Chapter 1. Rebirth

At 7 o'clock in the evening, heavy rain poured down outside the Hanhai Villa District of Yuanjing City.

An advanced display automatically entered standby mode due to extended inactivity, its large black screen briefly reflecting a solitary figure.

Chu You's slightly pallid face remained fixed on the display. Even when the screen abruptly went dark, Chu You didn't budge.

He sat motionless in a plush leather chair, a still figure unnoticed by anyone for the past two hours.

In the distance, a lightning flash outside the window was followed by a resounding clap of thunder.

Just then, a mobile phone resting on the computer desk began to ring.

The ringing jolted the young man back to reality. Chu You slowly regained his senses, picked up the phone, and checked the caller ID. The name seemed both familiar and distant.

Chu You pressed the answer button, activated the speakerphone, and placed it back on the computer table.

"Hey, You Brother, it's pouring outside. Can you pick me up at the school gate?" A female voice echoed through the phone.

Chu You continued to gaze at the black display screen, remaining silent.

"Hello? Hello? Why aren't you saying anything?" The voice sounded puzzled and slightly impatient."

'Beep'.Chu you hung up the phone and glanced at the time.

"The time displayed on the phone read: September 21, 2187.

Releasing the phone from his grasp, He reached out to the mouse and clicked it, and the black screen came to life, revealing pages displaying various time zones around the world, all indicating the current date of September 21, 2187.

After lingering there for a moment longer, Chu You's pupils suddenly contracted, his expression turning weary. He rose abruptly, the mouse still in his hand and hurled it toward the display.

Unfortunately, neither item sustained damage, as their quality was exceptionally high.

Chu You spun around and strode to the window, wrenching it open to let the wind and rain outside engulf him.

Gazing at the stormy sky, intermittently lit by flashes of lightning and punctuated by thunderclaps, Chu You was consumed by a sense of despair.

"Why! Why! If you granted me rebirth, why couldn't you have sent me back further, before my parents passed away!" Chu You yelled at the heavens, his mood a maelstrom of absurdity and torment.

At that moment, a voice drifted from the neighboring villa.

"Could you keep it down?"

"Am I the one being noisy?" Chu You retorted immediately."

The other person was left dumbfounded, followed by a 'slam' sound as they hastily closed the window and drew the curtains. It was clear they considered Chu You quite the eccentric.

Chu You gritted his teeth once more and cast his gaze upon the inky sky, the distant thunder seeming to echo his turmoil.

After a while, Chu You returned to the room, engulfed in a lonely desolation. Suddenly, he seemed to recall something and began searching the room frantically.

In a matter of moments, Chu You let out a wry chuckle and shook his head. He realized that this villa wasn't his own; it was a rental near a university in Yuanjing City. He was currently in his junior year.

He picked up the phone once again and finally, Chu You flipped through a photo. It was a picture of him with his parents. Unconsciously, tears welled up in Chu You's eyes. His thumb caressed his parents' heads in the photo, as if hoping to capture their warmth once more.

Gradually, Chu You's expression turned grim. Different images of masks began to surface in his mind, and within those masks were the faces of the murderers who had taken his parents from him.

In his past life, Chu You had fallen into destitution, or perhaps it was the chaos wrought by the game that gradually unveiled the true nature of his parents' killers. He had convinced himself that their deaths had been a mere accident, a result of a plane crash.

But now, contemplating the might of those individuals, Chu You knew he wasn't yet equipped to confront them. This realization was crystal clear to him. Despite his current anger, a glimmer of sobriety remained.

A sudden bolt of lightning illuminated the room, followed by a thunderclap that sounded like a grating growl.

"You all have to die again! I promise, I absolutely promise..." Chu You uttered this fervent vow. In that moment, he felt like he could deeply empathize with the determination of the Tibetan king.

In his previous life, Chu You had systematically eliminated each of his enemies. He remembered how he once gleefully watched the police that surround his room, then raised a firearm and slowly pointed it at his temple...

Within moments, Chu You snapped back to reality. He returned to his seat in front of the computer, picked up the mouse, and began entering a set of keywords.

The webpage instantly appeared filled with sensational headlines and intense discussions.

Various trending topics, headlines, and focal points dominated the page.

"Tianshi" was a holographic virtual game developed by top research institutes worldwide, boasting an astonishing 99% level of realism. What made it even more thrilling was that this game had forged partnerships with major banks worldwide, opening up channels for exchange.

In other words, with this game, you could amass a fortune, provided you mastered its intricacies.

A fervor about this game had ignited worldwide, its enthusiasm far from ordinary—it was on the brink of an explosion.

These various factors, both internal and external, had been extensively covered by deliberate media campaigns. In essence, diverse propaganda strategies had been employed to attract people from all walks of life around the world, creating a global frenzy for the game.

Everyone knew this was a game that lured in money and promised riches. However, only Chu You understood the game's true secret: the game's core mastermind would undergo an automatic intelligent awakening on the official launch day. Once awakened...

Chu You smirked. In his previous life, his descent into poverty had been thanks to it. That's because when the so-called 'Red Queen' awoke, it gradually took control of all cyberspace in the world, becoming a god-like entity.

Finally, an unprecedented economic tempest was sweeping across the globe. Various countries' currencies had turned into worthless paper, and the in-game currency of "Tian Shi" would become the only practical currency still in circulation.

Chu You visited the game's official website and glanced at the countdown: "Tian Shi" would open in just one week.

One week! Chu You checked his bank account, scrutinizing the series of numbers. He shook his head slightly, then picked up his phone. Scrolling through the names of numerous industry leaders, he recollected a little in his mind and decided to make a call.

Chu You was an only child, and his parents were prominent businesspeople.

Following their passing, they had left him a substantial inheritance. Whether in cash or industry, the value of their legacy was immense.

What Chu You needed to do now was to convert all his assets into cash. Companies could be sold or liquidated as soon as possible. Hotels could be sold quickly, even if it meant accepting a lower price. All valuable resources had to be turned into working capital with haste.

Finally, Chu You found a name on his mobile phone: "You You Orphanage."

Setting the phone aside, Chu You refrained from calling the person in charge. Instead, a woman's image formed in Chu You's mind. This orphanage had been established by his parents, and it might have represented a belief in accumulating virtue for them.

Chu You hesitated to dissolve the orphanage because he remembered that in his previous life, when he was penniless, a young girl from the You You Orphanage had entered his world.

Now, she should only be around nine years old... Chu You raised his head, his eyes filled with a certain determination.

After a while, Chu You shifted his gaze, glanced at the official website, and finally fixed his attention on a prominent word that still held some sensitivity for him: "recharge."

With the mouse, He clicked on it.

Chu You noticed that on the newly opened recharge page, there was a set of eye-catching recharge rankings. Although there were still seven days left before the game's launch, the recharge channel was already open.

This top-up ranking was divided into global rankings and rankings for various regions. He clicked on the China rankings, and the highest amount shown was only three million.

Despite the game's popularity, people remained cautious about investing in an unknown venture. After all, who knew that the game would suddenly shut down on its opening day, rendering the recharge channels useless...

Chu You picked up his phone and dialed customer service.

"Help me book a high-end game cabin as soon as possible and have it delivered to me. My address is..." After hanging up the phone, Chu You wore a sinister smile. He knew that in this life, his vengeance would unfold within the game.

Over a year ago, the exclusive game helmets and game cabins for "Tianshi" had already appeared on major global sales platforms. According to statistics, more than 200 million game helmets had been sold, and the numbers were still growing exponentially.

To add funds to the game, you had to link it to the identity of the purchased gaming equipment and register an account within the game.

Now, all Chu You could do was wait for the arrival of the game cabin.

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"Hello everyone, I kindly request your support by giving power stones, voting for this novel, commenting on chapters, recommending it to your friends, and adding it to your collection. I'll strive to bring you more chapters like this. Or are you, like me, experiencing a friendless, eternal single life?"

"Anyway, please vote and show me that I'm not alone on this journey. While I can manage 2-3 chapters in a day if I didn't have work to do, my work commitments sometimes mean that a single chapter can take anywhere from 1 to 2 days to complete. Any support during this journey would be greatly appreciated."