"Mr. Liu, we’ve arrived."

The vehicle slowly came to a halt. The driver opened the door, and Liu Yuqiang stepped out.

He found himself in an underground parking garage, surrounded by many similar vehicles.

"This way, please."

The driver led the way, and Liu Yuqiang followed him to an elevator. He got in and pressed the button for the 3rd floor. The driver stepped out just before the doors closed. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

Liu Yuqiang rode the elevator up alone. When the doors opened, he found himself in a place that looked like a conference room.

"Lao Liu!"

"Yuqiang’s here."

Several people were already in the room, sitting on comfortable leather sofas. They waved him over when they saw him arrive.

Liu Yuqiang looked over. They were all members of the Qingmei Association, and he knew quite a few of them.

He walked over, sat down on an empty sofa, and asked, "Has Big Sis arrived?"

"Haven’t seen her. I expect she’ll wait until we’ve all arrived," said an older man with a shiny bald head and round-framed glasses.

The bald man finished speaking, his eyes filled with irrepressible hope. "I just hope Big Sis can show us a clear path forward."

"..."

Liu Yuqiang glanced at the bald man. This was Yu Feiwei, the chairman of Firebird Finance.

Liu Yuqiang hadn’t interacted with him much, but he vividly remembered that after the first of the Apocalypse Rules was announced and Zhao Jiping revealed the hidden rule in the group chat, this very same Yu Feiwei had managed to acquire thirty Sober Mint Candies. That had stunned him at the time.

Now, looking at Yu Feiwei’s face, which held a mixture of hope and anxiety, Liu Yuqiang thought to himself, ’If President Yu relied entirely on candies to pass back then, his Psychic Power cap is probably very low... Is that why he’s so anxious?’

Before long, the members of the Qingmei Association had all trickled in. Once everyone was seated, Big Sis finally made her appearance.

The main doors to the conference room opened from the outside. Two young women with short hair and sharp business suits entered first. The two women then parted to flank the entrance, ushering the main figure into the room.

An old woman with a full head of white hair, dressed in simple, handmade clothes, walked in.

Though the old woman was clearly of advanced age, she was well-preserved, with a rosy complexion. Her steps were quick, her back was held ramrod straight, and she lacked the stooped posture and listless air of many elderly people.

Seeing the old woman enter, the members all immediately rose to their feet.

The old woman walked to the large screen at the front of the room and said with a smile, "Everyone, please be seated."

The members exchanged glances before sitting back down on the sofas, a look of shock visible in their eyes.

Most of them had never seen Big Sis in person before. They had assumed "Big Sis" was merely a title of respect, and that she wasn’t actually that old.

But seeing her in the flesh today, they could tell that despite her well-preserved appearance, Big Sis had to be over seventy years old.

"Today marks the first general meeting of the Qingmei Association, and for many of you, it is the first time we are meeting. I understand that you might be surprised."

Despite her age, Big Sis’s voice was remarkably strong, loud enough for everyone present to hear her clearly without a microphone.

"I have invited you all here today for a single purpose: to discuss where the Qingmei Association goes from here."

Big Sis glanced at the young woman beside her. The latter understood at once, using a remote to turn on the large screen, which lit up with columns of data.

The members were aghast at what they saw. The data pertained to the population of people who had died because of the Rules, and it included confidential information that had never been publicly disclosed, such as death rates by age group and profession.

Big Sis said, "This is data compiled by the Strategy Research Room. You don’t need to ask how I got it. Just read."

The members marveled at Big Sis’s incredible resourcefulness as they carefully studied the data. As business leaders accustomed to poring over financial reports, they quickly grasped the terrifying reality behind the numbers on the screen.

One statistic in particular caught their eye.

"The mortality rate for people over fifty is as high as 93%?!"

The vast majority of people in the room were over fifty. Seeing this highly relevant statistic sent a chill down their spines.

"That’s right," Big Sis said. "In this era of the Apocalypse Rules, young and middle-aged adults have the highest survival rates. As for our age group, not even one in ten makes it."

"..."

"You’ve all used your various means and resources to survive this long. But I ask you, is that sustainable? I imagine none of your Psychic Power caps are looking very optimistic."

"Big Sis!" Yu Feiwei shot to his feet. "My Psychic Power cap is already in the single digits! One more decline, and it will be completely gone. You’re a woman of great means, please, help us find a way!"

"Patience," Big Sis said, gesturing for Yu Feiwei to sit.

She then scanned the room, her voice deepening. "It is often said that the marketplace is a battlefield. All of you are seasoned veterans. Are you really willing to die so senselessly? We must use every method at our disposal to save ourselves and create our own glorious future."

As she finished, a video began to play on the large screen, displaying some unsettling footage.

The scene appeared to be some sort of prison, with a large number of people held captive inside. However, it was clearly not an official penitentiary—that much was obvious from the green uniforms worn by the guards.

"You may have heard rumors recently about a wave of kidnappings across the country targeting Ascenders with high Psychic Power," Big Sis said frankly. "I won’t hide it from you. I am the one directing these operations, and a few of our members have participated."

Many of the members were stunned. They had heard about the kidnappings, but they never suspected that the mastermind was Big Sis.

"Why are we doing this? It’s simple: I refuse to accept my fate." Though Big Sis’s tone was calm, everyone could feel the chilling killing intent behind her words.

"Why should people our age be sentenced to die? If the Fire Thief won’t grant us fairness, we’ll just have to seize it for ourselves. I am telling you all, starting today, the Qingmei Association is transitioning from a commercial cooperative into a survival cooperative. Our main focus will now be plundering any items related to Psychic Power to strengthen ourselves."

While the members were still in shock, Yu Feiwei shot to his feet again, cheering loudly. "I support Big Sis! This is exactly what we should do! It’s the government’s fault for ignoring us!"

He turned to the other members. "Tell me, all of you! After the government announced all those free services, didn’t they carve away a piece of each of our businesses? Old Sun, wasn’t your logistics operation directly requisitioned to transport survival supplies? And Yuqiang, your company’s online gaming division was ordered to meet player demands and give away all paid items for free, wasn’t it?"

"With a wave of its hand, the government took away chunks of our core businesses, all in the name of ensuring public survival. And what did they give us as compensation? A pittance of Gold! If they truly wanted to compensate us, they should have guaranteed our survival!"

"He has a point."

"Exactly. It’s not like we need Gold to buy anything. What we desperately need is a way to survive."

Yu Feiwei’s words struck a chord with many of the members, but Liu Yuqiang rose and asked, "Big Sis, you’ve kidnapped so many people. What happens if the authorities investigate?"

Big Sis gave a faint smile. "Have you ever heard of someone investigating themselves?"

Liu Yuqiang froze, and a shock went through the other members as well. ’Could her identity be...’

"I’ll say it again. Survival is the primary imperative of any living creature. Anything done in its pursuit is justified. To ensure our own survival, we must be willing to use any and all means, at any cost."

"Moreover, this is an opportunity for us to rise," Big Sis said slowly.

"Before the Apocalypse Rules, no matter how hard you all worked, you were nothing more than mere merchants. But in this new era, if you play your cards right, you might just get to take the stage and put on a spectacular show of your own."

"I have said what I need to say. The rest of this conversation is only for like-minded individuals. If anyone has any objections, you are free to stand, take the elevator, and leave. I will not stop you."

After Big Sis finished, most of the members wore looks of fervent excitement. They clearly had no intention of moving.

Liu Yuqiang hesitated. He thought Big Sis’s plan was insane, and he wanted to leave. But he was suspicious. ’After revealing all this, would she really let anyone just walk away?’

Just then, two members couldn’t resist standing up. One of them said, "Big Sis, we hold you in high regard, but what you’re doing is simply too dangerous! We don’t want to oppose the authorities. We’re sorry..."

"No matter," Big Sis said. "We are clearly not of one mind. Please, leave."

The two of them nodded and took the elevator down.

When the elevator doors opened in the parking garage, the driver was there to greet them—only now, he was holding a gun.

BANG! BANG!

After two muffled shots, the dissenters were gone.