The armored train thundered through the wasteland, its magnetic rails humming. Outside, the landscape was a blur of grey rock and twisted trees—the result of the corrupted Qi from the Demon Realm leaking into Earth.
Inside Carriage 4, the atmosphere was tense.
"Eat up," Jiang Chen passed a nutrient bar to Fatty Wei. "You'll need the energy."
Fatty Wei, who was currently wearing a backpack that looked like it contained a portable kitchen, nodded nervously. "Bro Jiang, I heard the Dark Forest has Level 2 Demon Beasts. That's equivalent to the Qi Gathering Realm! We're gonna die."
"We have Lin Qingxue," Jiang Chen pointed at the Ice Queen, who was calmly reading a holobook titled Advanced Cryomancy. "She's Qi Gathering 1st Stage."
"And we have me!" Gu Linger piped up, spinning a dagger on her finger. "I'm bored. I hope something attacks the train."
BOOM.
As if on cue, the entire train shuddered violently. The lights flickered and died, replaced by emergency red strobes.
"You just had to say it," Jiang Chen sighed, standing up.
"Attention!" The conductor's voice crackled over the intercom, panicked. "We have hit a—static—track obstruction! Brace for—"
SCREECH.
Metal tore against metal. The train derailed.
Jiang Chen felt gravity shift sideways. "Grab something!"
He grabbed Fatty Wei by the collar and slammed his other hand into the wall, using his Golden Marrow strength to anchor himself as the carriage flipped. Luggage, students, and weapons flew everywhere in zero-G chaos.
The train slid for what felt like a mile, tearing up the earth, before slamming into a massive rock formation with a bone-jarring crash.
Silence.
Then, screams.
"Is everyone alive?" Lin Qingxue's voice cut through the dark. A blue light flared from her hand—an ice torch.
"I'm okay," Gu Linger floated down from the ceiling, using her telekinesis. "That was fun!"
"I think I swallowed my gum," Fatty Wei groaned from under a pile of suitcases.
Jiang Chen kicked the jammed door open. "We need to get out. That wasn't an accident."
He stepped out into the wreckage.
The train lay on its side like a dead metal snake. Smoke billowed from the engine.
But it wasn't mechanical failure.
Standing on the tracks, blocking the path, was a massive boulder. And standing on top of the boulder was a figure.
He wore a black cloak with no insignia, but his aura was unmistakable.
Qi Gathering Realm: 5th Stage.
"A hit squad," Jiang Chen realized. "The Council didn't wait for us to get to the forest."
The figure raised a hand. "Target identified. Carriage 4. Kill everyone. Leave no witnesses."
From the treeline, shadows emerged. Not humans.
[Enemy: Modified Demon Wolves (Level 2)]
[Count: 20]
These weren't normal beasts. They had metal plates bolted to their skulls and glowing red eyes. Bioweapons.
"Wolves!" A student from another team screamed. "Run!"
Panic erupted. Students scrambled out of the broken windows, fleeing blindly into the forest.
"Idiots," Jiang Chen muttered. "The forest is where the pack is."
"What do we do?" Lin Qingxue stepped up beside him, her ice sword forming in her hand. "That leader is 5th Stage. I can't fight him."
"You don't have to," Jiang Chen said. He rubbed the storage ring on his finger. "I bought some toys."
He looked at Gu Linger. "Little Witch, can you lift that piece of debris?"
He pointed to a massive, torn metal sheet from the train's hull. It weighed at least 500kg.
"Easy," Gu Linger smirked. Her eyes glowed pink. The metal sheet floated into the air.
"Good. Throw it at the wolves. Fatty, cover fire!"
"On it!" Fatty Wei pulled a Molotov cocktail from his bag. "Eat spice, doggies!"
WHOOSH.
Gu Linger launched the metal sheet like a giant frisbee. It sliced through the air, decapitating three wolves instantly.
BOOM.
Fatty Wei's firebomb exploded, creating a wall of fire that panicked the pack.
"Now!" Jiang Chen roared.
He didn't run away. He ran toward the leader on the boulder.
"Suicide?" The Cloaked Leader sneered. "A mere Body Tempering trash dares to charge me?"
He pointed a finger. A bolt of Fire Qi shot toward Jiang Chen.
Jiang Chen didn't dodge.
Flash.
He pulled a High-Grade Spirit Stone from his ring and crushed it in his hand.
[System: External Energy Surge Detected.]
[Temporary Boost Activated.]
The pure energy flooded his veins.
Phantom Sword Steps: Overdrive.
Jiang Chen vanished.
The fire bolt hit empty air.
Jiang Chen reappeared in mid-air, right above the boulder. He wasn't holding his heavy sword. He was holding a Flashbang Grenade (looted from the library assassins).
"Think fast!"
He pulled the pin and dropped it in the Leader's face.
BANG.
A blinding white light exploded.
"ARGH! MY EYES!" The Leader staggered back, blinded.
Jiang Chen landed on the boulder. Now, he summoned the sword.
CLANG.
The Cold-Iron Heavy Sword materialized from the ring.
"Gravity Check."
Jiang Chen swung the sword like a baseball bat, aiming for the Leader's legs.
CRACK.
The Leader's Qi shield shattered. His legs broke with a sickening crunch. He toppled off the boulder, screaming.
Jiang Chen jumped down, planting his boot on the Leader's chest. He pointed the heavy sword at the man's throat.
"Who sent you?" Jiang Chen asked, his voice cold. "The Council? Or the Wang Family?"
The Leader coughed blood, grinning through broken teeth.
"It doesn't matter... the beast tide... is coming... the bait... is set..."
"Bait?" Jiang Chen frowned.
Suddenly, a howl echoed from deep in the forest. It wasn't a wolf. It was something much, much bigger.
The ground shook.
[Warning: High-Level Threat Detected.]
[Type: Beast King (Level 9 - Pseudo-Foundation Realm)]
Jiang Chen looked at the Leader.
"You didn't crash the train to kill us," Jiang Chen realized. "You crashed it to feed us to That."
The Leader laughed, then stopped abruptly as Jiang Chen stomped on his neck.
"Team Zero!" Jiang Chen shouted, turning back to his friends. "Grab the loot! We're leaving! Now!"
"Where to?" Lin Qingxue yelled, freezing a wolf.
"Deeper into the forest," Jiang Chen pointed toward the dark, looming trees. "Toward the 104th's last known position. If there's a Beast King hunting us, the only safe place is a fortress. Even a ruined one."