The New Gate - Chapter 1Book 9: (7)

Ethan's head throbbed violently as he opened his eyes, his vision hazy and unfocused. A dull ringing filled his ears, drowning out his thoughts.“What’s happening…?” he thought, his mind sluggish, struggling to catch up with reality. One moment, he was asleep—or at least, he thought he was—and the next, searing pain forced him awake.His vision swam, shapes blurring together in a disorienting mess. But then, muffled noises filtered through the haze—frantic, panicked sounds. Someone was trying to scream, their voice smothered, choked by something.A cold shiver ran down his spine.As his sight gradually sharpened, Ethan's breath hitched.He was on all fours, looming over someone. A girl.Her body twisted and writhed beneath him, ropes biting into her wrists and ankles. Her mouth was gagged, muffling her cries. Her wide brown eyes, brimming with fear and fury, glared up at him.Ethan's body locked in place, his blood running cold.“What the…?” His mind reeled, thoughts slamming into each other in chaotic disarray. “What kind of bizarre dream is this?”Panic clawed at his chest. His breath came in ragged, uneven gasps as he scrambled backward, only to realize his limbs felt sluggish, uncooperative, like they didn’t belong to him.“Is this… is this some kind of twisted fantasy I never knew I had?” A sickening thought slithered through his mind, making his stomach churn.The girl's frantic squirming slowed for a moment, her gaze flickering with confusion as she took in his expression—his trembling hands, his wide, horrified eyes. But the fear returned just as quickly. She struggled harder, her body arching, her muffled screams rising in pitch.Ethan wanted to speak, to say something, anything, but before he could force out a word, a glowing blue window materialized before his eyes.His breath caught.A translucent, hovering screen?“What…?”Lines of glowing text scrolled across its surface.---[System Activated…][Host Confirmed.][Simulating Previous Data…]Ethan awakens in a mysterious world, shackled by a curse that clouds his judgment and drives him toward choices he never wished to make. Burdened by guilt and responsibility, he must navigate the fallout of his actions while unraveling the truth behind the curse—and his place in this enigmatic new reality.

One day every human on the world suddenly receives a mail claiming to enact the World Salvation Project. Half in doubt Kurosaki Shion, a diligent university student and loner, follows the mail’s instructions, becoming one of a million Demon Kings governing his very own Domain in the new world.

*** This is a post-apocalyptic story containing many fantasy elements. It is a somewhat dark tale following Shion as he grows while aiming for the unification of the all too sudden new world. It has many game-elements bolstered by strategical thinking while at the same time providing funny moments and romantic encounters.

Jiang Xichu was Chen Man’s secretary for many years. There was an inevitable dispute in the workplace. On this day, she just had a big fight with Chen Man. Before she passed away, she was stabbed to death by a psychopath who retaliated against society. Not long after her death, Jiang Xichu learned from the civil servants of the underworld that Chen Man didn’t feel guilty and had embezzled her well-deserved salary. Even her funeral was held casually, her colleagues weren’t able to attend and give their condolences. She goes back into the world full of anger and was ready to frighten the heartless woman, Chen Man. When she arrived at Chen Man’s bedroom, she saw Chen Man held an urn full of her ashes, while slowly looking at her pictures when she was alive while looking haggard.

A year later, Chen Man also died. The cause of death: suicide caused by severe depression. Jiang Xichu left Chen Man’s home with a complicated mood. She wanted to go back to the underworld and ask Chen Man about it. However, after stepping out of the home, she was reborn again.

Once again in the world, general manager Chen made her breathless.

Jiang Xichu: …

You little actress girl, you play your two faces very smoothly!

- Description from Novelupdates

After crossing over into the game world he had played before, Su Nan finds himself as a nobleman who has lost his title. At this time, the continent is still a barren wasteland of elements; powerful wizards abandoned this world a thousand years ago to explore the multiverse, becoming little more than elusive legends.Only Su Nan knows that, a thousand years later, the elements will revive, the wizards will return, and the continent is about to enter a prosperous era of magic.So, his task is quite simple: work hard to cultivate and become a wizard, surviving until the age of wizards arrives!“Resource-poor?”“There’s nothing for it; I’ll just have to synthesize everything myself.”Su Nan opens the synthesis cube. This is the story of a traveler with a player panel and a synthesis cube, leveraging a slight advantage of foresight to make a name for himself in a foreign world.