Apocalypse: My Items Can Upgrade Infinitely
Chapter 52 - 51: Mechanical Pioneers, Veteran Driver
Lin Feng threw open the door and rushed inside to the bedroom.
Chen Yanyan was lying on the large bed, still unconscious but with a flicker of awareness, muttering softly.
The changes to the RV were definitely related to her.
’Could it be some kind of Superpower for controlling vehicles?’
After a half-second of hesitation at the warning that appeared before him, Lin Feng made a decisive choice and allowed the unknown energy’s intrusion.
As system permissions were opened up, the vehicle’s shaking gradually subsided, but it continued to run on its own, and even more smoothly than before.
Fortunately, for now it had only started the engine and hadn’t yet shifted into gear to drive.
Otherwise, Lin Feng wouldn’t have dared to let it drive around recklessly.
Time ticked by as Lin Feng sat by the bed, tightly holding Chen Yanyan’s hand.
Energy continuously emanated from her brain, flowing into the Armored RV and gradually being absorbed. As it did, the surrounding anomalies dissipated.
At the same time, Chen Yanyan’s feverish head gradually cooled. The frantic rise and fall of her chest subsided, and she fell into a peaceful, deep sleep.
A moment later, at Lin Feng’s soft call, the unconscious Chen Yanyan slowly opened her eyes, confusion written all over her pale face.
"Wh... What happened to me..."
Looking at the panel that appeared before him, Lin Feng smiled with relief and said comfortingly,
"It’s okay. You’ve awakened a powerful Superpower."
[Chen Yanyan, Lv10/19]
[Life Value 60, Physique 56, Spirit 60]
[Superpower Awakening: Mechanical Pioneers (Remote Control of mechanical devices within a certain range)]
[Evaluation: A weak human female. Besides being pretty and having a bit of a brain, she has finally acquired a gifted Superpower with immense potential. Work hard and grow to become the future War Queen who will dominate all.]
The system had named Chen Yanyan’s Superpower "Mechanical Pioneers." It allowed her to use Spiritual Energy to remotely control mechanical devices.
This Superpower was relatively weak in the early stages, with no significant increase in combat power. However, it had immense potential. Once she developed to the Late Stage and could control machinery on a massive scale, Chen Yanyan could single-handedly operate large-scale equipment.
For example, the Armored RV could be upgraded into a war fortress in the future, a mobile platform loaded with countless super-weapons, sending its firepower value straight off the charts.
No wonder the system’s evaluation called her the future War Queen who would dominate all.
The problem was that she was too weak in the early stages. The boost to her Physique was limited; only her Spiritual Attribute was decent.
Without a powerful guardian, it would be difficult for her to mature.
But as luck would have it, Chen Yanyan had Lin Feng—a walking cheat code—to help her. He could provide her with the best mechanical equipment.
Even in her weak early stage, she would be able to bring out this Superpower’s maximum potential.
Seeing the irrepressible smile in Lin Feng’s eyes, Chen Yanyan raised her left hand in confusion. Besides feeling a bit groggy, she didn’t notice any special changes. In fact, she felt even weaker than before she had fainted.
"What Superpower? Why can’t I feel anything..."
Lin Feng released her right hand and explained patiently,
"It’s not related to your Physique, but your Spirit."
"Now, just relax, close your eyes, and clear your mind. Don’t be anxious. Just try to feel it."
Chen Yanyan swallowed, followed Lin Feng’s somewhat mystical instructions, and closed her eyes, entering a state of deep concentration...
Soon, a complete image of the Armored RV appeared in her mind. It was a three-dimensional, transparent schematic where she could even see every single module and component.
Chen Yanyan’s hands trembled, and she was at a loss for what to do.
Lin Feng grasped her right hand again, steadying her.
The man’s reassuring words reached her ears:
"Don’t be nervous. This is your gift."
"Imagine yourself controlling it, driving it."
Chen Yanyan nodded lightly and began to imagine herself in the driver’s seat, skillfully pressing the brake, shifting into drive, and slowly releasing the brake pedal.
As she lay on the bed and imagined the sequence, the Armored RV suddenly lurched into motion, driving forward a few meters.
The lurching motion startled Chen Yanyan. She snapped her eyes open, and the RV immediately began rolling forward uncontrollably. Fortunately, she hadn’t touched the gas, so it was only moving at a slow idle, just over ten miles per hour.
In that moment, as if realizing something, Chen Yanyan began to focus completely. She recalled the strange sensation from before and, in her mind, slammed on the brake and shifted back into Park.
With a mechanical CLUNK, the driverless RV stopped, becoming still once more.
Luckily, no one was around. Otherwise, anyone who saw such a bizarre scene in broad daylight would have been scared stiff.
Inside the RV, Chen Yanyan looked at the man beside her, her face flushed with excitement, and said with a hint of uncertainty,
"Did I... Did I just make it start?"
"I... I think I can control this RV!"
Lin Feng smiled and nodded, affirming her words.
"That’s right, it was you. This is the Superpower you’ve truly awakened: Remote Control over machinery!"
"This ability might seem weak, but when combined with my Superpower, we can bring out its greatest potential!"
"Congratulations, Senior Sister Chen. You’re going to be my personal driver! The for-a-lifetime kind."
Chen Yanyan took a few deep breaths to calm her excitement. At that moment, with Lin Feng’s validation, the anxiety and insecurity that had been weighing on her heart for so long finally lifted.
Chen Yanyan wrapped both of her hands tightly around Lin Feng’s. Her eyes misted over, and with a voice that was trembling yet firm, she said,
"I... I will!"
Lin Feng reached out, cupped her cheek, and then leaned in to kiss her deeply, accepting her promise and affirming his own feelings.
After a long moment, they parted. Lin Feng looked at Chen Yanyan’s crimson face, kissed the back of her hand, and said lightly,
"Alright, as my personal driver, it’s time to hone your skills."
"Get up. Let’s figure out the properties and limits of this Superpower."
Chen Yanyan nodded. The blush faded from her cheeks as she calmed down. She only knew that her Superpower could be a great help to Lin Feng, but she didn’t yet understand its true potential.
She quickly got dressed and sat in the driver’s seat of the Armored RV.
This time, she tried not to move her hands or feet, relying entirely on mental commands to start the RV, shift gears, and drive it around the service area.
With each practice run, she grew more proficient with her Superpower. Soon, she could ace the parking and maneuverability portion of a driver’s test with her eyes closed, right there in the parking lot.
Seeing that the time was right, and with Lin Feng’s encouragement, she steered the RV out of the service area and onto the highway.
Using her Superpower, she remotely accelerated the RV until it was going over a hundred miles per hour. Only then, with a flicker of fear, did she tap the brakes to slow down.
Lin Feng, buckled in beside her, watched his driver perform this incredible feat with some apprehension. He felt he should offer more encouragement.
"Not bad. You’re a fast learner. Now try this: while you’re driving the RV, raise your pistol and try shooting out the window."
Chen Yanyan’s eyes lit up. If she could multitask like that, her effectiveness on the battlefield would skyrocket, and the speed at which she could farm Zergs to Upgrade would shoot up as well.
’As expected of Lin Feng, he’s thought of everything.’
As Chen Yanyan grew more adept at controlling the RV, she started practicing drawing her pistol, sticking it out the window to aim and fire.
Since there was no one around anyway, she used the distant rows of trees for target practice, improving her marksmanship while practicing her psychic driving.
Lin Feng was very satisfied with what he saw.
Of course, he didn’t actually intend for Chen Yanyan to lean out the window and spray bullets.
When pursued by a Swarm, a single Divine-level Pistol wouldn’t be enough to turn the tide of battle.
He was having her do this now to get her familiar with multitasking—and eventually, handling many tasks at once—in preparation for the RV’s future Upgrades.
Ever since learning the RV could be upgraded via fusion, Lin Feng had thought about mounting all sorts of weapons on it.
As an upgradeable vehicle, it was more than just transportation; it was a flexible weapons platform.
’If I mount a Machine Cannon on it, it’ll basically be an infantry fighting vehicle. If I add a smoothbore cannon, it’ll be a Tank.’
This desire to modify the RV had become especially strong after their encounter with the Cyan-winged Zergs that afternoon.
The reason he hadn’t done so during the previous two Upgrades was that even if he mounted the weapons, someone would still need to aim them. Chen Yanyan had to focus on driving, and he already had his own Machine Cannon, so there was no point in him operating weaker weapons.
That was why Lin Feng had originally planned to have Han Yuxin stand armed watch, to make up for their lack of personnel.
But now that Chen Yanyan had awakened the Mechanical Pioneering Superpower, Lin Feng could go wild with modifications, holding nothing back!
He could transform the Lv12 Armored RV, which so far had only focused on stacking Defense, into a fully weaponized vehicle!
If he just mounted ten machine guns with infinite ammo...
He’d be able to dominate the battlefield!