Forces of Temptation

Chapter 28: Paper Gold (1)

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The name of Zhijincheng is taken from "Jijinjin fans".

More grand than rust, and more flashy and rotten.

The paper gold city is set with short days and long nights, sunrise at ten in the morning and sunset at three in the afternoon.

After three o'clock in the afternoon, Zhijincheng became a city that never sleeps.

After nightfall, a full moon will hang on the horizon of Zhijincheng. In the hustle and bustle of the city, it looks like an oil painting accidentally smudged by water droplets. Moon halo.

The design of Zhijincheng is ingenious, concentric circles, the inner circle is the central city, mostly spires, the main color of black and gold, the thin and pointed roof points straight to the sky like a sword, and it gathers bars, dance halls, intelligence Shops, high-end hotels, material exchange points and other places.

Another large circle on the periphery of the concentric circles surrounds the dilapidated walled city like Kowloon Walled City.

In the original game setting of "Gravity", this is the meeting place of the three religions and nine streams, including dentists, goddesses, and barbecued pork.

Be extra careful when walking here. If you knock off the NPC's clothes drying pole, or hit the NPC uncle who is walking tremblingly, you will receive a string of screeching curses.

In the walled city, players may get valuable item information at a very low price, or they may spend a lot of money and only get a non-refundable and non-exchangeable spicy chicken blue weapon.

But now, the paper gold city that has been transformed by unknown power is undergoing subtle changes.

Because they were accidentally attacked before they escaped from the copy, the eight people are now sitting together in a cafe in Zhijin.

The system time shows that it is now four o'clock in the afternoon. Compared with the time when Nanzhou and the others entered the dungeon in Waste Capital, it was only a flick of a finger.

But unlike the sunny waste city, the current Zhijincheng has just entered the prelude to the night carnival.

The prices here are much more expensive than Rust, and the NPCs are all humanoids.

The waitress who served them refreshments had a perfect smile, delicate makeup and hair, and looked like a real person, almost making people suspicious that they had returned to the normal world.

Entering the safety zone, everyone showed their truest side in a relaxed state.

Shen Jie didn't like to talk very much, so she quietly leaned back on the seat and looked a little tiredly at the wandering lights outside.

After the fitness trainer drank three cups of strong coffee, he ordered cheap fast food such as sandwiches and hamburgers in one breath, relying on fast food to relieve stress.

The thin monkey didn't even dare to look at the face of the NPC, but after the NPC left, he looked at her perfect waistline from behind with a look of longing.

Yu Tuisi is an extremely thoughtful and decent person. Even if he takes sleeping pills, he supports his head with his hands and resists not falling asleep.

Li Yinhang counted points with a napkin.

Jiang Fang stretched out his arms and leaned on the chair Nan Zhou was sitting on. At first glance, his posture was very stretched, but from a third-party perspective, it was a completely calm and dominant posture.

Only Nan Zhou, his status is no different from that in the dungeon.

Even when he twisted someone's neck just now, it was no different from the expression he had when picking desserts now.

After washing his hands seven or eight times, Nan Zhou carefully reviewed the menu and ordered a cream tart and a snow maiden.

Li Yinhang took over the menu and just glanced at it, his eyelids jumped fiercely.

For a person who is accustomed to frugality, this price is almost the same as robbing money in public.

Two small pieces of dessert, worth 150 points

But she didn't dare to be too arrogant to the savior, and it wasn't her points that were spent, so she only dared to whisper: "It's too expensive..."

"I want to reward myself." Nan Zhou praised himself solemnly, "I performed well just now."

Li Yinhang: "..." You are right.

Before the cakes were served, Nan Zhou was attracted by a magnificent three-story building diagonally opposite the cafe.

It was extraordinarily noisy there, as if all the voices in the central city were concentrated there, and they were buzzing together.

Nan Zhou: "What is that?"

The fitness instructor chewed the food and said vaguely, "Haven't you heard about it? 'Fighting and gambling'."

Li Yinhang: "..." When did Gravity contain such elements that blatantly violate contemporary values

Shen Jie added: "It was built by a player named Qu Jinsha himself."

Li Yinhang: "..." Are there really people who are doing business in this game? !

But while she was complaining, she quickly realized that the name Qu Jinsha was a bit familiar.

At the same time, Nan Zhou had already clicked on the player ranking list and found the name.

Qu Jinsha, single player, second on the list.

The fitness coach who followed behind Shen Jie in the dungeon and rarely expressed his personal opinions was actually a talker under normal conditions.

Without further questioning, he began to introduce like a bamboo tube pouring beans: "This Qu Jinsha is the first batch of players to enter, and I heard that he is a master of PVP."

"He's a very good business man, and he can go out of his way. He went through an unknown number of dungeons in one breath, accumulated 100,000 points, and built a small facade in the center of Zhijincheng, which is about 50 square meters in size. Shengsheng smashed all the points. You must know that he was the top three in the single-player rankings at the time, and this transaction immediately fell to the bottom. "

The fitness coach was stunned: "...Look at the end, it didn't take long for the entire building to belong to him, his ranking went back, and he moved up one place."

Jiang Fang got some meaning from his words.

He asked, "How long has it been since you entered this game?"

The fitness coach opened his mouth and came: "Not counting the time of the dungeon, just tossing and resting at various safe points will take more than three months."

In the face of Li Yinhang's shocked eyes, the fitness coach's desire to express is even stronger.

"Yes, the flow rate here is completely different from the normal world."

He said: "We have communicated with other people who are new to the dungeon. It should only be five or six days in the real world, right?"

Jiang Fang and Nan Zhou were silent, while Li Yinhang nodded obediently.

"Me, Hou, and Sister Shen all came in on the third day of the mass disappearance. For someone like Qu Jinsha who came here on the first day, from his point of view, he would have to start a business here for at least half a year. too much."

God TM business.

But there's nothing wrong with it on closer inspection.

Nan Zhou turned his attention from the gradient neon lights outside the Douzhuan Casino, and said the truth as soon as he spoke: "Then you have accumulated too few points."

The fitness coach who is talking about the spittle: "..." Will you chat

Fortunately, Jiang Fang relieved the embarrassment for the fitness coach in time.

"It's normal," he said warmly.

In addition to buying desserts, Nanzhou is very serious about the number of points: "Staying at a safe point will consume oxygen, and you have to spend points on food, clothing, housing and transportation, which is not worthwhile."

Jiang Fang patiently answered: "Do you still remember the Wishing Pond?"

Nan Zhou nodded: "Well. Only the person who ranks first in the team and individual rankings can make a wish."

Jiang Fang: "What wish did you make?"

His attitude was very natural, and he couldn't tell that he was spying on Nan Zhou's heart.

Nan Zhou's mouth was terribly tight: "I won't tell you."

Jiang Fang did not force him, and instead asked Li Yinhang: "Yinhang, how about you?"

Li Yinhang: "Of course I hope this game disappears and everyone returns to the normal world."

ap;n--gt;gt;

bsp; She looked at everyone and said hesitantly, "I think they all think so..."

Shen Jie responded: "The three of us have shared our wishes. My wish is that my daughter will be healthy for a lifetime. Hou Xu's wish is the same as yours. Xiao Shen did not wish it. His wish needs to be kept to the end."

Yu Tuisi also said: "I made a wish, but Sufeng hasn't made it yet, so I also asked him to keep his wish."

Jiang Fang asked everyone before he said to Nan Zhou, "Look, there is still a large proportion of the wish that everything will be over and everyone will return to the normal world."

"The person in the front row, even if one person makes a similar wish, the others don't have to bother to fight for the first place. All they have to make sure is to earn enough points to maintain oxygen and basic living needs, and try to avoid entering the dungeon as much as possible. Then live on, and when the ranking is decided, leave the game with the first place."

At this time, Nanzhou's dessert came up.

"Isn't the competition system still not completely clear?" Nan Zhou asked while holding up the strawberry-flavored Xue Meiniang, "If it is a PK elimination competition system, only the singles and teams who survive can make a wish?"

"Of course, there is such a possibility." Jiang Fang said, "but the game stipulates that you can keep your wish and leave it to the end. As long as someone makes a wish at the end 'all players who have played this game will be resurrected', at this stage, everyone will Don't take the risk."

"It's stupid to pin your hopes on others." Nan Zhou shook his head disapprovingly: "Who knows who will come first? What if they only wished to let themselves go? What if they wished that this game would last forever?"

Jiang Fang said with a smile: "Don't underestimate people's pursuit of comfort and their ability to persuade themselves."

He looked at Nan Zhou as he was eating and listening carefully with his ears erect. He hesitated a few times when he wanted to stretch out his hand to pinch his ear, and finally touched his lips.

"When I first came in, people always thought, to accumulate enough points, to compete for the first place, just like the Liu Xiao we met in the demo level."

"Remember what he said? He just finished his first mission and just wanted to move up a few more ranks, so he spent his points to choose the PVP mode."

"They are first-timers, so they have a sense of urgency. But what about players who have gone through a few dungeons?"

"Near death again and again, watching others die, teammates die, can normal people accept it so easily? Will they be more actively involved in the task, or will they escape if they can find a way?"

"Humans are not machines. Even if they work at full capacity at the beginning, they always have to eat and drink water, and they have to relax and enjoy themselves. Once you relax, you don't want to move anymore, and it's easier to pin your hopes on others."

"Anyway, for some people, no matter how hard they try, they can't get to the first place. It's better to make themselves comfortable under limited conditions."

Immediately, Jiang Fang pointed to the Douzhuan Casino opposite, and said gently, "That's a place that makes people comfortable and addicted to escape."

Although Jiang Fang's tone was relaxed, it made Shen Jie's trio get goosebumps all over.

Their mental journey, why not

They have all experienced the psychological process of being a little numb from the active coping at the beginning, so that when they return to a safe point, they want to bury their heads in food, fall asleep, and rest for seven or eight days before they are full of unwillingness. Select to perform the next task.

Nan Zhou wiped off the whipped cream from the corners of his mouth, but did not waver at all: "I don't care what they think. I want to take the first place."

Jiang Fang smiled and handed him a free tissue.

Nan Zhou held the cream tower and aimed at the opposite casino again: "How did Qu Jinsha open the casino to rank second?"

“… trade points through the trading system.”

It was Yu Tuisi who spoke.

He recovered from the strength of medicine, and, obviously, like Nan Zhou, he was quite interested in Qu Jinsha's fortune.

Nan Zhou asked: "What is the trading system?"

Knowing that they are genuine newcomers, Yu Tuisi was not surprised by Nan Zhou's question: "The trading system is not built-in, and you need to find a random NPC after entering a safe place like Rusty Capital or Zhijincheng. - Every security point will have such an NPC - talk to it and exchange the trading rules before it can be activated, and it will open the trading system for you for free."

"Once the trading system is activated, one-to-one and team-to-team transactions can be carried out with the agreement of both parties."

He looked at Nan Zhou: "For example, I want to exchange 1,000 points for the A-level item in your hand, as long as we negotiate the price, enter the trading system, put the 1,000 points and the A-level item into their respective trading slots, and after confirmation , the transaction can be realized, and there are no middlemen to make the difference.”

"However, the NPC in charge of guiding will not inform the player of this. Players need to explore on their own. This is why Sufeng and I spent a considerable part of our time exploring various safe spots after we came in."

Yu Tuisi took a breath and continued:

"As for Qujinsha... His casino only gambles points. At the gate, someone will charge a certain amount of admission fee, 200 points per person. After entering, whoever wins, the casino will draw water from it. There will probably be a commission ranging from 1 to 5, which is how he makes a profit.

"What if I use the props?" Nan Zhou took out his summer workbook, which was an A-level prop, which he had not had time to study. "With this, can't you reverse the time again and again?"

Yu Tuisi shook his head and denied Nan Zhou's idea.

"First, props are often used several times, and it is not cost-effective to waste them on gambling."

"Second, props cannot be used in all safe spots."

Nan Zhou suddenly said, "Ah..."

But his question wasn't over yet: "Why is his business so good?"

Jiang Fang took over the words: "Because of gambling points."

Yu Tuisi nodded lightly, expressing his affirmation: "After all, the next copy of the mission is fatal. If you lose here, you will be empty-handed; if you win, it will be a huge profit. There is a chance to wait for profit, and there is a chance for a carp to jump over the dragon gate, who would think To risk your life?"

In addition, Yu Tuisi has nothing to say.

The places that can be traded in the paper gold city are not only casinos.

In this city, as its name suggests, a city full of money and money, there is no shortage of men and women who sell their flesh and body for 100 points.

Jiang Fang put his hand to his lips and chuckled: "The mentality of a gambler. It's all like this."

Yu Tuisi looked at him: "There are indeed people who have won big. The points have risen from the top 100 to the top 20."

Jiang Fang said calmly, "That was what Qu Jinsha allowed him to win."

Yu Tuisi: "It may also be luck."

Jiang Fang: "Are you talking about luck with the casino?"

Yu Tuisi narrowed his eyes slightly: "Do you know much about casinos?"

Jiang Fang: "There are casinos in Ukraine. I have worked there and have seen a little bit."

Li Yinhang, who was on the sidelines: ... Well, now Jiang Fang's identity is based on the returning traveler and music exchange student.

The Nanzhou player who is good at curiosity raised his hand again and asked: "In this case, why is Qu Jinsha only ranked second?" It stands to reason that he has the strength to rank first.

"One is because he has to pay high rents and hire NPCs every month. The central area of 'paper gold' is expensive, and hiring NPCs in the system is to maintain order, on the one hand, not to let some losers Lost players run away, on the one hand, they can restrict and supervise Qu Jinsha. It can be regarded as an absolutely fair existence.”

Yu Tuisi paused: "... The second is because after entering, the casino will provide free beer, drinks and desserts and snacks. Many people go in to eat and drink, and then they will bet a game or two. I have to admit, The atmosphere of the casino is indeed very easy to indulge in, if you are a person with weak concentration, if you go in once, there will be a second time and a third time.”

Nan Zhou stopped scraping the cream at the bottom of the pan with a small fork, and the light in his eyes suddenly lit up. :,