"Total Ore: 1,500 units Iron, 120 units Copper, 100 units Wood." Chen Mang stared at the resource count on the slip of paper, lost in thought.

His priority had to be building more carriages. He needed at least two: one to serve as the new slave car and another to store all the ore, food, and other supplies.

He also needed to build the "Dragon Assault Rifle" production line.

Without another word, he walked back into the cockpit alone and stood before the control console, his eyes landing on a fifth red button: "Train Construction."

【TN: Looks like our rookie Captain got a little too excited poking around his shiny new control panel before. He dove into the "Vehicle Accessories" section so deep, he kind of forgot to mention all the buttons.】

He pressed it.

Several lines of text appeared on the screen.

[Build a Normal Carriage]: Requires 100 units of Iron Ore.. [Build a Train Engine]: Requires 1,000 units of Iron Ore.

This was part of the train's core construction, separate from "Vehicle Accessories." Building a second engine would allow him to attach it to the rear of the train. This would enable the train to reverse direction without needing to turn around, effectively making it more agile by simply switching which engine was active.

He tapped the first option twice.

The next moment, he felt a slight vibration run through the cockpit. Stepping outside to look, he saw countless lines of white light suddenly erupt from the coupling at the back of the engine. The lines interlaced and wove together, forming the distinct shape of two new carriages.

As the light faded, two solid steel cars stood in its place, already seamlessly connected to the engine.

His train was finally starting to take shape.

Of course, the interiors of the new carriages were completely bare—just empty metal shells. But that was more than enough. Slaves couldn't expect luxury accommodations. In this day and age, any survivor lucky enough to find a train to call home was already blessed.

"Not bad."

Chen Mang stood before his train, a sense of pride swelling in his chest as he admired his work. He felt a deeper connection to this world, a stronger sense of belonging. Perhaps one day, he really could build a true doomsday train, a steel dragon that would roar across the wasteland.

With 200 units of iron ore spent, he walked into the second carriage. He pulled the "Dragon Assault Rifle" production line blueprint from his coat. It was a translucent, light-blue sheet that felt like plastic, seemingly fragile. Not that he was foolish enough to test its durability.

Blueprints allowed for the construction of special vehicle accessories that weren't on the default list. While the standard accessories could be built anytime, the more unique ones required a blueprint.

The production line was a Green-grade accessory.

[Construction Cost]: 500 units of Iron Ore.

After he confirmed the cost, the 500 ore units were consumed. The blueprint in his hand shattered into motes of green light that swirled inside the carriage, weaving together to form a six-meter-long production line. It looked uncannily like a security scanner from a subway station.

For every 50 units of iron ore, it could produce one "Dragon Assault Rifle," which looked remarkably similar to an AK-47 and fired 5.6mm caliber rounds.

Unfortunately, he didn't currently have any bullets of that caliber, nor a production line to make them.

Fortunately, each rifle it produced came with three fully loaded 30-round magazines.

For now, that would have to be enough. He'd have to find a way to get a production line for the ammunition later.

It took five minutes to craft a single rifle. He ordered the production of twelve, paying another 600 units of iron ore. It was worth noting that as long as the resources were anywhere on the train, they were consumed automatically for any construction project; he didn't need to physically hold the ore.

Chen Mang then stepped out of carriage two and hesitated for a moment before spending another 100 units of iron ore to build one more normal carriage.

He didn't have enough space. His production lines and raw ore needed their car, and the living supplies like bread and water needed another.

Now he had three carriages.

He designated them: Carriage #2 would be the warehouse for production lines and ore; Carriage #3 would be for living supplies; and Carriage #4 would be the slave car.

And just like that, he was down to only 100 units of iron ore. He was practically back to square one.

Everything required iron ore. He never had enough.

He hadn't even touched the seven essential accessories needed to upgrade the train. He simply didn't have the spare ore.

His train didn't even have an electrical system yet; the carriages were darker than the abandoned ones he'd just scavenged. Once the door to the slave car was closed, it would be pitch black.

However, the "Electrical System" and "Generator" required copper ore.

He mulled it over. Lights were essential. Seeing he had 120 units of copper, he immediately spent 110 units to craft both components.

He placed the newly formed generator in the warehouse carriage. It was surprisingly large, taking up nearly a seventh of the floor space.

But then he saw it.

Chen Mang stood in carriage two, staring blankly at the generator. A new prompt was displayed on its side.

Activation requires one Energy Stone.

Based on the train's current power consumption, one Level 1 Energy Stone can provide continuous power for approximately 300 days.

Energy Stone?

That was a new one.

He ran back to the cockpit, opened the tutorial on the control console, and started searching. He quickly found the entry for Energy Stones.

After the world fell into ruin, traditional energy sources like oil had lost their dominance, replaced by Energy Stones.

To create them, a train first needed to be upgraded to Level 2, which unlocked a new vehicle accessory: the "Crafting Station." Inside the Crafting Station, iron ore could be converted into Energy Stones.

But before then, there was almost no other way to acquire them. The train's engine itself ran on an Energy Stone—a single Level 1 stone was included with every new train. To start the generator, he would have to dig the stone out of his engine, which was impossible.

He looked back at the console screen, which now displayed a series of newbie tips.

[Current Status]: 3 carriages, no armor. 

[Recommendation]: Build carriage armor as soon as possible to maximize passenger protection during an attack.

Energy Stone Status: 100%.

At the train's current weight, it can travel at a maximum speed of 100 km/h for 100 hours.

Warning: As the train's weight increases, maximum speed will decrease, and Energy Stone consumption will accelerate.

Objective: Recruit as many survivors as possible to acquire more resources.