Chapter 498: Chapter 311: This Smoke Is Really Choking

Then participate in the train’s famous "Death Test."

To dissuade those hotheaded scavengers, anyone wanting to take the train’s talent test needs to pay an exam fee.

Three ordinary Pan-energy Crystals each time.

But even so, the crowd still comes in an endless stream, even though the train lowered the exam standards, for three consecutive days, no one passed, but more than three hundred people have been shot on the spot for cheating.

The talent test is also mockingly called the Death Test.

But as those who passed spread the word about the treatment on the armed train, the entire neutral town was in a frenzy.

The train crew’s Level 1 Flight Attendant earns at least 20 points a month, and even the lowest Third-class Soldier in the Armed Corps earns 60 points.

The former can ensure a person no longer goes hungry, and the latter can ensure the whole family doesn’t starve.

But to the scavengers who live day by day on edge, exposed to the elements, this is the least important consideration.

A sturdy and secure refuge that doesn’t make them worry about seeing the zombie’s bloodshot eyes as soon as they open their eyes, or smelling the stench of mutant beasts when they close them, holds a fatal attraction for scavengers who have been struggling in the apocalypse for half a year.

Never mind getting on the train where they provide food, lodging, and a salary, with water, electricity, and stable jobs; even if they had to hand in food daily and got electrocuted every day, there’d still be people flocking to it!

Even if it kills them, they’d probably still shout, "Praise the lord!"

To get into this "Doomsday Civil Service," a great wave of enthusiasm for studying swept through the entire neutral town as people studied the train exam questions daily, chanting slogans.

"Better to take a bullet on the train,

than to gnaw on garbage under it.

Failing the exam and getting shot in the head,

beats ending up as a rotting corpse!"

But adults have limited learning ability, so more people turned to crooked ways.

For example, right now on the main road of the neutral town.

"Real exam papers from the armed train, one-on-one tutoring from a professor at Zijin University, just five packs of instant noodles!"

"The only person who passed this morning recounts the exam, just two Pan-energy Crystals!"

"Manual ’How to build an internal combustion engine’..."

"Wireless earphones, cheating artifact, guaranteed effective!"

"..."

Various hawking cries mixed together, but upon closer listening, none were selling proper things; everything was related to the talent test.

Bai Lu looked shocked, "Can they sell these?"

Giraffe snorted lightly, pointing at a shabby father and son bargaining with a man selling the internal combustion engine manual, "See, someone’s buying it."

"Quite interesting, let’s have a look."

Su Huan chuckled and moved closer as the father and son were just finishing buying the manual.

Seeing the well-dressed Su Huan, they were initially stunned; train conductors always wore no marked uniform, always in black, and seldom showed up, making ordinary scavengers unfamiliar, only intimidated by his clean appearance and handsome looks.

When the father and son recognized the uniforms of the two people behind him, they immediately showed fear.

"We...didn’t cheat, just buying a book to read."

"Don’t worry, I just got on the train," Su Huan chuckled, asking, "How much was this manual?"

Hearing this from Su Huan, the father and son relaxed, their tone becoming warmer, "He first asked for ten Pan-energy Crystals, I said are you robbing me, and finally managed to haggle it down by half."

Su Huan expressed admiration, said some lucky words about getting on the train soon, making the father and son leave joyfully.

They mumbled vaguely, "If your mom was still here, we could have haggled him down by half again!"

Bai Lu came over holding the newly bought manual, whispering angrily, "Conductor, that bastard is too greedy, daring to ask for ten Pan-energy Crystals for a manual that looks like an instruction manual, I could compile one myself with a little reading, and selling it to ten people means a hundred ordinary Pan-energy Crystals, with the crowds in neutral town, it’s easy to sell thousands of them, right?"

Suddenly, Bai Lu noticed the conductor and Giraffe both giving him a peculiar look.

"Why are you looking at me?"

"Did you buy at full price?"

Bai Lu was puzzled, "Isn’t that the standard price?"

Giraffe patted his shoulder, "Trust me, let your wife handle the money in the future."

Bai Lu immediately protested, "Is that the point? The point is these people are cutting into our train’s profits! Conductor..."

Su Huan waved to a young man selling exam papers on the side, who came over quickly.

He spoke softly and respectfully, "Conductor."

Bai Lu was momentarily confused seeing the familiar face, then suddenly realized, "Xiaowang?!"

This was no opportunistic scavenger, but an assistant who usually followed Huang Sea around, normally quiet and with a bit of makeup, Bai Lu didn’t even recognize him.

Xiaowang smiled, putting a finger to his lips.

Su Huan asked calmly, "How are the exam papers selling?"

"Over three thousand in the last two days, each one for two Pan-energy Crystals, pure profit!"

"Raise the price."

Su Huan glanced at Bai Lu and said pointedly.

Xiaowang was stunned for a moment, "Raise it to what?"

"Ten crystals."

After parting with Xiaowang, Bai Lu silently followed behind the conductor, just staring at the people along the road.

"Stop looking, there are only two or three of them like Xiaowang, just covering the cost of the papers."

Su Huan said lightly.

"Xiaowang might not be the first, right?"

Bai Lu suddenly asked.

Su Huan glanced at him, pointing to Bai Lu, joked to Giraffe, "Oh, he’s getting sharp!"

After this brief interlude, the three of them strolled leisurely to the center of the street, as if window shopping before the apocalypse.

The streets were lined with neat four-story buildings, the ground floor being shops.

Taller buildings stood further away behind them.