Cultivation: But Not a Game - Chapter 22 - 10: The Giant Ao and the Demon Core

In this world, there are those that are fortunate and those who are not.

Ethan Bellrose is neither; he is cursed. At nineteen, he has lived his entire life sheltered in his home as his fragile body blisters under sunlight, breaks under the slightest impact, and falls to any sickness.

However, the arrival of a world-changing digital service catches the hopeless young man’s eye: “Reincarnation Online”--a virtual reality experience that gives a new fantastical life to those who are unfulfilled with their current path.

For Ethan Bellrose, the choice is simple. Without hesitation, he orders the virtual reality headgear, choosing to abandon his current life and live forevermore in the world of fantasy, magic, and endless adventure–”Arcadius.”

Though what he finds is a world not full of leisure and trivial triumph, but a world just as alive and full of darkness, glory, and grandeur as Earth–if not greater.

Starting from square one as an infant, given a new name and family, this is the eventful life, full of dreadful lows and exhilarating highs, of “Emilio Dragonheart.”

[...Booting System…]

[Welcome to Reincarnation Online.]

[You will henceforth by the recipient of the Dragonheart System.]

[Please, enjoy your stay.]

I, the protagonist, was just an ordinary NEET, but suddenly I was reincarnated as a tiny white snake in a fantasy world where legendary creatures and gods exist. Not only that, but I awakened in a cave as the offspring of a terrifying Medusa Serpent.Armed with only my human knowledge and my indomitable mental strength, I'm forced to use cunning tactics and rapidly evolving skills to survive against far stronger monsters and humans... So begins the survival story of a former shut-in with incredible willpower, living as one of the lowest-ranked beasts in a world of magic!ᆖMusic suddenly started playing in my head.I'd been waiting for this moment for so long.'Snakes! Assemble'....

Lacking funds for his brother-in-law’s dowry, Cole Stone is abandoned by his cheating girlfriend.

He makes a phone call…

“Ma’am, I give up. I don’t want to work hard anymore.”

“Sure.”

$10,000,000 is credited into his account.

Betrayed, mocked, and humiliated for being poor…

Cole Stone is forced into an engagement with a billionaire CEO whose motives are unknown.

“Ma’am, I would like to issue you a refund—”

“Do you think that my dowry can be refunded so easily?”

Cole Stone is stunned speechless.

Unfair! Absolutely unfair!

How will Cole Stone fare with this mysterious and sassy fiancee of his who never takes NO for an answer?

How will he fare in the world of elites?

Ash Burn was just an ordinary gamer—an orphan scraping by in the real world—until he accomplished the impossible: beating the hardest VR game ever created, Apocalypse Online. But instead of the promised riches, he’s thrown into another world—one eerily familiar.It doesn’t take long for Ash to realize where he is: the chaotic, doomed universe of Heaven’s Favorite: Wrath of Gods, a novel he once read. Worse, he’s not the protagonist or even a supporting character.He’s just an extra.Armed with fragmented knowledge of the future, an unyielding will to survive, and the secrets of the Runes—mysterious power coveted by gods and demons alike—Ash must outmaneuver a reckless hero, power-hungry angels, and an inevitable war that threatens to consume everything.But as he treads the fine line between altering fate and unleashing chaos, he begins to realize something chilling: the endgame may not be as simple as he thought.In a world where survival hinges on power and cunning, can an ordinary extra change the fate of an entire world, or will he become just another casualty of destiny?Was he ever just an extra to begin with?Note: The image on the cover is not mine.