49 Apocalypse Rules

About ten minutes later, two Sheriffs arrived at his door.

After confirming their identification numbers were correct, Guan Tong opened the door and explained the situation.

"Based on the information you provided, we had our colleagues pull the nearby surveillance footage," a Sheriff said. "The footage shows that after running out of the complex, the two suspects who impersonated Sheriffs got into a black, unlicensed sedan."

"Our colleagues used camera-tracking technology and found that the sedan entered an area with no surveillance coverage. We’ve already dispatched personnel to search the area."

Hearing this, Guan Tong asked, "So those two actually knew about the surveillance blind spot?"

"Yes, that’s something we’re concerned about too. A city this large can’t possibly be covered entirely by surveillance cameras. The fact that they could find a blind spot means these two aren’t ordinary criminals. They must be part of an organization."

’Organized crime, huh?’

The thought made Guan Tong feel even more unsafe.

He said to the two Sheriffs, "They know my address now, and they told me to ’just wait.’ I don’t think my home is safe anymore. I want to move."

"Of course you can," one of the Sheriffs said. "Right now, there are a large number of vacant homes in every city, and Yunhua is no exception. Um... it’s because so many people died due to the first rule. So, there’s a policy now where people without a place to live can apply for housing, and the government will issue it for free."

"Then I’d like to apply for one."

"Alright, I’ll send you the application link later. If you have no other information for us, we’ll be heading back. If you recall any other useful details about the suspects, you can call and contact us again."

The two Sheriffs were about to leave when Guan Tong thought for a moment and said, "Wait. Can I get a ride with you two?"

The two were taken aback, not expecting him to say that.

"You’re leaving tonight?" a Sheriff asked.

"Yes," Guan Tong said. "I can’t rule out the possibility that those two might come back for a surprise attack. After all, this is organized crime. So I want to leave tonight and eliminate any risk."

"...Alright, you’re certainly cautious enough. Go ahead and pack a few things, then come with us."

"Thank you."

Guan Tong didn’t have much to pack. He could get free food and clothes after finding a new place, so there was no need to bring any.

He just grabbed his phone, slung a small backpack over his shoulder, and went downstairs with the two Sheriffs.

Once he was out of the complex and sitting in the back of the Sheriffs’ car, Guan Tong finally felt a sense of security.

The Sheriff who was driving asked, "Where are you headed? We can give you a lift."

Guan Tong thought for a moment and said, "I want to go somewhere safe. Do you have any recommendations?"

The Sheriff in the passenger seat joked, "The safest place is definitely the Sheriff’s Bureau, but we can’t just let ordinary citizens stay overnight."

"How about this," the driving Sheriff said. "For now, we’ll take you to the Li Mei Hotel. It’s been converted into a free shelter, so anyone waiting for their housing application to be processed can stay there."

"It’s relatively safe since there are a lot of people there. Plus, the hotel is just one street away from the Sheriff’s Bureau. If there’s any trouble, one call is all it takes for us to get there quickly."

"Okay, let’s go to the Li Mei Hotel then. I appreciate the help, you two."

"Don’t mention it. Just remember to come down to the bureau later to give a formal statement. I have a feeling this case isn’t as simple as it looks."

"Yeah," the Sheriff in the passenger seat added. "There seem to have been several similar cases in Yunhua recently..."

...

Inside an abandoned factory, the two young men who had knocked on Guan Tong’s door were kneeling on the ground.

Sitting before them was a fierce-looking, heavyset middle-aged man. He wore a Finger Tiger on his right hand, which was stained with a bit of blood.

The blood belonged to the two young men. Their faces were bruised and swollen, clear evidence they had just been beaten.

The middle-aged man stared at them and said coldly, "I told you, the higher-ups gave me a mission to get ten ’Ordinary’ rated people. I only asked you two to get three, and you haven’t even finished after a whole month. Tell me, are you useless or what?"

"Yes, Hu, we’re useless!"

"Hu, we were supposed to get the third one today, but that kid was too cunning. He wouldn’t open the door for us!"

"Yeah, we couldn’t fool him by pretending to be Sheriffs. He called the Sheriff’s Bureau on us instead, so we had to run." 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

After hearing their explanation, the man known as "Hu" started to laugh.

The moment he laughed, the two kneeling youths began to tremble, knowing they were in deep trouble.

Sure enough, the next moment, Hu shot to his feet and kicked them both in the temple. The two men screamed and fell to the side, looking like they were on their last breath.

Hu spat on the ground. "Pah! Drag them out and bury them."

"Yes, sir."

A few nearby underlings dragged the two men away. Then, Hu called over several other young men.

"Now’s your chance to seize the opportunity. Do you know what to do?"

"Please tell us, Hu!"

The young men stared nervously at the Finger Tiger on his hand.

Hu said slowly, "It’s simple. You’re to go from complex to complex, find the survivors, and find a way to restrain them. Then, force them to add you as a friend on their personal terminals. If they refuse, beat the hell out of them. Keep beating them until they agree to add you."

"After you’re friends, force them to make their Psychic Power value public. If it’s higher than 80, knock them out and bring them to me. I’ll hand them over to the higher-ups. When they send down the rewards, every one of you will get a share."

One of the young men asked, "Hu, what if... what if it’s lower than 80? Should we bring those ones in too?"

Hu grinned. "The higher-ups have no use for anyone below 80. Just kill them. It’ll save us the trouble of being exposed."

The young men glanced at each other, all of them terrified.

"Do you understand me?" Hu’s expression darkened. "Let me tell you something. Now that you’re on my ship, you’re not getting off. If you don’t want to do this, I’ll just kill you worthless pieces of trash first."

"We understand, Hu!"

"We’ll do it!"

Just then, one of the young men couldn’t contain his curiosity and asked, "Um, H-Hu, what do the higher-ups want with so many people with Psychic Power over 80?"

Hearing this, Hu walked over and patted the questioner’s face. "You got a death wish, huh? Is this something you should be asking about? Don’t ask what you’re not supposed to."

"Y-Yes, Hu. I won’t ask again..."

"Now get the hell out of here and get to work. I want at least one person with a score over 80 within a week!"

The young men scrambled away. At that moment, a confidant walked up to Hu’s side.

"Boss, I don’t think getting too involved with that group is a good idea. Once they’re done using us, I’m afraid..."

Hu responded, "Don’t worry. I’ve been in this game for years; you think I don’t know that? You’d be a fool not to take a good deal when you see one. I’ll take that group’s Gold first and worry about the rest later. If they try to burn the bridge after crossing it, I’ve got enough dirt on them to bite back."