijin City, his next step would be to break away from the United Train and head for Jinhai. Before entering the Oceanic Rail, he needed to make several preparations. One of the key tasks was upgrading the train’s drive system.

Upgrading to all-terrain drive would consume more energy and reduce speed but would allow Infinite Train to operate off-rail, giving them greater mobility.

They were likely to take the Lesser Oceanic Rail, which meant they might need to operate on water or even sea surfaces. If heading toward the Polar Region, there were two options: one route passed through the Qiong'gu Strait, via several North American micro-continents, then south from White Ocean—but that required a giant ferry if the rails weren’t intact.

The other route directly crossed the Pacific Ocean via the Lesser Oceanic Rail, covering a broader stretch but potentially less risky, since few knew its current condition.

Jinhai was one of the world’s smallest orbital train manufacturing bases and home to the Nuclear Physics Institute of Dragon Nation. It was also KIKI’s hometown and the headquarters of the Linglong Group.

Whether it was for the drive upgrade or their “Heist Couple Plan,” he had to go there.

Soon, Ding Junyi arrived. For safety, Xiao Lou and Brother Lin came to the surveillance hall too.

“Perfect timing. I went back to study the surveillance hub’s data and found something odd,” Ding Junyi said briskly as she walked in. Upon hearing about the mysterious man from Ji Gui, she immediately brought a neural brainwave scanner along with a portable medical pod. Xiao Lou carried a Hell’s Black Chrysanthemum.

“I brought this too, just in case.”

“What’s the problem?” Lin Xian asked immediately.

Ding Junyi walked over to the isolation pod, scanned the woman’s head with a multi-frequency bio-ray lamp, then stowed the device. She opened the pod and signaled Shu Qin to hold the woman down, then began attaching the brainwave monitor to Tang Yun.

“It was something Shasha said that inspired me. When I analyzed the brainwave data of surviving subjects, I noticed a peculiar pattern. When their brain produces over 200hz and 70uV of Y-gamma waves, it creates synchronous interference—very different from ordinary hallucinations.”

“Can’t understand a word,” KIKI muttered with a pout.

“If this person regains even a sliver of consciousness, she’ll understand,” Ding Junyi replied.

“Got it.” Lin Xian nodded. “You two watch her. I’ve got other things to do.”

With that, Lin Xian motioned for Luo Yang and the others to follow him to the side so as not to disturb Ding Junyi, ready to discuss his plans with Luo Yang.

“Really, Lin Bro? We can really join your convoy?”

Lin Xian got straight to the point. Luo Yang was instantly excited, eyes wide. “I’ve been wanting to talk to you about this! This is great! We all want to join your convoy, Lin Bro!”

Behind him, Lolo and Amin also beamed with joy.

“Captain Lin, we’ve talked it through many times.”

“That’s right, that’s right!”

“Back when our three convoys passed through Xilin, we already discussed joining forces,” Luo Yang added, then paused, recalling the Big Eagle Convoy, a flicker of sorrow in his eyes.

Lin Xian sighed and patted Luo Yang on the shoulder. “I understand. After surviving all this, joining forces makes us stronger. Once we escape Polar Night, I’ll combine our trains. I’ll do a full overhaul then.”

Infinite Train currently had 16 carriages. Adding the Sun Train’s 11 carriages brought the total to over 27—making Infinite Train over 800 meters long, with greatly increased capacity.

“Awesome! That’s amazing!” Luo Yang was thrilled, pushing up his glasses. “Lin Bro, I’ll go tell the others the good news right now!”

But just as he turned, he paused and glanced at Lin Xian. “Oh, by the way, Lin Bro, there’s also—”

Before he could finish, Lin Xian cut him off. “That includes Li Yi and her group. I’ll talk to her directly.”

Luo Yang’s eyes lit up, breathing a sigh of relief. “Great! Got it.”

Though they were temporarily merged with Luo Yang’s group, Li Yi's convoy was still an independent unit with many members. Lin Xian thought it best to speak to her personally to avoid future misunderstandings.

The Sun Train was a yellow-black armored train, massive in size, powered by a more advanced Huanxing-10A Electric Locomotive and a Linglong Nuclear-Powered Car, making it a true Doomsday Train. Besides the two engine cars, there was a supply car, armory, and dining car—the remaining six were living carriages, offering much more space than Infinite Train's multi-purpose setup.

As soon as Lin Xian boarded, he could feel a strong lived-in vibe. Supplies just hauled aboard hadn’t been fully stored, and passengers were quietly organizing their personal shelters, much like the Bigfoot Convoy had done earlier.

The first two living carriages housed Luo Yang’s younger crew—males in one, females in the other. Their styles were distinct and energetic. In the men’s carriage, many excitedly fiddled with their new power suits, while in the women’s, some were tidying up supplies and cleaning, and others were learning to use firearms. The whole atmosphere was upbeat.

Past those two, the remaining four carriages belonged to the original Running Far Convoy. The first had a wide corridor with closed-off living pods, allowing for smooth movement and plenty of storage.

Just as Lin Xian was wondering why this carriage’s living space was so compact, a small head popped out from an upper bunk partition. In the dim light, a pair of bright, watery eyes blinked at him and asked in a soft whisper:

“Bi—bro... bro, who... are you looking for?”

Lin Xian blinked. The little girl looked only four or five, with a short bob haircut and a smudged but adorably lively face.

At her age, she should have been enjoying a happy childhood. But her face bore the traces of a long, harsh escape. Lin Xian sighed inwardly and smiled. “I’m looking for—”

“Shhh~”

Before he could finish, the girl put a finger to his lips and whispered, “Mommy... Li Yi... says... talk softly~”

“Okay~” Lin Xian chuckled and mimicked her tone.

“Captain Lin!”

Just then, Li Yi's voice rang out. Lin Xian looked up and saw her carrying a repair kit filled with wrenches and screwdrivers, with a large gun slung over her back. She looked surprised. “Captain Lin, you're looking for me?”

“Mommy Li Yi~”

The sound of her voice drew curious glances from all around. One by one, little heads began popping out of the sleeping pods.

Lin Xian nodded and looked around at the children, then gestured to Li Yi.

Li Yi nodded back and quickly set down the tool kit, wiping the grease off her hands while calling up to the girl above.

“Duoduo, time to sleep.”

“Okay~” The girl named Duoduo grinned and shyly peeked at Lin Xian before obediently ducking back inside.

As Lin Xian stepped down, Li Yi quickly said, “We’ve moved the kids into a dedicated living carriage in the middle section so it’s easier to care for them. But this train is a lot wider than our old bus, so the extra space is full of clutter we haven’t sorted yet. Sorry you had to see it like this.”

“How’s Liang Lei’s injury?” Lin Xian asked.

“Much better now.” Li Yi looked at Lin Xian gratefully. “Captain Chen and his team took Lei Zi back to your medical carriage for another check-up earlier. All his vitals… they’re stabilizing. He’s got thick skin and strong muscles—his ability’s bouncing back pretty fast too.”

Lin Xian nodded, then got straight to the point and told her about inviting Luo Yang’s convoy to join.

“Luo Yang and the others have agreed. I came to find you because I hope your convoy can join Infinite Train as well.”

Li Yi’s expression froze for a moment. She stared at Lin Xian in shock, her mouth slightly open, clearly in disbelief.

“Lin… Captain Lin, are you serious?”

“You’re not too keen on the idea?” Lin Xian asked.

“No... no, that’s not it.” Li Yi was both surprised and thrilled, and for some reason, her eyes welled up a bit. “Lei Zi, Luo Yang, and I—we’ve talked about this before. It’s just…”

She glanced back at the carriage, then looked down helplessly at her big belly. “I’m just worried… that I’d slow you down, Captain Lin.”

Lin Xian’s expression grew serious. “I heard you saved dozens of stranded survivors along the way?”

Li Yi gave a bitter smile. “It hasn’t been easy for anyone. If we can help each other out… maybe it gives us all a better shot at staying alive.”

Lin Xian took a deep breath and said, “Meeting a convoy like yours is my luck. If I were a survivor struggling to make it in the apocalypse, I’d dream of crossing paths with someone like you. How could I ever think you’d slow us down?”

In the beginning, Lin Xian had very clear standards for accepting new people on his train.

Loyalty. Value.

To him, that was the only way to survive in the apocalypse.

Be absolutely self-serving. Everyone is a resource.

But after the Dawn Journey, Lin Xian came to realize something else. It’s those who form genuine bonds, those who haven’t lost their humanity and reach out to help others in disaster—those are the ones truly fit to climb mountains and carry the flame forward.

That carriage full of kids—maybe they can't fight. Maybe they don’t contribute much under doomsday conditions. But aren’t those innocent hearts exactly what humanity must protect?

“Captain Lin, I…” Li Yi was momentarily speechless, caught off guard by his words.

“You’re part of us now,” Lin Xian said directly. “We’ll protect this family together.”

Li Yi bit her lip, then quickly covered her mouth, eyes damp. She nodded to Lin Xian. “Okay. Thank you, Captain Lin.”

“Take care of Lei Zi and the kids for now. Have the rest of your team get used to the new gear. We’re about to break through the Polar Night. Things won’t go smoothly.”

“Got it.”

After finishing his conversation with Luo Yang and Li Yi, Lin Xian finally felt like a heavy burden had lifted from his chest.

If all went well, Infinite Train was about to get a major upgrade—not just weaponry, but intelligence systems and drive units too.

He checked the time. It was already past 5 a.m., so he immediately returned to the Zero Element Center to continue devouring items.

[Devour Successful. Mechanical Source +10, Mechanical Devour Skill Proficiency +5]

[Devour Successful. Mechanical Source +15, Mechanical Devour Skill Proficiency +6]

[Devour Successful. Mechanical Source +20, Mechanical Devour Skill Proficiency +8]

………

Inside the monitoring hall, Lin Xian scoured everything he could find. Anything remotely usable, he took—turning it all into source material and mechanical points.

Once he’d cleared the monitoring hall, he operated the robotic arm to transfer over the already-defunct survival pods. Then, through the glass wall, he began devouring them.

[Devour Successful. Mechanical Source +3, Mechanical Devour Skill Proficiency +1]

After each pod was devoured, they crumbled into brown ash. In an instant, the bodies inside—including remnants of shattered fungal threads—fell straight into the base of the hive center.

Men and women, almost all over forty, whose bodies had nearly turned into plant-like deformations. One careless touch and their organs would just plop right out of their cracked chests—yet there wasn’t a drop of blood. It was eerie.

These survival pods didn’t yield much, but there were tons of them. In about six to seven hours, Lin Xian had cleared out hundreds. His mechanical source points shot up by nearly 2000—an absolute feast.

[Current Mechanical Heart Level: LV.5 (4340/20000)]

Mechanical Devour: 4 (1760/2000) – Improved Devour Efficiency

“As expected. A big base, plenty of time—this is how you level fast. Once I hit level 5, I could probably devour a regular car in just a few minutes.”

After the long grind, Lin Xian felt thoroughly satisfied. It was the first time he’d truly felt safe underground.

“If it weren’t for the Dark Invasion and the Dark Mark, the underground really might’ve been a solid plan…”

Then he paused, recalling that unknown subterranean creature in Underground City No. 9, and quickly shook his head. “Sh*t. Almost forgot about that thing. Screw the underground.”

Just then, KIKI’s voice crackled through the comms.

“Lin Xian, get over here quick—this woman just woke up!”

Shu Qin immediately dropped what she was doing and ran toward the other side of the secondary monitoring room.

KIKI, Lin Xian, and the others—Ding Junyi included—had all gathered around the isolation pod Shu Qin had built.

The woman inside had regained a sliver of consciousness. She scrambled out of the pod and dropped to the floor. Her eyes darted between each of them in terror before she suddenly shrieked:

“Don’t kill me! Don’t kill me…!!”

Her face went pale. She trembled violently, eyes spinning wildly in her sockets. Then, out of nowhere, she knelt down, twisted around with her backside facing everyone like she was trying to seduce them, crying out frantically:

“Don’t kill me! Come on! I’ll do anything! I can’t take it anymore! Hurry, hurry!”

Everyone’s face changed instantly.

The woman’s hibernation suit was basically two sheets of surgical cloth—front and back—so thin it barely covered anything. And now, with her strange posture, everything was on full display. The scene was as bizarre as it was obscene.

Luo Yang, Lolo, and Xiao Min all looked at each other in stunned silence. Da Lou and Shu Qin had odd expressions too. KIKI frowned deeply, immediately covering Lin Xian’s eyes with one hand while using psychic force to wrap the woman in her hibernation robe and suspend her in midair.

“AHHH!!”

The woman—Tang Yun—screamed, flailing in the air. Lin Xian noted her ghostly pale skin, but her eyes… they were bloodshot, sickly red.

Ding Junyi stayed calm, hands in pockets. “Looks like a stress response from prolonged fungal hallucinations. Similar to toxin exposure. But we’ve confirmed she’s still human—no fungal parasitism. Must’ve used some kind of isolation tech.”

“Tang Yun!” KIKI called out.

The woman flinched at the sound of her name. Her breathing slowed, the panic in her eyes slowly fading into clarity.

She stared at KIKI, face shifting from fear to confusion to sudden realization. Her pupils shrank.

“You… you… you’re… Wen… Wen Qi?!”

KIKI’s expression remained cold. “It’s me. What are you doing here?”

Tang Yun’s eyes locked on KIKI’s face, shifting wildly as she tried to process. Then, seeing the others, she spoke with urgency.

“W-What time is it now? Is the world… safe again?!”

KIKI rolled her eyes. “Perfect timing. We’re smack in the middle of Polar Night. Monsters are partying right above your head.”

“What?!” Tang Yun gasped, scanning her surroundings in disbelief. Then her eyes drifted toward the hive center. “No… that can’t be. They said… when it was all over, we’d wake up. Just a blink. Even if we died, it’d be in a dream. Why… why…”

As she spoke, her gaze returned to the survival pod. She suddenly screamed and struggled violently. “No, I wasn’t supposed to wake up! No!”

Lin Xian and KIKI exchanged a look. KIKI got the message and pressed her.

“Hey. Answer me. Why are you here?”

Tang Yun blinked, finally realizing she was suspended in midair by a strange force, surrounded by armed people in combat suits. Definitely not friendly vibes.

Then it clicked. She looked at KIKI in panic and shouted, “Wen Qi, Wen Qi—I’m your aunt! Save me, please! Don’t let them kill me!”

KIKI dropped her. Tang Yun hit the ground hard, legs too weak to stand, landing on her butt.

“Wen Qi… please, save me… I’m your aunt, remember?”

She was completely overwhelmed by fear, crawling toward KIKI without even registering she was still exposed.

Buzz!

Shu Qin raised a hand. A white spear flew to her and she caught it, pointing it at Luo Yang’s face to stop him from backing away.

“She’s definitely the one you asked about the eighth time,” Ji Gui said coldly.