Ethan Gray leaned back in his worn motion chair, the loud in-game sounds from his VR helmet slowly fading as he pulled it off.
For a moment, the room fell silent.
…
…
"F.u.c.k yeah!! I finally beat Eterna Verse Online!" Ethan roared, punching the air like a lunatic.
Eterna Verse Online—better known as EVO—was infamous for being one of the most broken, rage-inducing VR MMORPGs ever made. Millions of players quit before even reaching the mid-story. It wasn't just hard. It was brutal.
The game was a mess: bugged mechanics, useless companions, and boss monsters that could kill you without lifting a finger. But out of all the frustrating things in EVO, nothing came close to his NPC companion. That woman was worse than the final boss itself.
Ethan had faced the last boss with nothing except for his sword. No gear. No armor. Just him and that damned AI constantly stabbing him in the back. Fifty-three failed attempts later, after dying over and over again, memorizing every attack pattern and counter, he finally brought that monster down on the fifty-fourth try.
He'd gone through hell for an entire week. But to him, it was worth it.
When a player finally cleared the game, EVO gave them three minutes of total freedom—no rules, no consequences. You could do whatever the hell you wanted before the server kicked you out.
And Ethan already knew what he'd do with those precious three minutes.
He spent every second of it beating the crap out of Alicia, his so-called companion. By the time the timer hit zero, her face wasn't even recognizable anymore.
The memory made Ethan exhale deeply. A long sigh escaped his lips as he leaned back, staring at the ceiling with a grin plastered across his face.
"That last three minutes felt like heaven… I'll never forget the way Alicia begged me to stop," he muttered, a twisted smile tugging at his lips.
He reached for his VR helmet, popped out the game chip, and spun it between his fingers. A moment later, he tossed it into a half-open box sitting in the corner of his room—overflowing with other discarded chips.
"I'm not touching that piece of s.h.i.t again," Ethan muttered, rubbing his face with both hands. He slumped deeper into the chair, shutting his eyes for a moment to cool off.
But when he opened them, his gaze fell on the small black game chip lying on the table.
Cultivation Arcane Horizon Online.
That was the name engraved on its surface. Ethan bought it from his friend's store after hearing it was a god-tier VRMMO. Though most people just called it Arcane Cultivation because the full name was a pain to say.
He hadn't paid much attention to it at first—just something he grabbed out of curiosity. But later, when he searched the name online, the results nearly made his jaw drop.
Over seventy million active players. Forum threads stacked with screenshots and highlight clips. Big-name streamers, ranked players, pro gamers—everyone seemed to be talking about the same game.
But out of all those posts, one stood out.
A top-ranked pro player named Kyle had written:
> "This isn't just a game. Once you're inside, it feels too real. You can touch, taste, and feel everything. The NPCs don't act like bots—they respond like actual people. And the craziest part? Not a single bug reported since launch."
Ethan stared at the chip in silence, a mix of excitement and curiosity bubbling in his chest.
"It's been a while since I touched a god-tier game," Ethan muttered, a grin tugging at the corner of his lips. "After playing garbage like EVO, I've been dying for something new."
He slid the black chip into his VR helmet with practiced ease, then put on the helmet over his head. The moment his finger pressed the link button, a soft, feminine voice echoed in his mind.
> Linking... Cultivation Arcane Horizon Online.
Ethan chuckled under the helmet. "You better make this fun for me, Cultivation Arcane Horizon Online."