Forty-nine rules of the end times

Chapter 16 Hidden Rule Two

Green Plum Club, a group.

After the second apocalyptic rule was released, the members immediately began to discuss it.

"It's a marathon! Isn't this deliberately targeting us middle-aged and elderly people? How infuriating!"

"Yes, a full marathon is too difficult for most young people to run, so it's even more strenuous for us."

Are there any members in the group who like running?

“I love running and I’ve run a half marathon. But a full marathon, especially one in under 3 hours… to be honest, out of 100 people who can finish a marathon, only a handful can do it in under 3 hours.”

"That's so difficult?! What should we do?"

"Let's see if there are any other ways, like the sugar information that Lao Zhao shared last time."

"Yes, yes! Everyone, try your own channels and see if you can get information about the hidden rules!"

"What about Brother Zhao? Is he still able to get along with people?"

"I'm here. Let me ask. Even if the source can get the information, it will take some time. They need to do their own research too."

"Yes, yes, that makes sense. No rush, we have ten days!"

"Yeah, if we really fail, we fail. Anyway, the punishment under these rules isn't death."

Looking at the messages in the group, Liu Yuqiang could sense that, compared to last time, the members weren't in such a hurry this time.

This is undoubtedly related to the fact that the punishment for failure is not fatal.

Even if we fail in the end, it will only be a decrease in mental strength.

However, the members in the group all passed the first rule by eating candy, and they didn't have much spiritual power to begin with.

Even if one's mental energy limit is in the single digits, how much can it decrease?

With this mindset, no one was in a hurry.

But Liu Yuqiang is different.

The reason he was able to start from scratch was because of his keen sense of opportunity and trends.

Ever since the official authorities began collecting large-scale data on mental energy, he had keenly realized that a new class was being born.

That is, the high level of spiritual power.

Although it has not yet manifested, it may not be long before people in this class stand at the forefront, becoming the top group, or at least the group that is courted and valued by the top group.

Liu Yuqiang is aware of this, so he will naturally work towards this goal.

He knew that his business empire, built around eating, drinking, and having fun, was no longer important and would soon be eliminated by this era of "apocalyptic rules."

He concluded that in order to board the ship of the new era, one must ensure a high level of mental strength!
"The reward for this rule is only 100 Ascension Coins, no Mental Power. But the top three will receive an extra reward, could it be Mental Power?"

"No matter what, I have to give it my all. I don't have to be in the top three, but I have to at least get through. I absolutely cannot end up failing!"

Liu Yuqiang made a silent vow: he would never allow himself to be eliminated by the times, which meant he could not allow his mental strength to weaken due to failure in the challenge!
……

[Hidden Rule Two]

Guan Tong felt a surge of excitement upon seeing the reconstructed text.

Hopefully, I'll be able to use the hidden rules this time!

If it's like the first hidden rule, which requires harming others to gain profit, then it's undoubtedly something Guan Tong won't need.

Hidden Rule Two: Mindset Wins

[Hidden Rule: Skillful use of mental power to complete challenges will be counted towards your score]

[Note: Mental power is the source of all power. Discover it, use it, and you will be invincible.]

"Victory lies in the mind... the key is the power of the mind..."

Guan Tong saw the details of the hidden rules and immediately understood what was going on.

"That's right. No matter how much I train, I can't achieve a 3-hour marathon time in 10 days if I run on my own. Even if a world marathon champion were my coach, it wouldn't be possible."

"This means that to complete the challenge, or even to achieve a good ranking, one needs to make flexible use of mental power." Guan Tong thought of his wordless book and the "shadow".

A thought struck him: "A shadow can jump and run too. Can the distance it runs be counted in my running record? ... It definitely can!"

Guan Tong immediately stated confidently, "The hidden rules already state that using mental power flexibly to complete challenges will count towards your score."

With an idea in mind, Guan Tong became much more composed.

He temporarily suppressed his urge to try it out immediately and took the time to check out the newly added "Group" function in his personal terminal.

Once selected, a prompt will appear first.

[You will be randomly assigned to a group shortly. We have detected that you have not yet set a nickname. Would you like to join with your real name?]

"Yes."

Guan Tong only realized she hadn't set her nickname when she saw the notification.

He immediately chose "no," as he didn't want to enter a large group under his real name.

Then, he clicked on the nickname, looked at the blank box, and typed in a name he had previously given to the outline that popped up on the page.

"shadow"

[Nickname confirmed]

After setting your nickname, close the app and select the group again.

The next moment, a huge group chat box appeared in front of him, taking up most of his field of vision.

You have been randomly assigned to group number 9178.

Current group members: 20000

[Number of completed rule challengers: 0]

Guan Tong was a little surprised when she saw the notification.

This group actually has as many as 20,000 people?
He remembered that the rules mentioned that only the top person in the group could advance.

In other words, you need to be number one out of 20,000 people to win the full marathon.

It's difficult in some ways, but not difficult in others.

It's difficult because most people are at a similar level, and few specialize in this skill. If you're lucky and no one in your group has practiced it before, then it's uncertain who will ultimately stand out.

It's not difficult because if there's a professional runner in the group, given the distribution ratio, he's highly likely to dominate the entire group and take first place with just a little effort.

Unfortunately, Guan Tong discovered that among the 20,000 people in his group, there seemed to be a professional runner.

A person with the nickname "On the Road" is speaking in the group.

On the road: "Haha, what a coincidence! I'm an amateur marathon enthusiast, running about once a year on average, and I've even broken the 3-hour mark a few times. Looks like I'll be taking first place in the group this time. Sorry everyone."

As soon as the message "On the way" was posted, the group chat was flooded with messages.

"???"

"That's so unfair! Why aren't the marathon runners in the same group as the other marathon runners?!"

"Jumping in the face means certain death, thank you!"

"This is it, the guy from the trench will definitely get first place."

"No, I mean, you all think you can finish? I can't even run under 3 hours now, let alone double that to 6 hours!"

"I'm also struggling with this. I think the second rule is even more difficult than the first one!"

"Why are you all taking this so seriously? It's not like you'll die if you fail this challenge."

Guan Tong stared at the chat group flooded with messages and silently closed it.

Normally, a group chat with a few hundred people can be so full of messages that it's impossible to read them all, let alone a group with twenty thousand people.

Moreover, what he needs to do now is not to create a group chat, but to actually test the effect of using shadows in running.

(End of this chapter)