The Nolan Empire, the largest city in the south—Griffin City.
A Mage Tower, 25-blades high with an exterior wall smeared with red alchemy materials, stood in the eastern part of the city.
Besides the slightly eye-catching crimson outer wall, it was inconspicuous compared to the other three Mage Towers in the city, each towering at 50 blades high.
Inside the Mage Tower, on the third-floor study.
The space, large enough to fit five elephants, was packed with oak bookshelves. On the shelves were various precious books: "Nolan Empire General History," "Alchemy Basic Study," "Magic Array Basics," "Divine Light," and more.
There was even a whole shelf filled with magic books, exclusive to nobles as seen by commoners.
At this moment, beside the rightmost oak bookshelf, under the thick "Magic Secrets" in the center, a young man in a black mage robe lay unconscious on the gray velvet carpet.
A mage.
A young mage.
The young mage's skin had an unnaturally pale complexion, as if he had never seen the sun.
Because of the unconsciousness, his slightly open mouth revealed two sharp tusks, which, combined with his handsome yet sinister face, exuded an inexplicable charm.
If an outsider were to intrude, they would surely gasp in astonishment.
Vampire!
This group of evil creatures, which feed on human blood, had always been regarded as incarnations of demons within the Nolan Empire.
If discovered by the priests and clergy of each temple, they would mobilize armies to hunt down these terrifying evil creatures.
But surprisingly, a vampire, perpetually hunted by mages, appeared inside the Mage Tower usually representing orthodoxy.
It was known that a vampire's body was filled with precious magic materials. Blood could be used to inscribe magic arrays, ashes to craft alchemy traps, and even vampire teeth had immense utility.
So even an Advanced Mage at Level 10 would be thrilled to hunt a vampire.
And now, this vampire, unconscious in the Mage Tower, was wearing a mage robe issued by the Griffin City Mage Guild, making for a strange scene.
Buzz~
Lide suddenly woke up from the floor, feeling as if his mind was stuffed with countless things, causing immense pain.
"How long was I asleep? Today is just too bad."
Today was a weekend. Lide, having just quit his grueling 996 job, originally planned to visit Wanda Mall in the city center to experience "Glory," the first virtual online game launched by five major gaming companies.
But unexpectedly, the gaming pod malfunctioned.
It leaked electricity.
And it happened to be Lide's turn to experience it while waiting in line.
Instead of experiencing the first-ever virtual game, he felt the painful sensation of being electrocuted, taught a lesson by the Thunderbolt Master Yang, much to his dismay.
Although it didn't cure his internet addiction, it made him fear experiencing this game, which boasted 99% realism, ever again.
After receiving the staff's compensation of 2,000 yuan, he didn't pursue the matter further.
His head was still dizzy when he left the mall. Upon returning home, he planned to lie down for a bit to recover his energy.
However, while resting, his mind filled with countless strange images and memories, causing his head to ache intensely.
Unable to bear the pain, he eventually fell unconscious.
Lide rubbed his eyes as the drowsiness slowly faded, though his vision remained somewhat blurry.
Sighing in relief as the headache subsided.
"Glad nothing serious happened. I'll go for a check-up at the hospital later, just in case there's a lingering effect."
But as he was about to get up, his expression changed drastically.
The pain returned, stronger than before, each second felt as if countless ants bit at him.
He stopped holding his head with both hands.
Alongside the pain, unfamiliar memories appeared in Lide's mind.
Scenes flashed before his eyes like a movie.
Elves, giants...
Mages, warriors...
Nolan Empire baron, member of the Griffin City Mage Guild...
Vampires...
Countless memories flooded into Lide's mind.
Passively absorbing, Lide could only grit his teeth and endure.
After half an hour, just when Lide thought he couldn't hold on, it suddenly stopped.
The unfamiliar memories were finally fully assimilated.
His face pale, drained of any color, Lide did not call out. Instead, his expression turned peculiar.
"Did I traverse into the game 'Glory'?
And become the Blood Clan Ancestor hidden among humans?!"
He had actually occupied this body due to the malfunctioning gaming pod, the original soul having vanished entirely.
And this body had quite a background, as revealed by the unfamiliar memories he received.
On the surface, he was a Level 10 Advanced Mage and a member of the Griffin City Mage Association, in the southern city of the Nolan Empire.
He was bestowed a noble title by the Nolan Empire, holding the rank of Baron.
While his apparent identity was prestigious, his hidden identity was even more astonishing.
The Blood Clan Ancestor.
His real name was Lide Kachar, owning a castle in the Far Mountain Range outside Griffin City, and over 200 vampire subordinates.
Combining the memories in his mind with his understanding of "Glory," he was certain he had traversed into the yet-to-be-released game.
As a gaming enthusiast, "Glory," a virtual game, had caught Lide's attention from the moment it was first promoted three months ago, and he had researched the official information countless times.
Had the game already launched, he would have become a member of "Glory" long ago.
"Glory" was a virtual online game jointly launched by five major gaming companies in Huaxia.
It boasted 99% realism, and the game's time progression differed from the real world, with 3 days in-game equating to 1 day in reality.
Hyped as a groundbreaking title, its promotion caused a huge sensation. Although not yet released, players who experienced it were immensely impressed.
It was considered the biggest technological advancement in thirty years.
The game's story was set in a magical world.
There were deities, giants, dragon clans, elves, demons, dwarves, humans, and dozens of other races within.
Vampires were among these races, though their presence was scarcely mentioned in the official records since the game hadn't launched.
He could determine he had traversed into the game quickly because he knew from the memories that he was in Griffin City.
Being a major city in the southern Nolan Empire with a population exceeding a million, Griffin City was one of the few human cities mentioned in the official "Glory" documentation.
The key observation was that his memories perfectly matched all the official online information.
"What is going on? Am I an NPC now, or is this world real and I have just traversed?"
Lide was bewildered.
His long-held worldview was shattered beyond recognition.
"Can I return?"
His heart tightened, Earth was his home, and no matter how wonderful this world was, it couldn't compare.
As he had this thought, he suddenly opened his eyes to find everything around him had changed.
The previously dimly lit, luxurious study was now a room lit with lights, with a nearby laptop playing the latest variety show.
Lide's face lit up with indescribable joy.
"I really returned?!! This is not a one-way journey; I can come back!!"
So how do I return to the game?
Having this thought, everything went dark, and the study in the Mage Tower appeared again.
Lide's excitement was unchecked, and he burst into laughter.
Dual crossing, invincible.
Over the next half-hour, Lide experimented with entering and exiting the worlds repeatedly.
Finally, he concluded:
1. He could return to the real world from "Glory" at any time and also re-enter the game world at will.
2. When in the game world, his body in the real world would be in a state of sleep. Although only his spirit traversed, his body would wake up immediately if stimulated.
3. The number of transitions depended on his spiritual power. With his current spiritual power, he could enter and exit five times within half an hour. Exceeding this limit would cause a splitting headache.
Having understood the situation, Lide began to study other aspects.
What delighted him the most was the appearance of the game panel in his mind.
Lide Kachar
Race: Bloodline (Ancestor)
Level: Mage lv10 (103/5000), Warrior lv5 (max level reached)
Magic Power: 652/652
Talent Specialization: Blood Clan Ancestor (Unique), Bloodline Shackles (Limited), Magic Affinity (Extreme)
Racial Skills: Transform into Bat, Blood Recovery, Super Strong Physique (Passive)
Spells: First Circle Magic: Small Fireball Skill, Thunderbolt Skill, Puppetry Technique, Mage's Hand, Magic Shield, Waterfall Skill, Meditation Skill
Second Circle Magic: Reconnaissance Skill, Big Fireball Skill, Thunderstorm Skill, Big Puppet Skill, Surge of Magic, Swift Movement, Enhancement Skill, Charming Skill
Three Circle Magic: Instant Teleportation, Void Walk, Bursting Fireball
A series of skills so dazzling, and the main profession of Mage had reached Level 10, with the Warrior sub-profession at Level 5.
He didn't expect to have an attribute panel accessible only to players after becoming an NPC.
The final line on the panel made Lide's excitement freeze.
There are 1,095 days until the arrival of the Otherworld chosen ones...
Chosen ones?
Game launch?
Players?!