After school, the sun was already starting to set. Since Chen Hao wasn't a boarding student, he made his way out of the school gate and waited for the bus home.
When it finally arrived, the bus was jam-packed. He managed to squeeze on, but he was nearly pushed out of his spot the moment the doors shut.
As he steadied himself, a strange wave of emotion surged within him.
"It's been over ten years… and I'm still crammed in a sardine can," he muttered bitterly.
After being reborn, he had imagined life would be different. Maybe not luxurious, but surely better than this. Shouldn't reincarnation come with some perks?
If he was destined to still squeeze onto a crowded bus every day… what was even the point of being reborn?
When he got home, the apartment was silent. His parents hadn't returned from work yet.
It was only 5:30 p.m. His mom usually came back around six.
Taking advantage of the quiet, he booted up the old computer and went online to check out what anime and manga were currently trending.
As a future otaku, he knew his passions well—anime, manga, games, movies. If it wasn't a convention day, he was glued to a screen.
A familiar website flashed through his memory.
He typed in "Honglu Anime" on instinct, not expecting anything. The site had disappeared in his past life after 2016.
But to his surprise—it loaded.
His eyes lit up.
"Still alive in 2006, huh?"
Scrolling through, he noticed some differences from what he remembered, but that was expected. After all, he was now in the past, and even one change could shift the entire future.
Just as he was about to click on a manga title, an annoying pop-up window jumped onto the screen.
"Tch. Pop-ups again?"
But this one caught his eye.
[Global Manga Artist Popularity Rankings]
Intrigued, he clicked.
Top 10 Global Manga/Comic Artists:
DC Comics
Marvel Comics - Stan Lee
Hayao Miyazaki
Yoshito Usui
Gosho Aoyama
Rumiko Takahashi...
The list went on, with a total of 100 names.
Chen Hao scrolled through it carefully—yet not a single Chinese artist was included.
And something else bugged him.
"Why is DC Comics on a manga artist ranking?"
Sure, DC had iconic heroes and a long legacy, but it was a company, not an individual. If they were going to rank companies, then why not Shueisha or Shogakukan?
Still, he shrugged. There was probably some complicated metric behind it. The organization behind the ranking might've included market influence and brand power as well.
Stan Lee placing second under Marvel made more sense, though. While Marvel would dominate cinemas later, in terms of printed comics, DC still had a stronger global presence at this point.
But then…
Something clicked.
"Wait… Where are Oda-sensei, Kishimoto, and Kubo?"
A beat later, he chuckled to himself.
"Right… 'One Piece,' 'Naruto,' and 'Bleach' don't even exist yet."
That explained why he had been dreaming about them so frequently. The absence of those legendary titles left a subconscious void—and a strange sense of loss.
Though this ranking might have its controversies, the fact that it came from the Global Manga Association gave it some authority. It wasn't a popularity vote by fans, but a curated list based on market performance and professional evaluation, updated quarterly and annually.
Still, the complete absence of Chinese artists left a bitter taste in his mouth.
If this was the standard to be considered a world-class manga artist… then maybe, just maybe, he could aim for that.
His gaze lingered on the top two—Marvel and DC.
"Superheroes, huh?"
The most iconic creations from those companies were superheroes—symbols of courage, justice, and struggle.
"…What if I created a superhero of my own?"
He wasn't entirely sure. But one thing he did know—hot-blooded stories that stirred the soul were what manga readers loved. That sense of passion and adrenaline... it was unforgettable.
Inspired, he picked up a pen and began to sketch.
Just as he was getting into it, the front door creaked open.
He glanced at the clock—6:30 p.m.
His mom was back.
Putting the pen down, he stepped out of his room.
"Mom, you're home late."
Shen Lan took off her shoes, clearly annoyed.
"Ugh, just as I was leaving, they called an emergency meeting. Completely pointless."
She sighed and walked toward the kitchen.
"Dinner will be ready soon."
Because she got home late, there weren't many dishes tonight, but they didn't eat until almost 7:30 p.m.
After dinner, Chen Hao's parents usually went for a walk around the neighborhood, but today they skipped it. By the time they finished eating, it was already past eight.
While Chen He, his dad, watched TV on the couch, Shen Lan came out from the kitchen and snatched the remote from his hands.
"It's time! My drama's on!"
Chen He frowned. "I'm watching the news."
"You can watch the news any day! I can't miss a single scene of Youth Blossoms Late! It's getting to the good part!"
Despite grumbling, Chen He handed over the remote.
Meanwhile, Chen Hao was back in his room, watching Mobile Suit Gundam SEED on the Honglu Anime site.
Even though he'd already seen it in his past life, he couldn't help but feel pumped again when the mechas clashed on screen.
He binge-watched almost every available episode.
Even knowing what would happen next, he still couldn't wait for next week's update.
After that, he browsed the site some more, but nothing else really caught his interest.
Then, a random thought struck him.
He typed One Piece into the search bar.
The result: No matches found.
Staring at the blank result, Chen Hao leaned back in his chair and muttered to himself with a wry smile:
"Could it be… that the first manga I publish in this world… will be One Piece?"