Apocalypse: I Built the Infinite Train-Chapter 344: Flashing Bullet

Silver bullet?

Lin Xian was surprised by Shinji Mochizuki’s words. But seeing the look on the man’s face, he guessed it might be related to Silent City, so he replied honestly, “Is that thing yours?”

“Sort of. But I’m not particularly interested in items like this. I just want to use them to glimpse the truth hidden in the dark.”

He looked at Lin Xian with a calm gaze, as if telling him not to be nervous.

“Do you know what its properties are? Or how to contain it?”

Click. Lin Xian pulled out the metal box from the back of his Power Armor and shook his head. “Not really.”

Mochizuki folded his hands into his sleeves and said, “It’s simple. Whoever picks it up contains it. I mean personally picks it up.”

“But its ability is quite interesting.” Mochizuki raised a hand. A drone descended from above, extending a mechanical arm and placing an empty cartridge case—no bullet, but it still had primer and propellant—into his palm. He handed it to Lin Xian.

“You should have no trouble making this, right? As long as the holder fires this bullet, they’ll be able to instantly transfer to wherever the bullet ends up. Pretty impressive, isn’t it? We call it the Blink Bullet.”

Lin Xian’s expression shifted in shock. “Spatial teleportation?”

“Only in the dark,” Mochizuki added.

At that moment, it felt like a wild stallion galloped through Lin Xian’s chest—this silver bullet had the power to jump through space!

Mochizuki wasn’t surprised by Lin Xian’s reaction. Calmly, he said, “The previous container of this Forbidden Item was a captain of my rapid response unit. His name was Ye Yi, 22 years old. A bit headstrong, but a good kid.”

“He’s dead?” Lin Xian asked, catching the tone.

“The night we were swallowed by the Abyss,” Mochizuki replied, gazing at Lin Xian as though recounting a story. “He had a plan as bold as yours.”

“He wanted to observe the Merlion Colossus before we were swallowed by Xinglan, and use the Blink Bullet to transfer the statue…”

Lin Xian’s eyes flickered—bold indeed.

“And?”

“Not enough distance,” Mochizuki said. “He got the statue out, but a 12.7mm bullet fired with combustion propulsion only has an 8km range. Sounds far, but nowhere near enough in the dark while facing a Xinglan Tide.”

In the dark? Lin Xian’s heart tightened. They had encountered the Abyss Tide before nightfall—it must have been even more terrifying in total darkness.

Then he frowned. “Why use traditional propellant? If the goal is to launch it, wouldn’t electromagnetic force increase the range?”

Mochizuki didn’t seem surprised. He smiled. “See? That’s the problem—imagination outpaces creation.”

As he spoke, another drone flew over, placing a strange-looking rifle onto a platform that rose from the ground. It looked like some kind of Arc Pulse Rifle, black and white in color. It lacked a fusion core but had a dedicated auto-magazine compartment.

“This is an electromagnetic sniper rifle I designed. Energy density limits mean it’s not as powerful as a railgun, but its muzzle velocity reaches 4000 m/s, and the range easily exceeds 50km. With a ballistic arc, it could go even further.”

Su Xun immediately used a mechanical scan. The rifle’s design was precise—but not made for spherical projectiles. At such a low energy density, a standard 12.7 alloy bullet would melt or break apart from the force.

Clearly, this weapon wasn’t custom-made for the Forbidden Bullet.

Mochizuki walked up to the rifle, a bit regretful. “It was built for Ye Yi… but, well, too late.”

Then he looked back at Lin Xian. “Before we got pulled into the Abyss, a man named Boss Hu came to Silent City, trading intel for supplies. He followed us ever since.”

Lin Xian nodded. “He gave me the bullet—was that his way of returning it to you?”

“No.”

Mochizuki shook his head. “Like I said—I only care about studying items like this. I never liked Hu because he lies too much. But I do appreciate him for saving Ye Yi. Even though the kid didn’t make it, at least he wasn’t left to rot in the dark. That child hated the night.”

Lin Xian understood now. “So that’s why you helped Hu Lushou and the others?”

“Yes.” Mochizuki said seriously. “Funny thing is—after I saved them, I learned about your situation. Thanks to that man, our potential conflict never escalated. Since the bullet ended up with you, consider this rifle a welcome gift.”

Lin Xian looked surprised, but before he could say anything, Mochizuki waved it off.

“No need to overthink it. If you don’t want it, just give it back. Forbidden Items always come with risk and mystery, no matter how powerful they seem. I treat any uncontrollable force with rational caution.”

“Now then…” Mochizuki smiled at him. “Tell me about your Magnetic Levitation Leap Plan.”

There was a trace of a smile on his face, and his nanomechanical irises glittered like stars. He seemed to command all knowledge without arrogance. The only emotion that lingered in his voice was sorrow—for the loss of Ye Yi, not for power or knowledge.

Lin Xian felt a sense of respect for this Silent City leader.

He didn’t hold back and explained the United Convoy’s current situation and his superconducting levitation anchor array plan.

They sat across from each other at a tea table. Mochizuki listened intently. After Lin Xian finished, he paused, then said:

“To pull this off, you’d need to control Silent City’s subsystems, deploy the array without power, design and construct support coils for a train that wasn’t built to fly, manage energy supply chains, connection protocols, docking sequences…”

He rattled off a long string of technical terms, then looked at Lin Xian. “Do you realize how many engineers, construction crews, parts factories, and computational resources it would take to do what sounds like a ‘simple’ plan?”

Lin Xian said nothing.

Mochizuki chuckled. “I’m rambling. So your ability lets you scan blueprints, generate materials, fabricate machines, control them, and power them too?”

“More or less,” Lin Xian replied, not bothering to explain in detail. He knew Mochizuki could easily deduce his abilities.

Mochizuki nodded. “Then I fully support your plan—not just the Maglev Leap, but also your Doomsday Train idea. It suits you. The skies are too dangerous, and vehicle platforms are too small. With your ability, building floating mechanical cities, drone swarms, and robot armies is within reach. It might even be a way to end the Abyss Apocalypse…”

Lin Xian glanced at his watch, mentally scheduling everything, and asked one last question.

“There’s something I don’t understand. How did you know the Colossus’s properties right after encountering it? Are there published studies already?”

Mochizuki smiled. “Not really. The group with the most research into Forbidden Items and Blood Scourge Flora is called Holy Revelation. They’re currently collaborating with Crimson World.”

“How do you know?” Lin Xian asked.

“Oh, I know a lot more than that…” Mochizuki raised a hand and pointed. A holographic photo appeared in the air.

The man looked ordinary—late 30s, thin face—but his eyes were sharp and bright.

“Shen Tuo, leader of Holy Revelation. He used to be a regular museum staff member in the Dragon Nation. After Apocalypse Day, he gained some abilities and a Forbidden Item. Later, he partnered with Chen Yanxiu, former director of the Angel Project’s Special Artifact Division, and founded Holy Revelation—a cult-like organization obsessed with powers and artifacts. They’re small and low-profile. Compared to Crimson World, they seem tame. But don’t be fooled. I suspect they collaborate because of ‘technical exchange’ and ‘artifact trade’ arrangements.”

“Holy Revelation provides containment and research support. Crimson World supplies artifacts and Blood Flora gathered from the Abyss?” Lin Xian frowned.

“More or less.” Mochizuki’s hands stayed folded in his sleeves. “Just a bunch of schemers, really. Abilities made them ambitious. As for how I know all this…” Mochizuki’s eyes twinkled as he looked at Lin Xian.

“When you’re commanding billions of drones and wielding post-quantum processing power, these things are child’s play.”

“You want me to become a mechanical lifeform?” Lin Xian asked, stunned.

“No,” Mochizuki shrugged, intrigued. “Not what I want—what you want.”

Lin Xian’s expression froze. He flinched. A memory hit him—back at the Black Rose Bar in Akesai, when controlling too many bots made him dizzy and nauseous.

He had thought: if I had to control millions, it’d be impossible with just a human brain.

Vrrrm— Suddenly, a chilling spatial distortion swept over them, ignoring hundreds of meters of mountain and bunker walls.

Lin Xian shivered in the control room—that unbearable feeling hit him again.

Mochizuki looked up slightly. “The tide is beginning.”

Lin Xian stood up. “Before we intercept the transport ships, I need to finish the Baicheng Track Station docking system.”

“I’ve got a better idea.”

He tapped his finger, bringing up a projection of a coil-mounted mechanical arm. “Instead of manual control, let a program handle it. This is a Magnetic-Controlled Deceleration Array. If you can build this quickly, it’ll be safer than a hard landing.”

Lin Xian’s eyes lit up—this was the very problem he’d been struggling with. His original plan involved sloped rails and KIKI adjusting mid-air—basically a flying circus. This new system would vastly improve their odds.

They left the control center. Su Xun led Lin Xian’s team to the upper hall. Before departure, a girl named Shiori Hoshino performed one last Dark Invasion cleansing with a sweep of green light.

Lin Xian noticed Shiori’s armor—extremely advanced in both intelligence and protection. Clearly, she held a high rank in Silent City’s core command.

With about 10 minutes left before the Inner Tide ended, Ning Jing and Chen Sixuan had already synced the operation plan to the United Convoy. Shi Diyuan was surprised they had allied with Silent City—but it was great news. With Silent City’s help, their chances of escaping Xinglan had increased significantly.

“I just spoke with Su Xun in detail,” Ning Jing said during the pre-departure strategy session. “That Crimson Skeletal Horror may not be easy to deal with.”

She relayed the new intel to Lin Xian. “They’ve intercepted several transport ships before. The two main threats are: Eerie Entities hidden inside the city, and that Red Skeletal Horror.”

“The external transport fleets operate in batches. If something goes wrong, Crimson World may initiate a purge protocol, using the city’s entities for a full-on assault.”

Lin Xian frowned slightly. “I’ve always wondered… how exactly do they do it? Logically speaking, clones shouldn’t be able to carry a Dark Mark.”

Chen Sixuan shook her head. “Even Su Xun and the others don’t know. That’s why they’ve cleaned out several emergency shelters around Baicheng—in case things go south. They’ve shared the locations with us.”

“Hey, Lin—what’s that? Is that a gun?” KIKI pointed to the large black-and-white rifle in Lin Xian’s hands.

He looked at it with a complicated expression. “A gift from Shinji Mochizuki. Think of it as a handheld electromagnetic cannon.” He then stored it in the armor mount clamp on his back.

Now that he understood the bullet’s properties, Lin Xian hadn’t yet formally contained it. Whether it was Chu Yan or Mochizuki, both were cautious around Forbidden Items—and so was he.

After all, the Eerie Cube had nearly wiped out the entire Infinite Train via the 1542 Dark Radio, and Fire Bro’s Infinite Loop had visibly increased the strain on his mind since entering the Abyss. With a major operation ahead alongside Silent City, it made sense to keep it handy—as a potential trump card.

“Lin,” said Su Xun, approaching, “if you’re going to install the docking system at the rail station, you’d best head out by the next low tide. We’ll split into three teams. Miss Ning and the Dragon Mountain No. 1 team will cover the center plaza and the hospital’s south and north sectors to monitor the transport ship—and provide cover. How long do you estimate you’ll need?”

Lin Xian answered without hesitation. “Four hours, give or take. But with the inner tide’s influence, it might stretch to six.”

“No problem. Just don’t cut the timing too close,” Su Xun said. “The key is avoiding detection by Eerie Entities. If they’re alerted, things will get messy fast.”

Lin Xian nodded and turned to KIKI, Chen Sixuan, and the others. “Everyone from Infinite Train comes with me. Cover me. Sister Ning, you’ll lead Qian Dele, Monica, Xiao Qing, and A Bai in a separate team.”

“Wait.”

Su Xun interrupted, gesturing silently.

From Silent City’s team, the girl named Shiori stepped forward, timidly.

“This operation will revolve around you,” Su Xun said. “Mochizuki instructed Shiori to assist you.”

Everyone looked a little stunned. Silent City was really sending someone that important? Shiori was clearly a core member.

Seeing their reactions, Su Xun offered a faint smile and explained to Lin Xian, “Miss Ning’s team has Dark Sensors. My team is mech-based. So I figured—you’d benefit more from someone who can provide Dark Suppression and support.”

Lin Xian immediately understood Mochizuki’s intent. He nodded at Shiori. “We’ll be counting on you.”

“N-no problem. I’ll do my best,” she said timidly, though her eyes were firm. She’d fought alongside Ryunosuke and others in many brutal encounters. Facing monsters seemed easier than talking to strangers for her.

“All units,” Mochizuki’s voice echoed calmly through everyone’s communicators, “prepare to deploy. This operation is centered around Lin. Su Xun, activate the EMP Transport Isolation Protocol only once Lin is ready. Quick in, quick out.”

At that moment, a crystal-clear holographic map of Baicheng appeared in every power armor display.

It was incredibly detailed: real-time feeds, radar-tagged Eerie Entity danger zones, Sentinel Systems, Tide Timers, and the precise location of every shelter in the city.

It was overwhelming. One word came to mind for the team:

Professional.

Lin Xian’s eyes burned with excitement. After interacting with Mochizuki, he now had a far broader vision for how to expand his mechanical powers.

First on the list: massive-scale drone production and information infrastructure. He could build all of it—with Grace as the AI core—and fully automate Infinite Train’s construction capabilities. That would launch his “take to the skies” plan into hyperdrive.

“Understood.” Watching the countdown on screen, Su Xun activated his nano-armor. This time, he was equipped with three heavy autonomous mechas and one ACS Light Escort Mech. Alongside Ryunosuke and Amano Jun, they would take point monitoring the Mother Nest in Central Plaza.

“Let’s move.”

Everyone gathered at the underground bunker’s exit, waiting for the low tide.

Next to Lin Xian, Shiori activated her ability. A wave of green light swept over everyone—final cleansing before departure.

12:04

Baicheng, cloaked in darkness. Twisted black mist shrouded every street.

At Central Plaza, the monstrous Mother Nest fused together pieces of various Eerie Entities. On the streets, hundreds of thousands of human corpses stood, linked by black blood-vessel-like cords.

They looked alive. They looked dead.

The blood vessels kept draining information from their flesh, crashing together within the Mother Nest—like a deranged, self-replicating, self-programming bio-mechanical system spiraling out of control.

Countless Eerie Entities shrieked as they rushed into the surrounding streets, like freshly spawned bioweapon soldiers, spreading to every front.

12:05

The Tide receded. The rabid Mother Nest, the surging Eerie Entities, the sea of standing corpses and black tendrils—vanished.

The roar of Baicheng fell silent again. Only the whispers of twisted logic remained in the blackness. Only the unseen footsteps crawling deep in the dark.

Somewhere inside a high-rise apartment’s decaying room, a steel-plated door—hastily welded by Lin Xian—was torn open by a set of claws.

Metal groaned. The plate collapsed.

A giant figure stood silently in the doorway. Wearing a strange coat. Motionless. Staring into the dark.

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