Translator: AnubisTL
Afterward, the bald man cradled the walkie-talkie like a precious treasure back to his locomotive cabin. He sat before the control panel, fondling it repeatedly before carefully placing it beside the console. Then he called out to his AI:
"Mom."
"When this walkie-talkie rings and glows red, crank the train's audio system to maximum volume!"
"No matter what I'm doing—sleeping, taking a shit—wake me up immediately!"
The next moment, a mechanical, pleasant voice echoed through the cabin:
"Acknowledged."
Each train conductor could name their Train Auxiliary AI to make it easier for the AI to understand their commands. The bald man had named his "Mom," after his mother, who had passed away from cancer after undergoing unsuccessful chemotherapy treatments before the apocalypse.
With everything set up, the bald man finally relaxed. He leaned back in his chair, his face lit with a cheerful anticipation as he gazed at the walkie-talkie on the table. He hoped it would start blaring at any moment, allowing him to quickly claim his nearly free reward.
As for not finding any suitable trains to descend upon, that was perfectly normal.
The S-Rank Difficulty job advancement quest for the mechanical train was utterly absurd. It was impossible for a normal person to complete. Only a stubborn fool would even consider taking it, despite having two chances to choose a job advancement quest.
Completing an S-Rank Difficulty job advancement quest would undoubtedly require a massive investment of time, energy, and resources.
In the apocalypse, no one would be foolish enough to invest so much in a mission that was virtually impossible to complete.
But...
He wasn't worried. After all, the world was full of all sorts of people, but stubborn fools were especially abundant. He was confident that before long, some train conductor would stubbornly choose that S-Rank Difficulty job advancement quest. And then, he would grin cruelly as he delivered a crushing, despair-inducing blow!
He would force them to confront the harsh reality!
"30 Murphy Stones..."
The bald man stared at the three-dimensional model of the train on the control panel screen, his brow furrowed as he chewed on his finger. "How should I spend them? Maybe two for the Third-Rate Heavy Machine Gun? Murphy Stones are most cost-effective when used on green-grade train components. Just two Murphy Stones can unlock an overpowered effect."
"No, no, a single Tier 5 Third-Rate Heavy Machine Gun wouldn't be useful. And that would mean I'd need to spend another two Murphy Stones on the Heavy Machine Gun Bullet Production Line."
"This is such a headache."
"I've never fought such a wealthy battle before. It's so agonizing."
"Mom, do you have any suggestions?"
"I suggest you wait until you have all 30 Murphy Stones before thinking about this," the Train Auxiliary AI's voice echoed through the Audio System.
"Alright, you're dismissed, Mom. Go play."
The next day, Chen Mang woke up from a deep sleep. After stretching languidly, he glanced out the window at the assembled slaves and smiled with satisfaction. He had slept soundly the night before.
The train had successfully upgraded to Tier 3.
And he had found a way to complete the S-Rank Difficulty job advancement quest.
This put him in a particularly good mood.
He scanned the train panel. Including the iron ore the slaves had brought back yesterday, the train now held 196,000 units of iron ore.
Today's mission was to craft and upgrade the Tier 3 train's accessories.
In one word: splurge.
These two iron ore mines were nearly depleted. The Resource Detection Radar showed only 30,000 units of iron ore remaining, so they would have to withdraw around noon.
The Resource Detection Radar also indicated a high-grade rare mineral deposit 5,000 meters below: a Tier 3 Red Heart Rock mine.
Estimated yield: 1,800 units of Tier 3 Red Heart Rock.
Though he didn't need this resource yet and had no idea which accessory it could be used for, Chen Mang decided to mine the Red Heart Rock after finishing these two iron ore deposits.
Mainly because there was so little of it.
Only 1800 units.
With so many slaves, they could mine it all in an hour or two. He'd just take care of it quickly and then head to other iron ore deposits in the afternoon. The Iron Ridge Wasteland was full of them, enough for him to mine at his leisure!
After making these plans, Chen Mang turned his gaze away from the window and casually said, "Come in."
Soon, a young woman carrying a tray carefully pushed open the door and placed it on the control panel, whispering, "Lord Mang, this is breakfast Deputy Train Conductor Zhu asked me to prepare for you. From now on, I'll be delivering your breakfast, lunch, and dinner."
"Mm."
Chen Mang glanced at the woman, then casually dismissed her. "You may leave."
A few days ago, he had instructed Old Pig to select ten women to clean the train and another to specifically clean his locomotive cabin. This woman was Old Pig's choice for the latter role, responsible for his daily meals and tidying his cabin.
She was quite attractive.
Though she wore no makeup, her skin was remarkably smooth. Her clothes, though washed countless times, still looked worn and unkempt.
Yesterday, he had tried to trade iron ore for wood on the train radio, but...
There were only two ways to obtain wood in the Iron Ridge Wasteland. The first was to go to the Mohe Hills, where numerous lumber mills operated. This area was still considered part of the Iron Ridge Wasteland, not a separate zone, but merely a geographical designation.
However, the terrain in the Mohe Hills was too rugged for trains to easily access, making logging difficult and costly.
The second option was to occasionally find lone trees or small clusters of trees scattered across the Iron Ridge Wasteland. Cutting them down would yield a hundred or two hundred units of wood.
While not much, it was enough.
After all, First and Second Level Trains didn't require much wood. For their limited needs, felling a few trees in the Iron Ridge Wasteland would usually suffice.
His demand was far greater.
The Clothing Customization Production Line would consume a significant amount of wood to produce two sets of clothes for over a thousand people. His plan was to outfit every slave and thug with two sets of clothing.
First-Tier Slaves, Tier 2 Slaves, and so on would have different colored uniforms.
This would clearly distinguish their ranks. He would also add the Stellaris train's emblem to the clothing for a more uniform and professional look.
"The train radio said they don't have that much Wood to supply."
"We'll head toward the Mohe Hills later. We'll dig up the underground iron ore along the way and keep going until we reach the hills."
After breakfast, Chen Mang finally let Li Shiji, who had been waiting at the door, enter. He leaned back in his chair, lit a cigarette, and frowned as he examined the blueprint Li Shiji handed him.
To be honest...
He didn't have poor eyesight, but looking at this blueprint made him feel like he had eye cancer.
The blueprint showed a massive cube outlined with dashed and solid lines. Inside the cube were several markings like "1," "2," and "3," along with numerous dashed lines.
In the lower right corner of the blueprint were corresponding annotations:
"1: Refrigerator" "2: Mirror" "3: Audio System" "4: Profanity"
A minute later, he put down the blueprint and looked at Li Shiji, who stood before him looking somewhat nervous. "Relax. I understand the markings for the Refrigerator and Mirror on this blueprint. But what's the deal with 'Profanity'?"
"Lord Mang, it's like this," Li Shiji said after taking a deep breath. "The robot we're trying to defeat has intelligence far beyond the average person. If it possesses such extraordinary intelligence, it must also have some human-like emotions."
"Human emotions are rich with negative feelings we can exploit," Li Shiji said. "For example... suspicion."
"When the robot faces a three-way fork in the maze, we can mark the left path as a dead end. Then, we actually make the left refrigerator a dead end—leave it empty. It'll be an obvious dead end the robot can immediately identify."
"After a few repetitions, the robot should start doubting itself whenever it sees those markings."
"And then there's mockery."
"We can write mocking slogans on the walls, like 'This maze I made with my feet is harder for you than a carp leaping over the dragon gate? Pathetic!' to unsettle the robot. When people are agitated, they often lose their rational judgment. If the robot possesses human emotions, it'll definitely be affected. Even if it has no human emotions, it's just a few extra lines of useless words on the wall—no harm, all benefit."
"..."
Chen Mang fell silent, lowering his head again to study the maze sketch in his hand. He suddenly wondered if this was all a bit too extreme.
Initially, he'd thought the S-Class Job Change Quest for the mechanical train was nearly impossible.
But when he remembered he still had his Tier 10 Refrigerator, he suddenly felt it might not be impossible after all.
After hearing Li Shiji's idea today, he suddenly wondered if the half-hour time limit was too short.
A moment later, he looked up at Li Shiji again. "In a few days, I'll build you a new carriage and 100 Refrigerators. You'll need to complete the maze from this blueprint inside that carriage."
"If you have any new ideas in the next few days, feel free to add them."
"No problem, Lord Mang."
Chen Mang watched Li Shiji's retreating back, his eyes slightly narrowed. Although he thought the maze blueprint was already perfect, it was still just a theoretical design on paper. Once the maze was built, he'd have a few slaves test it to see how long it took them to escape.
Then he shook his head and turned to the train panel, preparing to craft the accessories available after upgrading to a Tier 3 train.
At that moment—
Outside the train, a crowd of slaves had gathered.
Old Pig stood beneath a carriage, holding a sheet of paper with Lord Mang's handwriting on it. He looked up at the assembled slaves, his voice amplified by the Vehicle Audio System.
"The following ten rules must be obeyed by all members of the Stellaris. Violators will be punished."
"1: Rape, sexual assault, or molestation of any female or male, including goblins and any other creatures who join the train later—death."
2: Stealing iron ore, food, or other resources from others: Ten strokes of the cane and demotion by one rank.
3: Those involved in fights: The instigator will receive ten strokes of the cane and demotion by one rank.
4: Those who cause trouble or incite rebellion: Death.
5: Those who take another's life without authorization: Death.
6: Concealing iron ore, copper ore, or other resources: Ten strokes of the cane and demotion by one rank.
7: Concealing weapons, train tokens, or other props during field operations: Death.
8: Leaking any confidential information about the train to outsiders: Death.
9: Unauthorized escape: Death.
10: Strictly obey and execute every word spoken by Train Conductor Lord Mang. Defiance: Death.
After reading out the Ten Rules of the Stellaris train issued by Lord Mang, Old Pig collected the grass paper, his face devoid of emotion, and turned to all the slaves. "Have you memorized the rules? Then begin mining."
He then handed the grass paper to a woman beside him. "Make four copies and post one in each slave car."
"Understood."
With these ten rules—or rather, decrees—the Stellaris train finally became somewhat more organized. In this lawless and chaotic world of the apocalypse, these rules provided a sense of security rather than mere constraint.
"This is wonderful," Biaozi said, gazing at the scene with a satisfied smile. He had personally witnessed the Stellaris grow from a single carriage to its current size of eleven carriages and over a thousand slaves.
Moreover, the Stellaris was now a Tier 3 train.
"By the way," Old Pig said, stopping Biaozi as he prepared to patrol. "Lord Mang recently told me he's planning a major overhaul of the train's internal structure. He said he'll need two teams of thugs. You're on the First Team. We'll need a Second Team and a Third Team as well."
"Each team will consist of ten people, including the captain."
"We're a bit short-handed these days, with over a thousand slaves to manage. There's always something to do."
"Lord Mang wants you to select some candidates from among the slaves."
"Hmm..." Biaozi frowned, pondering for a long moment before hesitantly gesturing toward a muscular woman among the slaves in the distance. "Would a female thug be acceptable?"
"You mean that one?"
"She's not entirely out of the question. But let's find a few backup candidates. If Lord Mang says no, we'll have alternatives ready."
"Alright."
"Uncle Li, do you really think someone would rape a goblin?"
Among the crowd of slaves heading toward the Mining Area, a young man walked beside Uncle Li, his pickaxe slung over his shoulder. He glanced at the goblins nearby, also en route to the iron ore mine, and shrugged.
"It's rather ironic, though."
"I never thought I'd see a law against male rape for the first time in my life during the apocalypse."
"It feels a bit absurd, doesn't it?"
"..."
Uncle Li narrowed his eyes, remaining silent. He seemed to be formulating a new plan. The most crucial information in the ten rules this time was the reduction in treatment levels.
Currently, the train only offered three tiers of treatment: First-Class Slave, Second-Tier Slave, and Third-Tier Slave. Thugs received no distinction in treatment. Even Li Shiji, who had risen through the ranks based on his expertise, only received First-Class Slave treatment. Lord Mang wouldn't allow First-Class Slave treatment to be the ceiling, nor would he fail to differentiate between the treatment of thugs.
From the information revealed, Uncle Li had a hunch that Lord Mang was likely planning a major overhaul of the train, with the core focus being the treatment tiers. The goal was to clearly define everyone's treatment level within a specific tier.
This meant that if he seized the right opportunity, he could advance during this overhaul.
(End of the Chapter)
📖Read [MAT] ahead on Pa.treon@AnubisTL upto c190. [+4/+9.1k]
🎁All [2] Novels can be accessed for just $6/mo.
🔥Translated [600] Chapters and [1.05M+] Words.
🔔 Become a member before 8 August to enjoy 50% off. Just $3.