Stray Cat Strut - Chapter Fourteen - Combustion Beam Flag-tillery OR; Flying Disco Balls of Death

It all started when the protagonist downloaded a game called “The Fool (Beta Version),” marking a pivotal shift in the style of his life. This was no ordinary game; it lacked visuals and music, composed solely of lines of text and a multitude of choices. Yet, each decision within the game had the power to alter the player's destiny, for on the other side of the game lay a real, unknown world.Players were unable to physically enter this otherworld or see its landscapes, experiencing the alternate realm solely through text, vicariously living each step of their character's journey.As the game progressed, not only could rewards from the game materialize in the real world, but creatures from the game began to appear in reality as well.Then came the day the game was released for global public testing.An era quietly unfolded, where the masses embarked on explorations and treasure hunts in an alternate universe through 'textual adventure,' heralding a new chapter of engagement and discovery.

Houjou Yuuji, 30 years old, jobless, hikkomori for 10 years. Using his parents’ death as the impetus, he decides to rid himself of his hikkomori life and leaves the house. What awaited him, however, was a different world that he was not used to, creatures strutting about that he didn’t recognize.

This is the story of a man transported to the another world, as he lives in relative peace with his beloved dog Kotarou – his house, with electricity, water, gas, and the internet somehow still connected.

One day while exploring the forest near his house he finds a girl named Alice, and becomes her guardian. Thus, 4 years after he is transported to this world, Yuuji resolves to venture into his first town.

In the grand weekend year, demons cause chaos, and people cannot live peacefully.Han Zheng, carrying the game setting he designed [Taotie Furnace], travels to this world. By sacrificing to the furnace, one can break through martial arts techniques.From [White Ape Extended Arm Fist] to [Ape Demon Nine Transformations].From [Vajra Fist] to [Great Vajra Ming King Seal] and then to [Great Mighty Dragon Bodhisattva View].From [True Martial Refinement] to [True Martial Holy Body] and then to [True Martial Indestructible Body]There are no gods in the world, hence demons run rampant, and evil spirits are everywhere.As Han Zheng kills his way through the chaotic world of demons, looking back, he has become the only true god in this world!

In a supernatural infested world, we have the awakened- an elite group of people gifted with superpowers. And the transcenders- humans who consume divinity potions even at the risk of losing their sanity.And then, we have me who awakened with little to no prior memory of my past. Now trapped in a cursed, and wretched land infested with nightmarish creatures of all kinds.I; with the help of my latent time-rewind ability, the mysterious blue chaotic flame; alongside fragmented memories and unlikely allies made in the world of nightmares must find a way to escape to the real world.All while trying to keep in check a small yet dangerously fatal side effect.But the deeper I delve into this world’s horrors, the more I realized—I wasn't just running from the monsters around me. I was running from the one inside.Additional tags: Dark fantasy + Dark souls element, supernatural + psychological horror and finally:Mystery, tension and suspense + ground breaking lore and world building.