Chapter 61 Situation and Shadow Armor
"One, two, three, move!"
At the entrance of the Limei Hotel, people wearing only light clothing and masks carried a corpse, moved from a hotel room, onto a vehicle.
The vehicle was a hearse specially dispatched by the authorities to collect corpses. On the first day after the rules ended, numerous hearses shuttled through the city's main roads, hauling away corpses from various gathering points.
At the end of the rules' effective period, with temperatures dropping to tens of degrees below zero, temporarily storing corpses indoors wasn't a problem. But now, with the sun blazing and temperatures rising, failing to remove these corpses quickly could lead to an outbreak of disease.
"One, two, three, go!"
Several people carried another corpse onto the vehicle. During the process, a pair of glasses fell out of the bag containing the corpse.
Xu Xiaotian bent down to pick it up; he remembered it was Teacher Feng's glasses. The latter hadn't survived a high fever and died under these rules.
After all the corpses were loaded onto two vehicles, everyone watched the hearses drive away, their expressions somewhat blank.
The rules have ended, but the psychological trauma they left behind will not.
Many people, to avoid dwelling on these issues, took to the streets without official calls to action, clearing snow and breaking down ice walls.
Others packed their belongings immediately, preparing to leave as soon as the snow melted, far away from this place that had left them with such trauma.
Only the original residents of the Limei Hotel remained.
Even though the hotel was now unrecognizable—collapsed doors and gates, a swimming pool piled high with plastic bags and excrement, and many rooms reeking of corpses—they decided to stay.
The hotel felt like home, and the people they met daily for support and venting were like family. No matter how filthy it was now, they believed that with unity and time, they could clean it up.
Xu Xiaotian, after moving the corpses, returned to the lobby and packed his things. He planned to travel to the capital, Yong'an, as soon as transportation resumed, to join the academy after its reopening.
Like many others, he too had been deeply traumatized by these rules. Yunhua had become a place he wanted to leave and escape from.
"Ding."
His phone rang in his pocket. He pulled it out and his face lit up with joy.
...
To save battery, Guan Tong had turned off his phone midway through the rules.
After finishing his July plan today, he turned it on and found it still had 37% battery.
He wanted to check social news online, but unexpectedly, he received a text message from Xu Xiaotian sent yesterday, the 1st.
"Brother Tong, are you still alive?"
Guan Tong replied simply, "Also alive."
Receiving this message meant Xu Xiaotian had also survived. It was a rare and good thing that someone he knew had survived the rules. After
replying, he browsed the internet.
As expected, most of the information was related to the disaster situation in various places. The most severely affected areas were villages near large cities.
Villages in remote areas were not particularly badly affected due to lower snowfall. However, these villages near large cities had the disadvantage of high population density but lacked the advantage of large cities concentrating their disaster relief efforts.
This led to many similar villages being completely buried by blizzards, a truly horrific sight.
Guan Tong saw videos of villages taken by drones, and the scenes were simply appalling.
Drones flew from one end of the village to the other, capturing footage of houses almost entirely collapsed and buried by the snow, not a single person visible, the entire village vanished in the snow.
One can only imagine the fate of those villagers in such a scene. Even more tragically, it's unknown when their bodies will be recovered, as urban disaster relief efforts will prioritize the city.
"In this way, the future population distribution will likely go to two extremes," Guan Tong thought. "One extreme is an overabundance of people concentrated in those megacities, and the other extreme is a portion of the population choosing to leave the cities, living in seclusion in remote areas, leading a self-sufficient rural life."
Guan Tong tried searching for "Yunhua City," and found quite a few videos.
Clicking on them revealed ice walls everywhere in the city, entire streets of collapsed shops, and large areas of buildings with collapsed roofs.
Without those ice walls, the entire city looked like it had survived a war or earthquake, a scene of utter devastation.
Guan Tong guessed that after this rule was implemented, major cities across the country would likely undergo a large-scale, collective transformation.
For example, after entering the post-apocalyptic era, most shops were empty, with no employees or customers, so they naturally had no value.
Even without this rule's influence, the authorities were certainly planning to demolish all these shops and build other infrastructure more conducive to the survival of the people.
For example, establishing a large-scale supply warehouse in each block. This way, in the event of a similar natural disaster, refugees could receive aid more quickly, instead of the inefficient dispatch of transport vehicles as before.
Of course, Guan Tong didn't know the specifics of the official high-level planning. Being outside that position, worrying was pointless; he should focus on things directly related to himself.
He then searched online for "tradable items" and, sure enough, found many others sharing his concern.
Some posts pointed out that the introduction of tradable items would lead to a Matthew effect, with resources being rapidly siphoned off by powerful figures and organizations.
Others believed that powerful organizations, represented by the government, would likely concentrate resources on a small number of elite Ascendants, accelerating their enhancement and thus securing more resources for the organization, creating a positive cycle.
Many others shared Guan Tong's concerns: the emergence of tradable items would be devastating for solo Ascendants, turning them into "unclaimed prey" for various organizations, all eager to take a bite.
After browsing online for a while, Guan Tong felt the social situation aligned with his assessment and stopped looking, beginning to act according to his plan. Over the
next few days, while waiting for the snow to melt naturally, he sequentially added words, stored bullets, and opened new pages in the blank book.
Wang Yan and Chen Na, the mother and daughter, also heeded Guan Tong's advice, using their free time to increase their mental power limits and further develop their items.
They all worked very hard, even Chen Na, who was only 12 years old, vaguely understood a principle after this experience: to survive, one had to rely on one's own strength.
Several days passed, and by July 8th, their food was completely used up, and the snow on Mingdao Mountain had mostly melted.
Although there was still some snow on the highway, it would only cause problems for small cars; a large truck like Wang Yan's could easily pass.
After discussing it, the three decided to set off for Yunhua City the next morning to first check on Wang Yan's stomach ailment at the hospital. If it wasn't serious, Wang Yan planned to check the national road conditions, and if everything was fine, take Chen Na to the capital, Yong'an.
Guan Tong would also return to Yunhua in the truck, but he didn't plan to go to the capital. He just intended to settle down first, complete his July plan, and deal with the rest later.
The night before departure, Guan Tong opened the [Wordless Book], having already completed the addition of words to the first page.
Looking at the words "Transformed Entity Guan Tong" on it, he infused it with his mental power, summoning it.
After the ethereal humanoid shadow appeared, Guan Tong commanded it to change shape with his mind. The next moment, it transformed into a long, straight line, just as Guan Tong had intended. Guan Tong
glanced at the terminal panel, delighted that this transformation in its ethereal state didn't consume mental energy.
With a thought, he commanded the shadow to transform again. The shadow immediately changed from a straight line into something resembling armor.
Guan Tong had it cover himself in this form, then consumed mental energy to materialize it. The next moment, a pure black "shadow armor" appeared, enveloping Guan Tong's entire body.
"It really works!"
Guan Tong was overjoyed. Transforming his shadow into personal armor for defense had originally been just an idea, but now it was actually possible.
This way, as long as the attack couldn't penetrate the materialized shadow, Guan Tong himself wouldn't be harmed. And as long as his mental energy wasn't depleted, the "shadow armor" could be maintained indefinitely.
"Not bad." He nodded in satisfaction. "With the 'Shadow Armor' and this [Multi-functional Protective Suit], the double protection makes me much less vulnerable to ordinary attacks, significantly improving my personal safety."
Chapter 62 The Official Plan
July 9th, Post-Apocalyptic Rules Countermeasures Research Room.
The atmosphere in the meeting room was somewhat oppressive. Several days had passed since the fourth rule ended, but a population casualty census was still not complete.
This was different from the first rule. The first rule resulted in far more deaths, but most of those deaths occurred at home or in bed, making post-mortem disposal and transportation relatively easier.
This time, however, countless people were swallowed by the heavy snow and buried by collapsed buildings. Even quickly recovering their bodies was difficult, let alone compiling accurate statistics.
A statistical researcher said, "The main difficulty in calculating casualties lies in rural areas. Many villages have been completely buried by heavy snow, becoming 'vanished villages,' and there is a severe shortage of rescue personnel."
"Has there been no progress in robotic rescue technology? Didn't a lot of resources go into research and development after the first rule?"
"Currently, rescue robots are still in the data debugging stage because there are too many different situations they might encounter, making logic processing very complicated..." "
Although it's impossible to calculate specific casualties, based on the current situation and through big data inferences, the total casualties in China may reach the million level, and the total casualties worldwide will definitely exceed the hundred million level."
Silence fell over the meeting room.
"Everyone," said Gao Liangwei, the person in charge. "I think the reason for such heavy casualties is certainly related to the tricky and difficult rules themselves, but we also bear responsibility for our complacency and lack of preparedness."
"Because the 'non-lethal' nature of the first two rules led everyone, including myself, to develop a sense of complacency. We thought that if we couldn't overcome a rule, we could just give up; at worst, our mental strength would weaken, and we'd survive."
"But this complacency is completely wrong! Giving up the rules is just a poison pill used by the Firebringers to lull humanity into a false sense of security. If we obediently swallow it and allow our mental strength to weaken, we will face immense difficulties and heavy casualties when encountering survival-related rules."
Gao Liangwei paused, then continued, "Therefore, after this rule change, we must increase our publicity efforts. We must make every citizen clearly aware of the importance of mental strength, and we must get the academy open as soon as possible!"
"Agreed," an expert nodded. "Many people actually know that mental strength is important, but they're just too lazy to increase their limits through the daily consumption and recovery process. This is also influenced by their environment; if they're in an environment where everyone is striving to improve, they're more likely to become more diligent as well."
"I agree. The academy needs to open as soon as possible, and the admission requirements can be lowered appropriately."
"Lowering the requirements isn't appropriate, is it? The 80-point cap isn't too high already. If it's lowered further, there will be too many applicants, and the academy probably won't be able to accommodate so many students." "
Then let's acquire more land, recruit and build simultaneously! And offer online courses concurrently!" Gao Liangwei waved his hand and said. "
The higher-ups have made a decision. After this rule is implemented, most shops, office buildings, and other structures in the city will be demolished, and the vacated land will be converted into facilities to improve survival rates. The academy is naturally one of them."
Everyone nodded in agreement.
After entering the post-apocalyptic rule era, shops, office buildings, and other structures indeed have little purpose. In fact, they should have been demolished before, but it has been delayed.
This rule has made the higher-ups determined to no longer hesitate and begin a large-scale, comprehensive survival-oriented reconstruction of major cities.
"Then, let's discuss another matter next," Gao Liangwei said. "According to intelligence collected by our country's secret service, all countries in the world that still have strength have launched training programs."
"The Soro Empire launched the 'Eden Project' a month ago. The plan involves gathering the highest-potential Ascended individuals in the nation, allowing them to freely fall in love, marry, and then conceive."
"According to intelligence sources, the project leader believes that children born from the union of two high-potential Ascended individuals will be born with high-potential mental abilities, and these abilities will rapidly increase. The ultimate goal of the plan is to select the so-called 'Son of God' from these children, allowing them to complete all subsequent rules and ultimately control all power."
The experts and researchers in the research lab were somewhat bewildered upon hearing this, instinctively finding the plan absurd.
However, upon closer examination, if children born from the union of two high-potential individuals truly possessed high-potential mental abilities from birth, then it might indeed be feasible.
Because although the interval between each rule varies—ranging from a month to three days—assuming an average interval of 20 days per rule, ten rules would amount to 200 days, and twenty rules to 400 days.
The time from pregnancy to childbirth is roughly nine months, less than 300 days. This means that if a mother can pass a dozen or so rules during pregnancy, the baby can be born safely.
Of course, whether the born baby can pass the remaining rules is another matter. After all, infants don't understand anything; even if adults give them all the mental tools they need, they have no concept of how to use them.
"The conditions for the success of this 'Eden Project' are too stringent," a researcher shook his head. "I don't think it's very likely."
Gao Liangwei said, "The Soro Empire has its reasons for doing this, and we need to keep an eye on it. In addition, the Tulip Federation also has its own plan called 'Operation Wolf Pack.'"
"The plan involves having high-psychic power users fight each other to determine their strength and select a 'alpha wolf.' The 'alpha wolf' will then select other ascendants to form a 'wolf pack' to act together."
"Other countries also have their own plans, and our North Star Kingdom cannot lag behind in this regard." Gao Liangwei turned to someone, "Dr. Zhang, how is the selection process for the apocalypse team going?"
Dr. Zhang, who was in charge of personnel selection, immediately replied, "The current list of selected personnel has reached one hundred people. Everyone has passed a strict background check, and their psychic power limit has reached the excellent rating standard of at least 100 points."
"One hundred people?" Gao Liangwei pondered for a moment, "Top-tier resources are limited, and scattered training will only result in overall mediocrity. We need to select the best of the best, and choose another thirty people from these one hundred, and then form suitable teams and provide personalized training based on their individual abilities and equipment."
"Okay, I'll get on it after the meeting," Dr. Zhang said.
Gao Liangwei nodded, then looked at a middle-aged woman on the right side of the long table: "Dr. Li, how's the acquisition of props in the terminal market going?"
Dr. Li said, "We've selected and acquired over eighty high-value props, and have assigned several dedicated personnel to keep a close eye on the market, making preemptive purchases and scavenging for high-value props. However…"
"However?"
"However, it's clear that other organizations are also acquiring props in large quantities," Dr. Li said seriously. "And it's not just in the terminal market; some organizations are collecting props offline through violence and other illegal means from other Ascended Ones. I think we must stop them as soon as possible."
"I've already made arrangements for this," Gao Liangwei said coldly. "No matter what kind of organization or group it is, anyone who dares to do this must be taken down! No leniency!"
Chapter 63 Returning to Yunhua
A red heavy truck was driving on an empty highway.
Wang Yan was driving, Guan Tong was in the passenger seat, and Chen Na was on the sleeper berth in the back. Their destination was Yunhua City.
It was now July 9th. Several days after the rules ended, the snow on the highway had mostly melted under the scorching sun, and the meltwater had turned the deep ditches on both sides of the road into small rivers.
"Look at all this meltwater, the city's sewers will all be flooded," Wang Yan said. "I wonder what they'll do."
"Mom, the sun is so strong now, the water on the road will dry up quickly, right?" Chen Na, lying on the sleeper berth, said.
"Hmm, that makes sense." Wang Yan nodded and asked Guan Tong in the passenger seat, "Guan, you're a local of Yunhua, what are your plans after you get back?"
"Not many plans, just that I'll prepare for the next apocalyptic rule as soon as I settle down," Guan Tong said.
Wang Yan sighed, "That's true. A month goes by so fast. Today's the 9th, and in about twenty days there will be new rules. Sigh, when will this end?"
"Isn't there forty-nine rules in total?" Chen Na had the optimism of a child. "Four have already passed, which is... one-twelfth. It feels like it's gone by so fast!"
Hearing this, Wang Yan smiled helplessly.
Children don't know how cruel reality is, but she, as an adult, knows it all too well.
If most of the rules were like the second and third, where you could choose to give up the challenge, that would be fine. But if there were many survival-related rules like the first and fourth, then each one would be a major test.
Guan Tong remembered that the Firebringer had clearly stated that after passing the forty-nine rules, they would still have to participate in the apocalyptic operation. The latter's danger was probably much greater than the rules themselves.
However, he felt there was no need to think too much or too far ahead now, or put too much pressure on himself.
Every difficulty is a challenge, and he should just focus on the rules in front of him.
The truck drove for a while, and when it passed the ruins of a village, Wang Yan's face turned unusually pale.
Chen Na, in her sleeper berth, sat up and looked out the window, saying, "Mom, isn't this our village...?"
"...Yes."
We've arrived at Sunjiazhuang?
Guan Tong looked out the window. Looking around, almost all the houses in the village on one side of the road had collapsed. They must have been buried in snow before, but now, eight days later, the snow had melted and revealed themselves.
Roofs, door frames, tiles, wooden beams, composite boards... and all sorts of farm tools and belongings were floating in the melted snow.
If you looked closely, you could vaguely see the floating corpses of some villagers in the overflowing snow.
Guan Tong looked away, turning to look at Wang Yan, who was driving. Seeing her pale face, she asked with concern, "Sister Wang, are you alright?"
"I'm fine... Xiao Guan. I'm just still scared. If I hadn't taken Nana out with me, I'm afraid..."
"..."
Indeed, if they had chosen to stay in the village without rescue, the outcome probably wouldn't have been good.
"I have to take Nana to the capital!" Wang Yan gritted her teeth. "Only there can Nana be safe!"
She had planned this all along, and witnessing the devastation of her village only strengthened her resolve.
Chen Na stared wide-eyed at the village ruins floating in the snowmelt, suddenly blurting out, "Those who bullied us should be dead by now, isn't that a good thing?"
Wang Yan and Guan Tong both turned to look at her in surprise, but said nothing.
The vehicle continued its journey.
The closer they got to Yunhua, the more water accumulated on the road.
When they were less than ten kilometers from the city, the road was like it had just been hit by several days of torrential rain, with the water almost reaching the wheels of large vehicles.
"Did the city drain all the water? Why is there so much water outside?" Wang Yan slowed down, carefully observing the road conditions.
Guan Tong guessed, "It's possible that the emergency department transported a large amount of snow to the outskirts of the city a few days ago before it melted, relieving the pressure of flooding in the city."
"But that makes it difficult to get in and out of the city."
"Yes. But there probably aren't many people going in and out of the city these days."
The truck drove through the water, and after entering the suburbs of Yunhua, they found that the water was deeper, almost reaching the truck doors.
Fortunately, it was a large truck; if it were a small car, the entire vehicle would probably be submerged, and the driver would be sitting helplessly inside.
Fortunately, after driving a while longer, the water on the road gradually decreased. Because the terrain rises as you go into the city, much of the water flows to the lower-lying suburbs.
After the truck entered the development zone, the water on the road was only knee-deep, and some vehicles could be seen driving on the road, but most of them were supply trucks and special vehicles from official departments.
"Xiao Guan, should we go directly to the hospital or take you somewhere else first?" Wang Yan asked Guan Tong for his opinion.
"Let's go to the hospital first, Sister Wang, your matter is more important."
Guan Tong thought for a moment, then took out her phone: "I'll contact various hospitals to see which ones are open now."
After entering the post-apocalyptic era, machines have replaced manual labor in almost every industry, and many people in these industries no longer work.
But important institutions like hospitals are still operating. Although many doctors and nurses have resigned, some have chosen to stay, and others have joined out of their love for medicine—and the government provides extra rewards and support to those who stay in important institutions to ensure their continued operation.
There are many hospitals in Yunhua City, and Guan Tong called five well-known hospitals to inquire. Three of them were still closed, and only two had recently reopened, but the operators said on the phone that there were a lot of patients, and it wasn't guaranteed that they could see a doctor quickly.
It makes sense; after a month of blizzards and freezing temperatures, countless survivors had caught colds and fevers, and the hospitals must be overflowing by now.
But she still had to go. Guan Tong chose a nearby location, but when Wang Yan drove to the edge of the development zone, she was stopped by people in emergency management bureau uniforms.
Two officers approached and, after inquiring about the situation, informed her, "There are a lot of supply trucks moving around in the city right now. Large trucks like yours might cause traffic congestion, so you're not allowed in. Please park in a nearby parking lot."
"Then how will our patient get to the hospital?" Guan Tong asked.
After a brief discussion, the two officers said, "We happen to have a few colleagues who need to drive to work in the city. We can take the patient there. However, there's not enough room for all three of you. Who's the patient?"
"It's me," Wang Yan said.
"Okay, you count as one. There can only be one more person in the car. Let your youngest daughter come with you. We'll talk about your son later."
Guan Tong was speechless upon hearing this, and Wang Yan also said awkwardly, "Oh, you've got it wrong, this isn't my son."
"Sister Wang, then you and Xiao Na can take their car. Getting medical treatment is the priority," Guan Tong said. "I'll go back to the city by myself later."
"This, is this alright? Leaving Xiao Guan here alone…"
The staff member from the Emergency Management Bureau said, "What's there to worry about? He's a young man. We'll take him to the city when there's another empty car. Hurry up, our colleagues are urging us."
"Okay." Seeing this, Wang Yan could only drive her truck to the parking lot first, and then she and her daughter Chen Na got into the Emergency Management Bureau's car and left.
After watching them leave, Guan Tong heard the bureau officer say to him, "If you're going to the city, wait a bit. We might have a car to give you a ride later."
The officer added curiously, "Speaking of which, you're the first private car to enter the city from outside these past few days. I heard the nearby villages and towns are all buried in snow; you've managed to hold on. That's impressive."
Guan Tong nodded, saying nothing more.
He didn't want to wait idly, so after a short while, he decided to walk towards the city.
Chapter 64 Settling Down in Development
Guan Tong walked from the development zone to the city center, witnessing firsthand some of the situations he had seen in videos.
The most striking sight was the complete collapse of the shops along the street, but workers were already carrying out demolition, cleanup, and loading of debris onto trucks. It seemed that the streets would soon be quite empty.
Witnessing the city's ongoing changes, Guan Tong wondered where he could settle down.
He had contacted Xu Xiaotian several times in the past few days. According to Xu, the Limei Hotel was severely damaged, and the water and electricity problems hadn't been completely resolved.
Moreover, the residents there were very hostile to outsiders. After the fourth rule was passed, the long-term residents held a meeting and decided that permanent residents would be assigned exclusive rooms, and outsiders wishing to stay would require a vote from the long-term residents.
Upon learning this, Guan Tong decided against going there.
"Maybe I should go home," he thought.
He hadn't returned home since moving out after the kidnapping incident. Now that the kidnapping gang led by Shen Zuohu in Yunhua had been apprehended, he didn't need to worry about going home.
If he had to worry about anything, it was whether his own building had been completely crushed by the snow. If it had, he wouldn't be able to go back.
Guan Tong decided to go check first.
As he walked, he remembered something else:
he hadn't exchanged contact information with Wang Yan and Chen Na, the mother and daughter. But he figured it didn't matter; they were just strangers who had gone through the same ordeal together, and even if they had, the chances of them contacting each other again were slim.
If fate allowed, they might meet again.
After walking for over three hours, Guan Tong arrived at his apartment complex.
Unsurprisingly, the security booth and gatehouse were all submerged in floodwater.
The situation inside the complex was also dire. When Guan Tong first lived there, there weren't many residents. Now, after the snowstorm, it was nothing but ruins.
He found his apartment building, and sure enough, the roof had collapsed under the weight of the snow. Melted snow water was pouring from many windows, turning the building into a water curtain cave.
Seeing the situation, Guan Tong knew his own home was definitely flooded and uninhabitable. He wandered around the neighborhood and found a small, still standing house—the property management storage room where lawnmowers and other equipment had been stored. This
storage room hadn't collapsed because the canopies of several large trees nearby provided shelter.
The snow had settled on the treetops, and the broken branches greatly relieved the pressure on the roof, making it the only surviving structure in the neighborhood.
Guan Tong immediately decided to stay in this storage room.
It wasn't that he didn't want to go to the official shelters, but he felt that living in such a place was very inconvenient.
Like the Limi Hotel, where a large number of people were sleeping on the floor in the lobby. This meant there was almost no privacy between people.
With so many people in one room, everything you did could be seen. Not to mention others, if Guan Tong wanted to take out the [Wordless Book] and do something, it would definitely be seen and arouse curiosity.
So, whether for privacy or comfort, Guan Tong preferred to live alone. Even if the living conditions were a bit poor, it wouldn't matter; he didn't have high requirements in that regard.
He cleaned up the storage room and spread his sleeping bag on the floor. This loyal companion that had helped him through the fourth rule was now somewhat "battle-worn."
"Looks like I'll have to go to the supply depot to get a new one... As for food, I can just search around the neighborhood."
Guan Tong's bag was completely empty. He did have a Basic Food Box in his storage box, but that was for emergencies, so he wouldn't waste it.
And getting food didn't require going to the supply depot. With so many apartment buildings and residents in the neighborhood, surely he could find some food with a long shelf life.
Not to mention other people's homes, Guan Tong himself still had plenty of food left. When he hurriedly left with the police car, he hadn't taken any food with him; what he had stored was still at home.
Without further ado, Guan Tong immediately went to his own "dangerous building." Just in case he was hit by something falling, he specially summoned his "shadow" to transform into Shadow Armor before entering the building.
The Shadow Armor's duration was short, so Guan Tong quickly went in and out, rushing to his apartment. He waded through the water to the kitchen and opened the high cabinet. Inside were a lot of biscuits, instant noodles, canned food, vitamin pills, and the like. He stuffed them all into his bag and left.
Back in the property storage room, Guan Tong took the food out of his bag and placed it in the corner, letting out a slight sigh of relief.
With simple food and shelter, he could finally focus on development.
He took out the [Wordless Book] and turned to the third page.
Of the July plan he'd set during his walk, the first goal—shadow transformation—had been successfully achieved. The second goal—stocking ammunition for the Silver Hunters—was also progressing daily. The third—writing with "psychic power"—was still not progressing well.
Guan Tong looked at the character "heart" on the third page; in ten days, he had only written this one character. This was because writing on the third page consumed far more psychic power than on the first or second pages.
His current psychic power limit of 124 points seemed considerable, but it was still very difficult to use for writing on the third page.
Moreover, he had tried to utilize the characteristics of "fuzzy needs" to inject psychic power to materialize the character "heart" into the "psychic power" he needed. However, the injected psychic power seemed to disappear without a trace.
This made him slightly frustrated, believing that this attempt might be his first failure. However, he still decided to persevere and finish writing, and judging from the current progress, he should be able to complete it by the end of July.
As time passed, Guan Tong's daily life returned to its previous monotony. Aside from developing his mental abilities, he spent his days taking a few strolls around the deserted neighborhood, which felt quite pleasant.
During this time, Xu Xiaotian called him to tell him that traffic had partially resumed and that he had taken a bus to the capital.
Since the Mental Ability Development Academy had announced that it would officially open on August 10th, Xu Xiaotian wanted to go early. He wanted to avoid any unforeseen disruptions caused by the fifth rule announced on August 1st, which would delay him further.
On the phone, Xu Xiaotian asked Guan Tong if he wanted to come along, but Guan Tong declined after consideration. He preferred to develop at his own pace.
Besides this, Guan Tong also saw two official statements online.
One statement announced large-scale survival-oriented reconstruction in major cities, involving the demolition of many buildings and the construction of numerous new buildings conducive to human survival, welcoming those with relevant professional knowledge to join with generous compensation.
The other statement was a very strong one. The statement reads as follows: Any forced trading of items or Ascension Coins by Ascensionists will be severely punished and will not be tolerated. Those who have been coerced should immediately contact the official authorities, who will dispatch dedicated armed forces to deal with the situation immediately.
After the second statement was released, the voices of many organizations and groups that had been aggressively promoting and recruiting Ascensionists online became much quieter.
Many Ascensionists, seeing this, felt that seeking official protection at this time would bring them security. Therefore, some Ascensionists who had previously acted alone proactively contacted official departments to report and register their mental strength and other information in exchange for protection.
Thus, on July 24th, amidst the ever-changing external situation, Guan Tong, steadily and silently, finished writing the three words "Mental Strength" on the third page of the [Wordless Book].
Chapter 65 The Reserve of Mental Power
"Mr. Liu, please get in the car."
At the entrance of the Jule Company building, a well-dressed young driver opened the back door and smiled at Liu Yuqiang.
Liu Yuqiang frowned as he looked at the long, black-windowed car parked in front of him.
The young driver seemed to sense Liu Yuqiang's displeasure and smiled, saying, "This is our boss's requirement. Every attendee must travel to the meeting place in this type of vehicle. We hope Mr. Liu understands."
"Understood."
Liu Yuqiang knew that "Big Sister" was always mysterious and cautious, and now that she was holding an internal offline gathering of the Qingmei Society, she would definitely be even more careful.
After he got into the back seat, the driver closed the door.
Just as Liu Yuqiang had expected, both side windows were covered with special window film, and a partition was installed between the front and back seats. This meant that those sitting in the back couldn't see outside and had no idea where the car was going. Although
this was essentially no different from putting a black plastic bag over one's head, and using a plastic bag was simpler and more convenient. But this wasn't kidnapping; it was a members' meeting, and the
business owners' dignity had to be considered. The car started moving, and since Liu Yuqiang couldn't see anything, he simply leaned back against the soft seat and closed his eyes to rest, while simultaneously wondering about the purpose of his elder sister's gathering.
Before the apocalyptic rules, the members of the Green Plum Society mainly relied on exchanging and sharing business resources and connections to achieve leading or even dominant positions in various business sectors through mutual assistance.
But in the post-apocalyptic era, business had given way to survival. What would become of these business tycoons? Would they have to struggle like ordinary people? The psychological gap was too great.
His elder sister had previously mentioned in the group chat that the gathering was to discuss the Green Plum Society's future plans, so Liu Yuqiang was quite looking forward to it.
However, the fact that his elder sister hadn't informed the members of the meeting location, but instead sent someone to pick them up by car, and that the vehicle was specially designed to be enclosed, indicated that she didn't fully trust the members, which made Liu Yuqiang somewhat uncomfortable.
He took his phone out of his pocket, only to find it had no signal.
Was there a signal jammer in the car?
Liu Yuqiang put the phone back in his pocket, his brow furrowing even deeper.
...
Guan Tong sat on the mat he'd laid out in the storage room, looking at the words "Mental Power" on the third page of the [Wordless Book]. He didn't immediately inject mental power, but instead silently chanted,
"Increase the upper limit of mental power, increase the upper limit of mental power."
Just like when he wrote "gun" on the second page and silently chanted "I want a shotgun, not a long spear," he was trying to make the [Wordless Book] materialize the result he truly desired.
Although this method was somewhat mystical, and he didn't know if it would actually work, it wouldn't hurt to try.
After chanting several times to ensure there were no other thoughts, Guan Tong injected all his remaining 100 points of mental power into the page.
The next moment, something similar to what happened when he wrote "Ascension Coin" occurred.
The three words "Mental Power" on the page quickly detached from the page, twisting and transforming into a data stream.
The data stream then crashed into Guan Tong's forehead, before floating out again and transforming back into text on the book page.
"Success? Or failure?"
Guan Tong was unsure and immediately opened her personal terminal to check the panel.
[Name: Guan Tong]
[Nickname: Shadow]
[Title: Guardian]
[Mental Power: 0 (126) (10)]
[Ascension Coins: 30]
[Overall Bioinformatics Evaluation: Excellent]
"...What's going on?"
Guan Tong looked at the mental power data on the panel. He knew that the "126" in the first bracket represented the upper limit. The (10) in the second bracket was new; what did it represent?
He thought for a moment, picked up the "Silver Hunter" beside him, and tried to create a No. 2 bullet that required 10 mental power.
On the electronic screen on the left side of the gun handle, the remaining quantity of No. 2 bullets immediately increased by 1.
Guan Tong also noticed that the mental power data on his panel had changed to "0 (126) (0)".
"So that's it. The materialization of the words on the page did not increase the upper limit of mental power, but it was converted into some storable mental power!"
This discovery surprised Guan Tong greatly. Although injecting 100 points of mental power only resulted in the conversion and storage of 10 points, from another perspective, this was a way of indirectly increasing his upper limit of mental power.
He could convert and store more when he had nothing to do. Even if it took 10 points to store 1 point, the upper limit of 126 could store 12 points!
This is similar to storing ammunition for the Silver Hunter; you store it when you don't need it, and when you do, it explodes instantly, unleashing combat power several times greater than usual!
"Excellent! As long as I have enough stored, I can exert the combat power of multiple people at crucial moments."
Guan Tong thought, especially since his "shadow," while powerful, has the drawback of consuming too much energy.
When the shadow exists in physical form, it consumes almost one point of mental energy for every second it exists. With his current maximum of 126 points, the shadow can only exist in physical form for a little over two minutes at most.
If dealing with a single target, two minutes might be enough to decide the outcome. But if facing multiple enemies, two minutes is far from enough.
If he can use the pre-stored mental energy as a "backup energy source," he can greatly extend the duration of the shadow, thereby improving Guan Tong's endurance in combat. So, although
Guan Tong's subjective intention in this transformation was to increase his mental energy limit, and the result on the surface was a failure, he was still very satisfied with the actual effect.
"Today is July 24th, and there's still a week until the fifth rule is released. Currently, my mental energy naturally recovers at a rate of about 1 point every 5 minutes, with a total natural recovery of about 280 points per day...
Unlike 'Ascension Coins,' the words on the pages didn't disappear after this conversion. In other words, it's more like a shadow, which can be directly injected with mental energy for conversion, instead of having to rewrite the words every time it's converted.
I'm not aiming for the maximum conversion rate; as long as I can save 20 points of reserve mental energy each day, I can save 140 points in a week."
Guan Tong was slightly excited.
After a week, at full strength, he would have about 126 points of mental energy, plus about 140 points of reserve mental energy, for a total of over 260 points of usable mental energy! If
all of this were supplied to the shadow, it could exist in physical form for nearly five minutes, greatly increasing its endurance in combat; if used to generate bullets for the Silver Hunter, it could generate 26 No. 2 bullets or 8 No. 3 bullets!
Thinking of the terrifying power of the No. 3 high-explosive bullet, one shot was enough to destroy a small target point. If he could generate eight at once and unleash them all at once… Guan Tong didn't think any enemy at this stage could withstand that, unless, of course, the enemy had some special items.
Thinking of special items, Guan Tong had been resting these past few days, waiting for his mental energy to recover, and had also been checking out the various items on his personal terminal's market.
Of course, he was just looking and not buying; he only had 30 coins left, which he couldn't afford even if he wanted to.
But not being able to buy didn't stop him from looking; he wanted to learn more so that if he happened to encounter something in reality later, he would know what it was.
However, several times, he had just refreshed the page to find an item with a good effect and a reasonable price, only to have it bought by someone else before he could even finish looking at it properly. After several such incidents, he realized that many people were constantly watching the market and buying up items.
But as the saying goes, every snake has its path, and every rat has its way. While
those organizations could rapidly strengthen individuals through resource concentration, Guan Tong had his own methods.
He felt that with his ability to see hidden rules and the combination of the wordless book, he wasn't necessarily developing slower than those people.
Of course, he had considered that with his exceptionally favorable conditions, if he could also receive substantial resources from a powerful organization, his development speed would be terrifyingly fast—but this was just wishful thinking.
Perhaps due to his personality, Guan Tong always harbored a faint sense of insecurity and was unwilling to rely on others. Therefore, he preferred to proceed slowly rather than easily join an unfamiliar group. Guan Tong quickly
composed himself and focused on the present: "I'd better not think too much. I'll spend the next week quietly building up my mental strength and staying at full strength to welcome the release of the fifth apocalyptic rule."