49 Apocalypse Rules

"Sikokun, don’t even think about going in. I can’t let you ruin Lord Rijeka’s plan."

At the gate of Madam Konia’s estate, Gaelic and his men blocked Sikokun, preventing her from entering the grounds.

Sikokun said coldly, "Have you thought about the consequences of doing this?"

"If the Emperor is left with only one heir, he will have no choice but to select that person, even if he doesn’t like them."

Sikokun said no more. She charged forward in a single step, a great hammer taller than half a person materializing in her hands.

"BAM!"

With a single swing of her hammer, two of the interceptors were instantly smashed into a meat pulp. Hiding behind them, Gaelic’s eye twitched as he commanded the remaining dozen or so men, "Stall her!"

The dozen or so men swarmed her. They were all elite Ascenders and possessed a significant numerical advantage, yet they could barely manage to defend themselves.

Sikokun’s strength was terrifying. No one could take a direct hit from her hammer and live, so they could only constantly dodge and use items to bog her down.

In any case, they were well aware that their mission wasn’t to kill Sikokun. They just had to delay her from entering the estate.

Meanwhile, inside a house on the estate, Yelena faced multiple attackers, her mind flashing back to her training with Guan Tong at the academy.

One thing Guan Tong had said back then had left a deep impression on her.

"Are you sure the enemy will be just one person, fighting you one-on-one? What if ten people attack you at the same time?"

Guan Tong had said that while training her to use Psychic Power Flow for full-body defense.

Although she had trained earnestly at the time, deep down she felt that, given her status and with an expert like Sikokun as her personal bodyguard, such a situation was unlikely to ever happen.

But now, Guan Tong’s hypothetical had become reality.

’It’s fine... Teacher’s movements were much faster than these people...’

In Yelena’s eyes, the pressure from these people attacking her from different directions all at once was less than the pressure Guan Tong alone had put on her during the last few days of training.

She instantly circulated her Psychic Power throughout her body to form a defense, blocking the first wave of attacks. At the same time, she immediately took out and used a defensive item to further bolster her protection.

Rijeka was first taken aback by this, then furiously cursed, "What a bunch of useless trash! Get her, now!"

These men were his finest elites. He had them lie in wait specifically to ambush Yelena, hoping to subdue her before she could even use any of her items or abilities.

But to his surprise, they failed right from the start. All their attacks were blocked, causing the plan to end the fight instantly to fall apart.

"It’s the Psychic Power Flow defense from North Star Academy!"

"Her reaction was too fast."

These elite Ascenders knew what they were looking at. They spent most of their time focused on improving their strength, so they were naturally familiar with the public course, "Psychic Power Flow."

Hearing this, Rijeka’s pale face grew even more sinister.

’To think that Yelena actually learned something in just a few short months at North Star...’

His men, having failed in their first strike, prepared to attack again. But this time, Yelena was ready. She made a grasping motion with her hands, and two silvery-white ice swords condensed in her palms.

With a clean spinning slash, she decapitated two of them. Another managed to dodge in time, but his arm was still grazed, leaving a gash.

A visible chill rapidly spread from the wound across his entire body. In just a few seconds, the man froze in place, becoming an ice sculpture!

This was Yelena’s ability, [Master of the Frosty Winter].

She could instantly condense cold air into high-density ice crystal weapons. These condensed weapons came with a "Rapid Freeze" trait; as long as they struck a target, the chill would be transferred into its body, freezing it into an ice sculpture.

"CRACK!"

With a light touch from Yelena’s sword, the frozen person instantly shattered into countless ice crystals that fell to the ground.

This scene terrified the others, and they all retreated a few steps.

Rijeka was also in disbelief. "When did your ability get so strong?!"

Yelena ignored her brother. Holding her two ice swords, she coldly scanned the remaining assassins. "Do you want to become ice sculptures too?"

Hearing this, the men’s expressions wavered. Rijeka roared, "You’ll die an even worse death if you surrender! I have plenty of men outside! What are you afraid of? Kill her!"

"We’ll risk it! Don’t get close! Drain her Psychic Power from a distance!"

Rijeka’s confidants gritted their teeth, knowing that the die was cast. Even if they surrendered now, they would be executed later for attacking the Princess. It was better to fight to the death.

The men no longer tried to engage in close combat. The threat of the ice swords in Yelena’s hands was too great. They planned to use items to wear her down from a distance.

But Yelena didn’t give them the chance.

She threw the two ice swords, which shattered in mid-air, turning into hundreds of sharp ice spikes that flew toward the enemies!

Rijeka and his men scrambled to defend themselves. When they looked again, Yelena was already running toward the back of the room.

"She’s trying to escape through the back door! After her!" Rijeka ordered a few of his men to give chase while pulling out his phone. He dialed a number and roared into it.

"General Puli! Have your men tighten the cordon! If Yelena gets away, we’re all finished!"

...

「North Star. Apocalypse Rules Strategy Research Room.」

In Gao Liangwei’s office, Zhang Minglu was reporting on the situation in the quarantine zones.

"Currently, the most fanatical practitioners are being guided into the quarantine zones in their respective cities. Although a very small number have shown resistance, most have readily agreed, and are even quite happy about it."

"Happy?"

"Yes. The spore addicts have a tendency to gather in groups. This is another discovery, following the ’cherish life’ trait. I have to say, this particular characteristic has made implementing the quarantine plan much more convenient."

"Have these people shown any new changes?" Gao Liangwei asked.

"We conduct physical examinations on a selection of them every day. The results show that their physical stats are continuously improving. Some have even had long-standing physical defects heal on their own..."

Zhang Minglu shook his head helplessly as he spoke. "No wonder so many people get addicted; the benefits from the spores are just too direct. No matter how much we publicize the dangers, people will still want to better themselves. That’s something that can’t be changed."

Gao Liangwei was silent for a moment before speaking. "So, you’re saying that apart from fixing their defects, these deeply addicted individuals haven’t shown any other special physiological changes."

"We haven’t discovered anything special so far."

Zhang Minglu understood that Gao Liangwei was asking if these people, deeply addicted to the spores, were starting to show any trends of "monsterization" in their appearance.

If they did, then preparations for a final purge would have to begin at the very first sign.

"To be honest, I find it a bit strange myself," Zhang Minglu said, confused. "These people have completely accepted the spores’ modifications, both physically and mentally, yet there are still no abnormal changes to their appearance."

"Mm, in any case, keep a close watch on that," Gao Liangwei said. "Also, what are your thoughts on the ’channeling is better than blocking’ viewpoint?"

"That was what Shi Jingyi from the academy said, right? I saw some discussions about it online. It seems some counselor posted the contents of an academy meeting on the web... I think her viewpoint only applies to a minority of people; it lacks universal applicability."

"It’s like that delayed gratification experiment they used to do with children. You get one piece of candy if you eat it now, or two if you wait until tomorrow. Most children would choose to eat it now."

"Adults might think children are foolish, but in reality, adults have their own versions of the delayed gratification test. For example, skipping a late-night snack to lose some weight in the long run... The temptation of the spores is far greater than a late-night snack. How many adults can control themselves? How many can be as strictly self-disciplined as Shi Jingyi?"

Gao Liangwei nodded in agreement. "You’re right."

"However..." Zhang Minglu’s tone shifted. "Risk and opportunity coexist. The hidden intelligence provided by the Director also pointed out that moderate use of the spores can indeed unlock potential and accelerate one’s growth in strength."

"What are you getting at?"

"Director, my idea is, could we select a few official Ascenders with iron wills and have them try to gradually accept and utilize the spores to strengthen themselves? Take Dragon Soul, for example. His will is stronger than steel; he would never become addicted."

"Absolutely not."

Gao Liangwei’s refusal was quicker and more definitive than Zhang Minglu had expected.

"Dragon Soul and the others are powerful individuals that the government has spent immense resources and time cultivating. We cannot afford the risk of losing them."

"Dr. Zhang, I understand how you feel. You can reference the data submitted from various regions on this matter. You can even contact Shi Jingyi and ask her about her personal experience with the ’channeling is better than blocking’ experiment. But you are not permitted to experiment on the base’s Ascenders. That is an order."

"Yes," Zhang Minglu said immediately. "I understand, Director."

"Mm. If there’s nothing else, you can get back to your work."

After speaking, Gao Liangwei looked down to resume his work, but then noticed Zhang Minglu hadn’t left. He looked up again with a questioning gaze.

Zhang Minglu hesitated. "Director, you must have received the news about Shadow appearing in Sakura Prayer, right?"

At the mention of this, Gao Liangwei said flatly, "The Sakura Prayer side hasn’t provided any concrete evidence. Whether that person is actually Shadow cannot be definitively concluded."

"But what if it is? I mean, this isn’t the first time he’s done something like this, as you know."

"..."

Gao Liangwei fell silent.

Shadow was indeed not one to keep a low profile. Ever since he became famous, major incidents involving him had happened one after another, and he was now a figure of intense global interest.

"I’m worried that someone might use Shadow to attack us," Zhang Minglu said. "After all, North Star just recently enacted a new law..."

The "Ascender Behavior Constraint Ordinance" clearly stipulates that Ascenders are not allowed to use abilities or items wantonly in public spaces.

Abilities and items may only be used as a measure of emergency self-defense when facing a life-threatening situation where not using them could result in injury or death.

Gao Liangwei and Zhang Minglu were well aware that if the ordinance were strictly enforced, there would be many Ascenders in violation... especially a top-tier powerhouse like Shadow. It was impossible to restrain him with a single regulation.

"If the Sakura Prayer side can produce evidence proving it really is Shadow, we’ll consider how to handle it then," Gao Liangwei said.