Chapter 435 - 390: The 17th Apocalypse Rule

Chapter 435: Chapter 390: The 17th Apocalypse Rule

Guan Tong walked out of the shelter and saw Shi Jingyi gently patting Coal Ball’s head.

Perhaps because Coal Ball had seen her many times and was familiar with her scent, it was very docile in her presence.

Shi Jingyi heard the footsteps and turned to Guan Tong, smiling. "Congratulations."

Guan Tong touched his cheek. "Has my appearance changed at all?"

"It’s your aura. It’s hard to put a finger on, but I can clearly feel that you’ve changed a lot."

"...True."

Guan Tong had felt the same way when he first saw Shi Jingyi after her own breakthrough.

An Ascender’s aura always changes to some degree after they enter the second stage of Sublimation.

Guan Tong glanced at the time. It was 8:30, half an hour before the new rule would be announced.

He suggested, "Should we try to establish a Mind Network?"

They had tried before and failed.

But now that both of them had entered the second stage of Sublimation, the result might be different.

"Sure."

Shi Jingyi patted Coal Ball on the back. "Go on, go play."

Coal Ball let out a cry and ran off. Shi Jingyi walked over and extended her right hand.

Guan Tong extended his left hand and took her right hand in his.

With a shared understanding, they both channeled their Psychic Power, making contact while mentally chanting, ’Establish Mind Network.’

In an instant, a tingling sensation like an electric current surged through them. An invisible connection, rooted deep in their consciousness, formed between the two.

Shi Jingyi: Can you hear me?

She hadn’t spoken, yet her voice resounded in Guan Tong’s mind.

Guan Tong: I can hear you... We successfully established the Mind Network!

They were both overjoyed. The establishment of the Mind Network meant they could now communicate directly, mind to mind.

This form of communication was unaffected by environment or conditions, impossible to eavesdrop on or interfere with—it was simply one of the best methods of communication possible.

Its only drawback was that it consumed power.

Shi Jingyi said, "Did you notice? Just by exchanging one sentence over the Mind Network, we used up ten points of Psychic Power."

"I noticed," Guan Tong nodded. "That’s not a small cost. And I wonder if it’s affected by distance. Will the consumption increase the farther apart we are?"

"It’s possible," Shi Jingyi said with a smile. "Back during the [Digital Detox] Rule Stage, every Ascender could use the Mind Network to communicate, and aside from a large volume of communication in a short period, it was completely free... Thinking about it now, it was totally like a ’limited-time free trial period’."

"I feel the same way."

They released their hands but could still feel the invisible connection between them.

Shi Jingyi checked the time and said, "I don’t know what the new rule will be. I need to get back to the academy."

With a new rule about to be announced, if it was one that made travel difficult, the academy would surely go into lockdown immediately. It wouldn’t be good for her, a lecturer, to be caught outside.

"Right. Thanks for your help these past few days."

Guan Tong knew that without Shi Jingyi constantly helping him with his Condensation through external guidance, he never would have been able to break through before the new rule was announced.

"It was nothing... By the way, I’m very sorry about what happened to your friend."

Shi Jingyi was talking about Suzuki. Guan Tong’s expression grew serious. "I won’t give up on investigating that. Also, I’ll use the Mind Network to test a way to identify Parasites as soon as I can. I’ll let you know once I have any results."

"Okay. From now on, let’s use the Mind Network if we need to get in touch. As long as neither of us actively disconnects, it will remain active."

After watching Shi Jingyi leave, Guan Tong sat down at the entrance of the shelter.

Even though she had broken through before him, it was still safer for him to be the one to test how to identify Parasites.

It wouldn’t matter if he was exposed and became a target of the Parasites’ hatred; he had no fixed residence to begin with.

Shi Jingyi was different. If she were exposed, her predictable routine between the academy and her dorm would make her an easy target.

’Investigate Suzuki’s death, figure out how to identify Parasites, lead a team to Fahe for a decapitation strike against the Fire Worship Cult’s leadership... That’s what I have to do next. Plus, I need to keep collecting Psychic Power and spend time researching the second stage of Sublimation.’

Guan Tong let out a long sigh. He really had a lot on his plate.

At nine o’clock sharp, the Fire Thief’s voice rang out.

[The Seventeenth Apocalypse Rule has been released.]

[Apocalypse Rule Seventeen: Crimson Gaze]

[Rule Content: For the duration of this rule, Terra Star will, under the influence of a special power, turn an ominous crimson. Any human who looks directly at it will experience an intense, irrational fear. This fear will manifest as auditory and visual hallucinations, causing them to see their deepest terrors. The severity will continuously accumulate until their sanity is destroyed. The rule will last for thirty days.]

[Success Reward: 1000 Sublimation Coins; Silver-Level Survival Chest]

[Failure Penalty: None]

[Remark: If a fatal threat lies hidden deep within the stars, would gazing upon them become a taboo?]

...

After the new rule was announced, a wave of discussion instantly swept across the world.

"It’s a survival rule! A survival-type rule!"

"That feeling of terror, of being at the mercy of these rules... it’s back."

"Yeah. The last few rules let people who weren’t interested in competing sit on the sidelines and get some rest. But this one..."

"Is this rule really that hard? Even for a survival rule—can’t you just stay indoors for a month and not go out?"

"It doesn’t look that hard. You just have to avoid looking at the red star."

On all the major platforms, people were simultaneously lamenting the return of a survival-type rule and concluding that this one wouldn’t be too difficult.

The safest bet was to not go out for a month. If you absolutely had to leave, do it during the day. If you had to be out at night, you could probably avoid it by keeping your head down and staring at the ground.

However, many others didn’t believe this rule would be so easy to get through.

Every nation and organization immediately held serious meetings to discuss countermeasures.

In the North Star Strategy Research Room, Gao Liangwei convened a meeting immediately.

"The higher-ups have already made a decision: the government will issue a curfew for the duration of this rule. No one is permitted to leave the shelters after nightfall."

After Gao Liangwei finished speaking, the attendees all nodded in agreement.

It was the simplest and most direct countermeasure, seemingly confirming the rule’s remark: looking up at the stars had become a taboo.

"However, based on past experience, the rules never reveal everything upfront," Gao Liangwei added. "The hidden information in a survival rule like this is especially critical, so—"

He looked toward the head of the information department, who immediately understood. "I’ll keep a close watch on Ascender’s Home. If the administrator sells any hidden information, I’ll acquire it immediately."

"Good."

"Director, I have a question."

A new face in the conference room spoke up, and everyone turned to look.

Gao Liangwei said, "Section Chief Li, go ahead."

This new face was none other than Li Meng, who had recently joined the Strategy Research Room. His current title was still "Section Chief of the Special Cases Investigation Division," from his time investigating the Qingmei Association kidnapping case.

Li Meng asked, "Given that this is a dangerous survival-type rule, are we still going ahead with the operation against the Fire Worship Cult during this Rule Stage?"

"I can’t answer that question right now. The operation is a joint Human Federation action. It will need to be coordinated and discussed with the committee members from all nations at the upcoming Federation meeting. We’ll make a decision after a consensus is reached."

"Understood."

"Reporting!"

Just then, an employee knocked on the door and entered to give a report.

"In countries currently in nighttime, people are already experiencing issues from looking up at Crimson Terra!"

A chill went through the attendees. The rule had only just been announced, and people were already falling victim to it.

"How stupid can people be? Or do they just have a death wish?" someone couldn’t help but mutter. "The rule spelled it out so clearly, and they still went and looked?"

"Maybe when the rule was announced, some people just happened to be outside, looking up at the sky, and..."

Zhang Minglu urgently asked the person reporting, "What happened to those who looked?"

He was less concerned with why they had broken the rule and more with what the consequences were.

The employee looked down at the compiled information on his tablet. "According to the intel we’ve gathered so far: after gazing at Crimson Terra, some people immediately fell unconscious, some became manic, and others... have shown extreme aggression toward those around them, even forcing them to look up at Crimson Terra as well."