FUZHOU, China One of China’s newest factories operates here in the basement of an old warehouse. Posters of World of Warcraft and Magic Land hang above a corps of young people with drowsy eyes glued to their computer screens, pounding away at their keyboards in the latest hustle for money.

The people working at this clandestine locale are called “gold farmers.” Every day, in 12-hour shifts, they kill monsters and harvest “gold coins” and other virtual goods that they can sell to other online gamers. […]

“For 12 hours a day, 7 days a week, me and my colleagues are killing monsters,” said a 23-year-old gamer who works in the makeshift factory and goes by the online code-name “Wandering.”

“I make about $250 a month, which is pretty good, compared to the other jobs I’ve had,” he said. “And I can play games all day.”

He and his comrades belong to the latest global industry to use cheap Chinese labor – the fast-growing world of online gaming, which generates $3.6 billion a year, according to DFC Intelligence, which tracks the online gaming market. […]