Lee Hyun, known in the vast virtual world as Weed, sat in his cramped living room, eyes glued to the computer screen. His black hair was simply combed, and his sharp, lean face gave him a severe look. He wore a cheap t-shirt and pants that had clearly been mended multiple times. Nothing in his appearance suggested that this frail young man had once been the greatest sculptor and warrior in Royal Road.
As he finished eating rice with kimchi, washed down with a glass of fruit juice, he opened a news article that had been circulating in forums for weeks:
"Royal Road servers remain offline. Morpheus Interactive announces new Total Reality game in collaboration with bestselling Chinese author."
"Hmph, that explains why the servers are dead," Weed muttered. "They're busy with this new game."
He clicked the link. The upcoming game was called Gu Master Ascension, based on the controversial and acclaimed novel Reverend Insanity. According to the article, it promised insane fidelity to the novel's world, with a deep cultivation system that functioned exactly like in the story, realistic gu insects, and a vast, merciless world where only the strong survived.
Weed smiled, calculating.
"If this game is even half as good as they're claiming, it could be worth gold. LITERALLY."
At that moment, money symbols appeared in Weed's eyes, followed by a greedy grin: ($U$).
In the days that followed, Weed immersed himself in research. He read the wiki, devoured the now-cancelled manhwa, and browsed dedicated forums. But with the launch approaching fast, he decided not to read the entire novel. Gathering just enough intel without wasting time — that was the Weed way.
He also resumed sword training and physical conditioning. Even if it wasn't strictly necessary, his Royal Road experience had taught him that full-immersion reality often demanded that the body keep up with the mind.
When launch day arrived, Weed lay down inside his full-dive capsule — a secondhand unit he'd bought at a discount and patched up himself. He expected to see the usual login screen. But instead...
Only darkness.
A deep, silent void, where even his thoughts felt muted. Then — a sharp pain in his head. And somewhere distant — the muffled cry of a woman in agony.
He tried to scream, but there was no sound.
He tried to move, but his body wouldn't respond.
There was only... consciousness.
And slowly, even that faded into blackness.
When he opened his eyes again, the light was dim. His body—tiny. Short arms, wrinkled skin, slimy fluids dripping off him. The smell of blood, sweat, and other bodily substances was overwhelming. Weed — now a newborn baby — shivered faintly.
"What... what the hell is this?" he thought, unable to speak.
Around him were other newborns. Some still moved. Others didn't — dead? Weed wasn't sure he even wanted to know.
The floor was rough straw, thrown carelessly over packed dirt. The ceiling was made of metal, etched with strange talismans and symbols that looked more like runes. He was surrounded by bars. A cell? A shelter? A nursery of nightmares?
No one came to pick him up. No one cleaned him. His "parents" never appeared — only cold, solitude, and silence.
His awareness flickered again, and before he could reflect on his fate — or scream his silent frustration — everything went black once more.
End of Chapter 1
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Author's Notes:
Yes, I know it's weird that a manhwa/novel could be canceled yet still get a game. I didn't come up with a perfect excuse, so let's just say it remains banned in its home country (China), but was allowed to be adapted into a game in another country — in this case, South Korea, where Moonlight Sculptor is set.