Armed Train: First Issue

"Rest assured, I won't sell you off. However, resources are limited; everyone on this Armed Train must work, and from now on, anyone boarding must have my permission."

Su Huan reminded them with a meaningful tone.

In his past life, Qi Xiaoba had adopted many orphans of the apocalypse.

He could accept Master Ba being a saint, but only within the limits he set to keep the team's morale stable.

He certainly didn't want his perfectly good Armed Train turning into a mobile orphanage.

"Alright, let's move on to what we need to do next." Su Huan clapped his hands, drawing everyone's attention.

"We will stay here until tomorrow morning, then head to the steel mill to acquire a batch of steel to reinforce the train."

Su Huan fixed his gaze on Yu Jing. "I need you to design a preliminary plan for the train's modification. The scope covers all carriages, and the goal is to withstand large-scale zombie hordes while leaving space for future weapon installations."

Yu Jing lowered her head in thought.

Su Huan frowned. "Is it not doable?"

Yu Yue, standing to the side, looked at her daughter with some nervousness.

"No, I walked around this morning and already have a preliminary plan. It should meet your objectives."

Yu Jing met Su Huan's gaze directly, her phoenix eyes shimmering with a bright light.

Su Huan felt a surge of joy, though he kept his expression indifferent. "Let's hear it."

Yu Jing cleared her throat. "The main steel plates on the locomotive are between 15-25mm thick, the front collision zone reaches 20-25mm, the sides are 15-20mm, and the roof is about 15mm. It seems thick, but this old-fashioned A3 carbon steel lacks impact resistance."

"Ordinary carbon-based lifeforms certainly can't stop a moving train, but since this is the apocalypse, we must consider the most extreme scenarios. Suppose an elephant appears on the tracks; the current locomotive would inevitably suffer damage upon impact. If it hit the side plates, it might even result in tearing."

"We welded 30-degree angled steel plates this morning to push aside track obstacles and low-level zombie swarms, but that is far from enough. I believe the front should be fitted with a ram."

"It would be able to violently smash through evolved beasts like that Blood Hound!"

Yu Jing clenched her fist, gesturing a ramming motion; the Blood Hound from this morning had left a deep impression on her.

"Next is the reinforcement of the carriages."

"The old-fashioned green carriages are actually only about 3-5mm thick, including the side walls, which are mostly 3mm. The rest is insulation and lining. This is the part that needs focused strengthening. I suggest welding 1.2cm steel plates."

"Then, use a honeycomb buffer layer inside to increase thickness. Although it will take up quite a bit of space, the train's safety is definitely more important than its carrying capacity."

"There are too many windows on the carriages. For storage carriages, I suggest sealing them off with steel plates. For windows that need light, we can use explosion-proof mesh to create light-transmitting grilles, but all windows must have an additional 10mm steel plate installed on the inside to ensure no light leaks from within the carriages."

Su Huan imagined Yu Jing's plan in his mind; many points coincided with his own thoughts.

The statement that safety was more important than carrying capacity particularly resonated with him.

"That's a very good consideration. How have you thought about the roof and the bridge connections between carriages? Briefly explain."

Yu Jing took a sip of cola and continued, "My approach for the carriage roofs is to prioritize offense over defense. The train body is already quite high; because of the air conditioning, even standard carriages are 4.8m tall, comparable to a small city wall."

"I plan to build a bridge on the second carriage—the sightseeing carriage—to connect to the roofs of the carriages behind it, creating a combat platform."

"That is the general idea."

Her words were crisp and sharp.

There was no shyness or hesitation; just like during the interview, she displayed her strengths and expertise to the fullest.

Most importantly, Yu Jing wasn't just speaking empty words; she produced a piece of scrap paper filled with dense calculations.

It listed the dimensions of the materials needed to arm all the carriages.

Three thousand standard 1.25m × 2.5m steel plates.

Although it was only a rough estimate, it was enough to be impressive.

Su Huan looked at the confident Yu Jing, his eyes brightening with undisguised appreciation.

"The overall design is acceptable. I have two points to add. First, besides the ram, I hope to add a weeding function. I don't know if you've noticed, but a type of red mutated plant has already started growing on the ground."

"I suspect this plant might soon be everywhere. If it grows on the tracks, it will significantly slow down the train's speed."

"Second, the roof must be thickened. You've already seen the Blood Hound today; a height of four or five meters is nothing to an evolved beast. The plan for the combat platform on the roof can be kept, but the carriage roofs themselves must be reinforced."

"That is the first phase of the Armed Train plan. Does anyone have anything to add?"

Su Huan asked.

Yu Jing had said a lot in one breath and was now lost in thought, offering no reply.

The young man hesitated for a moment, looked left and right, and seeing no one else speaking, he opened his mouth. "If it's to block zombies, why not add some spikes or something to the sides of the train?"

"Spikes have too small a surface area and break easily. They have a strong visual effect, but they aren't practical against things like zombies that don't feel pain. However, we could indeed weld some steel bars to prevent climbing, which could also act as protective bumpers."

Yu Jing, who had seemed distracted, immediately provided a professional response.

Su Huan encouraged him, "Xiaoba's suggestion is quite good. By the way, I'm curious, how large an area of metal can your ability manipulate?"

Hearing this question, everyone looked toward Qi Xiaoba.

They saw a soup spoon on the wall levitate into the air without any external force.

"My ability is called Metal Control. I can influence all metal through the energy in my body, including levitating it like this, and... flight."

Su Huan's lips curled upward.

As expected, it was a truly enviable talent.

In his past life, Su Huan had guessed that Qi Xiaoba's ability was "Metal Control"; otherwise, it would have been impossible for him to manipulate metal with such proficiency.

He had seen other "Manipulators" before, but their core traits were merely "Flame Affinity" or "Metal Affinity."

A high-level ability like Metal Control, while achievable in the later stages through genetic serums, had an extremely low success rate.

The soup spoon circled steadily through the carriage before returning to everyone's sight.

"In this mode, the heavier the metal, the more energy it consumes. If I want to change its shape..." The metal spoon gradually thinned out, the wooden handle automatically detached, and it was clamped by a metal sheet and placed on the table, "the energy consumed is affected by the metal's hardness; the tougher the metal, the more energy it costs to alter."

"Likewise, complex operations also consume a large amount of energy, but I have yet to test the limits of my ability."

Qi Xiaoba provided a simple summary, giving everyone a clear impression of his capabilities.