I. The Fall and the Faultline — Ten Years Ago
Before Star City glimmered with neon scars and echoed with restless monsters, it was a place of laws, towering glass spires, and a hidden underbelly of poverty. According to Ministry archives and the whispered rumors on cracked street corners, the world as we know it ended on one rain-soaked evening—the 17th of May, exactly ten years before the events you've been following. That night is etched in every citizen's soul as the Night of the First Cataclysm.
At the heart of Central District, the sky tore open with a wrenching sound, rending reality itself: a Gate—a portal anomaly with blue flames licking its curling edges—ripped through the city's veins. What came through was neither purely magic nor science, but a mixture that shattered both laws. Streets buckled as if breathing, people vanished or twisted into nightmarish forms, and monsters poured out—creatures shaped by raw, ancient magic so primeval it defied understanding.
The city fell in moments. Buildings high and low cracked as the ground swallowed itself. The great Ministry of Safety lost control, and unknown realms flooded the waking world. The darkness after was not just absence—it was a force bent on devouring hope.
II. Surviving the Cataclysm — The Birth of Systems
From the ashes and chaos came the strange, impossible phenomenon: System Seeds.
These orbs, crystalline and humming with twisted magic and ancient code, appeared throughout the city—sometimes in the hands of the dying, sometimes in the clutch of the desperate.
No one truly knows how the first seeds came to be—some claim they fell like incinerated stars, others say they grew from human defiance itself. What survivors saw was this: those who bonded with a seed were reborn with powers, but at a terrible cost.
These "systems" weren't mere spells or technology—they were living legacies of the Gates, containing fragments of lost civilizations, ancient magic, and the thirst of realms beyond. Bonding meant a mark—sigils burned into the flesh, glowing with power that could heal, destroy, or twist reality. But every gift demanded blood. Memory loss, physical pain, madness—the price was real and looming.
Qiren's own journey began here: in flooded ruins, among black markets trading relics, in shadows where syndicates carved out new dark empires, and pockets of hope struggled to survive.
III. The Power Ladder — Humans and Monsters, Systems and Seeds
The old power structures crumbled, replaced by a brutal new hierarchy—not of wealth, but of survival and strength:
Ordinary: Unmarked citizens, scraping by with cautious stealth or plain luck.
Relic-Users: Wielders of basic Gate relics—tattoos, enchanted coins, forgotten weapons—powerful yet vulnerable, marked by their bravery or stupidity.
System-Bound: Those fused with a system seed like Qiren have sharp advantages—but their glowing marks also paint targets on their backs.
Crown-Bearers: The seven most powerful system-wielders in the city. They are myths, legends, and the final gatekeepers of the city's fate.
Monsters, too, are ranked by threat level using a system borne from early disaster records:
D-class: Minor pests and nuisances—shadow rats, spark cats, and whispering foglings.
C-class: Pack hunters and troublesome beasts—hydra cubs, relic hounds, skirmishing shadow wolves.
B-class: Disasters in miniature—Thunderjaws, fierce glass drakes, lone corrupted system-bearers.
A-class: City-level threats that cause ruins and collapse—rare and terrifying.
Crown (S+ level): The stuff of legend. Powerful, often system users themselves, they are the city's hidden kings and queens.
IV. Power Science — System Seeds, Magic-Tech, and Risk
So, what exactly is a system seed?
Current research suggests that Gate energy, a volatile blend of mana and ancient computing code, fuses itself unpredictably with willing or desperate humans. This fusion imprints a unique "system" onto the host, encoded with abilities like skill trees, inventory slots, power stats, and monstrous talents.
The mark burns into the skin—visible to all, a badge of power and curse.
Each system varies wildly. Some can conjure flames. Some can heal decades-old wounds. Others, like Qiren's Sinwave, can steal or tame powers from monsters, making their power a double-edged sword. Known as the "Cataclysm's Echo," the Sinwave system is believed to be the last remnant of the original Gate storm itself, choosing only one host at a time—and dragging its bearer into escalating danger.
V. System Levels, Skills, and Survival
The life of a system bearer is a brutal climb up an unforgiving ladder:
Levels 1–10: Barely surviving. Scavenging, learning the risks of power use. Most fall here—broken or hunted.
Levels 11–20: Specialization begins. Taming minor beasts. Gaining dangerous spells and abilities. Many find new enemies as they draw attention.
Levels 21–30: Command over rare skills, unique powers. Beginning of the "predator or prey" phase. Hunter guilds and the Ministry take serious notice.
Levels 31+: The system gains a voice, sentience, and dangerous autonomy. Few reach this — the line between hero and monster thins.
At the highest, one can become a Crown-Bearer, wielding power that reshapes the city's fate.
VI. Science vs. Soul — Why Not Everyone Can Bond
Why did Qiren receive the Sinwave system when hundreds try and fail? Why not others?
No one knows for sure. Ministry science points to desperation, bloodline echoes, and sheer proximity.
The Gates, some believe, choose not strength, but the resilience forged from despair. Qiren's bond was born in a moment of desperation, not unique blood—and that is the mystery driving rumor and fear alike. The Ministry can only replicate a few bonds a year—and none like his.
VII. Factions Rising — From Chaos, New Order
When order fell, new powers wrested control:
The Ministry: Ruthless guardians of the "safe" zones, their Guardians patrol the city in rune-etched armor, hunting unregistered system users, often willing to use brutal force.
The Syndicates: From the shadows, criminal empires rise. Black markets trade relics and system tech, controlling vast stretches with muscle and money.
The Gatewalkers: Freelance hunters, researchers, and rebels. Qiren is one. They shift between factions, seeking survival—and sometimes glory.
VIII. Daily Life in a Shattered City
Most citizens cling to rituals: sealing doors with charms, trading relic shards for food, hoping the next Gate breach doesn't swallow their homes.
Law is transactional: power decides right and wrong. The city shifts shape like a living beast—today a market, tomorrow a mutated swamp.
Young hopefuls dream of system awakening, knowing it might very well doom them.
IX. The Present Battle — The Sinwave's Echo
Ten years on, the city still bleeds from its wounds. Qiren, marked and hunted, walks a tightrope between power and destruction. The Ministry and syndicates tighten their noose. The Gates pulse with fresh malice. The whispered myth of the Seven Crowns grows louder.
Yan Yue is his anchor — a survivor of the first Disaster, a brilliant but clumsy researcher driven by equal parts guilt and hope.
Together, they face a world poised on the edge of another Cataclysm.
X. Bridging the Gaps
Year: Cataclysm happened 10 years ago from story start. Timeline notation: Year 0 = Cataclysm; story begins Year 10 A.G. (After Gate).
City Zones: Safe zones under Ministry supervision; Fringe Districts—zones of chaos, mix of hunters and syndicates; Wilds—ruins consumed by monsters and magic, where outcasts like Qiren roam.
Gates' Mystery: Ancient prophecies hint these wounds in the city's "ley grid" will always bleed unless closed—new Gates may appear as long as scars remain.
Current Conflict: All factions want the power Qiren and Yan Yue represent: as weapons, prizes, or sacrifices for a creeping, deadly new Gate cycle.