He couldn't wait to open the third text message. At this moment, to him, it was like a drowning man grabbing desperately at a straw! Because even the worst possible outcome couldn't be worse than his current situation, not to mention that this mysterious message had already shown something clearly beyond known science.

The third message, compared to the previous two, was extremely simple—just one sentence, only a few words.

"Zero seventeen on the thirteenth, Huichuan Pier No. 5, silver box, do not arrive early, do not arrive late."

Looking at this sentence, Ryan Bennett's expression grew grave. This was not the kind of hint he wanted! There was only a time and a place, but nothing about what he would be facing. If he rashly stepped into this, the unknown risks were simply too great. Yet, faced with such a bizarre multiple-choice question, he had no choice at all—not going was just waiting for death!

Acting rashly was not Ryan Bennett's style; planning before action was his way.

So, Ryan Bennett immediately opened his phone and began checking relevant maps and information. He quickly discovered that Huichuan Pier No. 5 had been abandoned for several years, about fifty or sixty kilometers from the city, extremely remote, and even the nearest highway was about two kilometers away. The only connection between the pier and the highway was a dirt road.

After thinking it over, he went straight to an internet café, because only a computer could display satellite images and street views. But when Ryan Bennett tried to access the images, all he got was a 404 error. He sighed regretfully and decided to go for an on-site inspection from a distance the next day.

Fortunately, there were still about two days left before zero seventeen on the thirteenth, giving Ryan Bennett plenty of time to investigate everything.

Chapter 3: Variables

The next day,

Night fell.

Ryan Bennett sat in the internet café, feeling somewhat uneasy.

The environment in the internet café was terrible—people smoking, shouting into microphones everywhere, the air thick with smoke and noise, making Ryan Bennett very uncomfortable. But this was the only internet café in Nitou Town, so business was still booming.

Why was Ryan Bennett in the internet café in Nitou Town?

Because this was the closest town to Huichuan Pier No. 5. The message was crystal clear: zero seventeen on the thirteenth, Huichuan Pier No. 5, do not arrive early, do not arrive late.

Considering his frail health and inability to do strenuous exercise like running, after careful investigation and calculation, Ryan Bennett decided to set out at eleven thirty on the night of the twelfth, then ride his electric scooter to Huichuan Pier No. 5. This way, he could reach the highway outside the pier at around zero ten.

From there, it was only four or five hundred meters to Huichuan Pier No. 5. Waiting there for about five minutes would ensure he arrived precisely at zero seventeen.

As for the electric scooter, of course Ryan Bennett rode it himself. Before coming, he had specially checked over this second-hand scooter, and after arriving in Nitou Town, he made sure to fully charge it to prevent any mechanical failures.

He parked the scooter under the lights at the entrance of the internet café and even asked the attendant to lock it with an iron chain, eliminating the risk of theft.

So, from start to finish, Ryan Bennett had thought everything through, eliminating almost all possible risks. Now, everything was ready—he was just waiting for the final push.

Time ticked by. Ryan Bennett absentmindedly browsed the web pages in front of him, but his thoughts had already drifted to the upcoming event.

What exactly would happen at Huichuan Pier No. 5? Why did the mysterious message insist he could not arrive early or late? How would his fate be reversed?

Because Ryan Bennett had been lost in thought, he failed to notice the cold, sinister stares from a few non-mainstream, delinquent-looking youths sitting on the internet café sofa.

Suddenly, Ryan Bennett felt his phone vibrating. He snapped out of his daze, picked up the phone and checked—it turned out to be the alarm he had set. It was already eleven thirty at night.

At this moment, Ryan Bennett suddenly felt his throat go dry. He took two deep breaths and, following his plan, first took some painkillers and cough medicine to prevent an attack at a critical moment, then drank a can of Red Bull to ensure he had enough energy for what was to come.

Then Ryan Bennett closed his eyes, cleared his mind of distractions for ten seconds, took a deep breath, and stood up to go to the counter and pay.

As he stood up to pay, the delinquent youths on the nearby sofa exchanged glances and were the first to slip into the darkness.

Next, Ryan Bennett left the internet café, then began unlocking his scooter, getting ready to ride and turn onto the main road ahead. But just then, he saw that several rocks were blocking the road in front of him. The road was already full of potholes, and with rocks in the way, there was no way to ride through.

At this moment, Ryan Bennett was in a hurry, anxious and pressed for time, so he didn't think much of it. He quickly stopped the scooter and got off to move the rocks.