Apocalypse: I Built the Infinite Train

"This is the feeling!"

Lin Xian’s heart raced with excitement. Feeling the roaring power of the train beneath him, the shadows of the previous night were quickly swept away. At this moment, he felt as if he and the entire train had become one—a surge of invincibility coursed through him!

Clang-clang-clang, clang-clang-clang…

Outside the elevated tracks near University City Station, a few zombies in tattered uniforms wandered aimlessly. Suddenly, these creatures simultaneously noticed the rumbling noise from the tunnel. The tracks beneath their feet began to tremble.

"Ugh—ah…"

"Grkk—grrrkk…"

The sound escaped from their rotting throats, like the dying breath of ancient wood. As if drawn by an invisible string, the zombies turned their heads in unison. Their clouded, lifeless eyes locked onto the dark entrance of the tunnel.

Woooooo!

A deafening horn blast, like a roar from the abyss, broke the silence. The blood-red mechanical beast surged forth from the tunnel like a war god awakening from its ancient slumber, carrying boundless rage and the dormant power of countless years.

The zombies howled and lunged forward like crazed beasts. But their decayed brains couldn’t comprehend that the deafening sound was not prey but a steel monster with a terrifying 18,500 horsepower!

Crunch, crunch!

The accelerating Infinite Train barreled through them like an unstoppable force, instantly creating a rain of blood and a tide of shredded flesh. Severed limbs flew everywhere. In the cockpit, Lin Xian's gaze flickered as the pent-up tension of the past ten days was finally unleashed in full force.

"Yes!!!" Lin Xian shouted in exhilaration.

In this moment, he felt an unparalleled euphoria, as if breaking through the darkness and stepping into the light of dawn. It was a clear sign—his plan had taken its first successful step.

Clang-clang, clang-clang!

With excitement coursing through him, the heavy locomotive raced along the tracks. Lin Xian observed the city outside, now reduced to a desolate wasteland, while continuously searching for any useful information.

The zombies wandering the streets posed relatively less of a threat to ordinary people unless they triggered a massive zombie tide. Of course, zombies that were once animals—like dogs or wolves—were often far more troublesome than their human counterparts.

Buzz, buzz—

Lin Xian tried calling Chen Sixuan again, but her phone was still unreachable.

When the call failed, he put away his phone and prepared to pick her up in person. Lin Xian wasn’t someone who second-guessed himself. Once he made a plan, he wouldn’t waver. Unless Chen Sixuan was already dead, he wouldn’t change his course.

The subway tracks were far more navigable than he had anticipated. Perhaps because they were usually enclosed, or maybe because no one had been foolish enough to drive cars onto the tracks, there were no significant obstacles along the way.

The station nearest Yushui Gardens was Tiyu Xi Station, which used to be a bustling subway hub packed with people. As the train entered the underground tunnel, Lin Xian gradually reduced its speed.

After all, he would soon have to get off the train to search for Chen Sixuan. If he made too much noise and drew the attention of too many zombies, it would make his task far more difficult.

Screech—

Instead of pulling into the station, Lin Xian stopped the train some distance away.

He first went to the No. 2 Carriage, where he saw that the girl was still asleep. This surprised him.

"How could anyone sleep for this long?"

"Hey!"

Lin Xian lightly patted her cheek, but there was no response.

So he reached out and pinched her face. Her tender skin was soft and elastic. Despite the bloodstains, her delicate features were impossible to hide. She was clearly a beauty in the making—likely a girl from some wealthy family.

"Forget it, let her sleep," Lin Xian muttered to himself.

To be safe, he sealed off the passageways between the No. 3 Carriage and the No. 1 Carriage. Then, grabbing his short blade, he carefully surveyed the surroundings before disembarking.

Following the path along the tracks, Lin Xian ran into the station.

Yushui Gardens, Building 3, Unit 901

Chen Sixuan hadn’t slept all night. The immense mental pressure had left her pale and drained. Her once-beautiful face was devoid of any color.

At the moment, she was curled up in the corner of her couch, her head buried against her knees.

Scattered around her were books on Planetary Orbital Rails. Her eyes were hollow, her dry lips moving incessantly as she murmured to herself:

"Jiangyu Line… Code HX05681… Total length, 1,256 kilometers… Stops at primary stations: Jiangning Station, Yubei Station… Secondary stations: Yushan Station, Beiwang Station…"

Since her last call had gone through yesterday, Chen Sixuan had placed all her hopes on the arrival of a speeding train.

But as time passed, despair began to creep in, slowly eroding the last shreds of her sanity.

"Beiwang Station… maintenance section…"

Her muttering abruptly stopped, and a slight tremor flickered in her eyes.

A memory surfaced of a student she had barely paid attention to back then.

From a regular family, always wearing a warm smile, quiet by nature, not very social, and not particularly athletic…

Everything about him had seemed… ordinary.

Then she recalled his talk about a “Railroad Train” Project—his plan to operate a heavy locomotive and escape along the Planetary Orbital Rail.

Thinking about it now… wasn’t that idea a bit too far-fetched?

"Does he even know how to drive a train? If he has that much fuel or energy, wouldn’t it be easier to just drive a car?" Chen Sixuan muttered to herself. Every question felt like a sharp blade, slicing through the fragile hope she clung to.

What if the track is broken? Would her former student be able to fix it? Or would she, a foreign language teacher, have to?

One question after another, too overwhelming to confront, bubbled up in her mind, gradually consuming her. The slim strand of hope she had seemed increasingly ridiculous.

Tears the size of beans welled up in her eyes and dripped down, one by one.

But Chen Sixuan didn’t dare to give up just yet. She bit her lip hard, refusing to let her tears overflow, and silently repeated to herself:

He promised… He said he’d come…

"Beiwang Station… One main track, two arrival and departure tracks…"

Her muttering filled the empty living room once again.

Knock, knock, knock—

A sudden knocking broke the silence, like a stone tossed into a calm lake, sending ripples through the air. In the stillness of the room, the sound was deafening.

Chen Sixuan lifted her head, her eyes lighting up with a glimmer of hope.

Was it him?

Barefoot, she ran to the door from the couch. But instead of looking through the peephole, she stood nervously and asked in a trembling voice, "Who… who is it?"

The response from the other side, however, was not the voice she longed to hear. Instead, it was the voice of a middle-aged man.

"Teacher Chen, it’s me, Liang Wei! I’ve been trying to call you for two days, but you didn’t answer. I got worried, so I came to check on you."

At that moment, Chen Sixuan’s hope plummeted into the abyss.

Liang Wei was a former colleague of hers. Back when they worked at the university, he had been a sleazy man who hid behind a respectable facade. His eyes often wandered inappropriately over Chen Sixuan, and she had even heard rumors that he had preyed on several female students before. He was a true predator disguised as a professional.

For reasons unknown—perhaps due to having connections—this man had managed to rise to the position of office director at the university. Chen Sixuan had always despised him and kept her interactions with him to a minimum.

Unfortunately, in the apocalypse, it turned out Liang Wei lived in the same residential complex and even in the same unit. Since the world had fallen apart, Liang Wei had called her repeatedly. At first, he pretended to be serious, saying that during a crisis, everyone needed to stick together. He claimed to have plenty of supplies and even offered to share them if she needed anything.

But gradually, his true nature surfaced. Especially after learning that Chen Sixuan was running low on supplies, he became increasingly impatient, frequently suggesting she move in with him.

Now, hearing Liang Wei’s voice at the door, Chen Sixuan couldn’t tell if her nausea was from disappointment or pure disgust. Clenching her stomach, she responded coldly, "I’m fine."

Bang, bang, bang!

The knocking grew heavier.

"Fine? Didn’t you tell me before that you were running out of food?!"

When Chen Sixuan still didn’t open the door, Liang Wei pressed his face against the peephole to try and look inside. Seeing his shadow against the door, Chen Sixuan instinctively stepped back with a frown.

Liang Wei’s eyes lit up the moment he spotted her silhouette.

"Teacher Chen! Are you hungry? I still have plenty of bread, cookies, canned beef, and bottled water! If you want, I’ll bring it down for you right now."

Bread, cookies, canned beef, bottled water…

The names of these foods sounded almost intoxicating as they reached Chen Sixuan’s ears, tempting her reason to crumble.

She… hadn’t eaten for two days.

But deep down, she knew. Whether Liang Wei really had those supplies or not, opening the door would mean turning herself into his personal plaything in this post-apocalyptic hell.

Shame or survival—which one was more important?

After receiving no response for some time, Liang Wei’s last ounce of patience snapped. His expression darkened, and he suddenly slapped the door hard with his hand.

Bang!

"Chen Sixuan, you f**ing btch! Stop pretending to be so high and mighty! The world’s already gone to hell, and most people are dead. At least if you stick with me, you’ll survive a few more days! I’m not going to eat you or anything—what the hell are you afraid of?!"

"Open the damn door!"

Bang, bang, bang!

The knocking escalated to kicking, and the loud thuds reverberated through the room. Chen Sixuan’s face turned deathly pale. She spun around, grabbing a fruit knife from the shoe cabinet for self-defense. Holding it close to her chest, her eyes filled with panic and turmoil.