Forty-nine rules of the end times

Chapter 264 Guan Tong's Special Theory

When the students saw the words on the big screen, their first impression was that there was nothing new about them.

Who doesn't know about mental power? Moreover, "Philosophical Reflections on Mental Power" is a core course that the academy must teach, and Ouyang Shanyue has already given many analyses on it.

Now that Guan Tong has chosen it as the theme, the students feel it's both cliché and curious, wondering what new tricks Guan Tong can come up with.

"What I'm about to say is based on my own personal experience and may not be accurate. Just take it with a grain of salt. I'll skip the basics, you all know them."

"Currently, there are two main schools of thought regarding the nature of psychic power. One school believes that it is a kind of idealistic medium that humans can use to transform the real world, and therefore calls itself the 'idealistic origin school'."

Another school of thought believes it's a special energy system created by fire-stealers, solely to serve the rules of the apocalypse, much like 'energy points' in a game, and largely unrelated to humanity itself. Therefore, this school is also known as the 'fire-stealing tool school.'

"Both of these viewpoints have roughly the same number of followers. The reasoning of the idealist school is that humans can use mental power to create energy and matter out of thin air, and can, to some extent, intervene in or even resist the rules of the apocalypse, so it must not have originated from the fire-bringers—just like a GM in a game, would they give cheat codes to the players?"

"The rebuttal from the fire-stealing tool faction is also very strong. That is, if mental power originates from the human body itself, then why can the fire-stealer increase or decrease it through rules? What changes occur in the same person one second before and the next second after the rules end? Why does the upper limit of one's mental power decrease in the next second because the rules fail?"

The students listened intently, clearly eager to see which side Guan Tong would support and whether she could offer any novel arguments.

“There are certainly different viewpoints and positions among you students. As for myself, I don’t belong to either faction.”

The students were greatly surprised to hear this. Currently, there are mainly two schools of thought in society regarding the analysis of psychic power, and the rest are all crooked and heretical doctrines with very few supporters.

Would Guan Tong, as a teacher, possibly believe in any heretical or unorthodox sects?
One student couldn't help but ask, "So, what are your thoughts, teacher?"

Guan Tong said, "To be precise, I am a centrist or a syncretic person between the two factions. I believe that mental power is a kind of ideal energy, and that the Fire Thieves can also interfere with it."

The students whispered among themselves, and many shook their heads.

Someone countered, "That's completely self-contradictory. How can others interfere with things that are purely idealistic?"

“Let me give you a very simple example,” Guan Tong said. “As you all know, some items or abilities with similar effects are ranked in order of importance. When they are activated at the same time, the holder with the higher mental power limit will have the advantage. The holder with the lower mental power limit may experience the item/ability failing.”

"In this scenario, suppose both ascendants are using idealistic energy. Why can A's idealism defeat B's?"

"When we talk about idealism, we're talking about imagination. I can imagine myself as invincible in the universe, and you can imagine yourself as invincible in the universe. So why is there a winner and a loser when our two 'invincible in the universe' idealistic energies collide?"

"Well... a higher limit to mental power probably means being more idealistic," one student said.

“The fact that it is ‘more idealistic’ is not idealistic in itself.”

"..."

"Teacher Guan, could you explain in more detail?"

Guan Tong nodded: "My guess about this mental energy is that it is a semi-idealistic energy. What is semi-idealistic? It means that people can mobilize it through telepathy or resonance, but its existence does not depend on the existence of humans."

"Why can the Firebringer increase or decrease the upper limit of human mental power through the rules of the apocalypse? My view is that the Firebringer itself is also an ascendant - only its upper limit of mental power is unimaginably high, so it is in an absolute 'superior' position to all of humanity, thus being able to completely suppress and interfere with humanity, which is in an 'inferior' position."

Wow!
These words immediately caused an uproar in the classroom.

There are many speculations about the nature of the Fire Stealers. Most people believe that they are some kind of super-evolved creature, or an AI created by a super civilization, or even that they are gods.

However, those who consider it an elevation are not entirely absent, but at least not seen at the mainstream level.

The students were hearing the name Guan Tong for the first time.

Of course, this is also related to the fact that this is the first time Guan Tong has publicly mentioned it. Previously, he would think about it on his own and would not release the results of his thinking publicly.

"I'm assuming there's a situation like this."

Guan Tong continued speaking amidst the students' shock.

"In the vast universe, there exists a special energy unknown to humankind. This energy is extremely vast, but it cannot be obtained or utilized through conventional means. The only way to use it is to build a bridge or channel through the telepathy of intelligent beings, allowing this special energy to be transmitted through a medium, so that intelligent beings can use it to transform the real world."

"This bridge or passage is 'psychic power'. The higher the upper limit of psychic power, the wider the bridge, or the thicker the passage, the more energy is transmitted, and the greater the reality that intelligent beings can modify."

Guan Tong came up with this idea after the earthquake rules were established.

When billions of units of spiritual energy flowed in and out of his "Book Without Words," he truly felt that his body had become a "channel." The feeling was indescribable, as if a crack in a door to truth had opened before him.

Later, he had a brief conversation with Shi Jingyi and discovered that she also had some knowledge in this area.

But she told Guan Tong that not everyone has the opportunity and conditions to have a huge amount of mental energy pass through their body, so it would be difficult for others to understand what he meant by that feeling.

Guan Tong wholeheartedly agreed with this.

Even if students don't have his personal experience and can't fully understand his narrative, as long as the theory is correct, it will definitely be helpful for the future.

"I believe that the Firebringers, as some kind of intelligent beings, may have gradually increased their spiritual power over countless years through natural growth, reaching an astonishing upper limit. Or perhaps they used some unknown means to forcibly widen their channels, thereby being able to transmit enormous energy and possessing the power to move mountains and fill seas at will."

"But in either case, I believe the core remains the same. That is, these forty-nine apocalyptic rules should all be created by energy transmitted through the medium of mental power—and this will happen if, I mean if human mental power exceeds the mental power inherent in the rules themselves."

Guan Tong raised both hands and told the students that his left hand represented the rules of the apocalypse, and his right hand represented humanity.

At this moment, he raised his right hand and placed it on top of his left hand.

One quick-witted student blurted out, "Humans suppressed the rules of the apocalypse?"

“To be precise, it’s the superiors who suppress the inferiors,” Guan Tong said. “That’s right. If humanity’s mental strength is high enough, then humanity is in a superior position, and the rules of the apocalypse become inferior.”

His conclusion was astonishing, leaving all the students in the classroom stunned.

Because from official sources to the general public, experts and scholars from all walks of life have consistently maintained the same stance: the rules of the apocalypse are unshakeable and inviolable; to survive, one must act in accordance with the rules.

However, Guan Tong gave a completely different explanation.

If a human's mental strength is high enough, they can suppress the rules of the apocalypse, which are subordinate, as a superior... This is undoubtedly a very crazy idea.

One student couldn't help but stand up abruptly to refute, "Impossible! Even if your conjecture is correct, how could humans possibly possess a mental power limit capable of suppressing the rules of the apocalypse?!"

"Yes, even if the theory is correct, how much mental power would it take to compress the rules of the apocalypse into a lower level?"

"Currently, the highest-level Ascended cultivators probably only have a few hundred points of mental power, but how much mental power is contained in a single apocalyptic rule? Ten times, a hundred times, a thousand times more, right?"

The students didn't disbelieve Guan Tong's theory; rather, they thought his ideas were too far-fetched and impossible to realize!
Guan Tong understands.

If he hadn't acquired hundreds of millions of mental powers through the rules of earthquakes, he wouldn't have had the idea of ​​comparing himself to the rules of the apocalypse.

But once the idea takes hold, it becomes deeply ingrained.

At this moment, another student stood up: "Teacher, your theory has greatly impressed me, and I think it is very likely to be correct... However, can we humans really obtain a mental power limit that transcends the rules of the apocalypse in our lifetime? If not, then what is the practical significance of this theory?"

Guan Tong nodded upon hearing this and said, "You're right. At the current rate at which the spiritual power of human ascendants naturally grows, it's indeed impossible to see any possibility of surpassing the rules of the apocalypse. However, this rate is constantly increasing, which represents a kind of hope."

"As everyone knows, the improvement of an Ascended person's overall strength is a phased and leapfrog process, rather than a stable linear one. Therefore, my judgment is that after breaking through a certain stage, the natural growth rate of human mental power will see a significant increase, which is one reason."

"Secondly, if people are willing to believe my theory and begin to explore and discover the existence of that special energy in the universe, perhaps some of humanity's most brilliant minds can come up with ways to cleverly utilize that energy, thus taking a shortcut..."

"I've got a third one!" At this moment, a student suddenly stood up and said excitedly.

"That means if someone can concentrate the mental power of others onto themselves, they can gain a huge amount of mental power in a short period of time. They might even be able to transcend the rules of the apocalypse and achieve superior suppression—during the earthquake, our Shadow God of the Northern Star weakened the severity of the earthquake disaster several times using this method, didn't he?!"

"..."

Guan Tong remained silent; the example the student gave was indeed very apt.

The other students were also abuzz with excitement upon hearing this.

"Could it be that the Shadow God really did suppress the rules of the apocalypse back then as a superior being?!"

"Holy crap! Isn't this the script for the chosen one?!"

"Could the Shadow God really be the chosen one?"

"No way? There must be other Ascended beings around the world who can absorb mental energy. Could it be that all of these people have the potential to become the Chosen Ones?!"

The students discussed it excitedly, with a sense of discovery of a new path.

Guan Tong let the students express their passion, and only continued speaking after the passion had subsided.

"I'm sharing these thoughts with you all today so that you can think about the nature of mental power from another perspective, and further realize its importance. We should try our best to protect it from decay and seize any opportunity to enhance it."

"In terms of specific suggestions, one is to study the course 'The Flow of Spiritual Power' carefully, as it can really quickly increase the natural growth rate of the upper limit of spiritual power."

"I also have another suggestion, which is to spar with classmates as much as possible, even in real combat," Guan Tong said. "This is an effective way to accelerate the improvement of the upper limit of mental power, based on my personal experience."

Guan Tong felt that this was not just his personal experience, but something that every advanced practitioner who frequently engages in real combat could understand.

For example, Lucifer, whom he had fought not long ago, was much stronger than he was on Holy Grail Island. Guan Tong believed that this was closely related to Lucifer's intense involvement in the warlord conflicts within the Tulip Federation.

Those who can survive in such a bloody and fierce environment will definitely see a significant improvement in their overall strength.

In stark contrast were the several official team Ascendants who were instantly killed by Lucifer at the time.

Are the Ascended Beings selected for the official team weak? No, but they were still instantly killed by Lucifer. Even if Lucifer's attack was dishonorable, being lacking vigilance on the battlefield is itself a sign of weakness.

"Teacher Guan, I have a question..."

"I have it too!"

During the subsequent class time, many students asked him questions. Perhaps feeling that they wouldn't have many more opportunities, they were all very eager to participate.

Guan Tong answered all the questions one by one until the end of get out of class.

"That concludes this lesson."

After Guan Tong walked out of the classroom, a clapping sound rang out from her left.

He turned his head and saw Shi Jingyi, dressed in white with a smile on her lips, standing by the door, clapping her hands lightly.

Guan Tong was somewhat surprised: "You're back today?"

"Yes."

Shi Jingyi nodded. Her bright face looked radiant, indicating that her injuries had fully healed.

"I went to see the dean first, and when I heard you were teaching, I came to check on you." Shi Jingyi smiled at Guan Tong. "You taught very well, Professor Guan. Humans using their superior power to suppress the inferior rules of the apocalypse... only you could come up with such a theory."

Guan Tong understood the implication Shi Jingyi was referring to regarding his identity. In this world, besides "Shadow," it was truly unknown whether anyone else had the opportunity to rise above others and suppress the rules of the apocalypse.

"Aren't you worried?" Shi Jingyi asked softly, probably implying that Guan Tong's actions might arouse suspicion.

Guan Tong smiled and said, "Anyway, I'm leaving as soon as you come back, so let them have their doubts."

"...It seems you really don't plan to stay at the academy."

"Hmm. Shall we talk somewhere else?"

"Okay, let's go. I know a place with really nice scenery!"

(End of this chapter)