Chapter 1: Awakening from slumber

12:01 AM – AVALIN Hollywood Nightclub, Hollywood, California, America

Inside this iconic nightclub—filled with the vintage charm of ornate mirrors and a modern dance floor.

In a remote corner,

A handsome but haggard young man lay carelessly on a plush velvet bench.

The table in front of him was piled high with various drinks and snacks. Suddenly, with a jerk, he showed some movement and slowly tried to open his eyes.

But his mind was a total mess; he tried moving his body, but to no avail. It felt heavy as if it was filled with lead. 

The bass reverberated through the floor, rattling his bones as neon lights pulsed overhead.

Muffled voices of people talking and dancing to loud music pounded in his skull like a war drum, too loud, too chaotic.

The air was thick with the scent of alcohol, sweat, and expensive perfume.

Streaks of red and blue from the strobe lights danced across the walls, casting ever-shifting shadows.

With great effort, he finally managed to open his eyes in narrow slits; but his vision was blurred, and all he could register was a cascade of colorful lights and the vintage decoration surrounding him.

He felt groggy and confused.

Just as he was struggling, he vaguely felt someone coming toward him. His eyes seemed to glue shut but with difficulty, he opened them again to see a womanly silhouette stumble next to him.

And that was the last thing he saw before his mind completely blacked out.

Ding!

 [System initialization]

 [Scanning the current universe…]

 [1%... 2%... 3%…]

----

Next Day

The morning sun shone brightly, its rays struggling to illuminate the luxurious room through thick curtains.

Amid the chirping of birds and the muffled noise of traffic outside, the young man slowly opened his eyes.

The first thing he saw was the intricate ceiling above him, adorned with a beautiful chandelier.

But before he could register anything else, he felt a splitting headache, it felt like someone had forcefully split open his head—and his mind descended into chaos.

His face twisted in pain; his temples throbbed, and he winced on the luxurious bed, rolling around in a desperate attempt to suppress the unbearable pain, but to no avail. 

And just like that, an hour passed, and the pain finally began to subside.

"Huff... Huff..."

He exhaled in sharp bursts, chest rising and falling rapidly.

He felt as if he had just returned from a trip to hell. His clothes and the bed drenched in sweat. 

Upon closer inspection, something black and slimy was visible in the sweat, but the young man couldn't care less about that right now.

Slowly, opening his eyes again. He tried recalling what was happening, but his mind remained blank.

For a moment, all he could do was stare blankly at the ceiling. Then his senses gradually returned, and various memories continuously emerged in his mind; he finally remembered who he was.

His name was Rex Lee, a 20-year-old young man from Los Angeles, California, America.

But that wasn't the real issue.

The most important thing was—

He was not himself anymore.

That's right.

He had crossed over.

He had crossed over from year 20xx to 20xx.

And according to the memories he was no longer in his original world.

On the surface, this world was the same as his previous one.

But digging deeper, you'd find great differences.

Especially after World War Two—no, more accurately, just before the end of World War Two.

History took a sharp turn when the pilot flying the plane that carried the nuclear weapon suddenly changed his mind. Instead of dropping the bomb on Hiroshima, he plunged the plane away from the Japanese coast, directly into the ocean.

The bomb still exploded, but his act of bravery and the extent of destruction jolted the world awake.

The world finally knew the horrors of nuclear weapons.

Countries immediately banded together and established the United Nations. Unlike ours, this United Nations had real power and influence.

It peacefully mediated the end of World War Two.

This event created a butterfly effect that had a long-lasting impact on this world.

The countries that gained independence in our world still did so here, though for varying reasons—as if a mysterious wheel of fate was controlling everything, preventing history from deviating too much.

In this world, while the U.S. remained a major power, it wasn't the absolute dominant force. Various countries formed alliances to better protect themselves and prevent any single superpower from emerging.

There were a total of seven major alliances that controlled the world:

American Bloc

Members: U.S., Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, and other Latin American nations.

Russia & Post-Soviet Bloc

Members: Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and other Central Asian nations.

European Union (EU)

Members: Germany, France, UK, Italy, Spain, and other European nations.

East Asian Alliance

Members: China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan (semi-independent), Vietnam, and other East Asian nations.

South Asian & Southeast Asian Alliance

Members: Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and other regional nations.

Middle Eastern Bloc

Members: Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, UAE, Egypt, Turkey, and other regional nations.

African Union

Members: Nigeria, South Africa, Egypt, Kenya, Algeria, and other African nations.

Because of this, the economy, technology, and cultural industries underwent earth-shaking changes.

The economy of almost every country was much stronger than in our world, with prosperity and development being the common theme.

Due to the strong influence and intervention of the United Nations, the quality of life was significantly better. The UN worked to create a more balanced world, making food, water, and medicine much more accessible—so much so that hunger was almost nonexistent.

However, due to the lack of fear of war, technological advancement had slowed. This world was about 10–20 years behind ours in many areas.

Smartphones, AI, and cloud computing lagged by 5–10 years.

Streaming services like Netflix and Spotify did not exist yet. Social media was underdeveloped. There was no Bitcoin or blockchain.

Many top technology companies had yet to be formed, and even if they existed, they still struggled to dominate.

Though tech giants like Amazing, Goodle, Pineapple, and Macrosoft already existed, they had yet to establish their core products and were still struggling to stand out.

Instead, other similar companies were more mainstream.

The biggest underdog was the entertainment industry. Perhaps due to long-term peace, people's demand for cultural and entertainment content had grown exponentially.

As a result, the entertainment industry here was far ahead of ours, wielding significant power and influence on the world stage.

Celebrities held much higher status than in our world.

Hollywood, though still a major player, no longer held a monopoly. Countries spared no effort in supporting their local entertainment industries.

Many popular entertainment works—songs, films, dramas—either didn't exist yet or had yet to show their potential and were gathering dust.

Likewise, many celebrities we know of either didn't exist or were still struggling to rise.

The timeline seemed jumbled, with some celebrities who should have been much older still appearing quite young.

There were many other differences—ones he would have to discover slowly.

After finally gaining a general understanding of the world, he exhaled deeply and lay there, trying to process it all.

Thinking about his former self, he felt a bit confused as his former self seemed to have died in his sleep—or maybe he had not really died

And He had just been transported into this new body in an alternative universe, one with a completely different life trajectory, because he didn't remember dying or anything like that.

The excruciating pain he had felt earlier seemed to be the result of merging memories—his past as an orphan and the new life of a rich student. 

The sheer volume of information left him utterly bewildered.

His ocean-blue eyes reflecting the chaos in his mind.

He struggled to his feet and glanced around the luxurious hotel room, though his thoughts were in too much turmoil to admire its beauty.

He needed something, something like a mirror—a way to confirm this new reality, even though he knew that he had crossed over, he still couldn't believe it.

Scanning the room frantically, his gaze landed on a full-length mirror near the bed. 

Staggering toward it, he took in his reflection.

 There was a handsome face with sharp yet balanced, sculpted features that looked as if they belonged to a Greek statue. His ocean-blue eyes carried a unique charm, holding untold secrets.

Thick, dark eyebrows framed his gaze, adding intensity to his expression. Prominent cheekbones and a strong jawline gave him a striking presence.

His hair, somewhere between midnight and charcoal, was parted loosely in the middle, falling just past his brow. It carried an air of effortless cool, with a hint of rebellion—a modern ruffian, a man who whispered adventure and danger. His height was a solid six feet, and his build was lean yet well-defined.

His face was undeniably handsome, and his appearance wasn't drastically different from his past self—just a little more refined, a little more captivating. Well, maybe more than a little, but overall, one could still see the shadow of his previous self.

A sudden thought struck him, and he hurriedly checked his pants. Seeing that everything was still intact—and his "little brother" was okay—he let out a sigh of relief.

After one last look at his reflection, he returned to bed and began sorting through the information in his mind. His memories were still hazy, and he couldn't remember things too clearly.

As he was deep in thought, his phone suddenly rang.

He reached over to grab it from the bedside table, struggling slightly due to his lingering dizziness.

 The screen displayed the caller ID: UCLA Student Affairs Department.

It was a call from the university. That's right. 

He was still a student—a UCLA student, to be exact. It made sense; he hadn't attended classes in a long time, so it wasn't surprising that they were calling. After some thought, he decided to answer.

"Hello?" he said.

Before he could utter another word, an angry roar exploded through the speaker.

"Rex Lee! This is the last time I'm warning you. If you don't show up at the university tomorrow, I'll personally send your expulsion notice! And I am telling you I won't even care about your parents' kindness anymore!"

Rex was momentarily stunned.

Piecing things together, he quickly realized that his predecessor had been skipping classes for quite a while, spending most of his time indulging in nightclubs.

After some contemplation, he decided it was best to continue attending university, at least for now.

"Sorry, Uncle Johnson. I promise I'll be there tomorrow," he replied.

After hearing his reply, Mr. Johnson's anger subsided a bit—even though he was still skeptical about his promise, he chose to believe it for the sake of his parents.

"Alright. But this is your last warning. You need to start thinking about your future and your parents' expectations. You can't keep wasting time like this."

"I understand. This will be the last time. Thank you," Rex responded hurriedly.

"Good. See you tomorrow."

Without even waiting for a reply, the call was hung up, which showed how angry he really was.

He slowly put down his phone and thought about Mr. Johnson—his full name is John Johnson, and he is currently vice chancellor of Student Affairs at UCLA, as well as an old friend of his parents.

Thinking about his new parents made him feel a bit melancholic, but he forcefully pushed those emotions aside for now.

He slowly walked toward the window. 

As he gazed at the bustling cityscape of Los Angeles, reality finally sank in.

 He had truly crossed over. And he wasn't just anyone. He was now a rich second-generation heir with over $100 million.

Yesterday, he was a broke orphan struggling to pay rent. Today, he was a millionaire heir in a luxury suite.

But thinking about so much money, he felt a bit flustered because, in his previous life, he was just an orphan without friends or relatives—a graduate from an ordinary university, leading a completely ordinary life.

He lived an entirely ordinary life until his death. Well, he was a bit more handsome, but that's it; he didn't even have a girlfriend. 

When he thought about his previous life, he realized that he truly lived a miserable existence.

But now, things are different.

He had money.

He had an identity.

But most importantly, he had a chance.

He knew the importance of education and connections. That was why, despite his wealth, he wouldn't drop out of university.

Just like the famous proverb, "An innocent man is made guilty by the treasure he possesses," even if he didn't want to achieve something great, he needed enough power to at least preserve the wealth he currently had.

He also needed networking opportunities.

There was still much to learn, especially about managing money, because without knowing how to manage money, no matter how much money one has, one will eventually go bankrupt.

You have to know that American universities aren't just places for studying; they are important places for making connections. Otherwise, so many rich and powerful people wouldn't send their children to top universities—even at the cost of donating millions of dollars.

There were countless stories of people who became rich overnight, only to squander it all due to a lack of financial literacy.

Rex had no intention of becoming one of them.

Thankfully, his predecessor had majored in business management. That would make things easier.

And while $100 million sounded like a lot, in America—the land of millionaires and billionaires—it was nothing in the grand scheme of things.

Well, if you just want to laze around, then $100 million is more than enough, but he didn't want to waste his life like in the past.

Even though he wanted to live a leisurely and carefree life, he didn't want to be holed up inside a room.

He also wanted to live in a mansion, travel around the world, taste different foods, and flirt with beauties. Basically, he wanted to see all the beauty this world has to offer; he didn't want to die with regrets, just like in his last life.

He wanted to do everything he couldn't do in his previous life, and without financial support, all of this would have been just empty dreams.

As he looked out at the dazzling skyline of Los Angeles, he made up his mind to graduate honestly.

As he contemplated his future, he suddenly thought about the parents of his current self.

(End of Chapter)