Chapter Three: The System That Has Yet to Warm

Xiao Zhang woke early, glanced at his phone, and was astonished to find the time displayed as 15:00—the same as yesterday.
"Hallucinations, hallucinations! I need a proper sleep!" After slapping himself, Xiao Zhang turned over and went back to bed, confident that the traps he’d set before sleeping remained untouched.
As he drifted back into slumber, his taut nerves finally relaxed.
When he awoke again, he stretched with satisfaction, checked his phone once more, and found the time unchanged.
He decided not to overthink it—take things one step at a time. Xiao Zhang rummaged through the carriage for supplies; venturing into the forest armed only with a baton was hardly sufficient. If a tiger or some wild beast appeared, he’d be torn apart.
"Excellent, excellent," he muttered, grinning as he forced open the toolbox he'd found on the train.
A large 375 wrench, two screwdrivers, and a small multifunctional knife.
He walked to the left side of the train—after all, as the saying goes, men to the left and women to the right—and the sun’s direction suggested east lay that way.
He wandered through the forest, marking his way, until he reached its edge. There, at the boundary, unfolded an endless starry sky...
Holy hell. At that moment, a thousand wild beasts galloped through Xiao Zhang’s mind.
Was this the Milky Way? Beyond it stretched a boundless black abyss, so deep it threatened to swallow his spirit. Anxiety gnawed at him.
On his journey, he’d discovered the forest was devoid of any living creatures—no signs of humanity, not even a stray feather.
Helpless, he retraced his steps.
Around midday, following his marks, Xiao Zhang returned to his starting point. Seeing the train gave him a measure of relief.
Back at the origin, he inspected the carriage and froze, taking down the wrench from his waist.
Everything seemed normal, but several carriages were missing.
"No way! Are they trying to kill me?" Xiao Zhang felt himself on the verge of a breakdown.
Just then, a heavy thud echoed.
A massive chunk of flesh flew out from the wrecked engine compartment, and without hesitation, Xiao Zhang bolted—racing into the depths of the forest.
Seconds later, a deafening roar erupted behind him.
He couldn’t tell what manner of beast it was; only one thought filled his mind—run!
Without hesitation, Xiao Zhang unleashed every ounce of his strength.

Dashing into the woods, Xiao Zhang scrambled up a huge tree, turning to check the situation.
Another heavy crash echoed from the carriage—bang! Something was violently smashing against it.
"I can't stay here, better keep my distance," he thought, jumping down before he could steady himself.
Bang! Another thunderous crash. Xiao Zhang glanced back, and the sight nearly made him vomit.
A bloody figure, nearly two meters tall, resembling a humanoid monster pieced together from corpses, emerged from the carriage. It stood, grabbed the chunk of flesh it had thrown out, and stuffed it into its gaping maw.
Covering his mouth, Xiao Zhang struggled not to retch.
He’d never seen anything so revolting. What on earth was it? A zombie? It seemed almost comical.
The creature belched, shook its head, sniffed the air, then suddenly spun around and lunged toward Xiao Zhang.
"Shit!" Xiao Zhang leapt from the three-meter-high tree, fleeing deeper into the forest.
This time, he truly risked everything, but upon landing, he twisted his ankle.
It was over—he was done for. Just as the monster was about to charge into the woods, a flash of purple light shot from the train wreckage, striking it.
The beast howled in agony, spun in place, then abruptly stood upright and exploded into a heap of sludge.
Xiao Zhang was stunned.
Surviving by a hair’s breadth, he felt himself on the verge of collapse. "What the hell is this! Biohazard or alien civilization?"
Suddenly, another purple beam shot from the carriage, hitting Xiao Zhang. Before he could react, his consciousness slipped away.
In his stupor, visions flickered before him—his life flashing like a slideshow through his mind.
His awareness entered a mysterious space; he knew he was conscious, yet sensed nothing good awaited him.
"Host information confirmed."
His mind grew increasingly fuzzy, his consciousness threatening to dissipate. He forced himself to stay awake, to wake up...
"Descent in progress, 1%... 12%... 69%. Warning! Warning! Unknown data intrusion, unknown data intrusion, descent terminated, descent terminated."
"Data reconnection in progress, data reconnection in progress."

"Warning, warning! System forcibly restarted."
"1%... 5%... 69%, warning! Warning! System disconnected."
Just then, a voice echoed in Xiao Zhang’s mind: Hurry up and force-load it!
"Host information forced loading mode activated."
Don’t get distracted. If it fails, the data will reconnect. Another anxious whisper came through.
"Loading data, 1%... 63%... 99%"
"Loading complete, compatibility achieved."
"Data reconnection in progress, data reconnection in progress."
"Connection successful, host information abnormal, abnormal data feedback."
Hurry up and terminate, idiot!
"Feedback terminated, data disconnected, data disconnected."
"Forcible connection mode initiated, forcible connection mode initiated..."
"System forcibly started, system forcibly started..."
"System forced separation program initiated, system forced deletion program initiated."
...
Xiao Zhang sat dazed on the ground, leaning against a large tree, staring at the brick-like object before him. He felt like a fool; the system he’d just acquired was gone before he could use it.
The brick suddenly stirred. "You fool, isn’t it just a low-level, trashy, ordinary system? I could whip up hundreds for you if you want!"