Abstract: From the perspective of the legislative process of virtual property, the specific meaning and the legal nature of virtual property are still absent in legislation in China, which cannot provide practical guidance for the subsequent rules in the field of virtual property and will ultimately not be conducive to the protection and development of virtual property. Debates in theory and avoidance in judicial practice make it urgent to identify the nature of virtual property. In fact, the interpretation of the legal term of virtual property must return to the most basic legal interpretation method, in which the virtual property defined as “civil interests” by the method of purpose interpretation and included into the protection scope of tort law is expected to become an effective complement to the identification and protection of virtual property in China.

Key words: Civil Code, virtual property, legal interpretation, purpose interpretation, tort protection