The final river card was about to be revealed, and every pair of eyes at the table locked onto it.
The dealer took a steady breath, then slowly flipped over the card that would decide everything—the Jack of Spades.
Now, the community cards on the table were: King of Spades, 9 of Hearts, 3 of Diamonds, 9 of Spades, and Jack of Spades.
A collective gasp rippled through the crowd.
Judging by the way these two had been betting, their hole cards had to be strong.
Could it just be trip nines?
That seed a little weak.
If one of them had two more spades in hand, that would an a flush—a monster hand that could crush everything on this board.
Or maybe... a full house?
The tension in the room thickened, the air turning hot and heavy. Every spectator held their breath, eyes glued to the two players' hole cards. The entire table felt like a powder keg, ready to explode at any second.
Then, Griffin let out a sharp laugh, his eyes gleaming with triumph. "Hah! Ethan, you're dead this ti." His smirk widened as if he could already see Ethan backed into a corner. "I've got two nines in my hand!"
The room erupted.
"Jesus, four of a kind!"
Murmurs spread like wildfire—so filled with pity, others with schadenfreude. Every gaze turned to Ethan, already convinced he was about to lose everything.
But Ethan?
He remained calm.
With deliberate ease, he laid his cards on the table, his voice steady but carrying the weight of a hamr blow:
"Sorry to disappoint you... but I have a straight flush."
The room froze.
The cards in front of him—Queen of Spades and 10 of Spades—glead under the dim lights.
For a split second, it was as if the entire world had been sucked into a vacuum.
So people opened their mouths but couldn't make a sound. Others took a sharp swig of their drinks, nearly choking. A few just stared, wide-eyed, their minds repeating the sa thought over and over:
"A straight flush? No way!"
The dealer blinked once, then calmly confird, "Straight flush. Ethan wins."
Silence.
Then, like a dam breaking, the room exploded into chaos.
So spectators were still in shock, mouths hanging open. Others downed their whiskey in disbelief. One guy even yanked off his hat and waved it wildly, as if he wanted to jump onto the table and cheer.
anwhile, Griffin's face had gone deathly pale—like he'd just swallowed a fly.
His hands gripped the table so tightly that the veins on his temples pulsed. His jaw clenched, but no words ca out—just a low, bitter curse:
"...Fuck."
But there was no arguing with the cards.
The mountain of chips sat in front of Ethan, along with sothing far more valuable—the one and only Stone of Glory.
Ethan casually picked up the walnut box containing the legendary artifact, barely sparing it a glance before letting out a small, amused chuckle.
Then, he turned to Griffin, his calm deanor sending a chill through the air.
"Appreciate the generous bet," he said smoothly. "Looks like luck's on my side tonight."
The crowd was still reeling.
Soone muttered under their breath, "Holy shit... that thing's worth a hundred million dollars. And it's the only one of its kind in the world..."
Griffin's face twisted, shifting between red and white as if he were about to explode. His chest felt like it was being crushed under a boulder. He gripped his glass so tightly it was a miracle it didn't shatter.
Humiliated, he pushed back his chair, ready to storm out—
But Ethan's voice stopped him cold.
"Hold on, Griffin. Aren't you forgetting sothing?"
Griffin stiffened. His face burned with sha. Of course, he rembered.
The extra bet.
Gritting his teeth, he reached for his shirt buttons, ready to strip—
But Ethan just smirked, casually spinning a custom black-and-gold poker chip between his fingers.
"Relax," he said, his tone almost lazy. "I'm not interested in watching a grown man bark like a dog."
Griffin didn't turn around. He didn't say another word.
He had lost. Completely.
But as he walked away, his voice was hoarse with venom.
"Don't get too comfortable," he spat. "This isn't over."
Ethan just shrugged, unbothered. He carefully tucked the Stone of Glory away, then stood up, moving toward the exit at an unhurried pace—like he'd just won an ordinary ga.
Two n in dark suits and sunglasses discreetly followed him.
Because for Ethan, this was only the beginning...
That night, Ethan Parker shook the entire underground poker scene in Las Vegas.
He didn't just walk away with nearly a hundred million dollars in chips.
More importantly—he claid the one and only Stone of Glory, a unique, real-world artifact tied to the ga Glory Lords X.
But unlike other gamblers, Ethan didn't celebrate.
No champagne. No wild parties. No neon-lit clubs.
He went straight ho.
Because Ethan Parker wasn't just any ordinary man.
He was a reborn man.
One Lifeti Ago...
On this very night, in this very ga, Ethan had made a different choice.
He had folded.
Back then, he thought it was just another high-stakes poker match. He believed the only thing he lost was his #1 ranked account in Glory Lords X.
But he was wrong.
The mont Stone of Glory was activated, the world changed forever.
Angels soared through the skies. Crusaders marched in full armor.
The entire planet beca the world of Heroes of Might and Magic.
Every player's real life fused seamlessly with their in-ga character.
Your status, power, and even your survival depended entirely on your hero's strength in the ga.
The strong ruled. The weak beca slaves.
And those without an account?
They were nothing—forced into servitude under the top-ranked players.
At the very top of this new world stood a single na:
Griffin.
The man who had won the Stone of Glory in Ethan's past life.
With it, Griffin built an unstoppable empire, reigning as the supre ruler of the new world.
And Ethan?
Once the #1 ranked player, he had lost everything when he lost his account.
Under Griffin's brutal rule, he was enslaved, tortured, and ultimately killed.
But This Ti...
Everything was different.
Ethan had been reborn.
He had returned to this exact mont, before the world changed—ard with the mories of his past life and a burning hatred.
This ti, he didn't fold.
This ti, he won.
This was his chance.
To rewrite fate.
To reshape the world.
Late Night – Ethan's Apartnt
The only light in the room ca from his computer tower, its LEDs pulsing softly in the dark.
Ethan sat at his desk, fingers lightly tracing the Stone of Glory.
The crimson gemstone glowed faintly, as if it were alive, pulsing in sync with his heartbeat.
He took a deep breath.
Then, with steady hands, he inserted the Stone of Glory into the special slot on his VR headset.
A soft click echoed in the silence.
For a mont, it felt like the entire world was holding its breath.
Then—
SYSTEM NOTIFICATION:
"Stone of Glory activated. Establishing connection..."
anwhile – Outside Ethan's Apartnt
Two n in black suits lurked in the shadows of a nearby alley, whispering into their earpieces.
"Boss, the Stone of Glory has been won by a guy nad Ethan Parker."
"We're outside his apartnt. Watching him."
A deep, cold voice responded from the other end.
"Ethan Parker? The top-ranked player on Glory Lords X"
There was a brief silence.
Then, a quiet chuckle.
"Perfect. His presence will be... very useful for the 'experint.'"
"Monitor his every move."
"The mont he puts on that VR headset with the Stone of Glory, we need real-ti data."
"If anything unusual happens—report to imdiately."
"Understood."
Inside the Apartnt
Ethan placed the VR headset over his head.
He exhaled slowly.
As the system's countdown echoed in his ears, he closed his eyes.
3... 2... 1...
When he opened them again—
The world he knew was gone.
And in its place—
A new world awaited.
...
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