Forty-nine rules of the end times

Chapter 240 The Expanding Conflict

Post-Apocalyptic Rules and Countermeasures Research Lab.

Zhang Minglu stood in front of the table, holding a stack of experimental statistics, and was giving a presentation at the meeting.

"Based on our experimental results over the past few days, it has now been confirmed that the Mind Network cannot be breached or its speaker's identity and location can be pinpointed."

“Once the mental network is established, members can speak without consuming mental energy. However, if they speak for an extended period of time, their mental energy will begin to deplete, which means that it is impossible for an individual to speak continuously.”

"There's also the issue of the number of connected individuals. The largest known mental network has reached a six-figure scale and hasn't reached its limit yet. In a mental network of this size, it's almost impossible to distinguish when multiple people are speaking at the same time; only a very small number of individuals' brains can process such complex information simultaneously."

"Finally, there's the test for ordinary people... Unfortunately, the lab tried more than twenty methods and changed dozens of people involved in the experiment, but ultimately they still couldn't get ordinary people into the mind network."

"Furthermore, I would like to add that it is currently uncertain whether the Mind Network will still be operational after the 12th rule ends, but even if it is shut down, this feature will definitely be reopened in the future, just like the social group feature that appeared in the second Marathon rule."

After Zhang Minglu finished reporting the experimental results of the past few days, he sat down. Everyone in the conference room who had listened had very serious expressions.

If the decentralized model of MindNet poses an unstable challenge to authorities, potentially leading to the emergence of secret organizations or criminal agreements unknown to the authorities, thus becoming a significant threat to urban security.

The fact that ordinary people cannot access the mental network is the real hidden iceberg beneath the surface.

Some people worriedly said, "In terms of population ratio, the ratio of ordinary people to ascended beings is about 7:1, and this ratio will continue to expand as the number of rules increases... Now that a way of using mental power that isolates communication between the two sides has emerged, it is really not a good thing."

Others nodded.

As this person said, there is only the case where the upper limit of the spiritual power of an Ascended person decreases to zero and becomes an ordinary person, but there is no case where an ordinary person opens the panel again and becomes an Ascended person.

This means that as the rules of the apocalypse are implemented one by one, without large-scale natural disasters reducing the number of ordinary people, the ratio of ordinary people to ascendants will only continue to increase.

Over the past year, the conflict between ordinary people and those who have achieved spiritual transcendence has become very prominent, and some countries have even experienced large-scale confrontational conflicts.

However, due to strong official suppression and prohibition of any form or language of separatism or discrimination, Beixing is currently able to maintain its stability.

However, the emergence of this new form of communication, the Mind Network, will undoubtedly exacerbate the conflict.

Another situation that makes ordinary people feel less safe is that the strength of the sublimators is getting higher and higher.

Ordinary people used to think that those who had transcended were nothing special; what did it matter if they had some minor skills or gadgets? They would still die if they were shot in a vital spot.

Ordinary people may not have special abilities, but they can still fire guns, and even operate heavy weapons, such as airplanes, tanks, cannons, and missiles... They believe that with these modern weapons as a ballast, even the most powerful Ascended group is still within a controllable range.

But people gradually realized that this view was wrong.

Because the strength of an Ascended One does not increase linearly level by level like a game character, but rather leaps forward in a non-linear manner after breaking through a certain critical point.

Videos online showcasing exaggerated abilities and props, as well as news reports of power struggles among ascendant groups in some countries, are exacerbating the anxiety of ordinary people.

The recent release of the variety show "Clash of the Ascendants" by the authorities, aimed at diverting people's attention, has further ignited the emotions of this group.

Although the show received rave reviews from the academy, that's because the students there are all "transcendent beings." They imagine themselves becoming powerful and perhaps even appearing on the show as celebrities in the future.

However, the vast majority of ordinary people will only feel distressed when they see this program – because no matter how strong the members in the program are, it has nothing to do with them, and they will no longer have the opportunity to open the terminal panel and become one of them.

"This rule seems easy to get through, but it is actually malicious."

Gao Liangwei spoke slowly.

"The ascendants cannot use the internet, which means that the internet is full of ordinary people. Without the voices of the ascendants, their negative emotions are greatly amplified as they resonate with the same frequency."

"And the 'mental network' of the sublime can give rise to fear in ordinary people."

“The person in charge is right,” an expert said. “Recently, there have been many rumors online, spread by ordinary people, that the Ascended Ones are secretly discussing in a mental network the extermination of ordinary humans, leaving only the Ascended Ones. This rumor has caused panic among many people and has had a very bad impact.”

"Those who spread rumors must be arrested! They are simply sowing discord among the people!"

"That being said, this rumor does reflect the fears of ordinary people. Because ordinary people cannot access the mind network, they have no way of knowing what the ascendants said in this black box."

“If this continues, the differences between the two groups will only grow, and the antagonism will intensify. The headache is that this is a global problem, and every country that still exists is troubled by it.”

The degree of antagonism between ordinary people and those who have transcended is relatively low in Beixing.

In some other countries, such as the Black Flag Country, the situation has reached a point of irreconcilable conflict.

The Black Flag Kingdom, a populous country, was extremely stable before the end times. It relied on "reincarnation theology" to keep the lower classes at peace, believing that suffering in this life would lead to great wealth and honor in the next.

But with the arrival of the apocalyptic rules and the demise of a large population, many of the lower-level ascendants who had acquired powerful abilities also changed their minds.

Now that we have power, why wait for the next life? Besides, the power of the fire-stealers and the cruelty of the end-of-the-world rules have made most people disbelieve that there is any "next life".

As a result, the Black Flag Country witnessed the most intense conflict in the world between the underprivileged who had risen to power and the powerful and ordinary people.

The former privileged ordinary people completely overwhelmed the elites with their superior weaponry, without even needing to use fighter jets or tanks; a single armed squad could easily suppress multiple ascendants.

This made some powerful people lower their guard, which led to a reversal of fortunes when those at the bottom rose in strength.

From a small armed squad, to a large number of troops, and then to armored tanks, airplanes, and artillery, they gradually had to use them all.

Now, more than a year later, the internal conflicts and battles within the Black Flag Kingdom continue, and there is no end in sight in the short term.

Beixing absolutely does not want the same thing to happen domestically, so it takes precautions against any confrontational or provocative remarks or actions. But now the situation is getting worse, and it is necessary to take the initiative to do something to de-escalate the situation.

"Ultimately, what needs to be addressed is the issue of ordinary people's sense of security and existence," a sociologist said. "The country should make more use of ordinary people and promote their lives, rather than focusing on those who have risen to prominence. We cannot allow ordinary people to feel a sense of loss, as if they are 'useless' or 'outdated by the times.'"

“Yes,” another philosopher added. “People need to confirm their place in society, otherwise they will become lost, fall into nihilism, and become an extremely unstable factor for others and society.”

"Making ordinary people feel a sense of belonging." Gao Liangwei frowned in deep thought. "This is indeed a problem that needs to be studied carefully."

……

Sunday noon.

Guan Tong and Teacher Chen arrived at the city's access control office ahead of time. To avoid being recognized by the students, they showed their identification to the staff and explained their situation.

Since Zhou Qinfeng had already notified them, the staff knew what was going on and let the two of them into a small pavilion in the management office, where they could see the entrance and exit gates through the window.

"Judging from the time the dean said, those students should be here in about ten minutes... There are so many people coming and going from the city."

Looking at the dense crowds of people coming and going at the gate, Teacher Chen was filled with lingering fear: "If we hadn't received the news beforehand, those students probably would have taken the opportunity to sneak out of the city today."

"Ah."

Guan Tong could also see that there were too many people entering and leaving the city, and the management staff could not possibly check the identity of each one carefully.

Especially for people from abroad, their identities are even harder to verify.

He suspected that the three assassins from Sisya might have infiltrated Pinglu in this way.

"It seems that it was necessary for the dean to arrange for counselors to infiltrate the students' mental networks and listen in," said Teacher Chen. "I didn't really agree with this before, because I felt that if this were exposed, it would hurt both the students and the counselors."

As the lecturer of "Psychological Counseling Course", Teacher Chen naturally pays more attention to the psychological state of each person involved when something happens.

"Especially that counselor. If her identity is exposed, she will definitely be ostracized by the students, and she will definitely not be able to carry out her work in the college in the future."

"..."

After Teacher Chen finished speaking, seeing Guan Tong remain silent, he asked, "Teacher Guan, do you think what I said was wrong?"

"No... I think it's absolutely right."

If this gets out, there's no doubt Fang Qian will be unable to continue as a counselor. This is a job where she has the most contact with students; if they all treat her badly and oppose her in everything, how can she possibly continue?
But since Fang Qian took on this task herself, she will definitely have to take responsibility if anything goes wrong.

Upon hearing Guan Tong's words, Teacher Chen nodded and continued, "It's precisely because of this potential hidden danger that I disagree. But after all, it's the dean's decision, and judging from the information we've gathered this time, it's indeed very important... It seems that for the sake of the bigger picture, sometimes we have to make some sacrifices."

"Sacrificing for the greater good... Teacher Chen, do you know? Actually, joining the students' social network doesn't require so many complicated steps. Just find a student, give them a few hundred Rising Coins, and that student will most likely agree to bring others in."

Teacher Chen was taken aback when she heard this, not expecting Guan Tong to say such a thing.

"I don't believe the dean wouldn't have thought of this, but he had the counselor try to use emotional appeals to get this done..."

"Teacher Guan, what do you want to say?" Teacher Chen asked, a little nervously.

Guan Tong said, "It's nothing."

Teacher Chen looked at him, hesitated, and wanted to speak again, but out of the corner of her eye she caught a glimpse of several young figures appearing in front of the gate of the management office.

“They are students from the college. I recognize a few of them! Two of them have taken my classes.”

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(End of this chapter)