Chapter 55: Don

“Was this knife forged by you or bought by you?”

Holding the blade, the Golden-Maned Lion King Xie Xun glared at Yin Susu and roared: “This Sword of the Dragon-Slayer was taken from someone else—you stole it, and now I take it from you! That’s only fair!”

Watching Xu Jinjiang’s twisted face on the monitor, Li Luo couldn’t help chuckling.

No wonder he’s the grandmaster of free rides—his lines are delivered with such grit.

The scene shifted to the Tianying Cult’s grand Sword-Display Ceremony, where the Golden-Maned Lion King Xie Xun seized the blade.

This was a major scene.

To make the ceremony feel more grandiose, over a hundred extras were brought in.

Add in the crew, and the daily expenses must have been staggering.

“Aren’t you going to rest?”

Lai Shuiqing scratched his beard and shot Li Luo a weary glance: “Why do you keep coming over here?”

“Passed.”

He casually tossed out the words, then waved to the assistant director: “One-hour break—lunchtime!”

Li Luo said nothing, just grinned and watched.

Watching others perform helps you spot where you fall short.

Learning also builds personal ability.

You can’t rely only on the system.

He brushed off the dust on his clothes and strode quickly toward the meal area.

“Bro, hehe.”

A voice thick with rural charm rang out nearby, boasting: “How was my performance just now? I fell back with a perfect ‘ka!’—so real! Just got shoved aside by accident.”

“Sigh.”

The voice turned wistful: “If only I’d been allowed to stand behind the Golden-Maned Lion King for a shot.”

The unmistakable voice made Li Luo stop dead in his tracks.

He stared fixedly in that direction.

Two extras were getting up from the ground—one tall, one short; the shorter one was thin, still holding his broken blade and miming a sword stance.

Seeing that earnest, slightly foolish face, Li Luo chuckled.

That’s Baoqiang!

Actually, this guy isn’t dumb—he’s sharp as a tack—but he’s not faking his simplicity; he’s genuinely simple.

In this bizarre world, he’s a breath of fresh air.

His character is top-notch.

Even when borrowing money, he pays his taxes first.

You can’t help but respect him.

“Enough.”

The tall one shoved Baoqiang dismissively: “Look at yourself—you’re not even fit to stand behind the Golden-Maned Lion King, let alone me.”

“Hehe.”

Wang Baoqiang flashed a row of bright white teeth.

He didn’t argue.

Just scratched the back of his head.

Li Luo smiled, then walked on with a relaxed step.

By the timeline.

Right now, Baoqiang is still in his Beijing-extras phase, but he’s not far from the turning point of Blind Well.

He glanced at the long line of extras, then strolled over to the long table piled with lunch boxes—only three or five people waited there, all assistants.

Everyone ate boxed meals.

But the actors’ meals and the extras’ meals were clearly different.

Even the pickup spots were separate.

Extras, behind-the-scenes staff, and lead actors each had their own meal distribution zones.

From most to fewest people.

Some actors couldn’t stand the crew’s boxed meals and had assistants bring food from outside.

Li Luo wasn’t that fussy—free food tasted best.

“Luo Ge, you go first.”

“Good morning, Luo Ge.”

Seeing him at the back of the line, the few ahead quickly stepped aside.

No one felt resentful—lead actors’ privileges were everywhere on set.

“No nonsense.”

Li Luo waved his hand: “Hurry up—I’m starving.”

Under his urging, the assistants sped up, no longer dawdling over choices.

“Luo Ge.”

The crew member handing out meals smiled: “Same as usual?”

“Yes.”

Li Luo nodded firmly.

“Already prepared.”

The crew member placed two stacked disposable lunch boxes before him, winking:

“More meat, more veggies, more chili!”

“Thanks.”

Li Luo handed him a cigarette; when the crew member, grinning ear to ear, took it, Li Luo picked up the lunch boxes and two slices of watermelon, then headed for the rest area.

Never offend the person in charge of meals.

He’d bought a whole pack of cigarettes just to slip one to the crew member now and then.

It earned him a reputation for being easygoing.

And he got real benefits.

Two birds, one stone.

“Li Luo.”

Seeing him bite into a greasy chicken leg, Guo Feili licked her lips and raised her eyebrows: “How do you stay in shape?”

She swallowed hard and shoved a green vegetable into her mouth.

The expression on her face.

Looked like she was being tortured.

“It’s a secret—I can’t just tell anyone.”

Li Luo smiled, opened the other lunch box, and teased: “Feili, you’re not fat at all—I’m serious. Why not treat yourself to a bite?”

“Just one bite.”

“Filming’s so hard—consider it a reward.”

Glistening rice topped with oily beef, dotted with red chili and Sichuan peppercorns.

Just looking made your mouth water.

“Gul.”

Guo Feili swallowed hard, her chopsticks trembling.

She licked her lips again, desperate to ask what secret let Li Luo eat nonstop without gaining weight.

The tip of her tongue brushed her red lips—pure temptation.

That stunning, otherworldly look.

Made Li Luo swallow his juicy chicken leg with effort.

“Li Luo, look at you.”

Xu Jinjiang bit into his bread and chuckled: “You love luring others into trouble with your sneaky ways.”

“Hmph~”

Guo Feili stomped her foot, glaring at Li Luo.

Her train of thought broken, she forgot to ask.

With a grimace, she looked at the fragrant beef, then went back to chewing bland greens.

Xu Jinjiang also devoured his bread and boiled cauliflower—though the Golden-Maned Lion King looked burly, he rarely ate meat; the two of them crunched like rabbits.

They ate and chatted.

Li Luo asked Guo Feili about fun stories from filming Journey to the West; when she got animated, he quietly added, “I grew up watching your TV shows.”

Instantly, the Peony Fairy launched a flurry of playful kicks.

The Golden-Maned Lion King burst into laughter.

Break ended. The crew sprang into motion, preparing to film the scene where Zhang Cuishan lures the Golden-Maned Lion King into a calligraphy duel.

The extras hurried back to their positions.

As the clapperboard snapped.

They had to adopt expressions of unbearable suffering.

These people were also engaged in open and covert competition for the position directly facing the Golden-Haired Lion King, as veteran extras all knew that spot would definitely enter the camera frame and guarantee screen time.

After the assistant director’s scolding, the restless extras were finally calmed down.

“The actors can come over now.”

Hearing the call, the three of them, having reapplied their makeup, stepped out of the tent and walked toward their assigned positions.

Li Luo climbed onto a nearby crate.

Soon he would leap down from here, appear before Jinmao Shiwang Xie Shen, and stop him from slaughtering the innocent.

“You.”

With some time left to prepare, Li Luo scanned the crowd and swung his Judge’s Pen toward a corner: “You—don’t just stand there staring!”

“Move to this position.”

Following the direction of the Judge’s Pen, dozens of extras turned their heads simultaneously toward Wang Baoqiang, who looked utterly bewildered.

He was crouching awkwardly on the ground, mouth wide open.

His face bore three parts panic and seven parts dumbfoundedness.