Chen Sixuan's Thoughts

Clang, clang.

Driving through the dark night with the road conditions unknown was obviously extremely unwise. The tremendous noise drew wave after wave of zombie howls from outside.

Lin Xian realized this could not continue, so he hurried to the Cockpit.

"We'll be passing the elevated light rail line on the Third Ring ahead. Maybe we can stop there for a while."

As if she had seen through Lin Xian's worries, Chen Sixuan immediately gave him a workable plan.

"Works for me!"

Stopping on the overpass would be much safer. Most of the zombies on the ground would not be able to follow them up.

But what worried Lin Xian most at the moment was still that White Giant Monster from earlier.

Screech—

After the train stopped on the elevated tracks, Lin Xian immediately switched off every light inside the carriage while constantly watching the movements outside.

"What was that thing just now?" Chen Sixuan asked, her face pale.

Lin Xian shook his head. "Who the hell knows? If something like that set its sights on us, we'd be lucky to get away with just a few wounds."

"Then what do we do? Wait until daylight before leaving the city?"

"That's the plan. There's a freight warehouse near Jiang City Station. We'll take a look tomorrow, then we should be able to leave the city."

Lin Xian actually had another objective: he wanted to see whether he could find an electric locomotive at Jiang City Station.

The industrial foundation of this era was basically electrified. But electric locomotives did not carry their own prime movers. They relied on power supplied by the overhead lines, using traction motors to drive forward. Once the railway power grid stopped operating, these mechanical beasts could only lie stranded on the tracks, practically worthless.

Of course, they were worthless to ordinary people. To Lin Xian, it was a different story.

Lin Xian had previously considered coupling an electric locomotive to the train as a backup generator car. When he used his ability to propel the train, the electric locomotive could generate and store power through kinetic energy. Even with only a thirty to forty percent recovery rate, as long as the train could keep running while he rested and supply the other electrical needs onboard, it would basically create a brief cycle of "unlimited energy."

And Jiang City Station itself was a major station. If he got lucky and found one there, it would save him some effort later.

"Have you eaten?"

Lin Xian looked at Chen Sixuan and found her face utterly haggard. Although she had finally eaten something today and recovered a little, she had struggled alone in that sunless home for more than two months. Her mind had long been on the Edge of Collapse.

That afternoon, she had watched Director Liang die miserably and then suffered a monster attack. Now that she had finally relaxed, she seemed completely dazed.

"I..."

Hearing Lin Xian ask her, Chen Sixuan said in a somewhat humble tone, "I sorted through the water and food earlier and made a rough calculation. If we eat once a day, it'll only last about a month."

She felt somewhat guilty saying that, because she had counted both herself and Lin Xian under the category of "one meal a day," even though Lin Xian had never said she was allowed to eat a meal a day like he did.

Lin Xian's eyes shifted slightly as he looked toward Carriage 1. Chen Sixuan had already made up all the beds and sofa, arranging the pillows and bedding neatly.

Other than the television, which she did not know how to install, and the steel bed frame, which had yet to be welded, Carriage 1 had gone from that Wanderers' doghouse into a cozy one-bedroom apartment. After months of being ravaged by fear of the apocalypse, both of them felt like they could lie down on a bed and finally get some proper sleep.

Lin Xian walked over, took out a can of fruit from the storage rack, and handed it to Chen Sixuan.

"Eat it. Then get some sleep."

"Ah?!"

Chen Sixuan cried out in surprise. Looking at the can in Lin Xian's hand, her eyes held both desire and dawning realization.

The sweet canned fruit instantly stirred her appetite, but the words "get some sleep" made her imagination run wild.

"Th... thank you."

She obediently took it, then sat on the sofa, opened the can, and took a sip.

It was incomparably sweet, as if every cell in her body were letting out a joyful cry.

At that moment, Chen Sixuan felt dizzy, her consciousness turning hazy. She wolfed down the canned fruit, quietly murmuring to herself.

So sweet. So delicious. I really want to sleep.

Hah... what does it matter if I'm a student? What does it matter if he's a teacher? In an environment like this, he's just a man, and I'm just a woman.

Besides, he's an Esper, and he saved my life. Even my life is his. What does anything else matter? He can do whatever he wants.

The thought echoed endlessly beside Chen Sixuan's ears like a demon's whisper. It made her spine tingle as she unconsciously squeezed her legs together, feeling a strange exhilaration after casting aside all her values.

Soon, she finished the entire can. She got to her feet, then remembered something halfway across the room. Turning back, she took her backpack, found a small item inside, clenched it in her hand, and silently sat at the edge of the bed.

Lin Xian was using his ability in Carriage 3 to repair the damaged hydraulic tail lift. When he returned to Carriage 1 and saw Chen Sixuan sitting at the bedside with her head lowered, he immediately frowned.

"What are you sitting there for? Go to sleep. We're taking turns keeping watch tonight. You can get up later."

Chen Sixuan raised her head in surprise. Her complicated gaze flickered as she hurriedly replied, "O-okay."

After saying that, she felt both embarrassed and annoyed. She quickly got up, went to the sofa, removed her shoes, lay down, and stuffed the small object back into her bag.

Lin Xian grabbed a bottle of water. Naturally, he had noticed Chen Sixuan's awkward state, but he was not so sex-starved that his brain stopped working. He did not know whether they had shaken off the White Giant Monster yet. At a life-or-death moment like this, only an idiot would be thinking about what was in their pants.

Lin Xian then went to Carriage 2 and saw that the mysterious girl was still asleep, which immediately struck him as strange.

By all rights, she had slept far too long. It had been almost twenty hours since last night, yet she was still asleep. Was she really sleeping, or pretending?

With that thought, Lin Xian frowned, leaned close to the girl, and reached out to pinch her soft cheek.

"Hey, if you keep pretending to sleep, I'll throw you out onto the road."

"Wake up!"

"I'm taking off your pants!"

"Wow, pink..."

Yet the girl continued sleeping peacefully, her expression serene and her long eyelashes trembling faintly. Lin Xian felt rather helpless.

If not for the mysterious, unknown ability she possessed, Lin Xian would never have considered saving her. It would be one thing if she were merely a burden, but who knew whether she would be a help or a threat to him after waking up?

The temperature plunged after night fell. With a helpless sigh, he carried the girl to Carriage 1. Chen Sixuan had already fallen deeply asleep from exhaustion, so he placed the girl on the sofa as well and covered both women with two brand-new thick blankets.

"Hmm, raising a whole carriage of beauties isn't bad either."

Looking at the two sleeping women—one stunningly beautiful and gentle in temperament, the other delicate and adorable, a budding little beauty—Lin Xian inexplicably felt a roguish sense of accomplishment.

Please keep reading the new book!