Cultivating in Online Games

Devastated by a life of misfortune—his skills ruined, family estranged, friends lost, father murdered, and beloved Ye Zhou gone—Dugu Zhuo wears a spirit jade containing Ye Zhou’s remnant soul. He searches the world for Ye Zhou’s remaining soul, hoping to be reunited in the afterlife. As his life nears its end, Dugu Zhuo enters an illusion and witnesses Ye Zhou pursued by monsters. After defending him, Dugu Zhuo receives game notifications for loot and experience, but Ye Zhou, furious, accuses him of stealing his kills. In the holographic online game “Nine Heavens,” Ye Zhou encounters a peculiar player named Dugu Zhuo. This player lacks basic game knowledge, never logs off, and stares at Ye Zhou intently. Ye Zhou, finding him handsome, takes him on as an apprentice and teaches him to play. Just as Ye Zhou contemplates meeting his apprentice, a server-wide announcement reveals that player Ye Zhou has triggered the final game plot, “Sword Tomb,” unlocking the final boss: Dugu Zhuo. Ye Zhou is stunned to discover his apprentice shares the same name as the game's ultimate antagonist.