"Ding dong! Ding..."
I barely fell asleep until the early hours, exhausted beyond measure. Grabbing my phone, I checked to find it was just a mass text.
"Hey everyone! Emperial Hotel tonight! Don't be late!"
I tucked away my phone. "Eva, wake me up again in three hours!"
"Yes, master!"
A woman in an apron peeked in, glanced around, then went back to fussing with the vacuum cleaner.
Three hours later, Eva woke me up right on time, and I finally felt somewhat better.
"Eva, bring me my gaming headset," I called out.
Glancing at the cleavage that peeked out when Eva bent over earlier, I licked my lips and put on the gaming headset.
"Welcome to 'Legend'! Wishing you a pleasant gaming experience!"
Countless shooting stars streaked across the sky, the earth cracked, spewing crimson lava, smoke, and dust, a scene of apocalyptic destruction!
I stood silently on the peak, watching the world crumble.
"Summon Nine-Tailed Fox Demon!"
Exquisitely charming, seductive to all, with nine snow-white tails swaying gracefully, it was the top-tier pet, Nine-Tailed Fox Demon, in "Legend"!
"stop messing around!" I pulled the fox demon off me and grabbed her shoulders, gazing at her with mixed emotions.
"Master, 'Legend' is about to shut down, and we'll be separated forever..."
I paused for a moment. Hearing the word "shutdown" from an NPC always felt strange.
"You..."
The fox demon continued, "The data of 'Legend' has been wiped out, including me. 'Heaven' is taking over now, and it has my backup data."
I was astonished. Heaven was the only network terminal in the entire world, with almost unlimited power within the network.
The fox demon gazed at me affectionately, her feelings for me equally complex.
"Wait! If Heaven can restore you, does that mean I can bring you back to life elsewhere?"
"In theory, yes."
"Why not?"
"The rules forbid it."
"Rules! What a load of crap! Do the rules allow players to fall in love with NPCs?" I suddenly embraced the fox demon and kissed her fiercely.
"Boom!!!" A meteor shower descended, and the world completely shattered.
"Ding! 'Legend' game over! The new game 'Deification' will start promptly at midnight tonight. Have a pleasant gaming experience!"
Taking off the gaming headset, I dazedly went out and hailed a cab, heading to Bao Lai Grand Restaurant.
Unaware of Eva's strange look or the global network pause when I kissed the fox demon.
At the entrance of Bao Lai Grand Restaurant, there was a buzz. "Murong is here!"
The former goddess Snow White! Everyone gathered around, but I stayed put.
"Who's that? Doesn't he know the rules?" a chubby guy pointed at me.
"It's Woods!"
"Which Woods?" the chubby guy frowned.
"His nickname, you must know it, Dirty Man!"
"Oh, him!" The chubby guy suddenly realized.
"I remember he used to be really good at playing online games, right?"
The chubby guy hesitated, even Snow White paused and glanced at me. Standing in their shoes, I could know more about the inner workings of the game.
Intentionally or not, the group walked to my table. Mont patted my shoulder. "That's not like you! How can you just sit there alone? It's disrespectful !"
I instantly lost any goodwill towards Mont. "Too crowded!"
"You..." Mont's expression changed, but he quickly reverted back, chuckling, "My classmate is as humorous as ever! I've always admired your personality, my classmate! Well done! Unique!"
I completely ignored him. Mont's face twitched slightly, but he smiled and turned away.
"All right, now that everyone's here, let's sit down! One request for tonight: have fun!" Mont gestured, and the crowd cheered.
Snow White declined Mont's offer and sat next to me. A guy accompanying her sat next to Snow White. With six seats at the round table, five were occupied, leaving one empty across from me.
"Mont, go greet the others," the chubby guy said, sitting across from me.