Most white-grade components require only 100 units of Iron Ore to craft. Then, upgrading from level 1 to level 2 requires another 100 units, and from level 2 to level 3, 200 units are needed.
This pattern continues, with each subsequent level requiring an additional 100 units of Iron Ore.
As for most green-grade components, crafting them typically costs 500 units of Iron Ore. Upgrading from level 1 to level 2 requires 200 units, and from level 2 to level 3, 400 units are needed.
Each level upgrade adds 200 units of Iron Ore.
Of course, this isn't an absolute rule.
Some special components, like "Carriage Steel Armor" and "Wind-Fire Wheel," consume more Iron Ore both for crafting and upgrading, especially the "Armor," which is the most resource-intensive component he has ever seen.
So far, he hasn't even witnessed the Supermodel Effect of this component, nor does he know when he'll be fortunate enough to see it.
It's ridiculously resource-consuming.
The level 5 Supermodel Effect of the "Train Auxiliary AI" is Hive Mind.
With each upgrade, the AI's intelligence improves, allowing it to communicate more efficiently with the Train Conductor. Its computational power and information processing capabilities also get enhanced.
On the Train, this translates to the ability to control more components simultaneously—like managing oxygen production while activating the Targeting Radar and locking onto enemies within the radar's range with the Heavy Machine Gun.
Currently, the trend is that most components on the Train are now controlled by the "Train Auxiliary AI," making its leveling up extremely important.
After upgrading it to level 10, he obtained a brand-new Supermodel Effect.
"Train Auxiliary AI Level 10 Supermodel Effect": Can perform network intrusion, decryption, and bypass most network firewalls.
"Network intrusion?"
Chen Mang frowned slightly. This world does have the internet, but it's the apocalypse—who the hell is maintaining the network now? The internet has long since collapsed. This Supermodel Effect feels like it's been over-engineered for nothing.
However, he soon began to ponder thoughtfully. While there's no network in the wasteland, there might still be connected areas in higher-level regions. Perhaps this skill could come in handy someday.
Having it is still better than not.
More skills never hurt anyone.
It's like learning to swim—most people might never fall into water in their lifetime, but if they do, that skill becomes their lifeline.
After upgrading the "Train Auxiliary AI," he turned his attention to the "Auxiliary Universal Wheel."
This was a special component.
It wasn't among the twelve components that a level 2 Train could craft, but he remembered it vividly. Back when he was a Slave on Master Kun's Train, Master Kun had been reluctant to craft the "Auxiliary Universal Wheel."
As a result, the Train wasn't as agile, and when they were nearly surrounded by a Corpse Tide, they had to abandon all the carriages and flee alone.
The effect of this component was simple—it significantly increased the Train's agility, allowing it to make tighter turns without needing to take wide arcs.
Crafting the Universal Wheel was expensive.
It required 5,000 units of Iron Ore, which explained why Master Kun had been reluctant back then. It was indeed pricey, but at least there were no additional Iron Ore costs for upgrades—it was a one-time expense.
This component couldn't be upgraded.
Its level automatically matched the Train's level. For example, a level 2 Train's Universal Wheel would be level 2.
He had tried.
Even with his level 0 permission for Infinite Upgrade, he couldn't upgrade this component. It simply didn't have the option to upgrade.
As the Train's level increased, the turning radius would become even smaller.
After crafting it, three wheel-like structures, similar to aircraft landing gear, appeared beneath the center of each carriage, assisting with turning.
Besides this, Chen Mang narrowed his eyes and turned his gaze to other components he had never upgraded before. Since he experimentally upgraded the "Train Radio"—a seemingly unremarkable component—to level 10 and obtained the "Remote Trading" Supermodel Effect, he had been filled with anticipation for these seemingly ordinary components.
Even if nine out of ten Supermodel Effects were useless, as long as there was one like "Remote Trading," it would be a huge win.
To be honest, he believed that apart from him, no one else in the Iron Ridge Wasteland would bother upgrading the "Train Radio," as upgrading it yielded no noticeable effects.
After scanning the Train cabin, his eyes landed on the "Telescope."
This was one of the seventeen white-grade components available for crafting on a level 1 Train. Like the "Single Bed," it was a single product, not a production line. Crafting this Telescope only cost 10 units of Iron Ore.
A real bargain.
Before he had the "Targeting Radar," the Telescope was almost his only means of scouting distant areas.
After obtaining the Targeting Radar, he hadn't used the Telescope in a long time. It was only when he looked around the Train cabin that he remembered this component.
Crafting it only required 10 units of Iron Ore, and upgrading it cost even less.
It only took 550 units of Iron Ore to upgrade it to level 10.
After upgrading, the viewing distance increased, and the clarity improved, though it still couldn't compare to the Targeting Radar. The Radar could even display the appearance of creatures and information about monsters—details the Telescope couldn't provide, not to mention enemies deep underground or behind walls, which were clearly visible on the Radar.
After reaching level 10, he obtained two Supermodel Effects.
"Telescope Level 5 Supermodel Effect": Can display the level of monsters within the lens.
"Telescope Level 10 Supermodel Effect": Can perform thermal imaging.
Both Supermodel Effects were quite basic, essentially simplified versions of the "Targeting Radar." After all, it was only crafted with 10 units of Iron Ore—you couldn't expect too much. And upgrading it to level 10 only cost 550 units of Iron Ore. At that price, what more could you ask for?
However, this thing was quite suitable for novice Train Conductors.
Originally, Chen Mang had set the Telescope aside, ready to continue inspecting the Train for other components he hadn't crafted yet. But just as he turned his gaze to the Sound System, he suddenly remembered something and picked up the Telescope again.
The first Supermodel Effect was unlocked at level 5.
The second was at level 10.
And upon reaching level 20, the third Supermodel Effect would be unlocked.
Currently, none of the components on his Train had reached level 20, and none had a third Supermodel Effect. A thought suddenly popped into his mind—what would the third Supermodel Effect be if he upgraded this component to level 20?
Of course, it was probably nothing.
Like the "Train Headlight," which had no level 10 Supermodel Effect, some basic components simply didn't have many Supermodel Effects.
But since the "Telescope" required so few resources to upgrade, it wouldn't hurt to experiment.
After consuming 1,550 units of Iron Ore, he upgraded this white-grade Telescope to level 20.
And thus, he obtained the third Supermodel Effect.
"Telescope Level 20 Supermodel Effect": Can see through illusions.
"Illusions?"
A hint of confusion flashed in Chen Mang's eyes. Seeing a Buddhist term like "illusions" in the apocalypse felt incredibly out of place. And he had no idea what it meant—what did "seeing through illusions" even entail?
He immediately picked up the Telescope and looked out at the Slaves sitting on the ground, eating in the cave.
It was fine until he looked.
What he saw left him speechless.
It truly was "seeing through illusions."
Through the Telescope, all the Slaves were now sitting on the ground completely naked, stripped of all illusions.
But...
He looked down at the Telescope in his hand. If this were modern society, this thing would undoubtedly be highly sought after. Not because everyone was a pervert, but because every human being has an innate desire to secretly observe others.
Especially the thrill of peeking at someone's private life—it's addictive.
It wasn't just about seeing people naked.
For example, peeking at someone's diary, checking their social media, or spying on their daily life.
But in the apocalypse, the existence of such a thing was rather pointless.
After all, he was the Train Conductor of the Stellar Train. If he really wanted to, he could just start selecting concubines—why would he need a "Telescope"? He could just have them line up, cleaned and ready, for him to pick one by one.
That's what he thought.
But...
"Hmm."
Chen Mang picked up the Telescope again and looked out at the Slaves. It still felt quite novel. Was this the charm of black technology? It was indeed a bit too "black."
After a moment, he weighed the Telescope in his hand and couldn't help but laugh as he tossed it aside. Here he was, holding a level 20 Telescope—no one would believe he had upgraded a Telescope to level 20.
He could have just upgraded it to level 10 and sold it. Many novice Train Conductors would find it useful.
But it wasn't worth it.
A level 10 Telescope already cost 560 units of Iron Ore to produce.
Novice Train Conductors were dirt poor—how much could he sell it for? If he priced it too low, he wouldn't make much profit. If he priced it too high, those novice Train Conductors couldn't afford it. Besides, they didn't even have a "Train Radio," so there was no way to contact them to sell the thing. There was simply no sales channel.
He couldn't just wander around the wasteland looking for novice Train Conductors. He might as well spend that time mining.
Moreover, he wasn't too keen on exposing his "Infinite Upgrade" secret. A person should maintain some mystery—being too transparent wasn't good.
Finally, Chen Mang turned his gaze to the "Car Audio" and the "Internal Fire Control System." These were the only two components he hadn't upgraded yet. He was particularly curious about the Supermodel Effect of the former.
Oh, and there was one more component he hadn't upgraded.
The "5.56mm Rifle Ammunition Production Line."
It produced the bullets used in the Soaring Dragon Assault Rifle. The last ammunition production line he upgraded was for the Heavy Machine Gun. After upgrading these three components, most of the components on the Stellar Train—aside from some prohibitively expensive ones like the "Armor"—would be at level 10.
Once he upgraded both the Heavy Machine Gun and Rifle ammunition production lines to level 5, he might be able to add some special effects to the bullets, like Armor-Piercing rounds, and obtain corresponding Supermodel Effects.
Then, the Stellar Train would truly be a fully maxed-out level 2 Train.
There were over a dozen level 3 Trains in the Iron Ridge Wasteland, but none of them had the same level of foundation as the Stellar Train, which was still only level 2.
In terms of foundation, he even felt that some level 4 Trains in higher-level regions might... well, that might be pushing it, but the level 3 Trains in the Iron Ridge Wasteland definitely couldn't compare to his foundation.
"It hasn't been easy."
After finalizing his plans, Chen Mang felt a weight lift off his shoulders. Looking at the reassuring amount of Iron Ore on the Train Panel, he leaned back in his chair, satisfied, and lit a cigarette, letting the smoke rise to the ceiling and drift out through the skylight.
It had been so many days since he arrived in this world.
Only now did he finally feel like he had truly established his roots here.
Once he finished mining all the Iron Ore in the Iron Ridge Wasteland, the monsters in the Kunlun Mountains region would never be able to chase him like they did last time.
After three days apart, one should look at someone with new eyes.
But...
Chen Mang glanced at the control screen, where the "No. 4 Living Carriage" and the "Cola Production Line" had their integrity dropped to 70%. Logically, the Train would often take damage.
There must be a way to repair the integrity loss, as it affected the functionality of the components. For example, when the "Spider Leg" integrity dropped, its maximum speed decreased significantly.
Surely, you couldn't just replace the component every time it got damaged?
What kind of family spends like this?
He asked about it in the "Train Radio," but no one answered. Only the "Bloodthirsty Mad Bull Train" privately messaged him, saying that they had once heard a level 3 Train Conductor mention in the Radio that after upgrading the Train to level 3, there was a way to repair damaged components.
Before reaching level 3, you just had to make do with damaged components. If they became completely unusable, you had to replace them.
Chen Mang naturally understood why no level 3 Train Conductors were willing to answer. Firstly, they had no obligation to do so. Secondly, they probably didn't want to tell him, especially since he, a level 2 Train Conductor, was firmly holding the top spot on the leaderboard. They were likely a bit annoyed.
Even if they didn't dare show it openly, they could still choose to ignore him, right?
His response was simple—that wasn't acceptable.
Before leaving the Iron Ridge Wasteland, he would visit each of them personally, especially the "Ziyun," which had once challenged him to a confrontation.
He wondered how the "Ziyun," which had recently challenged him, felt now that the Stellar Train was rapidly climbing and firmly holding the top spot on the "Iron Ridge Wasteland Power Value Regional Leaderboard." They must be feeling a bit of regret.
They were probably praying that he wasn't a vengeful person.
But unfortunately, he was exactly that kind of person.
Without a confrontation, you wouldn't know how "reckless" Chen Man
g's "Mang" really was.
"..."
Chen Mang glanced at the birthmark on the back of his hand—the character for "Mang"—and chuckled softly.
When life is going well, everything feels good.
If only life could always be this smooth.