Climbing onto the dining car, indulging in washing his hands once more, Su Huan pulled out a bottle of mineral water, gulped down a large swig, and then took out two more bottles, tossing them to Liang Kuan and Yu Jing.
"Have some water, take a break first."
The two drank the water, slowly recovering their strength on the side.
Su Huan slumped on the sofa, dripping with sweat, "Liang Kuan, go turn on the air conditioning in the dining car, not the other compartments."
After a few minutes, cool air blew out from the air conditioning.
Feeling the comfort of his pores opening all over, Su Huan lazily gazed out the window.
Though the shatterproof mesh cut the view outside into little squares, his mood actually improved.
"If you want to ask something, just ask, while I'm in a good mood."
Yu Jing hesitated a moment before asking, "I want to know what exactly happened to the world."
Su Huan's eyelids lifted slightly, and she really did ask the crux of the matter.
She was indeed quite clever.
"As for the apocalypse, I don't know much either, but I'll just tell you a bit."
"Eight days ago, an unknown energy appeared; let's call it Pan-energy, referring to those unknown energies. This energy is like air, filling every corner, blocking most of the communication methods we know."
Su Huan looked around, picked up a small radio from the shelf behind him, and randomly tuned a few channels.
Only static noise.
Seeing Yu Jing's eager eyes, Su Huan directly threw the radio to her, letting her try it herself.
But no matter how much she fiddled with it, she couldn't receive any meaningful sound.
"I have a few more radios in my room; if you don't believe it, you can try it yourself later." Su Huan said lightly.
Yu Jing wasn't doubting Su Huan; she just didn't want to accept this result.
Sighing inwardly, she put down the radio.
"Where are we heading?"
"North, it's colder there, providing living space. But I sense this current heat wave is just the beginning. Our only hope of survival is this train beneath our feet. If the apocalypse continues, it's our sole refuge."
After his words, the two looked grim.
"So we have to prepare for long-term survival on the train. I need to not only collect materials and upgrade the armor, but also build a water purification system, an air circulation system, a train car farm, defense systems, attack systems, a complete medical unit, and supplies..."
Su Huan paused, "Of course, Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither will the train be armed in a day. I say this hoping you have a psychological expectation."
There was another reason Su Huan hadn't mentioned why the train had to keep heading north.
In his past life, he always felt a sense of being driven, as if by a large hand, pushing them to keep evolving, keep moving northward. If they stopped, they'd face even more terrifying disasters.
As for what lay in the far north, he had no idea.
But to live better, they had to prepare for the worst, like a hibernating bear needing to fatten itself up!
Make the train's armor thicker, its firepower more ferocious.
He was not aiming for a narrow escape in a crisis, but to bite back even fiercer!
Su Huan squinted slightly, raising the bottle of mineral water in his hand, "So, let's toast to our survival till now, and to living even better in the future."
The two raised their hands cooperatively.
After a moment's pause, seeing that neither intended to speak, Su Huan raised an eyebrow, "I thought you guys would ask about the Evolvers."
Liang Kuan seemed not to hear, but Yu Jing calmly said, "You'll let us know when you need to."
Su Huan chuckled; the most important task now was to arm the train, and matters related to the Evolver team could be postponed.
Gathering his thoughts, Su Huan's attention focused within his mind.
["Power Supplier" Level 1 Pan-energy Transformation, Level 1 Energy Compression, Level 1 Pan-energy Perception]
This wasn't some kind of system; it was information etched into his genes post-evolution, requiring no learning. Once the evolution was complete, Evolvers could instinctively wield and understand these abilities, like "swallowing" or "raising a hand."
Just like a young lion swiping its paw, it might not know the result it can cause, but it won't forget the action of "swiping."
If there was a bracelet produced by Deep Blue Data, one could even see some basic data.
For instance, the total energy in the body, recovery speed, etc., but Su Huan had used one for a couple of days in his past life and then sold it.
He didn't want his data to be secretly studied by a group of people. Although it was all stuff fluctuating at any moment, it was too dangerous in the apocalypse.
Moreover, losing accurate data didn't affect much.
Though an Evolver can't precisely know their body data, they can feel the general state, like how long a skill can last, how long Pan-energy takes to recover.
Whether they can withstand a certain skill, they have an estimate.
And this feeling comes faster and more directly than data.
...
"Do we need to prepare lunch?" A timid voice of a woman interrupted Su Huan's thoughts.
Looking up, it was Yu Jing's mother, quietly standing there, calm yet uneasy.
Her personality was entirely opposite to Yu Jing's.
Yu Jing and the others had already gone to rest.
"What's your name?"
"Yu Yue."
"Cook the perishable food in the fridge first."
Su Huan casually instructed, then stood up and walked to the car behind.
Outside Car No. 5 stood a somewhat disheveled figure.
The black high-waisted jeans showed many signs of wear, sporting a wide black sweatshirt from who knows where, struggling with a black backpack on her back, eyes full of ingratiation.
"Oh, isn't this our little beauty? Collected six portions of materials so quickly?"
For quality passengers, Su Huan was never stingy with his smile.
Little Beauty blushed slightly, but seeing the smile on Su Huan's face, hope rekindled in her eyes, she tentatively asked, "Brother Su, the materials I've collected might not be enough, can you see if..."
Su Huan's smile faded, his brow wrinkling, "How short?"
The girl took off her backpack, offering it up with both hands, her expression apprehensive as she awaited Su Huan's judgment.
Su Huan dumped all the contents of the backpack out.
Scattered, quite a lot.
"Two portions of bread, four potatoes, ten heads of garlic, I suppose that's one day's worth of food, oh and there are chips, though they don't fill you up, four packs count as a meal, plus five packs of instant noodles, a four-pack of sausages, altogether you only have two and a half portions of food..."
Su Huan counted, his tone displeased.
The girl hastily pointed to a few other items, "And that, didn't you say tools could substitute for a ticket?"
Su Huan picked up a screwdriver with a playful expression, "You want to use this to substitute for a ticket?"
The girl's smile froze, but she still nodded bravely.
Su Huan's smile remained, but coldness filled his eyes, "Are you saying you want to trade a flimsy screwdriver for a precious ticket that lets you sleep safely during the apocalypse? Are you stupid, or am I stupid?!"
Yu Yue, washing dishes nearby, felt a chill, bowing her head silently at her work.
The girl's face turned pale at the thought of being thrown off the train, to face those terrifying zombies alone in unfamiliar territory. She trembled, large tears rolling down.
With a sob, she begged, "But I really have no other way, Brother Su, as long as you let me on the train, I'll do whatever you say."