Chương 2: New Player

For all his faults, Jordan could at least hang his hat on being a rational human being. As the strange light took over his senses and indeed his entire consciousness, Jordan tried to logic his way through the phenomenon. Am I dreaming? Not likely, given his total lucidity. He thought to pinch himself to test the theory, then found he'd completely dissociated from his body. He couldn't see or even feel himself. All was the rosy iridescence and nothing else. Am I dead? That seemed even less likely.

The cauldron's basin had been deep, but not that deep. If he'd fallen in by accident, he'd have come out of it with a swollen head and a bruised ego at worst. Which meant… Inducting new player … Name: JORDAN YU Cauldron detected. As a cauldron bearer, JORDAN YU will start the game at Lv. 30 (Max). Assigning attributes … The messages appeared inside solid boxes that stood in stark contrast against the shimmering surrounds. White terminal-font text on a black background. Instantly recognizable to a long-time player.

Am I actually in Vesselia right now? As the system worried over his attributes, Jordan had a brief moment to think. The logical thing would be to wonder how any of this was possible. Yet, as a daily grinder for three years running, Jordan was more interested in the game mechanics unfolding before him. Levels in Vesselia are capped at 20, and they reset every season. A level cap of 30 is normally reserved for Elder Races or mythical monsters. Does that mean binding a cauldron as your Vessel grants you Elder status?

Attributes confirmed. To complete the induction, choose a Backstory Perk from the following curated options. 1) [So Close Yet So Far]: You were always near the front of the pack, but you just never had what it took to make that final push. WIS +2, INT +1. 2) [Down But Not Out]: You have every reason to lay down and give up. Yet somehow, you coax, cajole, and scold yourself to keep going, for all the good it'll do you. CON +2, STR +1. 3) [House of Cards]: You're in a constant state of teetering on the edge.

One false move, or the wrong word at the wrong time, and the whole facade could come crashing down. CHA +2, DEX +1. Jordan frowned. Or he would've if he had access to his face. None of these Perks existed in the Vesselia he knew, yet all three struck uncomfortably close to home. As if the system knew everything about his life—his Backstory, as it were. For all he knew, that was exactly the case. Despite the bad taste in his mouth, he had to make a choice.

All three labels were unpleasantly accurate, with [So Close Yet So Far] perhaps being the worst offender. Yet that was also the option he was most drawn to, for a very simple reason. If the base mechanics are anything like the Vesselia I play at home, then Wisdom is the most valuable attribute for a max-level character. Because Wisdom scales VR efficiency. All things being equal, that's the stat that pays the most dividends long-term. Logic and game sense were back on the menu.

Jordan barely hesitated as he focused his attention onto the top item on the list. The system obliged by highlighting the corresponding text. You have chosen Backstory Perk: [So Close Yet So Far]. Induction complete. Your full status is as follows. <Character Sheet> Name: JORDAN YU Race: Human Age: 32 Class: Gatekeeper, Lv. 30 (Max) Vessel: The Heavenly Cauldron <Attributes> STR: 13 (+1) DEX: 15 (+2) CON: 19 (+4) INT: 20 (+5) WIS: 22 (+6) CHA: 15 (+2) <Parameters> HP: 218/218 VR efficiency: 1.

22 Active spell slots: 0/11 Passive spell slots: 0/9 Agility: 1. 30 Encumbrance: 2. 2/195 lbs <Active Spells> None <Passive Spells> None <Feats> None This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. <Vessel Boons> [Heavenly Gossip], [Road to Ascension] This time, Jordan did something halfway between a frown and a raise of the eyebrows. His first point of contention was that he hadn't been allowed to allocate his own attributes.

The numbers, as they were, likely reflected what the system deemed to be his real-life characteristics. The fact that they matched up rather well with his own self-assessment only added insult to injury. As for the distribution itself, it was… okay. He would've liked more points in [Dexterity], if only because his favorite spell in the game scaled off it. Higher [Charisma] would've also been nice, given its usefulness in various speech checks.

If he had his way, he would've dumped [Constitution]; HP was kind of overrated in Vesselia, at least with the way Jordan preferred to play. He also didn't like that he had no spells whatsoever. Even a Lv. 1 spellcaster normally started with a [Light] or a [Magic Hand] or some such. What, did this version of JORDAN YU just never bother to learn a single spell in 30 instances of leveling? Speaking of class … What the hell is a Gatekeeper? Never heard of it.

And it makes me picture a butthurt DM yelling at someone for'playing their character wrong'. Not to mention these Boons … [Heavenly Gossip]? [Road to Ascension]? I need to get my hands on this here cauldron, so I can read up on its Vessel Sheet! Against all odds, Jordan found himself smiling. The situation was all kinds of weird and inexplicable. Yet there was a grounding familiarity to it, thanks to all the Vesselia elements.

For now, he didn't really care about the consequences for his job at the museum or even his life in general. He just wanted to play the game. And so, when the system presented its next question, Jordan was quick and eager to give an answer. So quick, in fact, that he didn't even get to see the second option. Are you ready to start the game? 1) Yes.

Blue sky. Bright sun. A grassy plain that stretched as far as the eye could see. Because yes, Jordan could see now, using his own two eyes. He had his body back, along with the gray overalls he'd worn at the museum. And as far as he could tell, the world around him was also real, as evidenced by the smell of grass and the wind that whipped against his clothes. To his eternal shame, his first act upon entering a fantasy world was… to check his phone.

In his defense, the habit had long been hard-wired into the modern Homo sapiens. And to his mild surprise, his phone had made the trip with him. This screen too was cracked, like most screens in Jordan's life, but it still managed to show the time. 9: 35 pm. Only a few minutes since the incident at the museum, and clearly out of step with the local time zone. The battery was about half full, and the signal—as to be expected—was dead. Before putting it back in his pocket, Jordan switched the phone to battery mode.

He didn't know why exactly. He just had a feeling it might come in handy, one way or another. With that out of the way, it was time to actually get his bearings. The plain was flat, open, and windy. Perhaps not unlike Jordan's mental picture of a Mongolian steppe. He tried to cross-reference his encyclopedic knowledge of Vesselia geography but came up empty. Not that he had much to go on other than text descriptions.

As he rotated in place to take in the surroundings, his leg bumped up against a waist-high object behind him. It was the cauldron! Faded bronze and ancient hieroglyphics. The very same one he'd fallen into on his way to an interdimensional trip. Did I accidentally steal this thing? I wonder how it would've looked on the security footage… Jordan quickly shook off the disquieting thought. He then peered into the basin, only to see it was completely empty. Where had the light gone, along with all that mana? No matter.

The game was about filling a cup, and fill it he shall. To that end, Jordan inspected the cauldron intently, hoping to learn everything he could about his new Vessel. Thankfully, the system obliged him with a new text box, again beamed straight into his consciousness. <Vessel Sheet> Name: The Heavenly Cauldron Bearer: JORDAN YU VC: 50, 000 cc VR: 0/50, 000 cc (0%) Weight: 496 lbs 50, 000?? That's literally ten times the VC of my Vessel in the computer game! This thing is ridiculously OP!

He would've been perfectly happy if he'd stopped there. But then he just had to read on… <Vessel Boons> [Heavenly Gossip]: As the Gatekeeper to heaven, you can't help but occasionally eavesdrop on the gods. Maintain a line of communication with the deities who preside over each of the six attributes. Just remember: gods might not always have your best interest at heart. Heed (or ignore) their advice at your own peril. [Road to Ascension]: To become a god yourself, you must pass through the Nine Gates of Ascension.

The Heavenly Cauldron's Vessel Capacity increases greatly each time its bearer opens a new gate, up to a maximum of 1, 000, 000, 000 cc with the opening of the eighth and penultimate gate 1. From there, opening the ninth and final gate requires filling the Vessel to maximum capacity 2. *Footnote 1: The Heavenly Cauldron's VC cannot be altered in any other way. *Footnote 2: The Heavenly Cauldron remains in [Hoarding Mode] until it is filled to maximum capacity. Jordan blinked several times.

He then went over the Boon descriptions again, slower so as to ensure he hadn't misread them the first time. As it turned out, he hadn't. Which left only one possibility: that the system was fucking with him.

"This is some bullshit," Jordan declared aloud. Such was his incredulity that he had to let someone know, even if no one was around to hear it. I mean, a VC of one billion cc is stupid enough as it is—no one needs that much mana! But for the Vessel to be in permanent [Hoarding Mode] until you fill it to the top? How long would that even take, like … a thousand years?? That was when the system pulled up more messages.

Given Jordan's current state of mind, this new piece of information felt very much like open mockery. [Hoarding Mode] activated. Spellcasting is disabled while [Hoarding Mode] is on. VR efficiency bonus in effect (+10%). Current VR: 0/50, 000 cc (0% partial, 0% total) Target VR: 1, 000, 000, 000/1, 000, 000, 000 cc (100%) Jordan could only stare, aghast. He had to retract his earlier conclusion. About this whole thing not being a dream.

No, because it was clearly a nightmare— a special kind of torture designed for one as dedicated to Vesselia as he. One billion cc. He could probably fill a swimming pool with that much mana. All that mana to swim in, and he couldn't spend a single cubic centimeter until he first achieved an impossible goal. Unbeknown to himself, Jordan's shoulders sagged. He lowered his head, shoved his hands into his pockets, and shrank into himself. A familiar posture.

The very same with which he'd shunned and walked away from all of life's unfair challenges. Knowingly or not, he'd left his old life behind. Had gone through the trouble of reincarnating inside a fantasy world. And for what? The same old roadblocks. The same old rotten luck. The same old Jordan and his inability to— Strength DC 11: success Zhurong:"Pathetic! Churlish and spineless! With a defeatist attitude like yours, it's a wonder you ever weaned off your mother's teat."

Jordan looked up, startled out of his spiral. He saw a message indicating that he'd just passed a passive [Strength] check. Difficulty class of 11, no less, which would've been impossible with his usual builds where [Strength] was low-priority. But not so in his current Lv. 30 self, thanks to STR of 13 and therefore a [+1] modifier to all [Strength] checks. He'd also heard a voice. A disembodied one, judging by the fact he was still very much alone in the open grassland. Disembodied, gruff, and passionately loud.

Zhurong:"Well, don't just stand there. Pick up your Vessel and move! You've got a long road ahead of you."