49 Apocalypse Rules

「June 6th. North Star Country, Pinglu City.」

This high-altitude western mountain city, being far from any earthquake epicenters, had not suffered any severe damage.

However, it couldn’t escape the global climate change.

In the drizzling rain, large numbers of people bustled about outdoors.

Transferring the official functions of Capital Yong’an here was a massive undertaking. Other tasks, such as relocating the academy and mobilizing disaster relief supplies, were also being coordinated from the city.

After entering the city under an umbrella, Guan Tong saw several volunteers nearby wearing red armbands and protective raincoats. They appeared to be Pinglu locals, responsible for guiding new arrivals.

In the information society of the past, everyone would have just checked their phone notifications for directions. But with the internet still down for the foreseeable future, people had to revert to the most ancient method: human guides.

Guan Tong also took special note of the many foreigners continually entering the city. He wondered if they had taken advantage of the Human Federation’s open policies to come to North Star before the earthquake disaster.

Just then, a young woman wearing an armband proactively approached Guan Tong and greeted him.

"Hello, do you need any help?"

The woman, a volunteer, had likely come over because Guan Tong had been looking around ever since he entered the city, clearly a newcomer who had just arrived.

Guan Tong asked, "Hello, I was wondering where people from out of town are supposed to stay?"

Since he had promised Shi Jingyi he would be her teaching assistant and cover her classes for a few months, he had no intention of going back on his word.

The academy had moved to Pinglu City along with the other official departments, so naturally, he had made his way here as well.

As for his Book Page Sanctuary, he had indeed left it at sea, figuring it would be safer there. In any case, its seal was strong enough that he didn’t have to worry about water seeping in.

As for Shi Jingyi, she had contacted the academy after speaking with Guan Tong. They agreed on a location, and the academy sent someone to take her to a special medical center to aid in her recovery.

Until she recovered enough to return to the classroom, Guan Tong would be filling in for her.

He and Shi Jingyi had agreed that she would recommend him after a few days, so he couldn’t report directly to the academy’s Pinglu campus yet. He had to find somewhere else to stay in the city first.

The reason he hadn’t waited a few days to come was that he wanted to familiarize himself with the city ahead of time.

The female volunteer wasn’t surprised to hear his question. According to her superiors, a steady stream of people from all over the country—and even the world—would be arriving in Pinglu City, both now and for a long time to come.

"May I ask which city’s sanctuary you were in before?"

"I didn’t stay in a sanctuary."

"You didn’t stay in a sanctuary?" The female volunteer was a little surprised. She hadn’t expected to run into a rare wilderness survivor.

In all her days as a volunteer, this was the first one she’d met. There were few people in the wilderness to begin with, and even fewer had managed to survive the recent earthquake disaster.

"Do you have to have stayed in a sanctuary to be housed in Pinglu?" Guan Tong asked curiously.

"Ah, no, not at all." The volunteer shook her head, snapping out of her surprise. "It’s just that we’re assigning housing by the city where your former sanctuary was located. This way, there’s a higher chance you’ll run into people from your hometown."

"I see."

"Then may I ask where you’re from originally?"

"I’m from Yunhua."

"Yunhua, got it." The volunteer took a map from the backpack she was carrying. It was covered in markings of various colors.

"The area marked with a ’2’ in blue pen is the residential zone for the Yunhua sanctuary. When you get there, someone will be assigned to arrange a room for you."

"Okay, thank you."

"You’re welcome."

Guan Tong took the map, and the volunteer immediately went to help the next person entering the city.

Housing people from the same place together was indeed better than having a chaotic mix of everyone. He might even run into someone he knew.

Holding the map, Guan Tong didn’t rush to the Yunhua lodging point. Instead, he decided to wander around the mountain city for a bit.

Unlike inland cities, this mountain city was completely three-dimensional, divided into many levels from top to bottom. Often, you might think you were on the ground floor, but if you walked to a railing and looked down, you’d discover a dozen more similar "ground floors" below.

This structure was designed to adapt to the mountain terrain, reinforcing the city while also creating more living space.

In fact, without so many levels, it would have been impossible to accommodate the massive influx of people. Adding in the arrivals from abroad, a conservative estimate put Pinglu’s future population at well over one hundred million.

As he walked down the street, observing his surroundings, he brushed past two young women. One of them suddenly stopped in her tracks, staring in stunned disbelief at Guan Tong’s retreating back.

Behind her glasses, the girl’s eyes were wide with incredulity.

’Guan Tong... It’s him, I’m sure of it...’

Her friend, walking beside her, asked curiously, "Qianqian, what’s wrong? Do you know him?"

"Qianqian?"

"Ah..."

Fang Qian snapped back to reality. Seeing her friend’s confused expression, she looked away in a fluster and adjusted her glasses. "It’s nothing. He’s... a former high school classmate of mine."

"A high school classmate?" Her friend looked surprised. "Then why didn’t you say hello? What a rare coincidence!"

Since the age of the Apocalypse Rules began, anyone—be it family or friends—could die at any moment. Many people had already lost everyone they knew, leaving them all alone.

Even if you made new friends during one of the Rules, they might be gone after the next one. So, in an age where everyone was somewhat cold and distant, it was truly rare for any relationship to last.

Therefore, even a relationship like "classmate," which wasn’t considered particularly close in the past, had become all the more precious in this new era.

Fang Qian and her friend were classmates who had joined the academy together and were placed in the same class, only becoming good friends later on.

"I’ll go stop him for you."

Her friend started to chase after Guan Tong, but Fang Qian grabbed her arm. "Don’t!"

"Huh?" Her friend asked, confused. "Why...? Are you two not on good terms?"

Fang Qian’s expression was complicated. She couldn’t bring herself to tell her friend what had happened between her and Guan Tong. In truth, this sudden reunion had caught her completely off guard, and her thoughts were a total mess.

Seeing the pained look on her face, her friend realized there must be some unpleasant history between them and didn’t press the matter.

Fang Qian said, "Qing, why don’t we head back first? I’m not feeling well..."

"Okay, let’s go back then."

As academy students, they had naturally moved along with the academy when it relocated from Yong’an to Pinglu.

However, the academy wouldn’t be reopening anytime soon; it would be July at the earliest before the relocation and personnel arrangements were complete.

After returning to the temporary dormitory area, Fang Qian stayed in her room, thinking about the boy on the street from earlier—the one wearing a black jacket over a t-shirt with a warrior graphic. She was certain it had been Guan Tong.

Although he had grown a lot taller, Guan Tong’s face hadn’t changed much. She wasn’t so unobservant as to mistake him for someone else.

’He came to Pinglu, too?’

After joining the academy, Fang Qian had discreetly asked around and learned that there was no one named "Guan Tong" enrolled, so she knew he hadn’t joined.

She was very surprised by this, because in her judgment, Guan Tong definitely met the admission requirements.

With no contact for over a year, she hadn’t even known if Guan Tong was still alive. She never would have imagined that she would run into him on the street today.

The only thing she was grateful for was that Guan Tong hadn’t recognized her.

"Thank goodness..."

she muttered under her breath. If Guan Tong had recognized her on the street, she truly didn’t know how she would have faced him. She might have just fled in a panic.