Previously on Apocalypse: I Build A Doomsday Train...
Lin Xian awakens feeling refreshed after Shi Zhi used her healing superpower all night. He finds the rest of the crew still asleep due to exhaustion from their recent escape. Viola reports that the Infinite Train is now traveling underwater towards the Republican Islands at a reduced speed, with most passengers in a deep sleep.
"It's not that an excessive amount of energy was spent, but rather the Hell Black Chrysanthemum released an overwhelming surge of pure dark energy!"
Lin Xian turned his gaze towards the carriage, which was thick with nearly opaque green energy, and muttered with a slight frown, "So much, what's happening?"
He couldn't fathom why the Hell Black Chrysanthemum had absorbed such a vast quantity of dark energy, especially without engaging any Abnormal Bodies. As Lin Xian ventured towards the rear carriages, he observed the dark energy intensifying, prompting a sudden thought: the excessive absorption of dark energy might induce side effects, and the widespread slumber was indeed concerning.
However, just as Lin Xian began his return to the first carriage, a luminous screen unexpectedly materialized before him.
[Non-mechanical energy has been converted, gaining 1000 Mechanical Source Points.]
"So, the Heterogeneous Rubik's Cube has once again converted Mechanical Source Points for me..."
[Non-mechanical energy has been converted, gaining 1000 Mechanical Source Points.]
With each subsequent step, the luminous screen continued to appear. Lin Xian halted, noticing how the Mechanical Heart's notifications seemed to be popping up in a staggered yet continuous stream, effectively bringing him to a standstill.
[Non-mechanical energy has been converted, gaining 1000 Mechanical Source Points.]
3000...
4000...
As the notifications persisted, Lin Xian watched with widened eyes as his Mechanical Heart's experience level surged through the numbers, the influx of messages seemingly unending.
5000...
7000...
10000...
[Non-mechanical energy has been converted, gaining 400 Mechanical Source Points.]
Upon the final Mechanical Source Point notification, Lin Xian realized with astonishment that his Mechanical Heart's level had skyrocketted from the previous 22,220 – the damaged version devoured from Dreadnought Level – all the way to 39,800!
Points!
"What in the world? Did the Hell Black Chrysanthemum take the wrong medicine today?"
His heart pounding with shock, Lin Xian promptly hastened towards the rearmost carriages.
In Carriage No. 2, KIKI had seemingly recovered and was now asleep on the information center chair. The monitoring screen displayed the conditions of various carriages, yet the young girl showed no signs of exhaustion or discomfort from mental exertion. Instead, she was sprawled on the swivel chair, the remnants of a lollipop stick clenched in her mouth.
Lin Xian approached directly, gently removing the melted lollipop stick from KIKI's grasp. He then casually lifted the girl and placed her onto the bed, where Sha Sha was also fast asleep on the upper bunk.
Carriage No. 3 housed a tidied-up laboratory; Lin Xian opened the door to the rest area, finding Ding Junyi in a state of ceremonial slumber. He swiftly closed the door. In Carriage No. 4, the separate rest area designated for Xiao Yuan and Miao Lu, Director Ding's assistants, revealed them also to be in a deep sleep.
Moving further down, Carriage No. 5 contained Da Lou, Brother Huo, Ryuji, and Mo Xiaotian, all sound asleep. Within the restaurant of Carriage No. 6, Luo Yang, Lv Chang, and Qian Deli were dozing on the sofa, while the inhabitants of Carriages No. 7 and No. 8, numbering in the dozens, were similarly lost in sleep.
The entire train had fallen into slumber!
The more Lin Xian observed, the more peculiar the situation became. He rapidly made his way towards Carriage No. 10 at the very back, simultaneously initiating contact with Beifeng 09 through the communicator.
"Ryan, can you hear me?"
"Buzz... What's the matter, Lin?" Fortunately, Ryan's voice responded without delay.
"Everyone on the train is asleep. Isn't that a little strange?"
At that precise moment, within the command cabin of the Beifeng 09 nuclear submarine, Ryan stood centered, clad in headphones. A mere dozen submarine operators maintained a quiet vigil around him; other sections of the submarine also housed sleeping personnel. He immediately replied:
"Don't fret, Lin. Your train likely possesses a Taboo Item analogous to our dark energy copper sphere. This is merely a side effect of absorbing excessive dark energy, quite similar to oxygen intoxication. It's not perilous, and the benefits conferred upon everyone are substantial."
Upon hearing Ryan's explanation, Lin Xian paused at the doorway, about to enter Monica's room in Carriage No. 9. He inquired, "Could absorbing such an immense quantity all at once pose any harm to the body?"
Ryan responded, "Based on my understanding, if the energy is purified, the issue is negligible. At the very least, it's far superior to utilizing cold dark reagents, bypassing the need for vegetable juice and sunbathing." He then took a deep breath. "However, I too find this amount excessive. Yet, we possess no means to disperse it; we cannot simply fling open the windows to release all this energy."
"Such a predicament exists..."
Lin Xian found himself momentarily at a loss, uncertain whether the current turn of events was fortunate or not. Considering that he had amassed nearly 20,000 Mechanical Source Points through the Heterogeneous Rubik’s Cube, this represented the most significant breakthrough for Lin Xian since he had obtained the Mechanical Heart. This, in turn, illuminated the immense quantity of dark energy absorbed by the other team members, explaining their profound slumber.
"Ryan." At this juncture, Lin Xian’s gaze shifted, laced with complexity, as he inquired, "We don’t recall encountering any Abnormal Bodies. How then did we manage to capture such a substantial amount of dark energy?"
"Isn't that rather straightforward?"
Ryan responded with immediate alacrity, "The fellow was engaged in hunting. Do you recall the initial strategy I outlined to you?"
Upon recalling this, Lin Xian’s brow furrowed, and he questioned, "Did you manage to secure a bounty?"
"During our period of submersion, in conjunction with the towed sonar," Ryan replied with a hint of resignation, "To be perfectly honest, I wasn't anticipating much, given that our primary objective was escape. Yet, inexplicably..."
"And how substantial was the collection?" Lin Xian pressed.
"Level 4 Blood Essence, there were 98 units. Level 3 Blood Essence... we secured 1295 units, along with several Level 2 specimens."
Lin Xian’s astonishment was palpable upon hearing these figures, his voice rising in disbelief, "What did you just say?!"
"Lin, there's truly no need for such surprise. All credit goes to you. These accumulated resources can be allocated by your discretion," Ryan stated in a relaxed manner, "They are more than sufficient for everyone to initiate their crystal grid cultivation evolution."
"Incredible." Lin Xian’s core felt a tremor of awe, never having anticipated that Ryan, by utilizing the towed sonar, would inadvertently yield such considerable gains. This individual’s audacious strategy of profiting through Uniga 1 had indeed proven remarkably successful.
