Armed Train in the Apocalypse

Chapter 462: Chapter 294: Thunder River in the Sandstorm (2)

”Professor Ma gained some inspiration from that amplification stone and proposed the creation of a new type of ’radar,’ which is even more comprehensive than the Pan-energy monitoring equipment confiscated by the Steel Council. It mainly monitors land, sea, and air terrains, using supercomputing to analyze geological conditions. He believes the train’s environmental observation capabilities are still too weak, especially since the Storm Zone severely limits the performance of drones.”

”Based on this, Glasses suggested building a Hive and designing various detection devices, but an expert in the field of drones is needed.”

”Director Xu thinks we’re about to enter the Spore Zone, so we should create devices that can restrict plant growth...”

”In short, there are many directions, but no one can convince anyone else.”

Su Huan raised an eyebrow, ”Can’t we do them all together?”

Yu Jing said helplessly, ”With the current manpower on the train, we can only pursue one direction, and even that might not succeed because we’re severely short-staffed. Evolution can bridge some technical gaps, but theoretical knowledge is just a complete unknown, and it can’t be invented out of thin air.”

After all is said and done, it’s still a matter of a personnel shortage.

Take advantage of the peace in the Storm Zone to recruit enough talent at once.

At this moment, Shu Wei, who was handling documents behind them, suddenly said, ”Conductor, Jiang Rong wants to see you.”

Su Huan was surprised, ”If she has something to say, she can just come. Did she submit a formal request?”

”A resignation request.”

”Oh?”

...

Carriage No. 3, Auxiliary Train.

When the train was refurbished in Anshun, the carriages were also reorganized, and Jiang Rong was moved from the main train to the officers’ carriage in the auxiliary train.

The infrastructure inside the carriage was more complete, and Jiang Rong hadn’t settled in much, but it no longer felt like a prison.

The woman came down from the second floor, wearing slightly old jeans with specks of white paint and a washed-out blue-and-white striped shirt, holding two sets of freshly aired Armed Corps uniforms.

After folding them and placing them neatly on the bedding, Jiang Rong packed her personal items in an old backpack. Once packed, the backpack was only half full.

She then placed the backpack on the nearby metal cabinet, picking up her tools to start cleaning the room as usual.

When every corner was spotless, she checked her firearms, oiled them, and loaded them. With a crisp click, the gunstock was already shouldered, aiming at the cabinet’s handle. Viewing her reflection in the metal, Jiang Rong found herself very unfamiliar.

Although she had changed back into familiar clothing, her skin was taut, and her brows bore a hint of a fierce aura, completely unlike the worried woman in her forties from before.

”Captain Jiang Rong, please come to the dining car when you hear this...”

Upon hearing the voice from the carriage’s broadcast, Jiang Rong promptly ejected the bullets and placed her firearm into the weapon cabinet within her room. She suddenly noticed two copper sheets shaped from shell casings at the cabinet’s bottom.

After some hesitation, she pocketed the two copper sheets, picked up her backpack, and headed toward the dining car.

Since most soldiers were training in the armed hall at the time, there were few people inside the train, and nobody noticed her.

”You’re here.”

An enthusiastic greeting came from behind the counter.

Yu Yue’s voice had a tone shift, making it sound warm and gentle.

Jiang Rong responded with a smile, the faint tension in her heart dissolving under Yu Yue’s warmth, and she walked confidently to the couch at the end of the carriage.

The conductor was sitting on the couch, legs crossed, reading a tablet.

”Conductor.”

”Hmm, sit down.”

Su Huan’s voice was very calm.

But with evolution and slaughter, an inexorable ominous aura clung to him. Even silently sitting in the corner, other creatures would instinctively pay attention to him. This feeling was hard to describe.

The color of that area seemed to have deepened.

He looked up to see the woman quietly sitting across from him. Taken aback by her familiar attire, he said with a faint smile, ”You’ve changed back into your old clothes. I guess I can’t keep you.”

”Clink.”

Two porcelain cups were placed on the table by Yu Yue.

The voice of the petite chef was gentle, ”Sister Rong, have some tea.”

”Thank you.”

Jiang Rong cradled the teacup, apologetically saying, ”I’m sorry for withholding some information. My home is in Changxing County, over a hundred kilometers from Zhijin, where my husband and child live...”

”Let’s skip the story, just make your decision.”

Interrupted by Yu Yue, Su Huan straightforwardly put away his teasing expression.

Although Jiang Rong didn’t have much presence on the train, she never made a mistake on any mission she undertook. With a steadfast mindset, she had a character akin to Liang Kuan’s.

Su Huan admired her very much.

But he didn’t intend to retain her; people come and go on the train, each with their own paths and things to do.

As long as they didn’t block his path, he didn’t care.

”Well, I’ve left all the weapons issued by the train in my room, and there’s not really any work to hand over. I’ve already spoken with Captain He in advance.”

”Tsk, so I’m the last to know?”

Su Huan couldn’t help but remark.

”You can actually take those things with you; the conductor wouldn’t miss those trinkets. By the way, how much more do you need to break through Tier One?”

Jiang Rong sighed, ”My skills have all reached Level 3, but unfortunately I missed the Flood Zone and the Storm Zone hasn’t had thunderstorm weather, so the special condition can’t be met.”

He pondered, ”It doesn’t necessarily have to be thunderstorm weather; there are many opportunities. It depends on your luck.”

Jiang Rong’s target for Tier One profession was the ”Electromagnetic Mage” from his previous life, and Su Huan had a lot of say about this profession.

”Hmm, thank you, conductor.”

”Go home.”

He casually felt around in his pocket and tossed her a Tier Two Pan-energy Crystal.

Su Huan paid her no more mind, lowering his gaze back to his tablet.

Jiang Rong looked at the Pan-energy Crystal, her eyes flickering. She stood up and bowed deeply to Su Huan.

Until the sound of the door closing, Su Huan never looked up again.

Yu Yue, gazing at the slender figure gradually moving away through the window, had worry in her eyes, along with a hint of envy and blessing.

”Su Huan, will familiar faces become less numerous in the future?”

”Kill more unfamiliar ones, and those remaining will all be familiar.”

Yu Yue let out a soft snort and turned to continue experimenting with new pastries.

With his fingertips sliding over her tablet, Su Huan asked, ”Where has her points been spent?”

Shu Wei replied, ”She mostly used her previous points for basic necessities and supplemental firearms and ammunition. Because she had to care for her teammates, her expenses often exceeded her income. When she had more points, aside from survival essentials, she used them to support the younger members of the corps.”

The pitch-black eyes reflected the sparse exchange list.

Su Huan responded indifferently with a soft acknowledgment.

A hundred meters away, Jiang Rong, struggling against the wind and sand along the wall’s edge, suddenly looked up in confusion.

’Must be a hallucination, it should be the wind.’

She lowered her head and took two more steps.

”Rumble—”

But this was clearly thunder.

Where did the rolling thunder come from in the midst of raging sand?

Jiang Rong stopped in her tracks.

In the sand-stormy sky, a suddenly appeared, ghostly blue bolt of lightning.

The thick lightning spread like a river across the sky, branching...

Passing right overhead.

For a moment, the wind and sand dimmed, leaving only the galaxy-like lightning above.

Sparking electric lights stimulated her inner energy, and Jiang Rong instinctively converted her energy into electricity, channeling the sky’s Thunder River.

The Thunder River in the desert lasted for a full three hours.

When Jiang Rong opened her eyes again, she had thoroughly become a Tier One Evolver, ”Electromagnetic Mage.”

A sand bike mysteriously appeared beside her, with a large camouflage military pack hanging on it.

The spectacular view of the Thunder River in the sand began to slowly dissipate.

Jiang Rong knelt on the ground, reverently kowtowed towards the direction of the train, took a deep breath, mounted the bike, and headed towards home.

Sand whirled all around her.

In harmony with the piercing whistle of the train.

With the motorcycle, Jiang Rong rode over a hundred kilometers on the first day, then found an old house to spend the night.

The house was inhabited by two Corpse Pupas, and two ordinary zombies, a total of four.

If it were the early days of the apocalypse, she would have carefully avoided them with her strength.

But as a captain in the Armed Corps, in just three minutes, Jiang Rong had cleared a safe haven for herself.