Chapter 3: The Loopholes in the Rules

The morning sunlight filtered through the gaps in the curtains, but Lin Xi had not slept all night. She sat on the hospital bed, a notebook spread open in front of her, filled with densely packed notes on various rules and speculations.

"Ding—"

Her phone buzzed again. A new rule had arrived:

"Special Reminder: Today's rules have been updated. Rule Five: Do not make physical contact with anyone."

Lin Xi frowned. This rule hadn't existed in her past life. It seemed that because she had modified the first rule, the entire game system had begun to change.

Just then, the door to her hospital room opened. Lu Chen walked in, holding a bouquet of white roses, a gentle smile on his face. "Xi Xi, are you feeling better?"

Lin Xi watched him warily. In her past life, it had been on this very morning that Lu Chen's embrace had inadvertently caused her to break a rule. But now, she was prepared.

"I'm fine," Lin Xi took a step back. "Just leave the flowers there."

Lu Chen's eyes flickered, but he complied. As he set the flowers down, he casually remarked, "By the way, something happened at the company. Do you remember Manager Zhang? He... went missing last night."

Lin Xi's heart skipped a beat. Manager Zhang—he had been the first person to disappear in front of her. In her past life, this had happened three days later. Now, it had occurred earlier.

"When did it happen?" Lin Xi asked, forcing herself to remain calm.

"Last night," Lu Chen sighed. "The police said the surveillance footage showed him last appearing on the company rooftop, and then..." He suddenly paused. "Xi Xi, you look pale. Should I call a doctor?"

As he spoke, he reached out to touch Lin Xi's forehead.

"Don't touch me!" Lin Xi stumbled back, knocking into the bedside table behind her. A glass cup fell to the floor, shattering with a crisp sound.

Lu Chen's hand froze mid-air, his expression turning complicated. "Xi Xi, what's wrong with you? You've been acting strange since yesterday..."

Lin Xi didn't answer. Her attention was drawn to the shards of glass on the floor. Under the sunlight, the fragments reflected an odd light, forming a strange symbol—the same symbol she had seen in the wardrobe, the one representing a loophole in the rules!

"I'm fine," Lin Xi said quickly. "You should go. I need to rest."

Lu Chen seemed about to say more, but seeing Lin Xi's resolute expression, he nodded. "Alright, I'll come back later."

As soon as Lu Chen left, Lin Xi crouched down to examine the glass shards. She noticed that when the sunlight hit them at a specific angle, the symbol became clearer.

She took out her phone and snapped a few photos of the symbol. Just then, her phone vibrated with a new message:

"Warning: Unauthorized data access detected. Cease immediately or face punishment."

Lin Xi smirked. Instead of stopping, she opened the rule editor and input the symbol she had just photographed. The system immediately prompted:

"Hidden Rule Discovered: When moonlight and sunlight coexist, loopholes in the rules will appear."

Lin Xi's eyes lit up. She checked the time—it was 7 a.m., and the moon was still visible in the sky. She hurried to the window and pulled back the curtains.

Sure enough, in the pale eastern sky, a crescent moon still hung. Sunlight and moonlight streamed into the room simultaneously, casting intersecting patterns on the floor.

Lin Xi took a deep breath and began to summon that special ability again. This time, she saw not just the threads of the rules but countless tiny cracks—loopholes in the rules!

She reached out, trying to touch one of the cracks. Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through her temples, more intense than ever before. Her consciousness felt like it was being torn apart, and the world around her began to distort.

"Warning! Warning! Severe violation detected!"

Her phone vibrated frantically, the screen flashing with red warnings. Lin Xi clenched her teeth, forcing herself to continue. She knew this was her only chance.

Just then, the door to her room burst open. A doctor in a white coat rushed in, but his appearance was horrifying—his face was completely blank, devoid of any features.

"Violator must be eliminated!" The faceless doctor spoke in a mechanical voice, lunging toward Lin Xi.

Lin Xi tried to dodge, but her body was immobilized by the pain. Just as the faceless doctor was about to reach her, a blinding white light erupted from the glass shards.

"Ah—!"

The faceless doctor let out a scream, his body twisting and dissolving into a cloud of black smoke before vanishing.

Lin Xi collapsed to the floor, gasping for breath. On her phone screen, the rule editor automatically displayed a new prompt:

"Congratulations on discovering and repairing a rule loophole. Special Privilege Unlocked: You may temporarily disable one rule per day for ten minutes."

This discovery energized Lin Xi. She checked the time—Rule Five would take effect in half an hour. She had to act fast.

She quickly packed her things and changed into casual clothes. Before leaving the room, she took one last look at the glass shards. The sunlight and moonlight still intersected on the fragments, forming a perfect angle.

Lin Xi suddenly realized that the appearance of this loophole was no coincidence. Perhaps, within this seemingly perfect rule system, there were countless such loopholes. And her task was to find them and exploit them.

As she stepped out of the hospital, Lin Xi felt as if the world had changed. The streets were bustling with people, seemingly normal, but through her special vision, she could see threads of rules wind around everyone.

She noticed a little girl about to accept an ice cream from her mother and suddenly remembered Rule Five: Do not make physical contact with anyone. If she didn't act, the girl might disappear for breaking the rule.

Lin Xi hurried over and, just as the mother and daughter were about to make contact, activated her special privilege.

"Disable Rule Five for ten minutes."

In an instant, the threads of rules wind around the two vanished. The little girl happily took the ice cream, and the mother and daughter shared a smile, completely unaware that they had just narrowly escaped disaster.

Lin Xi let out a sigh of relief but quickly tensed again. She knew this was only the beginning. In this world governed by rules, there were countless people who needed saving, and she would have to face the full retaliation of the rule system.

Just then, her phone buzzed again. A new message arrived:

"Multiple violations detected. Special Mission: Find and repair three rule loopholes before midnight tonight. Reward: Unlock rule modification privileges. Penalty for failure: Permanent elimination."

Lin Xi gripped her phone, her eyes filled with determination. She knew the real challenge had only just begun. But this time, she was no longer a pawn to be manipulated—she was a challenger of the rules.

The sunlight bathed her face as Lin Xi took a deep breath and stepped forward with resolve. In this world ruled by regulations, she would carve out a path of her own.