Over the past few months, I have experienced the pain that life has given me, and both my body and mind have struggled through it.
Life is like a balance scale, with "reality" on one side and "inner self" on the other. For me, the "reality" side has become increasingly heavy, causing the scale to tip and thus creating pain.
People often lose themselves when they've been walking too long, captivated by the scenery along the way, and forget why they set out in the first place.
That's exactly it — in the midst of pain, I feel waves of confusion.
Ever since I completed my last book, during this rest period up to now, I have been striving to find direction, to find the reason why I originally started.
It was about five or six years ago when I had already been reading novels for some time.
"Prologue to the Ethereal Journey: Not Towards Success, Then Towards Destruction" was the first one, followed by "Blasphemy," "Zhu Xian," "Mad God," "Beast Mastery Studio," "Boiling Blood of Beasts," "Shushan," "Only I Am Immortal," and so on.
I read many, many novels, but some melancholy accumulated in my heart. All because the protagonists I saw were mostly extremely lucky, righteous, and noble in character. The antagonists, on the other hand, were most often foolish, crazy, ugly, with grand titles but were all paper tigers — looking impressive and fierce but wilting as soon as they encountered the protagonist.
So I thought about wanting to see a true villain.
This villain is unconventional, proud and dark, decisive in killing, never wavering. He never hides his evil, never has hypocritical kindness.
His appearance alone is extremely evil, with a demonic aura and murderous intent. What he excels at most is trampling on rules and slaughtering the righteous sects.
He stands alone, against the entire world, spreading terror among all living creatures. He is the grandmaster of the evil path, sometimes arrogant and domineering, sometimes insidious and cunning, sometimes cold and ruthless. He stands proudly at the peak, looking down at the world with contempt, and all the brave men who challenge him meet a miserable end.
His methods are cruel, perhaps even playing with gu worms; in short, one look and you know he's not good.
Then the prologue: Not towards success, then towards destruction — what should his name be... Super Demon King? Old Demon of the Black Mountain? Green Robe Ancestor?
No, no.
After thinking, it might as well be Gu Zhenren.
Coincidentally, I was creating an account on Qidian at the time, so OK, this ID was born.
In some TV dramas, it often goes like this: The villain defeats the protagonist, just short of the final blow. Then the villain starts rambling, and the protagonist secretly gathers strength, makes a last-ditch effort, and every time turns the tables and wins completely.
If the situation is reversed, with the villain at a disadvantage, it goes like this: After the protagonist unleashes his power, the villain is defeated and collapsed on the ground. Facing the protagonist's sword, the villain suddenly cries bitterly and vows to reform. The protagonist, with his "kind and merciful heart," hesitates, and at this time the villain counters but fails. The protagonist, with his "keen insight," suppresses the villain completely, hardens his heart, shouts "vile and shameless," and finally kills the villain.
There are also some villains who, every time they kidnap the protagonist's friends and family, almost never succeed in their threats. Even if they have a great advantage, for various unavoidable reasons, they are inexplicably defeated by the protagonist.
It seems like six years ago, when I created the ID "Gu Zhenren," I had a wish in my heart: to witness a true evil villain. He has his own ways of behavior, is not tolerated by the world, acts freely without restraint, and disdains to explain. He is decisive in killing, never troubled by emotions, and never weakens at the sight of beautiful women.
His reputation inspires awe across the seas, making people pale at the mention of his name.
Those who understand him admire, respect, and love him; those who hate him grit their teeth and use every means, but it only makes him stronger.
He walks his own path, wrapped in loneliness, his cold eyes able to see through all hypocrisy.
He scoffs and scorns criticism and rejection. He sneers silently at flattery and sycophancy.
He withstands loneliness and even enjoys it.
If he is not heading towards success, then he is heading towards destruction.
He is a warrior, walking alone in darkness, cutting through thistles and thorns, nothing can stop him. Kill a god if it gets in the way, kill a Buddha if it gets in the way!
This dream has been deeply buried in my heart for years. While writing books, I have thought of writing it several times, but it never came to be.
I was a bit afraid, feeling that my writing skill was insufficient.