After arranging the matter, Chen Mang turned his attention back to the train's panel.

He still had over a thousand units of iron ore and more than 130,000 units of copper ore.

He'd had 140,000 units of copper, but he'd used a few thousand in the Kunlun Mountains to kill those dozen or so pangolins. He could have used the crossbows, but the heavy machine gun was faster and more reliable.

Any slower, and that entire group of pangolins would have ended up in the belly of that "Rock Serpent."

Copper ore was meant to be used.

Being stingy and missing an opportunity—that was true foolishness.

The iron ore was almost gone, but it didn't matter. After the slaves finished their work today, a massive amount of iron would be coming in.

In a while, he'd go chop some wood. Not many accessories on the train used wood, but the "Custom Clothing Production Line" needed it to make clothes. He'd been wearing this outfit for a long time.

Though he'd washed it a few times, it was still inconvenient.

He'd have a tailored suit made for himself and new uniforms for the slaves and guards.

At the thought, Chen Mang couldn't help but shake his head and smile. He had almost forgotten that this outfit was from his past life. He had gone from finding it hard to accept to gradually integrating into this world. The memories of his past life were becoming hazy.

From a certain perspective, this world was freer.

As long as he could imagine it, he could make it a reality, provided he had enough power and means.

Soon—

The day ended. As over a thousand slaves lined up to receive their bread, Lao Zhu was nearly worked to death. Back when there were only 200 slaves, he could handle distributing the food on his own. Now, it was impossible.

On Lao Zhu's suggestion, another ten women were chosen from the mining group to handle miscellaneous tasks.

As the train's population grew, so did the number of odd jobs.

Chen Mang had no objections. The Stellar, which had started with only two roles—slave and guard—was gradually adding more positions. This meant the train as a whole was slowly but surely becoming more organized.

One day, the Stellar would house a small society.

And Chen Mang finally received today's harvest.

A full 110,000 units of iron ore.

The "Resource Detection Radar" had estimated that these two Level 2 iron mines held a total of 380,000 units. At this rate, they could be completely depleted in just four days. The efficiency was on a whole other level compared to his time in the Apocalypse Abyss.

The new slaves, though still not as efficient as the old hands, were already much better than before under his training.

Sure enough.

It pained him to feed the slaves, but when it was time to reap the rewards, it all felt worth it.

"It was all worth it."

Chen Mang made a special trip to Cargo Carriage #3 and gazed at the refrigerator, now filled to the brim with Level 2 iron ore. His eyes were full of emotion and relief. All his efforts these past few days—rescuing survivors in Taiping City, risking his life in the Kunlun Mountains to find pangolins—what was it all for?

It was for this moment.

Seeing these resources, all the fatigue from the past few days vanished. It was all worth it.

Well then...

He smiled. Now it was time to start splurging!

First up, the "Windfire Wheels." They were originally Level 5. Upgrading from Level 5 to 10 would cost 50,000 units of iron ore. He hadn't been willing to spend it before, but now that he was flush with iron, it was the first thing he did.

In the wasteland, speed often meant safety. Sometimes, it was even more useful than armor.

Theoretically, if you were fast enough, lower armor levels didn't matter.

Each level of the Windfire Wheels increased maximum speed by 20 km/h.

After upgrading to Level 10, the base speed jumped from 130 km/h to 230 km/h. And that was just the bonus from the "Windfire Wheels" accessory.

Adding the Level 2 train's base speed of 130 km/h...

The train's maximum speed now reached 360 km/h.

Of course, that was the theoretical data.

Factoring in the train's weight, the "Train Auxiliary AI" on the control console indicated that with the Windfire Wheels, the Stellar's current maximum speed was—

322 km/h.

This speed was enough to outrun almost any monster on the wasteland. In fact, even in the Kunlun Mountains, few monsters could catch him. It was just that the terrain there didn't allow for the use of Windfire Wheels; he had to use the Spider Legs, which had a fixed maximum speed.

"Hmm?"

Chen Mang immediately noticed that in the 3D schematic of the train on the control console, the wheels, represented by white dotted lines, were constantly flashing.

He stepped out of the control car and looked down at the Windfire Wheels beneath the Stellar, raising an eyebrow. "So cool?"

The once-black Windfire Wheels were now a deep red.

Paired with the all-black train, it was quite a striking combination. Black and red had always been a classic color scheme. The wheels were also slightly larger, and the hubs looked more aesthetically pleasing.

At the same time, he looked at the Advanced Effect of the Windfire Wheels after reaching Level 10.

[Windfire Wheels Level 10 Advanced Effect]: When speeding with a tailwind in gale-force weather, the Windfire Wheels will ignite, granting a massive boost to speed.

"Ignite?"

Chen Mang looked at the Advanced Effect, feeling a bit confused. On the wasteland, with its cracked, dry earth, it was fine. But if he went to a grassland one day, and it was the dry season...

If the Windfire Wheels ignited...

He'd be a wildfire that could never be extinguished.

The ashes would all become fertilizer.

This effect was pretty cool.

Chen Mang propped his chin on his hand, thoughtful. He had only seen gale-force winds on the wasteland once, during the tornado a few days ago. The wind had been strong that day. Although he hadn't been affected by the tornado in the Apocalypse Abyss, he had felt the wind was quite powerful.

The next time there was a gale on the wasteland, he'd have to test it out.

He wanted to see what the ignited Windfire Wheels would look like. This Advanced Effect was also within his expectations. The type of advanced effect an accessory gained after an upgrade was usually related to its original function.

For example, a lifestyle accessory would have a lifestyle-related advanced effect.

A speed-related accessory would have a speed-related advanced effect.

It was unlikely that a lifestyle accessory, say, a "Refrigerator," would suddenly gain an advanced effect that turned it into a bomb you could throw anywhere. This was a fundamental rule of this world, with few deviations.

Of course, some unique accessories might produce some bizarre advanced effects.

This effect was pretty good.

He was quite satisfied.

In special weather conditions, it could greatly increase the train's speed, making it better for both escaping and traveling.

He then turned his attention to the "Train Auxiliary AI" accessory.

This accessory could be said to be the core functional component of the train at the moment.

Many accessories were linked to the "Train Auxiliary AI."

Upgrading from Level 5 to 10 cost 7,000 units of iron ore.

From Level 1 to 5, it had only cost 2,000 units. The resource cost from Levels 5 to 10 had more than tripled.