Chapter 26

A few minutes ago, Kyle and his family were happily envisioning their vacation.

Suddenly, there was a loud bang, and a metal plate pierced through the armrest between his wife and child’s seats, penetrating the floor of the carriage.

Kyle was terrified and rushed to find the conductor.

Although the other passengers in the first carriage were also startled, they saw the train was still running smoothly and didn’t think much of it.

On the other hand, Kyle, now in the third carriage and visibly agitated, demanded that the conductor stop the train immediately.

The conductor was in a difficult position, saying, “The railway company regulations require us to determine the situation before pulling the emergency brake.”

Kyle took a deep breath and tried to calm down. Rationally, he knew the regulation made sense. If any passenger could cause the train to stop with a simple statement, the railway system would be in chaos. 

Moreover, an abrupt stop could lead to a rear-end collision with the train behind them. If the problem Kyle encountered was minor, stopping the train and causing a collision would result in severe casualties.

With this in mind, Kyle stopped insisting and urged the conductor to quickly check the situation with him.

During this struggle, Yun Xin seemed to sense something was wrong and turned to see the scene.

At this moment, she noticed that many passengers in the third carriage had a death countdown appearing on them.

“Expected to die in 2 minutes and 25 seconds.”

“Expected to die in 2 minutes and 26 seconds.”

“Expected to die in 2 minutes and 23 seconds.”

Time was tight, and Yun Xin didn’t have time to think. She hurried to check the fourth and fifth carriages.

In the fourth and fifth carriages, over 90% of the passengers also had countdowns, with death times only 3-5 seconds apart from those in the third carriage, counting down second by second.

Realizing the urgency, Yun Xin rushed to the first carriage and grabbed the conductor, shouting, “Stop the train now!”

The conductor refused, “The train cannot stop until we understand what’s happening.”

There was just over a minute left, not enough time to convince the conductor.

At that moment, the train began to shake violently.

Yun Xin seized the opportunity and said, “The train is shaking apart and you think it’s fine? Do you think I’ve never been on a train before? This kind of shaking is obviously abnormal. Stop the train!!”

She adopted a tough and relentless demeanor, trying to force the conductor to stop the train.

However, the conductor remained unmoved.

Lin Qin, peeking around the junction between the first and second carriages, asked, “What’s going on? Why are you running back and forth between carriages? Busy much?”

There was no time left. She had to save as many as she could.

Yun Xin deliberately said, “I don’t feel good about this. I want to stay in the first carriage for a while. You all should come over.”

Having checked carriages one through five, she was sure the first carriage was the safest. None of the passengers there were in immediate danger. In the other carriages, there were bound to be casualties.

Even the conductor, who initially had a death time and a thick black mist around him, saw the mist lighten and the countdown disappear after being brought to the first carriage.

Hearing Yun Xin say she felt uneasy made everyone anxious, and one by one, they headed toward the first carriage.

Lin Qin grumbled as he walked, “How accurate are your feelings? It was fine just now, so why does it suddenly feel bad?”

The first and third carriages weren’t far apart. Why would staying in the first carriage be safe, but the third carriage not?

After all, they had tickets for seats in the third carriage! Moving to the first carriage meant standing…

“Watch out!” Suddenly, Lu Lei forcefully shoved everyone into the carriage, but he himself couldn’t get in and remained in the derailing second carriage.

Lin Qin watched in horror as the second carriage derailed and plunged into the trees. A massive explosion came from the carriages behind, sending chills down his spine.

The first carriage continued moving forward for a while before finally stopping.

Looking out the window, Lin Qin saw several carriages crashing into one another. Some carriages were crushed under a concrete bridge, causing both train and bridge to be destroyed.

With just a quick glance, he saw many passengers lying bloodied amidst the wreckage.

Lin Qin covered his mouth, feeling nauseous.

The secretary was in shock. “If we had stayed in the third carriage and not followed her…”

Finally, Zhao Ge, with a hint of conscience, remembered Lu Lei, who had pushed them into the first carriage. “We need to call for help and get ambulances, then go find Lu Lei in the second carriage. It’s thanks to him that we made it, but who knows how he is now.”

“Yes, Lu Lei!” Lin Qin wanted to go find him but felt too queasy to move.

“I’ve already called the police. They’ll be here soon,” Yun Xin reassured everyone after ending her call.

Not far away, Kyle, both shocked and terrified, yelled at the conductor, “Didn’t I tell you we needed to stop the train? If you had listened to me, this wouldn’t have happened!”

The conductor stood stunned, staring at the scene before him.

That morning, Lin Qin had already experienced a plane crash, and now a train crash at noon—too much for one day.

During the plane disaster, passengers were thrown out of the cabin, so he didn’t see the dead firsthand. But the train crash’s carnage, even a brief glance out the window, was something he would never forget.

The secretary, pale as a ghost, reconsidered if she should continue traveling with her boss. 

After all, no matter how generous the travel allowances, she needed to be alive to spend them. Facing two accidents in one day, she felt she needed a psychologist urgently.

Zhao Ge wanted to find Lu Lei but couldn’t leave Lin Qin alone, so he stayed by his side.

While waiting, thousands of rescue workers arrived and began their operations.

After a while, Lin Qin felt a bit better. He looked up at Yun Xin and said, “From now on, whatever you find out, you must tell us immediately.”

Yun Xin felt helpless. When she first noticed the countdown, only two minutes were left. Confirming the situation in other carriages took time. Going to find the conductor also took time.

If the conductor had been persuaded, everyone could have been saved. Unfortunately, he was extremely stubborn and refused to listen no matter what.

If Yun Xin hadn’t discovered that staying in the first carriage was safe, she might have had to jump off the train before the countdown hit zero to save herself…

“Sometimes my sixth sense works, sometimes it doesn’t. I can’t say for sure,” Yun Xin complained, half-jokingly.

Lin Qin, with a dark expression, replied, “I don’t care if it works or not. Just tell me first, and I’ll judge.”

“Alright, I understand,” Yun Xin agreed readily. Whether she would actually follow through remained to be seen.

Nearby, the secretary, after an intense internal struggle, finally spoke up, “Boss, I might not be able to go on this business trip.”

Lin Qin was about to say, “You’re an important member; we can’t do without you!” But seeing her pale and shaken expression, he couldn’t bring himself to say it—he himself was scared, let alone a young woman.

“Alright, I’ll give you a week’s paid leave. Go home and rest,” Lin Qin said, offering special treatment.

The secretary hesitated, wanting to say something but remaining silent. She actually wanted to resign. This kind of ordeal was unbearable. But on second thought, making a rash decision in the heat of the moment might lead to regret later. It was better to take a break, think it over, and if she still wanted to leave, she could resign after her vacation and after receiving her salary.

With this in mind, she felt a bit better. “Thank you, boss.”

Meanwhile, the injured were being rescued one after another, and Lu Lei was among them.

Seeing Lin Qin, Lu Lei, clutching his arm, gave a bitter smile, “Boss, I might need to go to the hospital. I think my bone is dislocated.”

“Go ahead, I’ll cover the medical expenses,” Lin Qin agreed.

Yun Xin looked at the injured in the second carriage and then at Lu Lei, understanding clearly—others were truly injured, but Lu Lei was faking it.

Lu Lei likely had some special experience, making him physically superior to ordinary people. Seeing everyone else injured, he probably felt that being unscathed would be suspicious, so he pretended to be hurt.

It was a pity she could see through the lie immediately.

Realizing this, Yun Xin said nothing and watched Lu Lei leave for the hospital.

As for whether he actually went to the hospital, who knows?

Lin Qin, looking at the few remaining people, felt conflicted. “Now it’s just the three of us.”

They hadn’t even reached the concert city yet, and half the people were already gone. The secretary, Lu Lei, and Qiu Ge—injured, crippled, and one lying unconscious.

“We also lost our luggage,” Yun Xin added.

“So, are we still going to the concert?” Zhao Ge asked, hoping for a specific answer from Lin Qin.

“Yes!” Lin Qin replied fiercely. “After all this, if we don’t go, how can I live with myself?”

Zhao Ge was speechless. In terms of letting people down, Lin Qin never disappointed.

“How will we get there?” Yun Xin asked.

Lin Qin hesitated. They couldn’t take a plane or a train. Driving seemed the only option.

“We’ll charter a car,” Lin Qin decided. “It’ll take about four or five days to get there, just in time for the next concert.”

“We can buy whatever we need on the way. I’ll cover the costs.”

Yun Xin couldn’t help but admire the boss’s determination to chase his idol. If he showed this much dedication to his work, he could have already earned enough to buy a helicopter. “When do we leave?”

Zhao Ge added, “Probably not today?”

Lin Qin shuddered, “Not today! Today doesn’t seem like a good day to travel. Let’s find a hotel for the night and leave tomorrow.”

“Congratulations, player, for surviving the derailment accident in instance number 121321.”

“Due to directly saving two humans and indirectly saving one, your completion rating is ‘C,’ and you have been awarded attribute points: Agility +0.1, Constitution +0.2.”

Yun Xin glanced at the notification and ignored it, instead searching for news reports on the train accident.

After hours of investigation, the cause of the accident was finally determined.

The accident was triggered by the fatigue-induced breakage of the outer ring of the wheel, causing metal fragments to pierce the carriage, which was the metal plate that Kyle and his family encountered.

The broken part caused operational failures, leading to the train’s head separating from the carriages behind.

The second carriage merely derailed into the trees.

The third carriage veered onto another track and crashed into a bridge beside the track. The bridge collapsed onto the carriage, burying it.

The subsequent carriages derailed and collided within seconds.

Ultimately, the train derailment resulted in over a hundred deaths and more than eighty serious injuries.

Only one in ten passengers survived in the other carriages, while all passengers in the first carriage were unharmed.

“Is the world becoming more dangerous?” Yun Xin pondered deeply.