A thunderclap erupted in his ears.
Lin Feng's eyes shot open. He jumped up from the creaky bed in his cramped rental flat, his heart racing. For a few moments, he sat there, frozen.
Then he looked around the room, recognizing everything painfully well. It was all too familiar.
"This... this is my old place?"
The wallpaper was peeling at the corners. The desk was battered. The old calendar hung crookedly on the wall.
This was his bedroom—his real bedroom from before everything went wrong.
Memories flooded his mind. Images, voices, screams, blood, fire. The memories from his last life hit him like a wave.
In that life, the next-generation VRMMORPG, Apocalypse Online, had launched and changed the world forever.
What started as a game quickly spiraled into a nightmare. When players discovered they could bring everything—skills, abilities, even items—into the real world, Apocalypse Online ignited a global frenzy.
Governments stepped in. Corporations invested. And the masses rushed into the game.
But the game had never truly been a game.
A year after its release, Apocalypse Online merged completely with the real world. The dimensional barrier shattered. Abyssal demons from beyond the stars invaded Earth.
The game turned into a war.
The world became a battlefield.
And Lin Feng had died on that battlefield, surrounded by the bodies of his comrades, crushed under a demon lord's claws.
"I... I died. I'm sure of it. So what is this?" He ran his fingers through his hair, breathing rapidly. "Did I... reincarnate?"
His gaze landed on the old calendar by the bed. His pupils contracted.
April 12, 2088, 3:00 PM.
The exact day Apocalypse Online launched.
He had come back!
Less than two hours before the game would go live.
Destiny had given him a second chance—and this time, he wouldn't die nameless and broken among corpses. This time, he would rise.
Without hesitation, Lin Feng jumped off the bed and rushed toward his dusty old computer. He opened the official Apocalypse Online website, fingers trembling slightly as he clicked through the pre-order portal.
This time, he would change everything.
[Welcome to the Apocalypse Online Pre-Launch System. Please enter your redemption code.]
A notification window popped up.
Back in his previous life, Lin Feng had pre-ordered a mid-tier game pod and had a standard redemption code. Just as he was about to input it, something clicked in his memory.
On an old forum, buried under hundreds of posts, he had seen a thread by a top-tier American player—one of the strongest humans in the later stages of the game. That player had shared something unbelievable:
A one-of-a-kind redemption code.
A code that shouldn't have existed.
It granted him a God-tier talent right from the start, allowing him to outpace all other players and build his legend.
No one had believed it at the time. Everyone thought it was just bragging or a scam. But Lin Feng remembered the post and, more importantly, remembered the code.
With shaking hands, Lin Feng typed it in.
And hit enter.
The screen flickered for a moment.
Then the interface changed.
[Your code has been verified: Exclusive Supreme User. Congratulations! You have received a Supreme-grade Game Pod!]
[System has locked your address. The installation team is on the way. Please wait patiently.]
"Holy..." Lin Feng stared at the screen, barely able to breathe.
In Apocalypse Online, your starting talent depended on your game pod's quality. Most players received Bronze or Silver-grade pods. The wealthy could afford Platinum-grade, the best you could normally buy.
But Lin Feng had just gotten the only known Supreme-grade pod.
Which meant...
He was guaranteed a Supreme-tier starting talent.
In the old world, this would have been unimaginable. This alone had given that American player the power to single-handedly destroy entire demon cities.
Soon, a van pulled up outside. A uniformed team rolled in a sleek, black pod—the supreme-grade game pod.
As they installed it, Lin Feng felt a rush of excitement. He hadn't even entered the game yet, and he was already far ahead of everyone.
With five minutes left until launch, he climbed into the pod.
[Welcome, valued user. Supreme-grade Game Pod recognized.]
[Bonus: 100% increased in-game time. Maximum single session: 72 hours.]
[Health risk: negligible. Body strain: minimal. Begin synchronization...]
Even the best Platinum pods could only allow 48 hours of play before risking brain damage. But this one? Three days and nights straight, no consequences.
Incredible.
The pod sealed shut. Lin Feng felt his body suspended in darkness as radiant particles surrounded him.
[3... 2... 1...]
[Apocalypse Online has officially launched worldwide!]
Across the globe, over 100 million players logged in at once.
And Lin Feng?
He was already inside.
The familiar spherical login chamber formed around him.
[Welcome to Apocalypse Online. Please enter your player name.]
He didn't hesitate.
"Immortal," he said, voice steady.
He wasn't here to play. He was here to conquer.
[Username registered: Immortal]
[Scanning user profile... Supreme-grade Game Pod detected. Matching with Supreme-tier starting talent...]
The light around him shimmered blue, then suddenly flashed gold.
A beam of pure golden light shot into his chest.
He gasped, feeling a surge of power ripple through his veins.
[Congratulations! You have acquired Supreme Talent: Divine Immortal Body (Exclusive Unique)!]
[Divine Immortal Body Lv 1: Increases defense by 10x. Reflects 100x incoming damage to the attacker. Reflect rate can be upgraded infinitely through monster kills.]
[Next Upgrade Requirement: Slay 100 monsters. Cost: 100 gold coins.]
Lin Feng's heart raced as he read the description again.
Ten times defense.
One hundred times reflected damage.
And it could grow infinitely?!
In his previous life, defense talents were ridiculed. Most people considered them worthless, ineffective against bosses and great players.
But this wasn't just any defense talent.
This was the Divine Immortal Body. A unique trait that reflected 100 times the damage taken.
And it scaled.
His hands clenched into fists.
No more death.
No more failure.
This time, he would rewrite the fate of mankind.
And it all started... now.