BANG!
After Fang Qian left, looking utterly dejected, Guan Tong shut the door and bolted it.
He wore a grim expression. He had thought Fang Qian had a decent personality, but her actions had been a bitter disappointment.
They say you should never test human nature, because more often than not, it can't withstand the test.
If Fang Qian hadn't known about the hidden rule, she probably wouldn't have even considered harming someone.
True, her parents had told her it was for her own good, but that had also awakened the malice within her. In the end, the choice was hers to make, and she couldn't blame anyone else.
Guan Tong sat on the stool. Though he hadn't slept for dozens of hours, he felt exceptionally awake. It was as if some unknown power was sprouting within his body, but he didn't notice.
Fang Qian's actions only served to reaffirm his initial resolve.
He had known about the hidden rule since the disaster began. If he had wanted to use it, he could have acquired enough Sober Mint Candies to guarantee his survival long ago.
But from the very beginning, he had decided against it.
Guan Tong certainly didn't want to die, but he was determined to rely solely on his own efforts to persevere.
If he failed in the end, he would feel regret, but not resentment. After all, he would have done his best.
As Guan Tong came to this realization, a strange sense of relief washed over his mind and body.
Even his recent frustration with Fang Qian now seemed trivial.
He walked to the window and glanced at the countdown in the sky.
24:16:28
'Twenty-four hours. I'll just treat it as one more day to get through.'
With that optimistic thought, Guan Tong stopped worrying about the time or when the internet might be restored.
He drank his coffee, got up and went to the study, and turned on his computer to play a few single-player games.
Hour after hour passed, until the voice of the Fire Thief finally rang out.
[The rule period has ended.]
[Congratulations on passing the trial of the first Apocalypse Rule.]
'It's over...?'
Guan Tong heard the voice in his mind and wondered if he was hallucinating.
He looked up and out the window. The red countdown in the sky had vanished without a trace.
[New features unlocked. Survival reward has been sent to your Storage Box. It can be viewed via your personal terminal.]
[The second Apocalypse Rule will be announced in fifteen days.]
The Fire Thief's voice faded into silence.
...
When Guan Tong woke up, it was already 10:00 AM.
He rubbed his messy hair and squinted at the sunlight outside.
'Did I... sleep for a whole day and night?'
The rule period had ended at 9:00 AM, and it was now 10:00 AM. He had, without a doubt, enjoyed a deep sleep that lasted a full twenty-five hours.
After waking up, Guan Tong didn't get out of bed immediately.
He just lay there, quietly savoring the satisfaction of having slept his fill.
He had never taken the time to appreciate this feeling before. Only now did he realize what a blissful thing it was to sleep until completely rested.
After lying there quietly for a moment, he mentally summoned his personal terminal.
[Name: Guan Tong]
[Nickname: Not Set]
[Title: None]
[Psychic Power: 96]
[Sublimation Coins: 100]
[Overall Biometric Assessment: Normal]
Guan Tong looked at the changes on the panel, slightly surprised.
First, he could now set a nickname. He recalled seeing a note before that this feature would unlock for anyone who survived the first Apocalypse Rule.
Guan Tong guessed the purpose of the nickname was to hide one's real identity.
In his view, this meant the personal terminal might be getting a communication feature later on.
Next was the change to his Psychic Power.
He had previously thought Psychic Power might be a type of "skill," but now it was displayed as a numerical value.
'My Psychic Power is 96. Is that high or low? What exactly does it do?'
Guan Tong was completely baffled. He had no idea.
He could only set it aside for now and continue reading.
The other reward was a fixed sum of 100 Sublimation Coins.
When Guan Tong focused his attention on it, a description popped up before his eyes.
[Sublimation Coins can be used to purchase items in the Sublimation Store or to trade with other people.]
'I see.'
The function of Sublimation Coins was more or less what Guan Tong had expected.
Finally, his gaze fell on the assessment.
[Overall Biometric Assessment: Normal]
'I remember... it was "Inferior" before, right?'
'Did I go from Inferior to Normal just by surviving one Apocalypse Rule?'
'But what exactly changed?'
Guan Tong threw a few punches but didn't feel any stronger.
He didn't dwell on it and continued to explore the terminal.
Besides the updated panel, two new features had appeared on the terminal.
One was the Storage Box, and the other was the Sublimation Store.
Guan Tong mentally opened the Storage Box. Inside, there was a single, bronze-colored chest.
When he focused his thoughts on the chest, information immediately appeared.
[Survival Treasure Chest · Bronze Level]: Open to receive a fixed title reward.
'A fixed title reward?'
Guan Tong chose to open it.
[You have obtained the Title: Orderkeeper]
'...Just a simple title?'
The title came with no explanation or extra bonuses, which Guan Tong found a bit strange.
The "Orderkeeper" title automatically appeared in the title slot on his panel. Guan Tong stared at it for a moment, baffled.
Just as he had with the Psychic Power, he decided to skip what he didn't understand.
He opened the second new feature: the Sublimation Store.
A brand-new interface appeared before him. It was completely empty except for a single search bar.
'Are there no items for sale? Or can things only be displayed if I search for them by name?'
Guan Tong looked at the solitary search bar and tried to mentally input something.
Books.
After he entered the search term, the store's interface refreshed, and a single black-covered book appeared.
[Wordless Book]: A book containing mysterious power
[Price: 100 Sublimation Coins]
Guan Tong: "?"
He had only searched for "Books" on a whim because he liked to read; he never expected to actually get a result.
And the price was exactly 100 Sublimation Coins.
'Is this a coincidence?'
Guan Tong tried searching for other things, but no matter what he entered, the result was always "No results found."
Resigned, he searched for "Books" again, and the same Wordless Book appeared.
'...It seems this book and I are fated to meet.'
Guan Tong didn't overthink it and chose to buy it.
[Acquired: Wordless Book]
His 100 Sublimation Coins vanished, and in their place, a black-covered book materialized in Guan Tong's hands.
The book wasn't large, about A5 size.
The material was unknown, but it felt a bit like kraft paper to the touch.
Guan Tong opened the book and found that, just as its name suggested, it truly was a "wordless book"—all the pages were blank.
'...Didn't it say it contained a mysterious power? Where is it?'
Guan Tong flipped through it again and again, but he couldn't activate any mysterious power.
He sighed, took a pen from his nightstand drawer, and decided to write his name on the first page.
It was a lifelong habit of his; he always wrote his name in any book he owned.
However, just as the pen was about to touch down, he felt a strange resistance in the air pushing back against his hand, preventing the tip from touching the paper.
Surprised, Guan Tong pressed harder, fighting against the resistance.
As the two forces struggled against each other, Guan Tong felt a strange energy begin to flow within his body, concentrating in his right hand.
Empowered by that energy, Guan Tong broke through the formless resistance, and the tip of his pen successfully landed on the page.
However, he had barely begun to write the first letter of his name when the energy inside him was instantly drained. The resistance surged back, knocking the pen clean out of his hand!