3|Crossover Successful
Virtual Realisation Program (VRP): It was a system created by the Waxon Company, which is integrated into their latest VRMMORPGs (Virtual Reality Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games), called Azurpomax. It allows players to create a character, including the character's skills and lore (story).
It then integrates the player's character story into the game's main storyline. Players are even allowed to link their character story to other players' characters or character stories. NPCs are then created for the story that the player creates.
Because of this incredible and surreal feature of Azurpomax, it quickly rose to become the most popular VRMMORPG, surpassing all of its competitors. It had an unending and forever-continuous immersive story and side quests that were put together by countless players' explosive imaginations.
The Ten Azure Emperors was a title given to the top ten strongest players in Azurpomax, but even amongst them, the top four were leagues above the others. The Arcane Rulers, a squad consisting of the top four strongest players. There was no player who didn't know their name.
Though they barely made any public or in-game appearances, their names were always displayed on the Waxon Company's advertisement signboards and in-game player meet zones.
Ring, ring.
An alarm on a side drawer rang, shifting towards the edge. It flipped over just before it hit the ground—a firm but thin, muscular arm suspended it mid-air.
"That was close."A pair of heavy feet, with signs of blisters, dropped onto the floor.
"Selene would kill me if it broke."Sai grinned awkwardly. He dragged a hand across his sleep-heavy eyes.
His eyes swept over the slightly opened window by his bedside. It was just wide enough for him to see through.
"Argh, it's midnight."There was a blanket of stars spread across the bed of night. It was so quiet that he could hear the ants crawling on the wall. This was because he lived in a government-reserved area. The residents were all working class, and their children all attended a boarding school.
It was still the middle of summer, so all schools were still in session. Sai's parents were currently overseas; he hadn't seen them for over three years. All they did was send him birthday presents and video-call him twice a year. He was an only child, so he didn't have any siblings to disturb him.
His family wasn't rich, but they were well-off—enough that he attended the best academy in the city and could afford a life pod, which was required to play VRMMORPGs.
"I haven't logged in for two days."He shrugged over to the well-kept life pod by the corner of his cramped, small room.
"I have 99+ unread messages."He picked up his phone on the laptop desk. He locked onto the blaring pop-up notification on his phone screen.
He swiftly unlocked the phone and entered into the Pomax chat app. Basically, it was an app that was created for players to chat, discuss, and share ideas outside the game."An exclusive message?"Sai rubbed his temples.
"It's not time for payout, is it?"At the end of the month, the Arcane Rulers got paid for testing and running new features and bosses that were going to be added to the game.
Because of their high imaginative strength, and the fact that they created the strongest characters, they were the best and safest candidates to test out features that could lead to brain overload, which could result in brain death—with the ultimate end result being death.
As amazing as the VRP seemed, it took a huge toll on brain cells if it wasn't fine-tuned properly. Well, this was something that only the Waxon Company and the Arcane Rulers were aware of. If their competitors got a whiff of this, that would mean the end of Azurpomax. The Arcane Rulers were paid handsomely for testing due to the constant risk they were placed under.
They signed a non-disclosure contract with the Waxon Company, which clearly stated that if anything should happen to them during testing, the company was not to be held accountable.
Sai could have backed out a year ago, but his obsession with money made him continue risking his life on a weekly basis. Ever since the release of Azurpomax five years ago, this was the first time that the Pomax app was stacked with so many messages. Not to mention, he got an exclusive message, which was only reserved for payouts and new feature testing notifications.
The moment he set eyes on the contents of the message, it was as if he had received a bullet to the heart.
Sai grimaced, slamming his fist hard onto the desk. The message was sent two days ago, which meant that Azurpomax was closing in less than an hour, since it was currently 11:30 p.m.
Ever since kindergarten, Sai had always wanted to be a hero. Unlike his peers who grew out of it, the desire still burned deeply inside him. He learned every combat skill possible—kendo, boxing, martial arts, you name it. He perfected them to the best of his capabilities. But there was something missing.
"More power."
The human body had limitations that couldn't be broken, no matter how hard he trained.
If he were faced with a squad of soldiers, he could beat them if he trained harder—but what about a nuclear missile? He would simply evaporate if he tried to stop one. No human could stop a nuke; it simply wasn't possible. That was a fact already set in stone.
The human body was fragile, but Azurpomax gave him a taste of the power that he sought after—spells that could split mountains in half and raise the dead. But now, all that was coming to an abrupt end. Sai was infuriated and angry; he couldn't contain his fury. He clutched his fist so tightly that it began to bleed.
He stormed out of his apartment in a fit of rage. He had completely lost his sense of reason; he wandered aimlessly for minutes.
He was crossing an empty road, devoid of any passing vehicles, when he received the countdown message for the closure of Azurpomax.
<10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4>
A truck came towards him at high speed. The driver tried to signal him to get out of the way, but he was deeply focused on the countdown message, completely unaware of his surroundings. The truck had lost control, so the driver couldn't stop it even though he wanted to.
<3, 2>
Slam…
The truck ran him over. By the time he saw its headlights, it was already too late. Everything went dark.
It was as if he was drifting in an endless void.
"Zen… Zen…"A blurry figure tapped him harshly on the shoulders.
"Where am I?"A fancy classroom—like one that could only be seen in anime—came into view.
"Didn't I just die…?"He muttered to himself.
[Transmigration Successful!]
[Congrats! Takato Sai , your cross over to the body of Kuramo Zen was completed flawlessly]
[You have activated the SSS LVL 999 OP System]
[You have gained access to 999+ spells]
[You have unlocked the SSS Passive: Neverending replenishment]