Joining servers stuck in loading screen

[vapid jacinth]

Can't join my friend's server. Either loading screen takes forever than go back to the main menu or game crashes.
Tried to restore player and world backup and still no luck.
I have 32 GB of RAM and a GTX 5070 and I9. Definitely not computer resources issue.
I've also tried some of the fixes in the FAQs but none made any difference/