In the afternoon, the fight scene required continuous makeup touch-ups, so the makeup artists stayed on standby nearby.

The fight scene was set in a nearly deserted wilderness. Li Baixi followed Cheng Ping into the location and ran into his junior and the young actor.

The junior first glanced at Cheng Ping’s face and smiled slightly, a plastic smile. “Not bad.”

Before Cheng Ping could respond, Li Baixi placed a hand on Cheng Ping’s shoulder and replied, “Oh wow, your young actor is still prettier.”

The junior: “…”

Cheng Ping: “…”

Cheng Ping was already dressed in full warrior attire, with his hair tied up, standing tall. However, with Li Baixi’s casual shoulder pat and sarcastic tone, the scene instantly turned into a competition of beauty between a madam and her daughter.

Li Baixi’s use of the word “pretty” wasn’t wrong either.

The young actor’s eyes were red and slightly moist, with a rounded look and a small section of false eyelashes at the corners, making him look like a pitiful little butterfly when he blinked. His cheeks had faint bruises and red abrasions, making him truly pitiful.

To balance out this overly feminine look, the junior gave him his signature sword-like eyebrows, with the arch and tail perfectly enhancing his bone structure.

However, this signature style belonged to the junior, not the young actor. Even in the scenes shot before the junior joined the crew, the young actor’s eyebrows weren’t done this way—of course, the minor issue of inconsistent makeup wasn’t on the young actor’s mind, and the real iron-straight big director didn’t notice.

The junior naturally detected the sarcasm in Li Baixi’s words. “Pretty” and “warrior” should never be used together.

But the junior didn’t care.

He had perfectly met his client’s requirements. The young actor’s team was very satisfied and even brought people to take behind-the-scenes photos, planning to release them in a few days to buy hot search rankings.

As long as it didn’t involve spoilers, the crew usually turned a blind eye to such mutually beneficial publicity.

And the junior’s personal style was so distinctive that if the young actor gained popularity, he would too—it was mutual success.

What’s wrong with being pretty? Looks are the primary productivity.

In contrast, Cheng Ping’s makeup… The junior smiled. “I should learn from my senior. Look at this effect, so genuine.”

The young actor made a sound like air leaking from a balloon.

The crew wanted battle-damaged makeup, so Li Baixi faithfully did just that. Dirtied cheeks, almost non-existent eye makeup, cracked lips, a long scar across the cheekbone extending into the hairline but half-covered by hair strands.

Too genuine, to the point of being outdated.

To the young actor, this makeup only looked acceptable because of Cheng Ping’s good looks. However, makeup that doesn’t add points essentially subtracts points. When an enhancing makeup meets a subtracting makeup, the winner is obvious.

Cheng Ping didn’t fully understand this makeup artist rivalry and didn’t know the standards of good or bad, but from the reactions, he felt Li Baixi was at a disadvantage, so he instinctively defended, “I like genuine.”

Li Baixi: “…”

Li Baixi thought, I’m really touched by your consolation, but what’s with the tone implying I’ve already lost?

The junior squinted, wanting to trample Li Baixi further.

In the junior’s impression, Cheng Ping was straightforward without any bends, utterly detesting gays; otherwise, why would he have gone ballistic on the famous actor with just a little provocation?

A fire that can be stoked once can be stoked again.

The junior deliberately said, “Wow, you two are so sweet.”

Li Baixi raised an eyebrow, ready to retort with something flirtatious, but he felt Cheng Ping stiffen under his hand.

Cheng Ping quickly stepped aside from Li Baixi, his face slightly pale.

Being deeply closeted, the nightmare of coming out last time hadn’t faded, and now his mind was full of “how did they figure out I’m gay?”

The young actor added fuel to the fire, patting the junior, “Don’t say that, the director will get mad.” He continued implying the rumor of Cheng Ping and the director’s shady dealings.

The junior: “…”

The junior glanced at the young actor, thinking, how did my artistic provocation get dragged down to blatant slander by you?

The young actor, oblivious, said, “Just kidding, Brother Cheng, don’t mind.”

Cheng Ping knew he should come up with a polite response.

But he couldn’t. He just wanted to curse.

The young actor awaited eagerly, hoping Cheng Ping would lose his temper publicly.

Fortunately, the director called for the shoot to begin, and the young actor regretfully went to his mark.

Cheng Ping turned to follow but was held back by Li Baixi.

Without turning his head, Cheng Ping said, “Don’t try to stop me.”

Li Baixi: “Why would I stop you? Beat him up.”

Cheng Ping: “…No problem.”

Having performed poorly for several days and with Li Baixi watching today, Cheng Ping had been tense, fearing he would mess up and lose face.

However, now fueled by anger, he found himself perfectly in sync with his character, drawing his sword with a ferocity that nearly shattered the camera.

With the wind machine blowing, dust and stones flew. Cheng Ping’s hair flew wildly, his gaze like a demon’s, nearly overwhelming the young actor with his aura.

“Cut!” The director called out, and everyone gathered to watch the playback while the director pointed out some positioning issues.

Watching the playback, the young actor looked shocked.

It was only at this moment, seeing the actual footage, that the true effect of Li Baixi’s makeup became apparent.

In reality, Li Baixi’s makeup seemed unremarkable. But once on camera, Cheng Ping’s face appeared small and angular, sharp and heroic.

The scar on his cheekbone, half-hidden by flying strands of hair, had a perfect position, curve, and length, enhancing his face shape from every angle.

A single scar achieved the same effect as the junior’s eyebrows. This wasn’t a coincidence or an inspired idea but a deep understanding of bone structure and countless practical applications—a solid skill.

Even the seemingly dirty cheeks looked more textured on camera than the young actor’s clean face—because Li Baixi had even considered the director’s lighting habits when starting.

The young actor’s team was busy taking behind-the-scenes videos, trying to crop Cheng Ping out of the frame.

The junior glanced at the monitor, realized something, and looked back at Li Baixi.

Film is the art of light and shadow, with foreground, middle ground, and background playing their respective roles. No face can exist independently of all this.

From this perspective, Cheng Ping, seamlessly blending into the wild winds, had transcended beauty to reach an aesthetic height.

“Alright, let’s do it again.” The director finished his notes and added, “Can we lose the eyelashes? They’re distracting.”

The young actor: “…”

The young actor went to the junior to remove the false eyelashes, signaling his team to take as many shots as possible before they were removed.

Li Baixi watched with amusement, saying, “Once, a young person told me my makeup lacked soul.”

“Pfft, arrogant little brat, not knowing the vastness of the world.”

Li Baixi: “?”

Li Baixi glanced back at Coco Ma, who had interjected.

Li Baixi continued, “…They didn’t understand that what gives makeup its soul…”

“Is my Queen Li.”

Li Baixi: “?”

Li Baixi glanced back at Coco Ma again.

Assistant Yang slapped Coco Ma on the back of the head, “Give it a rest.”

“Alright.”

Li Baixi: “…what gives makeup its soul isn’t the makeup artist but the model.”

Cheng Ping was the last to realize Li Baixi’s superior skill. This discovery gave him extra encouragement, and he became more immersed in the fight, his eyes sharp as knives, adding the finishing touch to Li Baixi’s makeup.

The young actor’s mentality collapsed.

His mental state directly affected his physical performance, and the director’s tone grew harsher.

Knowing there was no hope after today, the young actor decided to use his trump card.

He was determined to trend on social media.

Cheng Ping swung a punch at the young actor’s face. According to the rehearsed moves, this punch was a feint, and the young actor should have staggered back.

But this time, he seemed to forget his position, moving forward instead, bringing his face directly to Cheng Ping’s fist.

With a “bang,” the young actor fell backward.

His team’s cameras followed him closely, capturing the moment.

The young actor had already prepared his expressions, ready to endure pain and grievance, managing a bitter smile, “It’s okay, I slipped.”

Tonight’s trending topic was set: “Young actor’s Face Injured.”

However, the young actor and his team hadn’t accounted for Cheng Ping’s reaction.

Cheng Ping’s response time was a matter of professional pride.

Seeing someone fall, his mind went blank, and he instinctively reached out.

He actually caught him.

But the young actor had no intention of being helped up, using all his strength to fall. Cheng Ping’s grab didn’t slow his descent but pulled him down too, his face hitting the rough ground hard.

Everyone, including the young actor, was stunned.

Li Baixi rushed over first, lifting Cheng Ping’s face to check.

Cheng Ping was bleeding, but with the battle-damaged makeup, it was hard to tell how bad the injury was.

As his face hit the ground, Cheng Ping realized the young actor had set him up.

He didn’t care about managing his expressions,

 grabbed Li Baixi’s arm to stand, covered in dust, with a murderous look, silently cursing, and glared at the young actor.

The young actor stepped back, remembering the cameras and hurriedly asking with a cry, “Are you okay, Brother Cheng?”

Cheng Ping walked away.

Li Baixi caught up to him, “I’ll take you to the hospital; your face mustn’t scar.”