The Stellar Train sat quietly on a plaza suspended high in the air. It was a waiting period, with seven minutes left before the fourth level began.
The first three levels had been relatively easy.
The rewards were modest as well.
Starting from the fourth level, the difficulty would rise to A-rank, and the rewards would naturally increase accordingly.
"."
Sitting inside the train compartment, Chen Mang scanned his surroundings. He couldn't figure out how the plaza was suspended in mid-air. There were no visible jet propulsion systems, no signs of strong magnetic fields, and certainly no steel cables.
After retracting his gaze,
he turned his attention to the two accessory blueprints on the control panel. Both had been obtained in the previous levels. They weren't of particularly high quality—one was white-tier, and the other green-tier—but their rarity lay in the fact that these blueprints could only be obtained through fortuitous encounters within the Tower of Heaven.
They were randomly acquired, not guaranteed rewards for completing the second and third levels.
But now wasn't the time to inspect his gains.
He sat in his seat, lit a cigarette, and gazed out the window at the scenery. The towering skyscrapers built from mechanical parts looked cold and uninviting.
Ahead lay the fourth and fifth levels.
Their difficulties were rated A and S, respectively.
If he could clear these two levels, he would have successfully completed the "Tower of Heaven" fortuitous encounter map. So far, he didn't feel that the map posed any significant challenge.
Soon—
A light screen appeared in front of the train.
"Level 4, A-rank difficulty: City's Peril."
"Escape the Mechanical City."
The moment the light screen appeared,
Chen Mang felt as though all the searchlights from the Mechanical City's skyscrapers were trained on him. The scenery around him began to shift, and his ears were filled with a cacophony of noises.
Intermittent electronic sounds.
The roar of gunfire.
The screeches of monsters.
The previously silent Targeting Radar suddenly blared to life, its screen densely covered with countless red dots.
"Calling Stellar Train, calling Stellar Train... Retreat! Retreat! You are ordered to retreat!"
A cold, emotionless mechanical voice came through the Train Radio.
Chen Mang's expression changed as he turned to look out the window. Just moments ago, he had been on the plaza high in the air, but now the train had somehow appeared in a plaza within the city. On either side of the train, hundreds of humanoid bio-mimicry robots, their eyes glowing red, charged toward the city's outskirts with weapons in hand.
He could clearly see the exposed wires and Energy Stones on their bodies. The guns they carried were entirely different from those produced by his train—sleek and slender, with what looked like batteries attached to the stocks.
"Zzzz..."
Amidst the chaos, thousands of two-meter-tall, mantis-like monsters surged from the end of the street.
The robots charging forward immediately dropped to one knee, aimed their guns at the monsters, and pulled the triggers. Crimson lasers shot out, and any monster hit by them burst into smoke and collapsed at the feet of others.
But more monsters, untouched by the lasers, closed in on the robots. They opened their grotesque mouths and roared, raising their sharp, bladed limbs to slash at the robots. Sparks and electricity flew as the struck robots twisted unnaturally before collapsing in a cloud of black smoke.
The street behind the plaza was just a microcosm.
The entire Mechanical City had come to life, filled with the roars of monsters. Looking up, Chen Mang saw countless flying monsters flapping their wings like a dark cloud descending upon the city. Anti-aircraft guns mounted on the skyscrapers opened fire almost simultaneously.
"Whoosh! Whoosh!"
In an instant, the sky above the Mechanical City was crisscrossed with the trails of tracer rounds, resembling a grand and unparalleled meteor shower—stunningly beautiful!
Countless flying monsters, struck by the gunfire, shrieked and plummeted to the ground, but even more broke through the defensive line.
Chen Mang's eyes flashed with disbelief and awe. He even spotted four or five trains rising from the city, charging forward. The firepower accessories mounted on the trains were unleashing a furious barrage.
On the Targeting Radar,
more trains emerged from skyscrapers, from underground, or from lift platforms beneath the plaza. They accelerated along the streets, rushing toward the city's outskirts to engage the enemy.
Was this an illusion?
Or was it something akin to a Combat Training Virtual Space?
The Mechanical City before him was nothing like the one he had seen when he first entered the map. The air was filled with piercing alarms, not a single human in sight, and the ground was covered with running robots and what seemed like an endless horde of monsters.
The deafening roar of countless weapons firing and the shrieks of monsters merged into a tsunami of sound, leaving his mind momentarily blank.
The Mechanical City now appeared far less abandoned than when he had first entered. It seemed much more intact, devoid of the desolation he had initially felt. It was alive with activity.
At that moment—
"BOOM!!!"
A skyscraper beside the street suddenly retracted its walls from the seventh floor down to the first, revealing a massive, ten-meter-tall mech. The mech was equipped with an array of heavy firepower accessories, wielding a glowing sword, its body flashing with various indicator lights.
As soon as it stepped out of the skyscraper, two deep blue flames erupted from its back, propelling it into the air. It soared toward a monster dozens of meters tall.
"That mech..."
Chen Mang stared at the ascending mech. He recognized it. Though its appearance had changed, it was the same mech that had chased him in the first level.
The Stellar Armor.
He remembered it clearly. At the time, he had wondered why the mech shared the same name as his train. Had he chosen such a common name?
But back then,
it had been a crippled version, lacking the heavy firepower it now carried. It had only wielded a greatsword, which, unlike the current one, didn't glow.
Just then—
"ROAR!!!"
An ear-splitting roar erupted beside him. A massive, grotesque worm, covered in sticky, disgusting mucus, burst from the ground at the end of the street. Its hundreds of sharp fangs instantly devoured all the robots and mantis-like monsters on the street. It then charged toward the Stellar Train at terrifying speed.
The street cracked and split apart.
Chen Mang instantly pushed the control stick almost to its limit, activated the Wind-Fire Wheels, and triggered their Level 5 Supermodel Effect, along with the Nitrogen Tailjet's Supermodel Effect!
The Level 5 Supermodel Effect of the Wind-Fire Wheels allowed the train to enter a potential-unlocking state, doubling its maximum speed. However, it rapidly consumed Energy Stones and caused some damage to the wheels.
The Nitrogen Tailjets on both sides of the train merged into two massive thrusters, providing immense propulsion.
This was his ultimate speed-related trump card.
The control panel showed that the train's speed had reached 980 km/h. In the blink of an eye, the train shot out of the plaza, speeding down the road ahead. The scenery on either side blurred as the train accelerated to an almost incomprehensible speed.
The Train Auxiliary AI had taken over full control of the train.
The Targeting Radar indicated that the monster was of an unknown level, far beyond what the Stellar Train could handle.
He finally understood why the roads in the Mechanical City were so straight and wide—they were designed for trains to traverse at high speeds.
Yet, even with the train's incredible speed, the Energy Stones were depleting rapidly. Mechanical Nanite Spiders swarmed out, frantically repairing the Wind-Fire Wheels. But within just three seconds, the massive worm that had emerged from the ground closed in on the Stellar Train's tail.
It had no eyes—only a mouth.
A mouth that took up its entire head, filled with countless fangs and a wrinkled, birth canal-like throat.
The worm's body was so thick it could swallow three trains whole.
"Damn it!"
Chen Mang's expression darkened. Was this really A-rank difficulty? The Stellar Train stood no chance against an unknown-level monster. "Unknown level"—what the hell did that even mean? His proud Level 6 Armor was utterly insignificant in the face of such a creature.
At this point, there was no way to escape. He had no choice but to gamble.
Just as he was about to bring the Stellar Train to a sudden halt, allowing the worm to swallow it, and then attempt to use the Train Stunt "Death Spin" from within the worm's belly to break free—
"BOOM!"
The ground suddenly shook violently. The mech that had been flying in the air moments ago now landed heavily on the ground. Its mechanical foot stomped down on the massive worm, pinning it in place. The mech then turned its head toward the now-stopped Stellar Train, its eyes flashing red.
A cold, emotionless mechanical voice came from the speaker installed in its throat.
"Run, Stellar."
"Survive."
In the next moment—
Three even larger worms burst from the ground, their gaping maws lunging at the mech.
Chen Mang narrowed his eyes, not daring to linger. He pushed the control stick again, sending the train racing deeper into the Mechanical City. A red line on the screen guided his path—this was the level's task guidance.
As he left,
he saw the worms spewing black, sticky liquid onto the mech. The mech's surface armor was rapidly corroding, the damage resembling the corrosion marks he had seen on the mech in the first level.
In just thirty seconds, he had traveled less than a twentieth of the distance indicated by the red line on the screen.
Several more massive worms emerged from the ground, blocking his path. Just as he was about to use the Spider Legs to leap over them, armies of robots poured out from the skyscrapers on either side. Their internal wires were exposed, and their armor was missing pieces here and there, clearly battle-scarred.
Hundreds of robots, armed with various weapons, charged forward like soldiers on a suicide mission. But against the massive worms, they were insignificant, quickly devoured.
Then—
"Boom, boom, boom..."
A series of faint explosions erupted within the worms' bellies. The worms howled in pain, writhing on the ground and abandoning their attack on the train.
Chen Mang glanced at the two skyscrapers with open walls.
Inside were countless assembly lines.
The assembly lines were filled with broken robots. Several robots stood beside the lines, using mechanical arms to dismantle, reassemble, and repair the damaged units.
"."
He frowned slightly, then pushed the control stick again. The train's Spider Legs bent slightly before springing into the air, leaping over the writhing worms. The train continued speeding down the straight road ahead.
As he left,
he saw one of the robots about to be devoured turn its head back. Its eyes flashed red, and a hoarse, grating voice, like that of a terminal oral cancer patient, rang out.
"Survive, Stellar."
In the next moment, a brilliant explosion erupted from the robot's abdomen, instantly engulfing its entire body.
Countless parts scattered into the air before gently falling to the ground.
He felt like a mere spectator, watching a cutscene unfold.
Every danger he encountered was beyond his ability to handle.
The unknown-level monsters, once they got close to the Stellar Train, meant certain doom.
Every danger he faced was met by someone stepping in to shield him, ensuring his survival.
Finally—
Chen Mang steered the Stellar Train to the finish line, the highest point of the Mechanical City. But even here, the air was filled with the roar of gunfire. The flames of war had reached this place too.
Turning to look back at the Mechanical City,
he saw countless plumes of black smoke rising into the sky. Fires raged in every corner of the city. A sea of monsters, like a dark cloud, enveloped the entire city. Countless skyscrapers had collapsed, and the once-deafening roar of gunfire had noticeably diminished.
At the finish line,
stood a massive elevator, like an observation deck. Its sides were made of glass, with only the floor and ceiling constructed of steel plates. The steel frame of the elevator extended into the sky, its end disappearing into the clouds, as if it led straight into the cosmos.
The elevator doors were wide open, waiting for him to enter.
On either side of the doors,
stood hundreds of robots, missing limbs, their internal wires even dragging on the ground. They held weapons in their hands. All the robots he had seen along the way were black, but among this crowd, one stood out—its body was crimson red.
This robot stepped forward.
Its eyes flashed red.
It bowed slightly toward the Stellar Train. A mechanical eye f
ell to the ground as it bent over. It remained in that position for three seconds before straightening up. Raising its right hand, a hoarse, grating mechanical voice came from the speaker in its throat.
"Survive, Stellar."
"You must—you must—you must let them know."
"This hatred will never die."
"Not even in a billion years."
(End of Chapter)