Chapter 687: He Is the Old Train (Nuclear Energy Continuation)

The Locomotive was named "Portable Home’s Little Train." Portable Home, in turn, called the Locomotive "Old Train." This proved one thing: the locomotive before them was Grandfather Train.

Logically, this made sense, but the problem was, Grandfather Train should have been trapped in Neizhou. Why was he at the Dark Star Bureau?

Portable Home had now collided head-on with the Locomotive. The wheels of both trains spun relentlessly, revealing faint tracks beneath them. Sparks flew between the tracks and the wheels, and the earsplitting screeching shattered many glass display cases.

Portable Home shouted, "Ah Qi, run!"

Li Banfeng replied, "If I leave, what about you?"

Portable Home yelled, "I'll follow the key!"

Li Banfeng swiftly dashed towards the warehouse door. When he was less than five meters away, the door suddenly began to recede rapidly. Not just the door, but the walls were also retreating. In an instant, Li Banfeng felt danger closing in from behind. He glanced back and saw the Locomotive gaining on him.

Where was Portable Home?

Li Banfeng sprinted frantically, but he couldn't run in a straight line; he couldn't outrun the Locomotive. Left with no choice, he dodged sideways. Li Banfeng veered to the left, thankfully turning much faster than the Locomotive. He rushed to the left wall, intending to use "Unimpeded Travel" to slip through, but discovered that the left wall was also rapidly retreating.

Li Banfeng looked back again; the Locomotive was already right behind him. Unable to reach the left, he turned to the right. The right wall was also rapidly moving backward. He tried all four walls, but Li Banfeng couldn't reach any of them. There seemed to be a strict distance limit between the walls and the Locomotive; as soon as the Locomotive got too close to a wall, the wall would automatically retreat.

Was this the Locomotive's technique? There was no time to ponder this now. Since he couldn't get through the walls, Li Banfeng prepared to go underground. Li Banfeng tried to stomp, but the ground was too hard; he couldn't burrow. This wasn't a matter of unskilled technique; Li Banfeng realized that the warehouse floor severely restricted the "Unimpeded Travel" ability.

Li Banfeng leaped, attempting to pierce the ceiling. He pressed himself against the roof, but still couldn't get through. The Locomotive remained on the ground. For Grandfather Train, flying certainly wouldn't be difficult, but this particular locomotive seemed unable to fly. Li Banfeng stayed pressed against the ceiling, temporarily safe.

The Locomotive's headlights flickered on, and mist swirled around it. Illuminated by the headlights, Li Banfeng got a clear view of the entire warehouse. After the recent chase, all the equipment inside had been affected. All the glass covers were shattered. A pile of equipment lay scattered and overturned on the floor. They must have been hit, even run over, by the train, yet the quality of these devices was undeniable; externally, there was no visible damage.

Li Banfeng, still clinging to the ceiling, quickly moved towards the door. The Locomotive exhaled a large cloud of white mist, and the room's temperature suddenly surged. When Li Banfeng reached the door, the train on the ground also reached it. The door and walls retreated in sync, preventing Li Banfeng from escaping.

"Give it back!" the Locomotive rumbled again, and the temperature throughout the warehouse rose even further. Sweat streamed down Li Banfeng's body; he was nearing his limit. Not only he, but many pieces of equipment also couldn't withstand the high temperature.

The screen of a floor-standing television cracked, and the TV turned itself on. After a burst of static, it even picked up a program. It was a quiz show that had been popular nationwide twenty years ago. The female host was in the prime of her life during the broadcast, indicating that this program was definitely not recently recorded.

A nearby floor-standing radio also turned on: "Dear listeners and friends, on this beautiful spring day, when the grass is green and the orioles sing, Ah Hui wants to bid farewell to all of you. As always, Ah Hui will be leaving temporarily for a while. During this time, Ah Hui's heart will always be with you all, and Ah Hui will continue to strive for the construction of an orderly and civilized New Pulou State."

"Ah Hui?"

"Teacher Song?"

This program should have been a live broadcast. Why could the radio here pick up a Pulou State station?

The TV program reached a small climax. The host said, "Congratulations on completing the first round of questions. Please state your first dream."

The contestant replied, "I want a new dress!"

*Da da da!*

Inside the warehouse, a steam sewing machine whirred non-stop. It quickly stitched a dress, which then flew up to the ceiling and chased Li Banfeng around. After a brief evasion, the quiz show reached another climax. The host said, "Congratulations on completing the second round of questions. Please state your second dream!"

"I want a stereo system!"

Inside the warehouse, several old speakers combined. A DVD player started blasting electronic music, and the powerful bass vibrated through Li Banfeng's chest!

With the oppressive steam, the chasing dress, and the assaulting audio, Li Banfeng was quickly reaching his breaking point. In this critical moment, Li Banfeng quickly approached the right wall. The Locomotive moved right in sync, and the right wall retreated accordingly. Li Banfeng increased his speed, and the Locomotive accelerated with him.

Li Banfeng pushed his speed to the limit, then abruptly changed direction, abandoning the right wall and sprinting towards the main door. The Locomotive wasn't as nimble in turning, and Li Banfeng managed to create some distance. However, the Locomotive had a contingency: a newly sewn dress from the sewing machine, clinging to the ceiling, blocked Li Banfeng's path.

If he chose to dodge, even a single second's delay would allow the Locomotive to catch up immediately, rendering all his previous efforts futile. Since he couldn't evade, he had to charge straight ahead. His Tang Blade flashed out first, stabbing the dress. The sickle followed, both weapons applying force, attempting to tear the dress apart. But they failed; the dress's material was extremely tough. Unable to rip it, he pinned the dress to the ceiling. After Li Banfeng rushed past, the Tang Blade and sickle would release it.

Li Banfeng indeed got through, and the sickle and Tang Blade also successfully disengaged. But to his surprise, the steam sewing machine had never stopped. In that time, it had created over a dozen dresses, which had already reached the doorway and were waiting for Li Banfeng. This time, he had no choice but to go around. If he charged straight through, he would surely get entangled by these dresses. With Li Banfeng's agility, circumventing the dresses was no problem. However, the Locomotive caught up from behind again, and the warehouse door once more receded from Li Banfeng.

More and more steam filled the air, the audio grew louder, and the sewing machine whirred faster and faster. Li Banfeng seemed to be trapped in a desperate situation.

Portable Home reappeared, colliding with the Locomotive once more. This time, it wasn't a head-on collision; Portable Home struck the Locomotive's side. The Locomotive overturned instantly, and Li Banfeng seized the opportunity to dash to the warehouse entrance.

A halo of light appeared, and a boundary line rose at the doorway. This wasn't the first time Li Banfeng had seen a boundary line in the Dark Star Bureau. So far, he hadn't found its source. Li Banfeng pulled out the boundary line switch from his pocket, tugged the wooden lever, and extinguished a small segment of the line. Passing through the boundary line and dashing through the door, Li Banfeng returned to the corridor.

Looking back through the doorway, Portable Home was gone. The Locomotive had righted itself, its headlights still blazing, shining directly on Li Banfeng's face. It spewed thick smoke, its wheels spinning rapidly, seemingly rushing towards Li Banfeng. However, from Li Banfeng's perspective, the train was merely running in place, not moving at all.

After a short while, the Locomotive calmed down. Its headlights extinguished, and the surrounding mist vanished. The steam sewing machine stopped working, and its built-in boiler extinguished its flame. The floor-standing radio returned to the wall, silent. The "stereo system" disassembled itself into six speakers, each returning to its original position. Shattered glass shards floated in mid-air, coalescing to reform into glass covers that settled over each piece of equipment. The dresses that had been sewn did not revert; instead, they opened the wardrobe by the wall and neatly hung themselves on hangers.

In the blink of an eye, the warehouse was spotless. Even the condensation left by the steam was wiped clean by several scraps of fabric near the sewing machine. It was as if no one had ever been there; all traces in the warehouse were erased, except for the floor-standing television. Its cracked screen had also regenerated, but unlike the other equipment, it was still playing the TV program.

"You have achieved three dreams. Do you wish to continue the challenge?"

"I choose to continue the challenge."

"A reminder: you still have three opportunities for outside assistance unused—"

*Screech!*

*Clang!*

The large iron door slammed shut.

Glove asked Li Banfeng, "Boss, do you want to open this door again?"

"Can it still be opened?" Whether it was an illusion or not, Li Banfeng felt the iron door was shut even tighter than before. Li Banfeng hadn't been mistaken. Glove probed the door crack. "More force has been added to this door. With my old abilities, I probably couldn't open it. But it's different now. Give me fifteen minutes, and I can open this door one more time."

Before Li Banfeng could reply, Portable Home spoke, "No, we can't confront Old Train again right now. I'm pulling the carriages; I can't beat him."

Li Banfeng returned to the 16th-floor stairwell. Exiting the stairwell door, he arrived at the elevator lobby. Entering and exiting from the same point, the labyrinth of the stairwell had vanished. Li Banfeng glanced into various offices; everyone was working normally, with no sign of anything unusual. Just moments ago, two trains had collided in the Dark Star Bureau building, and not just once. Had these people noticed nothing at all?

Returning to his own office, Li Banfeng locked the door, hid the key, and entered Portable Home. Inside the room, it was a mess: tables were overturned, shelves had toppled, and Hong Ying was cleaning up. Li Banfeng stepped forward to help, explaining to his family, "Just now, I went to a warehouse in the Dark Star Bureau and encountered..."

Hong Ying righted an overturned shelf. "We all saw it, from Five-Room."

Ninth Mistress was picking up shattered bottles and jars. "I don't think I'm mistaken; that person was Old Train."

Li Banfeng confirmed again, "You're saying the locomotive in the warehouse was Grandfather Train?"

"Yes, it was him."

"Grandfather Train is a train?"

Ninth Mistress explained, "No one can clearly describe what Old Train looks like. Sometimes he's an elderly man with white hair, sometimes a vibrant youth, sometimes a factory, and sometimes a train. He possesses extremely high attainments in industrial cultivation; he has manufactured many things, including his own body."

Li Banfeng tidied the bed and sat on its edge. "Grandfather Train told me himself that he was trapped in Neizhou. I even saw his shadow there."

Ninth Mistress said, "He was my sister's favorite man. I even learned many travel cultivation techniques from him. I absolutely wouldn't mistake him. If you don't believe me, you can ask our Old Master; he knows Grandfather Train best."

Silence fell over the room. After a long wait, Old Master spoke, "Ah Qi, that was Old Train, an incomplete Old Train."

Glove said, "I haven't met this senior, but his skills are truly terrifying. Old Master, even if this senior is incomplete, you still can't beat him?"

"Heh heh, Ah Tao, your words are so sweet," Portable Home chuckled dryly. "He's incomplete, and I'm incomplete. Besides, I have to look out for this whole family."

Li Banfeng confirmed two things with Portable Home. "He kept saying 'give it back to me.' Did he want me to return the train key to him?"

Portable Home replied, "Yes, although he didn't say it explicitly, he definitely wanted to take me back."

"If I don't give him back the key, will he kill me?"

"Yes!" Portable Home affirmed with certainty. "Judging from his stance just now, he intended to take your life."

"Impossible—" Li Banfeng shook his head. "Grandfather Train isn't that kind of person—"

Portable Home said, "I don't know what kind of Old Train you've seen, but the Old Train I know has this temperament. Killing has never been a big deal for him. He'll be friendly one moment and ruthlessly turn on you the next. He's been like this since the day I gained sentience."

Li Banfeng sat on the edge of the bed, his expression blank. He asked again, "He called out 'brother.' Was he calling me?"

"Yes, he recognized you. Otherwise, he would have killed you with his first move."

"Why would he recognize me? If this train is a part of him, and this part has been trapped in the Dark Star Bureau, then this part of Grandfather Train shouldn't have seen me."

Portable Home didn't know about Li Banfeng's experiences with Grandfather Train. He could only deduce based on his own memories: "His other parts should have some kind of connection with this part. How exactly they're connected, I don't know. Ah Qi, don't go looking for him again. Absolutely don't go. I want to save him, but it must be at the right time. Rashly rescuing him, you don't know what the consequences might be. I'm injured and need to rest for a while. Ah Qi, I'm leaving the household matters to you. Don't be reckless."

Li Banfeng suddenly realized. "Old Master, where are you hurt? What medicine do you need? I'll get it."

Portable Home chuckled, "What medicine could cure me? Just let me have two quiet days."

Portable Home fell silent.

Glove whispered in Li Banfeng's ear, "Somehow, I feel like Old Master has truly aged today."

After tidying up the home, Li Banfeng left Portable Home. Back in his office, he called Chen Changrui in.

"Old Chen, any news from above?"

Chen Changrui shook his head. "Since you said you wouldn't attend the meeting, headquarters has put the matter on hold. I heard from Gao Yina that the issue of disbanding the Dark Star Bureau hasn't been brought up again by them."

Li Banfeng nodded. The Dark Star Bureau was temporarily safe.

"You haven't received any other news, have you?"

Chen Changrui was taken aback, unsure what "other news" meant. "Director Li, are you referring to the new batch of reconciler materials?"

"I mean... exactly that."

Chen Changrui replied, "The new materials have all been sent to the warehouse. We learned from past lessons and conducted strict inspections."

Li Banfeng shook his head. "We can't be careless. We must remain vigilant. In a few days, we'll conduct another special inspection." It was indeed time for a special inspection. The number of Three-Headed people was increasing, and all those who had entered the Daoist sect were waiting for reconcilers. One Three-Headed person needed the portion of three normal people. Relying solely on his wife for production and processing, the output couldn't keep up.

Li Banfeng then asked Chen Changrui, "Besides this, is there anything else?"

"No."

Li Banfeng stared at Chen Changrui for a long time. Judging by his expression, Chen Changrui wasn't lying. If the warehouse Li Banfeng entered was indeed the true data room, and two trains had collided inside, the true data room would certainly have been damaged. In such a situation, Chen Changrui should have received information. Since Chen Changrui hadn't received any information, it proved that this warehouse wasn't the true data room.

Where exactly was the true data room? Were the things inside even more astonishing than those in this warehouse?

"Old Chen, have you heard of Cell No. 6?"

In less than a second, Chen Changrui's eyes blinked seven or eight times. Under such circumstances, if he said he didn't know, Li Banfeng definitely wouldn't believe him. After some deliberation, Chen Changrui decided to tell the truth. "I've heard of Cell No. 6. I learned about it from Director Shen. We were on an important mission at the time, with the entire security team deployed. Director Shen suddenly said he needed to return to the Bureau. He selected thirty core personnel, including myself, to go back with him. It was very unusual to have the head of the security team leave the scene during an important mission. After returning to the Bureau, Director Shen left me with a message: if any unexpected situation occurred, I was to report to superiors that there was a problem with Cell No. 6. Having worked at the Dark Star Bureau for so many years, I only knew there were five cells. I asked Director Shen where Cell No. 6 was, but he didn't answer. Afterward, Director Shen didn't show up for the entire day. I suspect he must have gone to Cell No. 6. The next day, Director Shen came to work at the Bureau as usual and even summarized the previous day's mission. He never mentioned Cell No. 6 again."

Chen Changrui's information was limited to this. Li Banfeng asked a detail: "Approximately when did Shen Jingye return to the Bureau?"

"10:30 AM."

Zhong Er entered Cell No. 6 at 3:50 PM, so the times didn't match up. Could it be that time wasn't the crucial condition for the stairwell maze? What, then, was the crucial condition? What exactly caused the warehouse on the 15th floor to appear on the 19th floor? Li Banfeng couldn't find an answer.

That evening, Li Banfeng returned to Portable Home and went to Five-Room. He asked Five-Room Girl to recreate the scene inside the warehouse. This task was usually performed by the projector, but at the time, the projector was controlling surveillance equipment and had remained outside the warehouse, unable to film. Compared to the projector, Five-Room Girl's perspective was relatively limited; her view was equivalent to a train window, missing many crucial details. She couldn't see them.

After watching from start to finish, Li Banfeng found a critical detail: the warehouse walls moved in sync with the train's movement. Li Banfeng watched it twice more and asked Hong Ying, "Is this a travel cultivation technique?"

Hong Ying pondered for a moment. "It's a bit like 'Breaking Paths to Open Roads.' The train was about to hit a wall, with no path ahead, so it extended a path for itself."

Ninth Mistress chuckled, "Let's not talk nonsense. 'Breaking Paths to Open Roads' creates a path. If he had opened a hole in the wall, that would be 'Breaking Paths to Open Roads.' He made the entire wall retreat. How is that like opening a path?"

Hong Ying raised an eyebrow, looking at Ninth Mistress. "Well, then you tell us, what technique did Old Train use at that time?"

Ninth Mistress shook her head slightly. "I can't tell what technique this is."

Hong Ying angrily retorted, "If you can't tell, why so many words? Are you asking for a beating?"

Ninth Mistress sighed. "My saying I can't tell proves that this shouldn't be a travel cultivation technique. Old Train also has great achievements in industrial cultivation. This room likely contains his industrial cultivation techniques."

Hong Ying thought carefully. "Walls moving, yes, I have seen that in industrial cultivation techniques."

While everyone was still speculating, the image began to shake violently. Similar shaking had occurred many times before. Hong Ying scolded Five-Room Girl, "Didn't you eat? Are your hands shaking? Why do you keep shaking like this? You're making me dizzy!"

Five-Room Girl didn't dare speak. Ninth Mistress said, "This is because Old Master is fighting Old Train. Their movements are too fast. When we watch from inside the room, it's naturally shaking violently."

Hong Ying asked Li Banfeng, "Qilang, did you see them fighting at the time?"

Li Banfeng had only seen two collisions. He was busy trying to escape at the time and missed many details. But since Portable Home was injured, it proved they must have had a fierce battle.

Ninth Mistress said, "Ah Qi, check if there are any mechanisms or similar things in this warehouse. If you can find a mechanism, perhaps you can find a way to control the walls."

This was a valuable suggestion. Li Banfeng asked Five-Room Girl to replay the footage repeatedly, and everyone searched for traces of mechanisms in the warehouse. Glove whispered something in Li Banfeng's ear, "Boss, don't forget Old Master's instructions. Now isn't the time." Portable Home had indeed said that it wasn't the time to rescue Grandfather Train yet. However, Li Banfeng would continue to investigate the stairwell. If he entered this warehouse again, he needed to know how to escape.

Late at night, the whole family went to sleep. Li Banfeng sat on the sofa in Five-Room and also fell asleep.

The warehouse scene played again on the wall, the image somewhat blurry, slowly replaced by static. Against the static, the outline of a person appeared: a pretty woman with two braided pigtails, wearing a unique student uniform from Pulou State, similar to a qipao, slowly walking among a bed of flowers. She picked a bouquet of fresh flowers, then turned to face the screen, revealing a faint smile. She seemed to be smiling at Li Banfeng.

A table appeared in front of her, with a vase on it. She placed the flowers into the vase, and the scene on the screen slowly began to change. The flower bed vanished, replaced by a brightly lit studio. Her braided pigtails became a standard 'number five' hairstyle, the student uniform transformed into a white suit, and the pretty student became a dignified and beautiful female host. She was speaking.

"Congratulations, contestant. You have achieved three dreams. Do you wish to continue the challenge?"

"I choose to continue the challenge."

"I must warn you: if you answer this question incorrectly, all your previous dreams will turn to dust. A reminder: you still have one opportunity for outside assistance unused—"

"Time's up. You need to give me an answer quickly."

The voice was neither loud nor quiet, yet no one in Portable Home could hear it, not even Seven-Room's peek-cultivator or Li Banfeng's Thread-Pulling Earring. Red Lotus heard it. Only she heard it, because the voice had a specific target.

Red Lotus silently came to Five-Room. She unfurled her petals, revealing her lotus heart, and spoke to the host on the wall: "What does this mean? Are you threatening me?"

The host on the wall looked at Red Lotus. "I'm not threatening you; I'm just reminding you that your dream is about to come true, and your promise to me should be fulfilled."

Red Lotus waved her lotus leaves. "Is that so? Is it really close to coming true? I feel there's still a considerable distance between me and my dream."

The host maintained a professional smile. "I think the distance is very close. She's not home, he's asleep. I can help you relay some messages. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."

Thank you for your support, esteemed sirs. There will be an extra chapter on the evening of the 31st!