The "Survival on the Train" game has bugs, it's really laggy!

After that light tap, the bottom of the pit was no longer quiet.

One by one, the wheel flange lights of the three spare carriages lit up. First, the leftmost one, its red light was yellowish and very old, and it stayed on for two seconds before settling down. Then the rightmost one followed suit, its light tube cracked, the light shining intermittently on the ditch wall. Finally, the middle carriage's light came on—blue, neither flashing nor shaking, abnormally stable.

The sound of the cable chain rewinding rose from the depths of the pit, the metal links tightening one after another, like someone pulling an old chain buried in the ground.

Then came the sound of the brakes releasing. Click. Another click. The third sound was deeper as the iron wheel pressed against the rail, making a slow, grinding sound.

The Devourer was stuck on the wheel chock, its engine still idling, and the vehicle was shaking slightly. Number 013 was hanging seven meters behind, its steel cable hanging in an arc, and its tracks were still spinning in the air.

The entire train was sandwiched between the pit entrances. In front was the dismantling pit, behind was a waterlogged area and the pile of hunting dog remains at the entrance.

The woman leaned back in the repair chair, her fingers gripping the edge of the record box, her knuckles eerily white. She glanced up at the three lights gradually brightening at the bottom of the pit.

"Once the three sections are connected, the recycling chain will automatically lock."

Her voice was still hoarse, but she pronounced each word clearly.

"The entire train will be dragged into the pit, and your cold stove key will be stripped off along with it."

The veteran mechanic lay prone in front of observation window number 013, his pupils contracting in sync with the light at the bottom of the pit.

"How much drag?"

"An old steam winch, three beats in one go," the woman said. "It's enough to pull twenty fully loaded carriages."

Wang Hu wiped his gloves down to his waist and looked at Su Yuan.

"Old Su."

Su Yuan didn't turn around. He sat in the driver's seat, the gear of his mechanical left eye turning twice, landing on the acoustic pattern on the pit wall.

"Small fire."

"exist."

"Cut the lowest power sound signature. Record the wheelbase, chain beat, and braking frequency of all three sections of the bike."

The small fire's tail was flattened, and its claws swiped rapidly across the control panel.

"Entering data".

Su Yuan then said, "Wang Hu, check the temperature of the main traction pin."

Wang Hu squatted down and touched it; his finger bounced back immediately upon touching the surface of the pin.

"It's hot. The skin was rubbed raw by the slope, and it's almost discolored."

"How much longer can we hold out?"

"It depends on the pulling force. Gentle tug, half an hour. Hard drag, breaks within five minutes."

Su Yuan didn't respond to that. He turned his head and pressed the communication button.

"Tang Lan".

There was a sound immediately from the other end of number 013.

Listen.

"Everyone get into their designated positions, shift the weight of the rear vehicle forward. Anyone sitting in the back should move forward, and all ammunition boxes should be secured to the front half of the vehicle."

Tang Lan didn't ask why, and just yelled into the carriage.

"move."

A series of dragging and carrying sounds suddenly rang out from Unit 013. Some people ran forward carrying ammunition boxes, while others re-secured the stretchers of the wounded to the front support frame.

Deep within the base, those peering out from the wounded ward, the water filtration chamber, and the boiler room were all staring toward the pit entrance.

Someone whispered behind the observation hole.

"Why isn't it turning off?"

"With three spare carriages underneath, how will it support them?"

"That's an old steam winch; it used to pull mine cars in groups."

The oldest worker at the entrance of the water filtration room wiped his face.

"Just you wait and see."

The sounds from the bottom of the pit became clearer and clearer.

The chain tightening rhythm turned into a periodic three-beat sequence. Clang—clang—clang. Pause for a moment. Then again. Clang—clang—clang.

Xiao Huo's voiceprint has been generated.

"Three carriages, uniform wheelbase, old standard broad gauge. The left and right carriages have noticeable braking lag, high inertia, and violent pulling force output. The middle carriage..."

The fire paused for a moment.

"The frequency of the rim light in the middle section is different from the other two sections. The braking response is more sensitive, and the contribution to pulling force is almost zero."

Su Yuan stared at the voiceprint image, his fingers resting on the steering wheel without moving.

The woman looked up at him.

He didn't rush to take action.

The loudspeaker blared again.

"Lower-level recycling chain review begins."

An aged, synthesized voice emanated simultaneously from multiple speakers inside the door, accompanied by the noise of a tripped circuit breaker.

"Please cooperate with the verification process for the temporary lead vehicle."

"If resistance is made, it will be considered an absconding asset and physical removal is permitted."

Before the words were finished, an extremely heavy ejection sound came from the bottom of the pit.

Three sets of heavy-duty chain hooks emerged from the depths of the dismantling pit along the track groove.

Extremely fast.

The first set of chain hooks accurately hooked onto the bottom of the front beam of the Devourer, and the sound of the iron hooks snapping together made the vehicle tremble.

The second group went around under the vehicle and got into the 013 connecting steel cable.

The third group was the most sinister—it didn't run towards the chassis, but went directly around to the boiler base.

All three sets of hooks tighten simultaneously.

The entire vehicle of the Devourer was pulled forward.

Number 013 was pulled along a bit, and someone in the carriage lost their balance and bumped into the edge of the stretcher, letting out a muffled groan.

Wang Hu grabbed the car door frame, his feet leaving two skid marks on the deck.

"They're here!"

Su Yuan gripped the steering wheel with both hands, his right foot slamming on the brakes. The tires screeched against the rails, and the smell of burning rubber filled the cab.

The little fire was shaken so badly it almost slipped off the control panel, its claws gripping the edge tightly.

"The tension is rising sharply! The temperature of the main traction pin is still increasing!"

Lu Mingyuan's side was also in an uproar.

"The chain hook is locked! The storage system isn't testing us; it's trying to steal the car!"

Inside number 013, Tang Lan was pressed against the back of the seat by inertia, and the brake lever in her hand was pressed all the way down.

"Full braking for No. 013!"

The tracks bit into the ground, and the vehicle managed to stay upright, but the steel cable was stretched taut and made a continuous humming sound.

The old mechanic clung to the window frame, staring ahead.

"That cable is stretched to its limit."

The front of the Devourer has been dragged out by half a meter.

The wheel chock deformed under the front wheel, the steel plate groaning under the pressure. The temperature of the main traction pin was still soaring, and Wang Hu could see the metallic color on the pin's surface changing from dark red to bright orange.

Tang Lan's voice was very low.

"Su Yuan, make a suggestion."

"explain."

"Cut steel cable number 013. Protect the lead vehicle."

She paused for a moment.

"Both cars were towed away together; neither of them could escape."

Wang Hu gritted his teeth as well.

"Old Su, how about we cut it off first—"

"Continuously."

Su Yuan's voice wasn't loud, but everyone in the carriage could hear it clearly.

He stared at Xiao Huo's voiceprint, his eyes remaining still.

"Old steam winch, three beats and then a stop."

He said.

"It's not a continuous output. There's a half-second pressure relief interval between every three beats."

Wang Hu was stunned.

"You want to pause it?"

Su Yuan didn't reply. He pressed the communication button.

"Tang Lan".

"exist."

"Number 013 won't unhook. Follow my lead."

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the communication.

Tang Lan's voice came back quickly.

"Password."

"Listen to my commands. Release the brakes, hold tight, short push, hold tight again. I'll control the intervals."

"clear."

Su Yuan turned his head.

"Wang Hu".

"Dry."

"Dry sand, broken track plates, and asphalt were used to completely fill the front wheel rail grooves."

Wang Hu was already moving. He pulled open the side cabinet, took out the remaining half-bucket of dry sand and the broken track plates from the last use, and carried them, along with a can of asphalt base material, to the front of the truck.

"Which side should we put it on?"

"Stuff both sides. Make it thicker."

Wang Hu squatted beside the tire, pouring dry sand into the track groove. The asphalt cap wouldn't unscrew, so he stomped it open and poured it in directly. Broken track plates were wedged horizontally under the front wheel, creating a rough, drag-resistant surface between the tire and the rail.

The second round of dragging at the bottom of the pit had begun to build up momentum. The sound of the chain tightening grew more and more urgent with each beat.

Xiao Huo stared at the voiceprint.

"The first beat."

The car body suddenly sank.

"The second beat."

The chain hooks on the front beam emitted a piercing metallic scraping sound.

"Third beat!"

The Devourer was suddenly dragged forward twenty centimeters. The tires rolled over the dry sand and track plates, and the frictional resistance reduced the sliding speed, but the vehicle was still moving.

"Stop!" Little Fire shouted.

Su Yuan slammed on the brakes with his right foot and pressed the communication button at the same time.

"Hold on to death."

Track 013 gripped the ground, and the weight of the vehicle behind it immediately pressed down.

Both vehicles braked simultaneously, and the tension in the steel cables was significantly reduced by the opposing impacts. The wheels of the Devourer re-engaged in the rail grooves.

Half a second.

The pressure relief interval of the winch at the bottom of the pit had just passed when the next three-beat cycle began.

"Release the brakes," Su Yuan said.

Tang Lan relaxed.

"Short push".

Track 013 reversed half a turn, briefly pushing the weight of the vehicle behind it forward.

In that instant, the tension in the steel cable snapped back, and the chain hooks on the front beam of the Devourer were pulled backward by a section.

The winch gears at the bottom of the pit made an abnormal clicking sound.

"Hold on to death again."

Both cars locked simultaneously.

Wang Hu gripped the car door, his shoulder numb from the inertia. He glanced down at the front wheel.

The tire stopped sliding forward.

The dry sand and asphalt were mixed together, charred black by the wheels, and emitted wisps of smoke, but the resistance surface remained.

"I held on," he managed to squeeze out.

In the base's monitoring room, Lu Mingyuan stared at the vehicle displacement numbers on the screen.

The numbers are jumping, but they are no longer moving in one direction towards the pit opening.

"It's keeping a beat," Lu Mingyuan said hoarsely, "using the weight of No. 013 as an anchor, striking in the opposite direction."

An engineer next to him trembled slightly.

"How long can this last?"

Lu Mingyuan did not reply.

Because he saw another set of data.

The temperature of the main traction pin is still rising.

It can withstand the tension, but the pin can't.

Behind the observation port in the casualty ward, several veteran workers huddled together, watching. The voice that had been shouting to abandon the vehicle was no longer there. Someone tapped lightly on the pipe wall with their knuckles, saying nothing, just staring.

Su Yuan didn't care what people outside thought.

His attention was entirely focused on the voiceprint.

The data for the three spare carriages were displayed on the screen, and Xiao Huo had already marked them with colors. The two carriages on the left and right were highlighted in red, and the one in the middle was highlighted in blue.

The left and right sections: the wheels are heavy, braking is slow, and the pulling force output accounts for more than 90%.

The middle section: The rim light is blue and stable, the braking is sensitive, and the contribution of the pulling force is extremely low.

The knocking also came from the middle carriage.

Su Yuan's gaze lingered for two seconds.

"Small fire."

"exist."

"The middle carriage wasn't there to tow me."

The little fire's tail paused for a moment.

"Data supports this. The winch chain of the middle carriage is not directly connected to the Devourer. It is sandwiched between the two trailer cars on the left and right, sharing the track but braking independently."

Wang Hu was patching sand when he heard this and stopped.

"Clad in?"

Su Yuan enlarged the voiceprint image.

"The two sections on the left and right are the recycling trailers. The middle section is the safe."

He said.

"The second key is inside."

The woman suddenly looked up.

"What are you doing—"

"Its lights are different." Su Yuan didn't explain much. "The rim lights are blue, which is different from the red lights on the other two sections. The knocking sound also comes from there. There's someone or something inside waiting to be taken away."

The veteran mechanic felt a chill run down his spine as he listened in room 013.

"So what are you going to do?"

Su Yuan stared at the screen.

"If the chain is blown up, the two trailers will drag the middle section down with them back to the bottom of the pit. The second key will also be rendered useless."

After he said that, the carriage was silent for a moment.

"Don't blow it up."

Su Yuan put his hand back on the steering wheel.

"Make the left and right sections interlock tightly, and then take over the middle one."

Lu Mingyuan suddenly stood up from his chair on the other end of the communicator, aggravating his wound and letting out a muffled groan.

"You want to seize the right to organize the groups?"

Su Yuan did not answer.

He's already moving.

"Wang Hu".

"exist."

"The grounding chain has been moved from the front beam to the left trailer chain hook."

Wang Hu picked up the grounding chain and squatted down under the front beam to take a look. The three sets of chain hooks were in different positions, with the left set closest to the hound's remains. There was also water and electrical leakage under the remains.

He understood immediately.

"You want the leaking current to flow back along the chain to the left trailer?"

"Yes. It's interfering with the limit relay."

Wang Hu clamped the chain head with insulated pliers, reached in, and placed the grounding chain on the outer edge of the left chain hook.

Snapped.

Blue and white electric arcs shot along the chain toward the bottom of the pit.

The spark jumped twice before disappearing into the darkness.

The wheel flange light on the left trailer vane flashed immediately.

Xiao Huo reports the number.

"Left-side trailer stop signal malfunction. Braking cycle offset by 0.3 seconds."

Su Yuan pressed the communication button.

"Tang Lan".

"exist."

"Short, sharp push with No. 013. Stretch the right chain hook to its maximum angle."

Tang Lan didn't ask any further questions.

"push."

Track 013 reversed, causing the weight of the rear vehicle to push forward. The right-side chain hook was pulled to the side by the steel cable, and the angle suddenly increased.

With the two trailers positioned on the left and right, the force is no longer evenly distributed.

The left side was affected by electrical leakage, causing the braking rhythm to deviate. The right side was also deflected by the reverse thrust of component 013.

A metallic trembling sound came from the bottom of the pit.

The old differential structure started to wobble.

Xiao Huo stared at the voiceprint.

"The left trailer is 0.7 degrees to the left. The right trailer is 1.2 degrees to the right. The sway is widening."

Su Yuan waited.

His hands were on the steering wheel, and his toes hovered between the brake and the accelerator.

On the voiceprint graph, the oscillation curves of the two trailers intersected once. Then they intersected again.

The swing amplitude reached its maximum during the third crossover.

Su Yuan suddenly turned the steering wheel.

The front of the Devourer veered halfway, and the corner of its front beam slammed into the abandoned turntable at the edge of the pit.

The sound of metal clashing against metal echoed throughout the passageway.

The tip of his tongue was knocked off course by three centimeters when he turned.

Three centimeters.

not much.

enough.

The wheel flanges of both trailers pressed into the misalignment gap caused by the offset.

The left trailer's steel wheel got stuck. The right trailer's steel wheel also got stuck.

The two forces interlocked at the bottom of the pit, their directions clashing, and instantly canceled each other out.

A piercing metallic scream came from the bottom of the pit.

The sound rose from underground, vibrating along the pit walls and causing rusty pieces to fall down.

Wang Hu squatted beside the front beam, his ears ringing from the scream.

"Is it stuck?"

On the small fire soundprint graph, the tension curves of the left and right trailers simultaneously returned to zero.

"Stuck".

"The two trailer sections are interlocked, and the pulling force is completely canceled out."

Inside room 013, the old mechanic slammed his hand on the window frame.

"He locked the two trailers together!"

The young survivor's mouth was open and he couldn't close it.

"Can being knocked off course by just three centimeters really cause a fatal injury?"

The old mechanic didn't look at him, but stared at the bent turnout at the pit entrance, his Adam's apple bobbing twice.

"It's not about three centimeters."

His voice was hoarse.

"He accurately calculated the peak of the swing on both sides, and at that instant, the track surface offset fell exactly within the tolerance range of the wheel track difference between the two wheels."

The young survivors didn't understand.

But he realized one thing—the dragging at the bottom of the pit had stopped.

In the base's monitoring room, Lu Mingyuan braced his hands on the control panel, his chest injury causing him to bend over.

He stared at the tension figures on the screen, which showed the two trailers had reached zero.

The engineer next to him stammered for a long time before finally managing to utter a single sentence.

"What's wrong with this person's brain?"

Lu Mingyuan did not reply.

Because he saw another warning.

The storage system notification in the bottom right corner of the screen is refreshing.

"Trailer malfunction." "Initiate safe drop procedure." "Second key enters self-destruct sealing." "Temporary lead vehicle contact prohibited."

Four lines of text popped up one after another.

Lu Mingyuan's face turned pale instantly.

"Su Yuan!"

He yelled into the communicator.

"It's going to abandon the middle section!"

A series of mechanical lock clicks came from the bottom of the pit.

Click. Click. Click. Click.

The four tones.

All the latches at the bottom of the middle spare carriage burst open.

The unsecured carriage swayed on the tracks for a moment, then began to slide towards the bottom of the pit.

It's not moving fast, but it's accelerating.

The broadcast started simultaneously.

"The second key enters self-destruct sealing mode."

"Temporary lead vehicle contact is prohibited."

"Temporary lead vehicle contact is prohibited."

Tang Lan cursed.

"It would rather destroy the key than give it to me."

Wang Hu looked up at Su Yuan.

"winch?"

Su Yuan is already making a move.

"The main winch cable passes through the old pulley at the pit entrance and is then fastened to the connecting ring of the middle carriage."

He spoke very quickly.

"Tang Lan, prepare to tow number 013."

Wang Hu pulled the steel cable end of the main winch from under the vehicle and carried it to the edge of the pit. Above the pit opening, a set of old-fashioned guide pulleys was suspended, the grooves filled with rust, but the bearings could still turn.

He flung the steel cable into the pulley groove, and the cable end flipped over along the curve and fell into the pit.

The middle carriage has already slid four meters out.

The cable end wobbled twice in mid-air, failing to reach the connecting ring.

Wang Hu lay prone at the edge of the pit, his upper body leaning out, using insulated pliers to grip the cable end and lower it.

"It's half a meter too short!"

Su Yuan slapped the steering wheel.

"Keep the fire low, and lower the cable by one meter with the winch."

The small fire claw pressed the control button, the winch clicked, and a section of steel cable was ejected.

Wang Hu grabbed the extra length of cable, leaned his body out a little further, and hooked his heels onto the load-bearing beam at the pit entrance.

The cable head hit the manual coupling ring of the middle carriage.

The ring was old, covered in oxide layers, but it still retained its shape.

Wang Hu inserted the hook at the cable end into the ring and twisted it half a turn.

"It's buttoned up!"

Su Yuan stepped on the gas.

"Tang Lan, drag it backwards."

Track 013 reversed, and the weight of the vehicle behind it began to press backward.

The Devourer simultaneously tightened its winch.

It can be pulled in both directions, front and back.

The downward speed of the middle carriage was reduced by more than half, but it didn't stop. The latches at the bottom of the carriage were all open, and gravity was still pulling it down.

The winch emitted a continuous, high-load hum. The steel cable was taut, sparking tiny sparks as it passed through the old pulley.

Wang Hu's heel slipped on the load-bearing beam, and he gritted his teeth and pulled back half an inch.

"I can't hold him back!"

Su Yuan didn't look at him. His hands were already on the keyboard of the old terminal.

The finger fell down.

Tap. Tap tap. Tap.

Morse code.

The old copper wires transmit the signal to the bottom layer of the storage system inside the door.

The temporary lead car received the lost carriages.

Article 7 of the wartime provisions.

Any carriage that detaches due to mechanical failure within a coupled train set has the obligation and the right to be retrieved and reassembled by the temporary lead car.

Lost carriages must not be self-destructed or sealed before being recovered.

The code is finished.

Su Yuan moved his right hand off the keyboard and placed it on the slot on the side of the old terminal.

The Great Wall certification insert is still inserted inside.

He wrote the idling frequency into the authentication channel.

The low-frequency pulse from the cold furnace key and the authentication signal from the Great Wall connector light up simultaneously. Two extremely low-frequency physical ripples spread outward from the old terminal, propagating along the copper wire and rail surface at the same time.

The wheel flange light in the middle carriage flickered.

The blue light turned green.

It flashed again.

The broadcast is stuck.

The aged, synthesized voice repeated half a sentence—"Temporary lead vehicles are prohibited—"—and then stopped there.

There was silence at the bottom of the pit for two seconds.

The descent speed of the middle carriage has reached zero.

It stopped.

Immediately afterwards, a new judgment popped up on the monitoring screen.

"The lost carriages are being recovered and reassembled." "Temporary attribution: Temporary attachment to the lead car." "Self-destruction and sealing - temporarily suspended."

The load on the winch decreased. The steel cable loosened by half an inch.

The tracks of No. 013 no longer spin idly.

Wang Hu lay prone at the edge of the pit, sweat dripping from his forehead onto the rusty iron.

He turned to look at Su Yuan in the driver's seat.

He uttered a sentence after a long pause.

"You even dare to steal the terms and conditions."

Lu Mingyuan stared at the screen in the control room, completely frozen in place.

"He snatched the second key from the recycling chain."

His voice trembled when he said those words.

The engineers around were all standing; no one could sit down.

All the old red lights around the pit entrance were turned off at the same time.

There was silence in the casualty ward at first. Then someone gently tapped the wall of the tube.

Another person started taking pictures.

The third time. The fourth time.

It wasn't cheering, it was acknowledgment.

Deep within the base, behind the observation hole in the boiler room, the oldest worker pressed his face against the glass, his lips moved, but no sound came out.

Su Yuan ignored all of this.

"Wang Hu, the old mechanic."

"Yes." Two voices rang out simultaneously.

"Go down to the pit. Open the side door of the middle carriage."

Wang Hu flipped back from the pit and wiped his face. The old mechanic jumped down from No. 013, his legs and feet moving with surprising agility.

The two walked down the winch cable and the old ladder on the pit wall.

The middle carriage was stopped halfway down the tunnel, its body slightly tilted, suspended by a winch and reverse pull.

The side door lock is an old-fashioned rotary mechanical lock with three latches. It's badly rusted, and the knob is completely stuck.

Wang Hu grabbed the wrench from the old mechanic's waist, wedged it on the edge of the knob, and kicked it down.

The first latch popped open.

He changed his angle and kicked again.

The second one.

The third one was the hardest; it didn't budge even after I kicked it twice.

The old mechanic pushed him aside, squatted down, took out a crowbar, inserted it into the gap of the clip, and hunched his shoulders.

Click.

The third clip broke.

The side door sprang open half a foot, bringing out a musty smell that had been sealed for who knows how many years.

Dust seeped out from under the door, thick and white.

Wang Hu covered his mouth and nose with gloves and peered inside.

It wasn't fully loaded with weapons.

It's not about piling up equipment.

It is an old-fashioned connecting carriage.

The interior walls were painted with a yellowish off-white paint, with several patches peeling off to reveal the sheet metal underneath. An old fluorescent light tube hung from the ceiling, but it wasn't working and was covered in a layer of dust.

Several faded Chinese slogans were still pasted on the wall. The handwriting was blurred, and only a few words could be barely made out—"Expedition," "Personnel Transfer," and "Caution."

In the center of the carriage, a cold-state authentication box was fixed to the floor. The box was made of dark gray metal, bolted to the base plate at the four corners, and had an old-fashioned rotary lock on top.

Inside the box, a Great Wall Defense Line certified insert stands in the slot.

Wang Hu stared at the insert and swallowed hard.

"Found it."

The old mechanic had already entered the carriage; he didn't look at the box.

He was looking at the row of old seats next to the box.

All six seats had their seatbelts unbuckled, except for the last one which was still fastened.

There were dried, dark marks on the strap.

It's also on the back of the seat.

The old mechanic squatted down and touched the edge of the buckle with his fingers.

"Blood."

His voice was very low.

"I've been doing this for a long time."

Wang Hu walked over and glanced at the seatbelt that was fastened.

The buckle is positioned incorrectly. It's not at a normal angle when fastened while sitting; it looks more like someone is strapped to the seat and then forcibly pulled away by something.

The seatbelt buckle is still intact.

People are gone.

The carriage was eerily quiet. Only the occasional sound of the winch turning outside could be heard.

Wang Hu didn't look at it any longer. He walked to the authentication box and turned the knob lock.

Take the insert out and hold it in your hand.

Cold to the touch. Incredibly old. Exactly the same design as the one above.

He looked up and shouted something towards the pit opening.

"Got it."

Su Yuan, who was in the driver's seat, heard this but didn't say anything.

Only after Wang Hu and the old mechanic brought the insert back into the vehicle did he reach out and take it.

The second authentication insert.

He pressed it into the second slot of the old terminal.

Snap-fit.

The old terminal's screen flashed and displayed a series of underlying verification codes, which took about three seconds to process.

Then, the broadcast from Base 04 was briefly distorted.

It lasted for half a second.

When it was restored, the channel had changed.

It's not that old, synthesized voice from the storage system.

It is a cleaner and more standardized communication frequency band.

Blue Star Expeditionary Force Wartime Channel.

The lights inside the base began to change.

The yellow lights in the repair area turned green one after another.

The safety zone gate opened slowly with a heavy mechanical sound.

The valve on the cooling water branch line rotated automatically, and the sound of water flowing through the pipes could be heard. The oxygen supply backup valve popped open, and fresh air rushed into the corridor.

Then there's a track.

An escape track leading to the old railway line outside rises from the ground, the switches automatically switch, and the green light illuminates.

All of these happen simultaneously.

The lock on the casualty ward door popped open.

The door to the water filtration chamber was also opened.

The partition leading from the boiler room to the main passageway was raised.

Someone came out of the casualty ward, stood in the corridor, looked at the lit green lights, his eyes were red, and he didn't say anything.

I could hear crying coming from the water filtration room. It wasn't just one person, but several. I couldn't hear clearly through the door, but they were all crying.

The situation inside carriage 013 has changed as well. A new sign has popped up on the system panel.

"The accompanying wounded carriage has been incorporated into the temporary lead car group."

Tang Lan looked at the words and released her hand from the holster.

She didn't laugh. She just leaned her head back in the seat and closed her eyes for a second.

One second is enough.

The veteran mechanic stood by the door of car number 013, raising his hand to wipe the corner of his eye. The movement was quick, like wiping away dust.

The young survivor asked him, "Why are you crying?"

"No." The old mechanic turned and went into the carriage. "Sand got in my eyes."

No one in the carriage exposed him.

Lu Mingyuan's voice finally calmed down a bit on the other end of the control room.

"All channels confirmed." "Base 04 has switched to the Blue Star Expeditionary Force's wartime channel." "Temporary lead vehicle formation in effect." "All personnel to operate according to formation discipline."

After he finished speaking, he coughed twice.

Then he added a sentence.

"The old rules are back."

Su Yuan remained seated in the driver's seat, without moving.

His gaze fell on the old terminal screen.

The newly unlocked route map unfolds in the center of the screen. The direction, forks, slopes, and weight limits of the escape tracks are all clearly marked.

His gaze swept along the track to its end.

The end point of the track was marked with a line of red text.

"Prohibited: Live animal assembly area".

Su Yuan's fingers paused on the steering wheel for a moment.

The gear in the mechanical left eye turned half a circle, locking onto that line of text.

The woman nearby saw this. Her expression changed again.

"Live animal assembly area..."

Her voice was very soft.

"That's the bottom floor of No. 04. It was sealed off back then."

Su Yuan did not reply.

Another line of text popped up on the old terminal screen.

Blue Star Chinese.

"Two-half of the Great Wall keys have been collected."

"The temporary lead vehicle can enter the outer ring of the defense line."

"Warning: Section 3 is missing from original group 001."

"Section 3: Live Animal Grouping Area"

The four lines of text appeared one after another, with less than half a second between each line.

The last line stopped on the screen, flashed twice, and then stopped refreshing.

No one spoke in the carriage.

next second.

A whistle blew from the deepest part of Base 04.

It's neither the shrill whine of an old-fashioned steam whistle nor the synthesized sound of electronic analog.

The voice was low and long.

It presses down from the end of the track, traveling along the rails and pipe walls all the way to the pit opening.

All the lights started changing at the same time.

From green to red.

They are in the same direction.

All points to the "Live Grouping Area".