110: Chapter 110 Where is the End? (Not Getting Off the Bus)
Inside the carriage, the light was as dim as ever.
The dim yellow lights flickered, stretching everyone's shadows into distorted shapes and projecting them onto the stained iron walls.
The air was filled with a stale smell of rust mixed with a faint scent of mold.
Zhou Kai sat on the hard seat, tightly clutching the prophecy pen that was still slightly warm, his eyes warily scanning the surroundings.
One thing struck him as very strange.
This time, upon boarding, no "rules" had been announced.
They weren't required to sit in designated spots, nor were they warned about what they couldn't do.
It was just like a truly ordinary train.
But this only made him feel more uneasy.
Furthermore, the newly appeared "Conductor" from before was nowhere to be seen.
Aside from that, the carriage was exactly the same as before.
The seats were filled with "passengers."
These "passengers" wore clothing from various eras of the Neon Country; some were in Gothic attire, some in suits, and others in Neon clothing.
They kept their heads down, whispering among themselves.
The sound was faint and fragmented, like the buzzing of countless flies in one's ears.
But when you listened closely, you couldn't make out anything, only feeling a surge of inexplicable agitation.
"Cough, cough..."
Just then, a hunched figure sitting next to Zhou Kai coughed twice softly.
That was the coughing ghoul clone controlled by Lin Chuan.
At this moment, through the Clone's perspective, Lin Chuan's true body, far away in the main hall of the Rebirth Temple, was silently watching everything.
"It's different..."
Lin Chuan thought to himself.
Compared to the death train Zhou Kai and the others had encountered last time, this train felt completely different to him.
It had become more... real.
Or rather, more "solid."
If the previous train was just a Projection of some supernatural power, then this train was the manifestation of a very high-level rule itself!
Lin Chuan originally thought this death train was something created by the pink mist source in the Neon Country.
But now, it seemed that wasn't the case.
The ancient, weathered aura it exuded, independent of the world, was even slightly more mysterious than that pink mist.
This train... where exactly did it come from?
And where was it headed?
Lin Chuan didn't act rashly; he simply controlled the Clone to sit upright in its seat.
Time passed second by second.
The train sped through the Void Realm. Outside the window was pitch black, with occasional flashes of bizarre pink light.
Four hours later.
Screech...!!
A piercing sound of brakes rang out.
The train's speed began to slow down, finally coming to a steady halt.
"Bzzzt... Capital City Station... has arrived..."
"Please... all passengers... disembark..."
The broadcast rang out again, still cold and mechanical.
The doors slid open.
A cold wind carrying a thick, sickly sweet scent instantly flooded the carriage.
Outside was an empty platform.
The platform was overgrown with waist-high weeds, all of which were an eerie pink.
Although not a single soul could be seen.
But from all directions, countless noisy sounds continued to drift in.
There were sounds of street vendors, traffic, children's laughter, and the whispers of lovers.
It was as if this weren't a dead city, but an invisible, bustling metropolis.
This stark contrast between visual silence and auditory clamor sent shivers down everyone's spines.
"We're here. Let's get off."
Petrovsky took a deep breath and was the first to stand up.
The people from the Shaven Empire followed closely behind.
Zhou Kai also glanced at the Coughing Ghoul beside him and was about to stand.
Only to find that the coughing ghoul clone controlled by Lin Chuan remained motionless, with no intention of getting off.
"Cough, cough..."
The Coughing Ghoul lowered its head and let out a light cough.
Zhou Kai understood instantly.
The True Buddha... doesn't plan to get off here?
Although confused, he didn't ask further. He simply nodded respectfully and led the people from the Land of Rebirth on the Other Shore off the train.
At that moment.
White Rose also walked over with the Yanlong Empire team.
When she saw the Coughing Ghoul still sitting in its seat, her footsteps paused slightly.
"Oh, scared already?"
A mocking curl appeared at the corner of White Rose's mouth, her eyes full of disdain.
"Weren't you quite capable just now? What's the matter, now that we've actually reached the Gates of Hell, you've turned into a coward?"
In her eyes, this "Coughing Ghoul," who had been acting mysterious and even stolen her thunder, was nothing more than a poser.
Now that they were in a truly dangerous place, it had finally shown its cowardly true colors.
Facing White Rose's ridicule.
The "coughing ghoul clone" controlled by Lin Chuan didn't react at all.
It remained hunched over, as if it hadn't heard her at all.
This attitude of indifferent disregard made White Rose even more furious.
"Hmph, useless."
She coldly spat out those words and turned to leave the train.
However.
Just then.
A killing intent, frigid to the extreme, suddenly swept toward her.
White Rose spun around.
She saw Zhou Kai, who had already disembarked, standing outside the door, staring intently at her.
Zhou Kai's eyes, which were usually filled with a bit of worldly shrewdness, were now filled with a heart-palpitating chill.
The prophecy pen in his hand was pointed directly at the center of White Rose's forehead.
"If you dare to be disrespectful to 'that one' again..."
Zhou Kai's voice was low and raspy, each word squeezed out from between his teeth.
"Even if you are a Captain of Bureau 749 of the Yanlong Empire... I will kill you!"
As Lin Chuan's Fanatic Believer.
He would never allow anyone to desecrate the True Buddha in his heart.
Even if the other party was an ally.
"You..."
White Rose's expression changed, and her frost longsword instantly unsheathed half an inch.
The atmosphere instantly became tense, the smell of gunpowder thick to the extreme.
Just as the two sides were about to fight.
"Whoa, whoa, everyone, calm down, calm down!"
Petrovsky hurriedly squeezed through, using his large frame to block the two.
"We're facing a great enemy right now; what's the point of fighting among ourselves?"
"Everyone, say less. Give me some Face, give me some Face."
As he spoke, he frantically winked at Zhou Kai.
Zhou Kai gave White Rose a deep look, snorted coldly, and slowly put away the prophecy pen.
White Rose also gritted her teeth and sheathed her longsword, though her gaze remained icy.
"Let's go."
She didn't spare another glance at the Coughing Ghoul on the train and led her people into the eerie pink mist.
As the last person disembarked.
Bang!!
The doors slammed shut once again.
Woooo—!!!
A long whistle sounded.
The train started moving again.
This time, the carriage was empty, with only the coughing ghoul clone controlled by Lin Chuan sitting there all alone.
The scenery outside the window began to recede rapidly.
That Capital City, filled with eerie clamor, was gradually left behind.
The train showed no signs of stopping, continuing to drive toward the unknown depths of darkness.
Lin Chuan sat quietly.
He was very curious.
This mysterious death train... where exactly was its final destination?