The Level 3 Cannibalistic Spider Boss dropped four items upon its death.

Two units of Level 3 Ore: Crimson Heart Ore.

One hundred units of Level 2 Material: Fine Spider Silk.

A Green-grade vehicle accessory blueprint: Magnetic Harvester.

A special item: Hell Staff.

That was the complete haul from the boss.

The first two were rare resources that couldn't be excavated from mines—they only had a chance of dropping from bosses. They were typically used for crafting and upgrading special vehicle accessories. For now, he had no use for them.

The "Magnetic Harvester" accessory allowed the train to automatically collect all loot from monsters killed by the train or its crew within a certain range, pulling the items directly into a designated car. Its primary use wasn't for single encounters but for fighting zombie hordes. In that kind of chaotic environment, stopping to pick up loot would be suicide. With this, he could pull drops right out of the swarm.

The fourth item was a special tool—not for the train, but for personal use. It was a staff that, when held, allowed the user to control the train remotely, as long as they stayed within range.

For example, if he'd had this last night, he wouldn't have needed to go back to the cockpit to build a new car. If he had any self-controlled turrets, he could operate them from anywhere near the train just by holding the staff.

It was pretty good. The item was great; it was just the name—"Hell Staff"—that he could do without.

"Not bad."

Chen Mang nodded, satisfied. It was a worthy reward for a boss they'd spent all night killing. Although he couldn't use the rare ore yet, he was sure it would come in handy eventually.

Half an hour later, everyone had finished washing up. The spider had bled enough to dye the wasteland red, and after running the blood through the Pure Water Filter, they had more than enough water. Such a luxurious bath was something most of the slaves hadn't experienced in a very long time.

"Let's head back!"

Chen Mang announced cheerfully to the crowd of slaves. He planned to return to the iron mine, rest for a day, and then resume digging. His train was only a Level 2 shell—he still needed to craft many of its essential accessories. The rare ore was nice, but what he needed most right now was common iron ore. He had to keep mining.

"Boss Mang!"

Just then, Lao Zhu trotted over and tentatively suggested, "I think the reason we haven't seen a single monster these past few days is because this Level 3 spider was laying its young in nearby Taiping City. Its aura scared everything else away."

"Taiping City might be at its emptiest right now. Why don't we go scavenge?"

"Biao told me there's a tobacco and liquor store in the suburbs with a hidden compartment. He's sure no one's found it."

"No."

Chen Mang shook his head, looking calmly at Lao Zhu. "Right now, the priority is getting enough iron ore to build out the basic accessories for a Level 2 train, like more heavy machine guns. If we had as many guns as that DJ train, would we have needed to run?"

"Well..." Lao Zhu hesitated. He wanted to point out that the DJ train had also been running, but he held his tongue. He meekly added, "There might be a lot of young left in Taiping City. Killing them would surely drop some good stuff, and there shouldn't be anyone there to compete with us."

Chen Mang fell silent for a moment, then looked at Lao Zhu and said in a raspy voice, "All aboard. We're going to Taiping City. You know the way?"

Inside the cockpit, Chen Mang sped along the obvious tracks in the wasteland. They were the ruts the Cannibalistic Spider had left during its rampage. Following them was the only way to find Taiping City. The vast, barren plains offered no other landmarks, and Lao Zhu had no idea where he was going.

He glanced at the Energy Stone gauge.

"72%."

Not bad—he still had a while. He was down to only 313 units of iron ore. He'd wanted to go back to mining and build a "Crafting Station" first, but Lao Zhu's suggestion was tempting. Young spiders without their mother to protect them... not going back to kill them felt like a crime against nature.

By now, “The Stellar” was covered in brownish-red bloodstains, which baked under the sun and gave off a foul stench.

After driving for a full four hours, Chen Mang finally saw the ruins of a modern city on the horizon. Many of the skyscrapers had collapsed, leaving the city looking scarred and broken. As they drew closer, more details came into view.

There were signs of intense fires, roads choked with abandoned cars, and the ground was littered with trash and fallen leaves. He didn't see a single corpse.

Chen Mang looked on in silence. The scene gave him a much clearer, more visceral understanding of the apocalyptic world he'd been thrust into. He'd spent the last few days on the empty plains, with few reminders of human civilization. In an environment like this, he couldn't imagine many survivors holding out.

As the train neared the ruins, Chen Mang slowed to a crawl and finally stopped at the edge. He could go no further. The way ahead was completely blocked by a pileup of cars and collapsed buildings. The rest of the journey would have to be on foot.

In the distance, suspended in the air, was a gigantic spider web.

A web woven from strands as thick as a man's arm was strung between several high-rise buildings. The area around it was scarred by battle. There were stains from green, corrosive liquid, and many cars and buildings had been pierced by scattered strands of webbing. Those strands, shot out like bullets, had effortlessly punched through reinforced concrete.

The ground was littered with spent heavy machine gun casings and abandoned firearms, as well as a few discarded train cars. He could use the Geocentric Furnace to devour all of it later. He could also try to see if the abandoned cars could be broken down into iron ore.

This place had been the site of a brutal battle.

"I really got lucky."

Chen Mang stood at the edge of the ruins and murmured to himself. It looked like the Level 3 spider had used up all its webbing and venom here. Otherwise, his own battle might have ended very differently. Of course, if he ever had the chance to write his autobiography, he wouldn't mention this bit of luck. He would write that as a newly minted Level 2 Train Captain, he had instantly slain a Level 3 Cannibalistic Spider Boss.

And on that giant web...

About a dozen small spiders were dangling from a single strand, swaying in the wind.

These were the Cannibalistic Spider's young.

"Biao."

Chen Mang waved him over, clapping him on the shoulder. "Take the men and your gear. Go take care of those young ones and bring back everything they drop."

"Be quick about it."

"This is not a place to linger. Get the mission done and get back here immediately. Understand?"

"Understood!"

Biao nodded seriously. He gestured to the other nine enforcers, and after grabbing enough magazines and some of the blade fragments, they quickly moved through the ruins, jogging toward the giant spider web.

"Boss Mang."

At the edge of the ruins, Lao Zhu hesitated. "Shouldn't I go with them? What if they just run off and don't come back?"

"If they run, they run."

Chen Mang stood at the edge of the ruins, leaning on his staff and gazing up at the web that blotted out the sky between the towers. "You have to allow for the possibility that anyone might leave you at any time," he said softly, "and not waste too much energy worrying about it."

"In this world, anyone can leave at a moment's notice."

"But you can't refuse to use someone just because they might leave."

"A ship faces risks when it goes to sea, but it wasn't built to stay in the harbor forever."

"Alright" 

He finished. "Keep an eye on our surroundings. A mother can't have babies all on her own. I have a bad feeling about this. The sooner we finish the mission and leave, the better."