Bai Fanlu opened his eyes and found himself lying in bed.

He stared at the pure white ceiling above him for a long time before slowly getting up and silently looking around.

Without a doubt, this was his room in the real world. There was a phone next to his pillow, along with a pair of earphones.

When he checked the date on his phone, he realized that only one day had passed since he was transported into the novel, or rather, he had slept in bed for an entire day and night. What had happened during that time, he wasn’t sure.

There were only a few WeChat messages and some missed calls, clearly from telemarketers. No one had tried to reach him.

Bai Fanlu didn’t know why he could remain so calm, as if he had just woken from an incredibly long dream. No matter how intense his emotions had been in the dream, everything felt flat and unremarkable now that he was awake.

He slipped on his slippers, got out of bed, and walked like a ghost to the bathroom, where he casually turned on the light and saw his reflection in the mirror.

He stared at himself blankly for a while before raising a hand to touch his face, which was streaked with cold, dried, transparent tears.

He turned on the faucet, washed his face with warm water, and then went to the kitchen to open the refrigerator, finding that there wasn’t much food left inside.

Returning to the bedroom, he changed out of his pajamas into some everyday clothes, as if it were just another ordinary morning. He then went to the supermarket to buy some bread and restock fresh fruits and vegetables.

In the days that followed, it seemed like nothing had changed. Bai Fanlu continued to stay at home most of the time, only going out occasionally.

His profession was post-production of audio and video for a home studio. Recently, he had been mainly working on radio dramas. He didn’t need to clock in at an office, just deliver his work on time. He also ran an online store and occasionally took on freelance jobs.

But even though he had been back in reality for half a month, the profound feeling that something was missing still lingered, impossible to shake off.

Even so, Bai Fanlu didn’t want to go near that novel again. He contacted the project planner, intending to resign from the post-production role for the drama. Since the voice acting hadn’t officially started yet, backing out now wouldn’t be too much of an issue.

But just as he opened QQ, the planner sent him a message first.

Planner Jian Ling: “Xiao Bai, Xiao Bai, help, help!”

Bai Fanlu: “What’s wrong?”

He had just sent the message when the planner, who seemed quite frantic, immediately sent him a voice message.

“It’s about our drama—the author has updated with a second part, and it’s going super, super, super viral! We’re scrambling to get the rights; it’s insanely popular!”

The girl’s tone was very excited.

But if they were just scrambling for the rights, why tell him specifically?

Before resigning from the post-production role, Bai Fanlu politely asked, “So, did we get the rights?”

“Well… check the drama group chat.”

What did she mean by that?

Bai Fanlu opened the drama group chat, and immediately, a barrage of notifications flooded in—hundreds of unread messages.

He switched back to the conversation with the planner: “There seem to be quite a few messages.”

“Just search for ‘post-production’ and look for the bold capital letters!”

Following her instructions, he searched and found several results, but the first one stood out—bold and capitalized.

Fuyun Mobai: “You’ll get the rights as long as the previous post-production person remains unchanged. Also, one more condition: the lead character’s voice actor must be someone I choose.”

Bai Fanlu frowned.

If he remembered correctly, Fuyun Mobai was the author of that novel. He specifically named him?

Scrolling down, he saw a flood of messages calling for “the post-production genius,” “our beloved post-production expert,” and “Xiao Bai, save us,” along with some amusing comments like, “Don’t you think the pen name Fuyun Mobai seems to be hinting at some connection with our post-production genius?”

“Wait, wait! Didn’t you see? Fuyun Mobai said the lead voice actor has to be his choice! That’s so telling! Please, someone reveal who the voice actor is! We need to ship this CP!”

“Calm down, calm down. The drama hasn’t even started recording, and you’re already picking apart the couples? Don’t be so shameless!”

Then the conversation veered off-topic, with people debating hidden romantic subplots and which CP (character pairing) was the most shippable.

Suddenly, a QQ notification popped up: “Fuyun Mobai from the group chat has requested to add you as a friend. Do you accept?” Bai Fanlu hesitated for a moment before choosing to accept.

Fuyun Mobai: “Have you read the second part?”

Bai Fanlu: “Not yet.”

Fuyun Mobai: “Take some time to read it.”

A file transfer request appeared on the side of the chat window—it seemed to be an MP4 file. Bai Fanlu wasn’t sure what this was about.

Fuyun Mobai: “Download it. After you’ve finished the second part, listen to this.”

Bai Fanlu found it puzzling but still clicked to accept. The file was quite large, and it looked like it would take some time to download.

Bai Fanlu: “What is it?”

Fuyun Mobai: “You’ll know when you listen to it. After you’ve listened, send me your thoughts. I’ll be waiting.”

As the file was still downloading, Bai Fanlu felt a bit bored.

He remembered what the planner had said about the second part being very popular, but he had already decided not to go near that novel again.

Bai Fanlu: “Why do you want me to read the second part?”

Fuyun Mobai: “I hope you’ll handle the post-production. Naturally, you need to read the novel first to make a decision.” Bai Fanlu typed a few words: “I was actually planning to tell the planner…”

But he deleted them before sending.

Fine, I’ll read it. Since the author personally invited me, it would be rude to refuse without even taking a look. After all, he’s a well-known author, and we might work together again in the future.

I’ll skim through it a bit and see how I can politely decline later.

Bai Fanlu opened the novel website, found his previous history, and indeed saw that the author had published the second part of “Xian Mo Yi Wen Lu,” with the release date being half a month ago.

A total of 300,000 words had been updated in just a little over ten days, and the total data had already surpassed the first part. A quick glance showed a flood of positive comments, completely different from the egg-throwing critiques of the previous book.

Especially in the hot comments section, there were many obvious CP shippers and posts praising the “divine romance.”

He switched back to the QQ chat and noticed that Fuyun Mobai’s avatar had gone gray, and the file had finished downloading. He instinctively wanted to click on it but then remembered Fuyun Mobai’s words: read the novel first, then listen to this.

Although he really didn’t want to touch this book, the drastic change in the comments section piqued his curiosity. After a few moments of hesitation, Bai Fanlu finally clicked on the first chapter.

It started with a cliché rebirth trope. After Yun Zhan, the acting sect leader, injured the original protagonist at a sword competition, he suddenly remembered his past life. Reflecting on his past mistakes, he decided to treat his senior brother well, only to find that his senior brother now kept him at a distance, avoiding him no matter how much he tried to get close.

Unlike typical rebirth stories, this one directly pointed out that Yun Zhan probed his senior brother’s dreams and discovered that he too had been reborn. Knowing that his senior brother no longer trusted him, Yun Zhan had no choice but to borrow an ancient mirror from an old immortal and changed his appearance…

As Bai Fanlu read on, the plot became increasingly familiar and unsettling—it was exactly what had happened in his dream. No, it was what had happened when he was transported into the novel!

But there were differences. The novel was told from Yun Zhan’s perspective, describing how he transformed into Xiao Liu, how he followed his senior brother from Yingzhou to Lingcheng, how he fulfilled his senior brother’s tasks, how his true identity was revealed, and how, on that rainy night when his senior brother lost his soul, lost his reason, and misunderstood his intentions, Yun Zhan helped him detoxify without truly harming him.

This included the final journey into the secret realm, where Yun Zhan chose to let his senior brother take the Qianyuan Seal while he himself entered the demon god’s body, using pure energy to defeat the enemy, and once again, they were separated by life and death…

Finally, Yun Zhan’s true feelings were revealed.

It turned out that because of the karma between Qi Zhao and Mo Jiuli in their previous lives, it was predestined that Yun Zhan would be deeply aware that if Bai Fanlu continued to develop feelings for him, it would only lead to a tragic end.

That’s why Yun Zhan had deliberately distanced himself in their previous life, even pushing Bai Fanlu towards the path of becoming a demon. Although Bai Fanlu eventually died in the demon-slaying array, Yun Zhan had turned it into a soul-guiding array at the crucial moment.

Bai Fanlu was the reincarnation of the demon god, and in this life, he was destined to die. However, by using this method, Yun Zhan at least ensured that Bai Fanlu’s soul would not perish, giving Yun Zhan another chance to save him.

Yet, later, Yun Zhan realized that even if he saved Bai Fanlu, he couldn’t sever the bond of love in his heart. This only caused Bai Fanlu immense suffering, and Yun Zhan regretted it, knowing that even in another life, it might not matter if the suffering continued.

Perhaps, by some stroke of fate, Yun Zhan was granted a second chance at life. He then did everything he could to change destiny, hoping that neither of them would have to turn against each other and that Bai Fanlu’s soul could remain intact.

In the end, Yun Zhan succeeded. Bai Fanlu didn’t die, and they confessed their feelings to each other. However, Yun Zhan himself died in Bai Fanlu’s place.

It was only then that the readers realized that Yun Zhan was not a scumbag, but a deeply devoted and self-sacrificing character. Their love transcended both past and present lives.

Bai Fanlu read non-stop to this point, with only the final chapter left. Since this wasn’t a “transmigrated into a book” story, what would happen after Yun Zhan died in that world, leaving Bai Fanlu alone? How would the story end?