[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-dreaming-back-to-1997-i-became-the-forefather-of":3,"chapter-dreaming-back-to-1997-i-became-the-forefather-of-dreaming-back-to-1997-i-became-the-forefather-of-chapter-81":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Dreaming Back to 1997: I Became the Forefather of Web Novels",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2348315,4589,"Chapter 81: Stealing New Book Plot","dreaming-back-to-1997-i-became-the-forefather-of-chapter-81",81,"\u003Cp>Is the second volume going to be published?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cao Sheng’s attention fell on the second piece of news in this email from Wang Jing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because if the second volume of \"I Wish to Become an Immortal\" hits the market, the serialization speed of this book online can be slightly increased, changing to one chapter per day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In this way, he can accumulate more fans as quickly as possible, and publish as many works as possible before the web novel market truly explodes, thereby securing his throne as the number one person in web novels.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if he might not be able to hold this throne for many years, he will take it one year at a time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fame should be sought early.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>First-mover advantage is very important.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If he can secure the throne as the number one person in web novels at the very beginning of the industry's development, there will definitely be benefits in the future.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For example, \"First Intimate Contact,\" recognized as the first web novel in his original timeline, was not only published but also adapted into a TV series, a movie, and even a game.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just imagine: if it were not recognized as the first web novel, what are the chances that this pure romance novel would have been adapted into a game?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He, Cao Sheng, has already snatched the title of the progenitor of web novels.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he is still not satisfied.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He still wants to be the number one person in web novels for a few more years.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If this goal can be achieved, he estimates that in the future, the various copyrights of his works will be easier to sell than those of other great masters.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In his memory, it seems that around 2010, for a few years, the film and television adaptation rights and game adaptation rights for web novel works were particularly easy to sell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The prices were getting higher and higher.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was a common phenomenon for an adaptation right to sell for one or two million; the adaptation rights for works by great masters like Sanshao, Chendong, and Xihongshi would easily reach tens of millions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What left a deep impression on him was that once, when Xihongshi just had a title for a new book and hadn't even written it yet, the game adaptation rights for the book sold for fifty million.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The question arises—was it really the game adaptation rights that this book sold?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cao Sheng believes that what was sold was Xihongshi’s fame.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was the market performance of a web novel great master’s godhood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Web novels are a winner-takes-all industry.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As of now, the title of the number one person in web novels doesn't seem to be worth much, at most increasing the probability of a work being published.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The good days are still ahead!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cao Sheng created a new document, copied 150,000 words of saved drafts into it, labeled it with the title \"I Wish to Become an Immortal: Volume Two,\" and sent it to Wang Jing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That night, he typed until late at night again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By the time he finished the last chapter of the day, it was already past 12 o'clock at night.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After turning off the computer and going downstairs to take a shower, he still felt no sleepiness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He suddenly wanted to go out for a walk.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As a writer who typed all year round, before his rebirth, he was actually a night owl; his energy during the day was often not very good, but at night, it was when he was in his best state of the day, and his mind would become particularly clear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Many things were figured out by him in the dead of night.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Changing into sneakers, wearing beach shorts and a floral shirt, he walked out of the courtyard gate, hands in his pockets, and strolled calmly on the sidewalk by the river.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On his left was the Xinanjiang River flowing quietly in the night, on his right was Binjiang Road, and above his head were the branches of weeping willows swaying in the breeze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was late at night, and there were few cars to be seen on the road; within a few hundred meters, there were not many pedestrians to be seen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He liked such a night.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The night breeze with a hint of coolness blowing on him made his brain exceptionally clear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A question he had been thinking about for the past two days seemed to have slowly found an answer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He walked to a viewing platform, rested his hands on the brick fence in front of him, looked quietly at the dark river water under the night, and smiled as he decided to further lower the reading threshold for his next book.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before his rebirth, he always wanted to improve his writing style and the depth of his works, using this method to improve the reputation of his works.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But with this style of writing, as he wrote more, he was labeled as \"literary youth\" by more and more readers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Literary youth...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It is an abbreviation for literary young people, which was once a complimentary term.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But in the web novel industry, \"literary youth\" is often derogatory.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Authors labeled as \"literary youth\" find it hard not to flop.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Works labeled as \"literary youth,\" even if they have a good reputation, are very difficult to make money from.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The so-called \"acclaimed but not popular\" mainly describes this type of work.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now, he decided to write his new book \"God Tomb\" a bit simpler, and even simpler.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why were the works of the original Five Whites in the original timeline so successful? Why could they earn so much?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In fact, the reason had long been analyzed by others.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>—The work is written simply enough, and the reader base is large enough; that is a major reason.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It is said that Sanshao has many elementary school student fans.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cao Sheng thinks it is because Sanshao’s works can be understood by elementary school students.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only by being able to understand it can one possibly become a fan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And he, Cao Sheng, is preparing to write \"God Tomb\" according to the reading comprehension ability of a first-year junior high student this time, lowering the reading threshold to a level that a first-year junior high student can understand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This decision was not easy to make.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because he knew that once the reading threshold was lowered, the reputation of his work would be lowered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the eyes of many readers familiar with his writing style, they would feel that his level had regressed, and these readers would be very disappointed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They would feel that he had run out of talent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They would feel that his writing was dragging and wordy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They would feel that his work lacked depth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But now is the early stage of web novels, and he feels that he should consider expanding the reader base of web novels as soon as possible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yes! Most junior high students now do not go online and have no chance to see his works on the internet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But, they will buy books and rent books.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if it is renting pirated books, it cannot make him money.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But there must be a portion of junior high students with sufficient pocket money who will buy genuine copies to support him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Anyway, these students' pocket money will be spent; rather than letting them spend money on games, snacks, and girls, it is better to use it to buy my books. Reading books is always better than playing games, eating snacks, and puppy love, right?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In fact, there is another reason for him to make this decision: it is very difficult to improve his writing level in a short time. But lowering his writing level is much simpler.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sometimes, wanting to expand one's reader base is not the only path of improving the quality of the work.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Reverse operation, lowering quality, and lowering the reading threshold can also expand the reader base, and the effect might even be better.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had seen too many similar phenomena in the years he wrote web novels.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Do you not see that many \"white\" (simple) novels are more popular than quality novels with good reputations? And earn more?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the viewing platform by the river.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cao Sheng looked quietly at the river water under the night.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His heart was actually a bit complicated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As a writer who makes a living by typing, of course, he wants to write works of better quality, and he had been working hard that way before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But reason told him: the population with a junior high school education is always the largest; if you want to embrace the market, you must cater to this group.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Perhaps, lowering the reading threshold is also a kind of progress.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It is just that the direction of progress is different.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Over the next few days, he began to try to write the main text of \"God Tomb,\" wanting to write a few chapters first to find the feeling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had already finished the outline for this book.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had also finished the detailed outline for the plot of the first 100,000 words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But when actually writing the main text of this book, he found that changing his writing style was not easy; lowering the reading threshold and writing according to the standards of a \"white\" novel was not easy to write.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because the characteristics of a \"white\" novel are not just being simple.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Being simple is just the basic requirement.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The point is: excitement!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A plot that is more exciting than those so-called \"quality novels,\" a faster plot progression speed—it is either exciting or on the way to being exciting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was actually a big challenge for Cao Sheng, who was used to his previous writing style.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But at the same time, it also made him realize that if he could write this kind of novel well, there probably wouldn't be many junior high students in school who could resist the attraction of such a work.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because it is exciting enough!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yan Jie is the niece of the general manager of Changjiang Literature and Art Publishing House.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She had just graduated from university and was preparing for the postgraduate entrance exam.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Majoring in Chinese language and literature, she came to Changjiang Literature and Art today to visit her uncle, but the time she came was a bit unfortunate; her uncle was in a meeting in the conference room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She could only pass the time by herself in her uncle’s office for the time being.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Someone had just made her a cup of tea, but she was not thirsty now and did not want to drink it, so she wandered around her uncle’s office with her hands behind her back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As she wandered, she came to the bookshelf behind the desk, curiously looking at the books on the shelf one by one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Among them, quite a few were works published by Changjiang Literature and Art over the years.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As she looked through them, she saw a familiar book title: \"I Desire to Become an Immortal.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She had heard friends mention this book several times recently, saying it was a new genre of novel that had appeared this year and was very brilliant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, she had no interest in things like becoming an immortal, so she had never read it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But at this moment, she was bored, and after a slight hesitation, she pulled the book from the shelf, thinking to pass some time.\u003C\u002Fp>",1918,"2026-06-21T01:55:54.452Z",1,"Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite","fb6702bf9b08ded56f2cfc780f1ce88e61d8fb603d7dbfc84f6aad9e3601f669","dreaming-back-to-1997-i-became-the-forefather-of-chapter-82","dreaming-back-to-1997-i-became-the-forefather-of-chapter-80",338,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fdreaming-back-to-1997-i-became-the-forefather-of-cover.jpg"]