Forty-nine rules of the end times

Chapter 187, Article Eleven of the Apocalypse Rules

October 1, 8:50 AM.

Guan Tong is ready to welcome the release of the eleventh apocalyptic rule.

Name: Guan Tong

Nickname: Shadow

[Title: Civilization Observer]

[Psychic Power: 325 (325) (2810)]

[Ascended Coins: 3686120]

[Overall Bioinformatics Evaluation: Excellent]

After his mental strength limit was raised to 325, he tried to write on the sixth page of the "Wordless Book," but failed.

However, this failure wasn't due to his hand being bounced away, but rather due to some resistance preventing him from putting pen to paper. This indicates that he's not far from meeting the requirement to put pen to paper, and it's estimated that he should be able to write when he reaches 350 points.

At the current rate, the 25-point difference would take three months to achieve. However, considering the increased natural improvement rate, Guan Tong estimates it should be achievable in two months.

Just as he was pondering, it was already nine o'clock, and the Fire Stealer's voice rang out, announcing the eleventh rule as scheduled.

[The Eleventh Rule of the Apocalypse Has Been Released]

【Apocalyptic Rule Eleven: The Earth Dragon Turns Over】

[Rule Details: Starting from the date this rule is issued, an earthquake disaster will occur on Tianshui Star. The earthquake magnitude will increase by 1 every 72 hours, up to a maximum of magnitude 10, and each earthquake will last for 5 minutes. This rule will last for 30 days.]

[Success Reward: 1000 Ascension Coins, Survival Chest (Gold Level)]

[Failure penalty: none]

[Note: True survivors know to seek more secure shelter at the first tremor of the earth. But when continents tear apart and oceans boil, will you still be able to find a foothold?]

Earthquakes up to magnitude 10?

Guan Tong was stunned for a moment after hearing the rules.

"How is this possible? A magnitude 10 earthquake should only exist in theory. If it really happened, wouldn't humanity be on the verge of extinction... No, there must be a solution!"

Guan Tong immediately opened the terminal panel, eager to check the hidden rules.

He didn't believe there was no way to deal with it, otherwise this rule would most likely bring about utter destruction!

……

The moment the rules were announced, it was as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over people all over the world, extinguishing the excitement and fervor that had been generated by the establishment of the "People's Alliance" just two days prior.

"An earthquake up to magnitude 10?!"

"I don't recall there ever being a magnitude 10 earthquake before..."

"I think the largest earthquake in history was a magnitude 9.7?"

"A magnitude 10 earthquake... even if it only lasts for 5 minutes, humanity might be wiped out..."

"Could it be that the formation of the Human Union is revenge from the Firebringers?!"

The same amount of hope the Declaration of the Union of Mankind gave people when it was released has given them just as much despair as Article 11.

Many people are wondering if the Firebringers issued such terrifying survival rules precisely because humanity wanted to unite.
Meanwhile, the first meeting to discuss the rules of the People's Federation was held three hours after the rules were released.

Since the committee has just been established and the corresponding offline office space has not yet been determined, the meeting was held online.

All 34 member states of the Federation of Peoples' Societies attended the meeting, and several large screens were set up in each meeting room, displaying images of representatives from each country.

Because the People's Union Committee adopts a rotation system, the first chairman was elected by the representative of the Northern Star Kingdom with an overwhelming majority of 26 votes after a previous vote.

The large number of votes received is related to the achievements of the Northern Star Kingdom over the past year. Although it lost a large number of people, in terms of proportion, the Northern Star Kingdom's loss of 50% of its population is the lowest in the world.

Apart from Beixing, the other 33 countries lost at least 80% of their population, and the worst lost more than 90%, leaving less than 10%.

Moreover, this is not an isolated case; half of the 34 countries have seen their populations drop below 10 million, leaving only a few million.

Of the remaining half, only the three countries of Beixing, Soroma, and Black Moon Flag have populations in the hundreds of millions. Other countries, such as Yingqi, Fahe, and Xisya, have populations in the tens of millions.

In times of peace, population is one of the symbols of power. And in the post-apocalyptic era, this power is amplified even further. The larger the population, the more ascendants there are, and naturally, the stronger the overall national power becomes.

Unlike North Star and Soma, the "Black Moon Flag" country, which also has a population of over 100 million, did so not because it dealt with the rules properly, but simply because it had too many people...

Before the apocalyptic rules, the Black Moon Flag Nation had a total population of over 2 billion, but its economy was underdeveloped, and most people lived in poverty. One year after the apocalyptic rules, nearly 90% of these 2 billion people perished, leaving only about 200 million.

Even if a country still has a population in the hundreds of millions, its overall national strength is very weak and cannot be compared with the other two countries with populations in the hundreds of millions.

Therefore, the competition for the first chairman was almost entirely between the Northern Star Kingdom and the Soro Empire.

Beixing was elected with a high number of votes for two reasons. Firstly, the country acted with relative prudence. Secondly, the Somali Empire had made too many enemies and frequently attacked other countries. Therefore, Beixing's victory was widely expected.

The representative of the committee from Beixing Kingdom was none other than Gao Liangwei, the head of the Countermeasures Research Office.

Beixing's "Apocalyptic Rules Countermeasures Research Lab" is renowned worldwide. Many small countries lacking the resources and capabilities to research rules deploy their resources based on the Lab's "Apocalyptic Rules White Paper."

Therefore, as soon as Gao Liangwei's resolute face appeared on the screen, the representatives and committee members from various countries applauded to show their respect.

"Everyone, this is the first time the Human Alliance has gathered to discuss countermeasures to the rules of the apocalypse, so I'll skip the formalities." Gao Liangwei got straight to the point. "Everyone is well aware of the severity of the eleventh rule. The most important ones are the magnitude 8 earthquake that will occur on the 24th day, the magnitude 9 earthquake that will occur on the 27th day, and the magnitude 10 earthquake that will occur on the 30th day."

The committee members from various countries nodded in agreement.

This rule applies to earthquakes of magnitude 1-7, as earthquakes occur every year around the world and countries have familiar response measures.

But starting from Level 8, the disaster becomes beyond what ordinary measures can handle. Even if it lasts only 5 minutes, the damage is staggering, and a large number of people will lose their lives.

At magnitude 9, in addition to the disaster caused by the earthquake itself, various massive secondary disasters such as volcanic eruptions and tsunamis can even level cities.

As for level 10...

"Won't the magnitude 10 earthquake that's scheduled to strike on May 30th completely destroy human civilization?" one committee member couldn't help but ask. "That's a magnitude 10 earthquake! A magnitude that only exists in theory and has never actually occurred!"

"Yes, a magnitude 10 earthquake is really hard to imagine. Our domestic professionals believe that once it occurs, even the continental plates will be torn apart, and it will also trigger secondary disasters such as giant tsunamis and the collapse of agricultural and industrial systems, causing a devastating blow to human civilization."

"Isn't there any other way? We need to carefully consider our options!"

Gao Liangwei said, "Everyone, don't rush, we still have time."

地震等级每72小时，也就是3天提升一次。从今天5月1日开始，10级要到5月30日才会爆发。

Before that, humanity has one month to prepare for its arrival. Whether it's finding ways to prevent it from happening, ways to reduce the disaster it causes, or even ways to escape and build safe high-altitude shelters... there is still time.

"The Chairman is right. We must make full use of the time beforehand to prepare thoroughly."

“I propose that all aircraft from various countries be collected and centrally dispatched to protect the elites of each country,” one committee member said. “According to calculations, the impact of earthquakes on the stratosphere is negligible. As long as the aircraft are at cruising altitude when an earthquake occurs, they should be able to avoid the disaster.”

Another committee member immediately objected: "This can only be used as a backup option. How many people are there in the world? And how many people can all the planes combined carry? Besides, the timing of an earthquake is uncertain; it can only happen within a five-minute period on a given day. This means that to avoid it, we must maintain high-altitude flight 24 hours a day."

"Don't forget the ground environment," another committee member added. "Airplanes flying at high altitudes may not be affected by earthquakes, but what about radar and control towers on the ground? If these are destroyed, airplanes will lose navigation signals and be like headless flies... And if airports and other facilities are damaged by earthquakes, where will airplanes land?"

After being rejected repeatedly, the committee member who made the proposal was left speechless.

"From this perspective, building sturdy shelters is not very meaningful," someone said. "Earthquakes of magnitude 8-10 can tear the earth apart and create fissures. Even if a shelter can withstand the earthquake, it will be swallowed up by the fissures."

"Will there be any hidden information in this set of rules? Like the previous two?" A member of the Sakura Kingdom suddenly asked Gao Liangwei, "Chairman Gao, the site administrator of that 'House of Ascendants' website is most likely a North Star person, right?"

Gao Liangwei said, "I have already had someone contact me via private message on the website, and I hope to get a result as soon as possible."

His words surprised everyone.

A blonde woman in a suit, representing the Soro Empire, chuckled, "Is Chairman Gao joking? Your official power in the North Star is so strong, yet you talk about 'hoping' for a result. Why not just give the station chief a direct order?"

Gao Liangwei was not angered by these somewhat provocative words. He calmly said, "The website is not officially owned by Beixing, and we don't know the identity of the website owner. Also, I remember that Soroma also has a very famous fortune teller. I wonder if he gave any predictions this time?"

Upon hearing this, the committee members all looked at the blonde committee member from Soroma. Indeed, the fortune teller from Soroma, known as the "Key of the Moon," was very famous, and his name was known in many countries.

The blonde committee member looked somewhat displeased upon hearing this, but still replied, "She has already made a prediction. I'm not saying I'm not trying to hide it, it's just that the prediction turned out badly, and we don't believe in it at all."

“The purpose of the Human Alliance is to share and help each other, and to say whatever comes to mind. Since she has the ability to divine, it’s worth listening to her regardless of whether it comes true or not,” Gao Liangwei said.

"Since you want to hear it, then I will tell you. But if you can't handle it after hearing it, don't blame me." The female committee member took a deep breath and uttered the prophecy of the Moon Key.

"The prophecy of the Moon Key is that she saw the true 'end of the world.' The vast majority of humanity will die from earthquakes tearing apart continents and tsunamis engulfing cities. The very few remaining will suffer from nuclear leaks caused by the earthquakes, ultimately leading to physical deformities during a long nuclear winter, bringing human civilization to an end as deformed monsters."

(End of this chapter)