Crossing over, the simulation starts from JoJo's Bizarre Adventure.

Zhou Ning felt melancholy.

As a firm atheist, he had never imagined that he would become a professional time traveler.

In just over two years, he had unexpectedly experienced two transmigrations!

Over two years ago, during a typical hangover, he transmigrated to Blue Star, a world similar to Earth but with an underdeveloped entertainment industry and a flourishing gaming industry.

In this world, there were no comics, only illustrated books and novellas in the style of the 1970s and 1980s. Novels and movies were also lackluster.

Originally, this seemed like a perfect starting point for his writing career, but the high-performance and affordable Light Brain, along with a virtual reality game called "Apocalypse," made him immediately forget about becoming a writer and indulge in the virtual world.

Initially, he just wanted to experience the new technology of the parallel world, but soon he became addicted. Despite starting the game late, his exceptional gaming talent allowed him to catch up with the progress in "Apocalypse" quickly, and he established a powerful guild that became a significant force among players.

However, the good times didn't last long. Just a moment ago, he had gathered a group of players to tackle the level 70 instance, the hero-level "Jasonet Mansion," in the game "Apocalypse." While waiting for his team members, he opened a newly downloaded mobile game on the Light Brain to pass the time. But in the next second, he was engulfed in light and then found himself here.

In this dilapidated room with dim lighting and shadowy figures, he could only see within half a meter. Yet, he could still discern that it was a rundown room.

Cold sweat trickled down Zhou Ning's back.

He realized his hands were bound behind his back, seemingly tied with ropes, making it hard for him to break free. He heard sobbing from people nearby, and it seemed there were quite a few of them.

Watching this horror movie-like scene, Zhou Ning couldn't help but move closer to the candle holder for a sense of safety. But he was startled by a distorted chubby face beside him.

Looking closely, it turned out to be a plump child crying with tears and snot all over his face, muttering:

"It's over, it's really over..."

"I don't want to die, I want to go home!"

The continuous and pitiful muttering made Zhou Ning roll his eyes, even though he was usually composed.

Two minutes later, the door creaked open from a distance, letting in a ray of light. Three men wearing headgear and black robes entered the room. Zhou Ning sensed the chubby child beside him shudder and quickly stopped crying, only emitting intermittent sobs.

From the light shining into the room, Zhou Ning recognized the black flame emblem on the left chest of the three men's black robes. He couldn't help but be slightly surprised, "Isn't this the mark of the Curse Sect from 'Apocalypse'?"

The leading man in the black robe pointed to a teenager not far away and said coldly, "It's you, come here."

"No, no, I don't want to die... save me..." The teenager's face showed a desperate expression, but before he could struggle, the other two men dragged him away, leaving behind a lingering cry.

With a bang, the door was forcefully closed, cutting off the light and cries for help from the outside.

Zhou Ning shivered, and indeed, those three black-robed men were most likely members of the Curse Sect from the game "Apocalypse."

This group of people heralded the coming of the apocalypse, spreading plagues and sacrificing living beings in various rituals to summon evil gods—though most of their attempts had failed.

So, he had crossed into the game and unfortunately became their sacrifice.

Damn, no wonder everything seemed so familiar. Wasn't this the "Jasonet Mansion" he was about to challenge just a few minutes ago? The trailer for "Apocalypse" in his previous life was based on this instance.

The normal difficulty of the "Jasonet Mansion" instance background was straightforward: a few members of the Curse Sect brought a group of living people to the haunted "Jasonet Mansion" and attempted to use the spells from the Book of Elyxwyr for a sacrifice to please the evil god. The players' goal was to prevent the sacrifice. As an entry-level instance, the difficulty of "Jasonet Mansion" was not high, and most Curse Sect members were ordinary people. Only the high priest Nyam had extraordinary power.

However, the problem now was that this was no longer a game, and there might not be anyone coming to save him. What should he do?

"Too absurd!" Zhou Ning could only sigh.

As mentioned before, "Apocalypse" was a globally popular holographic virtual reality game. By the time Zhou Ning transmigrated, "Apocalypse" had been the top holographic online game for three years in a row.

The game integrated countless fantasy elements from games and novels, and its development was calculated and evolved by a new generation of super Light Brains beyond human intervention. Moreover, the scenes, characters, and plots were incredibly realistic, making it feel like another virtual world.

According to the game's setting, this was a world with a quirky style similar to 19th-century Europe, somewhat resembling the real world. This world also developed firearms and steam engines, as well as an extremely brilliant supernatural civilization.

From the instance background, he could infer that it was still the early stages of the game. Extraordinary creatures were not common yet, and the Curse Sect had not officially emerged. Most of the sect's members were still minor characters, holding a hand-copied book called the "Book of Elyxwyr" and capturing people for their sacrifices. However, in the two years, their success rate had remained zero.

But now, this group of people, who were considered comedic characters, had become a deadly threat to Zhou Ning.

Moreover, based on the instance's plot, if he didn't stop them, the sacrifice would indeed succeed.

At this moment, a line of subtitles suddenly appeared before Zhou Ning's eyes:

[Pawn has died, current progress 26/36.]

"This is... a prompt from an instance?" Zhou Ning was surprised, realizing that the sacrificial ceremony seemed to be almost complete, and he didn't have much time left.

"Panel information!" To his slight comfort, when he focused his mind and tried to summon a menu like in the game, the

familiar game panel indeed appeared before him.

Name: Zhou Ning/Wayne Stuwell

Race: Human

Template: n [Countdown to open beta: 48 days, 3 hours, 42 minutes]

Age: 25

Level: 2

Occupation: Student/Teaching Assistant [3/10].

Natural Force Affinity: 0

Arcane Affinity: 0

Talent: Hidden

Personal Attributes: Strength 7, Agility 8, Stamina 8, Willpower 8, Spirit 9, Charisma 98

Health: 80

Willpower: 7/8

Mana: 0

Skills: Basic Alchemy

Personal Expertise: Nimble Hands (Beginner) - Your hands are extremely dexterous and can perform delicate operations.

Extensive Knowledge: Your knowledge far surpasses that of most people, granting an additional +1 to Spirit.

Extreme Calmness: You can maintain a calm mindset at all times, boosting learning progress by 10%.

Racial Trait: None

Influence: None

Legend Points: 0

[A talentless and obscure ordinary person with no aptitude for cultivation, except for good looks.]

Although having a panel was a good thing, the panel data was... a cause for concern.

According to the setting in "Apocalypse," Natural Force Affinity was a necessary prerequisite to become a warrior, and having zero affinity meant he had no chance of becoming a mage. As for his attributes, 10 was considered average for commoners, and his Strength, Agility, and Stamina were not high. The shocking part was his Spirit being rated 6. The statement in brackets about having no aptitude for cultivation was not an exaggeration.

As for the highest Charisma score, that should be a beautiful mistake.

If he guessed correctly, all his initial allocation points must have skewed to this attribute.

In "Apocalypse," a Charisma value of 100 was the highest, and a score above 70 was considered high attractiveness. A score of 90 belonged to super handsome characters. For someone like him with an initial score of 98, he was undoubtedly a freak and practically unique.

But what use did looking handsome have? In this world, being able to fight was the most critical factor. Otherwise, one might be captured and used as a "red-blooded sacrifice" without even having the chance to cry.

Furthermore, judging from the n identity, he probably wouldn't have multiple resurrection opportunities like players. If he died carelessly, it might lead to genuine death.

This was absurd. The "Apocalypse" game had been running for three years, and he had never heard of anyone disappearing because of playing games. How could he be so unlucky?

"What's this?"

Suddenly, Zhou Ning noticed an option labeled "Transmigration Simulator" at the lower right of the attribute panel. Wasn't this the small game he was about to play before transmigrating?

Could it be that he was sent into the "Sword Art Online" due to this small game?

Trying to touch the option with his mind, a series of prompts appeared before his eyes:

"Welcome to the Transmigration Simulator. Game resources are currently downloading... 95%... 96%... 99%... Loading complete."

"The Transmigration Simulator is starting... also known as 'Ten Thousand Me,' wishing you a pleasant gaming experience."

"You currently have 2 transmigration coins. You can get 1 coin as a welfare every day at 12:00 AM, or you can obtain more through recharging."

"Dying in the simulator won't lead to actual death; perhaps it is just a segment of your parallel timeline."

"After completing certain special achievements or influencing the world, you will receive corresponding rewards."

"The simulator will protect your mental health, but still, be mindful of moderate gaming for mental benefits; addiction to games can harm you."

"It looks quite unreliable," Zhou Ning earnestly read through the introduction, then turned his gaze to the game interface.

As an experienced player, his evaluation was: Isn't this interface too simple?