Doomsday: I Build an Infinite Train.

Chapter 317 Night falls, windows are sealed!
In the wind-eroded valley and the dried-up riverbed, a 15-kilometer-long heavy rail train is quietly parked, its more than 500 carriages winding like a dragon, seemingly extending to the horizon.

18:00
The setting sun cast its last rays on the Gobi Desert, turning the gravel beach a rusty red. The sand grains shimmered with fine golden scales in the afterglow, but were then whipped into a flowing red tide by a sudden north wind, carrying pebbles as they crashed into the half-buried abandoned oil drums, producing a hollow echo.

On the joint train, more than 4,000 people are working tirelessly to prepare for the night.

"It's said that sand ants are not the same as the ants we understand, but just to be on the safe side, check all the gaps, vents, and even the bathroom pipes!"

Through the Infinite's communicator, Chen Sixuan walked briskly between the carriages, reminding everyone.

Lin Xian inspected each carriage one by one, just as carefully as he had dealt with the snow water leaks before. However, he knew that sand ants were definitely different from snow water. These things might be able to squeeze into any crack or crevice. What he was most worried about now was whether these sand ants, like the snow demons before, could mark people with dark marks.

"Didn't Hu Lushou say that none of the convoys he contacted had the Dark Mark? And those convoys have been in Aksai for several days now, so they shouldn't have the Dark Mark, right?"

KIKI followed Lin Xian all the way to carriage number 3 and said.

"It's always good to be cautious." Lin Xian pointed out the car window: "I've left a few rotary-wing drones and pre-made explosives outside, just in case."

"Director Ding," Lin Xian said to Director Ding, who was conducting experiments on the mycelium, "I will temporarily shut down the air circulation channels in these two Cole experimental carriages. That shouldn't have any impact on the plants, right?"

Ding Junyi looked up at him: "From a botanical point of view..."

"Director Ding." Lin Xian looked at her with a meaningful gaze.

"will not."

"it is good."

Lin Xian nodded in a good mood, quite pleased with Director Ding's concise and to-the-point approach.

After saying that, he pressed the communicator and addressed all the train captains.

"I'll repeat myself again: don't panic when the sand ants pass through, and no one is allowed to fire."

"understand!"

This time, the captain of the Ocean was the first to respond.

Although Lin Xian shared the information he had gathered about the nighttime situation in Aksai with the various teams as soon as they returned, he felt it was still necessary to repeat it again.

More than 4000 people, that's no small number.

Before the apocalypse, Lin Xian didn't even want to be a college dormitory head. Who could manage mushrooms growing on socks and underwear on the balcony among a group of rough men? Not to mention that the people on the United Train were a real mixed bag. Although they were united in their situation and faction and obeyed Lin Xian's orders, from a management perspective, Lin Xian knew that there were still quite a few fools. So he showed the greatest patience he had ever had, hoping to minimize trouble after nightfall.

“Brother Lin,” Shi Diyuan’s voice came through the communicator, “Before you came back, I had all the Dark Marks on the vehicle checked. You don’t need to worry about anything else.”

"it is good."

"Don't worry, Captain Lin, our convoy has zero vulnerabilities," Monica said gently, sitting in the first carriage of her Queen Monica.

“We don’t need to worry,” Qian Dele said.

"Team Leader Lin, we're fine here too." Li Yi and Luo Yang's voices came through as well. Li Yi had already arranged the children's carriage. They had encountered situations in the dark many times before, such as hordes of strange insects and zombies. These children had long since learned to be quiet and focused, and were very well-behaved.

"Team Lin."

At this moment, Shu Qin walked over to Lin Xian and said, "While you were away, the Hell Warriors told us that the group had given us a lot of information, especially about kidnapping superhumans. They did indeed take them to trade with an organization. The transaction location was a place called Iron Pot Valley. We checked, and there is no such place on the map."

"Iron Pot Valley? Is it related to the terrain?" Lin Xian suddenly thought of this.

"According to his description, the place had many abandoned radio telescope antennas, hence the name."

"A radio telescope?" Lin Xian frowned slightly upon hearing this. "Then it must be some kind of astronomical observatory."

“That’s easy.” KIKI immediately took out her mobile terminal and searched: “Found it, Bailutan Star Observatory, but it will cease operation in 2056.”

"It's been abandoned for 13 years..."

"According to the map, they did change this route before, but there was very little overlap."

"Because they only go there once at a fixed time." Lin Xian took it, looked at the direction, and said, "After we deal with the bandits in Aksai, we need to go and check this place."

Lin Xian had previously overlooked one point: he had been eliminating areas with low signal packet overlap in order to find the bandits' lair. But now it seems that the trading location is also very worthwhile to explore.

Shu Qin nodded: "In addition, there are their trading prices. According to them, a Vajra-level gene evolver can be exchanged for two level-one blood essences, but if it is an esper, it can be exchanged for five. The price is 5 times for the Berserk level and 20 times for the Destruction level."

"What?" KIKI pointed to her nose: "So that's why I'm only worth 25 blood essences???"

"Not bad, two and a half tubes of cold dark reagent." Lin Xian joked.

"Hmph!" KIKI snorted and said coldly, "I'm afraid they won't be alive to come and get it!"

Lin Xian took a deep breath and said with a sharp look in his eyes, "Robbing a small caravan of twenty or thirty people might only yield some supplies and a few blood essences, but with this human trafficking, those bandits could get a dozen or twenty blood essences. Although they might not be able to handle those berserker or destructive level figures, there are quite a few small and medium-sized caravans among the fleeing groups now, so they are their targets. This is much more profitable than the previous plundering."

Shu Qin said, "If we exchange dozens of blood essences for supplies, we wouldn't be able to finish them in a month. No wonder these bandits are so crazy."

Lin Xian looked at Shu Qin: "No news yet?"

Shu Qin shook her head: "There aren't any more for now. That Brother Da Dong said they're still squeezing them, but one of the seven has already died. He also wanted me to ask you if we could keep them for a few nights, and not kill them yet, because they still have dozens of brothers..."

"Let them be, let them be!"

Lin Xian immediately raised his hand to stop Shu Qin from speaking, and said with a dark expression, "These people are no longer of any value to us. Just let them go as they please."

"Okay." Shu Qin gave a strange smile and didn't continue.

Upon hearing this, KIKI immediately let out a disgusted "Ew!" and clicked her tongue at Lin Xian, saying, "Seriously, that's disgusting."

"You can't say that." Lin Xian took a deep breath: "Everything in the universe has its counterpart, and this is the best punishment for dealing with thugs who like to rape women."

"Besides, the enemy is suffering, but our teammates are happy!"

"Ewh!!! ...

KIKI frowned deeply, shrank her chin, and looked at Lin Xian: "I don't want teammates like this..."

Lin Xian smiled helplessly, then turned to Shu Qin and said.

"By the way, tell the Windrunner team outside about this news."

The Windrunner convoy was the same bus convoy that had been robbed. It was now quietly parked on the Gobi Desert next to the United Train. Lin Xian had also shared information about the sand ants with them, and the convoy had made the necessary preparations.

"Okay." Shu Qin looked at Lin Xian, understood his meaning, and then turned and left.

As night approached, Chen Sixuan had already arranged for food to be distributed to everyone on the bus. Each bottle of water was now enough for two days, and everyone was aware of the current pressure on water resources. Even though the weather was hot, they dared not drink large gulps of water.

On the open field, the windows and sunshades of each carriage of the joint train began to close, and a tense atmosphere began to rise inside the carriages.

Lin Xian closed all the passage gates in each carriage, and then went to the driver's cab with Chen Sixuan. Through the porthole of the driver's cab, they looked out at the Gobi Desert that was about to fall into night.

rustle~
On the desolate Gobi Desert, it seemed that only the sound of the wind whipping up sand and gravel could be heard between heaven and earth. The yellow sand particles pattered against the carriage and portholes, making a dry, rustling sound.

Lin Xian and Chen Sixuan sat on either side of each other, quietly waiting for the night to fall. The other trains on the communication frequency also fell silent, and everyone was watching the time.

"I remember when we first left Jiang City, we were also waiting for night to fall like this."

Lin Xian looked at Chen Sixuan, who was standing to the side with a cautious expression, and couldn't help but speak up.

At that time, Chen Sixuan was a university teacher who had just grasped at a straw in her despair and panic. She was huddled in a corner of the cockpit aisle, holding the bread that Lin Xian had given her.

Lin Xian was still carrying a short knife, listening to the scratching sounds of zombies outside the car, remaining vigilant.

Chen Sixuan glanced at him sideways, then turned her head away: "Although there are no dark markers, I don't know why, but I always feel uneasy in such a desolate and open place."

As she spoke, her gaze drifted to the vast wilderness in the distance, her eyes narrowing slightly.

The world was so vast, and the horizon was so far away. In the depths of that desolate, uninhabited area, Chen Sixuan inexplicably felt more crowded than in a town. She didn't know why she had this thought, and when she realized it, she was startled.

Lin Xian's gaze swept over the area, and he also lowered his breath.

Drop drop, drop drop.

The watch beeped abruptly in the quiet carriage. The sound was faint, yet it seemed to be clearly audible even in the vast wilderness several kilometers before the darkness descended.

"It's getting dark."

hum.

Above the sky, a curtain of light, like a tide, swept across, like a curtain covering the stars, quickly opening.

The next instant, the world went dark.

Before the sun had even dipped below the horizon, the entire western Gobi Desert was plunged into darkness.

The starry sky seemed to be obscured by some kind of chaos, making it appear less bright.

The earth was deathly silent.

Everyone held their breath at that moment.

Lin Xian and Chen Sixuan sat quietly in the cockpit, as if they could only hear their own heartbeats.

Just then, the wind suddenly picked up, and the sound of light rain began to appear. "It's raining?" Lin Xian frowned slightly.

"Do not."

Chen Sixuan looked out the dark porthole and said with a solemn expression.

"It is the voice of the earth."

Inside the living quarters, the lights were already off, and the children held their breath, not daring to make a sound.

Duoduo lay on the pillow, her eyes peering through the gap in the sun visor at the dark horizon outside. The sound of rain seemed to grow louder, gradually changing from a light drizzle to a downpour like popping beans, yet there was no water stain on the car window.

She stared wide-eyed out the window when suddenly, a strange insect slithered onto her car window with a snap, quickly moving across it. It looked like a spider with a long tail, but it was smaller than a thumb, and its actual appearance was completely obscured.

She only felt that the little insect seemed to be constantly twisting and deforming, but at the same time it was climbing over the car window at an extremely fast speed.

Duoduo was startled and immediately shrank back.

The next moment, more small black insects crawled across the car window, gradually becoming denser, and the sound of rain gradually changed from a shower to a downpour!
Wow!
In an instant, it seemed as if only this eerie sound remained outside the entire train. All the passengers felt as if sand and gravel from a sandstorm were hitting the outside of the train, the sound so dense that it drowned out all hearing.

Inside the cockpit of the Infinite, Lin Xian and Chen Sixuan saw that the porthole in front of them was completely covered by dense black insects, and subconsciously stood up and took a step back.

At that moment, all the light seemed to be blocked out, and the carriage was pitch black.

Sand ants are migrating!

An suffocating feeling enveloped the entire 15-kilometer-long Union Train, as no one could see any light, while outside the carriages, a sound like a torrential downpour constantly swept through the entire train.

The sound was densely packed on all sides, from the sides, the roof, and the bottom of the car, seemingly leaving only this one sound in the world.

People's hearts raced, some gripped the handrails and weapons, but no one dared to make a move. In the complete darkness, all they could do was pray.

Nothing crawled into the carriage!
In carriage number 2, KIKI and Sasha snuggled together, covering their ears. At the same time, KIKI created a small psychic shield to protect the two of them inside, fearing that in the darkness, the flesh-tearing and bone-devouring insects might suddenly crawl onto their bodies!

Lin Xian's expression was solemn as he frantically operated the Mechanical Heart to inspect the entire Infinite train, attempting to cover the metallic texture of the Infinite carriages.

But the more this happened, the more clearly he could feel that he was surrounded by billions of bizarre creatures crawling around him, making his whole back go numb.

This eerie, suffocating situation lasted for a full two hours before the sound of the torrential rain gradually subsided and eventually disappeared.

At this moment, the car windows, which had been covered by sand ants, became clear again, and faint starlight and the outline of the horizon could be seen in the wilderness outside.

"Whoo~"

Lin Xian breathed a sigh of relief, his heart finally half at ease. Just as he was about to press the communicator to inquire about the situation of the other teams, Chen Sixuan suddenly stepped forward and covered his mouth!
"Look over there!"

Chen Sixuan's surprised tone reached Lin Xian's ears, and Lin Xian immediately looked in the direction Chen Sixuan was pointing, his pupils shrinking sharply!
Just a few kilometers away from the joint train, in the desolate Gobi Desert, a thick cloud of yellow sand gathered in the sky like viscous boiling soup. From the cloud, several huge, bizarre, arthropod-like legs slowly emerged, their irregular and eerie outlines visible to everyone.

The insect legs hanging upside down in the sky dangled in mid-air, gliding gently across the Gobi Desert, as if unconsciously moving slowly into the depths of the uninhabited area with the gathering thick clouds.

Sandstorms raged all around, and strong winds swept across the United Train, creating a howling sound.

Many survivors who witnessed this scene felt a chill run through their bodies. It wasn't just pure fear, but the insect legs dangling under the thick clouds seemed to carry some kind of eerie mental shock force, carrying an extremely high concentration of dark fear as they surged towards the wilderness in all directions!

[A massive surge of dark, terrifying power has been detected!]

In an instant, the alarm light screen of the Heterogeneous Rubik's Cube appeared before Lin Xian's eyes, and a thin layer of ice fog began to condense on the windows of the United Train. Lin Xian was completely helpless at this moment and could only concentrate and hold his breath to prevent himself from making any noise. For a moment, the hearts of everyone on the United Train seemed to be raised.

As time passed, the outline of the insect's legs under the thick yellow sand and clouds gradually disappeared into the depths of the Gobi Desert, and the entire ancient riverbed finally returned to silence.

Woohoo~
The cold night wind blew, making a rustling sound as it blew the dry reeds and tumbleweeds.

Lin Xian felt his hands and feet begin to warm up again. He looked at Chen Sixuan, whose eyes were also filled with shock. Their eyes met, and both of them had a dazed feeling as they teetered on the edge of fear.

"Thankfully, we don't have any Dark Marks..."

Chen Sixuan's face turned pale, and she said with a hint of lingering fear.

She and Lin Xian had been through a lot together, and had even seen S-level bizarre entities, but what she had just witnessed was not only shocking, but also made her deeply feel the heavy oppression brought about by the invasion of the dark and fearful power.

Lin Xian let out a deep breath. He had already felt this sensation when he fell asleep last night. The poison of this dark invasion was absolutely devastating to the human spirit.

This is why billions of people mutated into zombies overnight on Apocalypse Day, and those who survived, although they gradually adapted and evolved by receiving dark energy, were still naive when faced with true darkness.

Thinking of this, Lin Xian immediately pressed the communicator button.

"All teams, report the situation!"

"The Rose Caravan, the two on the verge of an anomaly, have been brought under control!"

"Among the Triangle Iron Team, six people are currently in unstable condition, one has mutated, and a fight broke out in carriage number 2, which has been annihilated!"

"A hidden caravan..."

"Ocean Car Team..."

"The situation at Longshan No. 1 is stable, but many children and women are vomiting and having diarrhea, and we are treating them urgently," Ning Jing's voice came through.

"Team Leader Lin, we're in a similar situation here." Li Yi and her team were busy in the children's carriage, where many young children were pale and vomiting violently.

On Luo Yang's side, many of the young people in the carriage were trembling involuntarily. Li Guangwen slapped his thigh hard and gritted his teeth.

"What the hell is going on? What's with the shaking?"

"I can't control it!" another companion said hurriedly, looking at his trembling hands.

On the Queen Mo, Monica looked at the vital signs of all the team members on the monitor screen, her gaze slightly narrowed, and then she pressed the intercom button.

"Everyone, calm down. Freelancer, prepare a cup of hot coffee for everyone."

“Yes, Queen Mo!” one of the catering staff immediately replied.

On the Joker team's side, Qian Dele moved swiftly between the carriages, followed by Xiao Meng and several capable subordinates.

He pressed the communicator: "Team Leader Lin, I suggest turning on all the lights and heating in the vehicle to drive away the bad smell."

"it is good!"

On the Infinite side, Lin Xian had the same idea. At this time, there was no other movement on the Gobi Desert. He immediately notified all the convoys to turn on their lights to keep warm and get the team moving to resist the feeling of fear and oppression.

rub rub~
In an instant, the lights in one of the train carriages were turned on, and the air circulation and heating systems started operating simultaneously, making the entire combined train seem as if it had just passed through the edge of hell.

Lin Xian and Chen Sixuan also traveled quickly, from carriage number 2 to carriage number 3, and all the way to the living quarters at the back. Because of the existence of the Heterogeneous Cube, the Infinite was in the best condition.

He checked the information on the heterogeneous Rubik's Cube and then looked at the condition of the team members. Everyone was feeling a chill down their spines and their faces were pale. Chen Sixuan quickly distributed the vegetable juice that she had prepared in advance. Miao Lu wrapped herself in a blanket and drank the not-so-tasty but fragrant vegetable juice in one gulp. As the temperature in the carriage warmed up a bit, her trembling heart finally felt a little more at ease.

Looking around, everyone else was in a similar situation to her.

Xiao Yuan, who had just recovered from a serious illness, still had a slightly pale, chubby face. She said nervously, "It's so strange, it feels like I'm being watched by a ghost. I can't help but feel uneasy."

"Yes, yes, yes!" Lü Chang nodded vigorously: "It's like sleep paralysis; at that moment, it felt like I didn't even have the courage to resist."

Lin Xian handed Shu Qin a bottle of water: "How are you?"

Shu Qin shook her head: "Captain Lin, I'm fine." She said with a complicated expression, "That moment just now reminded me of the day of Apocalypse."

Lin Xian nodded: "I didn't expect such a strong darkness to invade the Gobi Desert. We were not prepared enough."

Shu Qin said, "Team Leader Lin, this situation shouldn't be very common, otherwise the people in Aksai wouldn't have stayed there for so many days. But since we've encountered it, our people should be more mentally prepared for the future."

"Ah."

Lin Xian pondered for a moment. Humanity's feelings about the invasion of darkness are complex.

That seemed to be the source of all the apocalypse, but it was also the source of the evolution of the survivors. Everyone was trying to maintain a balance and survive, just so they wouldn't be swallowed up by this power in the end.

At 1 a.m., the suffocating oppression had passed, and the Union Train began to return to calm.

Lin Xian arrived at carriage number 2, preparing to convene key personnel and various train teams to discuss the Aksai plan.

At this moment, a notification sound suddenly rang out in Lin Xian's R&D center.

He then realized that it must be the G3 electromagnetic railgun (blueprint) that he was developing and upgrading that had been successfully upgraded.

The G3-Electromagnetic Railgun (blueprint) upgrade has been successfully developed.

Congratulations! You have obtained the K1 Solar Prominence-Orbital Seismic Cannon (Blueprint)

"WHAT!?"

Looking at the massive blueprint in the holographic world, Lin Xian's pupils shrank, and he couldn't help but exclaim in horror.

"This thing... isn't it the main cannon of a Starship used by the Interstellar Forces???!!"

"This can actually be loaded onto a train???"

　Asking for a monthly ticket~
　　
　
(End of this chapter)