Death Train: SSS-level talent right from the start!

As soon as Zhong Xiu finished speaking, Cao's soldiers moved.

He turned around, his gaze sweeping over the passengers of train G4921 behind him, his voice a few decibels lower than before: "Show your attribute panels, everyone."

After a moment of silence, people started to bring up the system panel one after another.

A translucent blue light curtain gradually lit up in the dimly lit ice chamber.

The information on those panels only showed the level; other information remained hidden.

A burly middle-aged man stepped out from the crowd.

His physique was extremely robust, with broad shoulders and a thick back. The attribute panel he displayed showed "Lv25" in the level column, and the talent rating column was also hidden. But even without looking at the panel, the sense of oppression that emanated from his bones was enough to explain the situation.

He was surrounded by four teammates, three of whom were level 24 and one was level 23.

The burly man stared directly at Cao Bing: "Cao Bing, sacrificing ten of the lowest-level passengers for a quick and safe passage is indeed a reasonable plan, but since it's based on level, I remember your brother is only level 19, right? And his talent rating is only B?"

He paused, then turned to look at Cao Yan: "If he's not among these ten people, how can you expect the others to be convinced?"

Cao Yan's expression changed. Before he could speak, someone in the crowd had already chimed in.

"Shi Jian is right. Cao Yan's rank is basically at the bottom of our train. There has to be one of these ten people who is him."

"Indeed, there aren't many people below level 20 on our G4921 train, and Cao Yan is only a B-level talent. We can't possibly die in his place, can we?"

"Let's follow the rules. Let's put talent rating aside for now and just rank them by level. I'm level 20, so even if Cao Yan is dead, he should still be ranked ahead of me."

The voices of agreement came from different directions, each with a different tone.

Some spoke with a businesslike indifference, some with an undisguised mockery, and some were simply stating facts, but regardless of their tone, they all pointed in the same direction.

Cao Bing's face darkened, and his lips moved, but before he could utter a sound, Cao Yan beside him had already exploded.

"Brother! Kill them! Kill these useless trash!"

Cao Yan's voice was hysterical, his eyes were bloodshot, and the veins on his temples bulged.

He whirled around, his gaze fixed on Shi Jian: "Who do you think you are? You, a level 25, dare to boss my brother around?"

Shi Jian stood there, watching Cao Yan's nearly out-of-control state, a very faint smile slowly curving his lips: "Oh? Impotent rage?"

"Say that again, you fucking idiot!" Cao Yan took a step forward, his hands clenched into fists. "Brother, kill him! He's provoking you right now. If you don't kill him, who will listen to you in the future? Kill him!"

His voice had become distorted, and every word seemed to be squeezed out from between his teeth.

Cao Bing stood still, glancing at his younger brother, then at Shi Jian, before his gaze lingered between the two for a moment, his eyes swirling with complex and unreadable emotions.

"Three out of ten minutes have passed."

Zhong Xiu's voice came from the other side of the hall, unhurried and calm. She crossed her arms like an audience member watching a wonderful performance.

Yang Zhen strode out from the crowd.

He walked up to the burly man and lowered his voice: "Shi Jian, what are you doing? Who lives or dies has nothing to do with you, right? You're making things difficult for Brother Cao."

Shi Jian turned his head and glanced at Yang Zhen.

The faint smile remained on his lips. Then he spoke, his voice rising slightly instead of falling: "I just can't stand some people who are bullying others and acting stupidly without realizing it."

He paused, shifting his gaze from Yang Zhen to Cao Bing's direction: "I did this for Cao Bing's sake. If he continues to be dragged down by his stupid younger brother, he'll be killed sooner or later."

Yang Zhen frowned slightly. He knew that Shi Jian was doing it on purpose. On train G4921, Cao Bing was level 27 and ranked first, while Shi Jian was level 25 and ranked second. Because of Cao Yan, many people on the train had opinions about Cao Bing, while Shi Jian was very popular.

The air in the hall seemed to drop even lower in that instant.

The whispers that had been going on all stopped.

All eyes were focused on the tense gap between Cao Bing and Cao Yan.

"Four out of ten minutes have passed."

Zhong Xiu's voice rang out again.

"Brother, what are you waiting for? Kill Shi Jian, and no one will dare to oppose you. I've disliked him for a long time."

Cao Yan continued to urge Cao Bing on while glaring fiercely at Shi Jian.

"Shut up."

Veins bulged on Cao Bing's forehead, and his grip on the black greatsword tightened.

Cao Yan subconsciously took a step back, his gaze fixed on the giant sword in Cao Bing's hand, his pupils contracting in that instant.

He could see the bulging veins on his brother's arm, and the anger and inner turmoil churning in his eyes. He suddenly felt that his brother might really kill him.

The next moment, crimson flames ignited again on Cao Bing's body, spreading along his arm to the blade of the black greatsword.

He slammed his right foot down, shattering the ice beneath his feet, and shot off like an arrow toward Shi Jian.

Shi Jian stood still, without moving an inch, and his expression remained unchanged.

Cao Bing brushed past him and rushed into the crowd behind him.

The black greatsword, wreathed in crimson flames, slashed horizontally, precisely cutting through the neck of the nearest young man.

The man's head flew up, tumbled twice in mid-air, and rolled to the ground. The headless body swayed for a moment before falling forward.

The sword was retracted, and Cao Bing's body did not pause at all. He turned to the side, and the tip of the sword pierced through the back of another middle-aged passenger's chest and came out through the front.

He drew his sword, turned his body again, and was much faster than before. The trajectory of each sword strike was simple and deadly.

Screams erupted throughout the hall. Some tried to push their way into the crowd, some tried to run to the wall, and some had already knelt down and begged for mercy.

But Cao's troops did not stop.

The crimson flames on the black greatsword left a scorched ring around the edge of the wound with each cut. Most of the passengers who fell were of lower level and didn't even have time to make a proper dodge.

In less than two minutes, the tenth person fell to the ground.

Cao Bing stood still, his black greatsword hanging by his side, the crimson flames on the blade slowly dying down.

His breathing was a little faster than usual, but not by much.

He dragged his greatsword, stained with dark red blood, back to the front of the group. As he passed Shi Jian, he turned his head, his eyes devoid of any emotion, giving Shi Jian a cold glance before looking away and continuing forward until he reached the front of his own group before stopping.

Shi Jian remained standing in the same spot, without moving an inch. The curve of his lips neither widened nor disappeared; it simply remained at that very slight angle.

Yang Zhen stood next to him, glanced at him sideways, his lips moved slightly, but he didn't say anything.

He knew that Shi Jian had gotten what he wanted at this moment, and that after this trial was over, Cao Bing would have no credibility whatsoever on the G4921 train.

All the powerful groups on the train will gravitate towards Shi Jian, who will become the true leader of the G4921 train. Perhaps it's time for him to find a new patron.

But he couldn't show it yet, as the Ice Abyss Trial was far from over. He silently returned to Cao Bing's side.

At this moment, the temperature display on the blue light screen above the hall had jumped from -15℃ to -5℃.