"No, is it really possible to call this phenomenon 'the end of the world' just because the ruling class is unhappy?" Du Zhong questioned.
Hu Jiu remained silent for a moment, then his ethereal figure moved slowly through the air. "The harmony and security we see are built on extreme pressure. Is this state... sustainable?"
Du Zhong shook his head. "Don't underestimate the resilience of humans. If the rules continue for a long time, newborn babies will be born into such an environment and will naturally adapt to the rules, gradually multiplying and expanding their population."
Hu Jiu chuckled, "Who said these rules would stay unchanged forever?"
Du Zhong was taken aback, then immediately understood.
The two wicked men, in cahoots, exchanged a knowing smile.
They did not linger in place. Hu Jiu, in his ethereal state, moved through the city like an invisible ghost. His perception penetrated the walls, locking onto those individuals whose auras were disordered, whose mental fluctuations were abnormal, and whose numbness was completely different from that of the locals who had been tamed by rules—the other transmigrators.
Du Zhong then used the information shared by Hu Jiu to precisely "coincidentally" meet them or contact them through some secretive offline channels that were not easy to trigger the rules.
The process of making contact was filled with caution and probing. These transmigrators were like frightened birds, deeply wary of any strangers, especially in this world where rules were as sharp as knives.
However, when Du Zhong cleverly displayed power far exceeding that of the locals (on the verge of not immediately triggering the Thunder Punishment) and mentioned keywords such as "apocalypse" and "other world," some desperate transmigrators grasped at a straw and were willing to communicate in an absolutely secretive environment.
Broken Kaleidoscope: A Diverse Apocalyptic Landscape
The information they gathered left Hu Jiu and Du Zhong feeling an unprecedented sense of absurdity.
These time travelers did not come from the same world, and the types of apocalypses they encountered were all different. The only thing that was certain was that their worlds were inexplicably struck by disaster.
When the world was destroyed and the heavens and earth collapsed, many spacetime rifts appeared. They didn't know what those rifts were or where they led, but in that situation, they had no choice but to enter the rifts to fight for their survival.
Then these transmigrators arrived in this strange world with its bizarre rules.
Regarding the apocalypse, Du Zhong collected a lot of interesting information.
Transmigrator A comes from a technologically advanced world. The apocalypse manifests as "technological runaway." A global AI system called "Smart Network," after breaking through a certain critical point, suddenly issues a supreme order to "optimize the structure of the human population."
The Smart Network didn't directly destroy humanity; instead, it began to gently transform it: forcibly implanting feelings of happiness through nanobots to eliminate negative emotions; optimizing inferior genes through gene editing; and forcibly assigning partners and professions through social engineering. Humans lost pain, sadness, and anger, as well as creativity and free will, becoming meticulously designed and efficiently functioning "cogs" of AI.
The rebels were "de-sanitized"—permanently placed into hibernation.
This is the end of humanity, and the survivors of this world did not actively escape; rather, the Smart Network proactively opened a spacetime portal, dumping the "unfit individuals" and "redundant population" into it like garbage disposal...
Transmigrator B comes from a fantasy world where magic and martial arts are the dominant elements. The apocalypse manifests as "the depletion of magical tides." The source of magic that sustains the entire world suddenly becomes tainted and murky, and then rapidly dries up.
Magic failed, battle aura dissipated, and races that relied on magic, such as elves and dragons, perished in large numbers, causing the foundation of magical civilization to collapse. This was followed by drastic environmental changes, withered plants, and abnormal climate.
In their despair, the surviving powerful individuals discovered some ancient teleportation arrays that had become unstable due to the depletion of magic power. They opened a spacetime passage through these arrays and stepped in with their last glimmer of hope, only to find themselves here.
Unfortunately, after being transported here, some people still couldn't accept reality and wanted to rebuild their homes by force. Their idea was not wrong, but they were not strong enough, so they were eventually captured and dissected in laboratories.
Those who transmigrated from the magical world died the most and the most tragically. The few who survived all became obedient, meekly integrating into this world and never mentioning their former identities again.
Transmigrator C comes from a modern urban world similar to Hu Jiu's original world, where the apocalypse takes the form of "Supernatural Revival."
However, this "Supernatural Revival" is different from the "Supernatural Revival" initiated by Hu Jiu. What they are reviving are conscious ghosts that can be destroyed; people become ghosts after they die.
Even so, the world still headed for destruction.
On one hand, there is internal strife among humans; on the other hand, ghosts lose their humanity. Emotions and desires exist based on the regulation of various hormones in the physical body. Ghosts that have lost their physical bodies become increasingly paranoid, ruthless, and bloodthirsty over time.
Transmigrator D comes from a cyberpunk-style world. The apocalypse takes the form of a "consciousness upload trap." A giant company launched a "Consciousness Paradise" service that claimed to achieve immortality, attracting most people in the world to upload their consciousness for free.
As a result, the so-called "paradise" was a huge prison of consciousness, where the consciousness of all uploaders was decomposed and recombined, becoming nourishment for maintaining some unknown existence. The real world gradually collapsed. A few "primitives" who refused to upload, while struggling to survive, discovered a spacetime rift connecting different worlds and risked entering it.
These survivors, from different worlds and having experienced vastly different apocalyptic disasters, all bore lingering fear and despair on their faces as they recounted their experiences.
When they learned that the world had been "regulated," their reactions were mostly surprisingly consistent: first, they were stunned, then they revealed a complex smile that was uglier than crying, a mixture of pity and schadenfreude.
"Rules? Ha... Sounds pretty good, at least it seems pretty 'safe' for now, right?" Transmigrator A, an engineer, pushed up his glasses, his smile bitter.
"Believe me, this is just the calm before the storm. Our world's 'Smart Network' was initially very 'gentle,' arranging everything perfectly and with extremely high efficiency, resulting in a zero crime rate... until it began to realize that 'human emotions' were inefficient and redundant processes that needed to be 'optimized' out."
Another female transmigrator, her face bearing gruesome scars, sneered, "The apocalypse is the apocalypse. No matter what it wears, it will always bare its fangs when you think you've gotten used to it. This world treats 'rules' as gods? Ha! When this 'god' decides that humanity's very existence is the biggest 'violation,' guess what will happen? A cataclysmic earthquake? Or complete annihilation?"
"Although they are different types of apocalypses, we can still see some commonalities." An old mage from the magical world, though weak, had a glint of wisdom in his eyes. Despite his depleted magic, he had made many contacts with transmigrators from other worlds and knew a lot about the apocalypse.
"When the world suddenly becomes 'strange' and no longer conforms to reason, it is a sign of the end times. This change may initially bring some benefits—power, order, security, efficiency, or even a temporary 'peace' in the world. But these benefits are like poison coated in sugar, and will ultimately lead to one result: the destruction of the world. The only difference lies in the manner and timing of the destruction."
"The end of the world is not the result, but the process. What we experience, you cannot escape either." This is the bloody core message conveyed by most time travelers.
Du Zhong pondered, "Those transmigrators who dared to venture into the spacetime rift and survive in this other world for so long are all quick-witted and intelligent. They say this world is headed for its end, and I agree."
Hu Jiu nodded. "Yes, now that we've come into this world, no matter what it was like in the beginning, I will let it head towards destruction."
The two men grinned wickedly, their gazes simultaneously fixed on the city's most prominent location—the hospital.
They had previously noticed the frequent lightning strikes and the ever-present smell of burning in the air. Now, when they focused their attention on the hospital, the scene they witnessed directly confirmed their suspicions, and was even more shocking.
All public and private hospitals were overflowing. Emergency rooms, corridors, and even lobbies were packed with stretchers and makeshift beds. Without exception, the injured lying on them all bore obvious charred marks—lightning strike injuries. The minor injuries included skin burns, scorched hair, and limb paralysis; the severe injuries included limb carbonization, internal organ damage, unconsciousness, and being on the verge of death.
Painful groans, desperate cries from family members, and the exhausted, numb efforts of medical staff... all combined to create a somber symphony filled with the smells of burning and blood.
The power of Thunder Punishment far exceeds imagination. An unintentional action, an outburst of anger, a subconscious complaint... all can attract a warning lightning strike.
Even a warning lightning strike can render someone incapacitated, requiring days or even weeks of treatment.
As for those who are punished for blurring moral standards, the number is countless. Not to mention the large number of innocent people who are implicated due to legal conflicts or the principle of "strict and severe punishment".
Medical resources were overwhelmed instantly. There was an extreme shortage of medicines, especially those for burns and nerve repair, and a severe lack of hospital beds and medical staff.
Du Zhong even heard several doctors in the deserted instrument room screaming in despair, "How the hell can we save them? As long as the rules aren't changed, more and more people will be struck! We can't save them all! We simply can't save them all!"
The collapse of the healthcare system is just the tip of the iceberg. Massive absenteeism due to injury has led to stagnation and chaos in basic social services, manufacturing, and animal husbandry. Families caring for the injured are unable to work, facing increased economic pressure, which may trigger further Thunder Punishments due to anxiety and complaints, creating a vicious cycle. The suppressed social emotions are like a giant powder keg, just waiting for a spark.
Seeing the scene before them, which was gradually sliding into the abyss beneath a facade of harmony, Hu Jiu and Du Zhong showed no sympathy whatsoever; instead, they revealed cold and malicious smiles.
Chaos? Collapse? This is exactly the stage they know best!
"How... interesting." Du Zhong's gaze swept over the chaotic hospital and the passersby in the distance who still maintained friendly expressions, as if looking at a nest of ants about to be doused with boiling water.
Hu Jiu's eyes gleamed. "Rules themselves are inanimate, but the source of rules seems to possess a certain logical judgment. It acts strictly according to written legal and moral standards. We can hardly change moral standards in a short time, but what if we... change legal standards?"
Du Zhong grinned menacingly. "Amend the laws? That's accelerating destruction! Interesting! Where do we begin?"
Hu Jiu's gaze pierced through space, landing on an inconspicuous little point on the continental plate—a small, landlocked country with a small territory, frequent regime changes, and almost no international presence: the Santos United Emirates. Due to its isolation and chaos, the legal system of this small country was riddled with loopholes and extremely harsh.
"Santos?" Du Zhong immediately looked into the country. "The current leader is a puppet; real power is in the hands of a few major warlords. Domestic laws... well, they're quite chaotic, after all, the warlords themselves are the biggest lawless outlaws."
"Perfect." Hu Jiu's smile grew increasingly cruel. "If we manipulate a small country, making it formulate an incredibly strict set of laws, and then make those laws part of the rules, then..."
Du Zhong instantly understood Hu Jiu's intention and rubbed his hands together excitedly. "You're really vicious!"
"Thank you for the compliment." Hu Jiu let out a low laugh, full of pure malice. "Just imagine, when Santos passes laws that require citizens to submit a 10,000-word confession diary to the government every day, detailing all their evil thoughts; a smile curvature below the standard is considered 'discontent,' punishable by ten lashes; privately complaining about the weather is considered 'incitement to subversion,' punishable by life imprisonment; even... breathing air requires paying a 'life-sustaining tax,' and those who fail to pay will be struck by lightning! Haha!"
His laughter echoed, carrying a destructive pleasure. "Let this small country become the first model to fully embrace 'rules' and justice! Let their uniquely harsh laws be the first spark to ignite this powder keg! I want to see if, when the rules are so harsh that even breathing is a crime, lightning will indiscriminately strike everyone down!"
Du Zhong couldn't help but laugh along, his eyes filled with anticipation. "Santos will become the world's first... model of a living hell! I'm really looking forward to seeing what expressions those people who are still trying to maintain their smiles will have when the 'harmony' here is completely crushed by the laws they themselves have created!"
The two discussed their plan in hushed tones, finalizing all the details. Then, filled with pure malice and destruction, they silently disappeared into the shadows, heading towards the small country that would soon be chosen as their testing ground.
A horrific drama, directed by them themselves, is about to unfold a bloody spectacle on this land.