Chapter 2: Becoming world's richest?

Upon returning home, Luke hastily switched on his computer and browsed the internet. As he had suspected, prices had plummeted drastically compared to just the day before. As he read the headlines, his worldview was completely upended:

Twitter was bought for merely a few million dollars?

Incredulous, he recalled that not long ago, the company had been acquired for over 40 billion dollars. According to Luke's understanding, the exchange rate in this world identical to his past should be:

1 dollar = 10 decidollars

1 decidollar = 10 milodollars

1 milodollar = 10 microdollars

1 microdollar = 10 nanodollars

Although Luke had been exposed to more experiences than the average person due to his relatively wealthy background, he was still taken aback by this reality. While a few million dollars could buy a decent three-bedroom house in a major city, acquiring a world-leading company was entirely out of the question.

Luke quickly checked his bank account and found that he had 500,000 dollars. Excited beyond belief, he danced around the room, feeling as though he could become the world's richest person.

After some time, he remembered the substantial amount of cash at home. He rummaged through the safe and various drawers, only to discover an astounding 1 million dollars! Luke knew his parents had a strong sense of financial security and would invest in real estate and keep cash reserves. But in his present reality, only his wealth should have remained unaffected. Could it be that during his dream-induced journey through time and space, his parents' assets hadn't depreciated either?

He suddenly burst into laughter, feeling on the verge of becoming the world's richest person. Just then, his parents returned home, unfazed by his laughter, and walked right past him. Luke wondered if his parents' personalities remained unchanged, and if only their wealth was unaffected.

Could this parallel universe be an illusion, merely a dream?

Feeling disappointed, Luke went to the bathroom mirror and repeatedly slapped his face, even ramming into the wall, but nothing changed. At that point, he accepted that he was in another dimension. It seemed that his previous desire for his wealth to one day rank among the world's top fortunes had led him to cross dimensions in his dream, ending up in a world where everything had lost its value.

Though his newfound wealth could potentially make him one of the richest people in the world, he would still be on par with, or slightly behind, the wealthiest individuals in the United States. At best, he could match China's richest person, with a net worth of several million, or perhaps 10 million dollars at most.

Feeling hungry, Luke threw on some casual clothes, stuffed a few hundred-dollar bills into his wallet, and headed to a well-known Chinese restaurant. He ordered a simple meal of Shanghai-style eel noodles and soup dumplings and went to the cashier to pay.

However, when the cashier caught a glimpse of the hundred-dollar bills in his wallet, she revealed an envious expression and stammered, "Hello, my name is Seraphina Shangguan. May I get to know you? Shangguan Group is my family's business; I'm just here to experience life at the grassroots level."

The young woman had an exquisite appearance, her face as white as snow, and her figure was well-proportioned. Her long, flowing hair and overall demeanour made her seem like a celestial being descended to earth.

Luke was astonished; she appeared to be the daughter of the chairman and founder of Shangguan Group, a leading conglomerate in China. In his previous world, Luke had only heard of her a few times but had never met her in person.