Translator: AnubisTL
"A refrigerator?"
"Seized from that train?"
"You couldn't even breach the train's defenses, getting utterly thrashed. How could you possibly seize anything from them? It must have been deliberately given to you."
The leader of the Good Cat Civilization frowned and strode forward, yanking open the refrigerator door.
Inside the refrigerator:
Empty. Completely empty. Nothing at all.
Indeed, there seemed to be no problem.
"No," the general said earnestly. "I've already inspected it thoroughly. There's nothing wrong with it. The only issue is its extraordinary durability. It must be the overpowered effect of the human civilization upgrading this refrigerator to Tier 200, or even Tier 500."
"I must say, the human civilization is truly wealthy. Upgrading a mere refrigerator to Tier 200? How much murphy stone must they have wasted?"
"And while we couldn't breach the train's defenses, we seized this refrigerator from a shuttlecraft deployed by the train."
"Moreover..."
"It's just a refrigerator. Even if it's upgraded to Tier 1000, what kind of overpowered effect could it have? It's not like it could self-destruct into a black hole, right?"
"True."
The leader of the Good Cat Civilization nodded slightly. An accessory's overpowered effect couldn't deviate from its inherent function. Just like the Arcanon Light Energy Main Cannon—no matter how much it was upgraded, it wouldn't suddenly gain the ability to manufacture Cola.
A refrigerator? What kind of overpowered effect could it possibly have?
They dismissed it without a second thought.
The leader waved his hand. "Everyone, prepare to depart."
His voice carried a hint of melancholy. Leaving home, he wondered if he would ever have the chance to return and reclaim it in his lifetime.
Meanwhile, inside the locomotive cabin, Chen Mang was staring at the Doppler radar screen with a peculiar expression. He had a good habit: whenever he went somewhere new, he always tossed out a refrigerator first.
Refrigerators weren't expensive to produce.
Throwing one out meant he could come and go from that zone as he pleased, without needing a wormhole.
One of his refrigerator's overpowered effects was that within its radar range, it possessed defensive capabilities equivalent to the train's armor. With a radar range of 1 million light-years, the refrigerators he deployed were practically invincible.
He had recently dispatched several shuttlecraft into space, each carrying a refrigerator. The primary purpose was to deploy these refrigerators.
However, one of the shuttlecraft had been shot down, and the refrigerator had been captured. According to radar readings, it appeared to have been taken directly to the enemy's main base. By this time, the enemy's main forces had already retreated to the rear, taking his refrigerator with them.
"Well, isn't this a stroke of luck?" Chen Mang sighed with a mix of relief and amusement. This had truly been effortless. The incident served as a reminder: never bring anything of unknown purpose back to your main base.
You never know if it's a ticking time bomb.
With that in mind, he decided not to linger.
Strike swiftly and decisively.
Gazing out the window at the gradually subsiding space battle, countless train fragments drifted through the cosmos, forming a spectacular dust cloud. The combat units that had been pursuing him were all destroyed; their clustered formation made them easy targets.
In the next moment—
The train vanished from its position, transforming into a brooch on Chen Mang's chest. Floating in space, Chen Mang cast one last glance around before descending into the refrigerator beneath him.
He pushed open the door and stepped inside.
When he emerged again, he found himself on a planet surrounded by armed soldiers in military uniforms, their menacing presence amplified by the hovering trains overhead. The nearest soldier froze momentarily upon seeing him.
"When did you get in here?"
Chen Mang chuckled softly. The Stellaris suddenly materialized across the sky, then retreated through the refrigerator behind him, reappearing in the locomotive cabin. The Arcanon Light Energy Main Cannon atop the train began to glow slowly.
A deafening roar erupted from the train's audio system, reverberating across the surrounding area.
The same message blared through the train radio, enveloping the entire planet.
"Surrender and join human civilization, and we will spare your lives."
"Human civilization welcomes all humans."
"We do not wish to cause meaningless bloodshed."
"Surrender and live."
The moment this voice echoed across the globe, the leader of the Good Cat Civilization stared up at the Stellaris train hovering in the sky, his face turning green. How had this train suddenly appeared here? But at that moment, everyone understood one thing:
Fight?
Even if all the people here combined their strength, they couldn't defeat the Stellaris train.
Flee?
With the Stellaris train guarding the area, any wormhole they tried to open would be destroyed the instant it formed.
At that moment, only two paths remained:
Total surrender.
Or... glorious death in battle.
There was no third option.
"Let's surrender," the general who had carried the refrigerator back whispered to the leader, approaching him immediately. "We can't win. Surrender and we'll live."
"Surrender?"
The leader of the Good Cat Civilization, his face grim, activated the train radio and sent a private message to "Human Civilization": "Can you guarantee we'll be spared if we surrender?"
"Of course."
Upon hearing this,
The leader of the Good Cat Civilization breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't trust the other party based solely on those words, but the fact that they had named their civilization "Human Civilization" suggested a desire to unite humanity.
They were more likely to accept humans.
When members of other civilizations joined the Human Civilization, the Cosmic Rules recognized them as genuine members, fully integrated into the civilization. This fostered greater mutual trust.
A flicker of mockery flashed in his eyes.
As long as I survive...
There will be plenty of opportunities later.
The leader of the Human Civilization might be powerful, but his political skills were clearly lacking. Once he joined the Human Civilization, he could slowly and methodically plot his rise. Perhaps one day he could even become its leader, claiming everything the Human Civilization now possessed. Such an outcome would be far better than his initial plan of fleeing into the depths of space.
"I have one more condition," the leader of the Good Cat Civilization said. "The Good Cat Civilization will formally surrender to the Human Civilization, but—"
"The Human Civilization must construct a permanent, bidirectional wormhole connecting the Niya Star System and the Good Cat Star System, establishing a complete link between the two galaxies."
"Naturally. Any other conditions?"
"None."
"Very well. Gather all your resources and hand them over."
The leader of the Good Cat Civilization nodded gravely. "Agreed."
Afterward, he waved his hand, signaling his subordinates to collect the planet's resources and prepare them for surrender.
They had been preparing to flee, naturally hoarding as many resources as possible. The planet was now piled high with supplies they had intended to take with them—a painful loss, as it represented the Good Cat Civilization's entire foundation.
But...
There was no other choice.
The Civilizational War was fundamentally about resources.
They couldn't possibly retain this wealth.
Still, it didn't matter. Surrender the resources now, and as long as they survived, they could gradually rebuild. As long as the mountains remain green, there's always wood to burn—a truth universally understood.
Soon—
Massive quantities of resources surged toward the Stellaris train like a tidal wave.
Tens of thousands of mining robots emerged from the Stellaris, their movements forming a spectacular spectacle as they began collecting the resources.
The process lasted a full six hours.
Only then were all the resources finally loaded onto the Stellaris, a monumental undertaking that underscored the sheer scale of the wealth.
"So much..." Chen Mang murmured, gazing at the rapidly increasing numbers on the train's resource panel. He couldn't help but feel frustrated at their shortsightedness. "With this much, they should have used it sooner! Upgraded the necessary accessories! Why did they let things reach this point?"
"Dying with money left unspent—what a tragedy."
"Train Conductor," Xiao Ai's voice echoed through the train. "They don't have enough murphy stone. These resources are useless to them; building more low-Tier trains would be pointless."
"They can only stockpile it for ammunition or wait until we acquire enough murphy stone to upgrade some top-Tier accessories."
"Indeed," Chen Mang nodded. They had plenty of iron and copper ore, but the amount of murphy stone surrendered was pitifully small. He doubted the Good Cat Civilization was simply hoarding it; murphy stone was useless without iron ore. It was more likely they genuinely lacked significant reserves.
With all resources now confiscated, Chen Mang lingered no longer.
The Stellaris slowly ascended into space, its Arcanon Light Energy Main Cannon on the train's roof began charging. After a few seconds, a searing beam of light pierced through the planet below.
A brief delay followed.
Countless crimson fissures erupted across the planet's surface like veins, and a silent yet deafening explosion reverberated through the cosmos, scattering debris in all directions.
One shot shattered the planet.
The main forces of the Good Cat Civilization on the planet were instantly annihilated in the blast. A few trains that managed to escape the flames were precisely targeted and destroyed by the Stellaris.
"Not bad," Chen Mang murmured, sitting in the locomotive cabin and watching the spectacular scene unfold before him.
He had no intention of letting these people live. As unstable elements, keeping them on his train would only invite trouble.
His prolonged pretense of cooperation had been solely due to the planet's abundant resources. He couldn't risk firing earlier, as any attack would have vaporized those resources.
Now that the resources were secured, these people had outlived their usefulness.
The ordinary citizens of the Good Cat Civilization on other planets could live—most might not even know that human settlements existed on their worlds. But these troublemakers had to die.
"Not bad at all," Chen Mang chuckled softly. "I promised not to kill them, but I never specified which universe they'd live in. Living in the Second Universe still counts as living, right?"
"This doesn't count as breaking my promise, right?"
"Train Conductor," Xiao Ai's ethereal voice echoed through the train, "only souls that remain intact have a chance of entering the Second Universe. Even with intact souls, entry is merely probabilistic. Given the scale of this explosion, their souls are certainly shattered, guaranteeing they won't reach the Second Universe."
"Completely dead, then?"
"Completely dead."
"Fine, then. I guess I broke my promise. Who cares? What's done is done."
Chen Mang curled his lip before glancing around. "Let's go. Time to head home."
Three hours later, the Stellaris, having decisively ended the war, reappeared in the Niya Star System. The conflict had concluded far more quickly than he'd anticipated. Had the Good Cat Civilization dispersed and waged a guerrilla war, even with his immense power, he would have been stretched thin. After all, he only had one train. Thoroughly eradicating their armed forces would likely have taken a month or two, if not longer.
But—
By sheer coincidence, the Good Cat Civilization had concentrated all their military forces, resource reserves, and even his refrigerator on a single planet.
What else was there to say?
"Pack it all up and take it with us."
"Take it all, take it all, take it all!"
"Excellent."
Chen Mang sat in the locomotive cabin, beaming as he inventoried their newly acquired resources. His lips curled into a manic grin—war, as always, proved to be the fastest way to plunder wealth.
The Stellaris train had originally possessed only 3 quadrillion units of iron ore.
It had started with 4 quadrillion units, but during their last encounter with the black hole, upgrading the SPY-7 Doppler Tail Jet to Tier 1000 had consumed 1 quadrillion units.
Now, after seizing 9 quadrillion units of iron ore from the Good Cat Civilization, the train's total iron ore reserves had surged to 12 quadrillion units—a new peak. Other resources had also increased dramatically. The train was no longer the penny-pinching vessel it once was; it was now flush with wealth.
"So much money..."
Chen Mang gazed at the Resource Panel with a mixture of awe and regret. What struck him most was that the Good Cat Civilization had been annihilated despite possessing such vast resources. These civilizations truly didn't know how to utilize their wealth; they hoarded it without putting it to use.
Holding onto it was a waste.
He had always felt that resources were scarce, never imagining a situation where they would be overflowing.
12 quadrillion units of iron ore.
It sounded like a lot.
But in reality, it was only enough to upgrade twelve Seven-Colored Grade Accessories from Tier 500 to Tier 1000, excluding Defensive Components.
A Fourth-Tier Civilization still wasn't wealthy enough.
Perhaps the Fifth-Tier Civilization beneath the Niya Star System would offer some surprises.
Right, I almost forgot something.
When I upgraded that Seven-Colored Speed Accessory in the black hole, I completely forgot to check its Tier 1000 Overpowered Effect.
["SPY-7 Doppler Tail Jet Tier 1000 Overpowered Effect: Speed surges dramatically."]
An extremely simple overpowered effect.
Just four words.
Identical to its Tier 500 overpowered effect, pure numerical enhancement without any frills. No wonder the train's maximum speed had become utterly overpowered, reaching a staggering—
360,750,400 km/h.
A long string of digits, difficult to grasp concretely.
But put it another way, and the magnitude becomes clear.
This speed is now one-third the speed of light. The Stellaris train can now traverse a light-year through space under its own power. Don't underestimate a single light-year.
Without wormholes, most civilizations struggle to even claim a territory of that size, let alone millions of light-years. They can't even venture beyond a single light-year.
Many civilizations boast territories spanning tens of millions of light-years, sounding impressive.
In reality, over 99.99% of these territories remain unexplored corners the civilization has never reached.
"I like it."
Chen Mang gazed at the overpowered effect, nodding in satisfaction. Though it lacked any bizarre rule-based effects, the pure numerical enhancement possessed its own kind of beauty. At this rate, when the accessory reached Tier 2000, its speed would likely rival the speed of light.
The universe prohibits objects from exceeding the speed of light.
This rule seemed less like an ironclad law and more like a barrier that could be breached, at least with Tier 0 Authority. If Tier 2000 wasn't enough, then Tier 5000 would do.
The other green and yellow speed-enhancing tail jet accessories, after reaching Tier 1000, also exhibited pure numerical improvements to speed. It was the combined effect of these multiple accessories that granted the train its terrifying velocity.
"Now then—"
"How should I spend these resources next?"
Chen Mang examined the detailed panels of each accessory on the train. By now, most components had already reached Tier 500 or Tier 1000. Further upgrades would primarily focus on enhancing Firepower and Defense, as well as some functional capabilities.
It's worth noting that...
He discovered that even the Train Armor of Fourth-Tier Civilizations was surprisingly weak, with tiers ranging from only Tier 150 to a maximum of Tier 200—barely any different from Third-Tier Civilizations.
The reason for this was simple: even if armor were upgraded to Tier 500, it would be futile. The cost of developing a Tier 700 Seven-Colored Main Cannon was far less than upgrading armor to Tier 500, and such a weapon would effectively counter the armor.
It was pointless.
Under these circumstances, all civilizations—even God-Tier Civilizations—were essentially high-attack, low-defense entities. With virtually no defenses, the advantage went to whoever struck first, amplifying the benefits of the first strike to an extreme degree.
He disliked this.
It felt too insecure.
He preferred high-defense, high-attack capabilities, allowing him to maneuver effortlessly whether striking first or second.
Just then—
Xiao Ai's voice echoed through the locomotive cabin: "Two pieces of good news."
"Oh?"
"Explain."
Chen Mang raised an eyebrow as he accepted a bowl of scallion oil noodles from Xiao Fang, who had entered the cabin. Settling before the control panel, he picked up a mouthful of noodles with his chopsticks and devoured them. The savory aroma of scallion oil mingled with the fragrance of the noodles, creating an utterly delicious combination.
Chen Mang brought the bowl to his lips, the golden scallion oil mingling with charred scallions and sesame seeds, its warmth spreading from his throat to his stomach.
A satisfying heat exploded in his belly.
He picked up the poached egg nestled beneath the noodles and popped it into his mouth. Before the yolk could burst, he quickly grabbed another mouthful of noodles, chewing them together with the egg in a blissful, hearty bite.
Finally, he savored a sip of the broth, feeling utterly content.
He loved Xiao Fang's scallion oil noodles—he could eat them every day without tiring of them. They were delicious no matter how he ate them.
Fragrant!
Comforting!
Xiao Ai, who had been about to speak, paused at the sight of Chen Mang's blissful expression. After a moment, he couldn't help but ask, "The Train AI has no desires, but watching you eat makes me want to experience it for the first time."
"Does eating really feel that good?"
"What does it feel like?"
"My database contains vast amounts of information. I can describe the precise flavors of countless foods, but I've never experienced the sensation of scallion oil exploding on my taste buds."
"That was amazing," Chen Mang said, quickly devouring a bowl of scallion oil noodles, even draining the broth. He leaned back in his chair, lit a cigarette, and grinned. "You should try it yourself sometime. Now, what's the good news you wanted to share?"
"Two pieces of good news. First,"
"I've absorbed a vast amount of data from the Good Cat Civilization's AI Database. One piece of information I discovered concerns the Fifth-Tier Civilization below the x-axis of the Niya Star System—the Mediocre Civilization."
"I think you'll find this information particularly interesting, Train Conductor."
"Second,"
"During the hours the train was trapped by the black hole, seven years passed in the outside world. Before that, Qi Kexiu and his team had relocated from the Armored Research Center in Carriage No. 2 to a research base on Aquablue Star."
"As a result,"
"Qi Kexiu and his team have been diligently researching for seven years."
"And they've developed a wealth of Accessory Blueprints."
"Nine accessories in total, including the Refrigerator, Moldy Bread Production Line, and Telescope."
"In addition to these blueprints derived from existing accessories, there's one entirely new accessory. No train in any civilization we've encountered possesses this."
"It's a white-grade accessory called the Trash Can. As the name suggests, it's for waste disposal. It's a small trash can suitable for placement in restrooms or bedrooms, and it's not a production line item—each one must be crafted individually, requiring 100 units of iron ore."
"Oh?"
A flicker of surprise crossed Chen Mang's eyes. This was an unexpected boon. Now he could re-evaluate the overpowered effects of many accessories on the train, all based on their original blueprints.
These were the Accessory Blueprints of human civilization.
Once the overpowered effects were confirmed, he could endlessly replicate vast quantities of these accessory blueprints.
However...
"There's something I'm curious about. Could you ask Qi Kexiu what the purpose of this Trash Can Accessory Blueprint is?"
"He told me he mainly wanted to develop an accessory that had never existed before, or one with extremely low usage rates. Although our current civilizations don't have this accessory, the universe is vast. It's possible that some civilization somewhere has already developed its blueprint."
"Qi Kexiu's idea is that since the train possesses the means to infinitely refine overpowered effects, the rarer the accessory, the higher the probability of refining it into a Cosmic Unique Overpowered Effect. Even a seemingly useless accessory's Cosmic Unique Overpowered Effect would be far from mediocre."
"That's an interesting approach," Chen Mang said, leaning back in his chair. He waved away the swirling smoke before him and nodded thoughtfully.
Like the refrigerator.
He knew the chances of refining the refrigerator into a Cosmic Unique Overpowered Effect again were astronomically low, almost impossible. After all, nearly every civilization possessed refrigerators, so the Cosmic Unique Overpowered Effect associated with it had likely already been claimed by some civilization long ago.
But for an accessory like the Trash Can, which few civilizations possessed, the probability of refining it into a Cosmic Unique Overpowered Effect was extremely high.
"That's the right approach," Chen Mang said.
"Good. Let Qi Kexiu continue his efforts. If possible, prioritize developing higher-grade accessories, like seven-colored ones. White-grade accessories won't have much impact on the overall situation."
"Understood. Seizing the Good Cat Civilization's research institute will greatly assist Qi Kexiu's team."
Chen Mang nodded and fell silent, his gaze shifting to the nine Accessory Blueprints displayed on the control panel.
The first blueprint that caught his eye was the Refrigerator Blueprint.
The refrigerator accessory had been a constant companion since his earliest days, providing invaluable support to the train. Its Tier 200 overpowered effect had granted him unparalleled freedom of movement across the cosmos. The only regret was the absence of a Tier 500 overpowered effect.
Now, he finally had the chance to re-roll for a Tier 500 overpowered effect.
Previously, he could re-roll an accessory up to Tier 200, but the overpowered effects beyond that tier remained unknown.
However—
When he upgraded Xiao Ai to Tier 500 and unlocked the Tier 500 overpowered effect, everything changed.
[Train Auxiliary AI Tier 500 Overpowered Effect]: Computing power significantly increased. The Tier of Accessory Blueprint Overpowered Effect deduction has been raised to Tier 500, and it now inherits the AI Database containing all AIs that have died within the radar's range over the past ten years.
Now he could deduce up to Tier 500.
However, he was greedy. He wanted to deduce up to Tier 1000.
This would allow him to more accurately assess an accessory's overall potential. But... such a blueprint would likely be for personal use only, impossible to sell afterward.
Consider this scenario:
He had an Accessory Blueprint. At Tier 200, he had re-screened it to obtain a Cosmic Unique Overpowered Effect. Blueprints copied from this Accessory Blueprint could fetch an astronomical price on the market.
Everyone would be clamoring for it.
But...
If he had an Accessory Blueprint that, at Tier 1000, yielded a Cosmic Unique Overpowered Effect, blueprints copied from it would essentially be priced but unsellable. No one would buy them.
A Cosmic Unique Overpowered Effect obtained at Tier 1000, whether in terms of its actual effects or its potential, would undoubtedly surpass one obtained at Tier 200.
This was beyond question.
The biggest problem was:
Reaching Tier 200 was achievable with some effort, but Tier 1000 was utterly unattainable in this lifetime.
It was like a woman who could only be looked at but not touched—no matter how low the price, no one would want her.
That was the logic.
Without hesitation, he spent 100 trillion units of iron ore to upgrade the Train Auxiliary AI directly to Tier 1000, obtaining a brand-new Overpowered Effect.
[Train Auxiliary AI Tier 1000 Overpowered Effect: Greatly increased computing power. The Tier of the Accessory Blueprint's Overpowered Effect has been raised to Tier 1000, and it can now deduce Heavenly Secrets.]
"Not bad luck at all."
The Tier 1000 Overpowered Effect had indeed allowed him to raise his deduction Tier to 1000. However, he was a bit puzzled by the "deduce Heavenly Secrets" part. It sounded like he was now in the same line of work as the Pavilion Master of the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion.
"I'll ask Xiao Ai about this later."
He wanted to see if he could sense any changes within himself.
Immediately afterward, without lingering, he began deducing the "Refrigerator" Accessory Blueprint. After setting up the deduction process, he prepared to get up and do something else. This would require tens of thousands of deductions, so there was no need to rush.
Xiao Ai would alert him when a promising Overpowered Effect was found.
However...
He had barely stood up when Xiao Ai's voice echoed through the locomotive cabin: "Train Conductor, the Refrigerator has rolled the Cosmic Unique Overpowered Effect."
"On the very first reroll."
"A single shot, a soul hit."
(End of the Chapter)
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