Highlighted Notice in the First Row:This is NOT a beautiful story!
Destiny Organization – West Asia Regional Headquarters.
In an underground laboratory unknown to the general public, in a space as miserable as a prison cell...
A young man with black hair, dressed in thin clothes and so skinny he looked like skin and bones, suddenly curved his chapped lips into a terrifying grin.He had become the Tenth Herrscher of this era of civilization — the Herrscher of Domination.
He could also be called: the Herrscher of a Thousand.
Ling Ke was a transmigrator from Tianchao.
His initial experience was extremely cliché.
A few years ago, around the autumn of 2013 in this era, he arrived in the world of Honkai Impact 3rd, a world incredibly familiar to him.
For years, he had been an overworked and underappreciated janitor — a "captain" who clocked in daily without rest. He always loved, admired, and even respected those who were willing to fight for the beauty of this world.Because he felt he could never sacrifice himself so decisively.
So, at that time, upon realizing he had arrived just before the outbreak of the "Third Great Eruption," he thought:
"If I can't be as extraordinary as them, at least I can help them."
For example: stop Cocolia's plot.
He remembered that in his mind, millions of innocent citizens of Changkong City had died in that man-made catastrophe.
Moreover, Raiden Mei, one of the Three Major Houses, had become the Third Herrscher because of it, and had lived for a long time consumed by guilt and torment.
So much so that later on, she even installed a miniature bomb in her own heart to limit the risk of losing control as a Herrscher.
Ling Ke knew that if this world's future followed its original course, humanity would eventually overcome its destined annihilation.
They would even give rise to an "Earth Goddess."
But in that process, too many people would be left with too many regrets.
"If my help can amend some of those tragedies—like saving Professor Himeko..."
"...or preventing the extinction of the Garden of Eden, allowing the Flamechas to personally witness humanity surpassing the end..."
"Wouldn't that make this story just a little more beautiful?"
That year, Ling Ke had that thought.
That's why, even knowing that the Third Great Eruption would break out in Changkong City, he didn't flee the disaster zone immediately.
He found Raiden Mei, who had not yet become a Herrscher, and personally revealed to her some of the critical information he knew.
He told her, for instance, that Cocolia would have Raiden Ryoma imprisoned on financial charges, and that once her protector disappeared, terrible consequences would follow.
He explained some basic details about the "Honkai," and feeling that he had gained a bit of her trust, asked her to contact her father soon and pass along the message.
He didn't tell her directly about her transformation into a Herrscher... to avoid sending her into a state of extreme panic.
Ling Ke believed that if Raiden Ryoma knew enough — being a high-ranking officer in Anti-Entropy — he wouldn't follow the same tragic path.
But...
Ling Ke didn't know exactly what happened afterward.
He only remembered that the next day, he fell into a trap set by Cocolia.
He was surrounded by heavily armed special forces.
They even sent Anti-Entropy mechas to capture him...
And someone else appeared — a very familiar young girl: Bronya Zaychik.
She had already risen to the top of the "Charon List" as the world's number one assassin. At that time, Ling Ke had no way to resist.
And since he had no knowledge of counterespionage, he was accurately tracked again and again.
Eventually, they dislocated his arms and legs and captured him.
In the months that followed, Ling Ke never saw Bronya again.
Because he was taken directly to an underground facility under Cocolia's control, where he experienced torture straight out of the movie The Whisper of the Wind.
During that time, he discovered that his willpower was even stronger than he had believed.
So, despite being tortured constantly, he revealed no sensitive information.
Ling Ke knew perfectly well that if he spilled everything he knew, that lunatic Cocolia might trigger an even greater catastrophe.
After all, she wasn't nicknamed the "Goddess of Civil War" for nothing.
And once he lost his value...
Death?
Honestly, he often thought about ending his life.
But by then, a seed of darkness had already been planted in his heart.
He would make Cocolia pay.
And it was during that very process that he discovered — to his surprise — that truth serums and similar methods had no effect on his will.
Driven by his thirst for vengeance, he barely managed to survive those months... until the moment of the Third Great Eruption arrived, just as history had foretold.
At the end of March 2014, too many things happened.
So many, in fact, that Cocolia didn't even have time to retrieve the still-imprisoned Ling Ke from Changkong City and withdrew in a hurry.
A few days passed.
And then, Ling Ke saw another familiar face.
Rita Rossweisse.
After the Far East branch retreated, she arrived in Changkong City as a researcher for Schicksal.
With her skills, it didn't take long for her to locate the underground base Cocolia had abandoned.
And she... found him.
At that moment, Ling Ke thought he had finally been freed from his hell.But he didn't expect to be stepping into an even deeper one.
By then, his body already showed signs of erosion due to prolonged exposure to high levels of Honkai energy... but those symptoms started to fade.
The scientists at Schicksal discovered him in that state and thought they had struck gold.
They assumed Ling Ke was an Anti-Entropy experiment, and so...
Over the following years, he was transferred to the West Asia regional headquarters, and never saw real sunlight again.
What he endured from that point on was a torment even more brutal than anything before.
The process even reminded him of the story called Ajin.
He no longer felt like a living person, but a piece of meat... a resource to be used at will.
Until today...
"..."
In that strange subspace, before the gigantic and all-too-"familiar" Theater of Domination
, Ling Ke said nothing at first.
He stood there, eyes vacant, soulless, like a hollow puppet.
But slowly...
"Hehe..."
"Ha!"
"Hahahahahaha!"
Feeling that complete Herrscher Core nestled in his chest, capable of splitting from "one" into "a thousand" at any time...
Confirming that he was the true bearer of the Herrscher of Domination's core...
Ling Ke laughed.
His face twisted with madness, like an unleashed demon.Perhaps... he had already gone completely insane.
Because there was still not a single spark of life in his eyes.Just like Kiritsugu Emiya in the Fourth Holy Grail War...
All that remained was...
That dark obsession, no longer just a seed — it had fully sprouted!His name was:
"I endured unspeakable suffering for nearly four years. At last, I've waited long enough for this moment of change."
"Good! Very good! Perfect!"
"Since you've given me this chance, then..."
Standing before the gates of the Theater of Domination, with a completely unhinged expression like someone whose brain had been stabbed, Ling Ke raised both arms:
"From this moment on, in this world…"
"...I will carry out my vengeance!"