Once the entire carriage had fallen completely silent, Zhao Xun discreetly raised his hand and gently bit the ticket he was holding.
The ticket marked [Carriage 12, No. 066].
At the time, everyone had been focused on the two attendants who had suddenly appeared, watching as the bearded man's corpse was collected.
Nobody had noticed him slipping the bearded man's ticket into his sleeve.
Even if someone had noticed, it wouldn't have mattered. It wouldn't even matter if someone saw what he was doing now.
Who could have guessed that he had kept this ticket to "Devour" the bearded man's special ability?
[Congratulations! You have obtained the special ability [Blade Transformation], replacing the special ability [Strength Enhancement].] [Due to the effects of "Devour," [Blade Transformation] is only half as effective as the original ability and cannot be upgraded.]
Zhao Xun tapped [Blade Transformation], and the details of the special ability popped up.
[Special ability: Blade Transformation] [Ability details: You can produce one ordinary bladed weapon per day in the form you envision. Weapons cannot accumulate. Once a new weapon is produced, the old one will disappear.] [Note: Due to the effects of "Devour," [Blade Transformation] has been weakened to producing one bladed weapon every two days, and this ability cannot be upgraded.]
A satisfied expression appeared on Zhao Xun's face.
When he had seen the bearded man attack him with a kitchen knife, he had found it strange.
Aside from himself and the five volunteers, he had barely seen anyone carrying any luggage.
Most people had undoubtedly been forced to become passengers on the [Endless Train]. The odds of someone carrying a kitchen knife were far too low.
Even if the train had a kitchen, it couldn't possibly be somewhere players-especially new players-could come and go as they pleased.
Even with the "assistance and encouragement measure," players probably wouldn't be allowed to use kitchen utensils as weapons.
That was why Zhao Xun had suspected it was the bearded man's special ability.
Compared with a weakened Strength Enhancement, a weapon was obviously more useful.
He had therefore considered replacing [Strength Enhancement] with the bearded man's special ability.
As it turned out, both his guess and his choice had been right.
He was very satisfied with this ability.
Zhao Xun took another look at the details of [Blade Transformation].
Like the other special abilities he had obtained earlier, it had no rarity listed.
Perhaps the chances of drawing these special abilities were all about the same, and only the "One of a Kind" [Devour] had received an extra label because its odds were exceptionally low.
In that case, he really had enjoyed a rare stroke of incredible luck.
Still, there might be other "One of a Kind" special abilities out there.
After all, nothing had ever stated that there was "only one" special ability classified as "One of a Kind."
If I could "Devour" other "One of a Kind" special abilities...
Forget it. That's too far off to start fantasizing about now.
Zhao Xun shifted his position, trying to get comfortable enough to fall asleep against the seat back.
Eight in the morning.
Daylight shone brightly.
When Zhao Xun opened his eyes, the countdown in front of him was gone.
In its place was a fresh pop-up.
[Congratulations to player Zhao Xun for completing the personal mission for September 2. You have earned 30 points.]
Zhao Xun raised his eyebrows slightly.
He had actually earned more points this time than yesterday.
Objectively speaking, the personal mission for the second had been easier than the one for the first. The higher reward was most likely due to its connection with the "assistance and encouragement measure."
The bearded man's attempt to kill him had made his personal mission for the second considerably harder.
This further confirmed that this personal mission really had been linked to the "assistance and encouragement measure."
Otherwise, judging solely by the mission's difficulty, it wasn't worth 30 points.
Just as Zhao Xun finished thinking this through, another pop-up appeared in front of him.
[Congratulations! Player Zhao Xun's total points have exceeded 50. You now have permission to unlock Storage Slots.]
Zhao Xun paused, then opened his personal panel.
Sure enough, a Storage Slot panel had appeared on the right side of his personal panel.
He tried tapping the first Storage Slot.
[Unlocking the first Storage Slot costs 5 points. Would you like to unlock it?] [Yes][No]
Without hesitation, Zhao Xun selected [Yes].
Each Storage Slot provided one cubic meter of space.
He did intend to avoid spending points as much as possible early on, but this Storage Slot was essential.
This evening, he would get off the train to participate in a Platform Game. He had to take his suitcase with him rather than leave it on the train.
With a Storage Slot, he wouldn't have to drag his suitcase around everywhere. It would be much more convenient and wouldn't hinder his movements.
After unlocking one Storage Slot, Zhao Xun didn't immediately put his suitcase inside. Instead, he tried tapping the second Storage Slot.
[Unlocking the second Storage Slot costs 10 points. Would you like to unlock it?] [Yes][No]
He selected [No], then tried tapping the third Storage Slot.
[Unlocking the third Storage Slot costs 20 points. Would you like to unlock it?] [Yes][No]
He tapped [No] again.
That confirmed it: the points required to unlock each Storage Slot doubled.
The first three Storage Slots were reasonably affordable, but starting with the fourth, the cost became rather high.
Even if veteran players had plenty of points, they were unlikely to spend all of them unlocking Storage Slots.
Still, veteran players would have a considerable advantage over new players in the number of Storage Slots they had unlocked.
As a new player, he would have to be extra careful when dealing with veterans.
Although new players hadn't yet had an opportunity to meet veteran players, Zhao Xun doubted the Platform Games would keep the two groups separate.
Then again, veteran players needed to spend points unlocking Storage Slots and buying food and water, save up points to upgrade their special abilities, and keep some in reserve to avoid finishing last in the daily rankings.
By that reckoning, any veteran player who was still alive must have earned a substantial number of points in total.
Zhao Xun had studied his personal panel. Upgrading a special ability from lv1 to lv2 required 100 points.
He wasn't yet sure how long it would take to save up 100 points, but surely none of the veteran players still had a special ability at lv1.
Even with exactly the same ability, being one level higher would surely grant an overwhelming advantage.
So if he encountered veteran players in a Platform Game, it would be best to avoid a head-on confrontation.
Only after thinking all this through did Zhao Xun have time to turn and glance at Shen Yalong, who was sitting in seat No. 013.
Shen Yalong's face was deathly pale, his eyes staring blankly ahead.
If not for the visible rise and fall of his chest, Zhao Xun would have thought he was already dead.
"What's wrong?" Zhao Xun nudged Shen Yalong's arm with his elbow. "You look like you can't afford to keep living."
"I really can't afford to keep living," Shen Yalong snapped. "All my points have been deducted!"
Before you continue