Forty-nine rules of the end times

Chapter 9 Violation of Confidentiality Rules
41: 02: 15
"How are you feeling, Fang Qian?"

In the afternoon, Guan Tong looked at Fang Qian, who was sitting on a stool with a blank expression, and asked her a question.

"Ah... ah?"

Having not slept for over 30 hours, Fang Qian was in poor condition, and her reactions had become noticeably sluggish.

Guan Tong himself was also very tired, but he was still able to persevere.

Fang Qian rubbed her heavy eyelids: "Was I spacing out just now... Guan Tong, how much longer?"

"41 hours left."

“So long…” Fang Qian’s nose tingled, and she felt an urge to cry.

She is extremely tired and really wants to lie down and take a nap.

But her will to survive prevented her from even lying down, let alone closing her eyes to rest.

I'm terrified that if I close my eyes, I might accidentally doze off and never wake up again.

"Don't give up," Guan Tong encouraged. "Think of your parents; they're still persevering too."

"……Um."

Fang Qian's parents are indeed still alive. They called three or four hours ago to confirm their daughter's safety.

"Let's go to the window and get some fresh air," Guan Tong suggested.

Fang Qian nodded, got up and walked to the window.

It's much quieter outside now than yesterday, and there's much less loud noise.

I imagine that after listening to it for a whole day and night, both my ears and mind were severely damaged.

Even if you try to stay alert, listening to loud music for too long will eventually make you feel irritable and agitated, which may be even more detrimental to your survival.

So it has become much quieter today.

Fang Qian looked at the empty streets outside, struggling against her exhaustion and drowsiness.

"Ring ring ring!"

Just then, her cell phone vibrated in her pocket. She took it out and saw that it was a call from her father.

She answered the phone with some surprise: "Dad?"

"Qianqian, listen, I have something very important to tell you!" The father's voice sounded very anxious on the phone.

"What's wrong?" Fang Qian asked nervously. "It's not about Mom..."

"Your mother is alright, but that's related to your safety! Listen, is your classmate next to you? Can they hear me?"

"Him?" Fang Qian turned her head and saw Guan Tong sitting on a stool in the living room reading a book. He couldn't possibly hear her from this distance.

"Can't you hear me... Am I supposed to go to him?"

"No!" Fang Qian's father said in a deep voice, "Qianqian, listen carefully, the research institute has top-secret information! It's a hidden piece of information about the rules of the apocalypse!"

"Varied……"

"Don't speak, listen to me. Anyone who finds someone, knocks them out, and gets an item called 'Sobering Peppermint Candy.' Using that item grants three hours of absolute sobriety!"

Fang Qian was stunned for a moment upon hearing this.

"Did you hear me? Qianqian, whoever it is, just grab anything and knock them out—"

Suddenly, a strange male voice interrupted the phone call, questioning Fang Qian's father.

"Dr. Fang, who are you talking to?"

"You have violated the confidentiality rules. Stop immediately!"

"Qianqian! Remember what I said. If you can't hold on any longer, use this method, understand? You must survive—"

"Stop it now!"

"That's my phone! Give it back, you barbarian..."

beep...

The call was forcibly disconnected. Fang Qian paused for a few seconds and tried to call back, but all she heard from the receiver was the message, "The number you dialed is currently switched off."

Is what Dad said true?
Knock out... A wake-up mint... You'll be completely sober in 3 hours... "Fang Qian."

"what!"

Guan Tong's voice suddenly came from behind, startling her.

She turned around stiffly and saw Guan Tong looking at her with a strange expression.

"Are you OK?"

"No, it's nothing..." Fang Qian forced a smile. "It was my dad on the phone. He said... no, it's nothing..."

Guan Tong nodded, her gaze thoughtful.

Although anyone who hasn't slept for more than thirty hours would definitely have different emotions than usual, Fang Qian showed a strange sense of panic.

Fang Qian looked at Guan Tong and, recalling what her father had said on the phone, felt a chill run down her spine.

She knew that what her father said was very likely true!

Because his parents had joined an official expert group that specialized in studying the rules of the apocalypse.

Moreover, as a father, it's impossible for him to deceive his daughter on such a life-or-death matter...

No, no!
Fang Qian bit her lip and shook her head.

She knew she should never have such thoughts, so what if her father was right?
If you knock someone out, that person could die!
I could never be that kind of person, it's impossible...

Fang Qian felt that she had never done anything bad since she was a child, so how could she possibly hurt others now?

Guan Tong had kindly invited her to her home to fight against the rules together. She knew that if she stayed home alone, she would most likely have already been defeated by the rules…

Fang Qian took several deep breaths to control her emotions.

Perhaps because the news her father gave her was too shocking and terrifying, her heavy drowsiness had vanished in fright, and she felt much clearer-headed.

"That's good..." Fang Qian muttered softly.

As long as we can maintain our current state, we will definitely be able to persevere to the end.

There's absolutely no need to use the terrible methods Dad mentioned on the phone.

Hmm, no need...

"Guan Tong, I'm looking for a new drama to watch, wanna watch it together?" Fang Qian sat back down on her stool, now trying to shift her attention away from the "wake-up mints" thing.

"Sure, you can choose."

Fang Qian found a thriller TV series she had never seen before.

A chilling plot can indeed help keep you alert.

And perhaps because they hadn't slept for too long and were exhausted, both of them felt less sleepy.

I then watched the show for almost ten hours straight.

During this period, the two only ate one meal and took several showers, apart from watching TV shows.

To enhance the stimulation, the two took cold showers, and the effect was indeed quite good.

Many people have also posted online that they take a cold shower every now and then to stay alert.

However, as time goes by, the number of active people on the internet is undoubtedly decreasing.

Many of the original posters who used to update their timekeeping threads with replies every hour have stopped updating, clearly unable to sustain the effort.

Moreover, the atmosphere online has become increasingly violent, with many people starting to agree to ignore the ban and go to the hospital to get some medications that help them stay alert.

"Guan Tong," Fang Qian suddenly said after glancing at her phone, "it seems like the internet connection is down."

"Can't get online?"

Both of their voices had become somewhat hoarse; after such a long period of not sleeping, they were beginning to show signs of illness.

Guan Tong took out her phone and checked it; sure enough, it showed no network service.

Fang Qian guessed, "Did the person in charge of maintenance fall asleep...?"

"Not necessarily." Guan Tong had barely finished speaking when a loud commotion erupted downstairs.

(End of this chapter)