Hearing Xu Xiaotian say this, Guan Tong asked curiously, "Students at the academy should be key protected personnel for the authorities, right?"
"They can't protect that many people. The authorities did send so people with special abilities and items to help, but there weren't nearly enough to go around. In the end, it ca down to a lottery. I was lucky and drew the right to use an item, that's how I got through it."
Hearing this, Guan Tong said, "Didn't you try developing a new type of noodle with a temporary ability? Like a noodle that makes you 'lose your sense of touch' after eating it?"
"It's not that easy," Xu Xiaotian said helplessly. "Developing noodles with special abilities consus a huge amount of Mind Power, and it takes many days to do. If I had known the rule's content a few months in advance, maybe I could have tried."
"I see."
Guan Tong thought to himself that developing on-demand like that was indeed unrealistic. Not to ntion Xu Xiaotian's Instant Noodles item, even his own [Wordless Book] wasn't that convenient.
"Right now, the entire academy is in a state of panic. I've also heard so people say that by August this year, our first batch of students might graduate."
"So soon?"
Guan Tong rembered the academy started on August 10th last year. Graduating by August this year ant a full year.
"Is the academy's program only one year long... but ti is indeed very precious now."
Before the era of the Doomsday Rules, a one-year graduation program was probably only as short as a few one-year master's degrees.
But in the era of the Doomsday Rules, one year ant possibly passing ten rounds of rules. The preciousness of a unit of ti had greatly increased.
From last April to this April, ten rules had already passed. If this pace continued, the remaining thirty-nine rules should be completed within four years.
However, that was under the premise that humanity could persist until completing all the rules. If they collapsed halfway, the ti would be greatly shortened.
"What arrangents will be made for you after graduation?" Guan Tong asked. "Will you also be assigned to shelters like everyone else?"
"That's not certain yet," Xu Xiaotian said. "I heard the authorities are very short-handed now. When the ti cos, us first batch graduates will probably all be assigned to work in various official departnts. Oh right, did you know, Tong-ge, that now the wages for official departnt staff are settled in Ascension Coins?"
"I saw soone ntion it online."
One or two months ago, soone posted on the Ascendant Ho website saying that official departnts were undergoing reforms. Previously suspended wages were being reinstated, but after reinstatent, they wouldn't pay money anymore—they'd pay Ascension Coins instead.
As for the source of these Ascension Coins, naturally, they were collected from residents of the various city shelters and then distributed as needed.
"I hope I get assigned to a good departnt then, sigh."
"What, you don't want to accept the assignnt?"
"It's not that. Besides, if I don't accept the assignnt, there's nothing else to do... One of our lecturers said that exceptionally good students might have the chance to stay at the academy for further study while helping future second batch students, but I'm definitely not qualified..."
"Won't it be a bit late for second batch students to start learning from scratch now?" Guan Tong asked, puzzled.
If the first and second batches had the sa admission standard, which was an 80-point Mind Power upper limit, then an 80-point now and an 80-point at the beginning of the Doomsday Rules era were not on the sa level at all.
"I'm not sure about that," Xu Xiaotian said. "But there's a rumor at the academy that the second batch will recruit so foreign students. Recently, haven't many countries dissolved, and the authorities said they would recruit a group of refugees? It's probably referring to those people."
"I see."
"Oh right, Tong-ge, are you still out in the wild?"
"Yeah."
"...I really admire you. After the ninth fog rule, basically everyone in the wild returned to the cities, right? There probably aren't many people still staying outside now."
Xu Xiaotian was right. The fog in the ninth rule had destroyed a large number of wilderness camps.
Yu Hong and Zhao Yu, who camped at the foot of Mingdao Mountain, were examples. Most wilderness camps simply couldn't withstand the erosion of the fog and the attacks of the Nightmare Beasts within it. Choosing to return to the cities wasn't strange.
"My situation is a bit special," Guan Tong said. "And I also prefer staying outside."
"Alright. Then after I graduate in August, I'll apply to leave the city and co visit you, Tong-ge?"
"Sure. Before that, we'll probably have to go through two or three more rules. Be careful."
"You too, Tong-ge."
After hanging up the phone, Guan Tong held his phone, opened the contacts list, glanced at it, saw Wang Yan's na, and gave her a call.
So ti ago, Wang Yan had called him, made Chen Na apologize for lying, and said they should stay in touch more often.
Guan Tong had agreed at the ti. Now, while his mood was still up after chatting with Xu Xiaotian, it was a good ti to call her and ask about her recent situation.
The call connected quickly. Wang Yan's tone sounded a bit surprised. "Xiao Guan? What's up?"
"Nothing, just saying hello, Sister Wang."
"Ah? Heh, that's quite rare." Wang Yan laughed twice. "I thought you, Xiao Guan, weren't the type to actively contact people."
Wang Yan wasn't entirely wrong. Guan Tong knew himself—his personality was relatively slow to warm up. Usually, he passively answered calls and rarely initiated contact with others.
"Na-na and I are both doing well," Wang Yan said. "We didn't suffer much during this rule because—uh, I better not go into specifics. The confidentiality requirents for information about this place are extrely high. I don't dare say too much."
Guan Tong knew Wang Yan and Chen Na had been absorbed into an official departnt and understood. "It's fine. As long as you and Sister Wang are safe, that's all that matters. I have nothing else, so I'll hang up now."
"Hey, Xiao Guan, wait. Are you still outside the city now?" Wang Yan asked curiously.
"Yes."
"Oh dear, isn't that a bit dangerous? Look at the recent ninth and tenth rules; staying outside is quite dangerous. If you ask , you should enter the city and apply to live in a shelter."
"I don't have that plan for now, Sister Wang. Don't worry."
"Alright. Next ti I see Na-na, I'll have her call you to say hello."
"Okay."
Hanging up again, Guan Tong scrolled through his very short contacts list. At the bottom, only the na "Shi Jingyi" remained.
He pressed dial. After ringing a few tis, a prompt ca from the receiver: "The number you have dialed cannot be reached at the mont..."
Not available? Guan Tong put away his phone.
He wasn't worried that Shi Jingyi might have t with so misfortune during the tenth rule. Not to ntion that her status as a main lecturer at the academy would guarantee her strong official protection, even without the authorities, relying on herself alone, she should have been able to pass this rule smoothly.
"Let's check out this week's new items first."
Earlier, Xu Xiaotian's call had interrupted him, so Guan Tong hadn't looked. Now, he silently recited the command to open the Terminal panel and entered the Ascension Store.
This week's new item looked like a handheld electronic disc.
[Life Detector]: Detects signs of life for humans within a 1000-ter radius. If alive, they will be displayed as red dots on the electronic screen. One-ti-use item.
[Price: 300 Ascension Coins]
"Detects signs of life for humans..."
Guan Tong had to admit, the mont he saw this item's details, he had an ominous premonition.
The eleventh rule... could it be another survival-type rule?
If it was like the ninth rule, a survival-type rule that humans could handle with technological inventions, that would be okay...
"Forget it, I'll know when the ti cos. Overthinking it now doesn't make much sense."
Seeing that this item had no purchase limit, Guan Tong directly spent 6,000 Ascension Coins to buy 20 of them and placed them in his Storage Box. He had the coins to spare, so why not?
After that, just as he was about to open his computer to check the website information, his phone rang. Shi Jingyi was calling back.
"Hello."
"I was cultivating just now," Shi Jingyi said right off the bat, explaining why she hadn't answered the phone. Then she asked, "You needed sothing from ?"
"Nothing important, just saying hello."
"Huh?" Shi Jingyi sounded surprised. "That doesn't seem like your style, kid."
"..."
"Forget it. It's rare for you to have this kind of consideration. Thanks. I'm doing well over here."
"That's good. Then I'll—"
"Wait, don't hang up yet." Shi Jingyi asked, "How's your cultivation of Mind Power Flow going?"
Guan Tong said, "Currently, I can perform two consecutive flows. I've also basically achieved the initial stage of covering my entire body with Mind Power in the form of energy. But I'm still far from being able to manipulate it as freely as you do."
"Sss..."
Over the phone, Shi Jingyi sucked in a sharp breath of cold air, as if very shocked.
"Your talent is truly extraordinary."
"It's alright."
"No need to be modest. Among the students at the academy, the best can only barely manage one flow. Your progress has far surpassed theirs—though you can't bla them. Because of the Mind Lock, they all find it very difficult to calm their minds enough to cultivate."
Mind Lock? The academy still hasn't solved this problem?
Guan Tong himself had used the [Wordless Book] to break through the restriction before the ninth rule ended and had completely forgotten about it. He never expected the resource-rich academy to still not have solved this problem even after the tenth rule ended.
Shi Jingyi keenly sensed sothing from his silence and asked, "You broke through the Mind Lock?"
"Yes. I used my own thod."
"Can this thod be used on others?"
"Probably not." Guan Tong paused and added, "Because this thod is related to my special item."
The [Wordless Book] was his exclusive item, using the power materialized by his Mind Power. Whether it could help others break through the Mind Lock, he really didn't know.
But he thought it was highly unlikely. Even if it could, he wasn't inclined to do it. That would most likely expose his item's ability. Even if he could gain so benefits, they wouldn't match the risks.
"That's a real sha," Shi Jingyi said regretfully. "If it worked, you could probably make a huge amount of Ascension Coins by 'charging for unlocking'... Wait, speaking of which, you probably aren't short on Ascension Coins, are you?!"
Guan Tong wasn't surprised that Shi Jingyi knew he had a lot of coins—since she knew he was Shadow, and she knew about the Ascendant Ho website administrator selling intelligence. Although he hadn't explicitly said he was the website administrator, she could probably guess it with eighty or ninety percent certainty.
"I'm not short. Why?"
"Lend
so. I want to buy sothing, but I don't have enough myself."
"Sure. How much do you need?"
"Let
calculate... including what I have, I'm still short by about three hundred thousand."
"Three hundred thousand?" Guan Tong was shocked. "What thing is that expensive?"
"An ancient martial arts manual about Qigong! I saw it on the Transaction Market and was very interested. I plan to buy it and try practicing it. It's just priced very high. Lend it to
first, and I'll pay you back slowly over the next few months."
"Alright. Send
your Terminal's digital ID."
"Thanks!"
Shi Jingyi quickly sent the ID. Guan Tong added her as a friend and then traded her three hundred thousand Ascension Coins.
After the transaction was completed, looking at the na in his friends list that directly used her real na "Shi Jingyi" as the nickna, he thought for a mont and didn't delete it like he used to. Since she already knew his identity, he might as well keep her as a friend.
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