This is the beginning of your epic. We will focus on establishing the grim atmosphere of the flooded world and the moment Han Chen's life changes forever.
Chapter 1: The Spire of Despair
The world was no longer a map of continents; it was a vast, suffocating blue grave.
Han Chen wiped the salt spray from his cracked goggles and looked down. Below the 102nd floor of the Jade Emperor Tower, the dark, churning waters of the Pacific hissed against the rusted steel. A hundred years ago, this building was a miracle of architecture in Shanghai. Now, it was a jagged tombstone sticking out of an endless ocean.
"Move it, Scavenger #409," a guard barked, shoving a heavy electric pike into Han's ribs. "The tide is rising. If you don't find a Power Core in the submerged levels today, don't bother coming back up. We don't feed useless mouths."
Han stumbled, his boots splashing in the shallow, oily water of the "Drowned Zone"—the floors partially reclaimed by the sea. He was thin, his ribs visible through a tattered tunic, and his hands were calloused from years of picking through the skeletal remains of the old world. In this world, height was life. The elites lived on the 150th floor and above, where the air was thin but the water couldn't reach. People like Han lived in the damp, moldy middle, praying the foundations wouldn't crumble.
"I'll find it," Han muttered, his voice raspy.
He dove.
The water was ice-cold and tasted of salt and ancient rot. As he swam through the flooded corridors of what used to be a luxury mall, his flashlight flickered. He saw them—Sea-Lurkers. Humanoid creatures with pale, translucent skin and needle-like teeth, clinging to the ceiling.
Han's heart hammered. He was weak. His Power Level was barely a 3. Even a single Lurker could rip him apart.
He spotted it: a glowing blue cylinder wedged behind a collapsed security gate. A Grade-1 Power Core. Enough to power a floor's oxygen scrubbers for a week.
As his fingers gripped the cold glass, a shadow fell over him. A Lurker dropped, its claws tearing through Han's shoulder. Blood blossomed in the water like a crimson flower.
I'm going to die, Han thought, his lungs screaming for air. I've spent twenty years starving, just to die in the dark.
Suddenly, a golden light erupted in his vision, blindingly bright against the murky water.
[DING! FOUNDATION DETECTED.]
[CRITERIA MET: ADULT MALE / SURVIVAL INSTINCT: MAX / LINEAGE POTENTIAL: UNRANKED]
[WELCOME TO THE ETERNAL DYNASTY SYSTEM.]
A holographic screen floated in front of his eyes, freezing time around him.
> Name: Han Chen
> Title: Last of a Dying Race
> Strength: 2 | Agility: 3 | Stamina: 1 (Critical)
> Current Status: Bleeding Out / Drowning
> First Mission: The Dynasty Begins.
> Objective: Survive and find your first 'Destined Consort.'
> Reward: Body Reconstruction & Basic\ Martial\ Arts
>
[WOULD YOU LIKE TO BIND THE SYSTEM? IF YOU DO NOT CHOOSE, YOU WILL DIE IN 10 SECONDS.]
Yes! Han screamed in his mind. Bind!
[BINDING COMPLETE. EMERGENCY REWARD GRANTED: ADRENALINE BURST.]
Heat exploded in Han's veins. The pain in his shoulder vanished, replaced by a raw, primal strength. He grabbed the Power Core with one hand and, as the Lurker lunged again, he drove a jagged piece of scrap metal into the monster's throat.
The water turned black with creature blood. Han kicked off the wall, surging toward the surface. He broke the water's edge, gasping for air, his eyes glowing with a faint, golden hue.
He climbed back onto the 102nd floor, but he didn't stop at the guard post. He looked up—way up—toward the glittering lights of the high-altitude villas.
The System whispered in his ear:
[TO SAVE HUMANITY, YOU MUST EXPAND. FIND A PARTNER. BUILD A BLOODLINE. CONQUER THE SEA.]
Han gripped the Power Core. For the first time in his life, he wasn't afraid. He was hungry.
How was that for a start?
For Chapter 2, we can introduce the first female lead. She could be a disgraced noblewoman from the top floors or a fierce warrior captain who has been poisoned.
Should we proceed to the first encounter?