Pretty much 99% of what I've done in the game has been PvE only.. I mostly play the boats these days :D
Do what you want the way you want :)

I grind specifically on the “arsha-PvP” server where PvP is free without limit or penalty of any kind, and have only experienced 4 PvP encounters in all of 2024. If you grind on a normal server where pvpers lose karma you hen they fight you, you’ll be even less likely to experience PvP.

Now, it is always possible that another player who really really really wants to, can find a way to impede you. So if the chance of that being above zero is a deal breaker, then so it is. But it is low and far more rare than ever. And if you do experience unwanted player attention just swap server and move on with your day, it is extremely fast and convenient to do so and if a player follows you across servers that is potentially harassment anyway.

There’s barely any of that and several ways to avoid even the slightest chance of pvp. It’s not an absolute 0 chance but it’s very low. In every mmo there will always be 1 person who is dedicated to finding a way to grief, pvp or not, so there’s no way to declare the game pvp free.

This game feels like a pve game with pvp events, so yes