9: Chapter 9 Encounter with a Motorbike Gang

The midday sun scorched the reddish-brown wasteland mercilessly.

Heat waves shimmered in the air, and a few carrion vultures circled above, their hoarse cries grating on the nerves.

The "Black Iron" was cruising steadily at 80 kilometers per hour.

After last night's "deep exchange," Lin Xiao was in exceptionally high spirits today.

Although he rose earlier than a rooster and worked harder than an ox, under the dual nourishment of that strengthening potion and Shen Man's "tonic soup" from last night, the only male Conductor was currently humming a little tune, sitting comfortably in the cockpit sipping an iced cola.

Beside him in the co-pilot's seat, Luo Yao was tapping away at a holographic keyboard, sporting two large dark circles under her eyes.

"Waaa... Class Monitor is a big meanie."

Luo Yao muttered as she worked, casting resentful glances at Lin Xiao from time to time. "You guys were making so much noise in that room last night that I couldn't sleep all night... I want to drink tonic soup too..."

Lin Xiao almost spat out his cola. His face flushed, and he pretended not to hear, forcing his gaze out the window. "Ahem, Luo Yao, focus on your work. Any anomalies on the radar?"

Luo Yao pouted. Just as she was about to continue acting spoiled, her fingers suddenly froze on the keyboard.

The previously lazy data stream instantly became turbulent.

"Beep, beep! Warning!"

Luo Yao's voice instantly switched to work mode, her large eyes flashing with green data light.

"Class Monitor! An unknown train signal detected on the parallel track to the right, three kilometers away! It's moving fast and trying to close in on us!"

"Unknown train?" Lin Xiao's eyes sharpened as he set down his cola. "Zombies or monsters?"

"Not monsters." Luo Yao brought up the long-range camera feed and enlarged it on the main screen. "It's humans. And... they look like they mean trouble."

On the screen, a train dripping with wasteland punk style was spewing black smoke, racing like a mad dog on the other track.

The train had clearly undergone extremely crude modifications.

Various rusty iron plates and spikes were welded onto its original skin. A terrifyingly jagged giant ram had been added to the front, even decorated with several shriveled zombie corpses.

The exterior was covered in skulls and vulgar graffiti, and a tattered flagpole flew a black skull flag that fluttered in the wind.

"Biker Gang."

Lin Xiao coldly spat out those three words.

In his memories of his past life (or the apocalyptic novels he'd read), these people were the most disgusting kind in the early days of the apocalypse.

They were often composed of former thugs, criminals, or extreme hooligans.

They didn't produce anything, living solely by preying on other weak survivors.

With the newbie protection period ending on the third day, this group had clearly grown restless and started coming out to "hunt."

*Static—*

Noisy static came from the intercom, followed by an extremely arrogant and crude male voice. They were clearly using a high-powered public broadcast.

"Hey! You black lump over there! Can you hear me?"

"Yoho, your train looks pretty new! Nice modifications!"

"We're from the 'Mad Corpse Gang'! Seeing how steady your train is, there must be a lot of good stuff on board, right? If you're smart, slow down and stop immediately!"

"Men, leave the supplies and get lost. Women... hehehe, leave them all for me!"

As the voice faded, seven or eight shirtless, heavily tattooed men emerged from the roof and windows of the dilapidated train.

They brandished chains, machetes, and even a few homemade shotguns, whistling like thugs toward the Black Iron and making various obscene gestures.

"Hahaha! Boss, look, there's a babe by the window! She's top-tier!"

"Holy crap! Is that a schoolgirl? You can still see such a fresh schoolgirl these days?"

"We're rich! If the whole train is filled with this kind of stock, I'd be willing to live ten years less!"

The foul language spread clearly through every carriage of the Black Iron via the broadcast channel.

By now, the rear carriages were in chaos.

"Ah! It's bad guys!"

"They have guns! And knives!"

"What do we do? They're coming to get us... waaa..."

Although these art students had undergone two days of apocalyptic baptism, seen zombies, and killed Wind Wolves,

facing such blatant human malice, the deep-seated fear of violent crime instantly took over.

Especially hearing that they wanted to "seize the women," the fear was a hundred times stronger than facing zombies.

"Everyone shut the hell up!"

Lin Xiao's roar suddenly sounded over the broadcast, instantly drowning out the screams in the carriages.

"What's the panic? I'll handle it if the sky falls!"

Lin Xiao's voice was cold and firm, carrying a calming magic.

"Everyone, listen to my orders! Shen Man, take everyone to the carriage corridors, stay away from the windows! Close the curtains!"

"Su Qingqian, Zhao Xiaotang, take the Combat Team and gather at the front immediately!"

"Want to steal my train? Want to touch my women? Today, I'll show them how to write the word 'death'!"

...

Inside the cockpit, Lin Xiao's face was as grim as still water.

Through the bulletproof glass, he coldly watched the rapidly approaching "mad corpse."

The other side had clearly seen the high-end exterior of the Black Iron and taken him for a fat sheep.

But this sheep of his didn't just have horns; it had fangs.

"Luo Yao, calculate the track intersection and the optimal attack distance," Lin Xiao ordered.

Luo Yao's small hands flew across the keyboard in a blur:

"Based on current relative speeds and the track terrain ahead, the two tracks will merge in 3 minutes! The distance between the trains will shorten to within 5 meters! It will last for about 45 seconds before the tracks separate again."

"3 minutes, 5 meters."

A cruel arc curled at the corner of Lin Xiao's mouth. "That's enough."

At that moment, the cockpit door was pushed open.

Su Qingqian and Zhao Xiaotang rushed in.

Both were fully armed. Su Qingqian wore a black tight-fitting combat suit that outlined her perfect curves. She held a chilling ice axe, her eyes even colder than the blade.

Zhao Xiaotang carried the reinforced iron shield, and in her other hand was a short spear made from a polished Wind Wolf fang. Though she looked nervous, she was mostly angry.

"Class Monitor, are those bastards outside?" Zhao Xiaotang asked through gritted teeth. "What they said just now was disgusting!"

"Then we'll make them shut up forever."

Lin Xiao pointed to several glass crates nearby.

Those were empty wine and glass bottles he'd specifically kept while scavenging yesterday, along with gasoline siphoned from abandoned vehicles.

"These are Molotov cocktails. Su Qingqian, you have the strength and accuracy. When the trains get close, smash them hard! Target their cockpit and that iron drum that looks like a fuel tank!"

"Zhao Xiaotang, you're on cover. If any idiot tries to jump over, stab them down!"

"Understood!" Su Qingqian picked up a homemade Molotov cocktail, weighed it, and a flash of killing intent crossed her eyes.

After the battle with the Wind Wolves, she was no longer just the school belle who played piano and painted. She was the chief warrior of this train, and anyone who threatened it was her enemy.

"Prepare for contact!" Luo Yao shouted.

By now, the distance between the two trains had closed to the extreme.

The wind pressure from racing side-by-side made the train body vibrate slightly.

From less than five meters away, Lin Xiao could even see the nose hairs of the leading Scarface.

Scarface was standing on a welding platform on top of their train, holding a modified harpoon gun connected to a thick chain. He looked at the Black Iron's smooth armor with eyes full of greed.

"Hehe, this skin is tough enough! But the people inside must be pushovers!"

Scarface flipped Lin Xiao off and laughed wildly: "Kid! I'll give you one last chance! Open the door! Otherwise, I'll force a boarding! Don't blame the blade in my hand for being blind when I chop you up to feed the dogs!"

Lin Xiao stood by the side observation window of the cockpit and turned on the loudspeaker.

He wasn't angry and didn't curse back. He just looked at Scarface like he was looking at a dead man and said calmly:

"Dumbass."

This single "dumbass" didn't do much damage, but it was extremely insulting.

Scarface froze for a moment, then flew into a rage, his entire face turning the color of pig liver.

"Fuck! You're doing this the hard way! Boys! Hook this train! Force a boarding! Kill the men, and take turns with the women!"

"Yes, Boss!"

Several tattooed men gave excited, strange cries, raising their grappling hooks and chains.

*Whoosh!*

Scarface was the first to pull the trigger.

The thick, barbed harpoon, trailing a long chain, whistled through the air straight toward the side window of the Black Iron's cockpit!

His goal was simple: as long as he hooked the window frame or an armor gap, the two trains would be forcibly connected, and they could jump over along the chain.

This was a common trick of the Biker Gangs and the bloodiest boarding tactic.

The survivor trains they'd encountered before were usually paralyzed with fear by this move, left at their mercy.

But this time, they had kicked a steel plate.

Just as the harpoon was about to hit the window,

Lin Xiao's hand suddenly gripped the red control lever.

"Titan Mechanical Arm, activate!"

*Boom—Clang!*

The armor plate on the side of the Black Iron snapped open.

A giant mechanical arm with a cold metallic luster, like a lurking venomous snake, lunged out at a speed difficult for the naked eye to catch!

"What the hell is that?!"

Scarface only saw a blur.

The expected sound of the harpoon shattering glass never came.

Instead, there was a tooth-aching sound of metal clashing.

*Clang!*

The giant mechanical hand had actually caught the flying harpoon head mid-air with incomparable precision!

It was as if the Buddha had caught the Monkey King.

Time seemed to freeze at this moment.

Scarface gripped the handle of the chain-linked gun, staring blankly at the sci-fi-looking mechanical arm, his mind a complete blank.

"This... what is this..."

Inside the cockpit, a cruel sneer curled on Lin Xiao's lips.

"Since you want to be connected, I'll grant your wish."

Veins bulged on his arm as he gripped the lever and yanked it back!

"Come... here!"

The terrifying, rock-crushing strength of the S-rank Mechanical Arm exploded instantly.

*Snap!*

The thick chain was instantly pulled taut.

Scarface didn't even have time to let go. He felt an irresistible force surge through, and he was yanked off the roof of the opposite train like a kite on a string!

"Aaaaaah! Help!"

He screamed, flailing his arms and legs in the air.

But the scream only lasted a second.

Because in the next second...

*Splat!*

A dull, wet thud echoed.

Scarface was slammed violently against the side armor of the Black Iron.

Like a balloon full of ketchup hitting a wall.

Blood and minced meat exploded instantly, painting a shocking blood-red flower on the black armor plates.

"Boss!!!"

The lackeys on the opposite train were all scared witless.

This wasn't in the script! Weren't they supposed to jump over and go on a killing spree? How was the boss turned into meat paste in an instant?

"Now! Throw!"

Lin Xiao didn't give them any time to react, roaring into the intercom.

Su Qingqian, who had been waiting by the side window, didn't hesitate for a second.

She pushed open the specialized firing port, the Molotov cocktail in her hand already lit.

"Go to hell."

She whispered coldly. Relying on the arm strength and accuracy developed through days of combat, she threw it with all her might!

*Whoosh—whoosh—whoosh—*

Three Molotov cocktails traced elegant parabolas in the air.

The first one smashed precisely into the open-top cockpit of the enemy train.

The second one hit the pile of decorative shriveled corpses.

The third was the most lethal, hitting the exposed spare fuel drum directly.

*Crash!*

Glass shattered.

Followed by—

*BOOM!!!*

Fire.

Violent flames instantly engulfed everything.

The dilapidated "mad corpse" was already covered in oil and flammable materials. These specialized Molotov cocktails were like throwing matches into a powder keg.

The cockpit instantly became a purgatory. The driver didn't even have time to scream before he became a human torch, twisting in agony.

"Ah! Fire! It's on fire!"

"Help! I want to go home!"

The tattooed thugs who were so arrogant just moments ago were now howling from the fire. Some jumped off the high-speed train to extinguish the flames, only to be instantly crushed into meat paste under the wheels.

But that wasn't enough.

Lin Xiao never left loose ends.

Now, the tracks ahead were about to split.

If he let this burning train keep running, it might cause other trouble.

"I'll see this through to the end."

Lin Xiao pushed the control lever again.

The mechanical arm that had just crushed Scarface didn't retract. Instead, it dipped sharply and then swept out horizontally!

"Mechanical Arm—Sweeping Army!"

The two trains were extremely close.

The giant mechanical arm, with a whistling wind, slammed heavily into the wheel hub linkage of the "mad corpse."

*Clang—Crack!!!*

An ear-piercing sound of metal shattering rang out.

Their already precarious axle snapped directly under the violent strike of the S-rank Mechanical Arm!

The unbalanced train instantly lost control.

Under the shocked gazes of all the girls,

the burning, skull-flagged train of evil tilted sharply to one side. Then, the entire carriage derailed. Like tumbling blocks, trailing fire and thick smoke, it crashed off the roadbed and plunged into a deep ravine in the wasteland.

*Rumble—!!!*

A few seconds later, a deafening explosion echoed.

A small mushroom cloud rose.

The world fell silent.