There’s strength in numbers. It was as simple as that.
North Star now accounted for three-quarters of the world’s population. Even if only a few tens of millions out of its 600 million people were Ascenders, the power they could amass when mobilized under a unified command was terrifying.
However...
Guan Tong thought, ’This new rule poses a great threat to North Star. With such a large population, most of whom are ordinary people, the consequences will be unimaginable if something happens to the food and water.’
Just then, Shangyuan Zi came down from the second floor and said, "Leader, since Black Star and the others are now members of the expedition, should we let them move into the shelter to avoid the microplastic contamination?"
Guan Tong turned off his computer, thought for a moment, and said, "Yes, we can."
This shelter was initially built to counter the Rules. Later, after he established the "Origin-Tracing Expedition," he planned to use it as the organization’s "Mobile Base."
Since it was a Mobile Base, every member who joined the organization was entitled to know of its existence and could use it to escape the harm of the Rules—but the issue of personal privacy couldn’t be ignored.
Shangyuan Zi seemed well aware of this and took the initiative to say, "Since it’s split into an upper and lower level, we can divide it into two spaces. The Leader can use one, and the members can use the other. I think this kind of boundary is essential for an organization."
Guan Tong nodded. "Then I’ll move to the second floor. The members can use the first floor."
After moving his computer and other belongings to the second floor, he initiated a video call with Black Star.
"Leader?" After answering, Black Star addressed Guan Tong the same way Shangyuan Zi did.
"The new rule has been announced... What are you guys up to?"
On the video screen, Black Star was sitting in a moving vehicle with his sister, White Star, beside him.
"We’re evacuating!" Black Star said. "As soon as the new rule came out, we knew we couldn’t stay at the bar—too many plastic items. White Star and I are planning to take Lun out of the city and find a less populated place to wait out the month."
Fewer people meant fewer man-made objects, and thus less plastic. This was indeed the most direct way to handle it. However, with microplastics capable of spreading through the air, perhaps only a place like Antarctica, which few people in history had ever set foot on, was truly safe.
"Come to my place," Guan Tong said. "I have a shelter manifested by Psychic Power that can effectively block out the microplastics from outside."
"Really?!"
"That’s great, Leader!" White Star leaned in from the side to thank him. "Where are you now? Are you far from us?"
"Far. You’ll have to use Teleportation Items to get here. I’ll send you the coordinates."
Guan Tong sent the coordinates of the shelter’s location, and not long after, the light of teleportation flared up.
Then, Black Star, White Star, and their younger brother, Lun, whom they were carrying, appeared. As they looked up, they saw Guan Tong wearing a high-grade filtration mask.
"Let’s go."
He led the three of them into the shelter. White Star surveyed the interior, her face filled with shock. "This is a house manifested from Psychic Power? It has its own electricity and water supply. This is incredible... Leader, an item like this must be astronomically expensive, right?"
Black Star chided her gently, "White Star, don’t ask so many questions."
"I’m just a little curious..."
"You couldn’t buy an item like this even if you had all the money in the world. It’s priceless."
As a gold-medal broker, Black Star understood far better than White Star just how precious an item like this was.
If the group Teleportation Item he had just used was expensive, it was likely just a drop in the bucket compared to a shelter that could ward off the disasters of the Rules.
"How is your brother doing?" Guan Tong asked, taking off his mask. "He’s still not awake?"
Half a month ago, Guan Tong and Shi Jingyi had worked together to treat him. The boy’s eyelids had twitched with a reaction back then, but surprisingly, he was still in a coma half a month later.
"He might still need some time," White Star said. "But his hands and feet have been twitching occasionally these past few days. He should wake up during this Rule Stage!"
"That’s good. In that case, you can settle in here for the duration of this rule."
Just then, Shangyuan Zi said, "The second floor is the Leader’s room. You can use the bedroom on the first floor. I’ll just stay in the living room."
Hearing this, Black Star and White Star shook their heads repeatedly. Black Star laughed. "How could we let the Vice Leader stay in the living room? We’ll stay in the living room!"
Shangyuan Zi looked puzzled when she heard Black Star’s title for her. When did she become the Vice Leader?
"That’s right. The living room is fine for us, and it’ll be more convenient for taking care of Lun. Don’t be so formal with us, Vice Leader," White Star added.
Hearing this, Guan Tong thought to himself, ’Before, the organization was just the two of us: me, the leader, and Shangyuan Zi, the member. Now that we have more people, there’s no problem with her being the Vice Leader.’
"Let’s go with that, then," he said to Shangyuan Zi. "Don’t stand on ceremony."
When Shangyuan Zi heard Guan Tong say that, she knew her "Vice Leader" title was official. She didn’t mind either way, so she nodded. "Alright, then."
After Black Star and White Star settled their brother Lun down, they took out some of their belongings.
He unzipped a large suitcase they had brought, which was filled with metal cans. "When this rule came out, we knew that regular food would be contaminated. So we only brought canned food like this. These cans don’t contain plastic and have a strong seal, so they should be fine."
"Mm," Guan Tong nodded. "I have some canned food in metal containers here too. As for water, we can drink directly from the shelter’s tap. It won’t be contaminated."
An idea sparked in Black Star’s mind. "Leader, the water generated by this shelter is completely clean. Couldn’t you sell it? Rich people would definitely be scrambling to buy it!"
As soon as he finished speaking, White Star looked displeased. "That doesn’t seem right... Besides, bro, didn’t we agree? We’d stop being brokers after Lun was cured. Lun is about to wake up, and we’ve joined the expedition. You should stop thinking about how to make money all the time!"
Black Star froze, then scratched his curly hair in embarrassment. "You’re right. It’s an occupational hazard. I see a good deal and I can’t help but think about making a profit."
The siblings’ exchange, however, left Guan Tong deep in thought.
"You have a point. The water in this shelter is clean. If the microplastics severely contaminate the outside water supply, we could bottle our water in non-plastic containers and take it out to help others. We’ll just have to see how toxic things get and discuss the specific process if we decide to do it."
The Black Star siblings glanced at each other and nodded in unison. Shangyuan Zi was also very supportive of Guan Tong’s idea.
The issue of food wasn’t a major concern for Ascenders like them, a fact closely related to the permanent physical enhancements from Psychic Power. It went without saying for someone like Guan Tong, who had already entered the second stage, but even Shangyuan Zi, Black Star, and White Star could go three days without food with no issue.
Only ordinary people still needed at least one meal a day. A problem with the food supply would have the greatest impact on this largest segment of the population.
Previously, Guan Tong had told Shangyuan Zi that they would hold an organization meeting after their business in Yunhua was concluded. Although that business wasn’t finished yet, all the members were now present. There was no time like the present.
The four of them sat down in the living room, and Guan Tong got straight to the point. "The name of our organization is the ’Origin-Tracing Expedition.’ Our goal is to explore the secrets behind the Fire Thief, the Apocalypse Rules, and more. To do that, we first have to ensure our own survival and make it through every rule."
The other three listened in silence, their expressions serious. They could tell from Guan Tong’s tone that this organization wasn’t founded on a whim, but had long-term goals and plans.
"I think you all know that human life is fragile in the era of the Apocalypse Rules. Therefore, we must protect each other, acting as beacons to light each other’s paths. As the Leader, I will do my best to ensure every member’s survival through the rules. Likewise, every member must do their utmost for the survival of the other members. This is the expedition’s first and most important rule: Be a light for each other and watch over one another."
"Be a light for each other and watch over one another." Although it wasn’t planned, the three of them recited the rule Guan Tong had established.
Guan Tong continued, "Next, every member must remember the goal for which the expedition was founded: to never give up the search for the secrets, unknowns, and truth behind the rules. Therefore, the second rule is: Trace the source and seek the truth."
The three of them repeated in unison, "Trace the source and seek the truth."
"The third rule." Guan Tong’s tone suddenly turned cold and severe. "The first two rules—mutual protection and the pursuit of truth—are based on our mutual trust and ideals. Both trust and ideals are extremely precious things, and they must not be desecrated. Therefore, the third rule is: For those who betray us, there will be utter annihilation!"
The three of them were shaken, all feeling the absolute finality in Guan Tong’s words. They had no doubt that if anyone betrayed the expedition, they would be hunted relentlessly until the end.
"For those who betray us, there will be utter annihilation!"