In Heilanja, capital city Ber.
As a country known as the "nation upon the mountains," every city in Heilanja was a mountain city. Due to its remote location from major nations and its lack of abundant land resources, it had historically styled itself as a neutral nation in the world.
Without resources and with a small population, Heilanja's national income relied entirely on three pillars: tourism, finance, and intellectual property royalties.
However, these peacetime advantages vanished completely upon entering the era of the Doomsday Rules.
Except for a few world-leading technologies that still held value, finance and tourism had been completely wiped out, and the population had plummeted rapidly. Now, the remaining population of around one million was scattered across three or four cities, most struggling to survive, eyes fixed on the completion of the "Super City" so they could relocate the entire nation there.
In the capital city of Ber, in front of a villa built on a cliff edge with an excellent view, Han Qiu sat in a recliner, waiting quietly.
"Chairman," Tianci said after a short while, entering from outside.
Han Qiu turned to look at him, concerned. "How is it? Are you adapting well?"
Tianci looked down at his pair of mechanical prosthetic arms and nodded. "There are still occasional minor issues, but they're enough for daily use."
Han Qiu said apologetically, "The best prosthetic and exoskeleton doctors are all in Suroma and Beixing. The ones here in Heilanja really aren't up to par... I blame myself for sending you to deliver a message to Bruce. I should have known he would take out his hatred for me on you."
"Please don't say that, Chairman. Even dying for you would be nothing, let alone just losing two arms."
Han Qiu felt quite satisfied hearing this.
The "Truth-Bound" trait of being unable to lie meant he didn't have to worry about Tianci saying one thing while thinking another. Since he said it out loud, it meant he truly felt that way in his heart.
This was what Han Qiu loved about the Doomsday Rules.
They were cold and unreasonable, yet, like a game, they made "numerical values" and "attributes" very clear.
In a game, a subordinate with 100 loyalty would never betray you. In reality, every subordinate's loyalty fluctuated constantly and couldn't be quantified.
Exploiting the "Truth-Bound" trait was Han Qiu's deliberate way of getting closer to "quantifying humans."
"But even though there were some twists and turns, our goal is still almost achieved," Han Qiu said. "Bruce has issued a five-star wanted warrant for Guan Tong. Guan Tong has responded with a Shadow Kill Order. No matter the outcome, one of those two will die."
"When two tigers fight, one is bound to be injured," Tianci said. "Whoever dies will benefit the Chairman. What the Chairman needs to do is lie low and wait until their fight produces a result."
"Exactly." Han Qiu laughed heartily. "Tianci, you really understand me."
Tianci gave a slight bow. "I just often think about how the situation needs to develop to benefit the Chairman and the Guild."
"Mm, I appreciate your initiative," Han Qiu said as he picked up a document folder from beside him.
"A capable person takes on more work. So I need to trouble you to make another trip and deliver this to Bruce."
Tianci looked at the document folder with surprise. "Is this information from Beixing?"
"Yes. It seems our compatriot feels time is running out and is eager to go to Suroma for memory backup and to start preparing the host bodies."
Tianci took the document folder, thought for a moment, and asked, "Chairman, do you think the technical approach of completely replacing the physical body with machinery in Suroma is really feasible?"
Boss Xuan's expression turned scornful. "You know the technical details, but I know human nature. Have you ever seen a game that gives away divine artifacts for free? If this technology were really that bad, Xisiya would have been the first to transform itself."
"...That's true. I'll set off immediately."
After Tianci left, Han Qiu began to think to himself.
He was well versed in the principle of a cunning rabbit having multiple burrows, with hiding places all over the world. This cliffside villa in Heilanja was one of them, and one of the safer ones.
"Although Guan Tong's 'Shadow Kill Order' doesn't mention me by name, I'm definitely one of his targets. After discovering my body disappeared, he should be able to guess my ability, but he can't be certain."
Han Qiu knew that as long as he didn't show his face for one day, Guan Tong wouldn't be able to confirm 100% whether his ability was truly "resurrection from death."
But 90% certainty was enough.
Because Guan Tong was in contact with the Beixing Countermeasures Research Office.
So, with Han Qiu's earlier disappearance from the Countermeasures Research Office base, combined with the body's disappearance at this wedding... it wouldn't be difficult for Guan Tong and the Research Office to guess that he had triggered his ability through suicide back then and randomly resurrected somewhere.
Han Qiu was well aware that his ability was most useful when kept secret. Once the secret was exposed, enemies would try to counter it.
Hence, in the past, every time he died and was reborn, his first action was to eliminate the person who killed him, silencing them to prevent the secret from leaking.
But this time was different. This time, to ensure that one of Bruce and Guan Tong died, he was willing to set a trap at the cost of exposing his ability, personally entering the fray, paying a heavy price.
Yet the result wasn't satisfactory to him.
In his script, one of Bruce and Guan Tong was supposed to die in Wensilisa Castle.
Whoever died, the survivor wouldn't have an easy time either — if Guan Tong died, Beixing officials and even Xisiya would react, and Guan Tong's accomplices would retaliate.
If Bruce died, whoever ascended as the new king of Suroma, to legitimize their rule, would inevitably avenge Bruce, pouring the nation's resources into hunting Guan Tong to the bitter end.
That way, he, who had faked his death to escape, would become the biggest beneficiary of this conflict.
"Pity, it would have been best if Bruce died on the spot. That way, I might have been able to maneuver and push Yishan onto the throne, then manipulate Suroma's national power from behind as her legitimate husband..."
Han Qiu sighed, regretting that the script hadn't developed according to his design.
But as he had said to Tianci, although neither Bruce nor Guan Tong died in Wensilisa Castle, an irreconcilable feud had been forged between them. The script's plot was still unfolding, just delayed much further.
So, as a player determined to clear this apocalyptic game, how to maximize his own benefit in this script was what concerned Han Qiu the most.
...
At the Mind Power Development Academy, Zhao Ming's mood was complicated as he stepped through the main gate.
In truth, with his qualifications, he could have met the academy's admission requirements long ago, and he had even considered enrolling.
However, because he felt a sense of gratitude toward Boss Xuan, who had saved him, he never signed up and instead followed Boss Xuan's team.
After Boss Xuan died, he ended up joining the Countermeasures Research Office, which of course made it even less likely for him to join the academy as a student.
Many students might envy him, since many only used the academy as a stepping stone, with the ultimate goal of entering the Countermeasures Research Office. He had essentially skipped that step and gone straight to the finish line.
But deep down, Zhao Ming still felt a slight sense of regret.
"Brother Zhao Ming, what are you thinking about?" the curly-haired teenager beside him asked.
Zhao Ming shook his head. "Nothing. Aaron, don't forget our mission. Don't say anything unnecessary once we're inside the academy."
"I know! Our task is to investigate Duanmu Feng's Practical Combat Class, but it must be done discreetly."
After Zhang Minglu received the investigation order from Gao Liangwei, he sent his carefully groomed successor, Zhao Ming, to carry it out, with Aaron accompanying him as a guard.
This arrangement was also because the two were familiar with each other. Just as Dragon Soul was Zhang Minglu's usual escort whenever he went out on official business from the base.
Now that Zhang Minglu's successor was going out on a mission, it was only natural for Dragon Soul's apprentice, Aaron, to accompany and protect him.
Of course, there was another reason for sending the two: they were both "fresh faces." Neither had represented the Research Office in external missions or been on the media or internet, so basically no one recognized them.
In contrast, if someone famous like Zhang Minglu or even Silver Fox showed up at the academy, they would undoubtedly be recognized by many students, making the investigation impossible to keep secret.
After entering the academy, the two first went to the Dean's office to find Zhou Qinfeng.
"I know everything from Dr. Zhang," Zhou Qinfeng told them.
"Teacher Duanmu Feng's teaching method does have some issues. It's not just the students protesting; I've brought it up at faculty meetings too, but it's been useless. Teacher Duanmu still goes his own way."
Aaron asked curiously, "Can't the students just not go to class?"
Before Zhou Qinfeng could respond, Zhao Ming explained first: "Practical Combat Class has been upgraded to a compulsory major course this academic year. If they don't attend, it will delay their graduation."
"This..."
"I'm Zhao Ming."
"Oh, this Brother Zhao is right. This year, Practical Combat is one of the main courses. Every student must complete it, or they can't graduate. So even if the students are dissatisfied and protest, they have to attend if they want to graduate."
Aaron winced. "That rule is really unreasonable. Can't it be changed?"
Zhou Qinfeng looked awkward. Zhao Ming cut straight to the point: "Dean, the two of us will attend a Practical Combat Class as 'transfer students' to see what's really going on. I think that's more straightforward than hearsay."
"Transfer students? This... it's not impossible, but Teacher Duanmu Feng has a fiery temper. If you don't follow his instructions in class, there might be conflict."
"No problem!" Aaron puffed out his chest confidently. "When it comes to combat power, my teacher can take on ten Duanmu Fengs. With me protecting him, Brother Zhao Ming will be very safe."
"Your teacher?"
"The one and only Dragon Soul!"
"Oh?"
Zhou Qinfeng looked surprised, but Zhao Ming shot Aaron a warning glance, signaling him not to talk about things unrelated to this mission.
"Since that's settled, we'll go prepare," Zhao Ming said, taking his leave.
"Alright. I'll find a counselor to take you to the Practical Combat classroom in a bit."
After Zhou Qinfeng said this and watched the two leave, he muttered to himself, "I've never heard of these two young lads before... They both look so young. Are they new trainees from the Countermeasures Research Office?"
What surprised him even more was that the talkative curly-haired kid wasn't from Beixing but seemed to be from Xisiya.
Zhou Qinfeng thought for a moment, turned back to his computer, and began typing on the keyboard.
Meanwhile, Zhao Ming and Aaron, having left the Dean's office, took the elevator down.
Inside the elevator, Zhao Ming reminded him again: "Aaron, next time, don't say anything that isn't related to the mission."
Aaron scratched his head apologetically. "Got it. But that Dean looked pretty old, didn't he? All white hair. That's pretty rare in this era."
"You're from Xisiya, so you don't know Dean Zhou. He's very famous in Beixing's education circles. He used to be the principal of two prestigious universities and managed them very well. So when the Mind Power Development Academy was first being built, the Beixing authorities decided to ask him to be the Dean."
Aaron asked curiously, "How did someone his age survive the first rule? Did he rely on Alertness Mints?"
The corner of Zhao Ming's mouth twitched. This kid really had no filter.
Even though they were almost three years into the Doomsday Rules era, saying someone had used Alertness Mints to pass the first rule was still a very aggressive statement.
But Aaron's emotional intelligence wasn't low enough to ask Zhou Qinfeng directly to his face, which Zhao Ming could at least accept.
"First, not all elderly people necessarily couldn't hold on," Zhao Ming said. "Second, you're not the only one with this question. With all those students at the academy, anyone who sees the Dean's white hair would definitely wonder the same thing."
Aaron pressed on: "So what happened?"
"The result is that Dean Zhou apparently responded that he got through those seventy-two hours of staying awake with the help of medical intervention."
"Medical intervention? Oh, you mean alertness injections. Back in Xisiya, when the rules first started, a lot of oligarchs got those too. But after the intel on Alertness Mints came out, those guys stopped getting shots and all took the mints instead."
Aaron's expression grew indignant as he said this, clearly unable to accept that intentional killing.
"But luckily, after our new Administrator took office, most of those bastards were dealt with! Haha, I think under Administrator Yelanka's leadership, our Xisiya will only get better and better!"
Ding.
The elevator reached the first floor. After getting out, Zhao Ming specifically said to Aaron, "Aaron, don't forget that you're now an official Ascendant of Beixing. It's fine to say things like that to me, but don't say them to others at the base, or someone might use it to attack you."
"Huh? Alright..."
"Excuse me, are you the transfer students the Dean mentioned?" At the door, a woman greeted them as she walked over.
"That's us," Zhao Ming said.
"Nice to meet you. I'm the counselor, Qin Qing. Come on, I'll first find you a dormitory, and then..."
"Counselor Qin Qing, please take us to the Practical Combat classroom. We'd like to go there first," Zhao Ming said.
"Huh? Practical Combat? Uh... alright, follow me."
Although Qin Qing was puzzled, the Dean had told her over the phone that these two transfer students were special and didn't have to strictly follow the academy's rules like ordinary students.
Since the Dean had said so, she naturally went along with it.
On the way to the classroom, Qin Qing took the initiative to talk about the teacher, Duanmu Feng.
"...Everyone knows he was transferred from the Countermeasures Research Office. He once joined the Human Consortium's Joint Force and went to Black Flag Country to fight against the parasitized forms, only returning at the very end."
Without hesitation, Zhao Ming said, "I remember during the period of the Seventeenth Doomsday Rule, the Joint Force suffered a devastating blow from the parasitized forms, with extremely heavy casualties."
"Yeah, I know that too. The students were all discussing it at the time. Everyone said the parasitized forms used the rules to launch a night raid, and many of the Joint Force soldiers weren't killed by the parasitized forms, but died from Scarlet Fear."
Aaron chimed in: "With such a brutal battlefield, it's really not easy for this Duanmu Feng to have made it back alive."
"That's true." Qin Qing muttered something under her breath, but neither of them could hear it clearly. When Zhao Ming asked again, she quickly waved her hand and said it was nothing.
Qin Qing led the two for a while before stopping in front of a building that looked like an indoor sports arena.
"Here we are. This is the academy's indoor training building. Practical Combat classes are usually held on the ground floor."