[Hello, Lin Sizhi.]
[Congratulations on receiving the invitation letter. You are about to become a player in the New World.]
[Before you officially enter the New World, here is a simple test to determine your special identity in it.]
[In another room not far from you, there is a sinner who is in a coma.]
[To your left is the criminal record of this sinner and the corresponding judgment result.]
[If you find this judgment fair and just, or don't care, please do nothing and wait quietly in this room for 2 hours.]
[After 2 hours, the New World will automatically issue player visas for you and this sinner.]
[If you find this judgment unfair and unjust, then look to your right, where there is a game design plan.]
[Please design a game to give this sinner a more appropriate judgment.]
[You also have 2 hours to complete the game design and judgment.]
[The 'Walkway' will review your design. Once approved, the sinner will be forced to participate in the game and accept your judgment.]
[Now, the 2-hour countdown begins, please make your choice.]
1:59:59...
1:59:58...
Watching the countdown ticking on the big screen, Lin Sizhi, who had just woken up from unconsciousness, felt a dull ache in his temples.
He lightly pressed his thumb against his brow while surveying his surroundings.
This was a simple, completely white room, furnished with only a long table, a chair, a giant screen, and a red door.
The overly simple setup made it seem unreal.
"Where is this...?"
Lin Sizhi struggled to organize his jumbled thoughts, recalling the events that led him here.
Maybe it was a car accident?
Lin Sizhi was a criminal defense lawyer. In his last memory, he was driving late at night to meet a client when he was suddenly enveloped by blinding white light, and then his memory completely broke off.
"Am I already dead?"
Lin Sizhi looked down to check his physical condition, discovering that he was still wearing the standard suit he usually wore for work. His body was healthy, with no injuries.
The only curious thing was the black bracelet, about two fingers wide, on his left wrist. Its material was unknown, seamless, smooth and rounded, fitting perfectly, and impossible to remove.
Lin Sizhi stood up and walked a few steps around the room, trying to open the red door but quickly found it securely locked.
He could only return to the long table and sit down, where indeed the related documents were placed:
On the left was the criminal record and judgment result, while on the right was a standard plan form with fields like the game's name, number of participants, and specific rules to fill out.
Lin Sizhi picked up the game design document on the right to examine it first.
It had a specific format.
For example, fields for the game's name, number of participants, rules for players, the actual game rules, and so on, had to be filled out accordingly.
Some fields had additional instructions, such as:
[Rules for Players: You may cleverly conceal parts of the game rules but cannot include obviously misleading information to deceive players.]
[Actual Game Rules: Please write out all game rules as comprehensively as possible to avoid logical loopholes.]
The topmost field of the design document was somewhat unique because it already contained pre-filled information.
[List of Usable Items (use as needed):]
[1. Firearms: 4 guns, with unlimited ammunition of various types.]
[2. Cold weapons: 6 pieces.]
[3. Display devices: 3 units.]
[4. Timers: 5 units.]
[5. Prop staging platform: 1 unit.]
[6. Chairs: 3 units.]
[7. Restraint devices: 2 units.]
[8. Any complete set of gambling tools from a casino: 2 sets.]
[9. A special mechanism of free design: 1 unit.]
[10. Other scene props unrelated to the game content: unlimited.]
[Remark 1: Unless otherwise specified, the designer can freely decide the model and appearance of the used items.]
[Remark 2: Any item cannot be taken out of the game venue or it will disappear into thin air.]
"Firearms, and a freely designed special mechanism?"
"Doesn't this mean that I completely have the power of life and death?"
Lin Sizhi naturally thought of this.
If extreme, Lin Sizhi could set up a game like this:
The unconscious criminal is restrained, while his wrist is connected to a mechanism by a thin wire.
Once the criminal wakes up and moves his wrist, the wire will trigger the mechanism, pulling the gun's trigger and shooting him dead.
Of course, there are some restrictions in the design document, such as not including obviously incorrect information in the rules to deceive players, and not designing a game that offers no chance of success.
However, Lin Sizhi could also create a game with an extremely harsh condition for winning:
If the criminal wakes up and moves his wrist no more than 3cm while enduring for 10 hours, the mechanism automatically disables, and the game ends.
This game rule fully complies with the format of the design document.
But in reality, it is almost a death trap.
"Judging by the format of the design document, I could indeed design such a game.
"But it might not pass the review.
"Besides, according to the requirements on the big screen, I'm supposed to make a 'fair and just' and 'more appropriate' judgment for the sinner, not cruelly abuse him through a game.
"But how should one define what is 'fair and just,' and what is 'more appropriate'?
"Is there room for 'private justice' to correct a criminal who has already been judged by the modern legal system?"
Lin Sizhi fell into deep thought.
Moments later, he picked up the file and judgment result on the left.
[Wei Xinjian, male, 37 years old.]
[Due to a failed business, he was speeding on a road with a 40 km/h limit in the city center, killing a couple on the spot.]
[Judgment: Sentenced to 3 years in prison for traffic accident crime. He has served his sentence and been released.]
Lin Sizhi carefully read through this simple text multiple times.
Then he silently picked up a pen and began writing on the game design document.
"Scratch, scratch, scratch—"
More than an hour later, Lin Sizhi put down his pen and reviewed the game rules he had written from start to finish.
He ultimately utilized only some of the items.
[1. A silver revolver with an unknown bullet chamber position, 1 bullet loaded.]
[2. CRT television, 1 unit.]
[3. LED electronic timer, 1 unit.]
[4. Square wooden table, 1 unit.]
[5. Iron chairs with automatic locks at the arms, legs, waist, and neck, welded to the ground and capable of high-voltage punishment, 2 units.]
[6. Freely designed special mechanism, 1 unit.]
[7. Decorative scene props: 1 old incandescent lamp, 2 worn shelves, 1 corner wooden crate...]
After confirming there were no errors, Lin Sizhi wrote 'Design Completed' in the lower right corner of the last page.
The information on the big screen changed.
[Walkway is reviewing the design you submitted...]
[Review complete, approval granted.]
[Walkway is setting up the game scene based on the design content...]
[Setup complete, please proceed to the game site and complete the game within the remaining time.]
These changes happened quickly, in a matter of seconds.
This made Lin Sizhi even more certain that he wasn't in reality; perhaps he was dead or had entered some supernatural space.
After all, even with a team on standby, it was impossible to review such a complex set of rules and set up the game site to such strict specifications in just a few seconds in reality.
"Beep."
A prompt sounded, and the red door in the room opened.
Lin Sizhi left the room, walked to the end of a pure white corridor, where a rusty, heavy safety door awaited him.
Behind the door was a musty-smelling, old warehouse.
Everything in it had been arranged according to Lin Sizhi's game design, including the criminal, who remained unconscious, fixed by mechanisms onto the iron chair.
Lin Sizhi sat down on another iron chair, took a nearby strip of cloth, bit down on it, and tied it behind his head.
Then he sat in a standard posture, closed his eyes.
The sound of "click, click" continuously echoed as mechanisms released to lock his arms, legs, waist, and neck to the iron chair.
[Game Start.]