_ First spatial dimension. Star Calendar year 8XXX of the Galactic System.
In the Vũ family clan, a newlywed couple was whispering sweetly to each other as they thought of a name for their soon-to-be-born child. Vũ Gia Hoàng — the 13th generation head of the Vũ family — was holding his wife, Mai Lan, in his arms. A wife he had tricked into marrying him out of desperation— no, wait, he meant to say, a wife he had chased after for a long time before finally winning her heart.
Vũ Gia Hoàng gently kissed his young wife's forehead and said, "Our child shall be named Vũ Hữu Duyên. Whether it's a boy or a girl, this name will suit either. Lan Nhi, what do you think?"
Mai Lan smiled, resting her head on his chest, and gently replied, "Yes, it's a lovely name. The baby must truly be fated to be with us."
Gia Hoàng smiled, embracing both his wife and the unborn child in her belly. He lifted her up and spun her around in joy to express his happiness. At first, Mai Lan was surprised, but seeing her husband act like a child with candy made her laugh. Who would think that a young genius, praised by the world, could be so childish at home?
The two played in the garden of the Vũ family estate, but the warm atmosphere was suddenly interrupted by the "beep beep" of the optical brain device on his wrist. Vũ Gia Hoàng glanced at it from the corner of his eye, and that one glance made his brow furrow, then relax again. Holding his wife's hand gently, he said, "Lan Nhi, the military has deployed me to the battlefield. I'll be back with you and our child soon. Take care of yourself at home."
"Yes, you too! No matter what happens, remember that our baby and I are waiting for your return," Trần Mai Lan said as she rubbed her belly.
Vũ Gia Hoàng gently kissed the corner of her lips and then her belly—the place where the fruit of their love was growing. "I promise I'll be careful." With that, he quickly turned and walked away, afraid that if he didn't leave now, he might not be able to at all.
He was the youngest major general in the Chinese Federation, the youngest in history to reach the god-tier level—a rank that allowed him to sense danger approaching. This time, the feeling of danger was overwhelming, making him genuinely fear that he might not return. Vũ Gia Hoàng smiled bitterly and thought, "Even if there's only a one-in-ten chance of survival, I still have to go. Not for anything else, but because I'm a soldier. My duty is to protect the people, to defend the Federation. Even if I must sacrifice myself, I will go. But… Lan Nhi…"
Thinking of his young wife made him feel guilty. But then he reminded himself that with the power of the Vũ family and all the resources he had prepared, even if something happened to him, she would still be able to safely give birth. Clenching his fist, he silently vowed to return safely.
With that thought, he decisively walked away and joined his legion, boarding the nano-mech. Together with his subordinates, he charged into battle to repel the enemy.
Suddenly, a crisis erupted. The enemy, knowing that Vũ Gia Hoàng had reached god-tier, realized normal nano-weapons would be ineffective. They deployed a super-nano mech to force him toward the Death Planet—a place so named because no one who entered it ever returned.
Though Vũ Gia Hoàng understood their plan, the moment he saw that super-nano mech, his expression changed. It had once been part of the Federation but was deemed too dangerous and uncontrollable, so the upper ranks had destroyed it—or so they thought. Now, seeing it again sent a chill through him and ignited a fierce rage.
He immediately ordered his subordinates to retreat, knowing that no one could withstand the might of the super-nano mech. But of course, he wouldn't die in vain. As they neared the Death Planet, when the enemy was distracted and celebrating, thinking he had been defeated, he unleashed his technique—Heaven-Cleaving Strike—to eliminate them all. A flash of light burst forth, followed by painful, anguished screams.
"MAJOR GENERAL—"
"COMMANDER!"
---
Second Dimension, according to the Earth calendar, year 2XXX.
In a hospital room at the world's leading hospital, a child is born, and it is also the tragedy for that child.
The girl was born on a winter morning, with light snow falling outside the delivery room window. The child, weighing about 3.1kg, was crying so hard that her face turned red, and her tiny hand tightly grasped her mother's finger as if trying to hold on to something.
Everyone said the girl had brighter eyes than others, but no one knew those eyes would never find peace. The pain began when the girl started walking. At first, it was midnight crying, followed by sudden trembling fits that made her body tremble like a small leaf caught in a storm. No fever, no infection, no trauma—just pain in a way no one could explain. The doctors diagnosed it as 'neurological disorder of unknown cause'. Medications came and went, one injection after another, but nothing changed. It was already known that the girl would not survive for long. Because of this, her family named her "Vũ Vô Duyên" (meaning "No Fate") as a symbol of their belief that they had no fate with each other in this lifetime.
Her mother gradually stopped crying. She would sit by little Duyên's side, counting each of her daughter's ragged breaths after she turned three, and a naive sentence from the girl would pierce the mother's heart like a sharp knife:
"I won't cry anymore, I've gotten used to the pain."
Her father—a strong man—had desperately sought out doctors, sought out healers, tried every possible way. But in the end, that man could only hold his little daughter's hand each night, as if trying to hold on to something, to prevent it from slipping away, from leaving their family.
And one night, Vô Duyên sat up and softly said:
"I know I won't live long. But I want... to live like a normal person, even just for one day."
No one responded, for they knew... that was the one thing they could never give her.
By the age of eight, Vô Duyên had grown much thinner, her face pale, but her eyes still strangely resilient. And her family, they didn't know when they had given up on their beloved child. Vô Duyên thought to herself: "It's fine. I won't live long anyway. This is probably the best way. Dad and Mom have a little brother now, so it's good. Seeing them happy, I'm happy too." She would always comfort herself like that, but only she knew how much it hurt inside. She also wanted to be loved, to play, to see her little brother go to school, but she could only look at him with longing eyes. One day, while cleaning in the attic, she accidentally found an ancient manuscript with strange characters: "Breathe according to the pulse from the top of the head to the lower abdomen. Mind follows the breath, breath follows the pulse, with a calm mind, the body finds peace."
Vô Duyên didn't know that by reading those words, her body naturally started to practice them. She didn't know that she had just learned a part of the "Body Nourishing Method"—an ancient, nearly lost technique. For the first time in her life, she was able to sleep peacefully. Thanks to this, she was able to live quietly until the age of sixteen, but it didn't mean the pain disappeared; it still lingered, smoldering like embers waiting for the wind.
That evening, the wind picked up. Vô Duyên sat in the garden, her eyes half-closed, breathing slowly. Her mother stood at a distance, silently watching her daughter's figure, trying to hold on to a spark of life.
A lightning bolt flashed. The light tore apart the sky.
She fell.
The mother rushed over, holding the now cold body in her arms. But that little hand... could no longer hold on to anything.
"Little Duyên... are you tired now? I'm sorry... I've failed you..."
Third Dimension, Earth Calendar Year 125XXX
The world changed on a gray morning.
No one knew why a deep, pitch-black hole suddenly split open in the heart of the city. From within, darkness surged out as if it had a life of its own, rising to the surface and sweeping along waves of terrifying monsters.
At that time, he was still just a regular high school student.
No — not regular. He always kept his head down, spoke little, and avoided other people's eyes. Because he had a body unlike anyone else's — both male and female. A being of difference, hiding behind a cold shell to shield himself from judgmental stares. People called him a "monster," and he had grown used to silence as a form of armor.
His name was Lan Dực.
And the world… began to collapse.
---
The first dungeon opened in the middle of the city. Then came the second, the third, the thirteenth… Monsters flooded out like a tidal wave. The military couldn't hold them back. One by one, people with special powers rose up. The death toll climbed. With each passing day, another city disappeared from the map.
Lan Dực never thought he could do anything — until he watched his only friend torn apart right before his eyes. And that pain… awakened something in his blood.
A flame ignited in his heart. His body burned, as if his bones were melting. And then… he stood up.
Barehanded. Eyes glowing.
The first monster fell.
The entire rescue team looked at him as if a god had descended.
---
From that day on, Lan Dực became the only one capable of sealing dungeon gates. He trained relentlessly, and his intersex body — once a source of shame — became the foundation for merging two forces: light and darkness.
He was no longer cold. In the eyes of the people, he was humanity's final hope for survival.
He traveled through ruined cities, fought alongside resistance forces — one person, one gate — sealing off the monster world step by step.
The final day. The 99th dungeon gate was closed.
He collapsed from exhaustion.
The whole world fell silent. They thought he had died.
They built statues, raised flags, and held memorial ceremonies.
The savior had fallen.
But the truth was…
He wasn't dead.
---
A stark white room. No windows. No natural light.
Laboratory No. 18.
Inside, Lan Dực was shackled. His memory tampered with. Daily injections left him unaware of who he was. Only the pain remained unchanged — each night he awoke trembling and bleeding.
No one outside knew: the person they worshipped had been turned into a biological weapon, imprisoned like a lab rat, forced to develop power without ever being allowed to live like a human being.
And then…
One night, the memories that had been wiped clean began to stir.
A flash of light sparked in Lan Dực's eyes.
And the black hole returned.
---