Chapter 34 Part 2

Zhu Ming said, darkly, “I know you have Absolute Defense. We can’t hurt you. But don’t worry, we’re not planning to beat you up.”

Behind them, Miss Legs, Blondie, Sister Jia, and the other two ability users were all rolling up their sleeves.

The cockpit was limited in space and outside the Conductor’s jurisdiction. The Train Master was outnumbered. Five minutes later, he was tied up and hung upside down in the corridor of Carriage No. 1, the luggage racks on either side serving perfectly to secure the ropes.

Head down, feet up, blood rushing to his head. Dizzy and lightheaded, the Train Master’s face flushed red. “Aren’t you afraid of offending me, making this journey even harder for you?!”

Zhu Ming and Wenren Tu sat on either side, pushing him back and forth. Zhu Ming said, “The train is self-driving. It doesn’t need you to control it. What can you even do? Go ahead, try something if you’ve got the guts.”

Attacks from the outside had zero effect on the Train Master. But what about effects from within his own body? Gritting his teeth, he swung back and forth, dizzy to the point of nearly vomiting. And since he was the one hanging in the air, his slightest movement prompted that idiot Conductor to lash him without a second thought, not caring at all about his status.

The Train Master fumed, swearing inwardly that he would fire the Conductor the moment he got back!

The little shopkeeper hadn’t expected the rope he sold to be used on his master. He whimpered anxiously, barking. The Train Master had no choice but to soothe him patiently: “Good boy, Daddy’s fine. We’re just playing around. It’s not time for walkies yet. Go back now.”

“Woof woof!” Under the constraints of the rules, the little shopkeeper couldn’t participate in any fighting. He could only slink back to the cockpit, dejected.

…

Taking out their frustration on the Train Master didn’t change the fact that the train kept advancing.

Blondie was deeply disappointed. He had thought staying in Car 1 would mean hearing good news first. Instead, he’d experienced firsthand the despair of falling from heaven to hell in an instant.

He dragged himself out, dejected, ready to inform his companions that stopping the train was hopeless and they should make other plans.

“Wait.” Wenren Tu called him back. “You can tell everyone that if all else fails, just jump off the train. But no one knows what the consequences will be, so they should decide for themselves.”

Blondie sighed. “Actually, when we first found we could crawl out the windows, we already considered that.” But first, they couldn’t be sure it was safe outside. Second, with the hope of stopping the train here at Car 1, they had opted for the more conservative approach of waiting.

Blondie continued, “We’ve thrown clothes outside and found they came back around. There shouldn’t be much danger out there. Looks like we’ll have to get off this time. If we stop in one season without moving forward, at least we won’t keep losing lifespan.”

The Train Master let out a “Tsk.”

Wenren Tu pushed him, making him swing. “What, you have an opinion?”

The Train Master shook his head and said, “No. Jumping off is a wise decision. I find today’s young people quite rational. Not bad, not bad. Of course, if you insist on being stubborn and wasting your lives, I won’t stop you. I’m not lying to you all—I don’t want to kill all of you. Once you’re gone, there’ll be the next batch of participants. As long as I have fun, that’s enough, hahaha.”

Wenren Tu made an exaggerated frown. “Young people? How old are you to act like an old geezer?”

The Train Master smiled mysteriously. “You can guess my age all you want, but I bet you’ll never figure it out.”

Wenren Tu was speechless. She shoved the man hard. So annoying. Swing him to death.

Blondie scratched his head. “You all should decide early too. Oh, and I hope you don’t press that button too quickly. At least wait until after the next spring.”

He had it figured out: spring was relatively comfortable. Jumping off in spring, they wouldn’t have to worry about freezing or burning to death. If they stocked up on enough food from inside the train, they had a good chance of surviving until the task ended.

Blondie left Car 1 to inform the others.

Still left in the car were Zhu Ming, Wenren Tu, Miss Legs, Sister Jia, and the other two participants. After much deliberation, those two decided to jump off the train. Zhu Ming and the others didn’t stop them.

“What about you? Gonna jump?” Wenren Tu asked Miss Legs.

“I want to see first.” Miss Legs was still hesitating. “If it’s safe once they get down, then maybe I will.”

In this cold winter, debates of varying intensity erupted across every carriage. Some argued they should jump off quickly to cut their losses. Others believed there was still a chance and refused to give up easily.

By the sixth round of spring, someone took the lead. Wrapped carefully in a down jacket, they crawled out the window and jumped to the ground.

For a moment, everyone was watching him. He tumbled and rolled twice before slowly getting up. He pulled off the jacket, looked around, then waved happily at everyone. “I’m down!”

The spring fields were beautiful and vast, a blanket of lush green dotted with colorful wildflowers. A gentle breeze blew, the temperature was pleasant, and even the sunlight was just perfect: warm but not scorching.

With the first success, more and more participants jumped off the train. They had raided Food Tickets for supplies, hoarding food and water to survive the fifth day as best they could.

Driven by herd mentality, no one wanted to be left alone in a different season. After all, the tunnels couldn’t be traversed on foot. The two participants in Car 1 also jumped off cautiously. With the train always moving, minor injuries were inevitable, but that was still better than losing lifespan aboard.

The participants who jumped off began gathering together. Zhu Ming sat by the window. As the train continued forward, the participants below gradually shrank into small black dots.

“Something’s wrong!” Zhu Ming’s expression changed, a sudden realization dawning on her. “Why are so many people jumping off?!”

Sister Jia was also watching outside the whole time. She pushed up her glasses, her tone rather cold. “The ghosts who got permits must have gone down too.”

Ghosts that hadn’t been exposed yet possessed living bodies. They could move through the carriages and go outside the train. Many participants were scattered about. Without encountering such a ghost, there was naturally no way to test them.

Miss Legs immediately said, “I’ll go down and warn them. I’m fast. You guys just be ready to pull me back up.”

Time was of the essence. Miss Legs put on a down jacket for padding. Zhu Ming hung upside down from the window, holding Miss Legs as she lowered her down. She only let go once Miss Legs was almost touching the ground. Because of the low position, Miss Legs brushed the ground without injury. She scrambled to her feet and ran wildly toward the nearest participant—

No.

She ran right past him.

She couldn’t be sure if he was a real participant or a fake. Miss Legs targeted a participant she recognized, waving as she ran. “Over here! Over here! Come quick—”

The other person was a bit puzzled but ran toward her regardless.

In a flash, Miss Legs dashed up close, relayed the issue of the incorrect participant count, and immediately turned to chase the train.

Her speed was incredibly fast. At full burst, she could run a hundred meters per second. But this Supernatural Ability had a fatal flaw: it lacked stamina. The faster she ran, the shorter the duration. Using her absolute top speed, she could only sprint for three seconds before collapsing from exhaustion.

Miss Legs tore off the down jacket as she ran. She was quickly drenched in sweat, her face already bright red.

Damn. She was starting to feel tired. Sweat dripped into her eyes, blurring her vision. The train was right before her eyes, but she had no strength to climb back up.

“Give me your hand!”

Miss Legs’s spirit jolted. She looked up to see it was Zhu Ming! She had moved to the back of the train to receive her while Miss Legs was down there delivering the warning!

Zhu Ming gripped the railing at the train’s end with one hand, extending her other. Miss Legs was panting heavily, her body growing heavier. Her fingers brushed against Zhu Ming’s, but she couldn’t get a grip, slipping out again. Her hands were entirely covered in sweat, so slippery.

Zhu Ming saw she wasn’t making progress but instead drifting further away. She hooked her foot around the railing, her body leaning out from the train as she grabbed Miss Legs’s wrist with both hands.

Miss Legs ran on, tears and snot streaming down her face, shouting into the wind, “I’ve got no strength left!”

Zhu Ming reassured her, “I’m pulling you! I have the strength!”

With that, she began exerting force little by little, dragging Miss Legs closer to herself. However, hanging upside down like this, it was actually more difficult to pull Miss Legs upward with any leverage.

Miss Legs tried to step onto the small ledge at the bottom of the train’s rear as she ran. But the ledge was too narrow. She couldn’t get a foothold. Not only could she not step onto it, she nearly tripped.

“My legs are too short, wuwuwu—” Miss Legs wept in grief and indignation. “I can’t get up!”

The wind was too strong. Zhu Ming yelled, “Try again!”

Miss Legs tried again. But this time, her exhausted, aching legs gave out completely. She let out a shriek, stumbling headlong. Her wrist, gripped tightly by Zhu Ming, was stretched taut as she dragged her body along, scraping forward.

Shit. With her fall, her body weight dragged along the ground. The force on Zhu Ming’s hands instantly multiplied. Her foot hooked on the railing was about to give way!

In that split second, a hand suddenly grabbed Zhu Ming’s belt, yanking her swaying body firmly back.

Yin Yu had leaned more than half her body out the rear window of Carriage No. 60. She grabbed Zhu Ming with a laughing greeting. Yin Yu held Zhu Ming, Zhu Ming held Miss Legs, and they managed to pull her back in at last.

Thump, thump, thump. All three tumbled into Carriage No. 60.

Miss Legs lay on the floor, tears plopping down. Her ankle was injured, rendering her temporarily immobile. A moment ago, she was just like a lump of dead weight, unable to do anything but rely on Zhu Ming to drag and haul her back.

“Don’t be afraid. When the shopkeeper comes, we’ll buy some medicine. You’ll heal quickly.” Yin Yu, now dressed in a fresh, clean white outfit, helped her onto a seat.

Miss Legs wiped her eyes, sobbing, and quickly shook her head. “I’m not scared. It just hurts a bit.”

Wuwuwu, this big sister was so gentle, so pretty, so likable. But… it seemed she had some small, irreconcilable conflict with Zhu Ming…

Miss Legs glanced guiltily at Zhu Ming, worried she might be considered a traitor.

Zhu Ming was sprawled out, tired as a dog, resting. She knew nothing of anyone else’s petty worries.

Suddenly, Yin Yu sat down beside Miss Legs. Pinching a tissue, she wiped the girl’s tears. “Little friend, I remember you. Mingming cares about you a great deal.”