Chapter 1 - Cultivation Online (1/2)
”Brother! I got the game you wanted!” The teenager said cheerfully next to the young man laying on the bed. In her grasp was a large helmet that looked like a bike helmet, but with more of a sci-fi look.
The young man's eyes were closed, seemingly asleep, but the girl continued to speak: ”Here, let me help you put it on…”
The girl climbed on the large bed that could fit an entire family of four, and she lifted his head, putting the helmet she had prepared on his head.
”Thank you…” The young man finally spoke in a hoarse voice after she gently laid his head back down.
The girl smiled, tenderly caressing his hair so it wouldn't bother him. ”Brother, although I will be busy with school this week, next week for sure, I will play with you.”
”Un…”
”I will come back later, so until then, have fun!” After those words, she went to touch the button on the side of the helmet and waited a few moments before leaving the young man alone.
—
It only took a few seconds after the button was pressed for the young man's body in the real world to fall into a state similar to slumber. He could no longer smell the aroma that was unique to his room or feel the weight of the blanket pressing down on his body. Instead, he could feel himself standing, something he didn't have the opportunity to experience for many years.
The world before him was mostly black, like the night sky without stars, and he could see white numbers floating above him, slowly counting down.
”I can see… I can feel my limbs… I… am no longer blind or a cripple...” The young man broke down in this darkness, becoming emotional and falling to his knees.
He was born with an incurable illness that left him blind at the age of 7 and crippled at the age of 13. He is now 18 years old, and for the past 5 years he would lay in his bed, unable to do anything else besides just laying there; it was a gruesome and unimaginable life that one wouldn't even dare to imagine themselves in.
However, for this young man who has spent more than half of his life living in a world void of light, he was able to continue living without giving in to despair because of his caring younger sister, who supported him every day without any complaints.
”So this is the world's first VRMMORPG with 100% immersion, huh.”
When he first heard of the game from his younger sister, he almost couldn't believe it.
A game that operates inside the mind of the individual, allowing that person to live in another world without the need to move a single limb — who would believe that such an incredible and advanced technology could exist? Not to mention that this high-tech technology was announced to be affordable enough for even the most common families to enjoy.
It was unimaginable at first, but experiencing it firsthand, the young man can only believe it.
The countdown continued to lower as the young man tries to familiarize himself with the feeling of moving his limbs. Although it was difficult at first, even tripping after every few steps, he gradually became familiarized with his body again.
As the system's notice appeared, the black space quickly brightened, becoming a bright white room. And right before the young man, a crack appeared out of thin air, looking like a glass window being cracked.
Crack. Crack. Crack...
The crack grew larger and larger — until it was large enough for an a.d.u.l.t to fit.
Suddenly, the large crack broke apart entirely, revealing the darkness behind it, and a beautiful woman with a graceful and elegant body slowly walked out from within the cracked space, looking like a goddess appearing from another world.
”This is…” The young man could only watch in a daze as the beautiful woman who just came out of the cracked space began looking at him from top to bottom with a seemingly cold expression on her otherwordly face. Dressed in unfamiliar red and golden robes, her figure was supple and graceful. Her facial features are sharp, symmetrical, and peerless. All in all, she looked like an otherworldly goddess. However, despite all of her perfect features, her gaze was anything but friendly.
She stared at him with her golden eyes that overflowed with a feeling of dominance, and her aura radiated with a tyrannical power that the young man cannot comprehend.
”Mortal, place your hand on this.” The beauty spoke to him with a cold voice that was fitting for a ruler, and the young man watched as she pulled out a crystal ball from thin air.
”Okay.” Believing that she was an NPC, the young man followed her instructions and placed his hand on the crystal ball without thinking about it too much, and words began appearing inside the crystal ball.
Name: ???
Cultivation: None
Legacy: None
Bloodline: None
Physique: Heaven Refining Physique
Physical Strength: 34
Mental Strength: 275
Soul Strength: 1,210
Physical Defense: 10
Mental Defense: 1,121
”?!?!” The beauty's expression suddenly changed upon seeing the information in the crystal ball, her clear eyes filled with disbelief.
”Heaven Refining Physique!” Her hands trembled along with the crystal ball in her grasp. ”Not to mention his Soul Strength is at the rank of Spirit Warrior despite being only a mortal with no cultivation — No, that is nothing when compared to his physique!”
The beauty has never been this shocked before, even to the point of her body trembling.
”Is something wrong?” The young man asked her upon seeing her silence and excited expression.
She lifted her head to look at him, thinking to herself: 'I must rope him into joining my faction before the others find him…'
”What is your name?” she asked him with a serious expression.
”You can call me Yuan.”
”Take this token and keep it with you until we meet next time.” The beauty retrieved a jade medallion from thin air and suddenly tossed it to him. ”I don't have much time left here. Make sure you don't lose the token, I will see you again.”
”Huh? Wait, I have some...” Before Yuan can even ask her any questions, the beauty walked back into the cracked hole, disappearing alongside the crack in the air.
”What an odd NPC. What should I do now?” He looked around the empty place.
As the timer reached zero, Yuan's vision suddenly twisted, giving him a slight headache. When he blinked and opened his eyes, he found himself on some kind of stage where many people that wore the same white robe as him were gathered in a spacious area.
”This is… Cultivation Online?” His eyes widen when he saw mountains floating in the sky above the clouds and what appeared to be houses built on these floating mountains.
”Welcome, Mortals! I am Elder Song, in charge of making sure that before you all leave this place and adventure this vast world that you will have a goal of what you want to do here set in your mind.” An old man in blue robes suddenly greeted everybody with a booming voice, causing everybody there to look above them.
”He's flying! He is really flying while standing on that sword!” The people exclaimed the obvious.
Elder Song smiled and said: ”I will answer your questions later, but first, let me explain to you about this world — the world of Cultivation.”
”First and foremost, this is the Heavenly Continent, and we are currently at Mountain #96. Before you were transported here, everyone should have met a representative from our world that gave you an evaluation. That is your character status; it tells you almost everything about yourself.”