Newlyweds: The 22 couples who took part in the mass wedding at Che Hoon Khor Moral Uplifting Society in Penang posing for a group photo.

GEORGE TOWN: Five years back, they started living a fantasy life together through an MMORPG (massive multiplayer online role-playing game) based on a popular Internet novel.

From being partners on the online game Zhu Xian, also known as Celestial Destroyer in English, Cyllace Wong and Sharon Lai soon became lovers.

Yesterday, the 22-year-old businessman and the 26-year-old singer from Sarawak became man-and-wife in a New Year's Day mass wedding involving 22 couples at the Che Hoon Khor Moral Uplifting Society in Jalan Macalister here.

They said they were introduced to the game by a mutual friend.

“After getting to know each for two years, we officially became an item,” said Wong.

Asked how they kept their long-distance relationship going, Lai said the key to it was trust.

“Besides that, we frequently meet during our three-year relationship,” she said.

Another couple who tied the knot at the event, sales support analyst Miguel Chong, 29, and Pauline Chin, 27, said they had known each other for more than 10 years since their school days at SMK Hamid Khan here.

“At that time, she was a prefect and I used to break' a few rules just to get closer to her,” grinned Chong.

Asked how she reacted then, Chin just chuckled and looked at her husband.

Chong grinned again and said: “Girls are always attracted to bad boys.”

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