The Last Step - Chapter 67: Grotesque War Part 2: Hidden Pasts

In the year 2022, gamers rejoice as Sword Art Online-a VRMMORPG (Virtual Reality Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game) like no other-opens its virtual doors, allowing players to take full advantage of the ultimate in gaming technology: NerveGear, a system that allows users to completely immerse themselves in the game world by manipulating their brain waves to create a wholly realistic gaming experience.

But when the game goes live, the elation of the players quickly turns to horror as they discover that, for all its amazing features, SAO is missing one of the most basic functions of any MMORPG-a log-out button.

Now trapped in the virtual world of Aincrad, their bodies held captive by NerveGear in the real world, users are issued a chilling ultimatum: conquer all one hundred floors of Aincrad to regain your freedom. But in the warped world of SAO, “game over” means certain death-both virtual and real…

I don’t know when, there is an extra mysterious area in the world that connects all the different planes, illusion. Here you can get countless wealth, beautiful beauties with different styles, and powerful powers that can destroy the world.

Countless people who seek their dreams and ambitions come here. Some laugh, some cry, some live, some die. This is the paradise of the strong. Here is the hell of the weak. And our story starts from the moment when a young man who has the most mysterious EX bloodlines in the whole fantasy world is born again seven years ago.

- Description from PhoenixPhantom

Zhulan, in a transmigration novel about a supporting female's counterattack through farming, managed a triple leap: getting married, bearing children, and becoming a mother-in-law. The point to focus on: She became the wicked mother-in-law from the counterattack stories.From 26 to 36, not to mention, with six kids in tow, two daughters-in-law, a few grandkids, and a still-living husband—emphasis on the fact that he's not her original spouse, but the one who trapped her into transmigration.Only after becoming the original body did Zhulan realize she was miserably tricked by her two daughters-in-law. The elder daughter-in-law had a loud voice, complete with a 'brain-enhancing' feature—it turned every little issue into a big deal once it reached her mouth.The younger daughter-in-law was timid and weak, bursting into tears at the drop of a hat, perfectly crafting the image of Zhulan as a wicked mother-in-law.Zhulan, “.......This life is really unbearable.”Someone, “You still have me.”Zhulan, “Ha, you're the one who screwed me over the most!”Someone, “......”

Trapped in a hospital bed his entire life, Li Mingzhe's only escape was through the novels he read. But fate had other plans when a mysterious book appeared on his bedside table. Before he could even read its title, the book dragged him into its pages—straight into the body of Ambrose Rothschild, the sole heir to the illustrious Rothschild family.At first glance, his new life seems perfect: loving parents, devoted servants, and no siblings fighting for inheritance. But is this truly the peaceful second chance he yearned for? Far from it! Not only is Ambrose's body plagued with the same weakness that haunted Li Mingzhe's original life, but he's also flying blind—having never read the book he's trapped in, he lacks the story knowledge other transmigrators typically rely on!His only ray of hope? A mysterious system that promises to enhance his abilities. But what cruel twist of fate is this? The system declares his frail body can only handle improvements to his intelligence stat! And as if that weren't enough, Ambrose has been enrolled in Crono, the most prestigious magic academy where heroes and prodigies gather like moths to a flame.Now, surrounded by talented peers and trapped in the web of noble politics, can Li Mingzhe leverage his one advantage—his brilliant mind—to survive? With countless eyes watching his every move as the Rothschild heir, will he crumble under the crushing weight of expectations? Or will he prove that in a world of overwhelming magical might, intelligence can be the most formidable weapon of all?