Forty-nine rules of the end times

Chapter 338 Death Within the Fortress
Senantata is an area where, due to extreme cold, over 90% of the land is uninhabited ice fields.

Only a small number of Sisyan people, who have lived here for generations and are accustomed to the cold, and a few people engaged in the ice and snow related industries live here.

After the rules of the apocalypse came into effect, life here became even more difficult, and many people had to leave and go to big cities to band together for survival.

To this day, apart from a few large prisons and some special buildings still in operation, there are no other industries here, and the population is pitifully small.

Therefore, when Guan Tong and Shang Yuanzi set foot in this area, they immediately felt that it was freezing cold and desolate.

"The information says that after Rijeka's attack on Yelena failed, he was sent to a prison here."

Guan Tong's voice came from under the thick scarf. He was wrapped in a down jacket, wearing snow goggles and a scarf, which was standard attire for people living in this area.

Shang Yuanzi and he were dressed similarly. Although the cold was not a big problem for them due to their physical condition, they did not want to attract too much attention, so doing as the locals do was the best option.

“We’re about ten kilometers away from that prison right now,” Guan Tong said. “We’ll use Shadow to scout ahead. If the intelligence is accurate, I’ll take care of it as soon as possible.”

Shangyuan Zi nodded, then suddenly said, "We need to be careful; it seems we're not far from that alien creature."

"That's right, that's something we should definitely pay attention to."

The extraterrestrial intelligent beings landed on the ice field, and their exact coordinates were already calculated online when the live stream first started.

If the alien entity remained in that vicinity during this period and the Human Alliance did not attempt to relocate it, then there would definitely be extremely tight defenses within a certain radius of that location, preventing any person or organization from approaching.

Since Guan Tong came to Cissia to settle scores with Rijeka, he naturally did not want to alert the forces guarding the alien individuals.

He and Shangyuan Zi followed the planned route and soon arrived at their designated place of residence, a small town with the same name as the Ice Plains.

The town is somewhat populated, with residents consisting of locals who are unwilling to leave, as well as people who work in facilities such as prisons.

Moreover, due to the landing of the alien individual, the world's most interested groups of extraterrestrial intelligent life have flocked to this town in the past two days.

As soon as Guan Tong and Shang Yuanzi entered the largest tavern in town, they heard people inside discussing the matter.

"It's infuriating! I traveled all this way just to see that alien life with my own eyes. But those soldiers from Sisia wouldn't let me get close, even when we were still several kilometers away from the coordinates."

"Same here. I've tried several times in the past two days, and each time I've been blocked."

"What if we take a detour?"

"It's useless! You're wasting your time using satellite surveillance? Besides, with so many soldiers guarding the area in layers, it's impossible to get in."

Guan Tong and Shang Yuanzi found an empty table and sat down.

Listening to the crowd's words, Guan Tong said, "It's really rare that these people have come all here to see the black mud with their own eyes."

The only people willing to come to such a desolate, icy place are probably extraterrestrial enthusiasts.

“There might be parasites mixed in among these people,” Uehara Yuki said. “They probably want to get the information too.”

“Yes, that’s certainly possible.” Guan Tong glanced around at everyone in the bar, unable to identify the parasite, and then looked away, saying, “Having these people around is a good thing for us.”

Shangyuan Zi nodded.

With more outsiders, the two of them could also pretend to be part of the "alien fanatic" group.

Conversely, if the town were full of locals, their sudden arrival would certainly attract a lot of unnecessary attention.

With so many outsiders around, all wearing thick down jackets, felt hats, and snow goggles, no one attracts any special attention.

"You're from another country too, you want to see extraterrestrial life, right?"

At this moment, the people at the next table took the initiative to strike up a conversation with Guan Tong and her companion.

"You've come all this way for nothing. I don't know if it's a rule of Sisia or the entire Human Consortium, but the area around the coordinates is heavily guarded, and no unauthorized personnel are allowed to get close."

Guan Tong replied, "That's a real shame."

"That's right, sigh. The people in this town are happy, they can earn our Ascension Coins."

The man raised his cup and said, "Selling just one cup of hot milk for 20 liters of Hua coins, you really know how to do business!"

"Those who live near the mountains live off the mountains, that's normal," Guan Tong said, then asked curiously, "Since we can't see them, why doesn't anyone go back?"

"It's because the rule period lasts for half a month! Only two or three days have passed so far, there's still plenty of time, everyone wants to wait until the end and try their luck, in case it's relaxed then."

"I see."

Although Guan Tong said this, she knew in her heart that letting go was unlikely. She estimated that even until the rules ended and the Fire Stealers retrieved the alien sludge, the Human Consortium wouldn't allow unauthorized personnel to come into contact with it.

That's too dangerous. Not against alien individuals, but against these fanatic enthusiasts; who knows what they might do?

Guan Tong then went to the bar and bought two large cups of hot milk, one for each of her and Shang Yuanzi to warm up.

Just as the person who struck up the conversation said, the shop owner was beaming from ear to ear. A cup of hot milk cost twenty coins, and spirits were even more expensive; he could make a lot of money off these outsiders.

After learning some information from the conversations of the crowd, Guan Tong and Shang Yuanzi spent their Ascension Coins to rent a room in the town to stay.

As with every investigation before, Guan Tong always prioritizes supplies before action, and these supplies are naturally the shadow.

Following the intelligence, he manipulated the shadow to go to the prison and quickly arrived at his destination.

To his surprise, what he saw through the shared vision of the shadows resembled less a prison and more a fortress. The sturdy, high walls and the large-caliber machine guns mounted there seemed more like defense against external threats than an internal one.

It seems this prison was once a fortress prepared for war...

This seemingly heavily fortified fortress was utterly vulnerable to the infiltration of shadows.

The shadow easily entered, then split into several shadow lines, which began to move in different directions and explore the interior.

According to the information, Rijeka was sent to this prison, but the exact cell number is not specified.

Shadow searched the cells one by one quickly, as most were empty. However, Guan Tong noticed that some cells showed signs of recent activity.

At that moment, the shadow discovered the key.

In the prison guards' quarters, he found his target: Rijeka Konya.

In the image transmitted by the shadow, Rijeka is talking to a man in a prison guard's uniform.

Judging from Rijeka's clean and elegant clothes and his neatly combed blond hair with hair oil, you could tell that he was definitely not treated like a prisoner in this prison.

Guan Tong did not act rashly. Instead, he hid his shadow in the shadows of the room and listened to their conversation.

Rijeka seemed to be in a bad mood, looking impatient.

The prison officer sitting opposite him wore a fawning smile and spoke in a flattering tone: "I know you're anxious, but you'll have to bear with it for now."

“Endure?” Rijeka suppressed his anger. “Endure until Yelena is completely secured as consul, endure until she gets rid of all those who are on my side!”

“Although she is ruthless, she doesn’t know everything. For example, she doesn’t know about my relationship with you, the warden. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have sent you here.”

"Hmph...that's true." Rijeka's expression softened slightly upon hearing this, and she said sarcastically, "She must have been thinking of putting me in this worst prison to make me suffer, but she ended up shooting herself in the foot." Guan Tong listened and thought that this warden must be one of Rijeka's secret confidants or something.

But Yelena was completely unaware of this?
Guan Tong found it a bit strange; he felt that Ye Lianka, despite her young age, was very intelligent.

Moreover, if even one guard were to leak the fact that Rijeka is enjoying a life of luxury here, it would cause a huge problem. Unless the warden can bribe and control all the guards.

"Yes. So you don't need to worry, especially since you still have evidence of her crimes..."

Evidence?

Guan Tong listened carefully.

Rijeka smirked and said, "That's right. She secretly had Sgorchin transfer death row inmates and serious criminals out of the prison, probably to feed that alien monster. If the Sisians find out about this, let's see what she does!"

...So this is the evidence of the crime.

Upon hearing Rijeka's words, Guan Tong immediately understood why the cell was almost empty.

The prisons in Senantata mainly house serious criminals and death row inmates. If an alien intelligent being lands on the ice field, food must be provided to ask it questions… The best food is undoubtedly a parasite, but what if there aren't enough existing parasites?

In other words, if any major situation arises on-site, these prisoners serving long sentences and death sentences are essentially an extra layer of insurance.

Guan Tong didn't know whether this approach was right or wrong.

But he felt that it was almost impossible for Rijeka to bring down Yelena by making the matter public.

"Just to be on the safe side, I think you should prepare for both possibilities."

"Two-pronged approach? What does that mean?"

The warden said, "For example, the next time Sgorchin comes to pick someone up, we can arrest her."

"Detain Sgorchin?" Rijeka frowned and shook his head. "No, she's Yelena's most powerful Ascendant. How many people are in your prison? Can you possibly detain her?"

The warden said, "You may not know this, but this place was originally a fortress built for war. Although it was later converted into a prison, many of the heavy defensive weapons were not removed. I have been the warden here for so many years, and I have long since figured out how to activate them."

Rijeka's heart skipped a beat, and he stared at the warden, asking, "Are you willing to take this risk with me? Why?"

The warden said, "To be honest, if you succeed, I think I can leave here. I've really had enough of this ice prison."

Rijeka stood up and patted the warden on the shoulder: "Okay! I promise you, if things go well, after I regain the position of consul, I will definitely... What's wrong with you?"

Before he could finish promising wealth, he saw the warden's expression change from excitement to fear.

"Watch out! Behind you—!"

Behind you? !
Before Rijeka could turn around, he felt a sharp pain in his back!
"Uh!"

He looked down and saw a knife tip protruding from his chest.

Someone stabbed him in the chest from behind with a knife.

How can this be? !
Under the influence of immense fear and adrenaline, Rijeka even forgot the pain, and her brain worked frantically.

There was a wall behind me with no way out, so why would someone stab me in the back? Who was it?!
Where is my auto-defense item? Why isn't it working?

"This is a man-made knife, so it's normal that your mental defense item isn't working."

The voice behind him answered Rijeka's inner question. He was jolted, and pain and helplessness quickly swept over him.

"Come--"

The warden realized what was happening and tried to shout for help, but before he could open his mouth, several black blades pierced his body through multiple vital points, killing him instantly.

Then the sharp blades vanished into shadows, as if they had never existed.

Rijeka's eyes widened as he witnessed this, and a name flashed into his mind.

"shadow?"

Unable to bear the pain any longer, he knelt down and forced himself to turn his head back to look.

The first thing he saw was a young face. He vaguely recognized it, but couldn't remember when he had seen it before.

But he saw clearly the shadow blades that killed the warden; they were the signature abilities of the Shadow!

"You are a shadow...I have no grudge against you...why...cough..."

"We have no grudges against each other, are you sure?"

"Did Ye Lian... hire you... to kill me...?"

"No one can afford to hire me to kill someone."

Guan Tong pulled the dagger that Silver Fox had given him from Rijeka's chest.

The knife pierced through both ends and hit a vital spot. As soon as the knife was pulled out, Rijeka's vision blurred due to massive blood loss.

But in that moment of confusion, Rijeka finally remembered where he had seen that face before.

That was when he learned that Yelena had gone to Beixing to study at the academy, and he ordered someone to kill the academy teacher who wouldn't listen to his threats. He had seen that teacher's photo once...

"You, you are...from which academy..."

"You remember now? Good, that way you won't die with your eyes open in disbelief."

Rijeka coughed up blood and was too weak to move.

He couldn't believe that just a moment ago he was excited about having a chance to retaliate against Yelena and regain his position as governor, but the next moment he was about to face his death.

The cause of his death was actually the academy assassination attempt he had almost forgotten... How could he have imagined that the world-renowned Ascended Shadow was actually that teacher?

“I…you killed me…my father…the Konya family…will not let you get away with this…”

"The grudge you stirred up will be settled with your death," Guan Tong said expressionlessly. "If your family wants to continue, they will stir up new grudges."

"I……"

Rijeka couldn't continue speaking; his body slumped to the side, and he lost consciousness completely.

Guan Tong wiped the blood off the dagger and put it back into his storage ring.

Even he didn't expect that the Silver Fox gift would come in handy so quickly, and its effectiveness in actual combat was quite good.

He didn't linger after seeing the bodies of Rijeka and the warden; he teleported away.

Minutes later, the guards who came to report discovered the scene. Subsequently, Sgorchin at the landing site, Yelena in the capital, and the entire decision-making group in Sisya all learned of Rijeka's death immediately.

(End of this chapter)