Armored train in the apocalypse

Chapter 218 Black Lion
"This gun has a magazine that holds five bullets, but it cannot be removed."

The leader pointed to the black box on the gun.

Su Huan took the bullet and could feel the residual energy fluctuations on it, which meant that it must have been used to make some changes to the physical properties.

Loading the bullets one by one into the gun, Su Huan raised the rifle and aimed at the target directly in front of him. "I remember you've been researching pistols all along. How come you've suddenly switched to old-fashioned rifles?"

The leader stepped back a few paces, organized his thoughts, and said, “The assault rifles and submachine guns we produced in the past were all designed for humans. They had a high rate of fire, but limited power. Now, our main enemies are those tough-skinned mutant beasts and zombies. So I think the future development direction for gunpowder weapons should be high precision and high power!”

"Use the fewest bullets to achieve the most effective output!"

Although Su Huan was aiming at the distant target, a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes.

What books have you been reading lately?

"Aside from some gun design and ammunition engineering, I read some about modern warfare history, which were all related to guns."

"Good, keep it up."

"Oh!"

A flash of gunfire appeared, and a crater instantly appeared on the paper target in the distance.

The loud sound echoed through the armed hall, growing deeper and deeper, like a suppressed roar, captivating and awe-inspiring.

Pulling back the bolt produced a crisp metallic clang, and a faint smell of gunpowder filled the nostrils.

The familiar feeling of excitement gradually returned to my body.

"The trajectory is off to the left, the accuracy needs adjustment, the bullet speed is insufficient, the barrel could be lengthened a bit, and the grip of the gun... is extremely poor!"

Su Huan couldn't help but smile.

But this is the gun he is most familiar with!
Rough, rough, but full of the craftsmanship of small workshops!

He cocked the bullet, adjusted the firing angle slightly, and although he didn't have any firearms skills, he had good control over his body.

At 100 meters, there is absolutely no possibility of missing the target.

"Oh!"

The sound of the second shot was clearly off.

The people standing behind Su Huan let out a soft exclamation; the target paper in the distance was completely empty.

Did it miss the target?
"The bullet exploded, probably because the propellant charge was too high."

Qu Hang, who had come over upon hearing the sound, said.

As the master of the wind and a professional sniper, his understanding of firearms and ammunition surpasses that of Bai Lu and his team.

"I really like the sound of this gun."

Su Huan put down his gun and turned to look at Qu Hang, who had just arrived. As always, Qu Hang was holding a sniper rifle in his arms.

His eyes were fixed on the gun in Su Huan's hand.

Qu Hang's life in his previous life was very dull; he did nothing but drink and carry out missions.

He only likes three things: guns, alcohol, and He Jie's wife.

I've never seen him drink much in my life, so it seems he's using the alcohol to reminisce about something else.

Even the train conductor, He Jie's wife, couldn't make the decision, but a gun was no problem.

Su Huan tossed the bolt-action rifle to Qu Hang, "Give it a try."

The latter didn't stand on ceremony, refusing Bai Lu's offer of help, tossing the sniper rifle behind him, taking the rifle to check it, loading it and firing.

This time the bullet was very stable and landed accurately on the bullseye.

Three shots were fired in a row. Except for the first shot, which was slightly off target, the other two shots landed on the same spot.

Is this a modified gun?

"No, it's completely redesigned."

"You can remove the scope now. Adjust the bullet trajectory slightly. This gun is accurate enough to be a sniper rifle, but it's too loud and will easily reveal our position."

Qu Hang commented.

Then, frowning, he added, "The feel is really bad!"

The eldest brother, standing to the side, looked embarrassed.

"But its power is quite good. What's the name of this gun?"

Qu Hang asked seriously.

"We haven't chosen a name yet." The eldest brother scratched his head and turned to Su Huan. "How about the train conductor comes up with one for us?"

Su Huan pondered for a moment, "Let's call it Black Lion. The cold, hard, and rough feel of this gun can be continued. You can change the rest."

"This one is good."

"appropriate."

"Ah."

Several veterans seemed to want to praise the train conductor's naming skills, but they ended up saying less and less, and finally changed the subject and began to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the gun itself.

(Black lion, approximate shape, for reference only)
It was already evening when the test firing was over.

When Su Huan and his secretary strolled back to the dining car, Yu Yue had already prepared the meal.

Today's dishes are all fresh stir-fries. Apart from the first few days after the apocalypse, he hadn't eaten such fresh stir-fries in a long time.

The group ate several pots of rice in a row.

It's worth mentioning that Shu Wei is now allowed to sit at the table. Although she still doesn't receive a salary, her benefits are the same as those of the flight attendant.

The train conductor waited anxiously for half the night, only able to sleep peacefully after confirming that he had finally gotten the hard-won free period.

No one bothered him all night.

……

Time flies, and in the blink of an eye, four days have passed underwater.

Su Huan doesn't feel stifled even though he always has endless things to do when he wakes up.

During this period, Su Huan mainly spent time in Director Xu's laboratory, cooperating with some experimental tests as a test subject.

Director Xu truly lives up to his reputation as the chief research expert of the Steel Council. Despite the harsh conditions on the train, the various experiments are progressing steadily.

And it has produced many concrete results.

One of them researched and developed a life potion from their previous life. Originally, a medium-sized crown pear could only extend one to two years of life, but after being made into four life potions, each one could extend life by one year, which is equivalent to doubling the effect.

Of the four vials of medicine, two were consumed by Su Huan and Lin Xi, one was used for further research, and the other was stored in the warehouse.

Secondly, the method for making basic medicines has been deciphered, and production has recently begun in collaboration with Wanxing.

……

Another five days passed.

After numerous attempts, Yu Jing mastered the method of extracting second-order materials and began to extract second-order materials in large quantities.

The manufacturing team began stockpiling various second-order composite materials for train upgrades.

At Shu Wei's suggestion, a tailor shop was set up on the train, under the logistics team, and Xiao Hezi was in charge.

The other party was transferred from the research group to the logistics group, and then promoted one level.

They said the clothes designed by Little Box are very beautiful.

Su Huan expressed his doubts.

But Professor Ma didn't make things difficult for him last time, so he should at least give the old man some face.

Anyway, it's just half an idle carriage, plus the cost of some fabric, so it's a good deal to trap Lin Jin.

Perhaps it was the enclosed environment of the train carriage that caused Lin Jin and Xiao Hezi's relationship to progress rapidly; she had already moved out of the dormitory and into Lin Jin's room.

Old Liu also brought out a bottle of wine.

After living underwater for some time, many people have come together.

"People choose to forget their pain and start new lives, which may be a sign..."

Hu Shuo wandered around the carriage, occasionally scribbling furiously.

It wasn't that he liked gossiping, but as someone in charge of the logistics team, he was involved in everyone's daily life, so he naturally knew much more than the average person.

However, not everyone maintained the moral customs of the pre-apocalyptic era and formed new families.

Others have embraced more open and new ideas.

Some elite soldiers had multiple women or multiple men with them.

However, no parties are allowed on the train. This is a matter of principle that would affect combat effectiveness and morale. If anyone is caught doing so, there's no room for negotiation; they'll all be executed.

The specific implementation standards depend on the train conductor's mood that day. Based on these conditions, some long-standing professions began to emerge on the train.

Su Huan did not call for the elimination of these traditional industries; he only demanded one thing: that they pay taxes.

All other jobs, in essence, are for the train and for the train conductor, but this industry is purely for her own benefit, so taxation becomes inevitable, and it is a heavy tax, accounting for as much as half.

Thus, the first profession on the train to be required to pay taxes appeared.

……

"Dong dong!"

"It's time to eat!"

A light and graceful figure swayed past the doorway, and when Su Huan looked up from inside the room, he only saw a flash of silver light.

He asked casually, "What time is it?"

Shu Wei, standing to the side of Su Huan, glanced at her watch. "It's exactly noon. You've been working for seventeen minutes now."

"Hey, I really worked hard today."

Su Huan stretched, propped his face up with one hand, and looked down at the log on the table.

"March 7nd, the water level is high."

""

Including punctuation, there are a total of nine characters.

This is the result of his morning's work.

These are truly remarkable achievements.

After hesitating for a moment, he added a few words in a flamboyant manner.

"written request for leave"

Satisfied, he closed the journal. "Let's go eat!"

……

The murky seawater receded somewhat, revealing more buildings and structures above the water.

Sunlight filtered through a 16-meter-deep layer of water, turning into a sickly, eerie green that floated between the buildings like molten copper rust.

Inside the dark window, a rusty security door was slowly forced open by the water pressure.

In the living room, there was a bloated sofa, an overturned coffee table, and a white corpse cocoon floating around.

It swayed with the ripples of the water.

Suddenly, the cocoon trembled a few times, making a tearing sound, and a pair of scarlet lights appeared in the dark crack.

Then there were a pair of arms covered in slime, with fin-like structures retracting from the sides.

It unfolds to nearly half a meter in length the moment it touches the water.

"Plop" sound.

Only a broken corpse pupa remained on the water's surface.

The zombies quickly made their way outside the building through the broken windows.

Its spine is elongated like an eel's, and its tailbone extends into a translucent fin membrane that sways gently with the rhythm of the water flow.

Crimson eyes peered deeper into the murky floodwaters.

The entire commercial street was plunged into eternal darkness.

The water pressure warped the shop window glass, and the broken mannequin limbs were stuck in the window frame, while the wigs swayed with the waves like some kind of deep-sea creature.

But what truly caught his eye was the enormous creature underwater.

Like a giant dragon coiled in the water, it was enveloped by countless large deep-sea worms. Hundreds and thousands of corpses were restrained by the deep-sea worms, suspended in the water, observing the behemoth in the middle.

It resembled some kind of eerie ritual.

The water around them surged, and a dark shadow appeared without warning at the zombie's feet.

But before it could wrap itself around, the zombie's webbed feet suddenly unfurled, like sharp blades, severing the deep-sea worm.

The next instant, the zombie burst forth with incredible speed underwater, rushing towards the giant creature in the water, accompanied by a string of fine bubbles.

There was enormous flesh and blood there!
Enough to allow him to advance to a higher level of flesh and blood!
……

"Over a thousand have already melted?" Su Huan took a bite of his steak, slightly surprised.

Sitting opposite him, Lin Jin nodded. "I've been trying it out whenever I have time lately. The density of deep-sea worms has decreased somewhat, and after training, my abilities have evolved again, and my burning speed is even faster."

"So that means we're about to get out?"

Su Huan looked surprised.

"It might take a few more days..." Lin Jin scratched his head uncertainly.

Shu Wei chimed in, "The floodwaters outside have receded. According to calculations, as long as the number of stranded animals is below a thousand, the train's power should be sufficient to extricate them, but assistance from the 'power suppliers' on board will be needed."

Hearing such good news was a rare treat, and Su Huan was in a good mood.

Suddenly remembering something, he pointed to an empty seat and asked, "By the way, why didn't Liang Kuan come to eat?"

"He hasn't been doing very well lately..."

Yu Yue, who was serving food to Su Huan, said softly.

Su Huan raised an eyebrow. "Not feeling well?"

Liang Kuan is stronger than an ox, how could he possibly get sick?

He Jie subconsciously touched the bruise on the corner of his mouth. "It's probably because he hasn't advanced to the next level and is under a lot of pressure. He's been training like crazy lately."

Su Huan glanced at He Jie's pathetic appearance and tried his best to suppress the urge to smile.

"Didn't all of this happen to you?"

He Jie smacked his lips. "Laugh if you want to."

"Pshaw, what are you saying?"

"Next time I'll remind him not to hit your face, because it's not good if his wife sees it when he gets home... Hahaha, I wouldn't even dare to use my fingers against him in terms of pure strength. I'm surprised you didn't get beaten into a pig's head by him."

He Jie glanced at the few empty seats at the back of the table, clicked his tongue, and said, "We all attacked together, and Goat's face is swollen like a wild boar's now. It's really strange; Liang Kuan's punches are just too hard..."

Su Huan finished laughing and gently shook his head.

Liang Kuan has all the resources at his disposal, and he has plenty of vitality and incredibly high basic attributes.

His strength even exceeds the first-tier standard, but I don't know why he's stuck there.

He didn't have any solutions in that regard either.

Not only Liang Kuan, but also Yu Jing, no one else has been promoted during this period.

However, everyone's skills have improved.

People occasionally awaken new skills, and overall, the power of the armed train has been strengthened.

Once a large number of Tier 1 Evolvers appear, the armed train will have a firm foothold.

Suddenly, Yu Yue and Su Huan, who were picking up food, stopped at the same time.

"It seems that some interesting changes have occurred."

Su Huan used chopsticks to pick up the steak that Yu Yue had cut and slowly chewed and ate it.

Shu Wei had already stood up.

What he held in his hand was no longer paper and pen, but the combat tablet he used to carry out the mission.

Calmly, he said, "The command center reports that a large number of mutated second-tier zombies have appeared outside the train and are fighting with deep-sea worms. The pressure on us has been greatly reduced, and we are close to breaking through the standard."

"The opportunity has come."

Su Huan tossed his chopsticks onto the table and took a hot towel to wipe his mouth.

Everyone put down their chopsticks, straightened their backs, and looked at Su Huan, who was sitting in the main seat.

"Notify all groups to prepare for departure, and armed forces and combat groups to prepare for battle!"

"Yes!"

The moment Su Huan gave the order, four temporary "power donor" teams instantly injected massive amounts of electricity into the train.

This electrical energy was converted into power, and the entire train roared as it was propelled by the [Xuanjia] locomotive.

The accumulated mud and debris on the vehicle were shaken off.

The robotic arm near the propeller was fitted with a blade and a chainsaw, and began frantically cutting the deep-sea worms that were entangled around the propeller.

(End of this chapter)