Chapter 103: Cheerful And Optimistic Old Bi Takes The Stage
Su Huan sneered, this guy was still probing him.
Obsidian Industry is a major foreign gun-making company that still exists after the apocalypse. It’s normal for such a company to produce firearm-type gene potions, right?
Anyone would think that way.
But that’s not the case at all!
Obsidian Industry doesn’t manufacture gene potions at all.
“Firepower Specialist” and “Sharpshooter” were all developed by a foreign force called Gunfire. Because they have abilities from Tier 1 to Tier 5, with side promotion paths, they formed a professional lineage and spread widely around the world, so they are called the Gunfire Lineage.
You can tell they have consistency just from the names.
The naming is straightforward and easy to understand, carrying the smell of gunpowder from firearms and ammunition.
“If that general from Gunfire hears you say that, he’ll sling his big sniper across the ocean right into your mouth.”
Su Huan said with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.
Li Tao showed no embarrassment at being exposed, revealing a faint smile. “If he comes, naturally others will entertain them. This is our turf after all, isn’t it?”
“I have a bone from a Tier 2 mutated beast here. Do you need it?”
“From that White Snake, right.”
“Yeah, I can give you a one-meter-long bone.”
“From what I know, that snake seems to be dozens of meters long, right?”
“But this is a Tier 2 mutated beast.”
“With our company’s firepower, do you think eliminating one Tier 2 mutated beast is difficult?”
“What if it’s about to promote to Tier 3?”
“But it hasn’t promoted yet.”
“Two meters.”
“At least ten meters, plus snake skin of equal length.”
“Impossible. Three meters of bone plus a Tier 2 profession skill pairing.”
Li Tao was just about to haggle when he heard about the skill pairing. His eyes behind the lenses lit up instantly. “You’re sure it’s Tier 2?”
Su Huan said sincerely, “And it’s one you can actually use right now.”
“How do you guarantee it’s effective?”
“Take the two guys next to you as examples. If something’s off, they can sense it too.”
Li Tao thought for a moment and extended his clean palm. “Deal.”
Su Huan just smiled and didn’t shake hands. He had no intention of getting off the train. “Have my teammate get the material for you.”
A flash of suspicion crossed Yu Jing’s eyes, then realization dawned. She stood up and followed Wan Xing toward Carriage 3.
Su Huan’s gaze turned to the two soldiers. These two had the same aura as He Jie—cold and tough.
As for the thirty-some people nearby, they were just there to make up numbers.
“Tell me about your respective abilities.”
A cold wind blew through, carrying a metallic tang. The two soldiers beside Li Tao stared coldly at Su Huan.
This guy had taken out a full nineteen of them. Though relations weren’t great and there were even some grudges, they had trained together for two years in the same place and become evolvers together. Even if they didn’t like each other, they acknowledged each other’s strength.
But losing one-seventh on the very first mission to this man was downright humiliating!
“Tell him.”
It was Li Tao who spoke up.
Only then did the two soldiers open their mouths. The one on the left said resolutely, “Steel Council, Sergeant First Class Zhang Tie, Tier 1 ‘Firepower Specialist’. Abilities are lv4 ‘Combat Factor’, lv1 ‘Grappling Specialization’, lv2 ‘Firearm Specialization’, lv1 ‘Beast Instinct’, lv1 ‘Ballistic Correction’, lv1 ‘Smell Enhancement’.”
After hearing the soldier list his skills like menu items, Su Huan fell silent.
Generally speaking, one main skill plus two auxiliary skills could basically form a Tier 1 profession. After all, this was only Tier 1.
No need for complex pairings; as long as they were precise, they could play a big role.
Like Su Huan, who only had four skills total, with one prepared for higher tiers.
It wasn’t that he couldn’t evolve other abilities, but too many irrelevant skills would consume one’s evolution potential.
Just like Huang Hai back then.
He had thought the Steel Council’s profession pairings were already mature early on, but now it seemed they were still groping in the dark.
Like this sergeant first class—clearly a good scout seedling, yet turned into a firepower specialist.
What use was smell enhancement for a firepower specialist?
To smell gunpowder?
Su Huan turned to the other one. “And yours?”
That soldier frowned and growled, “Steel Council, Sergeant Liu Hongyi, Defender Realm. Abilities are lv3 ‘Combat Factor’, lv1 ‘Grappling Specialization’, lv1 ‘Cold Weapon Specialization’.”
Su Huan got it now. So Grappling Specialization was a skill they had forcibly awakened through excessive training.
He shook his head helplessly. “Don’t you have a Tier 2 path for firepower specialist?”
Li Tao pondered for a moment. “We’re just uncertain about one or two skill pairings.”
‘No wonder their path went astray.’
Su Huan said, “Then I’ll give you the firepower specialist Tier 2 skill pairing. Don’t worry, it’s different from the path you’re on now.”
Li Tao took out paper and pen from his briefcase. Ever since general energy appeared, many electronic devices had become unreliable.
People preferred to trust things written on paper.
“The Tier 1 firepower specialist skill pairing is lv3 ‘Combat Factor’ + lv2 ‘Heavy Firepower Specialization’ + lv1 ‘Ballistic Correction’.”
Li Tao, who was jotting it down, frowned. “Why Heavy Firepower Specialization? Zhang Tie promoted to Tier 1 firepower specialist without that skill.”
Su Huan glanced at him with faint scrutiny. “Because firearm specialization is the superior skill to heavy firepower specialization. It’s like if you’re proficient in all firearms, you’ll naturally know how to use handguns, rifles, and submachine guns.”
Feeling the contempt, Li Tao wasn’t angry at all. Instead, he grew more excited and quickly noted down the concept of “superior skill” in his notebook.
His reaction puzzled Su Huan even more.
This knowledge was all something he had learned about the Steel Council in his previous life. Why did the other side now look like he had discovered a new continent?
Could his guess be wrong?
How much did the Steel Council really know about the apocalypse?
Thinking it over in his mind, he didn’t stop talking. “Tier 1 firepower specialist can advance in three directions at Tier 2, but the main one is Tier 2 ‘Berserk Veteran’, consisting of—”
Li Tao suddenly interrupted him, eyes full of doubt. “Wait, that name Berserk Veteran…”
Su Huan shrugged. “It’s a bit ridiculous, but that’s the name. You can also call it Berserk Veteran. Oh, there’s also a translation version you might prefer: Bullet Storm Frenzy.”
Since the name did sound made-up, Su Huan gave a couple more options for him to judge.
Hearing him fluently explain the origin of the term, Li Tao’s complexion eased quite a bit.
But he didn’t like either name much.
He first wrote “Berserk Bullet Rain” in his notebook, then crossed it out and wrote “Berserk Veteran.”
Firepower Specialist – Berserk Veteran.
It was barely smooth.
Su Huan didn’t care what he wrote down. Profession names didn’t matter what they were called. Even if he renamed his own energy storage core “Universe Invincible Turtle School Ki Blast,” it wouldn’t affect its use.
After all, the skills were still the same skills—things etched into DNA wouldn’t change casually.
He continued, “lv6 ‘Combat Factor’ + lv6 ‘Heavy Firepower Specialization’ + lv6 ‘Ballistic Correction’ + lv1 ‘Dynamic Vision’ + lv1 ‘Dual Wield Guns’.”
Li Tao’s pen flew across the page.
Soon, Yu Jing and Wan Xing returned with the snake bone and handed it over at the car door.
Li Tao promptly handed over the gene potion.
The process went very smoothly.
Neither side mentioned the nineteen dead soldiers from start to finish.
To the Steel Council, that was already a sunk cost.
Revenge wasn’t the main goal; the goal was to uphold the organization’s dignity.
But when upholding dignity required an even greater price, the considerations simplified.
On one hand, cut losses in time and recover a little through trade.
On the other, seek revenge single-mindedly—for nineteen elite soldiers, bet the lives of the entire company and go to war with another major force.
The dead might choose the latter; the living might not be so willing.
Fortunately, the dead had no say.
This was how major forces interacted—no reason to fight to the death. They might be slaughtering each other wildly over some resource yesterday, then shaking hands in peace the next day after a deal.
Su Huan had seen plenty of that.
But negotiating with tigers required being a lion yourself—not a wild dog, not even a Tibetan mastiff!
If Su Huan hadn’t shown tough strength or a mysterious background, he’d be facing a hail of bullets from attack helicopters and a pincer attack from ground armed forces.
He wouldn’t even need to think—there were definitely Steel Council reinforcements prepared five kilometers away!
The entire organization’s three convoys were probably primed and ready.
But this smooth scene was not what Zhang Min wanted to see.
She had thought the Steel Council came aggressively to seize the convoy by force. After all, they had powerful evolvers and armed forces, while the train didn’t even have a single gun.
Even if not seizing the train by force, they should act like they did with the Mojian Mutual Aid Convoy—looking down from on high, condescendingly overlooking Su Huan and trampling his self-esteem!
Make that damned smile freeze on his face.
Let him experience the humiliation of power too.
But unexpectedly, that imposing man got out of the car and started chatting amiably with Su Huan.
At this point, she still held a sliver of hope, waiting for the negotiation to break down.
But in the end, it ended peacefully.
So what was she?
A clown?
In that instant, extreme disappointment and imbalance twisted Zhang Min’s mentality. As if possessed, she opened the car door and walked down, running to the side of the train.
Li Tao frowned. Since the armored train was backed by a major force, this woman’s value had risen accordingly.
Recalling her unusual composure compared to ordinary people back in the Mojian Convoy, Li Tao decided to give her a bit more leeway.
Zhang Min’s steps slowed more and more. Seeing Su Huan’s gaze shift to her, she felt a fierce emotion surging in her throat, her muscles trembling uncontrollably.
That face was almost unchanged, exactly like in her memory.
Of course—just a few days, how much could it change.
On the train, he had food and drink, no mutated beast attacks, no worry about zombie tides gnawing, no fretting over high temperature or acid rain. What change could he have!
Looking at that smiling face, Zhang Min forced her trembling facial muscles to relax and pulled a smile.
“I wonder if the train conductor still remembers me?”
Su Huan had recognized her the moment she stepped out of the car. He had been wondering about it earlier.
This woman had made some progress—only a few days and she had already joined the Steel Council.
Their large-scale survivor recruitment was still a January thing.
And that was in batches too.
But he didn’t take it seriously. Unless she had god-tier evolver talent like Lin Jin, in the current train conductor’s eyes, she was trash.
And now she jumped right in front of him.
Pulling a “rags to riches return home” stunt?
Su Huan naturally played along, showing a clear and puzzled expression on his face. “Ah, and you are?”
Yu Yue behind him curled her lip. He was about to tease someone again.
Sure enough, Zhang Min was so angry her chest heaved, her reddened eyes glaring fixedly at Su Huan.
She had suffered so much, yet he hadn’t cared at all.
Li Tao was a shrewd one too. From one exchange, he sensed some past friction between them and said coldly, “Zhang Min, get back in the car and wait for me. If you still want those two conditions.”
His tone was indifferent, completely unlike the mild demeanor when speaking to Su Huan.
The woman took a deep breath, as if letting go of something. She bowed sharply and said with a smiling face, “Thank you for your guidance, train conductor.”
Sensing a kindred spirit. Just wondering what surprise she’d bring next time they met.
Su Huan was somewhat pleased and smiled back. “No need to thank me. The train conductor loves educating people. Just don’t come empty-handed next time—showing up with nothing isn’t great.”
“Definitely!”
The woman finished speaking and returned to the car without looking back.
Li Tao frowned at the sight, feeling like he had taken on a troublemaker, but still said politely, “In that case, pleasant cooperation. Looking forward to the next collaboration with Mr. Su and your esteemed company.”
Su Huan waved from behind the explosion-proof net.
Seeing them get in the car and leave, the helicopter hovering on the horizon flew away too.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
Only a steel plate left on the ground for stepping on.
A cold wind blew through, stirring the ground puddles. The originally clear puddles instantly turned murky, just like Su Huan’s complexion.
He said coldly, “Throw away the box with the gene potion. Rinse the test tubes with clean water. Liang Kuan, prepare to drive.”
No one knew what happened, but accustomed to Su Huan’s orders, no one hesitated.
Five minutes later, the train slowly started moving. Yu Yue, who was tidying up in the kitchen, changed expression and looked up at Su Huan. She saw a cold smile on his face, corners pulled high, revealing sharp teeth.
“Zombie inducer. A bunch of old coins who can’t stop eating shit.”
But from high altitude overlooking, one could clearly see all sorts of zombies in Yi Jin city gradually gathering, heading toward the train’s location.
……
“Hey, that arrogant fool really thinks our Steel Council stuff is so easy to take.”
Zhang Tie said viciously from the passenger seat.
He hated the way Su Huan looked at him—that pitying gaze like looking at an idiot.
It made him feel humiliated!
Before the apocalypse, he alone could take out a company of such ordinary people.
Even in the entire training camp, his overall combat power ranked top ten!
Who was he to dare look at him like that?
Li Tao sat calmly in the battered off-road vehicle. “They have sonic control. Try not to talk.”
“We’re over five kilometers away now. She absolutely can’t hear. After all, she’s an evolver who hasn’t even entered tiers.” Zhang Tie said disdainfully.
Li Tao frowned.
Ever since the apocalypse, these grunts had gained power and started slowly disrespecting them.
It gave him a sense of unease.
‘Uncle was right after all—power is safest in one’s own hands.’
“Bang—”
Suddenly, the wheel jolted violently.
“What happened?” Zhang Tie looked at the sergeant in the driver’s seat.
The sergeant gripped the engineering plastic steering wheel with one hand, making it creak, and drew his sidearm with the other, smashing toward the car window.
He emptied a magazine into the snarling fangs.
Then a relaxed smile appeared on his face. “Just a blood hound. No problem.”
Zhang Tie rolled down the car window, about to breathe some fresh air. He subconsciously glanced outside, and his pupils suddenly contracted.
