Forty-nine rules of the end times

Chapter 314 The Fall of the Black Flag Nation

Black Flag Country.

Immediately after the rules were lifted, widespread chaos erupted across the country.

Tens of thousands of people—no, it should be said that tens of thousands of parasites gathered together to attack those who were in the minority and followed the rules.

The seeds of disaster were sown when the top leadership of Black Flag State chose to leave those deeply parasitized unchecked rather than centrally manage them.

Now the seeds have sprouted and are growing into towering trees at an extremely fast pace.

Official forces were powerless to stop it, because many officials themselves had become parasites. Instead, they exploited their hosts' identities to create even greater chaos.

As for some of the top-level personnel, they have already fled to other countries, leaving behind a mess.

Those few who remained clear-headed undoubtedly fell into the deepest despair.

They cannot distinguish whether a person is a parasite, but parasites can distinguish between their own kind and heretics.

This makes it impossible for those who follow the rules to infiltrate the group, even if they want to pretend to be parasites.

An unspeakable catastrophe erupted in this country, and before the day was even over, the parasites had become the new masters of the Black Flag Nation.

The other member states of the Federation were extremely shocked by this and immediately convened an emergency remote meeting to discuss it.

On the big screen, every representative and committee member's face revealed a deep sense of unease.

The Black Flag State Committee member was absent from the meeting and was unable to attend.

All the committee members knew that the Black Flag Nation would no longer have a seat in the UN Security Council. From the moment its top leadership chose to abandon its responsibilities and run away, this nation was destined to watch its demise.

“Only a small number of people from Black Flag Nation escaped and went to our Soroma,” Mary said. “According to the intelligence they provided, Black Flag Nation is now under the control of the parasitic group.”

"This is absolutely terrifying..."

"Could it be that the tens of millions of people in the Black Flag Kingdom have all become parasites?!"

“It shouldn’t be that bad,” Mary explained. “According to the people who escaped to our country, there are still quite a few non-parasites in the country. It’s just that they were all besieged by parasites and couldn’t escape at all.”

"Hmph, to talk so lightly about abandoning one's own country and people and running away, that's really the style of the top echelons of the Black Flag Nation." A member of the Xisia Nation couldn't help but curse.

"The key issue now is how to rescue the survivors," Gao Liangwei said.

"If the Human Alliance does not take any action, the remaining non-parasites in the Black Flag Nation will definitely be wiped out. What is even more terrifying than being wiped out is that they will be transformed back into parasites, further strengthening the parasites' power."

Although Gao Liangwei's words made sense, each committee member looked somber and remained silent.

Mary said, "Chairman Gao, the member states of the Federation of Peoples' Associations have not yet solved the problem of parasites themselves. Some member states are only slightly better off than Black Flag State, but they still face the risk of subversion. Under these circumstances, we are really unable to provide any more assistance to Black Flag State."

“I know.” Gao Liangwei looked at Mary. “So my proposal is that our Beixing and your Soroma countries should contribute.”

The other committee members nodded in agreement.

Currently, only North Star and Soroma have the capacity to provide assistance to other countries while maintaining control over their own domestic situation.

Both countries are major powers in science and technology and weaponry, and can carry out large-scale bombing and sweeping operations against a large number of parasites simply by using various modern and advanced weapons.

In addition, Soroma has the advantage of intelligent robots, which can be mass-produced for armed operations, reducing manpower costs.

The advantage of Beixing lies in its largest population retention, which means that it also has the largest number of Ascendants in the country, allowing it to form a large Ascendant legion and generate high combat power.

Seeing Mary pondering, Gao Liangwei knew she felt there was no benefit in doing this and was unwilling to agree.

In particular, some top figures in the Black Flag Kingdom have transferred their assets, along with a large number of Ascension Coins and items, to Soroma, which means that there are not many "resources" left in the Black Flag Kingdom.

“If you think there’s no profit to be made, you should think about the Black Flag people who are still alive,” Gao Liangwei said.

“In that kind of environment, those who can maintain their integrity and not be parasitized by spores must be people with strong wills. Such people are valuable talents and warriors. Isn’t it a pity to let them perish in isolation and helplessness?” Mary’s eyes lit up when she heard this. She had forgotten about it.

Those Black Flag Risers who are still persevering are indeed a valuable "resource".

“Even if Chairman Gao doesn’t say it, I will,” Mary said. “We will never abandon the warriors who are still fighting. After the meeting, I will definitely persuade the Senate and His Majesty the King to send troops to Black Flag to rescue those warriors!”

The other smaller countries forced smiles at the sight, knowing they might need the same kind of help in the future.

"Great."

"Now the survivors of Black Flag are saved."

"But is there really any hope left for humanity?" one committee member couldn't help but ask, his face showing dejection. "France and Black Flag, once two world powers. Now, one's citizens have become followers of the Fire-Stealers Cult, and the other has been taken over by parasites..."

Everyone was silent.

After the remote meeting ended, Gao Liangwei rubbed his temples and called Zhang Minglu.

Zhang Minglu had dark circles under his eyes and looked haggard, as if he hadn't rested in a long time.

"The person in charge, you're looking for me."

"What is the casualty situation of the mobile unit? Have the statistics been compiled?"

"Over half of the casualties are total." Zhang Minglu sighed. "The unit I led to Quarantine Zone 3 fared better, as Dragon Soul intervened and stabilized morale. However, the situation in the other zones is not so good."

The large population of Beixing is an advantage, but a large population also means a large number of parasites.

After Zhang Minglu discovered that the host of the parasite had lost consciousness and was replaced and controlled by spores, he immediately contacted Gao Liangwei to issue a warning. However, at the same time, many quarantine areas still experienced problems.

Some of these incidents involve parasites suddenly erupting and launching attacks, causing massive casualties.

Some parasites in the quarantine zone chose to hide; they blended into the non-parasite population and successfully left the quarantine zone.

Compared to the former, the latter is what gives the authorities the biggest headache.

The parasites possess the host's memories and intelligence, and their physical appearance is indistinguishable from that of ordinary people. Allowing them to infiltrate human society is like a drop of water entering the ocean—how easy is it to sift them out?
"The most urgent task is to find a way to detect the parasite as soon as possible," Zhang Minglu said. "The person in charge, you need to urge the research department more; their efficiency is crucial!"

“I know,” Gao Liangwei nodded. “All research departments are going all out. I’ve called you here now because I have a new task that requires you to mobilize some manpower and a mobile team.”

"new task?"

"The Black Flag Nation has been completely overrun by the parasites, but a small number of ordinary people and ascendants who have not been parasitized are still fighting. Without outside help, their destruction is only a matter of time."

"You mean, we're going to rescue them?"

"Yes. If things go as expected, we will be operating in conjunction with Soroma this time, mainly with military forces conducting large-scale firepower strikes. Your Ascended Team and Mobile Unit will serve as battlefield support forces, heading to the Black Flag Nation together."

“Okay.” Zhang Minglu readily agreed. “To be honest, this is a good opportunity for them to hone their skills through real combat. Judging from their performance in this unexpected situation, training and sparring alone are not enough.”

"So you already have someone in mind?"

"Yes. I plan to send a team led by Shirayuki Mai, along with four research lab mobile teams totaling two hundred people, to participate in this battlefield assistance."

Gao Liangwei nodded, pondered for a moment, and then asked, "How's the progress on Shadow's side?"

"Silver Fox informed me not long ago that, based on their on-site investigation, they believe the Mizawa family's laboratory has been moved onto the ship. Our intelligence department is currently conducting a satellite search."

"It seems to be progressing well."

"Yes. If we successfully complete this collaborative operation with Shadow, I think it will be easier to conduct deeper cooperation in the future."

(End of this chapter)