Forty-nine rules of the end times

Chapter 193 Obstacles from the Cult of the Fire Stealers
France and the United States are among the thirty-four member states of the Commonwealth of Nations.

Three minutes after the earthquake struck, an official data collection team arrived at the epicenter.

But as they were about to contact the pillars of the ley lines to collect data, a large group of people dressed in black, wearing black hats, and almost blending into the darkness, suddenly emerged from around them.

There were sixty or seventy of these people. They surrounded the data collection team of less than ten people sent by the authorities and silently cut off the collectors' route to the pillars of the ley lines.

The unexpected situation caught the entire collection team off guard. The team leader asked, "Who are you? What do you want?"

The men in black remained silent, except for one who spoke, replying in a solemn, almost chanting tone: "This is a sacred object of God, and must not be desecrated."

"God? A sacred object of God?"

The entire collection team was completely bewildered upon hearing this. One member was the first to react: "Are you talking about the ley lines set up by the fire thieves?"

The group of men in black remained silent and acquiesced.

The collection team members were incredulous.

"What a joke!" the captain roared angrily. "The Fire Stealer is a demon who has killed countless people, the most evil being in the world! No, in the universe! How can you treat a demon as a god and the murder weapon it created as a sacred object? It's utterly insane!"

Upon hearing this, although their faces could not be seen in the darkness, the group of men in black could be told from their rapidly increasing heavy breathing that their anger had been ignited.

"Captain, there are too many of them..." a team member whispered, pulling on the captain's arm. "And we're not armed, so it's best to avoid a conflict."

The data collection team was there to gather data on the ley lines, not to fight, and they weren't carrying any weapons or equipment. Facing a hostile force that outnumbered them dozens of times, they were undoubtedly at a disadvantage.

"Three out of five minutes have already passed. What data can we possibly collect if we delay any longer?!" The captain said, striding forward, trying to get past the group of men in black surrounding them. "Get out of my way! We need to collect data to save humanity. We don't have time to deal with a bunch of lunatics like you!"

Several men in black exchanged glances in the darkness, then parted to make way. However, as soon as the captain stepped inside, surrounded by them, they suddenly attacked, pulling a book from their robes and smashing it down on the back of his head!

Boom!
The captain was in a hurry to contact the ley line pillars to collect data, and was caught off guard by the attack from behind. He was immediately knocked to the ground and then countless feet trampled on him.

"team leader!"

"Hurry up and save people!"

"Are you crazy! We're an official collection team!"

The collection team members were shocked and furious. They wanted to rescue their captain who was being ganged up on, but faced with a black-clad force that outnumbered them by almost ten to one, they were blocked by a human wall as soon as they rushed over, and it was all in vain.

They felt that even if they used mental power items, the effect wouldn't be very good given the huge difference in numbers.

The remaining two precious minutes quickly ended in a standoff, followed by a loud thud.

Everyone turned to look, only to see the pillar of the earth's vein sink into the ground and disappear. After the five-minute earthquake, it would also disappear.

"damn it!"

The data collection team was furious. Their mission was to gather data by contacting the ley lines to refine their analytical model. This invaluable opportunity had been squandered by a group of fire-worshipping lunatics!
The purpose of these men in black was also very clear: once the pillar of the earth vein sank into the ground, they immediately abandoned the encirclement and quickly left.

The collection team members were helpless and could only take their captain, who had been beaten unconscious, back to their superiors to explain the situation.

...The following morning, a remote meeting of the People's Federation was held.

The countries exchanged data they had collected about the ley lines, and just like last time, about half of the countries still hadn't collected any.

To the surprise of the nations, neither the country where the chairman resides, North Korea, nor France, a powerful nation with tens of millions of people, managed to collect any data.

Representatives from France and other countries were the first to explain the situation, leaving the other representatives somewhat taken aback and speechless.

"Such an important data collection operation was actually sabotaged by a group of cult members? Your country's preparations seem somewhat inadequate."

“The collection team members should be armed, or powerful Ascendants should be placed in the team.”

"How did those cult members know the location of the epicenter? Could it be that some of their members have infiltrated your legal and official circles?"

"Groups that worship the fire-bringer are not limited to France and one country; in fact, every country has such individuals, some of whom are even well-known scholars and professors... After all, the fire-bringer's power truly surpasses human understanding, so it's not surprising that it would inspire worship," said a representative from a small country.

"The only way to deal with these people is to kill them! Kill them until no one dares to come out and worship any gods again!" The representative of the Kingdom of Sisya was a bald man with a very fierce demeanor, and his words were ruthless.

The delegates paused slightly. The words may be crude, but the principle is sound. In situations like those faced by France and the United States, it would be perfectly normal to take strong measures to suppress them, because these people's actions have severely damaged and threatened the survival of others.

The French committee member looked rather helpless: "France has always been a country with freedom of religion. The law allows people to establish religions and recruit believers. So even if one worships the fire-bringer and establishes a related religion, it is legal."

Upon hearing this, the Black Flag Nation member scoffed, "What a bunch of idiots. What time is it? Humanity is facing extinction, and you're still tolerating those lunatics' reckless behavior? If this continues, I think your France will be the next country to perish."

The female commissioner of the Somali Empire raised her chin with some pride: "After the rules of the end times appeared, a cult called 'Worshippers of Fire' also appeared in our country. But under the rule of our wise and great King, the main cadres of the cult have been wiped out, leaving only some outcasts who are not a force to be reckoned with."

"But what I'm more curious about is why the Northern Star Kingdom, to which Chairman Gao belongs, failed to collect any data this time."

As Commissioner Soma asked her question, the other delegates also turned to look at Gao Liangwei. In their view, given Beixing's national strength, it was indeed unacceptable for it to fail like those countries with only a few million people.

Gao Liangwei did not hide anything and said truthfully, "Our data collection team arrived at the epicenter about two minutes after the earthquake. However, the pillar of the earth's veins at the epicenter had already disappeared."

"Judging from the deep holes left on the ground, someone got to the epicenter before our team and dealt with the ley line pillar in some unknown way, making it disappear within five minutes. The earthquake at the epicenter also stopped after it disappeared, lasting for 1 minute and 48 seconds."

As Gao Liangwei finished speaking, many committee members stood up in shock. Those who remained seated also looked astonished.

The first question posed by Committee Member Soma was: "You mean to say that before your professional team arrived, someone had already dealt with the ley lines and stopped the earthquake from continuing?!"

"Yes."

"You're lying!" The female committee member's voice rose considerably. "Over 95% of your country's population lives in urban settlements and shelters, with only a small number of scattered individuals living outside. Do you really think they have the ability to locate the epicenter immediately, or to stop an earthquake in just over a minute?!"

"It seems Commissioner Mary has quite a bit of knowledge about the population situation in our country," Gao Liangwei said with a serious expression. "But please don't accuse others of lying without evidence. This is a multinational conference of the Commonwealth of Peoples, not a partisan dispute in your Senate. It's not a game!"

“You…” The female committee member named Mary turned pale, wanting to refute but finding herself at a loss for words.

At this moment, the representative of Yingqi Kingdom spoke up: "Chairman Gao, does this mean that there might be individuals or organizations in your country who can help resolve this earthquake disaster? Then the first priority is to find them."

"Yes. Our policy research office has already held a meeting to discuss this matter and will try to seek assistance from our target."

(End of this chapter)