Darkness clung to Lin Xuanyuan like a shroud.
He didn't dream. He remembered—things that couldn't have belonged to him.
Golden palaces orbiting stars. A voice that commanded galaxies. The fall of an empire so vast, entire worlds wept as it burned.
When he finally awoke, he wasn't in Blackwater anymore.
The sky was red.
A dull crimson haze blanketed the heavens, casting the shattered land below in a sickly light. The winds carried the scent of ash and metal. Jagged ruins pierced the earth like broken bones. Towers once sleek with chrome and neon were now twisted monuments to a forgotten age.
Lin stumbled to his feet, groaning.
His muscles ached—but they were stronger. His vision flickered. He could see deeper into the light, the cracks in the rubble, the pulses of static that danced across the wreckage like faint ghosts.
"What… happened?"
> "System initializing…" "Host neural fusion: 12% complete." "Warning: synchronization unstable. Cognitive dissonance probable."
The voice returned—calm, cold, inhuman.
> "You have awakened. Your body has accepted the fusion. You now possess the foundation of the Legacy Protocol."
"What does that even mean?" Lin demanded, staggering over broken ground. "Where the hell am I?"
> "You are within Sector 17-Beta. Outer ring of the Eastern Wastes. Estimated time since Cataclysm: forty-two hours."
He paused, scanning the horizon. Skyscrapers half-buried in sand. Skeletons of aircraft. Towering black statues cracked and corroded by centuries.
None of it made sense.
"This... isn't Blackwater."
> "Negative. This is what remains. Civilization has collapsed. You were relocated during the initiation sequence."
A sudden wind swept across the wasteland. It carried a sound—half wind, half whisper.
Voices.
He turned sharply.
Nothing.
He clenched his fists. Sparks jumped across his fingers. Not fire. Not lightning. Something else.
Code?
"What did you do to me?" he whispered.
> "Genetic compatibility confirmed. Your blood carries echoes of the Old Bloodline. You are the final candidate of the Heaven's Will system."
> "You have been chosen to awaken the Forbidden."
Lin stared at his hand. The veins beneath his skin glowed faintly gold for a heartbeat, then faded.
He should've been afraid.
But somewhere beneath the panic… a thread of purpose pulsed.
A memory—no, a vision—surfaced again.
A man in black and silver armor standing atop a ruined world, his eyes burning like stars.
The same eyes Lin had seen in his reflection just before he touched the core.
"Was that… me?"
> "That was the last Emperor. Your neural imprint is syncing with his final legacy. Memories. Skills. Willpower."
Lin exhaled slowly. "You're trying to make me into him."
> "No," the AI said, voice flat. "You are already becoming."
In the distance, a loud rumble broke the silence. Dust rose from beyond a shattered ridge.
Movement.
Lin ducked behind a broken pillar. His breath caught as black shapes emerged—dozens of them. Not soldiers. Not beasts. Machines. Spider-like walkers dragging cages of scavenged metal and bone. Mounted on them were ragged survivors—some human, some not.
Scavengers.
"Hostile?" he whispered.
> "Unclear. Approach not recommended. Your presence will attract attention."
Too late.
A shriek erupted from one of the machines. A red beam swept the ruins—locking onto Lin's location.
He ran.
Stone shattered behind him. Shrapnel tore at his side. His feet barely touched the ground as he sprinted through a crumbling corridor of pre-Collapse ruins, heart pounding, breath burning.
They were faster.
One leapt from its walker, crashing down in front of him. A humanoid figure, half metal, half flesh, eyes gleaming red. It hissed and drew a jagged blade.
Lin stumbled back.
> "Warning: threat level moderate. Suggestion: channel core energy through upper limbs. Form: Palm Pulse."
"I don't know how!"
> "Instinct will guide you. The Legacy remembers."
The scavenger lunged.
Lin raised his arm. A golden ripple burst from his palm—a wave of force and static. The attacker flew back, smashing through a wall of steel and stone.
Lin blinked, stunned.
"What the hell was that?"
> "Heaven-Tier Technique: Palm Pulse. Legacy tier: Unstable."
> "You are not ready. But your enemies won't wait."
More shrieks.
More lights.
They were coming.
Lin didn't think—he ran deeper into the ruins.
Down into the dark.
He reached a corridor lined with glowing glyphs etched into steel. As he passed, they lit up—reacting to his presence. The deeper he went, the warmer the air became. Energy hummed through the ground like a heartbeat.
At the end of the corridor, a sealed door.
He placed his palm on it.
> "Biometric signature confirmed. Legacy vault opening…"
Steam hissed. Gears groaned.
The door opened, revealing a narrow chamber filled with floating shards of memory—holograms frozen in time. Armored warriors, battles in the sky, voices chanting in an ancient tongue.
A circular pedestal rose from the center.
Resting on it was a black orb, pulsing slowly with gold light.
> "This is the Forbidden Core." "Touch it, and the path begins."
Lin stared at it, chest rising and falling.
"This is insane," he muttered. "I was just some nobody. A street rat."
> "You still are," the AI said coldly. "But inside you burns the last flame of empire."
> "What you choose now… will determine if Heaven rises again."
Lin Xuanyuan stepped forward.
And touched the core.
The chamber exploded with light.
The explosion of light was not just brightness—it was a searing flood of energy that coursed through Lin's entire body. Every nerve, every muscle, every cell vibrated as if struck by a lightning storm.
His vision shattered into fractals, spinning kaleidoscopes of color and sound.
He screamed—not from pain, but from something ancient stirring inside him.
The AI's voice echoed in his mind, now clearer, more urgent.
> "Legacy integration at 47%. Neural pathways aligning with the Forbidden Core. Prepare for cognitive expansion."
Lin collapsed onto the cold floor, clutching his head as memories—alien yet familiar—flooded his mind.
He saw battles raging across starscapes, swords forged from light, armies rising and falling like tides.
Faces appeared—warriors, emperors, and gods—each whispering secrets in a language older than time.
One voice broke through the chaos—a deep, commanding baritone, resonating with undeniable authority.
"He who bears the Heaven's Will shall reclaim the lost empire."
Lin gasped. His heart thundered.
But this wasn't just power—it was a responsibility heavier than any he'd known.
> "Warning: mental overload imminent."
The chamber trembled as Lin fought to maintain control.
Sweat poured down his face, his breath ragged.
> "Accept the legacy. Or be consumed."
With a roar, Lin clenched his fists, channeling the chaotic energy surging inside him.
Golden light radiated from his palms, spreading across his skin like a living armor.
His wounds from earlier began to knit themselves closed—muscles repairing faster than possible.
His eyes snapped open, now glowing faint gold, pupils sharp and focused.
"I'm… still me," he whispered, voice steady.
> "Affirmative. Core fusion stable. Legacy Protocol activated."
He rose slowly, the air around him humming with latent power.
The AI continued:
> "The Forbidden Core has unlocked your access to the Techno-Spirit Channeling system. This fusion of ancient cultivation and advanced nanocore technology will grant you abilities beyond human limits. But beware—the system is unstable. Mastery requires time and trial."
Lin looked down at his hands, flexing fingers that now thrummed with energy.
A thousand questions raced through his mind, but one stood clear:
How do I survive in this broken world?
Suddenly, the ruins outside erupted with a cacophony of alarm.
Lin's instincts sharpened. He sprinted to the chamber's exit, where the sky burned a deeper red.
The scavengers were regrouping—larger numbers, more ruthless.
But Lin no longer felt fear.
He felt the spark of rebellion—of something new rising from the ashes.
With a steady breath, he whispered to the wasteland:
"If they want war… then I'll give them a war they won't forget."
And with that, Lin Xuanyuan stepped back into the broken world, the last ember of an empire blazing within him.