There was nothing more exciting than writing a summary.
"That righteous, above-board feeling of goofing off, it really hit just right."
When I wrote "End of Volu Two," a thought suddenly flashed across my mind.
If this book could get an ani adaptation, then when Zhengwei first went to the Celestial Court Tavern, the very first ti he t Le Yin on piano, Ting Zhaozao, Luo Zhen, Quan Xin, Lan Jianbo and the others, they would definitely need to take a group photo.
When Leyu lay in the rain, wordlessly questioning the heavens, the screen would suddenly pop up with that yellowing group photo of the Silver Blood second generation. Rain would soak it, everyone's face would blur one by one, then fire would burn right down the middle, transforming into a line of blazing text,
"All wild delights are destined for wild, brutal ends."
"I wonder if I managed to truly explain that vibe, how everyone's so full of life at first, but in the end, everything changes, nothing and nobody stays the sa, and damn, isn't that just wonderful (?)."
Oh right, speaking of "wonderful."
Spirit vaguely rembered this was supposed to be a power fantasy.
Actually,
It really was a power fantasy.
What? You telling Zhengwei seizing the family assets, ruling over Silver Blood, swaggering, leaning on borrowed power to crush people, being downright arrogant, undefeated in Dongyang, one and only king, reward never staying overnight—this still isn't "wonderful"?!
Even at the end, going past his own level to kill enemies, using an interdiate to outsmart a high-ranker, basically an undying silver outplaying a golden top dog—how's that not a rush!?
Right? Spirit really did write a power fantasy (cough cough).
Alright, alright, jokes aside.
After that "demonstration" in Volu One, and all those flags stabbed into Zhengwei's character arc, everyone basically knew that Unit 3 was fated to be scrapped.
Maybe so people were hoping,
What if Unit 3 just got a happy ending after all,
Retired on a high note, took his wife on a trip ho to the Divine Demon Well,
The whole book ends right there (good, good, sounds great).
But, well, but…
Spirit still wanted to write that gut-punch kind of storyline.
In a classic hero's epic, a hero should have three stages: rise, peak, and downfall. Most novels nowadays only have the first two, or sotis, nothing but the peak—they show up already superpowered and just stay that way, always invincible.
"Don't get wrong! Spirit likes reading that stuff too. We're all just old degens at this point, love seeing wild, imaginative stories that make your blood pump and your mind race, makes perfect sense."
It's just…
Apart from all that crushing, all-powerful coolness, Spirit also loved that sense of tragic impermanence in a hero's downfall.
"That 'it just doesn't sit right' feeling."
"Still rember the first ti I read the kids' version of Romance of the Three Kingdoms—seeing Zhuge Liang fall at Wuzhang Plains, I was just crushed. My mind was blank all day."
"Not really sadness, more like 'How could it end like this?'"
"That persistent sense of "unfairness," that's probably why the Three Kingdoms era is the most popular for ti travelers."
"All that 'How many tales from tis old and new end in a joke,' yeah right. Screw that, I want to go back and change history."
"If there's regret, I want to fix it."
"If there's a dream, I want to live it."
"If it just won't sit right, then I'll keep fighting until it does."
That was what Spirit wanted to write, plain and simple.
After finishing Volu One, Spirit honestly still had no idea what kind of mood or reason actually made pick up the pen for this book—halfway through Volu Two, I finally figured it out.
I wanted to write about a hero's rise, a hero's peak, and a hero's end.
I wanted to write about how everyone copes as the end approaches, an anthem to courage, unwavering determination, the grief of farewells, and the joy of reunion.
I wanted to write about regrets being overco, dreams being achieved, and that "unfairness" finally lting into laughter.
"Because it's only with death that you truly get sothing immortal."
"So passing out "bento" is only fair, too."
"Maybe so will say this is just bowing down to reality… Fine, fine, Spirit can admit it—maybe my XP system is a bit weird, but hey, reality is reality."
"Still, the market's already yeeted into the dirt. These stats speak for themselves. Going against the current in an age of light-hearted stories—guess I'm just an idiot. When you curse , please go easy and maybe just swap it for 'love you' instead."
"By the way, maybe nobody noticed while reading, but the outline for Volu Two actually changed partway through."
"Spirit's original idea was a super traditional 'assassin' arc."
"Le Yin would've changed identities a bunch of tis, kept stirring up trouble in Xuanzhu County, then faced off against the Silver Blood Association president, stylishly dropping the line, 'If you treat people like machines, don't bla the gears for being cold as steel,' and then—slash—off with the president's head."
"Sounds pretty wuxia, pretty damn cool, right?"
"But sowhere along the line, I started feeling that plot just…wasn't it."
"So what you all actually got was: Unit 3 becoming the Silver Blood president, then soone else dropped the killer line, then he died a horrible death."
"So maybe the back half of Volu Two was actually written by my stand-in—Spirit's just a keyboard monkey, what do I know."
"By the way, anyone got tricks for getting the stand-in to write by themselves? Spirit's done typing."
Alright, rambling over, let's talk plot.
First, almost all the Silver Blood Association characters who debuted this volu bit the dust—only the Ting Family survived.
So might ask, "Why was it only the Ting Family that survived?"
Answer, Look at my pen na, this is a black whistle.
Plus, a lot of people asked, "Now that Leyu switched his ride, what about Qing Lan?"
Answer, All I'll say is, there's no toxic romance drama here, no cheating, at most you'll get so stomach cramps. By the way, don't forget what kind of author I am!
And then, when Spirit said the book title might change, lots of people suggested calling it "Legend of Bluefla."
My readers have crazy insight—picked up on Bluefla's special traits right away. I thought that was aweso.
However, it seems lots of folks think Bluefla is the ultimate big boss—so let clear that up right now.
In Volu One, Bluefla screwed over Unit One, but in Volu Two, almost got wrecked by both Unit Three and Four; going forward, he'll keep switching between "ally, fat sheep, enemy"—basically a recurring character through the whole book.
The thing about Bluefla, though, is that he's the final boss-level ride of this book.
Just like Spirit ntioned a bit ago—the three steps of a hero's rise, peak, and downfall—these are usually done by Leyu personally.
But Bluefla is different.
He climbs the ladder on his own, reaches his own peak, and only at the very end—right before becoming the world's number one hypercar—gets bought by Leyu at full price.
Also…
While writing this, Spirit only had two characters really plotted out.
One was Qian Yuliu.
The other was Bluefla.
Spirit honestly is looking forward to Bluefla's arc the most.
Of course…
Assuming the book lasts that long (cough cough).
Last thing, I'm taking a day or two off; even so, there'll be updates for Assassin After and Assassin Extra—gotta patch all the plot holes before starting Volu Three.
The main thread for Volu Three is mostly settled, but there're still details to hamr out, and the volu intro isn't decided yet.
Actually, the way I'm writing this is a lot like how I did Little World near the end—except in Little World I could drag out the thinking ti with daily life fluff, but this ti with all these volu titles and intros, there's nowhere to hide…
So I'll be "considering" things a bit longer (aning goofing off).
Though at least the title's already set.
Volu Three, Loyal Servant.
-------------------------
"Volu Two, completed."
"Successfully wrapped up the Assassin arc—60 points,"
"Total of 190 chapters—three tis Volu One—5 points,"
"Finally premium quality. If my next book isn't a light cody, I'm a dog—5 points,"
"Bounty mission, No new Chief Patron, so no extra updates—0 points,"
"One hundred thousand received, Subscription ratio is honestly embarrassing—0 points,"
"Nowhere to be seen on the charts, In the authors' server, even the big nas bully —0 points,"
"Hardly any comnts, Silence is the answer, being ignored is the answer, and no engagent is the answer—I've known all along—0 points."
"Final score is 70 points, rating: Decent."
"Mission rating this ti: 70 points (Decent), highest mission rating: 70 points (Decent)"
"Due to scoring a 'Decent' rating, which ets hidden requirents, you have earned hidden side quest information."
"Side Quest: Fling Dung on Walls—Keyboard-writing waifu goes berserk, daily update explosion!"
"Side Quest: Invincible Harem—Romance mode activated, lots of love drama!"
"Side Quest: Recruit Book Buddies—Make a readers' group, cling to big shots for dear life!"
"Side Quest: Find a Sugar Parent—FF14 activated, Ghost of Tsushima activated, P5S activated!"
"Do you want to upload this as your final result? Uploading will net you credit and exclusive rewards according to your rating."
"No"
"This book… It's not ti for the final verdict yet!"
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