Qiu Wuji's grand book-writing project progressed extremely quickly.
After all, she already had at least ten thousand words... and while waiting to establish distribution channels, Sect Leader Qiu added another ten thousand words.
The Old Man of Kuzhai's disciples in the arts were scattered throughout the mortal realm. Many storytellers were distant relatives or descendants of his disciples, and within just three days, Sect Leader Qiu's masterpiece began appearing on storytelling stages in the mortal world.
The ending made Qiu Wuji want to die even more.
Because nobody listened.
The storytelling venues, which were originally packed, became drowsy after her story was told, and many left early.
"What kind of rubbish is this? It's incredibly boring!"
"What kind of high-ranking official forced this book on you through connections? It's awful, utterly dull."
"The author's writing is excellent, but what is this rubbish? Is it just a diary?"
These were the common comments among the mortals.
After three days, the once-bustling storytelling venue was nearly empty. Storytellers were all pleading with their masters, "Master, could we please change the story...?" Qiu Wuji sat before the old man of the withered study, expressionless.
The old man of the withered study was terrified. He felt as if dark clouds were gathering, a fierce wind was howling, and hidden thunder was lurking, as if the old man was about to unleash a mountain-crushing rampage.
Qiu Wuji just wanted to hug a pillow and cower in a corner.
So this is what it feels like to be a "flop," oh, it's awful.
How did Chu Ge and the others survive their "flop" phase...?
Qiu Wuji sniffed, then stood up expressionlessly: "Let's stop the storytelling. I'll study it some more..."
"Hmm..." the old man of the withered study said cautiously, "If Sect Leader Qiu is truly interested in our storytelling arts, this old man is willing to offer up all the knowledge I've gained in my life..."
"No need, I have a master!" Qiu Wuji said sternly, riding away on a cloud.
He'd have to ask his master to buy him cotton candy when he got back! Only eating ten could soothe her heart.
Just as she was thinking this, Qiu Wuji suddenly felt the gaze of the unseen forces of Heaven again. She paused, looked up, but this time saw nothing… Wasn't Chu Ge watching her?
How dare you not look at me!
… This was the first time Chu Ge had actively attempted to "observe" the changes in the world within the book.
Since he had visualized the entire world during the mental test in the dark room, Chu Ge seemed to have found a glimmer of understanding.
The feeling was vague, difficult to grasp; he could only try his best.
He prepared thoroughly, immersing himself in thinking about the plot and writing, while simultaneously focusing on circulating his cultivation technique, especially the soul-forging part.
Then, with a kind of subconscious awareness, he thought about "the changes Qiu Wuji caused to the world by writing her book in that world."
Unconsciously, he had a slight sense of the unseen forces at work.
Because the world had indeed changed.
Qiu Wuji was proud; she didn't use a pen name to publish her book; she simply called herself "Qiu Wuji."
And so, a book written by Qiu Wuji appeared in the mortal realm, circulating widely.
This was something impossible in the original plot… While on the surface it seemed to have no impact on the storyline—what's wrong with a book being written in the mortal realm? It wouldn't affect the established plot progression.
But the butterfly effect is unpredictable—Qiu Wuji, who had never left a trace in the mortal realm before, suddenly began to leave his name everywhere. Could this cause unpredictable changes?
Unpredictable, but that's the variable.
Chu Ge discovered he could sense the feedback from the vast mortal realm within the book; the book had crashed.
Oh, it crashed. That's alright then.
With that thought, the feeling of observing from above vanished.
Leaning back in his chair, recalling the feeling… it was still hard to grasp. Was some kind of change, and his attention to that change, necessary to achieve this observational result?
But during the mental test, it worked even without any such change.
Attempting aimless observation, he couldn't achieve it no matter what.
Forget it, this is likely a long, drawn-out process. Trying to understand it in a month or two is probably a pipe dream. However, Chu Ge still felt it was somewhat related to his performance. More and more people were becoming aware of the world, and the world was gaining more and more presence, so he could feel it more deeply.
His previous guess was probably correct, so he continued.
Unfortunately, the success of his work wasn't up to him. All he could do was try his best to polish the plot; the rest was up to the audience, the market, and whether the platform would recommend and expose it.
Chu Ge rubbed his swollen head, noticing the new chapter was already 3,000 words. He clicked and published. A notification from the platform caught his attention. He clicked on it and saw: "System Message: Hello, your work 'Chu Tian Wu Ji' will be recommended in the client's Bestseller Selection section on a certain date..."
Chu Ge: "..." Another big recommendation! It's like a dream come true... Lately, everything he's been hoping for has come true.
It's ironic, actually. Before, he craved success and recommendations, but always flopped. Now, he no longer desired success; his desire for good results was mainly for other reasons, yet things were getting better every day, and recommendations were pouring in. Besides his sense of presence in the world, another crucial factor was undoubtedly his own cultivation level. Qiu Wuji hadn't mentioned it, and Chu Ge didn't know what level he was at in the Qi Refining stage, or what stage his Soul Forging had reached—five stars in mental strength?
Chu Ge sighed, stood up, and planned to go to the dark room to train.
Just then, his phone rang.
Upon answering, Zhong Yi's urgent voice came through: "Ah Jun and Fatty have been injured and are in the hospital. Do you have time to come over?"
Chu Ge's grip on the phone tightened slightly.
Wan Zijun and Panda had been injured…
This easily brought to mind Wan Zijun's ability to write on his face to bring people into the nightclub—he was the most conspicuous one—while Panda was the one who filmed and sent the video to the police.
So… was it retaliation?
… He rushed to the hospital and found a double room.
Wan Zijun, his waist bandaged, leaned weakly against the headboard, talking to Zhong Yi. Panda, his face bruised and swollen, barely recognizable, was still flirting with the nurse: "Hey, actually, my injuries aren't just on my face. Nurse, could you check the rest of my body?"
The nurse sneered: "How come you weren't beaten to death?!"
Seeing Chu Ge enter wearing the Three-Child mask, the nurse frowned: "Please wear your mask properly. Do you think this kind of mask is funny?"
Chu Ge silently lifted the lower half of his mask to show: "I have a mask."
"So this is performance art?"
"Because my face is as ugly as this fat guy's, I was afraid of scaring you, miss."
The nurse pursed her lips. She didn't know if he was ugly or not, but this guy had a pretty good physique, quite tall, and his short-sleeved T-shirt barely contained his pectoral and biceps muscles.
These guys were probably injured in a group fight, and then they brought in a muscular guy to settle scores?
The nurse considered whether to call the police, then silently packed up her tools and left.
Watching the nurse leave, Chu Ge asked Zhong Yi, "What happened?"
Zhong Yi's expression was grave: "Fatty was beaten up through the internet."
Chu Ge: "?"
Panda was almost crying on the bed: "When I beat someone up through the internet, I can only make a blurry image, I don't have much strength, how could he beat me so badly?"
Wan Zijun also said weakly from the bed: "I was working in the fields, almost harvest time... someone suddenly stood in front of me, his face said 'Dad,' and then I obediently let him beat me up. Before leaving, he stabbed me in the back, saying, 'Learn from me, not everyone is someone you can offend.'"
Was it really revenge?
Chu Ge secretly gasped. Revenge was still within the realm of understanding, but was this some kind of Murong Fu? An eye for an eye? And a level higher than the other party?
Chu Ge looked at Zhong Yi, whose expression was grave. "They're retaliating, but haven't come after me yet. Perhaps I didn't perform well that day? Or maybe my ability doesn't have the power to suppress them at a higher level? Anyway, Sanwa, be careful. You blocked the alleyway that day; there's a high chance you'll be a target for retaliation."
Chu Ge was silent for a moment, then slowly said, "Is that what you're considering?"
"Huh?" Zhong Yi asked curiously, "Otherwise?"
"As a normal citizen of a country, I think the first thing to do should be to call the police."