Chapter 49: The Superstorm

But it seemed Zhao Kuo had worried too much. When it came to mining, Little White was a natural expert. Its thick serpent body relentlessly tore into the wall, quickly creating a large hole. Just as Little White was about to continue smashing into the wall, Zhao Kuo suddenly noticed something and immediately called for it to stop.

Zhao Kuo hurried over and shone a light on the wall. Under the illumination, he saw a crack oozing a black, viscous liquid. He dipped his finger into it, rubbed it between his fingers, and then sniffed it. The smell was nauseating and pungent, but it confirmed what was hidden within the ore vein—oil, the oil he had been longing for!

At this moment, Zhao Kuo was so excited he almost jumped up. After all, he still had a car engine stored in his warehouse, which could upgrade the steam locomotive to an internal combustion engine. The reason he hadn't made the upgrade yet was the lack of oil, a critical resource. Without oil, the internal combustion engine was little more than a decoration.

But now, everything had fallen into place. Zhao Kuo immediately picked up his pickaxe and chiseled a small hole in the wall, shouting, "Tang Yingying, bring all the barrels from the train!"

Tang Yingying quickly responded and ran toward the subway. Soon, several barrels were brought to Zhao Kuo. Watching the black liquid gush out from the wall, Zhao Kuo couldn't contain his joy. This was oil! With oil, he could enter the era of internal combustion engines, and the speed of his subway would undoubtedly surpass everyone else's—by a lot!

In fact, even after two upgrades, the steam locomotive's speed was already unmatched by others. Zhao Kuo and Tang Yingying worked together, using the barrels to collect the oil and transport it to the mineral carriage. Even Little White joined in, its speed making the process incredibly efficient.

After about two hours, the ore vein was completely depleted. Looking at the 2,000 units of oil stored in the mineral carriage, Zhao Kuo and Tang Yingying exchanged a glance and smiled.

2,000 units of oil! The primary internal combustion engine consumed 1 unit of oil per hour, meaning this oil could sustain them for at least 2,000 hours—83 days, nearly three months! Zhao Kuo didn't believe he wouldn't find another oil deposit within the next three months.

This showed just how terrifying the power of the ​Lucky Dice​ was. 2,000 units of oil, if sold, would fetch an astronomical price. However, there was currently no oil on the market, so the exact price was unclear. But Zhao Kuo naturally wouldn't sell such a precious resource.

He retrieved the car engine from the warehouse. All he needed to do now was toss the engine into the steam locomotive, and it would automatically upgrade. As the steam locomotive was enveloped in a white light, moments later, the light dissipated, revealing a brand-new locomotive.

This locomotive resembled the old-fashioned green trains Zhao Kuo had seen, but it was more refined and beautiful, especially with its white patterns, giving it a high-tech feel.

**[Primary Internal Combustion Locomotive]**​

**[Ride the waves of a new era, witness the roar and rumble of the internal combustion engine, and stand at the forefront of a brand-new age!]**​

**[Significantly increases train speed and carrying capacity. Requires oil or gasoline.]**​

**[Consumption: 1 unit of oil or 0.3 units of gasoline per hour.]**​

**[Speed increase: 100 km/h.]**​

[Carrying capacity increase: 2,000 kg.]

100 km/h! This meant the internal combustion locomotive could travel from Lushan Station to the next station in less than a day! However, in practice, the weight of the cargo would slightly reduce the locomotive's speed. But with a carrying capacity of 2,000 kg (2 tons), the impact of weight on speed would be greatly minimized.

Zhao Kuo tested it out. Due to the large amount of oil loaded, the subway's top speed was only 78 km/h, but that was more than enough. In a few hours, they would reach the next station. Listening to the rumble of the internal combustion engine, Zhao Kuo felt as if he had stepped into a turbulent era.

It was a pity, though, that this was the dark and gloomy subway world. If only it were reality.

At that moment, Tang Yingying walked out from the back, carrying a barrel. "These barrels are unusable now. The oil pollution is pretty severe. Look at me—I'm covered in the smell of oil."

"Yeah, I know. I'll buy a new batch. As for the smell, don't worry. We'll reach the next station soon, and we can check into a hotel and take a shower," Zhao Kuo said.

"Even a shower might not get rid of it. But, wow, so much oil! It's worth a fortune! Luo Ping'an wants to buy it—20 subway coins per unit," Tang Yingying showed Zhao Kuo her chat interface.

Zhao Kuo hadn't hidden this from Luo Ping'an and Gu Shan. After all, they were teammates, and information should be shared sometimes. Luo Ping'an's offer of 20 subway coins per unit was quite fair.

After all, oil was a consumable resource, unlike silver or gold, which could be crafted into various items and used indefinitely. Selling oil at 20 subway coins per unit was a sky-high price for ordinary people.

"Is he buying it for himself?" Zhao Kuo asked.

Tang Yingying shook her head. "Probably buying it for someone else. He bought a batch of charcoal from me earlier. He's likely still in the steam era. Besides, who else besides us has entered the internal combustion era?"

Speaking of entering the internal combustion era, they had to thank Tang Yingying. The car engine had come from a friendship treasure chest. In other words, without Tang Yingying's binding, Zhao Kuo wouldn't have entered the internal combustion era so early.

But the discovery of oil was indeed an incredibly lucky event. It seemed Zhao Kuo would have to use the ​Lucky Dice​ more carefully in the future, preferably at critical moments when it could turn the tide.

Looking at the rapidly receding scenery outside, Zhao Kuo yawned.

Tang Yingying noticed and said, "Why don't you take a nap? I'll make dinner and wake you up. After that, we'll take turns keeping watch. If nothing goes wrong, we should reach the next station by midnight."

If nothing goes wrong... As soon as she finished speaking, something went wrong.

**[Attention, all players: A superstorm will arrive in 30 minutes.]**​

**[Attention, all players: A superstorm will arrive in 30 minutes.]**​

[Attention, all players: A superstorm will arrive in 30 minutes.]

The two exchanged a glance. Zhao Kuo rubbed his temples. "Looks like we won't make it to the station tonight. This superstorm is probably stronger than the last one. Let's reinforce the windows to avoid any accidents."