29: Chapter 29 Frenzied Looting

Lin Xiao waved his hand, like a king in the dark night, leading his "women's army" as they snuck back toward the center of the chaos.

There was more to the "public restroom" than met the eye.

A deep metal staircase led straight underground.

After violently breaching the final half-ton alloy door (Su Qingqian used her freezing ability to make the door hinges brittle, and Liu Ruyan used her dance techniques to skillfully dismantle the hinges), a massive underground warehouse revealed itself to them.

"My god..."

Even though they were mentally prepared, when they saw the scene inside the warehouse, Liu Ruyan and the girls from the Dance Department couldn't help but gasp.

This was practically a kingdom of supplies!

On the left were rows of shelves reaching the ceiling, piled high with crates of military-grade compressed biscuits, self-heating rations, and canned food.

A rough estimate suggested there was enough to feed a thousand people for a month!

On the right was the medical area.

Crats of antibiotics, bandages, and disinfectant alcohol were neatly stacked, and there were even several highly sophisticated portable operating tables and ventilators!

At the very back of the warehouse were the weapons and materials.

Dozens of brand-new assault rifles, crates of ammunition, and various ores and alloy ingots with a metallic luster shimmered alluringly under the lights.

"We're rich... we're really rich now..."

Liu Ruyan muttered to herself.

They used to risk their lives for a few packs of biscuits, but here... the supplies here were enough to build a small army!

"Don't just stand there."

Excitement flickered in Lin Xiao's eyes as well.

This Vice President Wang was truly a dedicated "logistics captain"!

"We don't have much time; that old fox City Lord Lei Hu will realize what's happening soon.

Liu Ruyan, take the others and move the food and medicine.

Take as much as you can!"

Lin Xiao ordered Liu Ruyan, then looked at Su Qingqian.

"Qing Qian, come with me.

We're going deeper to scavenge for some good stuff."

"But... there's so much stuff, how are we supposed to move it all?" Liu Ruyan raised a very practical question.

Even if they were all supernaturally strong, they couldn't take away even one percent of the supplies here.

"I have my ways."

Lin Xiao smiled mysteriously without explaining.

He led Su Qingqian straight to the deepest part of the warehouse.

He ignored the ordinary firearms and ammunition; his [Material Conversion Ammo Box] had as much of those as he needed.

His target was the "high-end goods" that Vice President Wang treated like treasures but didn't know how to use.

He first arrived at a partitioned area.

A massive machine covered by a heavy canvas tarp sat there.

Lin Xiao ripped the canvas away.

A machine constructed entirely of cast iron, complex in structure, and reeking of heavy machine oil, appeared before them.

**[System scanning...]**

**[Item: German-made nine-axis linkage precision lathe.]**

**[Grade: A-Rank (Rare).]**

**[Description: A crystallization of industrial civilization, used for processing high-precision parts.

It is the essential master machine for upgrading and manufacturing high-end weapons and equipment.

Weight: 2.3 tons.]**

"Holy cow! They even have this thing!"

Lin Xiao's eyes lit up.

With this precision lathe, combined with the blueprints he redeemed from the system, he could even build a Gundam... ahem, I mean, build more advanced weapons and train parts!

The strategic value of this item was greater than all the food and medicine in the warehouse combined!

"This... what is this?

It looks so clunky." Su Qingqian curiously touched the cold machine body.

"This is a treasure that will make us stronger."

Lin Xiao smiled, then reached out and pressed his hand against the base of the lathe.

He silently chanted in his mind: "Collect!"

The next second, to Su Qingqian's shocked eyes, the massive object weighing over two tons vanished into thin air!

Not a trace was left behind!

"This... this..."

For the first time, Su Qingqian's eternal poker face showed an expression of seeing a ghost.

She rubbed her eyes, confirming she wasn't dreaming.

"Lin Xiao... are... are you a god?"

"You could understand it as one of my talents."

Lin Xiao didn't explain further.

This was a special permission he had bound as the Conductor—**[Conductor's Exclusive Storage Space]**.

This space was as large as a soccer field, with the only limitation being that he had to touch the item with his own hands to collect it.

This was also the reason why he had to come to the warehouse in person.

Looking at Su Qingqian's shocked and adoring gaze, Lin Xiao felt a surge of secret satisfaction.

The feeling of showing off was just so unpretentious and boring.

"Don't space out, let's continue."

Lin Xiao pulled the still-dazed Su Qingqian toward the next target.

It was a corner locked behind an alloy fence, piled with dozens of silver-white metal plates, each a meter square.

These metal plates looked ordinary, but the label on them caught Lin Xiao's attention—"Unknown hard metal, pending research."

Lin Xiao walked up and reached out to touch them.

**[Ding! S-Rank rare material discovered: TC4 Titanium Alloy Armor Plate!]**

**[Description: Top-tier material from pre-war aerospace technology, possessing extremely high strength, toughness, and heat resistance.

It is one of the candidate materials for manufacturing starship hulls.

Can be used to significantly reinforce train defense or to craft top-tier personal armor.]**

"S-Rank material! Aerospace-grade titanium alloy!"

Lin Xiao's heart skipped a beat!

With this batch of armor plates, his Black Iron's defensive power could at least double!

By then, forget about grenades; even if a small missile hit them, it would probably only scrape off a layer of paint!

"Collect! Collect them all!"

Lin Xiao was unceremonious, waving his hand like autumn wind sweeping away fallen leaves.

Dozens of heavy titanium alloy armor plates vanished instantly without a trace.

Next, Lin Xiao activated his frantic "zero-dollar shopping" mode.

He was like a diligent porter, wandering around the huge warehouse.

Wherever his palm touched, everything became empty.

Crates of compressed biscuits? Collect!

Rare medical equipment? Collect!

Weird-looking electronic components? Collect!

A pile of ores that he didn't know what they were but felt powerful? Collect them all!

Su Qingqian followed behind him, her initial shock having turned to numbness.

She looked at the man before her as if watching a bottomless black hole, as if he could swallow the entire world.

She felt her perception of Lin Xiao had been refreshed once again.

How many secrets was this man still hiding?

Just as Lin Xiao was having the time of his life moving things, with his storage space nearly half full, suddenly!

A cold, grand, emotionless voice, like divine punishment from the heavens, exploded directly in his mind!

**[Warning! Detected that Conductor No. 9527 is conducting large-scale destruction and looting within the "Safe Zone"!]**

**[Conducting behavioral evaluation...]**

Lin Xiao's movements stiffened instantly.

The heavenly dao system?!

Since the newbie period ended, this thing hadn't made a sound on its own.

Why was it popping up today?

Creating destruction in the Safe Zone?

Was it going to punish him?

Lin Xiao's heart jumped into his throat.

If it decided to strike him down with lightning, he would be doomed.

A full ten seconds passed.

The cold voice sounded again.

**[Evaluation in progress...]**

**[Judgment: Survival of the fittest, winner takes all.

This behavior conforms to the core survival laws of the apocalypse.]**

**[Overall evaluation: Excellent.]**

**[Reward: Infamy + 1000 points.]**

**[Reward: Unlocked special title— "outlaw"!]**

**[Title: outlaw]**

**[Effect: Passive skill.

When you face human enemies, your intimidation factor will increase by 20%.

There is a certain chance to make enemies with weak willpower flee without a fight.]**

"Huh?"

Lin Xiao was stunned.

Not only was there no punishment, but he got a reward?

Infamy?

outlaw?

This heavenly dao system... was it really this wild?

The corners of Lin Xiao's mouth curled up uncontrollably.

He understood.

This godforsaken apocalypse didn't encourage some saint who saves everyone, but rather a ruthless, unscrupulous mastermind like him!

As long as you are strong enough, ruthless enough, and can trample others under your feet, then you are "compliant with the rules"!

"Hahahaha!"

Lin Xiao couldn't help but laugh out loud.

So, I am the true child of destiny in this world!

"Lin Xiao? What's wrong?" Su Qingqian looked at Lin Xiao, who had suddenly started laughing, and asked with some concern.

"Nothing, I just figured some things out."

Lin Xiao restrained his smile, his eyes flashing with unprecedented confidence and dominance.

"Let's go! It's time to go home!"

"Squad Leader! Hurry! That old geezer City Lord Lei Hu is bringing people over!

They are flanking in your direction!

You'll be blocked in three minutes!" Luo Yao's anxious urging came through the headset.

"Got it."

Lin Xiao glanced at the warehouse, which was more than half-emptied.

Although he still wanted more, he knew it was time to stop.

He led Su Qingqian, Liu Ruyan, and the others, quickly retreating from the underground warehouse.

By this time, the streets outside had turned into a chaotic mess.

Everywhere there were armed City Guards and panicked civilians.

Thick smoke from explosions and the pungent smell of gunpowder filled the air.

"Follow me closely!"

Lin Xiao grabbed Su Qingqian's hand, holding his gun in the other to clear the way.

They didn't choose to return the way they came, but instead followed the route provided by Luo Yao, speeding through the intricate alleys.

Occasionally, a few blind City Guards would try to stop them for questioning.

"Swish!"

Su Qingqian's blade flashed, and those men clutched their necks and collapsed.

In such a chaotic moment, no one would care about a few corpses.

Finally, after passing through the last alley, the empty space of the VIP docking area appeared before them.

The massive figure of Black Iron, like a dormant beast, sat quietly there.

The searchlights on the roof had long been switched on, illuminating the path home for them.

At the vehicle entrance, Zhao Xiaotang was wearing a tight sports vest, carrying that alloy steel pipe thicker than her waist, standing there like a female war god.

Seeing Lin Xiao and the others appear, she waved excitedly.

"Squad Leader! Over here!"

"Hurry and get on!"

Lin Xiao led the group rushing toward the train.

Behind them, dozens of modified armed off-road vehicles roared with engines, kicking up clouds of dust as they chased frantically.

In the lead vehicle, City Lord Lei Hu's livid face looked exceptionally ferocious under the glare of the headlights.

"Get on!"

Lin Xiao was the last one to jump on the train.

"Luo Yao! Close the door! Full power!"

"Received!"

"Boom—"

The heavy alloy door slammed shut, completely sealing off the noise outside.

The upgraded hybrid engine of Black Iron let out a deafening roar, and the entire train body began to shake violently.

"Boom—!!!"

Under Luo Yao's operation, the upgraded hybrid engine of Black Iron instantly pushed its power to the limit!

Driven by a mix of steam and electricity, this steel beast let out a thunderous roar.

The twenty heavy carriages vibrated violently on the tracks, and the friction between the wheels and the tracks kicked up a series of blinding sparks.

In just a few seconds, the train's speed surged from zero to eighty kilometers per hour!

"You want to run?! Stop it for me!"

Behind them, City Lord Lei Hu's exasperated roar was torn to shreds by the roar of the engines.

Dozens of modified armed off-road vehicles, like mad dogs smelling blood, clung tightly to the rear of Black Iron.

The heavy machine guns mounted on their roofs spat out angry tongues of fire, and bullets poured down like raindrops onto the rear carriage of Black Iron.

"Clang, clang, clang—!"

The dense sound of metal colliding was incessant.

However, those bullets, which were strong enough to tear through ordinary steel plates, hit Black Iron's thickened high-grade steel armor and, other than kicking up sparks and leaving some shallow white marks, could not cause any substantial damage at all.

Inside the carriage, Liu Ruyan and the girls from the Dance Department, who had just rushed onto the train, were terrified by the violent shaking and gunfire, their faces pale as they clutched the handrails to steady themselves.

"Are... are we surrounded?" a girl asked tremulously.

"Surrounded?"

Zhao Xiaotang, carrying that massive alloy steel pipe, walked to the observation window at the rear of the train as if nothing had happened.

Looking at the group of pursuers behind them, she curled her lip in disdain.

"These few little flies deserve to be called a siege?"

Her eyes flashed with a warlike glint, "Squad Leader, do you want me to go down and dismantle their wheels?"

"Don't rush, let them chase for a while longer."

Lin Xiao's voice echoed through the entire carriage via the broadcast; there wasn't a hint of tension in his tone, only the playful mockery of a cat playing with a mouse.

"It wasn't easy to visit, so we have to leave the host with a lasting impression."

He strolled leisurely to the observation platform at the rear of the train.

This was a semi-open platform converted from the last carriage, protected by waist-high bulletproof armor, offering an excellent view.

The night wind howled, whipping his black trench coat.

Lin Xiao leaned casually against the railing, holding a glass of red wine that Su Qingqian had just poured for him, looking down at the exasperated pursuers behind him.

His posture didn't look like he was fleeing; it looked more like he was reviewing his own honor guard.

"Lin Xiao! Stop right there!"

On the heavy armored vehicle leading the chase, City Lord Lei Hu leaned out halfway, holding a megaphone, and roared at Lin Xiao.

His face was livid, his chest heaving violently; he was clearly furious.