Forty-nine rules of the end times

Chapter 136 We Must Not Let Civilization Decline
"Sister Han, where are we going?"

Chen Na followed Han Ling out of the base and got into a car to go somewhere. On the way, she couldn't help but ask.

Han Ling said, "We'll go to a place in the wild. I've tailored some challenges for you based on your abilities. If you complete them and get first place, you can increase your mental power limit after this rule ends."

"Tailor-made..."

Chen Na is now in junior high school, and the experience of the past six months in the post-apocalyptic era has made her much more mature than girls her age in the past.

She knew that each person could only create one challenge project, so Han Ling's statement meant...

"Sister Han, did you have someone else create this challenge for me?" Chen Na asked.

"Yes."

"But then those people themselves..."

“Chen Na, this isn’t something you should be worrying about.” Han Ling smiled at the girl. “Besides, you don’t need to worry. The people who created the challenge projects for you did it all voluntarily.”

Chen Na was slightly taken aback. Voluntary?
Han Ling explained, “It’s like you voluntarily joined an organization in exchange for medicine and supplies to save your mother’s life. Those people are willing to pay the price of Ascension Coins, items, and specific challenges like those set in this rule in order to gain the protection of our organization. There’s no difference in essence.”

"Oh……"

Before long, the vehicle arrived at a place in the countryside.

After getting off the bus, Chen Na noticed that there was a camp there with many people inside. Judging from the bulging waistbands, they were probably all carrying guns.

“These are all our people,” Han Ling said after getting out of the car. “Don’t worry.”

Chen Na said, "Are they not going to the base to prevent others from challenging them?"

Upon hearing this, Han Ling glanced at Chen Na in surprise, seemingly finding it quite remarkable that Chen Na, at her age, could think of such a thing.

“That’s right. Even if I can provide you with a few customized projects, there are many strong individuals across the country. There might be someone stronger than you in your field. Having appropriate armed personnel guarding the project locations is a good precaution.”

"..."

"Let's go, your challenge will be completed within this camp."

After some time, the challenge was completed, and Han Ling brought Chen Na back to the base.

Upon returning to the base, Han Ling immediately went about her other work. As the manager of the base, she was extremely busy every day.

Chen Na went back to the accommodation area alone, and when she arrived at the entrance, she ran into her teammate Gu Fei who was coming out of there.

Chen Na was a little afraid of her teammate Gu Fei, who was emotionally unstable and often lost his temper. When she saw him, she lowered her head and pretended not to see him as she walked inside.

Unexpectedly, Gu Fei stopped and called out to her.

"Chen Na, wait a minute."

"Ah..." Chen Na looked over nervously, "Is something wrong?"

“I rarely see you come out of your room when there are no missions. I'm asking you, did Han Ling take you to complete a challenge project?”

Chen Na nodded.

Gu Fei snorted coldly: "I knew it. First it was Jiang Ming, then it was you, and I guess I'll be next soon. Han Ling had better get me more slaves to create projects; I can't wait to become stronger."

"Slave, slave?" Chen Na's eyes widened when she heard this word.

"What is it if not slavery to customize challenge projects for others?"

"But I heard from Sister Han that all the challenges we were given were voluntary, a price we paid for being protected by the organization!"

"Heh, heh..." Gu Fei couldn't help but laugh out loud upon hearing this, looking at Chen Na with mockery, "You little thing, you're really easy to fool. The price for protection... How ridiculous, you believe whatever Han Ling says?"

"Isn't that right?"

Gu Fei sneered, "I'm asking you, little thing. How much do you know about this base? Do you know that there's a large area below our floor? Why didn't Han Ling tell us what that area was for? Why did she never let us go down there?" "I...I don't know."

"I don't know, but let me tell you, there's definitely a place down there where slaves are held! Little thing, let me give you a piece of advice: don't think of Han Ling as some kind of good person. Don't you understand why she sent us to rob other camps of supplies?"

As Gu Fei spoke, he seemed to recall something painful, and spat out a curse: "These organizations are all the same, they all steal other people's things under the guise of doing what's best for them. Don't even mention this base, so what if it's an official team? Is there a fundamental difference? I know them all too well, they're all trash and scum..."

Chen Na listened blankly.

After regaining his senses, Gu Fei's face darkened. He realized that it was pointless to talk to a teenage girl like that. He snorted coldly and turned to leave.

It took Chen Na a while to come to her senses, and she returned to her dormitory with a complicated expression.

Thinking about what Gu Fei had said, she turned on her computer, wanting to search for something, but seeing the "no network" message, she remembered that they couldn't use the network after checking into the base.

Computers, mobile phones... all electronic devices are prohibited from connecting to the internet. Han Ling's explanation for this is to protect the base's security.

If team members have any needs, such as what movies they want to watch or what games they want to play, they can let her know, and she will have someone download them to their local devices.

Looking at the notification on the computer screen, and recalling Gu Fei's words about "slaves," Chen Na felt increasingly uneasy... Was Han Ling, the kind and gentle sister who had always been so kind to her, really lying to her as Gu Fei had said...?

……

Official Countermeasures Research Office.

On the large screen in the conference room, a post from the House of Ascended website titled "Call for/Statistics on Challenge Projects Established by Supporters" was displayed.

The theme of this meeting is related to this post.

Everyone in the meeting room had seen the post. Some people had anticipated this situation, some were worried, and others were indignant.

Gao Liangwei began, "Everyone is aware of the situation. The purpose of this meeting is to have a discussion. Should the authorities address the issues raised in this post?"

Everyone looked at Gao Liangwei, who, although he said he wanted to discuss it, seemed to have already made a decision in his mind.

“The situation is a bit complicated right now,” someone said first. “People in the city are generally starting to adopt a ‘mutual protection alliance’ strategy. Taking shelters and gathering points as the whole, members are helping each other to protect one another, and so far it seems to be quite effective.”

The 'patronage system' mentioned in this post, leaving aside the small-scale ones with a few or a dozen people, mainly appears in countries with chaotic governance, especially warlord federations like the Tulip Federation.

Based on the intelligence gathered so far, the Tulip Federation's strategy of fully supporting the Alpha Wolf is facing strong opposition within its own ranks.

The Tulip Federation is essentially a coalition of dozens of warlords, large and small. The alpha wolf's identity has now been revealed; he is the son of one of the largest warlords. How could the other warlords possibly be united and allocate all their resources to someone else's son?
Therefore, I believe that warlord conflicts are very likely to occur in the Tulip Federation in the near future. Perhaps we can suggest that the higher-ups use this as a starting point to make preparations in advance, so that when the time comes…

“Let’s not talk about international matters for now; the higher-ups will make their own judgments,” Gao Liangwei interrupted. “Let’s talk about the domestic situation instead.”

The man nodded: "Currently in China, due to wartime management, there is basically no space for large-scale provider systems to survive in cities. Such systems mainly exist in the wild... Those camps and organizations, outside of official control, are becoming increasingly violent."

Given that the total population outside the city is roughly tens of millions, if the authorities do nothing, several large provider systems could very well emerge, which is absolutely not something that should happen in our country.

“Agreed,” another expert said. “People are now speaking out through various channels, hoping that the authorities can do something to stop this behavior. I think we cannot ignore this outcry and allow the donor system to grow and expand, as this would be a huge harm to the people.”

"I also agree that we must crack down hard on organizations that run large-scale support systems in the wild! How can such inhumane treatment happen in our Northern Star Kingdom, on our land?"

The general consensus was that the authorities needed to take action. Otherwise, what would the public think if they witnessed the authorities remaining indifferent to this situation?
Gao Liangwei then said in a calm voice, "Some time ago, I received news that since the country entered a state of wartime management, due to insufficient manpower and lack of resources, control over the wild areas has been temporarily lost... This has led to the proliferation of numerous riot gangs in the wild."

Those who chose to leave the city are still citizens of the Northern Star Kingdom. As citizens of the Northern Star Kingdom, the government has an obligation to protect their personal safety, and the rampage of the thugs in the wilderness is undoubtedly a disgrace to us.

Now, with the exposure of information regarding Rule 8, this despicable and shameful system of patronage has been brought to the forefront. This has undoubtedly crossed the line for the public. I would like to ask everyone: do you remember what the various countries jointly announced after Rule 1 was implemented?

Someone recalled: "Yes... we cannot succumb to the rules of the end times, nor to the fire-stealers. We humans must defend our civilization and our lives."

“That’s right.” Gao Liangwei nodded. “We must protect our civilization and our lives. If we remain indifferent to what is happening in the wild, we are allowing civilization to decline… As the head of the Countermeasures Research Office, I hereby declare that we will and must take immediate action.”

Everyone's spirits lifted upon hearing this, and Dr. Zhang immediately said, "I suggest that all five official teams and other reserve personnel be dispatched, cooperating with the armed forces via transport planes, to disperse and sweep through the coordinates of those Supplies Challenge projects across the country. Eliminate all organizers of the Supplies system!"

Gao Liangwei nodded slightly to Dr. Zhang: "I will report your proposal to the higher-ups. However, everyone remember that this operation must be kept secret during the rule period. Only when those organizations in the wild believe that the authorities will not take any action can more of the Supplies Challenge project be exposed."

(End of this chapter)