When the novel concluded in May, I kept thinking about what I should write next.
Many friends told me that continuing to write urban stories would be the safest bet, as I still had some popularity in that genre.
But in fact, that was the choice I resisted the most.
I had been writing urban stories for many years, and now I had reached my personal ceiling. I figured that continuing to write them would not lead to any further progress.
Because I had poured all my passion into Jiang Qin and Feng Nanshu, exhausting my heart and soul.
Writing another one would just be reheating leftovers, continuing to capitalize on them and the people and events everyone loved.
But in my heart, those stories belonged to Jiang Qin and Feng Nanshu. I didn't want to misattribute them to other characters.
After all, Feng Nanshu had such a profound impact on me that even after the novel finished, I couldn't stop thinking about her.
I knew that if I wrote a similar story in a similar world, her shadow would still linger in my heart.
I didn't want to repeat a similar story, nor did I want to stay in my comfort zone until I became irrelevant and slowly forgotten by everyone.
Therefore, I chose another genre: Xianxia.
Actually, my reason for writing Xianxia isn't what everyone thinks—for copyright or greater profits. Ultimately, I wanted to seek a Breakthrough.
I wanted to try multiple perspectives, no longer limiting the story to just the protagonist, but adding another line that operates outside the main perspective.
To put it plainly, when I was writing my previous book, I always felt that the world only seemed to move when Jiang Qin moved; when he was still, everything was static.
So I started thinking, could I write a story where the world is also moving when the protagonist is moving?
Some things might not happen because of the protagonist, but in reality, all things are in motion, eventually converging into a vast network, pointing towards a final goal.
And the reason I had this idea was because I discovered my own shortcomings in the previous book.
I'm not very good at handling multi-perspective issues.
For example, in the last book, the story of Young Master Cao and Ding Xue was quite sweet in my design, but because I kept writing from the protagonist's perspective, their story couldn't be smoothly integrated into the main plot and ultimately had to be put into an extra chapter.
Also, Zhuang Chen, I always wanted to give him a main plot ending, but I couldn't fit it in.
The plot point about Zhang Guangfa's unsold fruit was also glossed over.
I found that I seemed to only be able to write the protagonist's story, which made me feel panicked.
So I know I'm still very green, not yet proficient, and need to continue to Cultivate.
I decided to force myself to do something I originally found uninteresting every week, just like I did when I first graduated.
That's why I chose Xianxia.
Writing this book has been very difficult. I'm extremely dissatisfied with myself, to the point where I might write a chapter three times. Currently, my draft box already has tens of thousands of discarded drafts.
Previously, when I wrote about Kuang Cheng's high school period, some readers said that results couldn't appear overnight. That was because I deleted three chapters about the protagonist working part-time but forgot to adjust the timeline.
Also, at the beginning, Old Qiu originally had a solo scene where he knelt and begged for help, to highlight the contrast between life and death, but I ultimately deleted it.
In fact, until today, I have been continuously revising the earlier text.
Before I started writing this book, I didn't think about what kind of results I wanted to achieve, nor did I expect it to be as popular as the previous book.
But it is very important to me.
Because I am tormenting myself, looking for a different path.
I once said in an interview that I am not a talented person. I have been writing for ten years, and six of those years were spent failing.
So all I can do is make up for lack of talent with diligence, write about what I'm not good at, let these weaknesses expose my flaws, and then correct them.
Writing is my main job. I have no other work, no other identity, so I have no way out.
Therefore, I cherish every book I write, every opportunity I get.
I don't want the ship of the new era to leave me behind.
So no matter what the results are, I will continue to write well.
Because I know that what doesn't kill me will only make me stronger.
This is a response to everyone's confusion about my change in genre and a brief summary of the current story, as well as a thank you for your unwavering support.
Finally, as always, I ask for monthly votes and continued readership. For Lao Cuo, who is currently in the new book period, this data is still very important... orz