Hero or Villain, Both - Chapter 21: Captured (2)

Ethan is a man nearing forty who has squandered his life behind a screen. Since his teenage years, he has poured everything into online games, chasing digital achievements while real life quietly passed him by. Now, with reality finally weighing on him, he realizes how empty his existence has become.Despite decades of obsession, he has only one thing to show for it: the #1 account in the world’s most popular MMORPG, Lost World Online—a fully immersive virtual game operated through neural-link technology. It is an account powerful enough to guarantee fame, sponsorships, and a second chance at life.But overnight… it vanishes.No warnings… No errors… His account simply ceases to exist.Ethan spends the entire night frantically searching for answers, contacting the developers through official forums, only to be told that nothing can be done. Without the account, even streaming or professional contracts are impossible. Exhausted and hollow, he finally gives up and falls asleep, deciding to forget his regret, half hoping everything would be a dream when he wakes up.When Ethan opens his eyes, he finds himself standing before the character creation screen of Lost World Online.It feels like a dream, yet his mind is clear, his body well responsive, not even like a game. Paying little attention, he goes ahead and creates a character and initiates the game.Then, his vision is swallowed by darkness.A violent rush of wind slams into him, and when his senses return, he is standing inside a bustling town from the game. Before he can question the missing opening cutscene—something that should always play after character creation—his attention is seized by the scene around him.The town was celebrating an Annual Festival. This was a festival that only ever occurred once, a festival that marked the first day Lost World Online was launched.Realizing the impossible, Ethan hurriedly calls up his system interface—only to find that there is no options menu, no settings, no log-out button…“This cannot be real.”

By the year 3029 CE, Earth’s technology has developed rapidly, borders no longer exist, and Earth has been unified, marking the beginning of the era of the Federation.

At that time, a huge sword flew from the heavens, piercing the sun and causing a huge sensation on Earth.

Perhaps because the scabbard of the sword was already in tatters, countless shards have broken off from it following the collision with the sun and spread across the universe. Many of these shards have landed on various places across Earth.

With the arrival of the bronze sword and its shards, a new unlimited energy source has suddenly appeared on Earth. This energy source has since been named Spirit Qi.

Spirit Qi is like air, thick in some places and thin in others. As the Federation and other factions gather more shards, they discover more information on cultivation, pill refinement, Spirit Stone refinement, and other techniques. The words on the shards have an ancient feel to them, making it a trend for people to use ancient language.

The appearance of Spirit Qi rapidly makes the original energy sources obsolete and has completely changed people’s lives. Not only has the Spirit Internet been formed, Spirit Qi has also changed the course of Human Civilization, causing the world to enter a civilization of cultivation. This would later come to be known as the Spirit Inception Era.

- Description from Novelupdates

【Pets】【Masters】【Summons】【Contracts】【Evolution】【Mutation】

This is a world of monsters. Demonic beasts, demons, angels, giants, elves, undead, fairies, witches, beastfolk, insectoids… countless races, endless divisions, infinite mysteries. Human masters can make contracts with familiars. Hence, taming, grooming, ascension, evolution, battles… is their daily life!

In the Great Qian Dynasty, a youth named the Bai Wushang unexpectedly became an autonomous awakener, and his life-bound pet was the… Moonrabbit?

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【Currently publicly known evolution forms】

■Mud Giant➼Sand Giant➼Stone Giant➼Black Iron Giant…

■Lesser Fire Sparrow➼Fire Sparrow➼Searing Godbird➼Inferno Bird…

■Quad-Winged Radiant Angel➼(Fallen Evolution)Six-Winged Dark Angel…

■Demon Ape➼Three-Eyed Demon Ape➼Dark-Golden Demon Ape➼……➼Eight-Armed Vile Dragon Demon Ape…

■Greater Ghost Fire➕Night Mare➼ (Fusion Evolution) Spectral Knight… ”

The esteemed Shen Yan has been reborn, but with confused memories. She finds herself as a widely disliked female celebrity in a popular novel, where everyone blindly follows the protagonist's questionable beliefs. Even the original Shen Yan ends up in prison for the protagonist, sacrificing her life for the so-called love story.Shen Yan: ......I'm certain this is a case of foolish love-brain without a doubt.It is well known in the capital's social circle that Shen Yan lost her prestigious family status over a man.Shen Yan: ......I've never seen such a foolish person.---To secure her own livelihood, Shen Yan snatches the protagonist's popularity on a live variety show, topping the trending search list.Protagonist: ???Haters relentlessly attack Shen Yan's education.Shen Yan turns around and slaps them with her academician certificate from a research institute.Haters: ......The haters persist, targeting Shen Yan's family background.Once Shen Yan's family history is exposed, she dominates the hot search list!The protagonist couple flaunts their love, but Shen Yan, with her expressionless husband in tow, takes a stroll and effortlessly captures the top spot again.Protagonist couple: ?!!---The public is waiting for Shen Yan to be abandoned by the powerful figures of the capital.Shen Yan contemplates her husband, who begs for hugs every night—the same husband rumored to be emotionless.The rumors say Mr. Qi has neglected his young wife for 30 days.In a discreet corner, Mr. Qi complains that the busy Shen Yan has neglected him for 30 days, and only cuddles can heal him.Later on, everyone is stunned by Mr. Qi's extravagant displays of marital love, leaving them burnt on the outside yet tender inside.---PS: Not a novel transmigration, not a system story.[1V1, light-hearted, a doting romance, power couple]Soul terminal illness female lead VS expressionless misunderstood male lead