Sakura Prayer, Bandzhen.
Outside the Wordless Book shelter, Uenoshi had just returned from her operations, her body still covered in traces of dust and dirt.
Guan Tong could tell at a glance that she had been out doing some "demolition work."
"I just led the Serpent Hair Society members to break down over a hundred walls." Just as Guan Tong expected, Uenoshi said, "That should barely solve the entry and exit problem for some people. I plan to go break down more this afternoon."
Guan Tong nodded.
Sakura Prayer's national situation was different from any other country. The reason was that this place had once been home to the Andai people.
The Andai people preferred living in wooden bungalows, with only a few commercial districts in the cities containing tall buildings.
After the Sakura Prayer people relocated here, they had long since followed the local customs and lived in these wooden houses as well.
But later, as the threat of the Rules intensified, especially after the appearance of the [Green Hell] Rule, people were forced to move into tall buildings when faced with the plant mutation crisis.
After that Rule ended, some people moved back, but many more stayed in the apartment buildings from then on.
If one lived in a wooden bungalow, opening a hole in the wall for entry and exit was easy. Just drill one out with an electric drill.
But with apartment buildings, it was much more troublesome, because the hole you drilled would most likely end up in your neighbor's home, or on the outer wall halfway up the building.
Even if you managed to drill into the stairwell, getting out from there still required going through the unit entrance door. And the unit entrance door was still a door. Opening it would trigger spatial folding.
So to give these people a chance to get out, Uenoshi had led a group of Serpent Hair Society members who were already outdoors to take action after the Rule was announced.
They used "high-altitude operations" to break through the outer walls of multiple buildings, leaving behind sturdy ropes for people to lower themselves from the upper floors to the ground in emergency situations.
"I can help with your afternoon operations," Guan Tong said.
Uenoshi glanced at the shelter behind him and asked, "Troupe Leader, don't you need to stay here to protect Shi Jingyi during her secluded meditation?"
Guan Tong smiled. "I didn't say I'd go personally. I'll just send Shadow to help you."
Uenoshi thought about it and realized he was right. She knew Shadow possessed sensory abilities and could operate independently far from the main body. There was no need for Guan Tong to go in person.
"Alright, then I'll leave it to you this afternoon."
Uenoshi genuinely needed Shadow's help. The latter's ability to switch between substantial and insubstantial states could save her a lot of trouble.
"There's one more thing I need to report to you." She recalled another matter. "Some subordinates told me that people all over the world are now buying up 'Coordinate Resonance Anchors' produced by this Rule at high prices. Should we follow suit?"
"No need." Guan Tong then explained, "Others are buying them to research. What would we do with them if we bought them? If it's only to stabilize the space behind a door, that's simply not worth it. We don't have a door that important."
He saw this matter very clearly.
Neither he nor Sakura Prayer under the Serpent Hair Society's control had the research talent, equipment, or resources to conduct any kind of technical research, much less the ability to deeply explore the technical secrets of the Coordinate Resonance Anchor item.
Moreover, looking across all of Sakura Prayer, neither Bandzhen nor Antu had a door that needed to be "absolutely controllable."
A Coordinate Resonance Anchor was the kind of item whose price would obviously skyrocket to the heavens. He wasn't about to play the fool and buy one.
"Not long before you came, Black Star contacted me about this exact question, and I told him we didn't need it. You should also tell the Serpent Hair Society members not to try opening doors to obtain anchor items. That relies far too much on luck. It's probably harder than winning the lottery."
Uenoshi nodded. "Understood."
"By the way, how is Moon Key doing now?"
"She's been staying in her room. After the Rule was announced, I went to ask her if she wanted me to break through the outer wall to make it easier for her to come and go. She refused."
Uenoshi's tone carried some worry as she brought this up.
"Troupe Leader, do you think she might do something rash? Should I have someone keep an eye on her at all times?"
"No need."
Guan Tong thought of Fang Qian's suicide, paused for a moment, then continued.
"Trauma at this psychological level, others can't help much. She has to endure it herself. But I believe she'll adjust. After going through so much, she's not necessarily that fragile."
"I understand. Then I'll get back to work."
"Mm."
After Uenoshi left, Guan Tong sat back down on the stool.
He had made up his mind that he wouldn't easily move from this spot until Shi Jingyi's secluded meditation was complete.
Although no one else could enter the shelter besides him, and he could simply retract the shelter back into the [Wordless Book] without affecting what happened inside,
this time was different from before. This time, Shi Jingyi's secluded meditation was to obtain an Authority.
Guan Tong still had only a partial understanding of this thing, and he wasn't entirely clear on the natural acquisition process.
To ensure Shi Jingyi's success, at the very least he would guarantee absolute stability in the external environment. No surprises.
After sitting down, he thought about the anchor item acquisition matter Uenoshi had mentioned earlier, and his heart stirred slightly.
"Anchors"... he had one himself.
Spreading his palm, the dual-triangle totem in his palm was the mental stability anchor he had developed using the [Wordless Book], specifically designed to defend against mental attacks.
This totem was derived from the character "anchor" he had written on the seventh page. At first, he was the only one using it, but later every team member got one.
He couldn't help but speculate now: if this "anchor" character could derive a mental stability anchor, could it also derive a "Coordinate Resonance Anchor" like the one produced by this Rule?
This wasn't some wild fantasy. Guan Tong had done similar things before.
The character "kai" he had written on the fifth page of the [Wordless Book] was originally written to break the Mind Lock caused by the [World Number One] Rule.
Later, during the [Earth Dragon Rolls Over] Rule, he had used his fuzzy requirement ability to redevelop and derive the "kai" character into "Cracking Power," successfully applying it to crack the Geomantic Pillar and reduce the earthquake's destructive force.
This example had proven that the power of the Wordless Book was not fixed. As long as one dared to think, dared to develop, and met certain conditions, nothing was impossible.
"If I could develop the 'anchor' character on the seventh page into something similar to the item produced by this Rule, then..."
Guan Tong thought carefully for a moment, then lost most of his interest.
Because he suddenly remembered that the things he developed with the [Wordless Book] were all untradeable.
Back when he first created Ascension City on his own, even the currency he made was untradeable Binding Coins. Even if he developed a similar anchor item now, it would still be untradeable. He could only use it himself.
That greatly diminished his motivation. As things stood, he didn't have any door that needed fixed space.
After sitting for a while, he took out his tablet from the Storage Ring and wanted to go online to check the situation. Instead, he found that Silver Fox had sent him a private message.
Silver Fox: "Guan Tong, the Countermeasures Research Office wants to collaborate with you regarding this Rule's content. You set the price. Whether you agree or not, remember to reply to me when you see this message~"
Guan Tong didn't reply immediately because there were other private messages.
One of them was even from the official Manchidon account, asking him, as a "Manchidon Hero," to contribute his strength to Manchidon and get through this crisis.
Besides that, there were many other pleas for help. Some asked him to deliver food, others said they had claustrophobia and hoped he would rescue them.
Guan Tong found it all somewhat speechless after reading through them.
Did these people really think of him as a wishing star? Did they think that just because they sent a private message, he would see it, and that if he saw it, he would definitely go help?
Especially most of the message senders, including the official Manchidon account, didn't mention "compensation" at all. That meant they wanted him to work for free.
Why should he? Because he was kind-hearted?
He was kind-hearted, but not in that way.
Not to mention that he had to guard Shi Jingyi during her secluded meditation and couldn't leave. Even if he had nothing to do right now, he wouldn't go running around the world putting out fires. He had no such responsibility or obligation.
Out of over a hundred private messages, he only replied to Silver Fox's. The reply was only three words: "I refuse."
He didn't explain his reasons, and he didn't need to.
The people at the Countermeasures Research Office weren't stupid. The current relationship between the two sides was clear at a glance. It definitely wasn't hostility, but friendliness only existed on a personal level.
Guan Tong could help Silver Fox, Chen Na, Bai Xuewu, and others with their personal difficulties out of friendship, but that didn't mean he would help solve the difficulties of the organizations they belonged to. These were completely different matters.
Especially regarding the Duan Weifeng incident. He was still very dissatisfied, a ball of fire burning in his chest, feeling injustice on Shi Jingyi's behalf.
She had worked diligently at the academy for years, teaching so many outstanding students. Many of those students went on to join official organizations and make contributions after graduating. Could anyone say that wasn't partly Shi Jingyi's merit?
Yet after she was attacked in the academy, the officials didn't even give a proper explanation. Shi Jingyi or other teachers might be able to barely accept it, but Guan Tong absolutely could not.
At the end of the day, people were protective of their own. Since the Countermeasures Research Office chose to protect Duanmu Feng, then they couldn't blame Guan Tong for refusing to cooperate with the office any longer for Shi Jingyi's sake.