[Accessory Name]: Moldy Bread Slice Production Line 

[Accessory Grade]: White 

[Accessory Level]: 1 

[Accessory Effect]: For every 1 unit of Iron Ore consumed, 10 slices of moldy bread can be produced. 

[Upgrade Requirement]: 100 units of Iron Ore.

Chen Mang stared at the panel, his expressionless face. He finally understood why Boss Kun had been so unwilling to feed the slaves until they were full. It wasn't just cruelty—this moldy bread was expensive.

Ten slices of moldy bread cost a full unit of iron ore.

If each of his eighty-one slaves ate their fill, they'd go through ten slices a day. That meant his daily food expense for the slaves alone would be eighty-one units of iron ore, which was no small number.

Boss Kun hadn't even been willing to spring for a set of Omni-Wheels, so of course, he wouldn't feed his slaves properly. After all, they couldn't mine every single day. When there was no mine, the food was a pure drain on his resources. From that perspective, only providing the bare minimum on non-mining days made sense.

It was expensive.

He had no plans to upgrade this accessory for now. It was for the slaves, and it was good enough. He couldn't afford to waste iron ore on it. Once the train reached Level 2, he'd upgrade the production line and see if it could make bread that wasn't moldy. He didn't want his slaves getting sick from eating this stuff every day.

Next, Chen Mang built another production line, placing it in Carriage #3, the living quarters.

The "Steamed Bun Production Line."

Crafting it required 100 steamed buns. He experimented and found that moldy ones worked just fine as a material component, so he used all the ones he had scavenged.

And with that—

Carriage #3 was now completely packed. Besides Lao Zhu's single bed, it now housed the "Steamed Bun Production Line," the "Pure Water Filter," the "Moldy Bread Slice Production Line," and a variety of pots and pans. It was also the living quarters for all his enforcers.

Carriage #2, meanwhile, was filled with the "Pickaxe Head Production Line," the "Dragon Assault Rifle Production Line," piles of ore, and crates of heavy machine gun rounds.

Chen Mang glanced at the "Steamed Bun Production Line" panel.

[Accessory Name]: Steamed Bun Production Line 

[Accessory Grade]: White 

[Accessory Level]: 1 

[Accessory Effect]: For every 1 unit of Iron Ore consumed, 1 steamed bun can be produced. 

[Upgrade Requirement]: 100 units of Iron Ore.

"Hmm…"

Chen Mang sighed. This was going to be his staple food for a long time, and it was much more expensive than the bread slices. He'd upgrade it later, when he had more to spare. For now, steamed buns and pickled vegetables were good enough for him.

Interestingly, the production line made fluffy, white steamed buns, not moldy ones. That meant Boss Kun had deliberately given him stale, moldy food.

It was worth noting—

The "Pure Water Filter" in Carriage #3 had yet to be used. He'd been living off the bottled water he'd scavenged. The accessory could turn any liquid—urine, blood, you name it—into pure water, and it was shaped exactly like a toilet.

He hadn't bothered collecting urine from the slaves. The main issue was that he only had one of these things, and he'd have to drink from it, too. He just couldn't bring himself to do it. Once the slaves returned today, he'd upgrade it so it could produce bottled mineral water directly.

If producing mineral water was too expensive, he'd just build another filter specifically for the slaves to use with their... contributions.

With these three production lines, the train's basic needs for food and drink were secured. The reason he hadn't chased after that other train last night wasn't just because he knew he was outmatched. It was because he knew he couldn't count on finding a mine every day.

He remembered Boss Kun had waited in the wasteland for three days before getting the coordinates for this mine.

When you had a mine, you had to focus on digging. You couldn't afford to get distracted, chasing after every little thing, or you'd end up with nothing.

While Chen Mang was in the cockpit planning the train's future, Lao Zhu was in Carriage #3, organizing the daily routines—seemingly minor but crucial tasks like tracking the iron ore turned in by the slaves, distributing food, and taking inventory.

As for Biao…

He, along with Hei Wa and his other old subordinate, had found the enforcer who had disobeyed his orders, his face a grim mask.

Last night, he had ordered the other enforcers to stand watch, but no one had listened. That mistake had led to a lapse in security and left a bad impression on Boss Mang.

He was the patrol leader now.

But some of the men still didn't respect his authority.

Today, he had to establish his dominance. He couldn't afford another situation where his orders were ignored.

And the easiest way to do that was to make an example of someone.

Biao found the man who had sneered at him last night and, without a word, slammed his fist into his face. He and Hei Wa then descended on the man, kicking and punching him relentlessly.

Last night, when he'd given the order, the others had just ignored him. Only this man had not only ignored him but had also let out a derisive snort.

A troublemaker?

He'd beat the trouble out of him.

"Boss Mang!! Boss Mang!!"

The troublemaker, clearly not expecting such a direct and brutal assault, curled up on the ground, shielding his head as he screamed, "Biao's starting a mutiny, Boss Mang!"

Hearing this, Biao, who was in the middle of throwing a punch, instinctively paused. He waited a few seconds. The only sound on the wasteland was the troublemaker's desperate shrieks. Boss Mang had no intention of coming out. A slow, cruel grin spread across Biao's face as he slowly rolled up his sleeves.

"That was just the appetizer."

"Now for the main course."

"And from now on, you call me Brother Biao."

"..."

Inside the cockpit, Chen Mang glanced at the commotion outside before turning his attention back to the "Novice Guide" on his control panel. It contained a lot of information that was currently beyond his reach, but it was good to learn it now so he'd be prepared later.

Most of it was for beginners; there was very little information on Level 2 or 3 trains.

For example—

He had just learned that when a train reached Level 2, one of the new craftable accessories was an "Internal Fire Control System." This allowed you to install inwardly-facing heavy machine guns in various corners of the carriages.

With that, a single thought from him could turn every carriage into a slaughterhouse, killing every carbon-based lifeform inside except for himself.

It was essentially a "reset button" for the crew.

He could replace all the enforcers, slaves, and even the vice-captain in an instant. This accessory would grant the train captain absolute control. It was also the ultimate last line of defense. If the train was crippled and enemies breached the carriages, this system would be his final shield.

The more he learned, the more he realized just how extravagant it was for Boss Kun to have had 300 slaves.

With his strength, he hadn't deserved them.

Three hundred slaves could produce about 3,000 units of iron ore a day. If he could guarantee a mine every day, he could have a fully-equipped Level 2 train in less than a month.

And yet—

When Chen Mang had scavenged Boss Kun's resources, he'd found his stash was pathetically small. He had no idea where the man had wasted all his iron ore. His train hadn't had any high-grade accessories. Had he just been unable to find any mines?