MDT Chapter 135 Part 2 (Patreon)

Chapter 135 Part 2: Reproduction Carriage and the Flesh Train’s Lament

Carriage #15, the Reproduction Carriage.

Uncle Li surveyed the twenty-odd various livestock in this simple carriage and the two soil-covered refrigerators, exhaled a long breath of relief, the anxiety in his eyes completely disappearing as he relaxed considerably.

He then leaned against the carriage wall, lit a cigarette, a hint of pride hidden in his eyes, and spoke nonchalantly.

"It's fine, just a small job."

"Just managing one carriage. I'll handle it for now, gain some experience, and move up later."

"Awesome, Uncle Li!"

The young man standing nearby gave him a thumbs-up, full of excitement. "Boss Mang just implemented the Iris Chip this morning, and you were laid off. It's not even dark yet, and you're already back on the job?"

"I knew you could do it."

"And Uncle Li, you know so much. You had a million-dollar annual salary, and you still know how to raise pigs. You're incredibly versatile."

"Know?"

Uncle Li sighed, then flicked his cigarette butt to the ground. "I don't know anything. What rural family farm runs an orchard and raises chickens, ducks, cows, sheep, and pigs? You'd have to be a landlord to pull that off."

"You'd need a bunch of hired hands to manage all that. Try doing it yourself, and you'd kill your parents from overwork."

"When I was a kid, my family only had a few chickens and a dog."

"Huh?" The young man, who'd been excited moments before, watched his smile slowly freeze. "Uncle... Uncle Li, you don't know anything, and you take this on? If you mess up, won't you lose your head?"

"Don't worry—if my head rolls, yours definitely won't be safe either."

Uncle Li took a deep breath and draped his arm around the young man's shoulder. "Pull out our Stellar Vouchers, let's pool them together and buy a few packs of cigarettes. I'll take you to meet two people. I chatted with them when I was a laborer. One's family farmed, the other raised livestock."

"We'll go over, gather some information, make small talk, and we'll know what to do."

"This..."

"Has quite a large margin for error. It's just gaining experience. As long as they don't die, there won't be major problems. Let's secure the position first. If we don't know something, we can learn slowly."

"..."

The young man remained silent for a long time before speaking hoarsely: "Uncle Li, can you tell me how you went from studying civil engineering to accounting?"

"Oh, that."

"When I graduated and went to a construction site as a safety officer intern, the building collapsed. I spent a few years in prison, met many accounting experts, studied for a while, got an accounting certificate after release, and that group was willing to help me out after they got out too, so I slowly made a name for myself in that circle."

"Uncle Li, you've had it rough."

"Sigh, it's alright. Just barely scraping by."

"Is any of that true?"

"It's true."

"I always feel like nothing coming out of your mouth is honest now."

"Trust me."

"But Uncle Li, I know why I was only making a few thousand a month before the apocalypse."

"Why?"

"Because if it were me and I didn't know anything, there's no way I'd go to Chief Zhu asking for this job. Even if nobody found out right away, I'd be a nervous wreck. I couldn't live with myself."

"The bold feast while the timid starve. Do you think Chief Zhu, sitting in his position, is proficient in management?"

Uncle Li pursed his lips.

"I think if I were vice-captain, I could definitely do a better job."

"Give me some time, and I can sit there too."

"But..."

Uncle Li glanced outside and whispered, "This carriage is newly built and doesn't have cameras yet. It's fine for us to chat here, but don't say anything reckless when we go out."

"One step at a time. Let's start with this reproduction carriage. If other important positions become available in the future, I'll go to Chief Zhu and apply."

"Mm-hmm."

The young man nodded seriously.

"Uncle Li, I believe in you."

…..

"Is... is this right?"

In the Kunlun Mountains region, a man sat aboard the "Purple Cloud" train, staring blankly at the empty canyon before him. He felt like a swordsman who'd drawn his blade only to find no enemy to fight.

He had come from the Ironridge Wasteland.

He'd once clashed with the Stellar, but had submitted in time, and the Stellar had shown mercy. However, the blow to his pride had been considerable.

He'd worked so hard to develop for so long, yet the Stellar had caught up in just a month—rising from obscurity to the top of the regional leaderboard. A month later, it had upgraded to Level 4 and departed for a green zone.

It had completely crushed him.

So he'd steeled his resolve and decided: to hell with Mechanical Trains. He would dedicate himself to the flesh path—a Flesh Train!

The Kunlun Mountains region teemed with monsters. After specialization, he'd go there and slaughter the weaker ones.

The plan had been sound.

He'd successfully specialized as a C-rank potential Flesh Train. B-rank potential required killing a Level 5 monster, which was beyond his capabilities. He had no idea how others had managed it.

Then, just as he was excitedly heading to the Kunlun Mountains region to hunt monsters, he discovered that not a single one remained. On the Train Radio, countless Flesh Trains were wailing in despair, with no solution in sight.

"..."

The man stared blankly for a long time before looking at the "skull" on his control console. Since specializing in a Flesh Train, many mechanical accessories had vanished. The "Train Auxiliary AI" had become a "Flesh Brain."

Its function remained unchanged.

Only its appearance had shifted slightly, and he was now alone on the train. All the slaves, guards, and even his vice-captain had been devoured by the Flesh Train the moment he'd successfully specialized.

Honestly, if he'd known this would happen, he might not have specialized. The main issue was that nobody had explained what occurred after Flesh Train specialization.

His vice-captain had been quite loyal, and he'd grown fond of him.

But he'd already specialized—there was no turning back.

He looked down at his seat cushion. It resembled the bright red flesh of an inside-out lip. It was surprisingly comfortable and neither sticky nor bloody.

The carriage interiors had also transformed, now resembling the wrinkled flesh of large intestines.

His "Tripod-Mounted Heavy Machine Gun" had become a "Bone Spike Machine Gun."

He could control all accessories with his mind. For instance, he could directly command the "Bone Spike Machine Gun" to lock onto enemies with precision through the "Sensing Tentacles." His control over the train far exceeded what he'd had before.

For now, the biggest drawback was...

Faces would occasionally appear on the ceiling, watching him as he slept, which was driving him slightly mad. Those faces belonged to his former slaves. And he wasn't sure if it was his imagination, but controlling this train felt increasingly like controlling his own limbs—more and more fluid.

It was as if...

As if...

As if he and this Flesh Train were gradually merging into one.

"Sigh."

After a long moment, the man sighed and checked the "Advanced Effect Quantity Leaderboard." At the top sat the S-rank potential Mechanical Train.

Even after reaching a green zone...

It remained formidable.

Back in the Ironridge Wasteland, he'd held a top-five position on the regional leaderboard, and the gap with the Stellar hadn't been enormous. But after arriving in the Sand River Plains, the distance between him and the Stellar had begun widening rapidly.

"Hm?"

Just then—

The man was slightly stunned. He sensed a Level 2 monster flash by three hundred meters away. His face brightened with joy, and without hesitation, he controlled the train to give chase!

Several barbed spider legs began scuttling.

This train—which now resembled a fusion of centipede, spider, and worm—quickly pursued the Zombie Wolf!

A single Level 2 monster was better than nothing for a Flesh Train!

But this was the first monster he'd encountered in the Kunlun Mountains region. If he followed it, he might discover where all the region's monsters were hiding.

After specializing as a Flesh Train.

The control console screen had vanished.

All information now appeared in the depths of his mind, including the "Sensing Tentacles"—an accessory converted from the "Search Radar." Two short tentacles at the train's front relayed all sensed information directly to his consciousness.

It functioned about the same as before.

The only difference was that one had appeared on screen, the other in his mind.

And after Flesh Train specialization, he felt his thinking had become more flexible. He could contemplate multiple subjects simultaneously, control numerous accessories, and when receiving substantial information at once, he wouldn't feel overwhelmed—wouldn't experience that sensation of his brain crashing.

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