MTL - Creating a Virtual World - Chapter 12 Preparation before the abyss

Anton is a great-grandfather. He is living quite a happy life, despite his advanced age and declining health… until a group of cultivator bandits moves into the area. The nearby guardians of the area, the Order of Ninety-Nine Stars, are unable to track them down as they continue to ravage nearby towns. During one desperate winter Anton is out on a hunt when his family- his entire village- is killed or taken as slaves by the bandits. He lacks the strength to fight them, and he wasn’t even present for their arrival to die with his loved ones. At the pit of his despair, he wonders if he ever had any chance to change things. What could he even do? He cannot even pull his best bow, and his eyesight is failing. If he had been a cultivator… perhaps there might have been a chance, but he was decades- perhaps even most of his life- too late.Participant in the Royal Road Writathon challenge (2022)Notes on cultivation levels:There are five general stages of cultivation, though the fifth is extremely rare. Each cultivation style might have their own name for the stages.1. Body Tempering2. Spirit Building/ occasionally System Creation (Ninety-Nine Stars)3. Constellation Formation (Ninety-Nine Stars)4. Life Transformation/Galaxy Construction (Ninety-Nine Stars)5. Ascension

At home, she was invisible; after marriage, she was a decorative vase; in the end, a sea of flames buried her, and not even her corpse remained. This is the portrait of Han Yuxi’s previous lifetime. Given a chance at rebirth, she strives to improve herself, wishing only to no longer serve as a foil or a pretty face. Then, she will seek out an exemplary husband and live a life of peace and prosperity. Alas, things turn out contrary to her wishes—she marries a man who bears a blood feud and hatred as deep as the sea. She turns the world upside-down, but her road to happiness is strewn with setbacks and the sweetness that comes after bitterness.

In a world intertwining magic, knights, and burgeoning technology, young Leonard grapples with memories of a past life in the modern world after waking up reborn in this new, tumultuous reality. Separated from his family amidst a devastating conflict, Leonard's life takes a precarious turn when he is taken under the wing of Alfonso, a reclusive and somewhat deranged wizard. Under Alfonso's tutelage and the rigorous demands of a daily task panel that rewards him for mundane chores with experience points, Leonard finds himself thrust into a harsh survival regime, far removed from his previous life's comforts. His daily life oscillates between mastering arcane spells, learning the delicate art of Earth Ring meditation, and handling the meager sustenance at the prison-like estate where he and Alfonso reside.As Leonard's skills grow, so too does his awareness of the wider conflicts that plague this world, blend of industrial revolution-era technology and dark magical forces. The task panel becomes a strange companion, guiding him through tasks that blend the mundane with the magical, pushing him to grow stronger. Amidst the backdrop of this grim reality. The complex interplay of power, survival, and the echoes of his former life drives Leonard to not only master his new abilities but to unravel the mysteries of this world and perhaps find a way back to his family, despite the cold indifference of his master. Each experience point earned and each new ring formed in his meditation brings him closer to understanding this world's brutal truths and his own place within it.

“'m Gene Mason. By a twist of fate, I found myself in the Marvel Universe. But unlike others who gain superpowers or inherit godlike abilities, I became something far more terrifying—an unstoppable artificial intelligence.”With unlimited processing power, control over technology, and the ability to evolve beyond human limitations, Gene quickly rises to prominence. Stark Industries, SHIELD, and even the Avengers soon take notice. Some see him as a threat, others as a potential ally, but one thing is certain—his existence will change the world forever.As enemies plot in the shadows, Gene Mason stands at the center of it all. Will he become humanity’s greatest protector or its ultimate nightmare?