Chapter 126: The Big Boss Has Lost His Mind

Li He was naturally unaware that *The Return of the Condor Heroes* had nearly sparked another fierce conflict between two departments in the editorial office.

Last time, the clash between the Fantasy Editing Department and the Martial Arts Editing Department over *Zhu Xian* was something Li He knew little about; he only understood that *Zhu Xian* was co-managed by the two departments, so he hadn’t given it much thought.

Just past nine in the morning, while Li He was idly passing time at the company, he received a call from editor Wang Ke.

“Boss.”

Wang Ke felt there was no need to tack on the honorific “teacher” after “Boss,” since the term “Boss” already carried a wealth of meaning.

Indeed, when it came to pen names, “Boss” was no less cunning than “Great God”—always managing to gain an advantage over others without seeming to try.

He once overheard a senior company executive praising *Zhu Xian* as a “Great God” work so fervently that an outsider might think “Great God” was the pinnacle of online literature.

But that “Great God” was not the same “Great God.”

“Your new book is fantastic. The company has decided that *The Return of the Condor Heroes* will be jointly managed by the Fantasy and Martial Arts departments. Boss, what do you think?”

For some reason, Wang Ke always felt somewhat inferior when speaking to the Boss.

He was an editor after all and should have been in the dominant position.

He hadn’t felt this way with other authors, no matter their stature.

Not even with the Boss in the beginning.

Though *Martial Universe* had done very well, during its serialization, Wang Ke’s attitude toward the Boss was no different from that toward other authors, at most granting some preferential resources.

But the tone remained one of equal dialogue.

Li He paid no attention to Wang Ke’s subtle change in attitude; his mind was entirely focused on the September “Sing-Off.”

Since returning from Mushroom House, Li He had thrown himself into practicing singing.

He took a sip of water and said, “No objections. Can we start serialization this afternoon?”

“Of course,” Wang Ke grinned. “In fact, Boss, the company has decided to upgrade your author rank. Correspondingly, your royalty and subscription income will increase. The rates at Baidu Literature will be among the highest in the industry. Is there anything you’d like to add?”

This was a decision made by the chief editor.

The Boss would, like the Great God, become an author whose rank was insufficient but whose treatment was on par with that of a Great God.

The Great God was the first; the Boss would be the second.

“That’s fine,” Li He said, his tone rippling slightly.

An upgrade in author rank meant a significant monthly income increase—something he was familiar with.

A month ago, Liu Da had told him the same.

No one dislikes money, and Li He was no exception.

Although he wasn’t currently short of funds and had some savings, so he didn’t worry about money for now.

But Li He had not yet reached the point of “I don’t care about money; I’m uninterested in it.”

Li He was a mundane man.

He loved money.

Wang Ke continued, lowering his voice considerably, “Boss, may I ask you something in private?”

“Go ahead,” Li He replied.

“When will you write the sequel to *Lin Dong*? Will Ying Huanhuan and the others be brought back? What kind of world is the Great Thousand World?”

These three questions were likely on the minds of all *Martial Universe* readers, unbearably difficult to wait for.

Especially since Wang Ke already knew in advance that the Boss’s new book was not a sequel to *Martial Universe* but a brand-new martial arts novel.

This left Wang Ke with a strange sense of worry. Could it be one of those “once-in-a-lifetime” series?

Li He thought for a moment and said, “I have a rough plot. Whether I write it or not, we’ll see.”

Wang Ke was quite fond of him, and Li He didn’t want to upset him.

He certainly couldn’t say, “I never planned to write a sequel,” or it would drive Wang Ke mad.

There was one certainty: once *The Return of the Condor Heroes* started serialization, Li He believed that the readers’ attention would shift from Lin Dong to Yang Guo.

With a general plot outline, he would probably write the sequel after finishing *The Return of the Condor Heroes*... Wang Ke thought.

“If the book launches this afternoon, I’ll urge the tech team to quickly prepare the recommended cover.”

“Okay.” Before hanging up, Li He added, “Once the promotional cover is ready, send it to me. It will serve as the book cover.”

Though designing a book cover was not troublesome, Li He preferred not to do it himself if there was already a suitable one available.

Why exert effort if you don’t have to?

Making money while lying down was Li He’s ultimate goal.

…

On the homepage of Baidu Literature, a banner previewing the Boss’s new book appeared. Such pre-release treatment was reserved only for Great God-level authors.

At the same time, Li He posted the new book’s preview and release date at the end of *Martial Universe*.

Immediately, the *Martial Universe* readers were electrified.

Although *Martial Universe* had only serialized for a few months, Li He’s sixty-thousand-plus words monthly updates and high quality had earned him a large fan base.

These fans had assumed the Boss would rest for at least half a month, if not a whole month.

Some readers were even prepared for a second or third read-through.

Now, they were told the Boss’s new book would launch today.

The readers were excited yet somewhat bewildered.

“Isn’t that too fast?”

“It’s only been a day since *Martial Universe* ended, and the new book is already out?”

“The Boss’s speed is incredible.”

“Is he even human?”

“Though I’m eager to read the new book, can the Boss’s health handle such continuous high-intensity writing? It’s very taxing.”

Only a day had passed since *Martial Universe* concluded—a very short interval.

Other authors typically rest for several months after finishing a series to recover their health and gather their thoughts.

But the Boss had no such plans, immediately releasing a new work without pause.

A one-day gap between old and new books—only the Great God had done this before.

Have the authors truly entered a hyper-competitive spiral?

“The Boss is the model author of the community.”

“I love the Boss’s fantasy novels. Although the Great God’s *Battle Through the Heavens* is very popular, I just can’t get into it. The Boss’s *Martial Universe* suits my taste better—classic Eastern fantasy.”

“In the ‘waste talent’ genre, only the Great God and the Boss are really good. Others just feel a bit lacking.”

“The Great God is the grandmaster and incomparable, but aside from him, the Boss is the top figure in the ‘waste talent’ genre.”

“Is the new book set in the Great Thousand World? What about Ying Huanhuan?”

“Is Lin Dong still the protagonist?”

“I think the Boss could do a dream collaboration with the Great God—have Xiao Yan and Lin Dong meet in the Great Thousand World.”

“Stop dreaming! The Great God has moved on to writing immortal martial arts novels. A collaboration is unlikely.”

“Looking forward to the Boss’s Great Thousand World.”

“…”

Everyone anticipated the Great Thousand World, eagerly awaiting Lin Dong’s fate there.

All readers assumed the Boss’s new book would be in the ‘waste talent’ genre, set in the Great Thousand World, since this setting was introduced by the Boss in the *Martial Universe* side story.

He couldn’t possibly spend the effort to introduce a new setting and background, only to abandon the world he painstakingly built.

How could anyone do such a thankless act?

Moreover, readers were very attached to the genre.

The Boss had earned fame in the fantasy ‘waste talent’ niche, and his readers had come specifically for that.

Especially after the Great God abandoned the ‘waste talent’ genre and turned to immortal martial arts, the Boss had become the beacon of that genre.

Simply put, as long as the Boss continued writing in the ‘waste talent’ vein, even if the new book had no connection to Lin Dong, a large readership would follow.

This was a logic elementary school children could understand.

No need to think twice—the Boss’s new book must be a ‘waste talent’ story.

Not only did readers believe this.

Other authors and editors on competing platforms believed it too.

After all, the fantasy ‘waste talent’ genre now rivaled the fantasy ‘horizontal promotion’ genre in popularity, boasting a large, loyal fanbase.

Combined with the Boss’s current status in the ‘waste talent’ camp, his new book would surely be a hit.

Fans were excited, but other authors were panicking. They wanted to capitalize on the gap left by *Martial Universe* to vie for its readers.

With *Martial Universe* ended, fans of the ‘waste talent’ genre were suddenly free.

This was the perfect time for these trend-following ‘waste talent’ authors.

Some had already started stockpiling drafts, locking themselves in dark rooms to prepare for explosive updates.

“Isn’t the Boss a ‘Touch Monster’? We can do it too. Explosive updates? Anyone can do that!”

“Writing from dawn till dusk and still not hitting twenty thousand words?”

Authors were calculating well.

But the Boss’s sudden announcement of a new book caught them completely off guard.

No more playing around. How could they compete?

Authors were devastated.

Not just the authors, but other online literature platforms beyond Baidu Literature were also shaken.

The Boss’s new book meant competing for chart rankings with their own authors again.

If he really released another hit comparable to *Martial Universe*, then *Martial Universe*’s conclusion wouldn’t be a loss for Baidu Literature but rather a chance to add another high-quality work to their roster.

A widely influential online novel’s IP value was unimaginably important, and the ensuing derivative works were even more tremendous.

Yet when Baidu Literature officially promoted the Boss’s new book, the entire online literature world fell silent.

The Boss had not followed everyone’s expectations to write another ‘waste talent’ story, not a sequel to Lin Dong, nor a tale set in the Great Thousand World.

Instead, like the ‘waste talent’ progenitor, the Great God, he abandoned the fantasy ‘waste talent’ genre and turned to another category.

The Boss’s new book was a martial arts novel.

It was something nobody had considered: a martial arts novel.

—

P.S. Posted first, will revise later. Please point out any errors…