"Beep—"
A sharp buzzing sound rang out, and Zheng Jie looked around at his surroundings in a daze.
The feeling of participating in an Arcade game for the first time amazed him. One second he was in the lobby, and the next he was in a completely unfamiliar space.
This place looked like an ordinary lounge. It was very spacious, and from the furnishings and layout, it gave off an overall comfortable and warm feeling.
In the room, there was a rest area with a sofa and a coffee table, a huge screen on the wall, and a separate, empty space.
This empty space was a bit like a mini-stage, with steps below and extra lighting above, though it wasn't currently lit.
Next to the stage, there was also a conspicuous button, its purpose unknown.
In the corner of the room were two machines. One looked a bit like a community vending machine, while the other was slightly smaller but also had an operable screen.
There were only two doors in the entire room, one of which was a restroom.
The other door seemed to lead to the outside, but when Zheng Jie tried to turn the handle, he found it was locked.
Next to this door, there was also a small display screen, currently showing no information.
"Where is everyone else?"
Zheng Jie was panicking.
He had originally thought that the players from the same community participating in the game would be together. In that case, he wouldn't really need to do anything, just follow the group's decisions.
The veteran player, Lawyer Lin, would naturally carry him.
But now, being suddenly thrown into an unfamiliar environment alone, he felt a bit lost.
Just then, text information suddenly appeared on the large screen, and an emotionless electronic voice simultaneously began to explain the rules.
[Hello, Zheng Jie. Welcome to "The Blind Date Game".]
[The total duration of this game is 8 hours. All violent acts are strictly prohibited throughout. This is currently the first stage, with a cumulative duration of 4 hours.]
[Given the long duration of the game, you can purchase food, drinks, and visa time vouchers from the vending machine on the side. Please help yourself.]
[There are a total of 40 players from 6 communities in this game.]
[Please note: In this game, male and female players have different reward rules.]
[Male players will indiscriminately receive 30,000 minutes of visa time after the game ends.]
[Female players will have their visa time randomly and continuously deducted during the game, and there will be no visa time reward after the game ends.]
[After the game officially starts, every 10 minutes, you will enter the meeting room ahead to begin a 10-minute meeting with another player.]
[Every hour, you will receive 1 "Like" and 1 "Dislike".]
[During the 8-hour game, you will participate in a total of 24 meetings and receive a total of 8 "Likes" and 8 "Dislikes".]
[The system will randomly match you with players from other communities for meetings.]
[Alternatively, you can use the small screen next to the door to invite a previously matched player for another meeting.]
[After completing a meeting, both players can give each other a "Like" or a "Dislike" to express their attitude.]
[The "Data Inquiry Machine" next to the vending machine can be used to check specific in-game data. For detailed rules, please refer to the machine's instruction page.]
[Special Note: The final meeting of the game will conduct a "Final Selection Vote". If the two players in the meeting are of the opposite sex and both give each other a "Like", they will both receive an additional 30,000 minutes of visa time.]
[As the game progresses, more rules will be continuously unlocked.]
[In 10 minutes, the first meeting will begin. Good luck!]
On the large screen, the rules remained displayed for the players' convenience.
Additionally, in a prominent position in the room, there was a special timer that showed the current game time and a 10-minute countdown for each waiting period.
Zheng Jie, feeling a bit lost, read the rules a few more times and scratched his head.
"Eight hours?? That's so long.
"It seems like there hasn't been a game this long before.
"But judging from the rules, it seems pretty simple?
"I just need to meet other players and then we can just like each other?
"No matter what, I get 30,000 minutes of visa time at the end of the game. That's way too easy.
"I can even find a female player willing to exchange likes and get an extra 30,000.
"Is this a newbie bonus?"
Zheng Jie was a bit baffled. He had never participated in an Arcade game, but from previous cases, 30,000 minutes of visa time was already considered a medium-level reward from a game.
If it could be obtained without risk, it was a great deal.
After all, even in a safe game like "Blood Poker", you still had to give blood.
Of course, Zheng Jie didn't let his guard down so quickly. He was also trying hard to figure out where the potential pitfalls of this game might be.
After thinking it over, perhaps some dangerous rules hadn't been announced yet? After all, the game did say that as it progressed, more rules would be unlocked.
But worrying about those things now was pointless. It was impossible to guess what kind of rules would be updated, so he could only focus on what was in front of him.
As Zheng Jie was thinking, the waiting time quickly passed.
[Player, please enter the meeting room immediately. Exceeding the time limit by 1 minute will result in an instant death penalty.]
Zheng Jie hurriedly pushed open the door to the meeting room. Before him was a corridor of moderate length.
Reaching the end of the corridor and pushing the door open, he entered a meeting room that was slightly narrower than his previous single room. It was divided into two separate spaces by a long table in the center, with one player on each side.
After sitting down, both players had an inclined, easy-to-operate surface in front of them.
At the top of the operating area were three large and conspicuous buttons: [I'll Pay], [Go Dutch], and [You Pay], each a different color, clearly visible to the player sitting opposite.
And at the very bottom of the operable area were four small and inconspicuous buttons.
Two of them were in an unlocked state: [Like] and [Dislike].
They had not only text but also different symbols: a red thumbs-up and a black thumbs-down, making them clear at a glance.
Next to these two buttons were two more inactive buttons, covered by lids that couldn't be opened.
These buttons were not large and were arranged very compactly, small enough to be completely covered by one hand, and conveniently located in the other person's blind spot.
In addition, the rules for the meeting room were also clearly written on the tabletop. There weren't too many, just a few lines, but before Zheng Jie had a chance to read them carefully, the door opposite him was pushed open.
A young, pretty, and sweet-looking girl with a short bob walked in.
"Hi there!"
The girl greeted Zheng Jie first, and after a brief look around, she sat down in the seat opposite him.
Although she wasn't wearing much makeup, her naturally fair skin under the soft lighting of the meeting room made Zheng Jie feel a bit dizzy, and for a moment, he was at a loss for what to do.
"H-hello!" Zheng Jie realized he had stuttered after he spoke.
The girl smiled, "You seem a bit clumsy. Don't be nervous. Judging from the rules, this game shouldn't be too dangerous.
"At least for now."
Before Zheng Jie could respond, the system's notification sound echoed in the meeting room.
[Please pay the room usage fee before the end of this meeting: 200 minutes of visa time.]
[Press the operating buttons on the table to select a payment method.]
[When both parties choose the same option, payment will be made according to the button's selection.]
[If the two parties choose different options, or if any player has not pressed a button by the end of this meeting, both parties will be forcibly deducted 200 minutes of visa time.]
With a "click," the three buttons labeled [I'll Pay], [You Pay], and [Go Dutch] popped up, with lights flashing on them, prompting the players to press them quickly.
A timer appeared in the center of the table, showing a 10-minute countdown.
And on the back of both players' consoles, there was also a screen, like a nameplate, displaying their names and affiliated communities.
When the girl saw the words [Community 17 - Zheng Jie], a slight look of surprise appeared on her face.
Then, she smiled and said, "Hello, I'm Lu Xinyi from Community 3. It's a pleasure to meet you."