December 1st.
Guan Tong woke up at 7 AM, with two hours remaining until the rule announcement.
He ate something, turned on his computer, and checked the morning news.
In Sakura Prayer Country, the explosion case was still under investigation. The authorities stated they had collected all available DNA evidence from the scene and would identify individuals through database matching.
Guan Tong wasn't worried about himself; he hadn't left any DNA behind.
But whether Wu Wang had left any was another matter. If the Human Consortium member states shared identity databases, his identity might be exposed.
However, with the new rule imminent, all other urgent matters had to take a backseat. The rule came first.
The news also reported on the newly enacted "Doomsday Rule Management Law."
Just two days after its promulgation, someone had already become a cautionary tale, featured as a case study in the news.
The specifics involved an Ascendant with "Fire Control" ability who used his power to ignite an abandoned, ownerless wooden crate by the roadside.
Burning an empty, ownerless crate didn't constitute significant property damage. It hadn't spread to other property or people, so it didn't seem like a big deal.
The Ascendant thought so too, but he was caught red-handed by Peace Officers.
His actions violated the "Ascendant Conduct Restriction Regulations."
The regulations stipulated that Ascendants must not use abilities or items in public spaces without necessary justification. Violators would face penalties based on the severity of consequences, potentially including criminal sentences.
Since no one was injured in the news case, the consequences were relatively minor, resulting only in a fine of some Ascension Coins.
"Talk about bad luck... but these regulations are pretty strict."
After reading the news, Guan Tong didn't dwell on it. He opened his Terminal panel to review his current status.
【Name: Guan Tong】
【Nickname: Shadow】
【Title: Civilization Observer】
【Mind Power: 945 (945) (181620)】
【Ascension Coins: 4,957,280】
【Overall Biometric Rating: Outstanding】
On the personal data front, only the Mind Power Upper Limit was noteworthy. The increase over the past month seemed slightly larger than before.
He wasn't sure if his natural growth rate had increased again or if it was due to the several battles he'd fought this month.
He then opened his Storage Box, which was filled with a jumble of items.
Looking through it, many items were obtained early on but rarely had a chance to be used.
For example, he still had a 【Basic Food Box】, but after acquiring the portable book page shelter and the storage ring, he had ample space for all kinds of supplies, making item-based food unnecessary.
There were also items like the 【Lockpick】, 【Signal Detector】, 【Multi-functional Protective Suit】, etc. These early items were now basically collecting dust.
It wasn't just support items. Offensive items like the 【Corpse Whistle】, obtained early and capable of summoning living dead, were also largely useless now.
However, since the living dead summoned by Guan Tong using the 【Corpse Whistle】 had successfully attracted a Sound Hunter before, it suggested that besides attacking and doing manual labor, living dead might have some special uses. So, he could keep it.
After organizing, he moved the still-usable items to the front of the Storage Box. There were roughly these few:
【Wordless Book】, 【Corpse Whistle】, 【Mind Power Stimulus Syringe】, 【Communication Scroll】, 【Life-Saving Pendant】, 【Hourglass of Time】, 【Liu-Jin Guardian】.
Other special items like the 【Kimos Star Chronicle】 and 【Second Ascendant Challenge Tournament Invitation】 were placed in the middle.
As for items worn on the body like the 【Greataxe Warrior Hoodie】, 【Storage Ring】, and 【Constant Temperature Tech Underwear】, they weren't counted separately.
Looking at it this way, the commonly used items weren't many, and some were single-use or had limited charges.
If Guan Tong wanted to fill his Storage Box, he could certainly do so by spending Ascension Coins in the Market.
If it were the early stages of the Doomsday Rules, he might have done that. But after thirteen rules, he gradually developed an awareness.
That was "Focus on the Core."
This core referred to the book page abilities derived from the 【Wordless Book】 as the axis.
Originally, he wasn't fully convinced of this idea. But after recent battles, he felt that the strong fighters all had this awareness to some extent.
Like Dragon Soul and Lucifer from before.
Dragon Soul's ability was muscle enhancement. In battle, he almost exclusively used his own ability, with the only additional item being a Triangular Bayo that could automatically target enemies.
Lucifer was even more extreme. Whether fighting Dragon Soul or later Guan Tong, he didn't use any items throughout, relying solely on his "Fallen Angel Wings" ability to fight. Only when he realized he couldn't win at the end did he pull out a teleportation item to escape.
Another example was Wu Wang, whom Guan Tong dealt with three days ago. That guy must have received many items from Lado. Yet, from start to finish, he only used one defensive 【Liu-Jin Guardian】, a canister that could rapidly disperse metal powder, and the super metal bomb hidden on his person.
The latter two offensive items were used in conjunction with his own 【Metal Detonation】 ability.
From beginning to end, Wu Wang never suddenly pulled out some other type of offensive item to try and attack Guan Tong.
The combat styles of these three individuals answered one question:
With limited Mind Power, should one prioritize using items or one's own exclusive abilities?
All three answered the latter: prioritize exclusive abilities.
This was also Guan Tong's view.
If items didn't consume Mind Power, then using them freely would be natural.
But when items do consume Mind Power, the precious Mind Power seems more valuable in the long term when used on one's own abilities.
It was precisely because of this awareness that Guan Tong wasn't inclined to purchase large quantities of items. He would only open the Market to search and buy when he had a specific need.
"The use of powerful items consumes large amounts of Mind Power. This is probably the Achilles' heel for people like 'Jiang Lanying', right?"
Those in positions of power, even if they could concentrate the Ascension Coins of thousands upon thousands of people on themselves and buy dozens or even a hundred items, would exhaust their Mind Power after using just a few, unable to utilize the items fully.
In such a situation, distributing Ascension Coins to trusted subordinates to build team combat strength is the rational allocation method.
Jiang Lanying's Death Warriors were cultivated along these lines, but their numbers were still too few. From this, one could also see the depth of her suspicion; she only trusted the orphans she adopted.
Members of the Qingmei Society didn't receive similar trust.
Like Liu Yuqiang, who shot himself in front of Guan Tong. In terms of management ability, as a self-made chairman who built an industry-leading company from scratch, was he really inferior to that woman in her twenties, Han Ling?
Yet, the manager of the Yongzhou base was Han Ling, not Liu Yuqiang. If their positions had been swapped, perhaps Liu Yuqiang would have become truly devoted to Jiang Lanying, instead of feeling like a disposable pawn.
"Buzz."
A short vibration from his phone interrupted Guan Tong's thoughts. He picked it up; it was an official mass notification text message.
"The fourteenth Doomsday Rule is about to be announced. Please stay indoors in a safe location if possible and do not go out. After the rule is announced, official departments will analyze and assess it as soon as possible and publish countermeasures."
Before each new rule announcement, the authorities would send a mass text reminder. Guan Tong turned off his phone screen, wondering what category this rule would be.
Time ticked by, and soon, under the anticipation of all humanity, the moment arrived.
The Fire Thief's voice sounded right on time.
【The fourteenth Doomsday Rule has been announced】
【Doomsday Rule Fourteen: Extraterrestrial Parasitism】
【Rule Content: Starting from the rule announcement, a type of adhesive spore from an alien pla will be dispersed on Tianshui Star. This spore can adhere to any physical entity. Humans who inhale the spore will undergo physical and psychological changes, potentially developing special addiction symptoms. These symptoms can be resisted through personal willpower. Abandoning resistance results in challenge failure. This rule will last for 30 days.】
【Success Reward: 1000 Ascension Coins, Survival Chest · Silver Grade】
【Failure Penalishment: Survival in a parasitized form】
【Note: People of Tianshui Star, do you believe it? This spore was once a bestseller in the universe.】
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