Chapter 209: Chapter 199: Perilous Teleportation and Transport By mid-May, as the earthquake magnitudes steadily increased, so too did the public’s sense of crisis.
The magnitude 1-4 quakes had been barely perceptible, but when the magnitude 5 quake hit, everyone in the cities near the epicenter felt the tremors. Some were even jolted from their sleep.
This made people realize that the uneventful first half of the month was over.
The latter half of the month—the half that truly represented disaster and destruction—had begun.
Just as with the lower-magnitude quakes, the interval between the high-magnitude ones—7, 8, 9, and even the final magnitude 10 great earthquake—was still 72 hours.
How many 72-hour periods would it take to complete the rescue efforts from a single magnitude 8 earthquake?
Imagine: before they could even handle the disaster from a magnitude 8, a magnitude 9 would strike, followed closely by a 10... The situation was so dire, it was no wonder many nations saw the rise of doomsday fatalists—people who believed resistance was futile and chose instead to indulge in one last carnival, doing whatever they pleased.
But while ordinary people could afford to be pessimistic, governments around the world were still preparing to combat the disaster at all costs.
Any nation that had survived since the advent of the Apocalypse Rules had a relatively responsible government.
As for the irresponsible governments, their nations had mostly perished long ago. The moment the Apocalypse Rules arrived, many key officials from smaller countries had gathered their families and fled to larger nations for asylum. Leaderless, how could such nations avoid being swiftly destroyed by the Apocalypse Rules?
North Star’s confidence had soared after their successful cooperation with Guan Tong to neutralize the magnitude 4 and 5 quakes. The higher-ups had authorized the Strategy Research Room to mobilize any resources necessary in an all-out effort to overcome the disaster.
However, the director, Gao Liangwei, knew the leadership wouldn’t bet everything on a single plan. There had to be other, secret departments preparing doomsday contingencies.
But if it ever came to the point where those plans needed to be activated, it would mean the vast majority of the country’s population had already perished, which, in Gao Liangwei’s view, was unacceptable.
「May 16th, the day of the magnitude 6 earthquake.」
Since their last two collaborations had been so successful, Zhang Minglu suggested to Guan Tong that he join the Psychic Power transport unit and travel with them via a group Teleportation Item.
Guan Tong considered it and agreed.
He had seen during the response to the magnitude 5 quake that the official team, using Teleportation Items, could reach the epicenter much faster than he could.
Unless an epicenter happened to be right at the location of one of his Shadow Lines, he would have to identify the nearest one, use Body Shifting, and then still travel the rest of the way. A Teleportation Item, however, allowed for an instantaneous, point-to-point arrival.
Wasting a bit of time hadn’t mattered for the low-magnitude quakes. But with the higher-magnitude ones, every passing second meant the release of enormous amounts of energy. The faster he could get there and start, the better.
So this time, Guan Tong met up with the official Psychic Power transport unit in advance, ready to teleport the moment the earthquake struck.
The rendezvous point wasn’t far from Capital Yong’an, at a location that resembled a military base. When Guan Tong arrived, everyone gave him strange looks.
Unsurprisingly, he had changed his appearance again, this time taking the form of a male teenager.
Besides the Dragon Soul Squad, Guan Tong also noticed some other unusual Ascenders, likely also members of the Official Team.
Among them was an old acquaintance.
That’s right—it was Chen Na.
Guan Tong watched Chen Na as she stood talking with Silver Fox. He hadn’t seen her since the incident at Yongzhou Base. In the months that had passed, Chen Na had grown taller. Her hair had also gotten longer, growing from an ear-length bob to the nape of her neck.
’Looks like the kid joined the Official Team,’ Guan Tong thought. ’With Chen Na’s abilities, it’s no surprise she was scouted and trained by the government.’
’Back when she was under the control of that "Qingmei" Sponsor Organization, they had also engineered many "firsts" for her during the Eighth Rule, massively increasing her Psychic Power cap. That’s probably why she’s here on this mission—to supply him with Psychic Power.’
As if sensing Guan Tong’s gaze, Chen Na turned to look his way.
Guan Tong offered her a slight smile.
Chen Na gave a reserved nod in return before turning away, looking a little embarrassed.
Silver Fox noticed this and asked, "Na, do you know him?"
Chen Na looked confused. "No. Why do you ask, Silver Fox?"
Silver Fox lowered her voice. "I’ll let you in on a little secret: I think he might be Shadow. You were rescued by Shadow from that evil organization’s base, weren’t you? So I figured you might know him."
"Huh?" Chen Na froze. "But... the person who saved me was a woman..."
"It’s not like items that change one’s appearance are unheard of," Silver Fox said with a smile. "But a person’s aura... I don’t think that’s something you can change."
"An aura..."
Chen Na looked over at Guan Tong again, who was now talking with Dragon Soul as he approached.
Perhaps it was the power of suggestion, but she suddenly felt that there was something vaguely familiar about him.
"Shepherd, the Strategy Research Room brought more personnel this time," Dragon Soul said as he walked over to Guan Tong. "The Psychic Power required for a magnitude 6 quake will be much greater than for a 5."
Guan Tong nodded. "I know. But for the higher magnitudes to come, this team probably still won’t be enough."
"We’re aware of that," said Dragon Soul. "The Strategy Research Room has already held several meetings with the academy’s administration. Starting with the magnitude 7 quake, they plan to pull in students with high Psychic Power to assist."
"Recruiting academy students..."
Guan Tong wasn’t surprised. This year’s class of academy students was exceptionally talented. After all, the strict 80-point Psychic Power threshold for admission alone proved that every single student possessed above-average potential.
Furthermore, these students had enrolled last August, after the Fourth Rule. For the better part of a year—spanning six Rule Stages—they had enjoyed the full protection of the government. Now it was their turn to step up and contribute.
Dragon Soul said, "Yes, we have no choice. If we can’t mitigate this disaster, the academy probably won’t exist much longer anyway."
"That’s true."
"By the way, Dr. Zhang wanted me to ask if you’re satisfied with those two items for increasing your Psychic Power cap."
"Very satisfied," said Guan Tong. "I know both items are incredibly valuable, and I’m grateful for the support."
"We do it for the people living on this land," Dragon Soul said. "All for one, and one for all. It’s the only way we’ll survive."
Guan Tong gave a slight nod. Just then, Dragon Soul’s expression changed as he apparently received a message through his earpiece.
He said immediately, "The magnitude 6 quake has hit. Coordinates confirmed. We teleport now!"
"Right."
At Dragon Soul’s command, everyone gathered together and used the group Teleportation Item.
It was Guan Tong’s first time teleporting, and the sensation was completely different from Body Shifting. It felt as if his entire body was enveloped by a special kind of Psychic Power, sucked into one dimension, and then expelled from another.
It inexplicably brought to mind the science fiction concept of a Wormhole Jump.
He had no time for idle thoughts, however, because the moment the teleportation ended, he felt himself plummeting. He looked down—the ground at their arrival point had already cracked open, and he was directly over a chasm ripped open by the quake!
The energy released by a magnitude 6 quake was already terrifying, and multiple large fissures had opened at the epicenter. Guan Tong wasn’t the only one; several other unlucky souls had materialized directly over these chasms and were now plummeting into them.
"AHHH!!!"
"Help me!"
Many of them were psychologically unprepared, and they panicked, crying out in terror.
As one of the quickest to react, Guan Tong had no time to worry about exposing his identity. He instantly summoned his Shadow, which morphed into several Shadow Ropes. One wrapped itself around the Earth Vein Pillar for anchorage, while the others shot out to catch the falling people, saving more than a dozen lives.
At the same time, Dragon Soul and the others sprang into action—some rescuing people, others using items to create floating platforms for everyone to stand on.
Even so, seven or eight people were still swallowed by the fissures, vanishing in the churning earth. The scene was so horrifying that in their shock, the others didn’t even register their surprise at Guan Tong manipulating his Shadow, an act that completely blew his cover.
The earthquake had been raging for less than thirty seconds, and the energy being released from the epicenter was only going to increase. Not daring to delay, Guan Tong urged on his Shadow Ropes, "pulling" himself toward the Earth Vein Pillar while "tossing" the people he had saved onto the item-generated floating platforms.
He immediately placed his hand on the Earth Vein Pillar. "Start sending me Psychic Power! We need to mitigate this quake’s damage as quickly as possible!"
"Right!" Holding the Negative Pole Magnet, Dragon Soul was the first to begin the transfer, while the lightning-fast Silver Fox was in charge of placing "Mind Candy" into Guan Tong’s hand.
The others had their own tasks as well. Some were responsible for maintaining and creating more floating platforms, while others tended to the wounded.
It was only then that everyone snapped out of their shock and realized: the man they knew as "Shepherd" had just manipulated ropes of shadow to save a dozen people. It was undeniable proof that he was the legendary Shadow.