I Became a Villain's Hero - Chapter 27: My Hero (3)

After dying from a strange terminal illness, Ling Lan was reborn into a world 10,000 years into the future. Although she dearly wished she could just live a peaceful and uneventful life in her new healthy body, fate had other plans…

Forced to disguise herself as a boy just so she could inherit her deceased father’s premium military benefits, Ling Lan’s journey to adulthood was full of challenges. After much difficulty, she finally turned sixteen when she could drop the charade. But before she could grasp her newfound freedom to get married and start her own family, a twist of fate results in her being thrown into the Federation’s top military boys’ school.

With these twists of fate, Ling Lan had little choice but to walk further and further down a path of no return, one of cold and aloof dominance…

- Description from Novelupdates

Deep below the earth's surface, a mystifying subterranean seascape lurks, an archipelago bathed in inky blackness where suspense and horror hold court. Here lie strange islands and even stranger monsters, far beyond the realms of human imagination. In this domain, mankind is far from dominant; instead, madness and death rule supreme.

Pleading for mercy from the unknown creatures of the deep only leads to a slow, tortured existence. The trapped survivors gradually distort, losing what made them human, both physically and mentally, to the gloom as they remain trapped in this eternal obscurity. Their only hope? A perilous expedition into uncharted sea territories.

Fueled by determination, Charles embark on this daunting voyage aboard his steamship, aiming to reclaim humanity's past glory. Together with his crew, they sought a way out of this hidden sea world, a path back to the sunlit world above, where humans once stood tall.

=========================================

I read a few comments from Chinese readers that compared this novel with Lord of Mysteries because of similar elements: Lovecraftian, western fantasy, first industrial revolution, and steampunk. However, I have yet to finish reading Lord of Mysteries to do any actual comparison, but I do think those who have enjoyed that novel would enjoy this as well. Also, the author of LotM, Cuttlefish That Loves Diving, also did a shout-out for this novel, so I guess he approves of it too?

……………………………………………………………

Dear readers! Without any ads, maybe you will prefer .

A veteran player of “Starry Abyss” and a Meteor Fall Master known as Ace Bro, Li Zi came to the game world with his system template, arriving at the era of the game's beta version.This was the worst of times.Cosmic forces and financial magnates colluded, causing The Gate to the cosmos to be shut, planets' resources exhausted, even sunlight monopolized.It was also the best of times.All the Extraordinary Systems had just started, and in this era, only he possessed the final version patch as a Meteor Fall Master.While people reveled in the smoke of plasma cannons, Li Zi had already torn apart warships with Gravity.As Special Ability users proudly indulged in their awakened abilities, Moonlight had already become a servant to Li Zi.When the Interstellar Fleet crossed the Galaxy, Li Zi had just ignited the forty-second Stellar, illuminating the entire cosmos.“People have been trapped on the ground for too long and have forgotten that this Starry Sky should belong to us all,” he said gently, holding a black hole in his hand while facing an indescribable native Evil God.

DESTINY GAMES. It has been 85 years since Earth-11 became aligned with Yggdrasil and 73 years since Icon became the first demigod from Earth. Icon, as the first demigod, was privileged to weave the thread of fate for everyone. He was supposed to cut off Yggdrasil and free Earth-11 from the grasps of the other Earths and their god kings. That’s why everyone helped him climb the tower of Destiny. But instead of ridding earth of Yggdrasil, he turned the destiny of mankind into seven rings of immortality. The first ring was for the immortality of power. The second was for the immortality of the knowledge. The third, fourth, fifth, and sixth were for the immortality of the mind, energy, body, and soul. The last ring, the ring of the paragon, was made to rule them all. Icon kept the ring of the paragon for himself and became a dictator. He ruled with an iron fist for many years. His was a reign of terror. But he was eventually vanquished by the collective effort of the world. It has been 62 years since then. Icon is no more, but the damage he had done still remains. Earth-11 is still connected to Yggdrasil. The deadly games of the Tower of Destiny still remain, and the fight for the seven rings of immortality still continues. Kelvin Thorn has just awakened his ability. It came at a good time too since he is running for his life. The ability he awakened saved him, but it came with a cost. He must climb the tower of destiny under the witness of the whole world and accumulate destiny, or he will die. His situation is not unique. Everyone that awakens, which is mostly everyone, must climb the tower of destiny. It is one of the curses that Icon left behind before he died. But Thorn is different because the seventh ring found him. The tower of destiny is where everyone granted power by destiny, be they humans, non-humans, or otherworlders, must fight in games of might, skill, and knowledge to gather the power of destiny. They will either die or eventually overcome death. Kelvin will be one of the latest in the line of billions of others in this struggle.