I tightened my grip around the metal handle beside the train as another sound came from next to me.
"RAAAAHHH—!"
Lin Xian let out a roar filled with pure adrenaline as he slowly rose to his feet, veins bulging on his arms while he gripped the control panel tightly. Outside, a storm of bullets continued raining against the armored train while we sped directly toward the luxury sedan blocking the tracks.
BOOM—CRACK!
The heavy locomotive smashed straight into the car.
The sedan crumpled instantly like paper before being hurled violently off the rails, turning into a pile of twisted metal tossed aside by the sheer momentum of the Whale 03E. The armored front of the train didn't even dent.
Inside the cabin, the only thing we felt was a slight tremor beneath our feet, as if we had merely rolled over an empty soda can.
The bullets hitting the armored body left nothing but shallow white marks across the metal plating before ricocheting in every direction.
One of those ricochets struck a thug in the thigh.
"AAAAAHHHHH!!"
The man collapsed screaming, clutching his bleeding leg while blood sprayed across the concrete platform.
"My leg! FUCK! HELP ME! I DON'T WANNA DIE!"
His cries echoed through the station.
But by then the train had already passed the ambush point entirely, making continued gunfire meaningless. Silence slowly returned to the station aside from the injured man's screams and the fading sound of the train moving away.
Liu Wei watched everything with a twisted expression.
The veins on his forehead bulged violently.
His authority — the reputation he had painstakingly built since the apocalypse began — had just been trampled beneath the wheels of that train.
His eyes suddenly glowed with an eerie green light.
RIIIP!
With one motion, he tore his shirt apart, revealing four sinister green tentacles bursting from his back, each covered in pulsating veins and sharp protrusions.
The men around him instinctively stepped backward in fear.
Using all four appendages like spider legs, Liu Wei launched himself forward with explosive speed, climbing onto the rails and sprinting after the train at terrifying velocity.
The tentacles granted him monstrous physical power, enough to lift over a ton with brute force alone, while also dramatically increasing his speed and mobility.
Knowing his own weaknesses, Liu Wei had trained obsessively after awakening his ability. He called himself the "King of Four Wings," using the tentacles to propel himself like a monstrous spider across walls and terrain.
THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!
Hearing heavy impacts above the cabin, Lin Xian's face darkened immediately.
"An ability user…" he muttered grimly while reducing the train's speed and gripping the handle of his short blade.
Inside the suddenly silent cabin, even Chen Sixuan curled tighter in fear.
Then—
BANG!
One of the tentacles slammed against the windshield.
CRACKKK—
The armored glass instantly shattered into spiderweb-like fractures.
Not completely broken…
…but terrifyingly close.
Outside the windshield stood a middle-aged man with four writhing tentacles extending from his back.
Liu Wei grinned viciously while staring inside.
"Well, well… two little boys and one frightened girl dare challenge my authority?" he sneered.
"I'll teach you idiots why you should've stopped when I gave you the chance."
His gaze shifted toward Chen Sixuan.
"A pretty one too…"
"You'll live long enough to regret your choices. Don't worry — after I'm done with your friends, I'll take very good care of you."
Chen Sixuan's face turned pale.
I noticed Lin Xian staring at the cracked windshield with narrowed eyes. He was definitely calculating how strong this bastard had to be to damage fifteen centimeters of reinforced glass.
So I spoke quietly.
"Hey. Slam the brakes."
"That'll throw him forward from inertia."
"I'll go deal with him. We can't just let him stay on top of the train until he breaks in."
Lin Xian looked at me sharply.
"You sure?"
"If he can crack that glass, he's no joke."
His hand remained tightly wrapped around the sword hilt.
"Yeah."
"I'm the combat guy. You're the driver."
I deliberately stabbed right where it hurt his pride most.
His eyebrow twitched.
But he still nodded.
The next second—
SCREEEEECH!
Lin Xian slammed the brakes with full force.
Caught completely off guard by the sudden deceleration, Liu Wei lost balance instantly and was hurled backward off the moving train.
THUD!
The moment he crashed onto the tracks, I opened the cabin door and jumped out with my machete in hand.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Chen Sixuan shouted in panic.
"We can just leave! Lin Xian, stop him!"
Lin Xian clenched his teeth before speaking coldly.
"He's doing what needs to be done."
"Now go grab the heavy rifle and bring it here."
"If this prideful idiot loses control, I'll support him."
Liu Wei slowly stood from the dirt and grass beside the tracks, his expression twisted with rage as he stared at the young man who had jumped down alone to face him.
Then he laughed.
"Hahaha…"
"What is this?"
"A kid trying to play hero?"
"I'll break your legs and show you what happens when trash challenges me."
"Don't worry — your little friend will join you soon enough."
"And after that…"
His eyes drifted toward the train.
"I'll enjoy that woman very carefully."
I didn't answer.
Instead—
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
A massive fireball erupted toward him.
Liu Wei's expression changed instantly.
He leaped sideways using one tentacle to propel himself away, narrowly avoiding the attack, though one of his appendages was scorched black by the flames.
"Tch— another ability user!"
"I underestimated you, brat…"
"But that trick won't work again."
The arrogance in his voice diminished immediately.
Now there was caution.
Calculation.
Fear.
Realizing he lacked combat experience compared to me at range, Liu Wei charged directly forward to prevent me from using another technique.
I charged too.
The distance between us vanished rapidly.
I knew the tentacles were the real danger.
At the last second, I shifted sideways and slashed toward one appendage—
—but another tentacle intercepted instantly.
I was forced to retreat before being grabbed.
Both of us slid several meters apart before turning and charging again for a second clash.
This time, believing I understood his attack pattern better, I became more aggressive.
I aimed upward with a sweeping slash, intending to sever two tentacles at once—
CLANG!
My eyes widened.
The tentacles were far tougher than expected.
The blade cut through the first appendage partially, but lost momentum before fully severing the second.
Then the third tentacle wrapped around my arm.
SHIT!
Because I was still moving at full speed, the sudden restraint destroyed my balance.
I was dragged down instantly—
—but I also pulled Liu Wei with me.
Both of us crashed toward the edge of the cliff running beside the railway.
The unstable terrain beneath our feet broke apart.
And then—
We fell.
ROOOOOOM!
As we tumbled down the steep slope, I saw Liu Wei desperately stabbing his tentacles into the cliffside to stop himself.
It slowed his descent…
…but couldn't fully stop it.
Meanwhile, I pulled out a kunai and stabbed it into the rocky wall, using chakra to reinforce my footing while the blade scraped violently downward.
Sparks flew everywhere.
BOOOOM!
A loud crash echoed from the bottom of the ravine.
Dust and smoke exploded upward, temporarily obscuring everything.
One figure landed near the cliff wall.
The other crashed beside a shallow stream below.
"…Fuck. That hurt."
I forced myself upright while feeling numb pain spreading through both legs.
Several shallow cuts covered my arms and thighs where the rocks had shredded my skin during the fall. They weren't deep…
…but they burned like hell.
Still, by using chakra and dragging the kunai against the wall, I had reduced enough momentum to survive without major injuries.
I wasn't sure Liu Wei had been as lucky.
"I got careless once…"
"That won't happen again."
I gritted my teeth and forced myself back onto my feet.
Then a plan slowly formed in my head.
SWISH—
Liu Wei frowned in agony.
His entire body screamed with pain.
He could already tell both legs were either dislocated or fractured.
His back had been shredded raw from tumbling through rocks and branches.
Several splinters of broken wood were still embedded into his flesh.
As the dust cleared, the destruction around us became visible.
A crushed path of flattened vegetation marked our fall from above.
The two of us stared at each other from opposite sides of the ravine.
Then Liu Wei noticed something.
The hand sign.
The same one I used earlier.
His pupils contracted instantly.
Thinking quickly, he forced his damaged body sideways with the help of one remaining tentacle, enduring horrifying pain—
—but the expected fireball never came.
Instead—
FWISH! FWISH! FWISH! FWISH!
Four kunai shot toward him.
"GHK!"
One pierced his shoulder.
Another buried itself deep into his calf.
The remaining two were barely deflected away by his tentacles.
"You little demon…" Liu Wei growled through clenched teeth.
"But don't think hurting me like this means you've won."
He tried to sound confident.
But deep down…
He knew the truth.
This was no longer a fight for dominance.
It was a desperate struggle to survive.
Two tentacles destroyed.
Legs damaged.
Body bleeding heavily.
And facing a lunatic teenager who kept smiling through his injuries.
For the first time since awakening his powers…
Liu Wei felt genuine fear.
He couldn't help but wonder why he had ever provoked these monsters in the first place.
"Hehe…"
"What are you talking about, old man?"
"This fight's only getting started."
"You're gonna pay for every injury I got today."
"So come on…"
I raised my bloodied machete again while grinning manically at him.
"Do your best and entertain me."
Pain burned throughout my body.
But I ignored it completely.
I needed this battle.
I needed experience.
Instinct.
Real combat.
Because if I stayed weak and inexperienced…
…the next time I made a mistake like before—
I would die.
Realizing I had no intention of retreating, Liu Wei slowly lowered his center of gravity despite the blood pouring from his wounds.
His remaining tentacles twitched violently.
His eyes sharpened.
He understood now.
The only way he survived today…
…was by killing the boy in front of him as fast as possible.