Volume 1 Reflection and Summary

The update of the first volume ends here. As usual, I will take a three-day break to adjust the outline... and then take another day off to play Black Monkey... so the next update will be on Saturday night.

We have finally finished writing our first volume, and as usual, let's do a summary, reflection and release the abandoned draft after the big story ends.

And nonsense.

This story begins near the end of the previous book, Cangdu, which was about the middle of Volume 5. I was frustrated by the complex and difficult-to-understand setting of the Impermanence Method, so I decided to write a simple, clear, and easy-to-understand combat system in the next book.

During a sleepless night, I wrote a rough draft of the opening—completely unrelated to the current first chapter—and then began to slowly work on the worldview and settings. These small details, through constant reworking and patching, became a little more fleshed out, ultimately becoming the worldview we have today. Therefore, I can confidently say that the worldview of Destiny is vast, but I'm also hesitant to say that it's difficult to fully address every aspect.

It's important to know yourself. Clearly, I'm not the type to write about a country; I'd struggle even to write about a province. Therefore, in the first volume, I created a city that would be convenient for the various factions to appear, as well as for all sorts of fancy things to appear. This place is our Huilong City.

The plot of the first volume is quite simple. On the city level, Sora leads his team to eliminate the three evils, while on the personal level, it's an Earthling's journey into another world. I think the overall pacing is quite good this time, missing the usual spurt of momentum after the mid-season battle. This time, the mid-season battle (the club battle) is around episode 18 of the season, and with only a few episodes left to wrap up, it would be too long if we didn't add some more content.

So the final club battle and the anticipated "out-of-city battle" were combined into one, with Akong Huaisu fighting the boss inside and the city lord Huilong carrying the load outside. Looking back, this battle arrangement may still be a bit "fast", but in terms of the daily reading rhythm, I think it should be okay.

However, this volume does have two problems. The first, and the one I couldn't quite wrap my head around, is that the beginning is rather bland...

You see, I actually tried my best. For example, I was too lazy to write any foreshadowing at the beginning and just had Kong be summoned directly. For example, at the beginning, he directly joined the camp, started fighting, adapted to the situation, and then started working. But when you look back, you think, "Hey, I've seen this tentacle idea in other stories", "Why did your appraisal book cheat code only appear ten chapters later?", all these factors combined lead to the fact that the first ten chapters of this story... cannot be said to be very bad... but it seems a bit "flat".

As a reader, I felt that Akong's story didn't really gain any interest until the Ghost Dog and Demon Child arc. But then, it felt rather baffling to bring this story in without any previous context. So, I have to say it's a matter of my own limitations and abilities. I'm a slow-witted person, always wanting to establish the framework before crafting conflict. Laying out intense conflict right off the bat gives me a headache because I can't develop the background. That's just my personal limitation.

Fortunately, the beginning of the previous work was even worse. No matter what, I can comfort myself that "it's better than Cangdu" (sad)

The second issue is the battle against Adari in the Swamp Arc. This is the first battle in the book where Sora is defeated (though not defeated). In the setting, it's natural for Adari, a well-prepared and resourceful veteran, to defeat Sora. However, in practice, the poorly designed battle flow creates a visual issue.

After this fight, we received a lot of feedback from readers. I took this into consideration and rewrote the entire chapter. Therefore, the version you see now is significantly different from the original (check it out if you're interested). I think this revised version is pretty good; at least it's not as quick as the original. This issue also relates to Sora's personality, which we'll discuss later in the character section.

Having the protagonist stumble is something that requires careful consideration. Every story I've written so far has received feedback on this, and I'll continue to be very cautious in the future. After that, Kong had a good back-and-forth in both the Club and Workshop arcs, and I feel like everyone's enjoyed it, so I'll basically maintain that pace.

Of course, there are many other small issues besides these, but if I write more, it will probably turn into a self-reflection meeting for me, so let’s end this part for now and talk about the abandoned project.

——The original plan included a funny episode about Akong’s assassination.

This story follows a skilled assassin who infiltrates the team cafeteria, posing as a cook and poisoning Akong's food. This is quickly revealed, leading to Akong and Huaisu's first tag team match. Naturally, the two newly acquainted individuals struggle to cooperate, and the assassin, overthinking himself, repeatedly suffers setbacks, ultimately erupting in frustration and scattering the group.

This story wasn't written not because of any design issues, but because there was no place to put it in. After the swamp arc officially entered the main storyline, there were fewer opportunities to write back to this small unit, and arranging it after the breakthrough of the dexterity didn't make it easy to show off Akong's dexterity ability because of the two-on-one situation, so it was abandoned.

Later I thought that it would be okay to put it in Chapter 10 to replace the Outsider Bullet, but it is hindsight to say so now.

——Originally there was a whole storyline about the logistics of Huilong City

After reading the first volume, you might be wondering why the City Lord's Mansion is so empty besides the Urban Management Team. In fact, the City Lord's Mansion also has a team of professionals who assist with all aspects of the city's operations, including regulating water flow within the city and controlling the water curtains above. The stories of these professionals will touch upon the reasons why the system of Huilong City works, as well as Lord Huilong's own abilities...

But after thinking about it, it seems to have nothing to do with Akong.

After thinking about it, it seems that no one is very interested in how the water flows.

So this storyline was completely deleted, and the first appearance of these guys became a series of warnings at the beginning of the final battle (laughs)

——A memory of Akong's underworld story

The current story has not yet begun. Recalling a bird's underworld story, delete

——Before the club battle begins, Akong and Huaisu will quarrel because of their different views on the gangs

There's no point in quarreling with a powerful enemy. Delete

——In the original setting, Maivia's daughter was once an elite member of the Resurrection Army, but was corrupted and betrayed and joined the club.

I personally think this was worth writing about, as it would have allowed her to play a rivalry with Huaisu, enriching her character. However, the club arc was so fast-paced that having Huaisu solely fight a minor character would have been too demeaning. Therefore, this storyline was completely deleted, and she has no connection to the Resurrection Corps in the main story.

——The Huilong Water Curtain was originally intended to be a lottery pool for Akong's fishing draw.

There are two reasons why this plan was abandoned. First, directly drawing cards doesn't feel as fulfilling as getting loot. Second, the story unfolds at a leisurely pace, but not too slowly either. There's not much space for him to go fishing...

So it's a shame that there's no card drawing in Volume 1. If you'd like to see the card drawing, I'll see if I can add it in the next volume.

There are still many small abandoned projects left, but space is limited so I won't list them all. I estimate that if I add all of them together, the volume will have more than 100 chapters, but it is better to cut down on them.

It's worth mentioning that the main plot hasn't changed much, which is thankful. As expected, novellas are better. If it were a 100-chapter novel, I'd be howling.

Now that we have finished talking about the abandoned cases, let’s talk about the key characters in this volume.

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Rock Master

Master Yan is a very simple character. Simple combat, simple techniques, and a simple ending. When designing him, I considered having him survive and join the team, but ultimately felt this simple exit was the most suitable ending for him. His design was based on the idea of ​​a "one-chapter exit" villain in a unit episode, as the short storyline lends itself to blank space.

After much deliberation, I decided not to let Master Yan tell too many stories, leaving only the memory within the knife. This moderate amount of white space was my first attempt, and I think the result is quite good.

-

Kanin (with Bessen)

Besen is in parentheses (laughs) because it's shaped as a side of Kanin. A powerful but simple demon, a powerless and cunning human, the combination of the two makes up this volume's final boss, the ambitious man who burns his life.

This guy has his own personality, and I specifically made him face off against both Adari and Maivia, hoping to show their differences.

While previous games featured impeccably calculated bosses, Kanin is far from that. His plans are constantly changing. He wanted to unite the clubs, but Maivia's schemes forced him to attack them first. He wanted a blitzkrieg, but Sora's arrival on the island before the battle prevented him from getting off to a perfect start. In the ever-changing battlefield, he actively adjusts his strategy, striving to play every card at his disposal.

The only time he lost his composure was when he saw Chu Hengkong jumping down from the sky. It was not because his plan was disrupted, but because he saw someone even crazier than himself.

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Ji Qiufeng, Huilong and Jie An

They are all people who carry too much weight. The difference is that the youngest Jie An is about to be crushed by the weight, the inhuman Huilong can stabilize Chang Xin, and Ji Qiufeng has engraved all his memories in his heart, turning them into the courage to fight in desperate situations.

I really like the paragraphs about the city lord going to battle, which makes me feel very emotional.

Ji Qiufeng was satisfied with Akong from the very beginning, perhaps because he saw his former self in this killer.

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Ji Huaisu

In the past (and still today), light novels had the concept of a "volume heroine," or "main chapter." This meant starting with a female character's personal arc and resolving a major event related to her core conflict. Typically, after this main chapter, the heroine would establish a relationship with the male protagonist that went beyond friendship, but not necessarily romance. The reader would develop a deeper understanding or affection for the heroine, and the story would conclude happily for both parties.

I've tried this approach before when writing Cangdu, with both success and failure. But Huaisu this time... I don't think it quite fits this concept, because it's immediately clear that she has a whole storyline to unfold, a long-term plot that was clearly not resolved in the first volume, Huilongcheng.

Therefore, in this volume, I tried to portray her more as a veteran and a good partner. She's not a pedantic character; she's willing to partner with a killer and doesn't mind striking a blow. She's adapted well to this chaotic world and strives to make it better. This unwavering strength is something I really like.

There is more to tell about Huaisu’s story. It’s a long story, so let’s take our time, there’s no rush.

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Chu Hengkong

This is the most difficult character to write in this volume. It's also the character that gave me the most headaches.

As for Akong, his entire personality is flawed. He's an outlier, a guy who defies common sense. This is evident from his profession: he's a killer. What normal person would be willing to become a killer?

So he's a man with both strong and weak points. On the one hand, he's a man of his word and principles, willing to wield a knife against a villain while also carefully protecting a little girl and her dog. On the other hand, he's not particularly bright, lacking foresight. He's overconfident in his own abilities, and his actions can sometimes be described as reckless.

These complex, even contradictory, traits make it difficult to simply label him as "killer" or "knight." I often considered erasing his flaws, leaving only minor, innocuous issues, but that felt artificial. This balance was difficult to strike, leading to the visual issues I encountered before the Adari battle was rewritten. Now, after a full volume, I'm confident I've nailed his character. Just like how Kong integrated into the city of Huilong, I've gradually adapted to his ways.

If everyone reads this far, I think they'll be able to accept this quirky guy to some degree. He'll become stronger, and more adventures await him, but the core of his personality won't change. He'll play pranks unconsciously, and he'll also wield his sword without hesitation against the powerful.

·

That’s almost enough to summarize here, let’s look ahead to the future.

The next volume will be written differently from this one, as Kong will venture out of this familiar city to see the world beyond. This will inevitably lead to a different plot development than in the city itself. I'll be experimenting with different types of introductions and storylines, and choosing between them accordingly. We'll see which style everyone finds best.

Leaving Huilong City means more heretics, more mental illnesses, more near-death experiences, and of course, more relics, fun, and more lovely girls. Ah, I've only just realized, as a light novel, that we have a rather small number of girls. Instead, we have a large number of various uncles. This unhealthy trend must be corrected.

Therefore, there will be more female characters in volume two. Of course, not every girl will be the heroine, but there will be new ones. After all, everyone who's read my stories already knows my awful personality. Writing about factional strife feels too cruel to the other girls, and writing about a single heroine feels too cruel to myself. Therefore, each story will generally be a joyful one with multiple girls. As for what the new girls will be like, well...

Anyway, he's not the evil guy who ripped out the protagonist's heart (laughs)

Well, that's the end of the writing.

I'm taking four days off as usual to adjust the outline and play some games. We will update on time at 8pm this Saturday.

(End of this chapter)