"Ha! Worried about competition? Not particularly! It's the multiverse, there's lots to go around."
Vespera's body lifted off the ground and floated around Max whimsically a few times, then stopped in front of him, and poked his nose softly with her finger.
"And you know what? I don't mind sharing with a little cutie like you; after all, that's exactly why you're here in the first place."
Vespera drifted past him once more, delivering a playful smack to his backside before gliding effortlessly back to the couch. With a flourish, she plopped down and gave the cushion beside her an exaggerated pat, her raised eyebrows and sly grin making it abundantly clear that he was expected to take the seat immediately.
"...For being a future 'Co-worker' you sure don't care about what HR has to say, huh?"
Max rubbed his backside, still trying to comprehend how a 'god' could be so 'playful'.
"...You are a strange one, most mortals would be excited about having someone like me grab their buns, and no, there is no 'Human Resources' for you to snitch on me to... Alright, come here and sit. Time to make you sturdier and prettier—yes, yes, so I can give those adorable cheeks of yours a REAL squeeze! Oh, don't give me that face, fine, I'll stop teasing… for now. Just kidding!.. Get over here!"
With a dramatic snap of her fingers, she pointed squarely at Max. In an instant, a thin, glowing pink string of energy shot from her hand, zipping across the air and latching onto his chest. With a playful tug, she reeled him in like a fisherman landing the catch of the day, clearly channeling a certain over-the-top video game ninja. Max couldn't help but snort and laugh as he landed beside her, fully appreciating the 'Mortal Combat' reference, loving every second of it.
"Alright, Maxie, let's get you ready for your big entrance—wherever that ends up being," Vespera said, her voice dripping with amusement and excitement.
She leaned in close, throwing an arm around his shoulders as if they were old friends watching a show, that unique, intoxicating smell of hers now filling his senses as he breathed in the air beside her. The black screen floating in the air moved right in front of them and adjusted itself for a perfect viewing angle.
A sudden flash illuminated the screen, followed by the appearance of a holographic document brimming with a dazzling array of options for a new body. The choices scrolled slowly and majestically down the screen, mimicking the iconic opening crawl of a Star Wars film, each line revealing tantalizing possibilities as if at the character creation screen at the beginning of an epic video game RPG adventure.
Vespera waved a casual hand over the screen and the document changed slightly. The text shifted instantaneously. Where it once read "CP" (Choice Points), it now displayed "GP" (God Points).
"Choice Points just doesn't cut it to describe what's going on. I could've left it at that, but why not call it what it really is?" she said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "We're aiming for godhood here, darling, so let's use the right terminology."
Max's eyes narrowed as the title text changed.
'Essential Body Modification Supplement - by Swordchucks - Edited by Vespera.'
"Wow... you added yourself to the credits..."
Max blinked a few times with a funny look on this face upon witnessing Vespera's name now attached to this particular document that he was already quite familiar with.
Vespera simply rolled her eyes and smiled back.
With another sweeping motion, this one much more grand and dramatic, the dull lines of grey text under each option, and their daunting costs on the virtual page transformed into a radiant, glowing green, signaling that a host of high-tier attributes—ranging from extreme physical enhancements to formidable innate resistances—were now freely available. She was bestowing upon him an unprecedented bounty of gifts, ensuring that he would embark on his journey as an ridiculously strong powerhouse among normal humans, no matter the path or place he chose to begin.
Max blinked some more without speaking further, staring in shock at the sheer generosity. He was used to the typical Jumpchain god dynamics from the rules he'd read and abided by online years ago— those fictional jump-Chans usually just sent jumpers off to entertain them like cosmic reality TV producers, following the rules strictly. This level of assistance was unprecedented and more than welcome, especially considering this Jumpchain was the real deal.
He turned to Vespera, a hint of suspicion causing his eyes to narrow, despite the undeniable generosity.
"Okay, wait a minute," he said, shifting slightly on the couch. "Why the super extra VIP treatment? Why are you helping me 'cheat'? What's the catch?"
Vespera just smiled, a knowing glint in her eyes, leaning in closer. "No catch, Maxie. Just high expectations. I want you to have a good start. A powerful start... Okay, just let your eyes control the text on the screen and select any option you want, the GP will automatically be deducted from your current supply."
Max accepted the explanation and started scrolling through the list on the screen, controlling the whole process with his eyes and thought.
Just like Vespera said, the script moved up and down with Max's gaze as its guide.
He chose nearly all of the basic options, they were free after all. He looked at the options he had picked, all of which turned from their current color to golden lettering, signifying that they had been chosen.
-Cosmetic Refinement (Free)
-Physical Health Refinement (Free)
-Physical Prowess Refinement (Free)
-Mental Health Refinement (Free)
-Mental Awareness Refinement (Free)
-Soul Refinement (Free)
-Spiritual Refinement (Free)
-Spiritual Resource Refinement (Free)
-Secondary Powers Refinement (Free)
All of the above options were quite nice, already placing him above most of Humanity without spending a single GP.
Between Cosmetic Refinement, Physical HealthRefinement, and Physical Prowess Refinement, Max would be able to reshape his body to match his preferences, eliminating any genetic or physical issues and ensure that he's free from common ailments like aging-related illnesses.
Additionally, his overall fitness would rise to that of an active, healthy individual in their prime, capable of performing at about half of his species' peak potential without needing to worry about his body deteriorating.
Max was most excited about Physical Health Refinement. His digestive system would be much, much, MUCH more efficient, more or less eliminating the need to eliminate... so to say.
By selecting both the Mental Health Refinement and Mental Awareness Refinement, Max's mental health would be on par with that of an average, mentally stable member of his species, highly resistant to common psychological issues like PTSD, anxiety, and depression. Most importantly, it would prevent him from experiencing the self-motivation issues or the ennui that often come with living for centuries.
Furthermore, he would gain the ability to quietly assess his own mental state, allowing him to identify any mental illnesses or emotional struggles, which would make therapy more effective and give him better tools to cope with his mental challenges—ultimately making him more mentally resilient and self-aware.
With Soul Refinement, Max would gain awareness of the state of his soul, including any external influences or damage it may have suffered, and would have a vague sense of its location if it's been separated from him. Reclaiming his soul would be his responsibility, but this insight could prove crucial in restoring or protecting his core essence.
Spiritual Refinement was also a must, Max would be considered to possess any prerequisite abilities, skills, or techniques necessary for learning new powers within a Jump—such as bloodline traits or unique prerequisites—though this would not grant those abilities outright. This effectively broadened his potential to learn and adapt, opening up more options for acquiring new skills and techniques.
Finally, with Spiritual Resource Refinement, Max would be able to seamlessly interchange all forms of non-physical energy—like chakra, psionic energy, or any other energy type—eliminating the need to track separate resources, allowing him to use a versatile and unified energy pool for a variety of powers.
By selecting the Secondary Powers Refinement, Max would automatically acquire any supplementary abilities needed to safely and effectively use his primary powers—such as stabilizers or safeguards that prevent self-damage during extreme feats like supersonic running. Essentially, this refinement ensures his powers function smoothly within the bounds of comic book physics, enabling him to utilize his abilities without risking injury or malfunction.
Max looked at the last free option available with an excited grin and also chose it without hesitation.
-The Interface (Free)
The Interface would provide a seamless, game-like overlay that would offer vital information and communication options to the user. It includes features such as a Character Stat Sheet displaying mechanical details like perks and items as well as physical traits like intelligence, strength etc.
Also included was a status window showing any current injuries and effects, and a party window listing active and inactive companions with their statuses. It also offered a 'quest window' to track objectives, a timer window for countdowns related to Jumps or 'quests', and a help menu containing all known rules and systems relevant to the user.
Last but most certainly not least, any physical or digital money that he gained could be converted into a value within the interface, allowing him to convert and transfer any wealth into other Jumps.
Best part though? If Max decided to choose other interfaces like this in other Jumps, they would merge seamlessly with this one, forming a unified system for information and communication in the future.
Max nodded his head in satisfaction while thinking, 'Being isekai-ed without a system or interface would be weird, right?' while Vespera observed him making his choices in interested silence.
There were a few free options that Max had not selected, feeling them to be redundant compared to similar, more powerful perks that cost GP further down the list.
'Essences' was the heading of the next section. Here Max would be able to choose one which would give discounts for GP cost to their respective perks.
Around twenty or so essences were available to choose from, such as Essence of the Scholar, which boosted knowledge learning capabilities, Essence of the Assassin, boosting precision when it came to ending lives etc.
After scrolling through the list several times, he narrowed it down to three choices.
-Essence of the Brute (Bru) - Your calling is to become a one-person force capable of defeating armies.
-Essence of the Crafter (Cra) - Your calling is to build things, from the great to the small.
-Essence of the Superior (Sup) -Your calling is to go beyond human, stretching your limits with powers both internal and acquired.
Max hummed and hawed about it for a few moments before selecting what he wanted, he kept in mind that these essences were just a cost reduction gimmick for other perks and thus chose 'Essence of the Superior' .
The (Sup) tag could be found attached to all of the powerful perks he had his eyes on, more so than the other two, so it was an easy choice.
Max started picking those discounted perks next, starting with the highest level of 'Physical Prowess' , costing him 1/10th of his GP.
Its description read as follows: Your body performs better than normal for your species. This affects all physical attributes, including strength, speed, endurance, agility, coordination, flexibility, and healing rate: x5 peak performance for your species. You effectively no longer need to sleep, unless you want to of course...
'Physical Resistance' right underneath the previous perk was picked next, selected at its highest setting for another 100 GP, leaving Max with 800.
Max would gain the effect: Your body resists negative effects, you are immune to normal diseases, parasites, bacteria, toxins, and the degenerative effects of radiation. Resistance to damage increases to 50%. You are also, at your discretion, resistant to effects that would mutate or alter your form and you have a very high pain tolerance.
Survivability was Max's largest concern at this point. He had gone through this very document many times before and knew exactly what he was looking for.
He choose 'Environmental Tolerance', 'Regeneration', 'Ageless', 'Corruption Resistance', 'Mental Resistance' and 'Inertia of Self' for another 600 GP, leaving him with only 200 left.
With these, Max would be completely immune to hazardous environments, including extreme temperatures well above 1500°C, freezing temperatures, high pressures, and all levels and types of radiation.
His body would now heal rapidly from injuries with no scars, able to regrow even limbs within a few minutes and Max would no longer age or degenerate, maintaining peak health indefinitely, with the ability to halt or resume or regress aging at will.
The soul within him would be protected from supernatural influences like curses or possessions, remaining uncorrupted.
Fully immune to hax-like, bull-crap effects that could normally otherwise alter or destroy his body, existence, or destiny, including conceptual and reality-warping influences, preventing future harm or manipulation for Max. The mind would also be highly resistant to mental attacks, mind control, memetic hazards, and insanity, achieving complete immunity to these effects.
Vespera was wearing a small smile at this point, giving her silent approval of his survivalists 'playstyle'.
Up next was a perk he had his eye on that would be very useful in every universe he visited, not just the end goal universe of TLM.
'Blank' (200 GP)(Discount to 100 GP) - You cannot be tracked or read through supernatural or technological means, and others cannot predict your past, present, or future. You can detect when someone is trying to gather information about you and can feed them false data, especially against technological or magical observation methods. Items you create are also protected, making them hard to predict, detect, or analyze with most supernatural or technological tools.
Max figured this would keep him safe from mages, seers, fortune tellers like Aesop, and stopping skills like 'Bold Explorer' in their tracks. It would also be important and very useful for dealing with a certain someone in the first Jump he planned to visit.
"Just 100 GP left huh? Let's go with this then..."
With a look from his eyes, the perk, 'Copywrite Enforcement' turned from the regular colored text to the same golden color as his other selections. This was the final and only perk where he did not receive the half off cost effect from his chosen 'Essence of the Superior'.
'Copyright Enforcement' (100 GP): Any items or technologies you create, import, or build are protected from reverse engineering unless you choose to remove that protection for a specific one. It's not foolproof, as someone within a Jump could come up with something similar if their tech level allows, but they won't be able to use your actual design or technology to make it happen.
As soon as he spent his last bit of GP, Vespera turned her head and finally spoke up.
"Well, that's an unexpected final choice... all around good stuff though, Mr. Max, here... eat this."
Vespera held open her palm in front of Max's face, in it sat a small, pink colored item that looked like a candy, or maybe a pill?
"What's this?"
Max turned his head and glanced at the small pink item before grabbing it from her and shoving it in his mouth.
It tasted terrible, so he quickly swallowed it whole.
"That's a little item I like to call 'Cosmic anesthetic'. What do you feel right now?"
Max paused for a moment and took into account his current state, patting his body here and there along the way.
"Eh? I feel... Nothing? I don't really have any sense of touch?!"
The feeling, or no feeling in this case, was exactly what Vespera was aiming at.
"Good, this would really, really, hurt otherwise..."
"Uggghhh..."
Max was about to respond, until he felt his consciousness starting to slip, only letting out a grunt instead. It was a similar feeling to trying to stay awake after being up for more than 24 hours... He slumped on the couch, head falling forward.
Vespera carefully caught him before he could fall forward and off the couch.
The self acclaimed goddess produced one more item out of thin air, just like the cosmic anesthetic had been moments ago.
It was about the size of a pill but shaped like a sunflower seed. Its black surface shimmered with faint flashes of pink, purple, and blue that drifted across it from time to time, dotted with tiny glowing white specks, like a miniature model of space.
This is what was known as a 'God Seed'.
Vespera motioned with her hand, causing the seed and Max to float in the air. She gestured with her fingers and the seed rushed towards Max, touching the center of his forehead and permeating right inside.
Two extraordinary things happened moments later.
Even though he was still very unconscious, Max's eyes suddenly opened and glowed gold.
All of the selected perks highlighted in golden text on the screen suddenly abandoned the godly monitor.
Every golden word, sentence and paragraph rushed towards Max, circling around him several times before rushing into his glowing eyes.
BOOOOM!
There was a bright flash of light and a large explosion of golden energy, with Max floating at the epicenter.
He slowly floated lower and lower as the energy dissipated, wafting golden smoke still rolling out of the corners of his eyes.
This version of Max looked similar, yet completely different from his previous self!
Max's new body wasn't overly bulky, but it was definitely more impressive than before. Think of a top-tier martial artist—lean, toned, with just the right amount of muscle. His shoulders were broad but not ballooning out, and his chest looked powerful but not exaggerated. His arms were thick enough to pack a punch, but still sleek enough to move fast.
His back was straight and solid, giving him a confident stance, but he still looked like someone who'd been through years of intense training—ready for anything, but not some gym rat.
His face, meanwhile, still looked like his—familiar, but somehow different. It was like he'd gone from cute to downright handsome, yet somehow kept that original charm. His features were sharper, more defined, but he still had that same easygoing vibe. And his eyes—those bright green/brown orbs—had gotten a little more intense, glowing more than just a touch brighter and greener.
Max came back to full consciousness and shook his head back and forth a few times, looking down at his new self and feeling the changes.
If he'd been a 6 or 7 out of 10 before, now he was now definitely hitting 12.
All the wear and tear from his life, his slightly sore back, the stress... all gone. It was like he had been reborn.
'Damn, this is like Gohan after he went Super Saiyan 2—my muscles got the meanest of pumps going on right now. I look, and feel like I could crush a brick wall if I wanted to!'
Max felt utterly rejuvenated, not only in body but also in mind and spirit. Mental stability coursed through him, sharpening his thoughts and bringing a clarity he had never experienced before.
Every thought seemed to flow effortlessly, and his senses felt heightened, as though a veil had been lifted from his perception. It was as if he had stepped into a brighter, more vivid world where everything made perfect sense.
Vespera spoke and brought Max's focus back to her moments later.
"Now, how about a hardware test?.."
"Eh? Hardware test?"
Vespera smiled, her gaze dropping meaningfully before meeting his again. With a deliberate, practiced movement, she let one strap of her dress slip down her shoulder, revealing more of her perfect, godly skin.
"So, Max," she purred, her voice a low hum that vibrated in his chest. "Wanna try it? Think of it as a quality assurance test for the new body."
Max paused, taking in the scene. He might be a self-proclaimed nerd, but he'd had his wild times back in his twenties. He wasn't like Han Xiao, entirely consumed by machinery and potential points; Max appreciated the finer things in life, and that included a beautiful woman—not to mention a beautiful god! Coupled with his new mind, soul and body... He may have declined out of some weird sense of being a lesser being before his transformation, but now?
He raised an eyebrow, a slow, sly, grin spreading across his face.