"Clang, clang, clang!"
The night was as black as ink, thick enough to swallow the entire world. On the vast, boundless wasteland, a train like a giant steel beast was roaring forward.
The collision sound of the train wheels with the ground was like a symphony played by nameless heroes in the night.
With each impact, the train car trembled continuously.
...
"Phew..."
Inside the train car.
Chen Mang was curled up in the corner on a straw mat, trying to synchronize his body's rhythm with the constant jolting of the train car, which could effectively reduce the feeling of nausea, much like being on a ferry.
The whole car was extremely dark.
There were no windows, and two dim bulbs were mounted on the ceiling.
A thick stench filled the air, a mix of sweat, foot odor, excrement, urine, and vomit, potent enough to rival a summer latrine, even surpassing it.
He had claimed a relatively clean spot in the corner as best as he could, yet even so, his face was still faintly pale.
Three days had passed.
During these nearly three days, he had only consumed two cups of muddy water mixed with sand and two slices of moldy bread, nothing else.
The cabin, three meters wide and ten meters long, was crammed with over a hundred people, all of whom were ravenous with hunger. If he hadn't been fiercely guarding the straw beneath him, it would have been snatched and eaten by these ravenous wolves.
These people were nearly insane.
This was his third day in this world.
A world that had become a Doomsday wasteland, lost to basic order.
Just at that moment—
A burly man, reeking and in rags, moved next to him unnoticed, greedily eyeing the straw under Chen Mang and hoarsely said, "Brother, move over, will you? You can't use up all that straw mat alone."
Seeing that Chen Mang did not respond, he licked his lips and looked toward the crowd, "What do you guys say..."
But the next moment, the voice abruptly halted.
Sitting in the corner, Chen Mang suddenly sprang up, pressing the burly man down. Before the man could react, Chen Mang grabbed the sharpened stick in his hand and drove it straight into the man's eye socket.
Once, twice, three times.
After the fourth thrust.
Chen Mang stopped. His strength was limited, and he had to conserve it. The man was thrashing around violently, like a chicken with its throat cut. Chen Mang said nothing, just gripped the man's throat tightly until his body finally went limp. Only then did he lift his head, his eyes filled with ferocity as he scanned each person around him.
Until everyone instinctively avoided his gaze.
He kicked the man's corpse aside, sat back on his straw mat, and tried to calm his breathing so as not to appear too weak.
The others, witnessing the scene under the dim light, remained silent. The greed that briefly flickered in their eyes quickly dimmed, and they moved away from Chen Mang unconsciously.
For a moment.
In the originally crowded car, there was now a relatively spacious area around Chen Mang.
"...Phew."
Leaning against the iron wall of the train car, Chen Mang hid the sharpened stick under the straw mat. Had he hesitated to kill, he'd likely be the one dead. These people were no longer human, but a pack of ravenous demons.
Once someone leads them on.
The evil within them would be infinitely magnified, and no matter how well he fought, he couldn't take on so many people.
This was his first time killing.
It was both harder and simpler than he thought.
To be honest.
He felt a bit flustered, his hands and feet trembled slightly, but he couldn't show any discomfort now, or they'd pounce like hungry wolves.
It wasn't just about a straw mat, but including his noticeably cleaner body.
With the burly man's death.
The train car fell silent once more. No one spoke, no one had the energy to talk; better to save some strength, though...
The next moment—
The door at the connection between carriages was pushed open.
Bright lights streamed in from outside, and three men with guns on their waists and wielding batons walked in expressionless, their steel boots trampling on everyone in the car, while no one dared to utter a complaint or any cries of pain.
They walked up to Chen Mang just like that.
The leading man first looked down at the corpse, then at Chen Mang sitting on the straw mat, and expressionlessly asked, "You killed him?"
Before Chen Mang could respond.
The man waved his hand.
The two men behind him stepped forward, and started beating Chen Mang with their batons, each blow delivered with full force.
Chen Mang could only curl up in the corner, doing his best to protect his head, clenching his teeth tightly, not making a sound.
After a full minute of beating.
The two men's batons stopped.
The lead man glanced at Chen Mang, curled up silently in the corner, with a flicker of interest in his eyes, then scoffed coldly and rasped, "Every person here is a slave of Master Kun. To kill someone here takes guts."
"You're tough."
"But you're in luck, Master Kun has taken a liking to you. From now on, you're the head of this batch of slaves."
"These slaves are under your control. If any problems like laziness arise, it's your responsibility."
Then he waved his hand, and his men quickly returned to the brightly lit carriage, taking out a bag of pickles, two slightly moldy hot buns, and a bottle of mineral water, throwing them onto Chen Mang's straw mat.
He did this in full view of everyone.
And then tossed the corpse through the carriage connection, closing the door once more.
The train car fell back into darkness.
Only the clang, clang, clang sound was heard.
Heading toward an unknown destination.
...
After those people left.
Chen Mang gritted his teeth and got up from the ground, sitting back on the straw mat against the iron wall of the train car, tearing open the small bag of pickles, and chewing slowly on the two slightly moldy hot buns.
Warm.
Though not exactly delicious, warm buns and pickles nevertheless tasted much better than the moldy bread slices before. As the warm bun entered his mouth, his palate even ached slightly from the dryness, unable to chew it due to extreme thirst.
He unscrewed the mineral water, taking half the bottle down in one gulp.
One bun down, his stomach felt no satisfaction, yet he did feel his body recovering somewhat.
"..."
Chen Mang squinted, staring fixedly at the carriage connection. Just for an instant when the door opened, he saw the carriage ahead not only had bright daylight lights but even multiple rows of seats.
Occupied by about twenty thugs.
While he was being beaten, those thugs turned to watch him, laughing and chatting as if watching a show.
He had guessed right.
The reason he lashed out to kill the burly man was not just for self-preservation. He knew in this environment, the rulers often needed a lower-level manager, and he didn't see such a person in this carriage.
He needed this position, and the carriage ahead needed someone like him.
This position could give him access to more information.
From the moment he was dragged into this carriage and learned that their destination was a mining site, he knew that even if he killed someone, the people in the carriage ahead were unlikely to kill him.
After all, killing him would mean losing two slaves, whereas not killing would only mean losing one slave.
Within the train car.
Chen Mang could vaguely see countless greedy eyes tightly fixed on the steam rising from the bun in his hand, the sound of throats gulping resonating like summer cicadas' song, though no one dared to come forward.