Forty-nine rules of the end times

Chapter 33 Xu Xiaotian in Danger

The third apocalyptic rule has been in effect for 11 days, with 4 days remaining until the end.

In an arcade in Yunhua City, Xu Xiaotian watched with a frustrated expression as the character he was controlling collapsed and died on the screen.

"Damn it, I died again!"

He has been playing this game for several days in a row, but he still hasn't been able to beat the last level.

"This difficulty is insane! I've tried dozens of times and still can't get past it," Xu Xiaotian muttered. "If I had played before the apocalypse rules appeared, how many game coins would I have had to use to beat it?"

"Dude, you're not going to get past this."

Just then, a voice came from the side. Xu Xiaotian turned his head and saw that the person who spoke to him was a long-haired young man wearing a jacket.

The long-haired youth looked at the screen and said, "The last level of this game is unsolvably difficult. It was designed not to be passed by players; it's purely for ripping off players."

"Huh?" Xu Xiaotian exclaimed in surprise, "This is such a rip-off?"

"Yeah, that's how terrible it is."

Seeing that the long-haired youth looked a few years older than him, Xu Xiaotian said, "Brother, how did you know? Have you been scammed out of a lot of money before?"

The long-haired young man grinned: "I used to work here, how do you think I knew?"

"That's it!"

"But you're pretty patient, buddy," the long-haired youth said. "You keep playing it even after so many tries."

Xu Xiaotian chuckled: "I was just killing time. Besides, I loved playing arcade games when I was a kid, but I never had enough money to buy tokens. Now you can play games without inserting coins, isn't that awesome?"

The long-haired young man nodded: "It's pretty cool."

He glanced at Xu Xiaotian's face and laughed, "Judging from your expression, you've probably given up on challenging the third rule, haven't you?"

"what?"

"That's how it is when you go out to have fun," the long-haired youth explained. "Those who want to get through the rules, they all listen to the officials and try to minimize their activities and reduce energy consumption, right? That's why I say that most people who go out to have fun have given up."

"Oh, it really is!"

Xu Xiaotian hadn't really thought about this before. Because he had the instant noodle prop, he didn't pay much attention to the official advice on the third rule, and naturally, he hadn't read the official challenge guide.

Thinking about it now, it makes sense. Those who wanted to follow the rules were mostly staying at home and wouldn't go out to expend extra energy. As for those who came out to have fun, they were basically people who gave up on the challenge.

"What, buddy, you haven't given up?" The long-haired youth asked immediately upon seeing Xu Xiaotian's expression.

Xu Xiaotian nodded.

"Wow, that's impressive." The long-haired youth's eyes lit up. "So you bought a food box? To be able to afford it with Ascension Coins, your mental strength must be over 80, right?"

"I guess so, haha." Xu Xiaotian replied with a smile, wanting to continue playing, but his arm was held down by the long-haired youth.

"Dude, I know an arcade where all the machines have new games you've never played before. Want to come play with me?"

"Really?!" Xu Xiaotian's eyes lit up. For an arcade enthusiast like him, a new game he had never played before was very appealing.

"Of course, buddy, would I lie to you? Let's go."

"Let's go!"

Xu Xiaotian followed the long-haired youth downstairs. On the way, the long-haired youth went to the restroom to make a phone call.

After leaving the arcade, the two waited for a while by the roadside.

Xu Xiaotian asked, "Brother, aren't we just going there?"

“Someone’s coming to pick us up, let’s wait a bit,” the long-haired youth said.

"oh oh."

A short while later, a black sedan drove up.

Xu Xiaotian glanced at the car and saw that there were three people in it: one in the driver's seat, one in the passenger seat, and one in the back.

Including myself and the long-haired youth, that made five people in total.

"Why are there so many people?" "They're all my buddies, get in the car."

The long-haired young man opened the back door, and Xu Xiaotian looked at the tattoo on the neck of the young man sitting in the back seat and suddenly felt uneasy.

He suddenly remembered what Guan Tong had told him before, that there was a criminal gang in Yunhua suspected of kidnapping people with high mental strength.

Recalling the incident in the arcade where the long-haired youth had tested his mental abilities, he suddenly panicked.

"Um, bro, I suddenly remembered I have something to do. How about we go another time?"

After Xu Xiaotian finished speaking, he turned and walked away, but before he could take two steps, his arm was grabbed.

"Hey buddy, don't do that." The long-haired youth grabbed Xu Xiaotian, a fierce glint in his eyes. "If you leave now, you're not giving us any face."

"I……"

At this moment, the two people in the passenger seat and the back seat got out of the car and, together with the long-haired youth, the three of them surrounded Xu Xiaotian.

The man with the tattoo on his neck said menacingly, "Kid, if you don't want to get beaten up, get in the car right now!"

The fact that the tattooed man didn't even bother to pretend made Xu Xiaotian turn pale, realizing that he had really encountered a thug.

He looked at the three menacing-looking men, feigning obedience and shrinking back, "I, I understand, I'll go with you..."

Halfway through his sentence, Xu Xiaotian suddenly launched an attack!
He flicked his right hand and summoned his mental power item—instant noodles—from the storage box.

"Wow!"

Xu Xiaotian splashed the scalding noodles and broth all over the three men's faces, causing them to scream in pain.

Xu Xiaotian seized the opportunity to run away, pulling out his phone as he ran and dialing the number at the top of his contacts.

When the call connected, it was Guan Tong's voice that came through.

"Hey, Xiaotian, what's up?"

Because the two had only recently met and exchanged phone numbers, Guan Tong's number was listed at the very beginning of the newly added list.

"Guan Tong!" Xu Xiaotian cried out in terror, "Oh no! I've run into a kidnapper! Right here in the arcade! Call the police for me, I—ouch!"

Before he could finish speaking, he felt a kick in his back and stumbled to the ground.

Looking up, he saw that the person who had caught up was the young man in the driver's seat. Because he hadn't gotten out of the car, he had avoided being splashed with instant noodles.

At this moment, the driver started punching and kicking Xu Xiaotian, who had fallen to the ground.

"You little bastard, you dare to play dirty tricks! I'll beat you to death!"

"Ouch!"

At this moment, the other three followed and kicked wildly.

"Where did this little bastard get his instant noodles? They're scalding hot! I'm going to beat him to death!"

"Stop fighting! Quickly put them in the car and take them home!"

"His phone! Smash his phone!"

click-

This was the last sound Guan Tong heard; then, only a beeping sound interrupted the call.

"Xu Xiaotian has been kidnapped? We need to call the police immediately!"

Guan Tong dared not delay on such a matter of life and death.

He and Xu Xiaotian had gotten along quite well these past few days, and he himself had almost become a victim in this series of kidnappings, so he certainly couldn't just sit idly by.

He immediately dialed the Public Security Bureau and reported Xu Xiaotian's situation. The Public Security Bureau was already rigorously investigating the kidnapping case, and upon receiving the latest clues, they immediately attached great importance to it. The operator even asked Guan Tong to come to the bureau when he had time to report in person.

Guan Tong agreed. After hanging up the phone, she went to the police station, wanting to get the latest news on the kidnapping case as soon as possible.

(End of this chapter)