Admin Message

Groaning after that head-splitting headache, Technoblade now understood two things from that knowledge cramming.

Firstly, he was dead. Aftercraft wasn't just a game. It was a reality made especially for him by the universal higher-ups, that certainly were not Gods because he was an atheist. Instead, the system administrators of life have brought his soul here to measure the quality of his existence before granting him a new chance at life after he cleared the trials.

Technoblade knew the drill. He beat Minecraft hardcore mode using a steering wheel previously. He also had experience doing it with a VR headset, even if Aftercraft was way scarier than playing with a VR headset. The game was his reality now.

Although he was technically dead, death still terrified him. If he died in Minecraft, he simply had to start over. In Aftercraft, there might be no do-overs. More importantly, there were simply too many things that could kill him in very painful ways. Technoblade recalled the pain he experienced after punching a tree with his bare fist.

Thankfully, the system administrators were not entirely heartless. On the top right corner of his vision were several new icons meant to help him defeat the Ender Dragon to reach the reincarnation portal.

"Let's check what they have in those updates," he mused and clicked on the envelope icon with a small exclamation mark above it. That must be the system's mailbox.

Unlike the VR game, where he had to use controllers to point and click on an icon, Technoblade only had to stare at the icon he wanted and blink twice to select it. It was way easier to have his actions match his thoughts. Aftercraft was user-friendly with its interface design, and Technoblade loved it already.

[Dear Player

Welcome to Aftercraft! This is a game to evaluate your soul for reincarnation. The system administrators provided a brief tutorial below to assist you with your adventure.

In the top right corner of your vision, there are several icons that you can access at any time by looking at the icon and blinking twice.

1. [Mailbox] You can collect system rewards or read System Administrator announcements here.

2. [Crafting Book] You can check the items required to create certain items after unlocking the recipes.

3. [Crafter Workshop] You may submit materials in exchange for items unlocked in the recipes in [Crafting Book].

4. [Inventory] You may access this anytime to store or retrieve items according to the number of available slots. More inventory space can be unlocked in the [Syetem Shop].

5. [System Shop] You may exchange levels gained with rewards with the system.

6. [Achievements] You can view the list of quests you can complete for unique rewards. Some quests are repeatable, and others are not. Compulsory quests will be updated here after completion.

In the top left corner of your vision, there are several bars to help you gauge your well-being.

1. [Health] The number of hearts indicates how much health you have. If the bar becomes empty, you will fail to earn your right to reincarnate.

2. [Hunger] The number of drumsticks indicates your energy levels. If it falls below 30%, you will suffer from penalty effects such as [Slowness], [Nausea] and [Fatigue]. If the bar becomes empty, you will start to take damage to your [Health] over time until you eat something.

3. [Fatigue] The number of Z's you gain indicates your stamina levels. If the bar is full, you will be immobile wherever you are to recover stamina points. Any damage taken with a full [Fatigue] bar will not be recoverable even if the [Hunger] bar is fully replenished.

4. [Hydration] The number of water droplets will decrease over time. If the bar falls below 30%, you will suffer from penalty effects such as [Weakness], [Slowness] and [Fatigue]. If the bar becomes empty, you will start to take damage to your [Health] over time until you drink something.

5. [Temperature] The bar's colour indicates the body's efficiency in regenerating health, consuming energy, consuming thirst and accumulating fatigue. The optimal colour to maintain is green. If the bar turns blue or red, the player's efficiency in maintaining other bars decreases drastically.

6. [Experience] The number of levels accumulated in this bar can be used to exchange rewards in the [System Shop] and enchant using the enchanting table.

For a more detailed guidebook, kindly refer to the book and quill attached to this mail that can be retrieved from your [Mailbox] any time,

We wish you all the best.

Yours sincerely

System Administrators of Aftercraft.]

Technoblade wasn't fazed by the lengthy admin message. If anything, he was glad this did not span fourteen pages in a book and quill. Scrolling down as he read was way easier than flipping pages. He didn't really need to read the more detailed guidelines yet. After all, the second mail was a huge hint about how he should be playing the game.

Eagerly, Technoblade checked the second mail. He would return to the attached guidebook if he needed advice.

[Dear Player

To help you kickstart your new world's progress, the system has created a unique quest that you may only turn in once for a one-time reward. The details are below.

Quest: Sticks and Stones Won't Break My Bones

Requirements: Gather the following items and submit them to the system.

0/10 sticks

0/10 pebbles

Reward: Recipe for basic cobblestone tools

Hint: Don't punch for wood. Punch something softer like leaves or dirt.

You may turn this in at any time when you are ready. The quest is not repeatable. You can check your quest progress in the [Achievements] window.

Good luck!

System Admin]

Ah! So that was how this game worked. The hint was all Technoblade needed to get started. If there was something he was good at, it was grinding.

Closing the window with two blinks, the first thing the mighty gamer did was look up at the squarish sun. It was still morning. He had enough time to turn in the quest and get himself sorted with the basic tools. Already, his hunger bar was down because he hurt himself silly by punching wood. Finding food and shelter before nightfall was his top priority if he wanted to make it to the end.