Players, Please Board the Train-Chapter 46: Bottoming Out

"...Most likely a random player. It's unclear whether his mission is the same as ours, or if we need to guard against him attacking us..."
Peng Fengnian, lying in the grass, kept an eye on the factory's movements. With a quick glance, he noticed Xu Huo, who was just within sight moments ago, had disappeared. His pupils twitched in alarm before he could get up, and a sharp force gripped his throat, lifting him off the ground!
"That paper phone of yours looks pretty good. Can I borrow it for a bit?"
Peng Fengnian looked at the young man standing before him, face flushed and disbelief written all over it. "When did you find out?"
"Earlier than you think." Xu Huo crossed his arms, staring at him. "If I were you, the first thing to worry about is whether I’m a friend or foe."
Peng Fengnian glared at him fiercely. His right hand, gripping the Omnipresent String, suddenly shot forward in midair. Dozens of throwing darts inexplicably appeared around him, flying from all directions towards Xu Huo!
Xu Huo spun and caught three darts on his left, swiftly and cleanly dodging the rest. Seeing the green liquid on the dart tips, he raised an eyebrow. Just as he was about to speak, Peng Fengnian suddenly yanked the string’s head backward—Xu Huo smoothly escaped, while the once-flexible string stiffened like a hanging ring and only responded to Xu Huo’s control after two seconds.
Controlling the string to return, Xu Huo stepped back to avoid the opponent’s dart attack. As the distance between them grew, Xu Huo suddenly surged forward, charging straight at Peng Fengnian!
Startled, Peng Fengnian could only recall the darts that barely reached Xu Huo’s heels, then poured a bottle of liquid onto the ground.
The red liquid spread spontaneously across the ground, radiating a distance of several feet. Xu Huo slipped with a kick and fell face-first. Taking advantage of the moment, Peng Fengnian conjured a pitch-black stone and smashed it down on the back of his head!
At that moment, the Omnipresent String slipped under Xu Huo’s armpit and pulled him forcefully to the side. Xu Huo rose with the momentum, grabbed the string through his clothes, and was lifted into the air!
But the black stone flew after him, circling from the front to the back, persistently trying to hit his head!
Xu Huo sent it flying away with a flying kick. Turning his head, he kicked Peng Fengnian, who was already running away, knocking him down. Peng Fengnian fell into the puddle of liquid he had spilled, his limbs slippery like they were coated in oil. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get up.
Catching the darts flying straight at him, Xu Huo watched Peng Fengnian struggle for several minutes until he was exhausted.
"What exactly do you want? Kill me if you want!" Peng Fengnian, unable to get up, lay flat on the ground.
"Middle-aged men get hot-tempered and go bald easily." Xu Huo threw the darts back at him. "I’m a random player, weak on my own. I want to talk about cooperation."
Peng Fengnian craned his neck. "You don’t sound like someone who wants to cooperate."
"Testing the waters can’t hurt. Besides, you’re watching me too." Xu Huo raised his chin. "Want me to pull you in?"
"No need!" Peng Fengnian immediately replied. "The potion effect will wear off in two minutes."
Xu Huo smiled. "Then I’ll wait." He went to pick up the black stone.
When he returned, Peng Fengnian had just gotten up. Brushing grass off himself, his momentum undiminished, he said, "You have to prove you’re a random player. What’s your dungeon mission?"
"Rare items, piglet, labor." Xu Huo answered succinctly.
Peng Fengnian breathed a sigh of relief. "Our missions are the same."
"But the paper phone is my item. If it comes to force, it’s a fight to the death!"
"If I only wanted to steal the item, I could have killed you earlier." Xu Huo toned down his sharpness and said amicably, "I’m sincere."
"Your combat power isn’t up to par, so you’re hiding alone here giving orders to avoid dragging the team down. But several of your teammates have already entered the factory. The Skinner’s three missions—stealing collections—isn’t that hard to accomplish?"
"We all want to get out alive. Our goals don’t conflict."
It was true. Peng Fengnian hesitated before asking, "Have you come up with a plan?"
Xu Huo didn’t deny it. "There’s some risk."
Peng Fengnian’s expression grew serious. "The Skinner dungeon’s survival rate is almost zero. Even C-rank players can hardly pass easily, let alone we are all D-rank players this time. The mission is difficult, so we must use brains over brawn."
"We have no intention of throwing our lives away for this dungeon."
So they were D-rank players.
Xu Huo nodded. "You can’t outsmart it from outside."
Peng Fengnian’s face instantly flushed red as if defending himself, raising his voice, "My specialty suits this better and is more advantageous for us."
"Every dungeon has risks. Without risk, there’s no clearing it." Xu Huo glanced at him. "Did you investigate the Skinner before coming? How much do you know about him?"
"There are multiple dungeons in one station city. Only those who survive can know which exactly. The information that circulates is limited and hard to verify. Even less is known about the dungeon boss."
"I spent fifty thousand White Bills to buy a reliable piece of info—that the Skinner’s skinning knife cannot be used during the day."
Seeing Xu Huo watching him, Peng Fengnian explained, "The other five players also know this. Since your mission is the same as ours, it’s fine to tell you."
"Apparently, when the Skinner holds the knife, he can dissect a person along muscle lines without leaving marks, even skinning them alive completely. If his knife can’t be used during the day, it’s relatively safer for us to operate then."
Normally, everyone thought it better to act late at night when it’s quiet, because the Skinner is active in the factory during the day, leaving little time and opportunity. But that’s a death trap—when holding the skinning knife, the Skinner’s danger doubles. If caught, the outcome is grim.
"Do you really have a way?" Peng Fengnian pressed. Honestly, after hearing Tang Pei’s feedback, he still didn’t have a good countermeasure.
Xu Huo thoughtfully rubbed his chin, not answering but instead reached out. "Let me borrow your phone."
Peng Fengnian gritted his teeth. "Return my item first."
Xu Huo handed him back the black stone, and only then did Peng Fengnian take out the paper phone. "This phone can only contact the paired paper phone. It can’t send texts and only works when held to the ear."
Xu Huo weighed the paper phone shaped like a button phone in his hand. It felt as light as if it had no weight.
"Is there a distance limit?"
"No." Peng Fengnian said, "As long as it’s the paired phone, no matter the location, even if not in the same station or space, you can call. But it’s limited to voice calls only."
He mentioned the same space—so is the game train really traveling through different time and spaces?
Xu Huo didn’t pursue that detail, putting the phone to his ear to try it. It beeped, and a few seconds later, a female player’s voice asked immediately, "Peng Fengnian?"
He chuckled, "Coincidentally, no."