Ling Cage

Ling Cage (Chinese: 灵笼, pinyin: líng lóng) is an original sci-fi action animation series produced by YHKT Entertainment (艺画开天, yì huà kāi tiān). Created and directed by Dong Xiangbo, Season 1 was released on July 13, 2019 on Bilibili. Season 2 was released on the same platform on May 23, 2025. Across its two seasons, Ling Cage explores power, identity, and the cost of survival in a world reshaped by disaster. YHKT Entertainment has announced that the third season is expected to be released in 2026.

Premise

In the future, as humans continue to advance their technologies, a sudden catastrophic geological change arrives, leaving the Earth's surface in ruins. Decades later, Mana Ecosystem, a biological network of monstrous, mutated creatures, takes over the land. Earth is believed to be unsurvivable. A group of people who were on a giant flying fort survived the disaster. They named the fort — Lighthouse. However, survival on Lighthouse depends on strict social hierarchy and regulation. Citizens are divided into upper and lower levels based on their genetic quality, and order is maintained through three core doctrines: gene optimization, collective education, and elder expedition.

Setting

Lighthouse (introduced in S1)

In the Old World, Lighthouse was originally called Tartarus. It was an aerial prison over the North Pole. It held felons, individuals powerful enough to escape law, secret agents, and researchers in mind areas. After escaping the geological catastrophe on the ground, the first Lighthouse Master eased the conflict between guards and prisoners. Tartarus was renovated into Lighthouse, meaning the hope for humanity's future. Initially, Lighthouse unconditionally took in survivors from the ground. After the invasion by surface forces in Lighthouse Year 5, Lighthouse shifted to a conditional rescue policy. In Year 11, Lighthouse confirmed the ground surface was not suitable for human survival.

After years of development and facing the crisis of resource shortage, Lighthouse issued the Three Core Doctrines: gene optimization, collective education, and elder expedition. Citizens are divided into upper and lower levels based on their genetic quality. The upper citizens (superiors) hold key social roles, while the lower ones (laborers) perform tedious manual labor in exchange for limited resources.

The Hunters

Specialized unit in charge of gathering resources from the Earth's surface. The team is equipped with heavy firepower and Heavy-Duty Mechas to fight the Extremozoans.

Light and Shadow Society

Religious institution on Lighthouse. It worships The Lord of Light and Shadow. In charge of enforcing the Three Core Doctrines and punishing those who violate the regulations. The doctrine of the church is: "Light breeds all living, all living follow shadow. Light cleans my soul, shadow shields my body. Using ethics to suppress desire, joy but not dissipated. Rather to give up my body, but to follow light and shadow."

Lighthouse Defense Force

The military and security body in charge of maintaining order and operational stability within Lighthouse.

Ecology Research Institute

Research organization studying Mana Ecosystem and its biological mechanisms.

Laborer

Residents who fail to meet the genetic-quality standard. Perform labor work and live in the hanging lower levels of Lighthouse known as the Pigeon Cage.

LongGu Village (introduced in S2)

A place founded and led by Bai Yuekui, housing hundreds of people. The village accepts ground survivors and does not control villagers' emotions. Here, people can form families. The eligible couples who pass the parental test are permitted to reproduce. The villagers train to manipulate their inner Life Substance, transform it into power that one can control. There are three steps to reach Substance Potential: generate intent-force, compress Life Substance, and initiate potential power. Those who activate Life Substance power are called Awakeners. Through practice, the villagers can hide their presence from Extremozoans by entering the Guiyuan mode. The village uses Shielded Towers to keep the Extremozoans away. The towers have frequency filters to capture the special magnetic field released by an unknown source and use plasma emitters to magnify the field.

Mana Ecosystem (introduced in S1)

After the catastrophic geological change, a new ecosystem, Mana, emerged. Extremozoans surfaced from beneath the Earth's crust. Mana produces Scarlet Pheromone (腥荭素) that will cause hallucinations in humans and threaten human lives. The Extremozoans (噬极兽) in Mana subtract Life Substance from humans and then deliver gathered Life Substance to Mana Flora, which will then deliver the substances to the entire ecosystem, driving Mana evolution. It is said that the key to defeating Mana lies at its center, where only Mana creatures can enter. The Extremozoans can generate energy through photosynthesis.

Characters and Voice Cast

Main

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The Hunters

• Marc (马克, mǎ kè). S1 voice by Li Yuantao 李元韬, S1 youth voice by Jiang Jingju 蔣靜菊, S2 voice by Tutehameng 图特哈蒙, S2 youth voice by Ye Zhiqiu 叶知秋. Superior, commander of the Hunters, widely respected by the public. During one collection operation, he is betrayed by 4068 and parasitized by a Spinal Centipede. After surgery, he mutates into a combination of human and mana creature. Believed to be the key to defeating Mana Ecosystem.
• Ran Bing (冉冰, rǎn bÄ«ng). Voice by Tao Dian 陶典. Superior. The Hunters' top sniper and Marc's lieutenant. Casual in demeanor but highly perceptive.
• Mo Cheng (墨城, mò chéng). S1 voice by Zhong Wei 钟巍, S2 voice by Gu Jiangshan 谷江山. Superior, responsible for scouting and skilled at operating vehicles in complex environments. Capable of close-combat engagement with Extremozoans without Heavy-Duty Mecha.
• Erika (艾丽卡, ài li kǎ). S1 voice by Bao Xiaoqi 包小柒, S2 voice by Shen Nianru 沈念如. Superior. Heavy-Duty Mecha operator providing heavy fire support and defense.
• Jeff (杰夫, jié fÅ«). Voice by Su Xin 苏鑫. Superior. Heavy-Duty Mecha operator specializing in medium-range fire support and assistance.
• Fei Xue (飞雪, fēi xuě). S1 voice by Chong Chong 虫虫, S2 voice by Duan Yixuan 段艺璇. Superior. Heavy-Duty Mecha operator skilled in long-range precision fire.
• Elon (埃隆, āi lóng). S1 voice by Cheng Yuzhu 程玉珠, S2 voice by Liu Ruoban 刘若班. Superior. Instructor of the Hunters and in charge of population control and education on Lighthouse. Sent on the elder expedition in S1.
• Kun Jie (昆杰, kÅ«n jié). S1 voice by Liu Shengbo 刘圣博, S2 voice by Liu Cong 刘琮. Hunter, Hong Kou's former teammate.
• Carol (卡罗, kǎ luó). Introduced in S2. Voice by Tang Zhouchen 汤舟沉. Superior. Skilled in using a butterfly knife.
• Xien (西恩, xÄ« ēn). Introduced in S2. Voice by Zhang Enze 张恩泽. Superior.
• Su Li (苏黎, sÅ« lí). Introduced in S2. Voice by He Wenxiao 贺文潇. Superior.

Church of Light and Shadow

• Charles (查尔斯, chá ěr sÄ«). S1 voice by Liang Dawei 梁达伟, S2 voice by Teng Xin 藤新, S2 youth voice by Jiang Yingjun 姜英俊. Bishop of Light and Shadow Society. Son of Morgen. Was seriously injured by unconscious mutated Marc and infected with Scarlet Phermone. Lost his left arm and right eye.
• Fan Di (梵蒂, fán dì). S1 voice by Yang Menglu 杨梦露, S2 voice by Chang Rongshan 常蓉珊. Binger of the Light in charge of law enforcement. Loyal only to Charles.
• Sharif (沙力夫, shā lì fÅ«). Voice by Ma Yang 马洋. Executioner of Light and Shadow Society, nicknamed Big Dog.
• Bree (布里, bù lǐ). S1 voice by Meng Xianglong 孟祥龙, S2 voice by Qiao Muxin 乔木心. Chief Prayer of Light and Shadow Society.
• Fan Lyu (梵律, fán lyù). Introduced in S2. Voice by Gong Dafang 巩大方. Bringer of the Light, takes care of Charles.

Lighthouse Defense Force

• Morgen (摩根, mó gēn). S1 voice by Zhang Xin 张欣, S2 voice by Zhao Mingzhou 赵铭洲. Master of Lighthouse. He proposed and issued the Three Core Doctrines.
• Victor (维克多, wéi kè duō). S1 voice by Meng Xianglong 孟祥龙. S2 voice by Tang Shuiyu 汤水雨. Commander of Lighthouse Defense Force, reports directly to Morgen.
• Jing Nan (镜南, jìng nán). S1 voice by Huang Ying 黄莺, S2 voice by Ji Guanlin 季冠霖. Morgan's daughter. Chief commander of Navigation Control Room, overseeing Lighthouse flight operations and route planning.
• Senger (森格, sēn gé). S1 voice by Liu Shengbo 刘圣博, S2 voice by Fan Zhechen 范哲琛. Captain of Lighthouse Defense Force. In S2 promoted to Commander of Defense Force.
• Jessica (杰西卡, jié xÄ« kǎ). S1 voice by Zong Cong 宗琮, S2 voice by Nie Xiying 聂曦映. Head of Innovation Center. Expert in Heavy-Duty Mecha design.

Lowborns

• 4068/Sui Ying (随影, suí yǐng). S1 voice by Xu Xiang 徐翔, S2 voice by Liu Mingyue 刘明月. A laborer who aspires to become a Hunter. Lured by Charles with the promise of becoming a superior. After completing the task, he becomes a superior and the new commander of the Hunters.
• 4277. S1 voice by Huang Ying 黄莺, S2 voice by Tang Xiaoxi 唐小喜. Laborer, a young woman who loves old-world objects. Friend of 4068 and 4079.
• 4079. S1 voice by Hu Yi 胡艺, S2 voice by Li Qingyang 李轻扬. Laborer, a smooth-talking young man. Friend of 4068 and 4277.
• 8925. S1 voice by Yao Sujuan 姚苏娟, S2 voice by Yan Meme 阎么么. Young laborer. 9033 and 9027's friend. Follows Sui Ying in S2.

Others on Lighthouse

• Carrie (嘉莉, jiā lì). S1 voice by Zhang Hui 张惠, S2 voice by Liu Qianhan 刘芊含. Head of Medicine and Ecology Department, in charge of studying Mana Ecosystem and Linyuan Armor.
• Ewan (尤恩, yóu èn). Introduced in S2. Voice by Wang Chenguang 王晨光. Head of Resource Allocation.
• Flin (弗林, fú lín). Introduced in S2. Elder voice by Gao Zengzhi 高增志, middle-aged voice by Lin Qiang 林强. Superior. Former Clotho researcher.

LongGu Village

• Bai Yuekui (白月魁, bái yuè kuí). Voice by Xia Yike 夏一可. Brain scientist in the old world. After surviving the catastrophe, she discovers how Life Substance can be converted into controllable power. Leader of LongGu village, aiming to defeat Mana.
• Xia Dou (夏豆, xià dòu). S1 voice by Cai Shujing 蔡书瑾, S2 voice by Gong Dafang 巩大方. Awakener. Young girl who is able to hack into Extremozoan's mind and control its movement with a gamepad-shaped controller.
• Sui Xing (碎星, suì xÄ«ng). S1 voice by Yao Sujuan 姚苏娟, S2 voice by Zhang Yuxi 张雨曦. Natural-born villager. Awakener. Archer with extreme perception and accuracy.
• Shan Da (山大, shān dà). S1 voice by Jia Qiu 贾邱, S2 voice by Zhang Zhankun 张占坤. Awakener. Able to generate concentrated Life Substance. Xia Hua's husband.
• Gua Yan (寡言, guǎ yán). S1 voice by Wang Yuhang 王宇航, S2 voice by Zhang Ruobing 张若冰. Awakener. Has non-Newtonian fluid cells capable of absorbing attack.
• Xu Tong (胥童, xÅ« tóng). S1 voice by Sun Ye 孙晔, S2 voice by Liu Zhenyan 刘真颜. Awakener. A skinny man in mask, able to absorb Mana substance.
• Nan Jixing (南极星, nán jí xÄ«ng). Introduced in S2. Voice by Xiao Tan 笑谈. Living Resource Organizer at LongGu Village.
• Xia Tianlai (夏天来, xià tiān lái). Introduced in S2. Voice by Guo Zhengjian 郭政建. Researcher of Life Substance at LongGu Village.
• Wulan Maiduo (乌兰麦朵, wÅ« lán mài duǒ). Introduced in S2. Voice by Xu Jiaqi 徐佳琦. Awakener. Natural-born villager. Able to share eyesight with her pet Cha Gai and communicate with animals, good at using spear.
• Jiu Ge (酒歌, jiǔ gē). Introduced in S2. Voice by Ding Shiying 丁诗莹. Awakener. Able to heal others through kiss.
• Qian Li (千里, qiān lǐ). Introduced in S2. Voice by Shi Bei 石贝. Awakener. Taken in by the village. Able to materialize Life Substance for defense.
• Ahmuer (阿沐尔, ā mù ěr). Introduced in S2. Voice by Miao Zhuang 苗壮. Awakener. Able to generate high-frequency sound.
• Shan Shihui (山石灰, shān shí huÄ«). Introduced in S2. Voice by Zhao Shuang 赵爽. Student at LongGu Village. Son of Shan Da and Xia Hua.
• Jiang Ya (姜雅, jiāng yǎ). Introduced in S2. Voice by Jiang Yingjun 姜英俊. Student at LongGu Village.
• Qiu Shi (秋实, qiÅ« shí). Introduced in S2. Voice by Zhang Lu 张璐. Principal of LongGu School.
• Wulan Aodeng (乌兰敖登, wÅ« lán áo dēng). Introduced in S2. Voice by Ye Baohua 叶保华. Guiyuan status instructor at LongGu Village. Wulan Maiduo's father.
• Kholova (科洛娃, kē luò wá). Introduced in S2. Voice by Cai Na 蔡娜. Awakener. Able to submerge into and manipulate water. In love with Po Kong.
• Po Kong (破空, pò kōng). Introduced in S2. Voice by Lyu Kong 吕空. Awakener. Able to generate electric force.
• Pelienkhov (别连科夫, bié lián kē fÅ«). Introduced in S2. Voice by Wan Li 万力. Weapons builder.
• Wulan Haisang (乌兰海桑, wÅ« lán hǎi sāng). Introduced in S2. Voice by Guo Haoran 郭浩然. Awakener. Wulan Maiduo's elder brother.

Recurring

Introduced in S1

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• Penny(佩妮, pèi nÄ«). Voice by Tang Yajing 唐雅菁. Hunter. Longs for the old-world order and has a crush on Donny.
• Donny (唐尼, táng ní). Voice by Yang Yang 杨旸. Hunter.
• 1225. Voice by Zhang Hui 张惠. Lighthouse laborer. Hopes to use her heart to save her seriously injured husband Luke, a superior.
• Corey (科里, kē lǐ). Voice by Liu Shengbo 刘圣博. Hunter and Heavy-Duty Mecha operator.
• Hong Kou (红蔻, hóng kòu) Voice by Tang Yajing 唐雅菁. Marc's foster sister. Former Hunter commander. Executed for her relationship with Po Xiao.
• Po Xiao (破晓, pòxiǎo). Voice by An Zhi 安志. Hunter, Hong Kou's lieutenant. Executed for his relationship with Hong Kou.
• 9033. Voice by Hua Ling 花玲. Girl inferior. Friend of 8925 and 9027. Has genetic disease.
• 9027. Voice by Tang Yajing 唐雅菁. Boy inferior. Friend of 8925 and 9033.
• Xue Feng (雪峰, xuě fēng). Voice by Huang Xianjun 黄贤骏. Hunter, Hong Kou's former teammate.
• Gavin (盖文, gài wén). Voice by Li Yang 李洋. Hunter, Hong Kou's former teammate.
• Hadji (哈吉, hā jí). Voice by Ling Quan Ye Yue 冷泉夜月. Hunter, Hong Kou's former teammate.
• Gog (高格, gāo gé). Voice by Li Chengyuan 李程远. Hunter, Hong Kou's former teammate.
• 0609. Voice by Huang Xianjun 黄贤骏. Oldest laborer on Lighthouse.
• Lottie (洛蒂, luò dì). Voice by Xu Hui 徐慧. General practitioner at Superior Medical Area.
• Fang Ning (方宁, fāng níng). Voice by Tang Yajing 唐雅菁. Hunter.
• Jade (洁德, jié dé). S1 voice by Pan Danni 潘丹妮, S2 voice by Chu Yue 楚越. Hunter.
• Lita (丽塔, lì tǎ). S1 voice by Yao Sujuan 姚苏娟, S2 voice by Yan Yeqiao 闫夜桥. Hunter.
• Jianjian (健健, jiàn jiàn). S1 voice by Cai Shujing 蔡书瑾, S2 voice by Zhang Biyu 张碧玉. Intelligent medical robot produced by Nirvana Company.
• Luke (鲁克, lú kè). Voice by Su Xin 苏鑫. Originally superior, 1225's husband in the old world.
• Ahfu (阿福, ā fú). S2 voice by Qiao Muxin 乔木心. Hunter and Heavy-Duty Mecha operator.

Introduced in S2

Source:

• Er Tong (二筒, èr tǒng). Voice by Li Chengfeng 李乘风. LongGu villager. Awakener. Training Creature Repairer, able to turn invisible.
• Xia Hua (夏花, xià huā). Voice by Tang Yuhe 唐雨荷. LongGu villager. Awakener. Shan Da's wife.
• Fang Yuan (方圆, fāng yuán). Voice by Qiao Shiyu 乔诗语. LongGu villager. Awakener.
• Tasia (塔西娅, tǎ xÄ« yǎ). Voice by Xie Yihui 谢轶辉. Natural-born LongGu villager and researcher. Awakener. Able to teleport and good at using revolver.
• Dulu (嘟噜, dÅ« lǔ). Voice by Wu Yongye 吴永业. LongGu villager who runs an arcade room.
• Mana Origin. Voice by Yang Rui 杨瑞. The giant entity that breeds the Mana system. Attempts to persuade Marc to become part of Mana.
• Wu Men (无门, wú mén). Voice by Qiao Yaohui 乔耀辉. LongGu villager. Awakener. Able to penetrate objects.
• Bai Yuetian (白月天, bái yuè tiān). Voice by Li Qingyang 李轻扬. Bai Yuekui's elder brother, whose mind has been transferred to the cloud.
• Siltar (希尔达, xÄ« ěr dá). Voice by Zhong Ke 钟可. Defense Force soldier.
• Holland (奥兰德, ào lán dé). Voice by Wang Qingyao 王清曜. Defense Force soldier.
• Hong Lu (红鹭, hóng lù). Voice by Wang Xiaoqian 王潇倩. Former Defense Force commander. Hong Kou's elder sister.
• Mei Wei (梅薇, méi wēi). Voice by Ji Guanlin 季冠霖. Former Minister of Civil Affairs. Morgen's wife.
• Drake (德雷克, dé léi kè). Voice by Guo Haoran 郭浩然. Former head of the Department of Justice.

Episodes

Season 1 (2019—2021)

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Season 2 (2025)

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Production

Ling Cage was developed initially by a 150-people team. Pre-production — including scriptwriting, art design, storyboarding, and asset development — lasted a year and a half, with official production beginning in November 2018. The story focuses on "humanity" as the core to the story, delivering hope in desperation. The team chose 3D production for its ability to handle long action sequence with complex camera movement. The central creative concept of Ling Cage is: courage nourishes hope.The project contains the ideal of community of common destiny, eastern philosophy, and apocalyptic ethics. It draws inspiration from Chinese culture including meridian, traditional martial arts, and Taoism. The setting of "Life Substance" in the animation as the combination of information, energy, and data. To ensure technical accuracy, the production team 3D-printed models of items such as heavy-duty mecha and vehicles to support animation workflow.

The animation technique of Ling Cage elevated in Season 2 and the team experimented various storytelling techniques such adding more music-action sequence to the show and playing with different editing styles. The show is selected as “2024–2025 NRTA ‘Outstanding Online Audiovisual Works Creation & Promotion Project.’”

For Season 3, the production team visited science labs such as Huairou Science City, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology to invite scientific consultant for topics such as Brain-Computer Interface and further solidifying the setting of Extremozoans and Mana Ecosystem.

Broadcast

Release

February 8, 2018, YHKT released the first 17-minute PV for Ling Cage. On March 28, 2025, new PV was released, confirming Ling Cage would be released March 15, 2019.

On November 4, 2023, 30-minute preview PV for Ling Cage Season 2 was released, telling the story about how Bai Yuekui finds Lu Sheng, AI intelligence Ash, Mana origin, and origin of Clotho.

On March 27, 2025, Ling Cage announced Seanson 2 would be released on May 23, 2025 on a weekly basis. To help the audience to recap on Season 1, a 5-episode refined version was released.

Ling Cage doesn't have official overseas distribution. Creative coordinator Ruan Rui mentioned in one interview that the overseas platform require Japanese dubbed version if not for English version.

Manga Book

Starting from May 28, 2021, YHKT releases manga Ling Cage· Story about Yuekui, which follows the story of Bai Yuekui in the old world when the geological catastrophe first broke out. The manga adds in more settings about Ling Cage world view.

Soundtrack

Reception

Ling Cage<nowiki/>'s first episode received 660,000 views and 18,000 reviews in the first day, setting a record on Bilibili. Within the first ten minutes of the premiere, the series drew 1.6 million views and 1.5 million subscriptions. As the first season wrapped, Ling Cage received over 400 million views with 9.6/10 rating on Bilibili, 8.3/10 on Douban, and 8.2/10 rating on IMDb.

Due to the long release intervals between episodes, viewers began posting the phrase “Guk, I’m here” in bullet comments whenever a new episode dropped. The phrase mirrors the Light and Shadow Society’s line “For this reason, I stay” in Mandarin, while also referencing Bilibili slang that calls creators with irregular updates “pigeons.”

Season 2 wrapped with 320 million views with over 11.19 million subscriptions. It received 8.9/10 rating on Douban, 9.8/10 rating on Bilibili, and 9.4/10 on IMDb. On Bilibili, more than 170,000 creators produced content related to the series, helping establish an active Ling Cage fan community. During the release of Episode 12 “Game of Fate” 390,000 viewers watched the episode simultaneously on Bilibili.

Accolades

References