Rules Research

Ding Wenqiang also looked at Wang Yongxin.

Wang Yongxin was growing a little fed up. "That's enough, isn't it? Why are you always targeting me?

"The remaining Visa Time wasn't set by me. Whether I have more or less, what does that have to do with me?

"Do you just have to see how much time I have? And if I had more, what were you planning to do? Shake down the rich?

"Fine, look. I'm the same as you—just one month."

Wang Yongxin stepped aside so the people beside him could clearly see the Vending Machine's screen. It indeed displayed: [39 days - 12 hours 49 minutes].

Fu Chen hurriedly gave a slight bow. "Sorry, Brother Wang."

"Tch." Wang Yongxin continued paying in irritation.

Being forced to prove himself had clearly made him uncomfortable, but he had no choice. He realized that if he did not do it, he would likely soon become the target of everyone's suspicions.

However, this also confirmed for Fu Chen and the others that one's initial Visa Time had little to do with the wealth they possessed in their original world. Otherwise, Wang Yongxin should have had far more than thirty-nine days.

Lin Sizhi returned to the dining table with his rice bowl. The others also ordered their own meals and began eating.

Three rather distinct groups in the hall were talking quietly.

They were Su Xiucen and Ding Wenqiang, the two older people; newspaper editor Jiang He and civil servant Li Renshu; and Fu Chen and Wang Yongxin.

There was no need to mention Su Xiucen and Ding Wenqiang. During their earlier united condemnation of Wang Yongxin, they had already reached a preliminary consensus. What was more, they shared both age and class in common.

Fu Chen had approached Wang Yongxin most likely because he had sensed the group beginning to fracture and wanted to reassure Wang Yongxin as much as possible.

As for the pair of women, Jiang He and Li Renshu, they were quite interesting. Lin Sizhi noticed that Jiang He had always been enthusiastically searching for topics to discuss, while Li Renshu merely maintained a polite smile and did not respond very often.

Aside from their quiet conversations, everyone else ate their own food in silence.

Clearly, most people had not yet built sufficient mutual trust.

After eating their fill, everyone placed their dishes in a designated recycling area.

"Oh? There's a kitchen here?" Qin Yao said in surprise.

She had noticed that behind an inconspicuous door on the side of the hall was a fairly spacious kitchen.

It had everything: a sink, gas stove, range hood, and other equipment.

"Oh? Really?" Human resources supervisor Xu Tong and programmer Cai Zhiyuan were both somewhat surprised.

Su Xiucen and Ding Wenqiang, on the other hand, showed no particular reaction.

"Neither of them chose to buy ingredients. Instead, they ordered the cheapest prepared food: egg fried rice.

"That means they had already noticed the kitchen, but chose not to use it."

Lin Sizhi instantly understood the reason.

People like Su Xiucen and Ding Wenqiang were bound to be far more price-sensitive than the others. There was no way they could have failed to notice the kitchen.

Yet they had still chosen egg fried rice, a highly uneconomical option.

That was probably because they did not trust the others, and a "shared kitchen" might create additional "distribution issues."

On the first day, they wanted to avoid such disputes as much as possible.

However, judging by the price difference between ingredients and prepared food in the Vending Machine, everyone using the kitchen was only a matter of time.

For the next half hour or so, everyone moved about freely.

Some went to the library and reading area to read, while others returned to their rooms to rest.

Afterward, everyone returned to the long table and continued the topic they had been discussing earlier.

Naturally, Fu Chen spoke first again.

"Earlier, we summarized the three most urgent issues at hand.

"Given the current situation, our discussion should focus on the trial rules of the promenade, because each of us may participate in the games, either voluntarily or by force.

"Whether it's to earn Visa Time or to survive, figuring out the relevant rules as soon as possible is the most important thing."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Fu Chen looked at civil servant Li Renshu, criminal investigator Cao Haichuan, and Lin Sizhi.

"Sister Li, Officer Cao, Lawyer Lin.

"I think the expertise of you three may allow you to offer some constructive opinions, so during the discussion that follows, I hope the three of you can speak up more. Is that alright?"

Cao Haichuan smiled. "No problem."

Fu Chen continued, "The rule introduction on the big screen earlier also said that all game rules in the promenade would be updated on our Personal Computers.

"The Personal Computer is in the study of each of our rooms. I went back to confirm it just now, and there really is relevant information on it.

"However, items from private rooms are not allowed to be taken outside, so I could only copy down the rules of some of the games to discuss with everyone."

Before he could finish, however, the image on the big screen changed.

[Relevant information currently being discussed by players detected. Display it?]

Fu Chen froze for a moment. "Oh? It can do that too?

"Display it."

As soon as he spoke, a special page appeared on the big screen.

On the left side of the page were entries resembling those of an encyclopedia website, with the names of many games listed there.

The main section on the right was filled with large blocks of text containing the specific rules of each game.

Fu Chen closed his notebook. "We can actually look it up directly on the big screen... Then I went through all that trouble for nothing.

"What everyone is seeing now is consistent with what I found on the Personal Computer.

"All games completed in the promenade—or rather, all trials—can be found on this website, along with their detailed contents and rules.

"At the same time, we can also pay to unlock more information about a game. For example, what its final outcome was.

"If you don't believe me, you can verify it on your own Personal Computers later."

Everyone first looked at the game names listed on the left side of the page.

"Needle Chess."

"Weapon Chess."

"Redemption Roulette."

There were more than twenty entries at a glance.

Lin Sizhi saw the game he had designed, "Redemption Roulette." It was roughly in the middle of all the entries and did not seem particularly conspicuous.

But Fu Chen's next words made his expression stiffen.

"Every one of these games has rules worth studying.

"However, I believe the highest priority should be 'Redemption Roulette.'

"Because among all the games so far, it is the only one rated S-Class."

As Fu Chen spoke, the page on the big screen automatically switched to the entry for "Redemption Roulette."

The relevant game rules were clearly listed.

However, Lin Sizhi noticed that it contained only the basic rules. It did not include Wei Xinjian's criminal file, much less the specific process and outcome of the game.

To view the remaining information, one needed to "pay to unlock" it.

The price was twenty-four hours of Visa Time.

It was not an unattainable price, but it certainly made one's heart ache.

The hall fell silent as everyone carefully read the rules of "Redemption Roulette."

Lin Sizhi had no choice but to pretend he was seeing it for the first time, reading while contemplating.

Once most people had more or less finished reading the rules, Fu Chen asked, "What do you all think of this game, the only one rated S-Class?"

Programmer Cai Zhiyuan frowned slightly, clearly puzzled.

"May I share my thoughts first?"

Fu Chen nodded. "Of course."

Cai Zhiyuan organized his thoughts for a moment before saying, "I completely fail to understand why this game received an S-Class rating.

"That seems to be the highest rating, right?

"But in my view, if you calculate the probability of survival in this game from the perspectives of reason, logic, and probability, it is unbelievably high.

"If I were the one playing, there's even a high chance I would come out completely unscathed."