49 Apocalypse Rules

The five members of Dragon Soul’s team hesitated before the Fog Gate.

They couldn’t be sure what lay within the gate. Why had Shadow entered without a second thought? ’Isn’t he worried about the risks?’

"Captain, let’s go in!" Black Shark said. "If that Shadow guy isn’t afraid, what do we have to fear!"

"I think it will be very dangerous inside, Captain," Flying Eagle said calmly. "The Mist is seeping out from this gate, so there are likely more of it, and more Nightmare Beasts, inside. Most importantly, there’s no guarantee we’ll be able to get back out."

"Flying Eagle is right. We can’t act rashly," Dragon Soul said.

In his heart, he wanted to go in. If he were alone, he would have entered immediately, just like Shadow, without a second thought.

But he wasn’t alone; he had four teammates. If he led them inside and something went wrong, he couldn’t bear the responsibility.

Besides, the five of them didn’t just represent themselves; they represented the officials’ investment. A massive amount of Sublimation Coins had been spent on them. Since they had chosen to accept this support, their lives were no longer just their own—they belonged to the officials.

"...Captain, I don’t think we should go in either. But it’s your call," said Silver Fox.

"Let’s pull back," Dragon Soul said. "We’ll regroup with the armored division and deal with the giant bird Nightmare Beast together. We can’t afford the risk of the team being wiped out."

"Yes, sir."

All four of them obeyed Dragon Soul’s command.

In fact, they had already guessed Dragon Soul would make this decision, as he had always been conservative when it came to team-related choices.

It was just like on Holy Grail Island, when Dragon Soul, as their captain, made the decision not to compete for the Holy Grail.

That decision had ultimately earned their team third place—a very respectable result.

So now, Dragon Soul had once again made a conservative decision.

"However," Dragon Soul added, "after we eliminate the Nightmare Beast, we’re coming back to guard this Fog Gate. If Shadow emerges from here again, we must detain him immediately."

...

’Didn’t those people from the Official Team follow me in?’

After entering the Fog Gate, Guan Tong noticed no one had followed and realized the others must have chosen not to enter.

It was the prudent choice, really. No one knew what lay beyond the gate.

With no one pursuing him, Guan Tong could relax and focus his attention on what was inside.

He found himself in a mountain cave. To his surprise, there was no Mist inside.

’If the place connected to the Fog Gate has no Mist, then where is the Mist coming from... Huh?’

Guan Tong turned and discovered the Fog Gate he had just come through was gone.

’Does this mean there’s no way back? Or is there another way out?’

The reason he hadn’t been particularly worried and had entered the Fog Gate without hesitation was, in fact, because he possessed the "Body Shifting" ability.

Here in the cave, he could feel that his connection to the items linked to his Psychic Power had not been severed.

This meant that, if necessary, he could use Body Shifting to return at any time.

’This cave seems to only have one path forward... Might as well follow it.’

Guan Tong walked forward along the narrow cave path.

Perhaps because there was no Mist, there were also no Nightmare Beasts in the cave.

He encountered no enemies or monsters along the way.

After about ten minutes, he reached a chamber at the end of the cavern, and his eyes lit up with surprise.

’This is...’

He saw a wall covered in murals.

The murals mostly depicted a host of bizarre, multifaceted creatures, inexplicably reminding Guan Tong of reading the *Classic of Mountains and Seas* before he was transported to this world.

At first, he couldn’t make much of it, but after studying them for a while, he was shocked to find that several of the creatures depicted were similar to the Nightmare Beasts that had attacked him in the Mist!

The main difference was that the creatures in the murals possessed organs the Nightmare Beasts lacked.

One image, a creature with four arms and wings, looked very much like the Nightmare Beast that had attacked him right after he came down the mountain.

But that Nightmare Beast had nothing besides its arms and wings but a tube-like torso. The creature in the mural, however, also had a head with an eye and a mouth.

Guan Tong frowned. ’Could the murals be showing the creatures’ original forms? Did they become Nightmare Beasts after being corrupted by the Mist?’

He came to this conclusion because he had personally witnessed Yu Hong turning into a Nightmare Beast.

Back then, more than half of Yu Hong’s face had already been corroded. If it had continued, her entire face would have surely been dissolved by the Mist... No one could know what monstrous form she would have taken in the end.

Guan Tong also noticed that some of the creatures in the murals were incredibly large.

The largest one was so immense its body stretched from the bottom of the wall to the very top. One painting of a five-legged creature perfectly matched the giant Nightmare Beast—of which he had only seen the legs—that he had stumbled upon shortly after descending the mountain.

There was an enormous number of these murals. Guan Tong did a rough count and estimated tens of thousands of creatures, large and small. It made him think of his home, Celestial Water Star, and an idea began to form.

’These Nightmare Beasts... could they be the native inhabitants of another planet? And then somehow, they were corrupted by that strange Mist and transformed into what they are now?’

’But why were they incorporated into one of the Apocalypse Rules and transported to Celestial Water Star? What is the Fire Thief’s purpose in doing this? Is it simply to use them as monsters to cull humanity?’

As Guan Tong was lost in thought, the murals carved on the wall suddenly began to glow.

He took a few steps back, watching cautiously.

The light started as a single point, then slowly expanded to cover the entire wall before rapidly contracting again.

When the light receded, the wall was completely bare. The murals had vanished without a trace, leaving only a small Puzzle Fragment resting silently on a rock on the ground.

’So the mural itself was the Puzzle Fragment?’

Guan Tong looked at the fragment, stepped forward, and picked it up.

He immediately heard the Fire Thief’s voice echo in his mind.

[You have obtained: Qimo Star Chronicles - Fragment 3]

’Qimo Star Chronicles...’

Guan Tong immediately opened his inventory and selected the Puzzle Fragment.

[Qimo Star Chronicles - Fragment 3]: A section of a mural recording the history of Qimo Star. There are 5 Puzzle Fragments in total. Assembling them all will grant the complete *Qimo Star Chronicles*. The holder of a fragment can sense the location of the others. This item cannot be destroyed and is tradeable.

’I see...’

After reading the item description, Guan Tong finally understood the significance of the Puzzle Fragment.

’Combine all five fragments, and I’ll get the complete *Qimo Star Chronicles*—which must be the complete mural.’

’And the contents of the complete mural must be the historical records of this planet called Qimo Star.’

’It might explain why the creatures on this planet were all turned into Nightmare Beasts...’

Guan Tong remembered the hidden rule mentioning that this fragment was part of "the puzzle behind the Apocalypse Rules." In other words, whatever happened on the planet Qimo Star was likely related to the Apocalypse Rules as well.

’If I want the full story, I have to get the other four Puzzle Fragments.’ Guan Tong made up his mind. ’I have to get them!’

He wasn’t particularly interested in power, wealth, or women; curiosity alone was his strongest motivation for survival.

Therefore, for him, the greatest reward was learning more about the Apocalypse Rules, about other worlds, and about the Fire Thief.

’The holder of a fragment can sense the location of the others... That’s crucial. It can help me find the other holders.’

Guan Tong’s heart surged with excitement. He couldn’t wait to collect all five fragments and find out what really happened on Qimo Star, and how it was all connected to the Apocalypse Rules and the Fire Thief.

Just then, a Fog Gate reappeared before him.

Guan Tong put away his terminal and stepped inside.

...

"Fire!"

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The armored battalion had been bombarding the giant bird Nightmare Beast for over five minutes, but they still hadn’t managed to kill it.

This creature was different from ordinary Nightmare Beasts. Its massive size came not only with increased strength but also terrifying defensive capabilities. Even a direct hit from a tank’s main cannon couldn’t bring it down, which left the Commander at a loss.

They couldn’t even break the monster’s defense, yet seven or eight of their own armored vehicles had already been destroyed or overturned. Although the soldiers inside had managed to save themselves by evacuating to other vehicles in time, this couldn’t go on.

"Dragon Soul, can your team figure out a way to deal with this thing?" the Commander asked, forced to turn to the squad of Ascenders.

Dragon Soul and his four teammates had just returned. Seeing the situation, they weren’t optimistic.

Although all five of them had received a massive boost to their maximum Psychic Power from the eighth rule (while also being bound by the Mind Lock), in terms of sheer destructive power, they were no match for an entire armored battalion.

If the firepower of an armored battalion couldn’t kill the giant bird Nightmare Beast, then their own abilities and items wouldn’t be able to either.

Dragon Soul, ever cautious, was about to suggest a temporary retreat when something unexpected happened.

A sharp cry echoed from high in the sky, followed by the violent sound of flapping wings.

The force of the wing beats was so great it blew away much of the surrounding Mist, allowing everyone to look up and see the colossal bird—so huge it nearly blotted out half the sky—rapidly flying off into the distance.

It was actually leaving on its own!

Everyone stared, transfixed, until Chen Na suddenly said, "That’s strange. That giant bird actually has a mouth. It can make a sound."

Hearing this, Dragon Soul and the others froze. ’She’s right!’

They had all been so stunned by the bird’s terrifying size that they had overlooked that detail.

After all, none of the Nightmare Beasts they had encountered in the Mist had any facial features like a mouth, nose, eyes, or ears. They were silent, the only sounds they made being the rush of air when they moved or attacked.

But that giant bird was able to cry out. Why? ’Could it be that it’s not a Nightmare Beast? What in the world is going on?’

No one knew the answer. Suddenly, a jolt went through Dragon Soul. "Quick, back to the Fog Gate!"

He and his teammates immediately returned to the spot they had marked where the Fog Gate had disappeared. A new Fog Gate had appeared at some unknown time, but they hadn’t seen anyone go in or out.

Dragon Soul said, "My guess is that Shadow came out and then left. The giant bird’s cry and subsequent departure must be related to something inside the Fog Gate."

"...Captain, let me go in and check it out!" Black Shark finally blurted out. "I know you like to play it safe, Captain, but I’ll go in alone. If anything happens, it’s on me!"

After a few seconds of silence, Dragon Soul nodded. Black Shark immediately charged through the gate. Less than ten minutes later, he walked back out, looking completely bewildered.

Silver Fox asked, "What’s it like in there?"

"It’s just... a cave," Black Shark said, scratching his head. "An empty cave. There’s just one path. I ran to the end and found an empty chamber with another Fog Gate. I walked through it, and it just brought me back out here."

"What..."

"There must have been something in that chamber," Night Owl said, "but Shadow probably took it."

Flying Eagle sighed. "Hah..."

Dragon Soul said, "This is my responsibility. I’ll take the blame."

"Don’t be ridiculous, Captain," Silver Fox said with a shrug. "We all agreed not to go in earlier. Besides, so what if Shadow took it? ...Judging by the fact that he wiped out the Yongzhou Base, he can’t be a bad guy. It’s better that he has it than some crooked person."