“No one is wronged who is not, all love is karma,” perfectly summarized the characters’ fates and the intricate plot of this novel.
After sending the novel to Wu Yue and entrusting him with its publication and distribution, Su Yu immediately called Liu Xialai.
The TV series for the heaven sword and dragon saber was successfully completed at the end of October, with post-production finished and submitted for review in November. By now, Liu Xialai had been resting for over a month.
After this shoot, Liu Xialai didn't immediately ask Su Yu for the script of the next project as he usually would. Instead, he took a rare long break for himself to rest well.
After all, continuously filming four TV series would exhaust even an iron man.
Even if he himself wanted to continue fighting, Su Yu and Tianxing Entertainment would never agree.
If he were to be overworked to the point of hospitalization, it would definitely make headlines, and the outside world would surely think Tianxing Entertainment was desperately exploiting its meritorious employees and staff.
However, after a month of recuperation, Liu Xialai recently started to feel restless again.
He would occasionally appear at events where Su Yu was present, and even went to visit the 'hidden war' film crew in Xiangjiang. He wouldn't say anything, just loiter in front of Su Yu, which gave Su Yu a headache.
Fortunately, Su Yu finally promised him that a new project would be in his hands by January, which finally made Liu Xialai settle down.
These days, Liu Xialai was busy with matters related to the broadcast of the heaven sword and dragon saber.
This time, the TV broadcast rights were strongly purchased by Yanjing TV and Blue TV, and there was also a change in video platforms. Tengfei Video, which had always held an advantage, was surprisingly overtaken by Qimiao Video, which successfully secured the streaming rights.
This change meant that the broadcasting rights for the heaven sword and dragon saber once again broke the record for the highest single-episode price for a TV series.
The specific broadcast time had also been set for the evening of January 1, 2014.
“Su Zongjian? Is the new project set?” As soon as the call connected, Liu Xialai’s eager and excited voice came through, clearly indicating he had been looking forward to this call.
“It’s set. The novel and script have been sent to your email, along with the theme song and soundtrack. I hope they can help you during filming. For Qiao Feng, one of the male leads in this one, I hope Daqiang Ge plays him. For Duan Yu, let Yang Yi take the role. For the others, you decide after you’ve read the novel and script yourself.”
Su Yu stated his arrangements in an orderly manner.
Liu Xialai’s heart had already flown to the new novel and script, and he nodded in agreement, then eagerly opened his email, ready to get to work.
However, he didn't forget to call his good partner, Yuan Da, after all, this martial arts director was a great contributor to his martial arts films. His martial arts films wouldn't be so exciting without Yuan Da's meticulously designed martial arts moves.
That night, apart from Su Yu, who slept peacefully after his daily exercise and checking the growth of his reputation, the Shengshi Fenghua team and Liu Xialai, among others, were all immersed in the wonderful plot of demi-gods and semi-devils, staying up all night.
The novel's delicate and astonishing depiction and interpretation of the eight sufferings of Buddhism—birth, old age, sickness, death, not getting what one desires, meeting what one hates, separation from what one loves, and the flourishing of the five aggregates—were truly remarkable.
What shocked them even more was that over two hundred characters appeared in the book, each bearing their own suffering and struggling in the torrent of fate.
Of course, besides suffering, the book also contained a wealth of other emotions and aspects of human life.
In Wu Yue's opinion, this book was even more outstanding than Su Yu's previous works, a true culmination of Su Yu's martial arts novels.
The setting of the three protagonists also gave everyone who read it in advance a hearty and enjoyable experience.
One of the protagonists who first appeared in the book, Duan Yu, as the Prince of Dali, was kind and benevolent, with compassion for all living things.
He abandoned the worldly and utilitarian pursuit of martial arts, purely out of love for studying martial arts, and by chance learned Lingbo Weibu and Beiming Shen Gong.
With his sincere heart, he made many friends in the pugilistic world, and his deep affection for Wang Yuyan was unwavering, showing his true emotions and character.
The only thing to complain about was that he had a philandering father, but the later plot twist that he was not his biological son truly shocked everyone, thankfully avoiding the cliché of lovers becoming siblings.
Another protagonist, Xu Zhu, felt like a winner in life, of course, this was assuming he wasn't a monk devoted to Buddhism.
This dull and honest young monk, after being accidentally drawn into the pugilistic world, began a life of extraordinary luck.
The scene where he accidentally solved the Zhenlong Chess Game thrilled everyone, with some even fantasizing that they were that lucky person.
Afterward, he received power from Wuya Zi, became the master of Lingjiu Palace, and even unexpectedly formed a bond with the Western Xia Princess. This series of miraculous encounters made everyone envious, even though none of it was Xu Zhu's original intention.
And the most impressive and beloved character in the entire book was Qiao Feng.
He was bold and magnanimous, with a chivalrous spirit and a benevolent heart, living a life of loyalty and righteousness.
However, Qiao Feng's suicide became the biggest regret in the hearts of those who read it in advance.
Why was such a peerless hero written to die? Was there really no other way out?
But if one puts themselves in Qiao Feng's shoes and considers his situation, they would realize that neither Khitan nor the Central Plains had a place for him.
As for living a new life under a different name, would that still be the upright and heroic Qiao Feng?
If that were truly the case, Qiao Feng's character design would collapse.
In addition, what the editors of Shengshi Fenghua discussed the most was the battle power ceiling of the entire book—the Sweeping Monk.
A seemingly ordinary Sweeping Monk, without any 'official' status, was actually the strongest existence in Shaolin Temple. Such a setting was truly amazing, satisfying everyone's infinite imagination of the martial arts world.
On the morning of December 28th, before the sun had completely dispelled the morning chill, the Shengshi Fenghua Website eagerly launched the pre-sale link for Gu Zhou Suo Li Weng's new book, demi-gods and semi-devils.
Although the official release date for the new book was set for January 3rd, this did not in any way dampen the fiery enthusiasm of the book lovers.
In just a few hours, the pre-sale quantity of the new book soared like a lit rocket, easily breaking the 200,000 mark, and this number was still climbing at a visible rate.
Website staff excitedly and expectantly estimated that before the 3rd, the pre-sale quantity was very likely to reach 500,000 or even more.
At the same time, booksellers from various regions also plunged into a frantic buying spree.
The huge sales of the return of the condor heroes and the heaven sword and dragon saber had already made them deeply realize the unparalleled market appeal of Gu Zhou Suo Li Weng, this martial arts novelist.
In the past, they repeatedly overestimated sales, yet were repeatedly shocked by the immense surprises brought by the final sales data.
This time, they unhesitatingly pushed their first batch of new book orders to the limit.
After all, the “true fragrance law” had been proven effective time and again, and they really didn't want to see the disappointed, even slightly disdainful, expressions of customers who couldn't buy the book.
Just as booksellers and readers were going crazy for the new book, Tianxing Entertainment's Film and Television Department also took advantage of this craze to high-profilely announce the establishment of the demi-gods and semi-devils film and television project.
This news was like a bombshell, instantly causing a huge stir on the internet, leaving countless netizens and industry film companies stunned.
Everyone complained online: “Do you Tianxing Entertainment need to be so impatient? The novel hasn't even been officially released yet, and the true feedback from readers hasn't come out. To establish the project so eagerly, you must be crazy! Possessed!”
Others commented: “At least wait until your last TV series airs and the new book from Gu Zhou Suo Li Weng gains reputation before you act, right? Don't you all need to rest? One work a year is already amazing, there's no need to work so hard!”