God's imitator

Chapter 7 Prices
"Are you sure this price is 'cheap'?" Lin Sizhi asked.

Yang Yuting's profession is a senior executive in the company, which can be roughly seen from her appearance and demeanor.

She wore delicate, light makeup, and although her clothes didn't seem particularly eye-catching at first glance, a closer look revealed that each piece was highly designed and likely came from some international luxury brand.

Her demeanor gives off a distinctly pampered and privileged vibe.

"Of course it's cheap!"

Yang Yuting said earnestly, "We can determine the approximate purchasing power based on the ingredients."

"Based on the price of cola and eggs, one minute of visa processing here is roughly equivalent to one dollar in the real world, right?"

Lin Sizhi nodded: "No problem."

Yang Yuting continued, "Then, let's calculate based on the original world's minimum hourly wage:"

"Working for an hour, the pay is about 20 to 30 yuan. Even at the highest standard, we can only get 30 yuan per hour."

"But here, one hour is equivalent to 60 yuan."

"Enough to buy two pounds of chicken wings or six pounds of potatoes."

"Isn't this considered cheap?"

Lin Sizhi was silent for a moment: "But have you considered that this is a world where even breathing costs money?"

Yang Yuting was stunned for a moment, then suddenly realized what was going on.

"Um?

"Ah, yes..."

"In this world, even if you do nothing all day, you'll still use up 24 hours of visa processing time, which is equivalent to..."

"1440 yuan!"

This number startled her.

Lin Sizhi nodded: "Yes, in order to survive in this world, we need to earn at least 1440 minutes of visa time every day."

"On this basis, even if we only consider ensuring basic living, we still need to earn an extra hour or more of visa time."

"A daily wage of 1500 minutes is the minimum income we need to survive in this world."

"Moreover, the 'labor cost' of finished meals is far higher than that of the original ingredients."

"Take fried rice with eggs for example. Under normal prices, it should cost around 15 yuan, but here it costs twice as much."

Can you imagine spending 30 yuan on a simple street vendor's fried rice?

Yang Yuting's expression turned noticeably unpleasant: "That does seem a bit expensive..."

The two said nothing more.

After considering for a moment, Lin Sizhi decided to order a tomato and egg rice bowl.

He then swiped his visa wristband under the machine.

"Di."

After a soft beep, Lin Sizhi's remaining visa time appeared on the screen.

[117 days - 21:53]

"That means I have a little over three months to live..."

Lin Sizhi found it difficult to say whether this period of time should be considered long or short.

If we calculate based on real-world life expectancy, assuming a life expectancy of 70 years, then three months is clearly a time when death is imminent.

But there is one thing that cannot be ignored: that is, he and these people may already be dead.

Every minute we live in the new world is a gift.

In many similar survival-themed films and television shows, the survival days assigned according to the game rules are generally calculated in days.

Giving them three months right off the bat is already quite generous.

Moreover, you can earn visa time by playing games in the arcade later.

Although there is some danger, no matter what, as long as you are alive, there is still hope.

"What! So little!"

53-year-old food delivery driver Ding Wenqiang stared at the visa processing time on the screen. [11 days - 13:37 PM]

"Brother Ding, how much visa time do you have?" Su Xiucen asked worriedly.

Ding Wenqiang's expression was somewhat stiff: "See for yourself."

Su Xiucen glanced at it: "11 days... Brother Ding, I'm about the same as you, I've had 17 days."

She then looked at Qin Yao beside her: "Little girl, what about your time?"

Qin Yao, number 7, is 24 years old and works as a fashion model.

She was the youngest and most beautiful of all the players.

“I…I am 45 days old.”

Qin Yao hesitated for a moment, but still answered truthfully.

Ding Wenqiang's face darkened. He looked around and quickly spotted Wang Yongxin, who was sitting next to him in an empty vending machine.

"How much time do you have?"

Wang Yongxin looked at him with some confusion: "Why should I tell you?"
"Let alone strangers, even if you directly ask your relatives or friends how much savings they have, it's still very rude of you, isn't it?"

Ding Wenqiang's eyes widened: "Kid, who are you calling ill-mannered?"

Fu Chen was the first to step in and mediate: "Alright, alright, Uncle Ding, there's no need to argue about this. The remaining visa time is indeed private information, and it's normal that they don't want to disclose it."

"If you really want to know, I can tell you my remaining visa time: one month and ten days."

Detective Cao Haichuan approached the vending machine to Ding Wenqiang's right, discreetly separating him from Wang Yongxin, and then swiped his own visa.

"Oh dear, I don't have much time left either, only 21 days."

"It's okay, didn't the community rules just say that we can still earn time?"

"Since we can make money, what's there to worry about?"
"Huh? They even sell cigarettes here?"

"There's also a White General? Ha, that's great."

Cao Haichuan immediately spent 10 minutes of his visa application time buying a pack of white cigarettes, and the vending machine even thoughtfully included a lighter as a bonus.

"Want a cigarette?" Cao Haichuan took out one.

Ding Wenqiang shook his head: "Next time."

"Okay." Cao Haichuan didn't even bother to order food; he grabbed his cigarettes and went to find an outdoor area where smoking was allowed.

Lin Sizhi listened from a distance, quickly organizing the relevant information in her mind.

"My visa processing time was more than twice as long as normal."

"Is it because of Wei Xinjian?"

According to the rules, when a player dies in the game, the game designers will receive all of that player's remaining visa time.

Therefore, the extra time Lin Sizhi had likely received came from Wei Xinjian, or from special rewards after completing the game.

Therefore, if others find out about Lin Sizhi's visa dates, it could very well create hidden dangers.

Although there are many ways to cover it up in the short term, as time goes by and people become more familiar with the rules, this hidden danger may take root and sprout.

Lin Sizhi quickly completed the payment and exited the vending machine's purchase interface.

A message appeared on the screen saying "Food is being prepared," and soon a steaming hot tomato and egg rice bowl appeared in the vending machine window.

"Brother Lin, have you finished ordering? How much time do you have left?" Fu Chen asked casually when he saw Lin Sizhi carrying a bowl of tomato and egg rice towards him.

"About the same as you, a little over a month." Lin Sizhi's expression remained unchanged.

Fu Chen nodded slightly: "Hmm...it seems to be just as I predicted. The timing of the New World issuing basic visas should also be following some kind of basic rule..."

"The standard visa processing time for each person is approximately one month."

"However, this timeframe can fluctuate depending on various factors."

"For example, young people's visas are generally valid for more than a month, while older people's visas are shortened. Or, it may be related to the wealth people have in the real world."

Fu Chen then looked at Wang Yongxin, clearly indicating that Wang Yongxin was the most suitable control group if they wanted to verify this point.

(End of this chapter)