49 Apocalypse Rules

"We must stay. This is our nation’s civilization, and we must be the ones to protect it."

"If we leave this island, we won’t be Yingqi People anymore!"

In the former Capital of Sakura Prayer, those who had chosen to stay gathered together, standing guard before the ancient buildings that symbolized their nation.

They encouraged each other.

"Don’t be afraid, it’s no big deal. Our country has experienced so many great earthquakes in its history, and we’ve pulled through every time. This time will surely be no exception!"

"That’s right. As long as we all stick together, we can definitely get through this."

"Those people who moved to the tropics will regret it sooner or later. And when they want to come back, we won’t accept them!"

"Exactly! The ones who abandoned their homeland are no longer our compatriots!"

Thousands, even tens of thousands, of people gathered together. It was as if the sheer size of the crowd could generate enough courage and strength to convince everyone they could survive the magnitude 10 earthquake set to strike that day.

At noon, the people took out the food they’d brought and began to eat together. They just hadn’t expected an uninvited guest to crash their meal.

First, they heard a series of sonic booms—BANG! BANG!—and then the ground beneath their feet began to tremble.

"Earthquake! The earthquake is here!"

A mere moment later, the tremors suddenly intensified, becoming extraordinarily violent.

A powerful shockwave blasted toward them from one direction, compressing the air. In the instant the wave hit, countless people suffered collapsed lungs and ruptured organs, dying as they coughed up blood.

And yet, that was considered one of the less painful ways to die.

Amid the thunderous shaking, the earth tore itself asunder, rapidly forming a massive chasm.

All the underground pipes exploded. Superheated magma, hot enough to melt steel, erupted from the fissures, creating a lattice of fire. In their panicked desperation, many people either fell into the chasms or were devoured by the flames. The scene was horrifying.

But the most terrifying thing of all was the inevitable consequence for an island nation: a mega-tsunami.

Less than thirty seconds after the earthquake began, the mega-tsunami had already formed. The wave was hundreds of meters high, and it surged forward at incredible speed, completely swallowing the low-lying land.

For many, the last thing they saw was a hopeless "wall of water." Everything in its path—buildings and people alike—was swept away without mercy.

These people who had stayed on the island to protect their ancient architecture watched with their own eyes as everything they sought to defend was devoured in the blink of an eye. And no matter how strong any of them were as individuals, they were utterly defenseless against the mega-tsunami, powerless to save even themselves.

The earthquake lasted only five minutes—a seemingly short time, yet it was enough to completely annihilate the island and everything on it.

However, the secondary disasters triggered by the earthquake would not end when the shaking stopped after five minutes.

The great fissures, the tsunami, the volcanic eruptions, the ecological shifts—all these were gaping wounds that would continue to bleed human civilization dry.

...

"Hsss..."

When Guan Tong’s teleportation completed, he felt an abnormal pain coursing through his entire body, though he didn’t know why.

Fewer than ten people had made it back to the base with him; the other two hundred or so had died at the epicenter. Even though they had braced for this outcome, the reality was still crushing.

"How are you?" Shi Jingyi walked over. Her face was pale from expending so much Psychic Power, but thanks to adequate protection, she was uninjured. Noticing that something was wrong with Guan Tong, she asked with concern.

"It might be because of contact with the Earth Vein Pillar... The shaking was too intense."

Guan Tong wasn’t sure if that was the cause. The internal vibrations of the magnitude 10 Earth Vein Pillar had been immense, and as the one in direct contact, he had taken a massive hit.

On top of that, he suspected it might have something to do with the Wordless Book continuously overheating. The searing heat it generated wasn’t just physical; it seemed to be burning him on a psychic level as well.

"Shadow, I have to take my leave," Dragon Soul said. "I have other assignments."

Once Guan Tong had finished weakening the Earth Vein Pillar, his cooperation with the officials had, for all intents and purposes, concluded.

Since Guan Tong had no intention of officially joining them, it was natural for Dragon Soul to move on to other tasks. After all, the disaster relief efforts for this earthquake were far from over.

Guan Tong nodded and said nothing.

After Dragon Soul left with the other survivors and one of the volunteers, Shi Jingyi, herself a volunteer, remained. She wasn’t part of the Official Team, so it was only natural that she wouldn’t leave with them.

"Aren’t you going back to the academy?" Guan Tong asked.

Shi Jingyi didn’t answer, her brow furrowing as she looked at Guan Tong. "I can feel that your Psychic Power is highly unstable. To be more precise, it’s in a state of complete chaos. Something has to be wrong."

"It might be from overexertion. I’m not sure myself."

’Guan Tong suspected it was related to overusing the Wordless Book. The feeling was awful; he had to get himself back in balance as soon as possible.’

"I need to find a safe place to recuperate, and fast."

Guan Tong had just finished speaking when, before Shi Jingyi could reply, her eyes narrowed. A bright yellow Spiritual Energy Shield instantly materialized, enveloping them both.

Guan Tong froze, startled. He looked up, his pupils reflecting an unbelievable sight.

The next moment, an explosion tore through the roof above them.

"BOOM!!!!!"

A missile-like projectile, a long-range weapon, struck the official base, instantly obliterating the building.

Outside the base, a fifteen-person squad watched the explosion, a jolt running through each of them.

They knew Shadow was inside. The intelligence came from the highest level; there was no room for error.

This type of base was built with blast-proof and earthquake-resistant materials. To destroy it in a single strike meant the weapon used was anything but ordinary.

Their leader, Liu Wen, spoke up. "The Commander-in-Chief’s orders are to confirm Shadow is dead. Only then is the mission a success."

"Yes."

The team sprang into action, spreading out to encircle the target’s position.

’Even if Shadow is powerful,’ they thought, staring at the ruins before them, ’he just came back from the epicenter of a magnitude 10 earthquake. He must be in terrible shape. There’s no way he could have survived that blast.’

But their mission was to find the body, so...

CLATTER.

Suddenly, a sound came from the center of the ruins, and all eyes snapped toward it.

Several fractured steel plates were flung aside as a figure rose from the rubble. He was holding someone in his arms—a woman who looked to be in bad shape. More than half of her face was drenched in blood, and she was unconscious.

The squad members immediately recognized the gravely injured person.

’Is that... the academy lecturer? Shi Jingyi?’

The squad members exchanged glances. They were all elite Ascenders; of course they’d seen Shi Jingyi’s online lectures and studied her material. They had no idea why she was here—the intel hadn’t mentioned her at all.

’Then... the other one has to be Shadow, right?’

They looked at the figure. His entire body was wreathed in pitch-black shadows. Bizarrely, the shadows were shifting and morphing in a highly unstable manner, like some kind of malevolent substance, sending an inexplicable chill down each of their spines.

’It really is Shadow...!’

Jiang Ming, one of the squad members, saw the shadows and immediately confirmed the target’s identity.

The next moment, they watched as the target produced a book from his person. Then, astonishingly, a bizarre-looking house materialized out of thin air.

Shadow opened the door, placed the gravely wounded and unconscious Shi Jingyi inside, then turned to face the squad.

"I swear I’ll kill you all. And everyone who planned this attack. It doesn’t matter who they are—I won’t let a single one of them get away."

Guan Tong’s voice was muffled from beneath his armor, but the sheer, unadulterated killing intent it carried made everyone who heard it shudder, cold sweat beading on their foreheads.

Liu Wen shouted, "Don’t let him scare you! He’s not in good shape! Kill him now!"