Chapter 2 : Start the Game

What had become of the original world?

Had they truly crossed over?

It wasn’t until Li Wen joined the strategy group that he realized this question had long been a topic of heated discussion among the more experienced players.

One player, known for their accuracy in the field of divination, had shared their own reading: the fate of the original world was grim.

Just how grim?

That remained a mystery.

Between a familiar game world—where he could roughly predict the course of events—and a completely unknown original world, the choice was clear for Li Wen.

After all, his rebirth had been for this very purpose.

The significance of “Uld’s Thorn” lay precisely in that.

Still, deep in thought, Li Wen logged into the game forum and anonymously made a post.

It was a simple summary of the relationship between the game and the supposed “crossing.” He didn’t urge others to quit World Tree: Origins.

He only advised them to engage with the game more seriously—to avoid dying helplessly after the crossing due to low levels or lack of preparation.

After posting, Li Wen deleted the account.

Whether the post would do any good—or cause unforeseen consequences—was no longer within his control.

“Thirty minutes until class starts. Please be mindful of the time! Thirty minutes until cla—”

The AI assistant M2 popped up just then, reminding Li Wen that he was still, technically, a student.

Li Wen immediately ordered M2 into standby mode.

After some thought, he pulled out his phone and scrolled through his contacts on social media.

It took a while, but he finally found the account of his long-forgotten homeroom teacher and sent over a formal leave request.

World Tree: Origins had been live for two days now.

But if his previous life’s timeline still held true, most players were still fumbling through the early stages—dying repeatedly as they learned the ropes.

For someone like him, with full memories of a previous playthrough, a two-day delay meant nothing.

With the knowledge stored in the strategy group, it wouldn’t take long for him to become one of the top players.

Which meant… there was still time.

Li Wen remained calm as he planned.

Back in the chaos following the initial crossing, many players had fantasized about restarting from day one—about how they would open the game, how they’d capitalize on foreknowledge to level up quickly, and secure rare gear early.

But the strategy group took things a step further.

Once the existence of Uld’s Thorn became known, a few members began working on long-term plans—preparing strategies to counter the apocalyptic “Twilight of the Gods” as their ultimate goal.

And in all their research, only one route was found to be theoretically viable.

Li Wen still remembered the guide’s exact wording.

“First, you need to create a female cha—”

Because World Tree: Origins bound each game account to a user’s DNA, any character created in-game was based on the player’s real-world appearance.

So unlike in other games, casually making a female avatar wasn’t an option here.

That said, many of the world’s problems could still be solved with money.

Despite WG Corporation’s strict ban on account trading, this only seemed to fuel the greed of scalpers rather than discourage them.

After all, rarity drives value.

Li Wen searched the largest secondhand trading platform and eventually found a reputable seller in the same city.

After a round of negotiation, Li Wen bought an unused, pre-bound game account—complete with GS Corporation’s limited-edition gaming equipment—for 13,999 yuan.

The standard edition of World Tree: Origins was priced at 598 yuan, while the deluxe edition cost 798.

The GS gaming hardware—a custom console and a VR headset—was worth under 4,000.

Even the limited edition wouldn’t be more than twice the MSRP.

In short, he’d been thoroughly ripped off.

But Li Wen didn’t mind.

First, the seller had promised delivery within an hour—speed was critical.

Second, though he wasn’t wealthy—in fact, he was downright broke—he was going to cross over a year from now. What use was money then?

Better to spend it while he still could.

Delays, after all, were more costly than anything else.

And third, the account’s original owner had preordered the game but was now deceased.

That meant Li Wen didn’t have to worry about the account being reclaimed.

While GS Corporation did bind accounts to devices, making cross-device retrieval impossible, there was always a slim risk that the original owner’s DNA might be used to recover the account at GS headquarters—if they were still alive.

All in all, it was a fair price to pay to avoid future complications.

While waiting for the delivery, a now-hungry Li Wen grabbed something to eat.

Truth be told, it had been a while since he’d enjoyed the taste of high-tech instant food.

Just as he finished eating, the doorbell rang.

Right on schedule.

Li Wen opened the package to find a small silver box with the GS logo etched on top.

The contents were sparse: a rather basic-looking console, a head-mounted VR device, and a few cables of unknown function.

“The console and the VR headset are really just distractions.”

Li Wen shrugged, then connected the console to his computer and plugged in the VR headset.

With that, the setup was complete.

The time was 08:24 AM.

Taking a deep breath, Li Wen lay on his bed, put on the VR headset, and pressed the power button. Then he waited in silence.

It didn’t take long before the world around him turned pitch black.

It felt like he was being pulled from a swamp—or something equally murky—and plunged into a cold, unfamiliar sea.

Not painful, but chilling.

[Welcome to our product. Scanning for identity verification. Please wait.]

[Scan complete. Citizen ID: TH43718. Name: Liang. Gender: Female.]

[Launching game…]

[Program initiated. Game will load in ten seconds. Enjoy your experience.]

At some point, a beam of light pierced through the darkness.

When Li Wen opened his eyes, he was greeted by a radiance too magnificent for words.

As the brilliance receded, a towering tree appeared before him—so vast that it seemed to pierce the heavens.

“The World Tree… Yggdrasil…”

For a fleeting moment, Li Wen hesitated.

That firm conviction he’d carried suddenly wavered.

But only for a moment—he swiftly pushed the doubt aside.

He lifted his head.

Above him stretched a sky filled with brilliant constellations, a cosmic spectacle far too beautiful to look away from.

Li Wen, long accustomed to such sights, turned his gaze outward—toward the base of the World Tree.

At the horizon where earth and sky met, he could faintly make out colossal forms orbiting the tree.

But no matter how he strained his eyes, he couldn’t see them clearly.

He lowered his gaze again.

A mirror materialized in front of him.

When Li Wen saw his own reflection—no, her reflection—even someone as battle-worn as he couldn’t help but blink in mild shock.