9: Logistics Park and Water Ghost

Heavy rain poured down as black waves lashed against the "black iron cutter's" hardened armored hull.

Fifteen minutes later.

Jiang Ran arrived at the designated coordinates—North City International Logistics Park.

The sight before him made him instinctively slow his cruising speed.

If the city was a forest of concrete, then this place was a labyrinth of steel.

The Logistics Park, which once spanned thousands of acres, was now completely submerged by the flood.

Only rows of massive silver-gray warehouses remained, their roofs poking above the water's surface.

They looked like steel islands floating on the sea.

These warehouses were arranged in neat rows, each as large as a football field.

The parts exposed above the water were about three to four meters high.

Huge, faded numbers were printed on them: Area A (General Goods), Area B (Bonded/Cold Chain), Area C (Heavy Storage).

"This is the gold mine I've been looking for."

Jiang Ran piloted the black iron, silently gliding into the wide "waterway" of the Area B bonded warehouse—

which was right above what used to be the main road.

Although the water's surface was deathly silent, with no sound but the rain, Jiang Ran did not let down his guard.

He glanced at the Full-Spectrum Radar screen on the console.

Green scanning ripples swept across the bottom of the ship.

[Terrain scan complete.]

[Water depth: 12 meters.]

[High-density metal reaction matrix detected...]

The dense cluster of light spots on the screen was almost blinding.

The underwater world was full of treasures!

Heavy trucks that hadn't been evacuated in time, mountains of containers, and countless pieces of industrial equipment lying in the silt.

They all lay quietly at the bottom of the water, awaiting their new master's arrival.

Especially in the loading area at the entrance of the Area B warehouse; the radar showed dozens of regular, high-density metal cubes parked densely there.

"Based on signal characteristic analysis, those are... a fleet of heavy electric forklifts." A flicker of heat flashed in Jiang Ran's eyes.

These industrial forklifts didn't just contain high-strength special steel.

Most importantly, to maintain balance, they were all equipped with solid cast-iron counterweights weighing several tons.

In addition, there were massive high-energy lead-acid or lithium battery packs, as well as high-torque hydraulic motors.

This was exactly the "industrial blood" most needed for the black iron to push for Lv2 and solve its power issues.

"If I devour this batch, it'll be more than enough to upgrade to Lv2."

Just as Jiang Ran was about to order the tentacles to dive and get to work, several eerie red light spots suddenly popped up on the edge of the radar screen.

[Warning: Unknown active heat source detected.]

[Quantity: 15... 20... continuously increasing.]

[Location: Top of Warehouse B3.]

"People?"

Jiang Ran frowned.

But he quickly dismissed the thought.

This was a disaster zone, far from the city center; it was impossible for ordinary survivors to swim here in large numbers.

Moreover, the body temperature of these heat sources... was very low, only around 20 degrees, in a state of semi-hypothermia.

He reached out and turned off the external searchlights, keeping only the radar, and then maneuvered the black iron to silently approach the edge of Warehouse B3.

By the occasional lightning that tore through the night sky, he saw what was on the warehouse roof.

They were indeed "people."

Or rather, they used to be people.

There were over twenty figures wearing the blue uniforms of the Logistics Park, wandering aimlessly across the slippery color-coated steel roof.

Their bodies were swollen and white from being soaked in water, like water-injected pork.

Some of their limbs were even incomplete, revealing stark white bones; there was no blood at the wounds, only grayish-white rotten flesh.

One "person" seemed to catch the scent of a living being.

It suddenly stopped, turned its face—which was unrecognizable from being gnawed on by fish and shrimp—and let out a hoarse roar toward the black iron.

"Roar—"

The sound didn't seem like something human vocal cords could produce; it was more like the rasping of a broken bellows, filled with an extreme craving for raw meat.

[Bestiary Updated: Drowned Infected (Commonly known as: Water Ghost)]

[Threat Level: Low (Individual) / Medium (Group)]

"So the legends are true."

From behind the bulletproof glass, Jiang Ran coldly watched those monsters twitching in the heavy rain.

The flood brought not just destruction, but also plague and mutation.

These unlucky porters were likely trapped here when the flood hit, and then turned into these undead things.

"Perfect, no one to disturb me here."

Jiang Ran felt no fear; instead, he felt a sense of relief.

Having these monsters guarding the place actually meant that other survivors hadn't beaten him to it.

"As long as I don't fall into the water, you're just a bunch of non-threatening organic trash."

He hovered the black iron in a safe area five meters away from the warehouse roof, his fingers lightly tapping the console.

"System, ignore surface interference. Deploy all tentacles."

"Target: Underwater loading area. Begin feeding."

As the command was issued, the low sound of mechanical operation came again from beneath the black iron's hull.

"Plop, plop."

The four silver mechanical tentacles did not burst out of the water with great fanfare.

Instead, like four hidden vipers, they slid silently into the pitch-black water along the bottom of the ship.

Sitting in the cockpit, Jiang Ran looked away from the snarling Water Ghosts and turned his gaze to the underwater surveillance screen on the side.

Compared to that worthless carrion on the surface, the underwater world was the real feast.

The searchlight beams pierced through the murky river water, illuminating the loading platform at the entrance of the Area B warehouse.

There, three neat rows of orange heavy electric forklifts were parked, along with several massive Reach Stackers used for moving containers.

These industrial beasts, once worth hundreds of thousands each, were now like sleeping giants waiting in the silt to be awakened.

"Let's eat."

Jiang Ran tapped his finger.

On the screen, the four tentacles instantly accelerated, rushing toward the forklifts like arrows shot from a bow.

"Zzt—!"

The first tentacle stabbed hard into the chassis battery compartment of a 3-ton electric forklift.

[High-capacity industrial lead-acid battery pack detected... Extracting chemical energy.]

[High-purity cast-iron counterweight detected... Devouring.]

[Hydraulic motor module detected... Analyzing.]

The once-dead underwater world instantly became lively.

Intense blue light rippled across the surface of the tentacles, a visualization of energy being frantically extracted.

The forklift's heavy solid cast-iron counterweight softened and collapsed at a visible rate, turning into a stream of the purest molten steel.

It was pumped through the tentacles into the black iron.

Then came the second, the third... It was a silent slaughter and an industrial plunder.

Compared to the private cars and flimsy kayaks devoured before, these industrial machines were "high-protein beef."

They had no extra plastic decorations; they were made entirely of solid special steel and high-purity copper wire.

Especially those battery packs.

Although they had been soaked in water, under the core's overbearing conversion...

the chemical substances and lead plates inside were forcibly separated and purified, converted into the energy reserves most urgently needed for the black iron's upgrade.

Jiang Ran could clearly feel the deck beneath his feet growing slightly hot.

It was the mechanical core vibrating with excitement due to "over-nutrition."

[Obtained High-Quality Cast Iron: 5 tons]

[Obtained Industrial Red Copper: 200kg] [Obtained High-Energy Battery Essence: 1500 units]

[Hull upgrade progress: 35%... 60%... 85%...]

Watching the progress bar soar like a rocket, the corners of Jiang Ran's mouth curled up uncontrollably.

This was true snowballing!