Earth. Jiang City. A residential complex.
Li Yu pulled off his gaming helmet, though he could still feel the pressure of the biometric collectors that had been clasped to his head. He opened the hatch of his gaming pod and stepped out, taking a deep breath of fresh air.
He was a college student, currently on summer break.
Unfortunately, summer vacation also meant he had absolutely nothing to do.
In Jiang City, Li Yu owned a private gaming room of his own, a place reserved exclusively for weekends, holidays, and shameless amounts of gaming. It was in one of the more desirable residential complexes in the area.
There was no special reason for that.
He was just rich.
Li Yu was the kind of player who dabbled in pretty much every type of game, though his favorites were shooters and simulation titles. As technology on Earth advanced, gaming had already reached the point where players could wear helmets or enter full pods to collect sensory data, creating fully immersive simulated experiences. Quite a few games had even developed muscle-feedback systems.
And the price wasn't outrageously high, either. For the average office worker, gritting their teeth and saving for one was enough to buy a unit.
In the real world, games had basically become people's second spiritual home. Countless players were addicted to them, to the point that many no longer wanted to face reality at all.
Li Yu was no exception.
Like many ordinary college students, he was hopelessly hooked on gaming. If he could, he would happily spend twenty-four hours a day inside his pod without eating or drinking.
That said, he was actually pretty good.
He wasn't some scrub.
In the shooter Apocalypse Domination, his ranking had climbed into the national top one hundred. He was only a step away from reaching the Gun King tier. But form was a mysterious thing—something impossible to pin down. Recently, he had been losing more than winning no matter what he did.
He had just finished a ten-game losing streak.
There was no way he was queuing for ranked again today. One more loss and he would drop a tier.
Just as Li Yu was scrolling through the news to relax, his phone rang.
He glanced at the screen.
It was a courier from his delivery district.
That was odd. He did not remember buying anything recently.
"Hello, Student Li. You have a package. Are you home right now?"
"I'm home. Sorry to trouble you—could you bring it up?"
"Sure. I'll be there in a few minutes."
Who sent it?
Did his mom buy him more clothes again?
Frowning, Li Yu opened his messaging app to see if he had missed any calls or notifications, but there was nothing. In the end, he stopped thinking about it. He would find out what it was soon enough anyway.
Not long after, the doorbell rang.
Li Yu opened the door and stared.
Whoa.
That was a huge box.
"Student Li, please sign here."
"Sure. By the way, where was this sent from?"
He took the slip, signed his name, then helped carry the box inside.
The courier wiped sweat off his face and said, "Let me check… it was sent from the capital. Shipped this morning."
He set the package down. "Alright, I'll leave it here. I've got to go."
"Got it. Thanks, man."
After shutting the door, Li Yu stared suspiciously at the giant package.
"Did Xu Dog send this?" he muttered. "What the hell is he up to now?"
"Xu Dog" was his nickname for Xu Chenggong, his childhood friend. The two had grown up together and were close as brothers. Among everyone Li Yu knew, the only person close enough to casually send him weird packages—and who happened to live in the capital—was Xu Chenggong.
Muttering to himself, Li Yu grabbed a pair of scissors from the entryway cabinet and sliced the box open.
Then—
"Holy shit?!"
"Holy shit holy shit!"
"A gaming pod helmet?! Holy shit!"
Li Yu instantly picked up his phone and sent Xu Chenggong a message.
Jiangnan's Number One Heartthrob: Old Xu, your ambition shall be fulfilled!
Jiangnan's Number One Heartthrob: [Image]
Jiangnan's Number One Heartthrob: [Image]
Old Man Xu Success: ?
Old Man Xu Success: Get lost. What kind of crap are you pulling, flexing some busted helmet in front of your dad?
Old Man Xu Success: [Disdain]
Huh?
So it wasn't from Old Xu?
Li Yu kept unpacking and discovered that beneath the helmet were two biometric data collectors. Underneath those was a letter.
He tore it open at once.
The letter read:
Dear Player,
The cross-dimensional game masterpiece Benediction has officially begun closed beta testing.
This game employs entirely new subconscious-guidance technology and synchronized sensory-data systems, achieving 100% true sensory restoration and delivering a fully immersive second-world experience.
You have been selected as a closed beta tester. Thank you for your reservation and support. This game equipment is being lent to you free of charge. Please take proper care of it. This device is bound to your beta qualification. If it is damaged or lost, your qualification will be revoked, and compensation will be required at full cost.
Please follow the instructions to connect this game device to your gaming pod. The currently supported pod models are as follows...
?
After reading the explanation, Li Yu was completely dumbfounded.
His first thought was that this had to be a mistaken delivery.
But the phone number was right.
The address was right.
Everything was his.
Did his information leak or something?
Then, all at once, a thought hit him.
With a crazed string of "holy shits," he sprinted toward his gaming pod and began rifling through his old game reservation history.
Sure enough, after several minutes of digging, he found it.
Benediction.
The ultimate king of being a deadbeat pigeon, a game he had reserved three years ago.
Three years earlier, Benediction had launched its official website and opened first-round beta reservations. The high-end technology described on its promotional page had sounded so absurdly advanced that most people could barely believe it. Especially the bold promise of 100% real five-sense simulation—that claim alone had sent waves through the internet.
Its reservation numbers had directly rivaled those of top-tier major publishers.
It had even trended.
People had practically dug the company's underwear out in the process. The developer turned out to be nothing more than some third-rate indie studio in the capital.
Realistically, there was no way a company like that should have been able to make a game of this level.
But people had hoped anyway.
Then after reservations opened, there had been no follow-up whatsoever.
Within a few months, the internet was full of people cursing them out.
Back then, however, the promotion had been too explosive. Li Yu had followed the crowd and signed up as well. Mainly because the developers had painted such an incredible picture. Clicking reserve cost nothing, and who knew?
Maybe this was the one.
He had never expected the beta to actually happen.
Sure, it had arrived three years late, but if it really was as advertised—100% real sensory simulation—then no.
Hell, even if it was only 50%, this would still be a cross-dimensional leap in gaming.
What games before this had ever offered all five senses?
Visuals and sound, sure.
Some had muscle feedback.
But taste and smell?
Nothing.
He opened the official site.
Still blank.
Still exactly the same as it had been three years ago.
Then he jumped over to the forums for a look.
Sure enough, it was still page after page of complaints and mockery, with only a few alternate accounts popping up every now and then to throw in some extra sarcasm.
Everyone and Their Dog Is Showing Off (posted three years ago): Looking forward to it! No idea what genre it'll be. Hope I get beta access.
Netizen 1000007 (posted three years ago): I'm proficient in all kinds of game systems, specialize in bug hunting, and have participated in testing for several top-tier titles. Please give me a chance!
Never Let the Flagship Sink: Does this company even have enough money to mass-produce servers?
I'm Not a Rich Second Gen (posted three years ago): Does the beta pay? How much? Is 100,000 enough? If not I can chip in more. [doge]
…
Green Is My Tenderness (posted two years ago): Damn trash company, the official site is still up? It's been over three years. Why hasn't the forum deleted this garbage yet?
Everyone and Their Dog Is Showing Off (posted two years ago): [sleepy] Did this game get canceled? Is the company already dead?
I Shall Raise Thy Wife: Lmao the guy upstairs is still waiting. This company already pivoted to animal husbandry. Their pigeon farming business is top-notch. [smirk][smirk]
Dad's Dad Is Grandpa (posted one year ago): My grandpa said he won't live to see it. His only wish is to play the game he reserved back then.
Beer with Goji Berries (posted one year ago): I never said that. [side-eye]
…
Did Benediction Launch Beta Today (posted six months ago): No.
Everyone and Their Dog Is Showing Off (posted six months ago): If the company hasn't gone under, I guess they're still developing it?
Ancient Zither Piano Player (posted six months ago): I'm already in my forties and I've waited seven damn years. Is this dogshit game still stringing us along?
…
What a bunch of idiots.
Li Yu laughed to himself while scrolling through the old posts. The latest message had still been from several months ago, and that user Everyone and Their Dog Is Showing Off was still hanging around. Clearly, he still had expectations buried somewhere in his heart.
There were no new posts.
Did that mean only he had received beta access?
Probably not.
There had been over seventy thousand reservations. There was no way that kind of lottery-level luck would land on his head.
Whatever.
He would just play first and think later.
Following the instructions, he connected the two life-data collectors to his gaming pod, put on the helmet, and eagerly climbed inside.
Among the row of game icons before his eyes, one stood out at the very top, glowing with golden light.
The icon showed a hand extending from the sleeve of a red robe, holding a ball of yellow light.
Below it were two words:
Benediction
He tapped it.
A countdown prompt popped up:
7:12:35
Li Yu glanced at the real-world clock. It was a little after three in the afternoon.
Which meant the beta would not start until seven that evening.
His excitement crashed instantly.
Damn it.
Four more hours to wait.
…
When someone is desperately looking forward to something, every second of waiting becomes unbearable.
Li Yu felt as though the entire afternoon had been stretched out on purpose. He wanted nothing more than for seven o'clock to arrive so he could get online and find out whether this giant painted pie actually smelled as good as advertised.
At last, seven o'clock came.
He hastily finished dinner, dove into the gaming pod, and launched the game.
Sure enough, the countdown had disappeared.
In its place was a forty-page disclaimer.
He flipped through a few pages and saw that it was mostly standard pod-game warnings, so he scrolled rapidly to the bottom without really reading any of it. The only parts that caught his eye were statements like:
This product contains a large amount of bloody and violent content, including but not limited to...
This product contains a large amount of adult emotional content, including but not limited to...
This may produce certain psychological effects on the individual...
He grinned.
"Hehehe. Hurry up, hurry up. I'm gonna be the first person into the server."
The moment he clicked agree, all light vanished from before his eyes.
Darkness swallowed everything.
Li Yu felt his scalp tingle. Then a strong wave of dizziness and drowsiness hit him one after another.
What the hell?
Did the helmet leak electricity or something?
It only felt like a short while had passed before Li Yu realized that he was no longer inside the gaming pod.
Instead, he was standing in a pitch-black place.
A single beam of light shone down from above his head.
In front of him stood a massive full-length mirror, roughly two meters tall.
The figure reflected inside wore a coarse cloth robe, its sleeves somewhat similar to the red robe shown in the game icon. A hood covered his head. Beneath the robe was a plain set of gray cotton-linen underclothes.
Li Yu stretched out his hand and clenched it twice.
Then he touched the robe, carefully feeling the texture and material of the fabric. He ran up to the mirror and inspected its wooden frame in minute detail, tracing every carved pattern and edge with his fingers. He leaned close and sniffed the scent of the wood.
Then he licked the mirror.
"Holy shit!"
"This is insane!"
"This game is out of this world!"
"The texture, the detail, the touch—there's smell, too! My tongue can even feel it. But why the hell is the mirror bitter… ptoo ptoo ptoo—"
The more he tested, the more excited he became.
He fiddled obsessively with the only two "props" available to him, turning them over and over until his initial excitement finally wore off enough for his brain to start functioning again.
This was probably the character appearance customization phase.
It was just that the sensory immersion was so overwhelmingly real that he had gotten too excited to think straight.
Then he abruptly stood upright in front of the mirror, glanced around, and tugged open his pants to look down.
His face immediately lit up.
"Awesome—! —! —!" he screeched, his voice cracking apart.
How the hell did this pass content review?
This company had some real guts.
Was it really this realistic?
Uh… wait, could this be adjusted?
His starting appearance was not exactly his own face, though it resembled him somewhat. A stranger would probably recognize the likeness at a glance, but someone who knew him well would spot immediately that it was not quite the same person.
Clearly, the developers had made some effort to protect player privacy.
Then he discovered that as long as he stood in front of the mirror, every single part of his body could be adjusted.
The range of adjustment was not huge, but the precision was ridiculous.
Unlike every previous game he had ever played, almost every inch of skin could be modified, right down to the pores. He experimented with all kinds of looks—shorter, taller, fatter, thinner, that sort of thing went without saying. The size and shape of various body parts could also be altered slightly. At one point, he even tried using moles to draw a heart over the left side of his chest...
This game is absolutely deranged.
I love it.
In the end, though, none of his more degenerate ideas became reality.
Li Yu kept the default appearance mostly intact, making only a few minor adjustments to the face and leaving the rest of his body untouched.
Couldn't go making himself too handsome.
A man had to show some restraint.
Just as he was starting to get bored, lines of text suddenly appeared on the mirror.
Please choose your initial attributes:
Remaining distributable points: 10
Strength: 0
Constitution: 0
Agility: 0
Spirit: 0
Note: Certain attributes may alter your appearance. Any appearance changes caused by attributes cannot be adjusted again.
There it was.
A game interface.
As expected, Li Yu was practically already dreaming at this point.
This was way too incredible.
From the looks of it, the game had not opened many attribute categories, nor did it provide much explanation. It seemed the developers wanted to preserve a high level of immersion. In that case, he would just distribute points based on his own understanding. They all looked like standard RPG stats anyway. He could figure out the exact effects after entering the game.
As a shooter player, there was nothing to think about.
Charge first, ask questions later.
Strength +4.
Constitution +4.
Agility +2.
Once his choices were made, the text on the mirror twisted and distorted, gradually transforming into a door.
Li Yu stared with his mouth hanging open.
At the same time, he could not stop marveling at the absurd quality of the game effects while reaching out to run his hand over the patterns on the door again and again.
Then he shoved it open and walked through.