He had just entered the game when he met him. Although they lost contact in the middle, he managed to find him again before the end of the closed beta. It seemed like fate was giving them another chance.

The next day, as soon as Ethan Grant logged in, he received an unread message.

He reached out to open it and was greeted by a transparent screen.

Player Ethan requests to add you as a friend.

Accept, Reject

Note: Bro, I’ve been looking for you.

Ethan Grant raised an eyebrow.

Seriously... after being alone for so long, even this guy seemed kind and benevolent now.

He instinctively wanted to accept, but then remembered that the closed beta was ending today, and he had to return the device to his nephew.

He wasn’t sure if the beta data would be saved, so there was no need to add a friend. Besides, their last parting wasn’t exactly pleasant—who knew what this guy was thinking? Better not to cause trouble for his nephew.

So he clicked Reject.

Note: duck not necessary.

That morning, Chris Foster had specially logged in. Seeing the reply, he opened a private chat.

Ethan: Where are you? Let’s talk in person.

Ethan Grant pretended not to see it.

Two minutes later, a second message arrived.

Ethan: Do you want to go pro?

Ethan Grant paused, understanding immediately.

This guy had noticed his skills last time and wanted to recruit him.

He replied: If you’re trying to get me to join a team, there’s no need to talk.

Ethan: You’ve already signed with a club?

Ethan Grant replied no. Seeing the other continue to ask, he got a bit annoyed. He didn’t even know when he’d be able to compete himself, so he brushed it off: Let’s just let each other go. If fate allows, see you at launch.

Ethan: Fine, there will be ten servers opening that day. Which one will you join?

Chris Foster hit send, but an exclamation mark popped up.

—The other party had blocked him.

Chris Foster: “……”

For a moment, Captain Foster wanted nothing more than to pin this kid to the ground and give him a good lesson.

Unwilling to let it end like this, he searched everywhere, but luck wasn’t on his side. He never found the other before the Sealer logged off.

At midnight, the test server shut down.

In the days that followed, the game company would gather player feedback and make fixes and adjustments.

From early summer to late summer, Ethan Grant enjoyed good food and drink for three months, finally regaining his weight. Then he went to find the staff, wanting to talk.

But as soon as he opened the door, he received a gift.

A member of the research team stood outside, smiling as they handed him a box with the familiar game logo on it.

Ethan Grant was stunned and took it. “Can I play as much as I want?”

“……” Everyone replied in unison, “No!”

But the time limit could be relaxed a bit—still, no staying up late.

After bargaining with them for a while, Ethan Grant happily hugged the box and went inside.

A week flew by. That day, after breakfast, Ethan Grant put on his glasses and waited for the countdown.

September 5th, 9:00 AM

Dream Odyssey Holographic Edition, officially launched.

Chapter 07

The full name of Dream Odyssey is Dream Odyssey Continent, and it tells the story of what happens on this fantasy continent.

Just as Ethan Grant marveled after waking up, it had been running for over thirty years and still hadn’t faded away.

In fact, there were a few years when it was on the verge of dying, but after a change in the planning team, it was revived and has been thriving ever since.

In over thirty years, it had opened more than a hundred servers.

Countless players had shed blood and tears, experienced love and hate, and forged deep bonds within it.

With the release of the holographic mode, scenes that could previously only be viewed through a screen instantly became landscapes you could explore in person. No Dream Odyssey player could resist such temptation.

And as the world’s first holographic online game, it naturally had a certain “I want to go in and see” allure. Even die-hard fans of other games couldn’t remain completely indifferent.

Decades of veteran players, newcomers switching from other games, curious bystanders… one could imagine how many people there would be, not to mention the launch was scheduled for the weekend.

The game company had clearly done its research and predictions, so they opened ten servers in the country at once. Even so, there was still a lag on launch day.

At nine o’clock sharp, all ten servers were instantly full.

With technological advances, the era of “queueing to enter servers” was long gone.

The idea of thousands or tens of thousands of people waiting in line was unimaginable to kids these days, but now they finally got to experience it. Still, it wasn’t like before—at most, they waited a minute before getting in.

This time, the planning team drew inspiration for server names from planets.

For example, Mercury is also called Chenxing, Mars is known as Yinghuo, and based on that, they created names like “Chenxing Reflects Fate” and “Yinghuo Illuminates Dreams.” They brought out all eight planets, plus the sun and moon—ten servers in total.

The servers existed in the form of “doors,” lined up in planetary order.

Ethan Grant stood in the open space, quickly scanning the area before fixing his gaze on “Chenxing Reflects Fate.”

Because of a confidentiality agreement, since he was still playing Sealer, he had to stay away from his old ID. The character “Chen” happened to make up for that subtle discomfort.

So he walked over and pushed open the door.

Behind the door was a room where players needed to set up their characters.

This included class, ID, height, appearance, clothing, voice, and so on.