Chapter 1: A New World, A Broken Boat

The room Yun Shi occupies is dimly lit, cramped, and narrow.
Misty windows reveal a cluster of uneven residential buildings outside.
Each building shares a distinct trait—dilapidation.

More prominent than the buildings is the garbage dump behind them.
Above it, two large, bright billboards dominate the skyline.

One billboard plays a food ad: a chef handles ingredients—celery, mushrooms, and fresh squid.
The exact trio of foods Yun Shi despises most.
Soon, a bowl of dark, glistening squid rice is complete.
Even in the interstellar era, this dish looks utterly grim.

Yet, as the camera zooms in, the rice gleams, each grain distinct.
Crisp, green celery and tender mushroom slices, coated in rich sauce, are sprinkled with chopped green onions.
Steaming heat seems to waft from the billboard itself.

Yun Shi’s throat betrays him with a swallow.

It’s his third day in this world, and he hasn’t eaten in two days.
That despised squid rice?
To the current Yun Shi, even a discounted small portion is an unattainable luxury.

This is a predicament Yun Shi, born into wealth, has never faced—poverty so dire he can’t afford food.

As another chef begins the next dish, Yun Shi forces his gaze away from the restaurant ad, ignoring the hollow ache in his stomach.
He turns to the other billboard.

It’s far more subdued, static, with just two bold words: Breath of Life.
But its content is anything but quiet.
Breath of Life, the hottest holographic game right now, is the new world Yun Shi will enter tonight.

“Master, you should eat something.”
A mechanical voice sounds behind him—his butler robot.

Yun Shi rubs his brow.
It’s not that he doesn’t want to.
“…I have no money.”

The robot scratches its rusty head, its square display showing a distressed expression.
“Master, you could sell me to the MX Recycling Station. I estimate my value at about three hundred Star Coins.”

The MX Recycling Station is the garbage dump behind the buildings.

Yun Shi’s current body belongs to the original Yun Shi, identical in appearance but younger.
When he first arrived, he thought he’d returned to his eighteen-year-old self.

The original owner, though young, was skilled with machines.
This butler robot was assembled from parts scavenged at the recycling station.
There’s also a holographic game helmet, its silver paint scratched and peeling, repaired by the original owner to barely function.

But then, the boy consumed a nutrient solution—expired, uninspected, and untraceable.
A triple-threat product.
It killed him quickly.
The robot spent every last coin on a high-potency antidote, saving the body—but the soul inside was now Yun Shi.

Looking at the clunky, uncool robot, Yun Shi shakes his head, rejecting its suggestion.
If not for this robot, he might not have survived.
Unless absolutely necessary, he won’t sell it.

Besides…

His gaze lands on the game helmet by the bed.
This world is alien to him.
He can’t rely on the original owner’s mechanical skills to make a living.
But if there’s one thing he excels at, it’s gaming.

Seeing Yun Shi won’t sell it, the robot’s display flashes a smile and fetches him a cup of hot water.

Breath of Life opens at midnight.
Yun Shi drinks the water, has the robot set an alarm, and rests.

Under countless stars, the finals night roars with excitement.
A tall, graceful young man stands center stage.
Before he speaks, the crowd erupts in cheers.
Another championship win—his flawless career’s end.

The audience chants his name endlessly.

He glances back at his teammates, comrades who fought alongside him, and behind them, fresh, young faces.
Ahead, in the front row, his family beams with pride, tears in their eyes.

He smiles, bows deeply, and grips the microphone.
As he rises to deliver his farewell, a wave of dizziness hits.

“Retire? Didn’t I go back to eighteen?”

His words shatter the radiant stadium.
The scene cracks with a bang, morphing into something else entirely.

A cramped, dark room.
Misty skies.
That nightmarish squid rice.
And the robot’s mechanical voice, over and over: “Master.”

“Master! Master! Wake up! Your holographic game is about to start!”

Holographic game?!

Yun Shi snaps awake.

At 11:58 PM, he dons the game helmet and logs in.

Breath of Life is a survival adventure game, deemed the hardest holographic game in the interstellar by players since its beta.
Harsh, hyper-realistic environments.
Unpredictable dangers.
Bizarre bosses.
Each level is a nightmare few conquer.
Rumor has it, even military academies use it to train recruits.

Beyond survival, it offers PvP modes.
Since its debut a decade ago, it’s spawned countless top-tier professional teams.
Tonight’s launch is the complete version, with new mechanics, skills, and endless possibilities, set to reshape the Breath of Life interstellar league.

After a two-minute wait, Yun Shi enters the game.

Darkness fills his vision, swirling into a vortex.
The pull grows stronger, faster, until it explodes, revealing a vast scene.

A wasteland stretches before him.
Blood-red sunset stains the sky.
A lone figure in white stands amidst ruins, clashing with the broken walls and swirling smoke.

The camera zooms in.
The figure senses a gaze and turns sharply, a faint bell chime ringing.
It’s Yun Shi’s face—scanned and generated by the system.
Players can choose default faces or customize, but Yun Shi, lacking time and mood, picks a random one and moves on.

The game’s story: after an unknown apocalyptic disaster, Planet X’s humans perished.
Few survived, and fewer still awakened abilities.
These ability users lead survivors, struggling to survive in a brutal world.

Abilities include metal, wood, water, fire, earth, wind, mist, thunder, space, and ice.
Players choose one as their primary element.

Aiming to grind and level, Yun Shi naturally picks a strong damage-dealer.

[Tendency/Selected: Damage Dealer, Fire Element. Confirm?]

Yun Shi confirms.

A heatwave passes, kicking up sand.
When the dust settles, the figure in the ruins wears light green instead of white, holding a bow and arrow.

He opens the character panel:

Role: Unnamed
Class: Damage Dealer/Support
Element: Wind
Skills: [Wind Blade], [Wind Arrow], [Wind Feather], [Wind Bind], [Wind Butterfly], [Clouds and Breezes]

Six skills: three attacks, one control, one buff, one debuff removal.
Though labeled as damage dealer or support, it leans heavily toward support.

Such roles typically deal less damage than mainstream damage dealers.
For example, a fire-element damage dealer’s basic attack might hit for 100.
This wind role?
70-80 at best.
As a pure support, even less.

Yun Shi notices all six skills carry a physical damage boost.
Among the ten elements, only the vague “space” element seems unrelated to physical damage.

As a damage dealer or support, this wind role feels utterly useless.

Without hesitation, Yun Shi chooses to restart.

He clicks the button, and a prompt appears:

[System: Purchase [Class Change Card]?]

Yun Shi: …
Thanks, game, for forcing microtransactions at character creation.

No way to change now—rerolling requires a day’s wait.
Yun Shi picks a random name and enters the game.

A salty, humid sea breeze hits first, the air warm and damp, startlingly real.
Waves crash nearby, and the ground sways beneath him.

With a jolt, Yun Shi opens his eyes.

“You’re awake?”
A red-haired man leans close, grinning as Yun Shi stirs.

Dark clouds loom over a distant, ominous sky.
The sea appears calm but occasionally churns with waves.
Mist shrouds the horizon.
A patched, poorly sewn sail flaps above, its red-haired owner weathered—rough skin, unkempt stubble, and dull, split-ended hair.

From distant vistas to close-up details, the realism is staggering, the line between reality and game as thin as glass.
This is a holographic game boasting 95% realism.

Snapping back, Yun Shi sits up, feeling his body—lighter than in reality, free of weakness.
After adjusting, he turns to the red-haired man.

This is an NPC, named Yan Ziyu, searching for his sister.
Yun Shi, he says, was rescued by chance.

“This sea—no, this world—is extremely dangerous. You must be cautious…”
The NPC begins explaining the game’s lore.

Yun Shi listens while checking his panel:

Role: Clouds and Breezes
Health: 100/100
Energy: 100/100
Hunger: 50/100
Thirst: 50/100
Mental: 50/100

The name comes from a random skill.
Health and energy are standard; the last three are survival stats.
Fresh from the sea, his stats aren’t full.

Yun Shi hasn’t forgotten the survival adventure theme.
Beyond typical quests and dungeons, players must monitor their survival stats.
He’s certain any stat hitting zero means death.
This game mirrors reality too closely.

Perhaps noticing Yun Shi’s distraction, the NPC stands, pointing to the sea.
“The most dangerous things are in there. Stay vigilant, or you’ll—”

Before he finishes, something bursts from the water, lunging at the NPC.
A two-meter-long, hideous fish glowing faintly red.

A red-named mob?

Yun Shi reacts instinctively—nocking an arrow, drawing the bow, aiming for the fish’s eye.
The shot lands perfectly.

[You have successfully killed the Smart Fish!]

The massive fish crashes into the sea, sending waves that damage a corner of the small boat.

One-shot?
Yun Shi’s surprised.
The skill release was smoother than expected.
The mob, at level 1, was likely fragile, despite its intimidating size.

As he thinks this, before checking his loot, the NPC’s “Thanks” is cut off.
Another impact rocks the boat’s bottom, sending the NPC tumbling into the water.

Yun Shi lunges, grabbing only a weathered shoe as the NPC is dragged away.

Named Yan Ziyu, the NPC shouts intermittently, asking Yun Shi to find his sister, Yan Ziyun.

As the boat’s swaying calms, Yun Shi sees the culprit:

[Piranha], Level 20, Health 1000.

Yun Shi: …Scratch that “reasonable” thought.

Level 1 player, facing a level 20 mob?
What’s wrong with the developers?

The waves settle, signaling the end of the scene.
The system announces his rewards and tasks.

[System: Congratulations, you obtained [Useless Old Shoe] *1; [Ten-Day-Unwashed Smelly Sock] *1]
[System: Automatically accepted [Find Yan Ziyun] quest]

Zero experience.
Zero coins.
That’s the entire reward?

A minute passes, and his inventory holds just those two items, taking up space with no further changes.

Yun Shi holds back a single thought.

—Damn! Trash game!