The vending machine didn’t have what Bai Cheng was looking for.

So far, the Armor Core could only be obtained through station missions, while the Train Core was only obtainable by defeating Infinite Raiders for now.

The only somewhat useful but underwhelming item available was the Carriage Element Core (Random).

But Bai Cheng already had an Element Collector, and more importantly, she didn’t even have a single Train Core to use it with.

On top of that, this disposable consumable couldn’t even be upgraded with the Book of Cheng.

So, without much deliberation, Bai Cheng didn’t buy anything extra from the vending machine.

Although there was a newly added random blueprint priced at 100 Infinite Coins, she ultimately decided against it after remembering what she obtained from her last random blueprint.

"Ugh, why isn’t there a shower this time? Garbage station!" Yu Nian grumbled, acting as if this was some irreparable loss.

Bai Cheng secretly sighed in relief. She had genuinely been worried that Yu Nian might try something outrageous.

After all, accepting Yu Nian was one thing, but accepting something like playing QQ Farm together...

There were still three hours left before departure, and the two had completed the station mission.

They returned to the first floor, but neither of them brought up leaving.

This hard-won, fleeting reunion was something they both cherished deeply.

"Little Cheng, take these supplies." Yu Nian took out a special blueprint from her backpack.

She then walked over to the entrance door where they had first entered, and Bai Cheng noticed a small pile of minerals stacked there.

Without a spatial backpack, Yu Nian had no choice but to manually carry the excess supplies downstairs for easier transfer to the train.

Bai Cheng immediately waved her hands in refusal. "These are yours, I don’t need them."

"What? I was just wandering around the whole time. Zi Yuan did all the work," Yu Nian quickly explained.

But Bai Cheng remained firm, her tone resolute.

"Are you keeping tabs between us now?"

"So that you can settle everything in the future?"

"Do I not matter to you at all?"

The three rapid-fire questions left Yu Nian flustered. "I—"

"See? You hesitated!"

"No! Don’t overthink it, Little Cheng!" Yu Nian panicked.

"Then take the supplies back. Besides, I really need your help with something big later,"

Bai Cheng insisted, leaving Yu Nian no choice but to reluctantly agree. "Fine..."

Still, she insisted on giving Bai Cheng some of the minerals.

To Bai Cheng’s surprise, they weren’t copper ore, but tin ore.

Upon closer inspection, she realized that these minerals were white, unlike the yellowish-brown hue of copper.

"Tin ore?" Bai Cheng was stunned. So far, she hadn’t unlocked any tools related to tin.

At most, there were the Bronze equipments during upgrades.

"Wait... isn’t bronze just an alloy of tin and copper?!"

It suddenly hit her that tin ore wasn’t some unimportant material. It was one of the two key minerals of the Bronze Age.

"Right! But collecting two types of ore is obviously more troublesome," Yu Nian said, only now realizing the same thing.

However, the amount of tin ore obtained in the castle was far less than copper ore. The two only obtained 100 tin ore and 200 copper ore in total.

Yu Nian split half with Bai Cheng before starting to transfer her supplies ahead of time.

Although their train doors were side by side, opening each door required the respective Train Conductor authorization, making it impossible to enter one another’s trains.

While Yu Nian was busy transferring supplies, Bai Cheng took the chance to upgrade her small hair tie.

Soon, a golden light flashed, and the upgrade was complete.

[Top-Grade! Restraining Hair Tie!]

[You have gained 1 distributable attribute point!]

[Name: Restraining Hair Tie (Unbound)]

[Quality: Legendary]

[Description: Anything restrained by this hair tie cannot break free through their own strength.]

[Evaluation: An unshakable handcuff (shackle)?]

Bai Cheng scanned the Book of Cheng, her expression flickering with suspicion.

The upgraded hair tie was far more elastic now. It could even bind both wrists without issue.

But the real question was... who was she supposed to restrain with it?

Just then, Yu Nian returned after transferring her supplies, carrying a cotton-padded jacket. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

Noticing the hair tie’s[Unbound]status, Bai Cheng stepped forward and handed it to her.

"Nian Nian, this is for you."

"Huh?" Before she could ask why, her gaze landed on the faint golden glow emanating from the hair tie, and her eyes widened. "Wha—?"

Of course, she recognized it as Bai Cheng’s hair tie.

As Bai Cheng began tying her hair with it, Yu Nian couldn’t bring herself to refuse.

"Then... you should take mine too."

She slipped a pink butterfly wristband from her own wrist onto Bai Cheng’s.

"And this jacket—I replicated it using my Talent. It should save you at least 100 Infinite Coins."

Bai Cheng accepted it without hesitation. "Also, lend me your backpack."

Without giving her a chance to argue, she took off Yu Nian’s backpack.

It was the plain black initial backpack, which she had been using all this time.

Yu Nian watched, puzzled, as Bai Cheng repeatedly opened and closed the backpack, taking things out and putting them back in.

"By the way, Nian Nian, how did you clear Station One?"

Distracted, Yu Nian thought for a moment before answering.

"First, I used beast-repelling powder to keep the Infinite Raiders from getting close. Then... I tossed beast-attracting powder into the mine and buried them all."

Bai Cheng was taken aback. She hadn’t expected such a straightforward method.

But it also made her realize that these two items were likely common drops during the novice period, serving as key tools for surviving Station One.

The two chatted idly, as if they had endless things to say, yet time slipped away in the blink of an eye.

By the time Bai Cheng finished upgrading the backpack, only half an hour remained before Yu Nian’s departure.

"Little Cheng... I have to go."

Her earlier cheerful demeanor faded, her eyes glistening with reluctance and melancholy.

Bai Cheng bit her lip and nodded. "Okay."

She helped Yu Nian put on the newly upgraded spatial backpack, then gently hugged her, patting her back.

Yu Nian’s lashes fluttered as she pouted. "Little Cheng... can we take a bath together next time?"

Bai Cheng rolled her eyes. "Can you stop thinking about—"

But before she could finish, Yu Nian suddenly kissed her.

"Mmph... Mmh—!"

Hey! If you want to kiss, just kiss! Stop flicking your tongue!!

Unable to speak, Bai Cheng could only respond helplessly.

Their tongues danced like slippery little fish, and soon, her legs went weak.

But Yu Nian was in even worse shape. Her entire body practically melted into Bai Cheng’s arms.

After a long while, a shimmering thread stretched between their lips before finally breaking.

Yu Nian’s face was flushed. "Little Cheng, I... I really have to go now."

Bai Cheng also felt her own cheeks burning. "Okay. See you at the next station."

After parting ways, Bai Cheng still had an hour of stay duration left. But since the station mission was already complete, she saw no reason to linger.

However, the moment she returned to her train, she noticed a message on the screen:

[Channel Announcement! All Pioneer titles have been distributed!]

[All survivors will now enter the Public Area!]

[The Pioneer Trial has begun! The next station for all Pioneers will be locked as a Multiplayer Station!]