Armored train in the apocalypse

Chapter 327 The Beetle Kingdom
Donning heavy protective suits, the two men, each holding a large net and secured with a safety rope, swam into the deep pit.

A stench ten times stronger than that on land immediately assaulted their senses, but both of them were wearing filter masks.

Qi Zhenbang used his abilities to scan for any potential dangers, his legs trudging laboriously through the slurry-filled pit of corpses.

The two men worked together to scoop up large pieces of the corpse with a net and drag them to the side. People on the shore would then use hooks to pull them up. Although it was a bit troublesome, it was quite efficient given the lack of engineering equipment.

Building is always harder than destroying.

Once most of the floating corpses on the pit had been cleared away, everyone felt much more relieved.

They worked while talking about the interesting things happening on the train.

Whether it's the bulletproof Tier 3 zombies or the unfathomably powerful train conductor, they are both topics of great interest.

After discussing the major topics, you can inquire about salaries, and finally talk about women, often accompanied by a comment like "So-and-so is really beautiful." This conversation can go on indefinitely, and even a stale work environment can become pleasant.

Although Qi Zhenbang was the youngest of the three brothers, he was already in his early forties. If it weren't for this damned apocalypse, he would have both a son and a daughter. Naturally, he had no interest in the topics of the young people and just listened quietly from the side.

Suddenly, he sensed something was wrong and adjusted his mask to see his vision with his relatively clean shoulder.

It was discovered that the blood plasma stains on the waist had dropped about 30 centimeters.

'Could it be because there are fewer corpses?'

Qi Zhenbang was puzzled. Even if there were fewer corpses, the number shouldn't have dropped so much.

Before he could even warn them, a series of bubbles suddenly appeared a meter to his right. Qi Zhenbang's vigilance was heightened, and he shoved the net directly into the water to keep himself from being sucked in.

More and more bubbles appeared, and a small vortex quickly formed there, causing the filth in the pit to sink at a visible rate.

It's either a natural cavity or an underground well.

Both are synonymous with danger, and the squad leader noticed this and quickly took action.

One of them hurried off to report, while the rest stood on the shore with their guns at the ready. Qi Zhenbang and his companion watched the whirlpool in the middle with vigilance.

As the whirlpool expanded, the things at the bottom were exposed. Although they were terrifying, they were nothing to the two of them. What truly made them feel threatened was the hole at the bottom of the whirlpool, which made a "hēhē" sound like that of a dying person.

"It looks like something is about to crawl out!"

The armed team members on the shore shouted nervously.

"Calm down, don't fire yet, let me and Lao Qi get ashore first!"

Qi Zhenbang nodded, staring at the hole as he slowly backed away. He saw a creature covered in filth emerge from the hole. It was about the size of a washbasin, oval in shape, and had a smooth, hairless body. It was probably a beetle or something similar.

After turning left and right, it climbed towards the two people in the pit.

Without further hesitation, the squad leader shouted, "Fire!"

A dull thud sounded on the beetle's back. Some bullets were visibly deflected, while the rest pierced deep into the beetle's body. The beetle, like a car that had lost power, stalled on the spot.

The two breathed a sigh of relief and turned to run quickly toward the shore.

Qi Zhenbang hesitated for a moment, then used the net in his hand to grab the beetle carcass that was close at hand, and retreated towards the edge of the pit.

Based on its appearance, it should be an unranked evolved beast, but its defense is extremely strong. It withstood dozens of 7.62 rifle bullets before dying, so it is definitely worth studying.

"They're out again! Fire! Fire!"

The team members on the shore shouted.

The squad leader, who had just been pulled ashore, saw that Lao Qi hadn't come up yet and immediately said anxiously, "The stuff is lost, come up first!"

But it was too late. Beetles the size of washbasins crawled out of the pit and rushed towards Qi Zhenbang inside.

Qi Zhenbang dared not turn around and could only laboriously pull his feet out of the mud. His mask was filled with the moisture from his breath, obscuring his limited vision. However, he sensed a team of people rapidly approaching them, which should be a nearby patrol combat group.

If you just hold on a little longer, you'll be rescued!
The large pit was almost entirely occupied by blood-red beetles, with the foremost beetle standing on a corpse and leaping about.

The hard shell deflected the bullet, heading straight for Qi Zhenbang's back.

With his strength being less than a first-tier "Gatherer", being hit by him would likely be fatal.

At the critical moment, a heavy steel figure flew directly into the mud pit, raised its left hand, and a light red energy barrier instantly unfolded, transforming into a large shield two meters high and one meter eight wide, blocking the swooping beetle.

At the same time, he raised his right hand, and the two 12.7mm caliber gun muzzles vibrated slightly, issuing a death sentence to the beetle swarm.

The beetle swarm, which could withstand rifle bullets, was blown apart in mid-air by the belt of ammunition. In an instant, the crater was once again littered with corpses, and a Guardian power armor sealed off the entrance to the cave.

Heavy footsteps sounded, and five or six powered armored vehicles arrived as support.

……

When he received the message, Su Huan was at the ultra-high voltage hub substation on the edge of Zhijin, which is the backbone of the entire Zhijin power transmission network.

High-voltage current typically originates from power plants, passes through key substations, undergoes multiple voltage reductions, and enters urban underground cables or overhead lines to rebuild base cities. These infrastructure projects can be used directly with minor adjustments.

Professor Ma said, "As long as we inject current here and turn this hub into a power generation point, we can supply electricity to the entire Zhinan District..."

"Of course, ordinary 'power suppliers' will not be able to provide enough electricity in the early stages, so they can provide power on a small scale and gradually increase it later."

Su Huan nodded. He had only come to see how to build the city's infrastructure; he had absolutely no intention of staying to work as a power generator.

Turning to look at Shu Wei behind him, he asked, "Are there many mutated beetles?"

Shu Wei's voice was cold. "It came out of an underground well. After a first-tier beetle was killed, the third brother blew up the well. But the underground pipes in Zhijin are connected, so we speculate that there are more beetles down there, and it may have even developed into a large nest."

Su Huan frowned. "I've scanned the area beneath Zhijin. Although there are scattered fluctuations of general energy, there shouldn't be any large-scale mutated beast groups..."

Shu Wei suddenly lowered her head, and after a moment, held the tablet up in front of Su Huan. "Breaking news: the carapace on this beetle can shield against general energy fluctuations."

Looking at the giant beetle on the screen, which resembled a rock, Su Huan instructed Professor Ma, "The inspection of the underground cables and pipes will be postponed for now. We'll continue after the investigation is complete. Have He Jie and Yu Yue come to see me."

……

Several relatively intact beetles were placed around the large pit. They were all killed by the evolved beings using their abilities, so their appearance was not damaged.

It had already been thoroughly cleaned with a high-pressure water gun. Three heads were not yet at the first level, and one head was at the first level, awaiting inspection by higher-ups.

Su Huan was the last to arrive because he was a little further away. The entire area around the pit was under martial law by the armed forces. He Jie and Lao San squatted next to the beetle, watching the researchers under Director Xu dismantle the beetle.

Yu Yue stood solemnly in the shadow of a building on the street, holding a sniper rifle in her arms.

Seeing Su Huan land, everyone stood up and surrounded him.

"Continue." Su Huan looked at the beetle that had been dismantled in half on the ground and said in a deep voice.

The cleaned beetle wasn't as ferocious as it seemed. Its body was made up of a single piece of shell, resembling a yellow rock. The dismantling team used a chainsaw to cut it open, revealing a thickness of an astonishing 3cm. Ordinary rifle bullets could only shatter it; only two or three shots hitting the same spot simultaneously could guarantee a kill.

"These things are much harder to kill than zombies."

The third brother muttered to himself, "What about the other side?"

Su Huan asked.

The dismantling team flipped the beetle over. "The bottom is still very smooth, mostly made of hard connective tissue. It only has two pairs of strong legs, but they are not as hard as the carapace. Ordinary handgun bullets can penetrate them."

"These are just ordinary, unranked beetles. If the shell thickness of a first-rank beetle can reach 5cm, ordinary soldiers will lack effective means to deal with them. I suggest suspending the base city plan and first determining the scale of the underground insects."

He Jie said seriously.

There were many people around, and He Jie didn't explain some things too clearly, but Su Huan understood what he meant.

This could very well be another huge pitfall left by Black Kite!
Leaving aside the extreme case of Tier 3, even if all of them are either unranked or Tier 1, if there are too many of them, the current state of the armed train will collapse.

The armed train employs an elite strategy: it locks onto the enemy's location, concentrates all its strength, and launches a fierce attack.

However, the train has just fought a fierce battle against the zombie horde, and its supplies are severely depleted. The loot has not yet been fully recovered, and the target is an underground objective. If we were to start a war rashly, we would likely suffer a crushing defeat.

Of course, with the train conductor around, defeat is inevitable, but once Su Huan makes his move, the little bit of Zhijin City that was painstakingly salvaged will be wiped out, and all the plans will be disrupted. It would be better to find a desolate place to start over.

Su Huan did not answer, but looked calmly at Yu Yue beside him, who shook her head.

“Underground sounds are difficult to listen to, and the sounds are chaotic and hard to identify.”

Su Huan narrowed his eyes as he looked at the huge crater in front of him. After a moment, he said resolutely, "Fill it up first, and continue clearing the surface. You guys need to determine the number and location of the insect swarm in the next two days. Even if there's a city underground, I'll build this base city on top of it!"

Seeing that Su Huan was determined, He Jie stopped insisting and sent the goat to direct the soldiers to fill the pit.

The two went to a secluded spot and used Yu Yue's "shared sound field" to communicate.

"It's time to expand our army."

He Jie's words were concise and to the point.

“We can’t keep that many in the car,” Su Huan said calmly, “but we can keep them outside.”

He Jie was taken aback. "What city defense army?"

"They were all our own people before we left, and if you want to expand your army, you have to select from these 100,000 people."

“Then I’ll tell the second brother to prepare to open a new recruit camp.”

He Jie thought about it and realized that made sense.

“The training intensity can be controlled. The training levels for the city defense army, the garrison army, and the armed forces should be different. If two more deserters appear, you can go back to the recruit camp.”

Su Huan glanced at him and said indifferently.

"rough!"

The plan, which could affect the entire city, was set in motion in just a few words.

Holding large meetings for small matters and small meetings for big matters is truly a golden rule.

……

"July 15th, the wind suddenly picked up."

“There really is a city underground in Zhijin, the Beetle Kingdom.”

Laboratory tests revealed that the beetle's shell has a hardness similar to marble, with the first tier being comparable to basalt.

Director Xu named it the Giant Rock Beetle.

Even worse, Yu Yue's investigation revealed that the entire Zhinan District was riddled with beetles, not only forming an underground network but also digging into the ground at unknown depths.

There were even second-tier giant rock beetles appearing, making the entire Zhijin seem like an illusion built on a beetle kingdom.

"But surprisingly, the giant rock beetle is not very aggressive, and it also feeds on soil, rocks, and plant roots. In fact, to some extent, it is quite friendly."

Director Xu observed the giant rock beetles feeding inside the huge glass box, his eyes filled with surprise.

Standing behind Director Xu, Su Huan saw a glass jar labeled "ethanol" on the shelf, filled with an amber liquid. He couldn't resist opening it and taking a sniff. A rich, mellow aroma of alcohol wafted out, accompanied by a strong energy fluctuation that made every cell in his body leap with excitement, clamoring for Su Huan to drink it.

Su Huan cautiously used his universal energy to pick up a portion of the ethanol-mixed liquor, and asked in return, "Affinity?"

"They are very obedient, but it's unclear whether they obey the Queen or something else. However, once the logic is understood, it's even possible to raise them."

"Like the iron-eating tree?"

"almost."

Su Huan felt a wave of dizziness wash over him, but it quickly subsided, leaving him feeling hot all over.

Given his superhuman physique, the fact that this jar of wine could even make him faint is something to be proud of.

"...It tastes pretty good."

He muttered something under his breath.

"what?"

Director Xu turned around in surprise, both amused and exasperated. "Don't drink that! It's something Wan Xing and I made together. It uses alcohol to enhance the effects of the life potion, but it's still in the experimental stage. Neither of us knows what the effects will be."

Su Huan waved his hand, his eyes regaining their clarity, "My intuition tells me that the thing should be done."

Director Xu walked over and covered the jar, jokingly saying, "My research experience tells me there's still room for improvement."

Su Huan shrugged. "We need to expedite the research on the beetles, or I'll have no choice but to blow them up."

Director Xu placed the fiberglass back on the shelf, adjusted the label position to ensure it was aligned with all the other fiberglass pieces, and then secured it with small clips to prevent it from falling off while the train was moving.

"Understood. I'll bring two more people over. Observing these habits isn't difficult; it just requires patience."

"What a coincidence," Su Huan said with a faint smile. "What I lack most is patience."

Director Xu responded with a helpless smile.

"Let's go test our vitality; it feels a bit uncomfortable."

"Is it bad?"

Director Xu said calmly, "Two more Sakura Empire test subjects have died, leaving only seven people."

Su Huan followed Director Xu to the next laboratory, where a silver-haired girl sat in the middle of the room, while Sato and six devout Sakura people knelt at Lin Xi's feet.

"Oh my, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs?"

(End of this chapter)