"So it's simple?"

Lin Xian looked into the dark and hollow tunnel ahead as the subway sped along the track. He spoke up, "Are you imagining my mechanical ability to be too miraculous?"

Jian Xuwei replied, "The main control core of Dawn City is a legacy system evolved from the earliest AI system, Heart of the Galaxy. In terms of computing power, it's only second to Phoenix City and Takashi Ryunosuke. There's no doubt it's hidden deep inside Star City's underground and heavily protected. It comes with a massive subsystem and cooling setup. If you want to take control of it, you'd be facing the most elite forces of the Federation."

"Then how can you say it's simple?"

"Relatively speaking," Jian Xuwei replied calmly. "At least for you, a lot of the mechanical security measures can be ignored."

"But we can't just charge in and kill our way through, right?" KIKI walked up, then looked at Lin Xian. "Also, there's something I’ve been wondering—Phoenix Society wants you to control the core system, but to what extent exactly?"

"Judging by the situation, it’s definitely not for temporary control," Qian Dele said. "Phoenix Society needs time to dismantle Dawn City's defenses. I’m also confused. Even if you manage to take over the control core, then what? The Federation isn’t stupid. As soon as the alarms go off, you’ll be in a cell within five minutes."

Lin Xian narrowed his eyes. "There’ll be people inside the city waiting to support us. This isn’t a solo op. If I’m not mistaken, Silent City, Zhanguan, Qingbo, Tianwei, and Everport are all moving in sync. What Phoenix Society wants is to prevent a few desperate people inside Dawn City from turning on their own."

"Zhou Mingyuan?"

"Not just him," KIKI said. "Wasn’t it mentioned that the Crimson World might be hiding inside Dawn City?"

"Exactly."

Jian Xuwei nodded. "So we have to act carefully."

"What about your Silverstar?" Lin Xian asked, looking at her. "If you move it now, the Federation will know you’re making a move."

"Don’t worry. Silverstar is just a transport vehicle. As long as my people are safe, it doesn't matter. That won’t affect our main objective of entering the city." Jian Xuwei's expression was calm.

Lin Xian opened his mouth slightly, thinking this woman really knows how to let things go. The Eternal-Class Silverstar was the most sci-fi train vehicle he’d ever seen besides the Sky Dome Train. Definitely rich. But now that Jian Xuwei had teamed up with him and joined the Sky Dome Interstellar Train, they had a reliable ride for the apocalypse.

Clatter clatter—

The shuttle train sped forward. Ten-odd minutes later, the small rail car veered from a hidden path and slowly pulled into a backup maintenance section.

"We're here. The mainline track is just ahead. Underground transport is banned in Dawn City now—completely blocked off. But we dug a hole. We can exit from the platform."

The driver, a sharp-eyed young man named Ke Zai—sent by Jian Zeyang to guide them—shut down the engine and opened the car doors. "Captain Jian, Captain Lin, follow me."

"Alright."

The group got off onto the cold, dark platform and walked forward along the maintenance path. Their flashlights lit the tunnel walls, which gradually expanded from narrow to wide. A musty, damp smell filled the air.

After a while, they came across rows of overturned subway cars and piles of rusted automobiles. Layers of metal debris clogged the tunnel completely.

Xia Xu jumped down from an oil tanker, shining his flashlight ahead. The far end wasn’t completely sealed yet—beyond the metal pile, the tunnel had been welded shut with reinforced concrete and steel frames.

“Dawn City’s above-ground transport is highly developed, but weird entities started showing up in the white-dark zones, so the Federation sealed all above-ground tunnels long ago. They're shut with thick, low-strength concrete and prefabricated armor plates. Pretty airtight." Lin Xian walked over to a hidden corner, moved aside a metal billboard, and the echo from inside the passage was deafening. "Back then, this billboard was in front of an old fridge. I opened the fridge door, and outside it was a tunnel just wide enough for someone to squeeze through!"

KIKI's eyes lit up. “Whoa, that’s super hidden.”

Xia Xu chuckled. “We built this escape route ourselves. Now it's an exclusive access point for your alliance.”

He nimbly crawled inside, followed by Jiang Yun and the others. It turned out to be a makeshift path cleared through the metal debris—winding through train cars and cabinets until they reached a grey cement wall. Only then did Jiang Yun realize they’d crossed through that entire junk heap.

A large hole had been dug through the base of the wall—just big enough for someone to crawl through.

"How'd you manage to drill through a wall that thick?" Zhou Mingyuan asked, frowning.

“For advanced weird entities and zombies, sure, it’s tough—but for people, it’s not a big deal,” Ke Zai said. “With abilities, robots, or even just basic automated tools, it’s doable if you have the time.”

“That’s true,” Lin Xian said. “Which is why, if weird entities ever learn human tactics, we’re in serious trouble.”

As they talked, Ke Zai led the group out of the cramped tunnel. On the other side, the area was covered in iron mesh. He signaled everyone to stay still and picked up a communicator.

"Oil Sparrow, Oil Sparrow, come in."

“What’s wrong?”

“There are bio-sensors and infrared nets here,” Lin Xian said. Just moments earlier, he was about to act when he noticed Ke Zai trying to contact someone—likely someone waiting inside.

But after several seconds, there was still no response.

“What’s going on? Comm looks normal…” Ke Zai looked uneasy. Just as he tried contacting again, two violent energy pulses lit up in the distance with a sharp shriek.

“Watch out!”

Lin Xian instantly raised his AT Field Shield—pop! A burst of fire exploded ahead, and Ke Zai screamed as his shoulder was pierced through, his body flung backward.

Zzzap zzzap zzzap!

Even more gunfire erupted in the distance. Everyone’s expressions changed.

“Fall back!”

Lightning crackled from Lin Xian’s hands. The AT Field Shield expanded instantly. At the same time, KIKI counterattacked—her psychic wave lifted the entire iron mesh and barricades into the air, suppressing the enemy fireline. Boom boom boom! The pulse blasts smashed the airborne mesh into fiery sparks.

Suddenly, the gunfire stopped. A loudspeaker voice rang out from the darkness:

“Intruders, this is the Dawn City Night Patrol. Surrender and submit to inspection. Non-compliance will result in lethal force under Federation law!”

Hearing this, Lin Xian frowned. Seriously? We just got in and already ran into this? What are the odds?

"Night Patrol units are heavily armed. Be careful," Jian Xuwei warned, her powered armor now fully deployed.

“Should we engage?” Ning Jing stepped forward, fists clenched, a powerful force coiling around her.

“Lin Xian, what now?” KIKI asked.

Lu Xingchen stood alert, flame charged in his hand. If these were weird entities, he’d have launched a fire punch already—but these were Federation forces. Since it was a stealth mission, he waited for Lin Xian’s call.

“We’ve got two options: retreat, or kill them all.” Lin Xian’s tone turned cold.

“Drop your weapons and cooperate,” the voice ordered again.

“Don’t act yet,” Lin Xian whispered to KIKI. “Wait for my signal. I need to assess their numbers.”

“Got it.” KIKI nodded.

Lin Xian raised his hands in a fake surrender but didn’t deactivate his AT Field. Instead, he motioned for everyone to gather closer. Quietly, he took control of all monitoring and sensor systems within several hundred meters.

He glanced at Ke Zai, who lay on the ground. Shiori was treating him. Good thing he reacted fast—if that shot had hit square, the kid would’ve been done for.

Just then, blinding lights lit up the tunnel. Several armed drones flew in fast, surrounding them. Footsteps echoed. A group of people emerged from the dark, weapons raised.

They wore advanced powered armor and carried arc-pulse rifles. Seeing this, Lin Xian’s team all activated their armor faceplates.

The man in front wasn’t wearing a helmet. He had a fierce face, a thug-like scar across his cheek, and his menacing vibe didn’t match the "official" markings on his police-grade armor. Scanning the group, he sneered:

“Well well well, who are these VIPs? Full suit power armor? Looks like we hit the jackpot tonight. If you’re that rich, why sneak through back tunnels?”

Lin Xian replied, “Are you here to issue a fine?”

“A fine?” The scarface man laughed darkly. “Yeah, of course there’s a fine.”

He immediately pointed his gun at Lin Xian’s face. “Strip off your armor—now. Then tell me where you parked your ride.”

Jian Xuwei and Monica exchanged glances. Everyone sensed something was off.

“You deaf or what? Didn’t you hear me?” the scarface snarled, anger rising as no one moved.

Lin Xian said calmly, “How many of you are there?”

“…What?”

“Oh, don’t get me wrong. We’re just carrying a lot of stuff,” Lin Xian replied with a straight face. “Just worried there’s not enough of you to split it.”

“….” Scarface froze, his expression darkening.

“You think this is funny, huh? You little—”

Before he could finish, KIKI raised two fingers. A wave of invisible force snapped the entire group together like rag dolls, their armor groaning and sparking under the pressure.

“An ability user?!”

The scarface reacted fast. His eyes turned red, blood energy exploding as his power armor surged to counter the force.

At that moment, all the drones surrounding Lin Xian’s team crashed to the ground. A white drone zipped in overhead.

Thunderstrike Drone!

BzzzZZZTTT!

A burst of searing electromagnetic energy detonated—knocking all enemies unconscious instantly.

“I thought you were gonna kill them all,” Monica said, curious as she watched Lin Xian and KIKI take down over a dozen enemies in seconds.

“You figured they might actually be Night Patrol troops and didn’t want trouble?” Jian Xuwei asked, catching on to Lin Xian’s thoughts.

Lin Xian exhaled. “These guys didn’t feel like law enforcement… felt more like robbers.”

“They must have some kind of data sync device on them. Whether you killed them or not, we’ve probably already been discovered.” Qian Dele stepped forward and said.

Sure enough, just as Lin Xian and the others finished off that group, a sudden barrage of gunfire echoed from the distant tunnel. But it wasn’t aimed at them. Mixed in were powerful concussive blasts and the screams of a group of people.

They quickly realized — a fight was breaking out up ahead. It didn’t last long. Less than thirty seconds later, all sound faded into silence.

Soon after, before they could even see who was coming, a familiar, casual voice rang out.

“Showing up early’s not as good as showing up right on time. Just a few minutes ago, I was wondering if these Night Patrol thugs were really thinking about messing with Konggu Station. Turns out, they really were.”

Jiang Yun strutted out, a gust of wind in his wake. Behind him followed Ren Huiyan and a fully armed, clearly capable group, emerging from the shadows. He looked at Lin Xian and said,

“Long time no see, Captain Lin.”

The people behind him, upon spotting the unconscious group in front of Lin Xian, immediately raised their weapons and finished them off with a round of execution shots.

“Figured it’d be you,” Lin Xian exhaled, then glanced at the group behind Jiang Yun. “You guys just executed the Night Patrol. Isn’t that gonna cause trouble?”

“The Night Patrol’s already in chaos,” Jiang Yun said. “You really think these guys were patrolling out here in the middle of the night out of dedication?”

“All the Night Patrol units in this district have been paid off by us,” Ren Huiyan added. “Right now, the city’s in a bit of turmoil. Some people are taking the chance to fish in muddy waters — that includes Night Patrol units and some so-called 'federation' members who are basically bandits in disguise, killing and looting at will.”

“In Night City these days, people are dying every day. Other than the inner city, a few core zones, and convoy territories, nowhere is really safe anymore.” Jiang Yun walked up to the scar-faced man on the ground and kicked his head to the side, revealing a savage wolf tattoo behind his ear.

“Blood Wolf Gang again. These guys snuck into Dawn City robbing along the way. The Night Patrol exo-armor they’re wearing was probably looted too. But looks like they ran into a brick wall this time.”

Lin Xian frowned. “The city’s gotten this messy? Hah, if I’d known, I wouldn’t have gone so easy on them.”

“Exactly.” KIKI looked down at the Blood Wolf Gang corpses, visibly annoyed. “I didn’t even dare go all out—was afraid I’d kill them all.”

Ren Huiyan glanced at the twisted exo-suits on the ground, then at KIKI, her expression subtly shifting.

“It’s fine. The surveillance in this area is all offline, we’ve already—” Jiang Yun looked up toward the surrounding walls to mention the cameras, but realized the walls were bare, not even a single cable in sight. He paused, then looked at Lin Xian. “This…”

“Just in case,” Lin Xian said.

“Captain Lin, ever cautious.” Jiang Yun praised.

Then, he looked behind Lin Xian and spotted Ke Zai, and quickly gave an order to his men. “Xiao Mo, get medical attention.”

“Got it!”

A few people stepped out of the group and picked up Ke Zai. Jiang Yun turned to Lin Xian and said, “This isn’t the place to talk. Come with me.”

The group exited through a hidden tunnel from the platform. 1:00 AM. Rainy night. An odd scent lingered in the old alleyways. Only a couple of pink bar signs flickered, signaling that a few dance halls were still flashing with gaudy lights and music.

Raindrops clinging to electric wires hit the metal lids of trash bins in an annoyingly rhythmic beat.

Stench. Stillness. Unease.

Tarp shelters lined the streets, set up by survivors. Other than patrol guards from the Security Camp, the streets had been completely emptied since Vice Chairman Zhou Mingyuan announced citywide curfew. At 1:00 AM in Lingchen, there wasn’t a soul around.

In the Old District, every floor of a cramped residential block glowed with dim cold lights, packed tight. Armed vehicles lined every block, completely surrounding the area. The whole building was the convoy base for Jiang Yun’s team. On the rooftop was a specially modified room. Jiang Yun brought Lin Xian and his group there, and explained,

“This place is safe, for now. But I know you didn’t come here for sightseeing. Well, not that there’s anything left to see in Dawn City. Give it another month, and there won’t be a sunrise. It’ll truly become Night City.”

He turned to Lin Xian with a smile and reached out a hand. “Almost forgot — here’s to our cooperation.”

Lin Xian shook it. “Thought you guys had already pulled out.”

“We considered it. But I figured you might head into the city, so we stayed behind to give you backup. Guess that worked out.”

“What’s the situation now?” Jian Xuwei asked.

“Stable… at least on the surface,” Jiang Yun replied coldly. “But the Night Patrol and City Defense are under extreme pressure. Curfews are the easy part. The real threat comes when mutant populations or Red Ones attack — it’s usually a bloodbath, and most casualties are collateral.”

“Indiscriminate sweeps?” Lin Xian frowned.

“Pretty much,” Jiang Yun said. “The Federation is holding things together by a thread. Civilians inside the city are on edge. That incident with the Crimson World has been temporarily suppressed by Zhou Mingyuan, but… a lot of people feel something big’s about to happen.”

“Why?”

Jiang Yun pointed north.

“Phoenix Society?”

“Yeah.”

“The Skybreaker Ship is stationed up there. For Dawn City, that’s crushing pressure. Whether Phoenix Society is here to purge the Descendants or something else, everyone in the city smells it — something major’s coming. Add the growing water crisis from the dark incursion, and unless the city completely locks down, people are going to try escaping.”

“And this is only Day One. It’s gonna get even crazier tomorrow,” Jiang Yun added. “Nighttime’s just quieter.”

“You know where Daliyou Society is based?” Lin Xian asked.

“I do.”

Lin Xian checked the time. “How far from here?”

“I already got the word from Chairwoman Jian. But with so many of you, moving around at night won’t be easy.”

Jiang Yun walked over to the window, pointing at the rain-soaked, cyberpunk sprawl below. Above, countless patrol and surveillance drones drifted slowly through the sky.

“There are three million cameras in this city. Over four thousand patrol airships. And more kinds of police and attack drones than you can count. So…”

“Unless it’s an emergency, I suggest you move during the day.”

Lin Xian looked out at the enormous cityscape and exhaled. “Alright. Accepting advice is a good quality.”

“So, our mission for tonight’s done?” Monica leaned back on the sofa, legs crossed with a sigh. “I thought there’d be more to do once we entered the city.”

“Jiang Yun, give Captain Lin the team rundown,” Jian Xuwei said. “He’ll be coordinating for the Alliance from now on.”

“No need to be so formal.”

Lin Xian waved a hand. “You guys handle the coordination. Things are still too uncertain. We don’t know what the Federation or Phoenix Society will do next. Keeping a low profile’s probably best.”

Jiang Yun smiled. “Honestly, it’s like when we were at Yubei Spaceport — a crisis forcing a bunch of people to work together. We’ve got 26 convoys here, big and small. Some have nearly 9,000 people, others just a hundred. The bigger ones have absorbed the small ones. But every convoy runs independently. You don’t have to worry about feeding or managing these tens of thousands — they just need direction.”

“And because a lot of people trust the Phoenix Society, the Crimson Phoenix Sigil holds real sway. Both Chairwoman Jian and I have it. But your influence, Captain Lin, goes even further. This whole alliance came together mostly because they want to stick close to Phoenix Society — through you.”

“Couldn’t have said it better,” Qian Dele leaned back. “This dark incursion’s cut off communication, and with dark marks everywhere, large organizations can’t form easily. A convoy of 8-9k is already massive and hard to manage. This kind of mobile alliance makes sense.”

He glanced at Lin Xian. “But if you want me to merge into your convoy and work for you, I’m down. Would make my life easier.”

“Same here,” Monica chimed in.

“Jiang Yun, is there gonna be fallout from the massacre in the tunnel?” asked Ning Jing, always the cautious one.

“No. I’ve already sent people to clean up. Plus, the Night Patrol doesn’t have the bandwidth to deal with that now,” Ren Huiyan replied. “So don’t worry.”

“Oh, right.”

Jiang Yun suddenly held up his phone, walking back from the window with an amused expression. He showed the screen to Lin Xian and Jian Xuwei.

“You two might find this interesting.”

Everyone crowded around to look. Their expressions shifted.

Jian Xuwei furrowed her brows in surprise. KIKI’s eyes went wide.

On the screen was a forum post from Dawn City’s internal network. The title read:

“Infinity Train Recruitment Plan — Mech-Evolver Qin Feng Recruiting Apocalypse Powerhouses to Join the Eternal-Class Armed Train Silver Star, Racing Along the 320,000-Kilometer Planetary Ring Route!”

Lin Xian blinked, then muttered,

“Sh*t…”