Chapter 48 The Archives The mysterious and vast archives opened to her...
The video shoot was exceptionally difficult—unlike previous external challenges such as uncooperative actors and insufficient props, this time the main difficulty was psychological. Jiu Su was very cooperative, doing whatever was asked, but she frequently teased her, using methods including, but not limited to, flirting with her eyes, using double entendres, and touching her inappropriately…
This caused Shu Qing's hands to shake many times, and several scenes had to be reshot two or three times, greatly reducing efficiency.
"You shouldn't date someone too good-looking," she lamented indignantly. "With your and my looks, we're better off single; we can't go around causing trouble for society!"
Jiu Su raised an eyebrow slightly. "So you should have come to me. If we both cause trouble for each other, wouldn't that be a perfect way to avoid affecting anyone else?"
"Nonsense!" Shu Qing glared at him angrily.
Fortunately, although the efficiency was not high, the result was very good.
Shu Qing posted the short video, titled "Xiao Hong's Glamorous Transformation," on the platform. Within ten minutes, the platform received an overwhelming flood of likes and comments.
As she had predicted, she was the first content creator to feature a superhuman being in human form, so her popularity was naturally high. While there were bound to be doubts, she was licensed to raise monsters, making it legal and legitimate. Furthermore, Jiu Su currently holds a position as a staff member of the Super Admin Bureau, so there was little to criticize. The doubts actually increased the reach of her content.
"Is this Xiao Hong???"
"Holy crap, are all monsters this good-looking?"
"They could debut right away!"
Shu Qing deliberately cut Jiu Su's human form to the front. Through the pure white cold air, the silver-haired boy turned his head to look at the camera, revealing a pair of highly recognizable blood-red vertical pupils.
The white-haired, red-eyed handsome young man possessed an appearance that young people could appreciate most. When Jiu Su cooperated well with her during the shoot and did not deliberately flirt with her, he exuded an indifferent coldness, appearing exceptionally distant and unreal amidst the swirling clouds.
At least the audience did find it hard to believe, and many questioned it:
"It looks good, but it feels a bit fake."
"Modeled, right?"
"Don't be ridiculous. Who uses CG in short videos unless the uploader is really paving the way for Xiaohong's debut?"
At that moment, Shu Qing called out "Xiao Hong" from outside the frame, and the boy's eyes lit up instantly, and he came to life in a flash. He swam towards the edge of the frame, and a glimpse of his white robe and flowing ribbon flashed through the mist, like the hem of a garment or a faintly visible snake tail.
"Ahhhh, is that a tail?"
"I want to see the state of Little Red Half-Snake!"
"When you slow down and watch frame by frame, what you see isn't the tail, but the pendant on the clothes."
"Want to see a half-snake? +1"
Shu Qing pouted. It wasn't that she didn't want to take the picture, it's just that Jiu Su absolutely refused to let her post it...
After designing a beautiful opening, Shu Qing edited in several fast-paced shots, stringing together scenes of Xiao Hong's daily life in human society after gaining human form. These included learning to play games with her, trying various snacks with her, and their biological clocks—staying up late at night and sleeping in late in the morning…
In short, the demons that once roamed the clouds have descended to the mortal realm, becoming quite earthly and human.
Of course, the video's plot does not completely reflect reality. The real Jiu Su would not have been killed three times in a row after playing together. Shu Qing made some artistic embellishments for the sake of the performance.
The processing was not in vain; the response was very positive.
"Hahaha, this is hilarious! Even monsters are clumsy!"
"Does the enemy know that they just killed a high-risk, supernatural creature?"
"Xiao Hong's bewildered expression is hilarious ww"
Breaking news: In the battle between sweet and savory tofu pudding, Xiao Hong cast the crucial vote for sweet tofu pudding!
"Sweet Tofu Pudding Team welcomes its heavyweight new member! [Sprinkling flowers.jpg]"
"I figured it's not my fault I can't eat with snakes, right? [doge.jpg]"
In the final shot, Shu Qing showed the complete scene of Jiu Su transforming from human form back into snake form. Pure white mist swept by, and the beautiful young man turned into a pretty little white snake, wagging its tail and returning to the fish tank to coil up and rest.
Aside from film and television special effects, this is probably the first direct-shot video of a monster transformation on the entire internet. Shu Qing deliberately filmed it in one take and used multiple angles to show that it was purely a direct shot and not a post-production special effect.
Even so, the screen was filled with exclamation marks, overwhelming the viewer, to the point that the screen was almost unreadable without turning them off.
From here on, the narration began. This time, because the protagonist of the video was Jiu Su, Shu Qing didn't have Tu Nan record it; instead, under Tu Nan's guidance, she recorded a narration herself:
"Ever since Xiao Hong took human form, I've often thought about how people say there's a racial difference between humans and yokai. However, I often forget that Xiao Hong is a yokai. We communicate fluently, exchange ideas without barriers, and even share common interests, and we can accompany each other in the future. So, where exactly does the 'racial difference' between Xiao Hong and me lie?"
“Someone told me it’s about strength. If Xiao Hong wants to hurt me, I have no way to fight back. But there are also many humans who have the power to hurt or suppress me, so this is not enough to be considered a ‘racial difference’ between me and Xiao Hong.”
"Some people have also told me that it lies in cognition. Monsters have their own habits, and humans have theirs. However, cognition can influence each other, and habits can adapt to each other. There are times when people have different cognitions and different habits, but this is not enough to be called 'racial difference'."
“Some people say it’s about appearance…” Shu Qinglu smiled slightly at this point, “That is indeed undeniable, but we know that external conditions cannot be the sole criterion for judgment.”
She ignored the barrage of comments flying across the screen, such as "Of course they can, whoever is prettier is right [doge.jpg]" and "Beauty is justice," and concluded, "High-level superhuman beings have the ability to transform into human form and communicate with humans. It can be seen that the barriers between races are not absolute. 'Superhuman beings' can also communicate with us, have concerns, preferences, and joys and sorrows."
"They are not tools, not commodities, but living beings who share this world with us. Where 'racial differences' exist is something we need to define with our own eyes. Perhaps we will eventually discover that, apart from the differences in appearance, our spirits are connected."
The video ended, and the LCD screen in the conference room went black, reflecting the various expressions on the faces of the people in the room.
When it lit up again, it displayed the video's three-day data—three days had passed, and it had already climbed to the top of the homepage's trending list, tagged with "million views." The previous video had almost reached 200,000 views; five times that number, it had clearly met the target.
Shu Qing included the trending topic tag in today's report. She was triumphant, glanced at Jiu Su, and then looked at Director Yang with a smile.
The meaning is clear: You gave me a data standard, and I met it. Now isn't it your turn to fulfill your promise?
Director Yang took a sip of tea, once again experiencing the stubbornness of his juniors, and said calmly, "You're just taking advantage of someone else's good looks. If it were any other monster, would it work out like this?"
"Why not?" Jiu Su interjected. "Her strength lies in using talent appropriately. She only filmed it this way because it was me. If it were another monster, she naturally wouldn't be so fixated on its appearance and would choose a different subject. What's wrong with that?"
Shu Qing smiled at him, her eyes crinkling – she still wanted to cooperate with the Supermarket Management Bureau in the future, and Director Yang was the head of the Bureau, so she needed to manage her relationship with him well. His retort was better than her speaking rudely.
After he finished venting, she laughed and said, "Yes, that's the philosophy of our studio too. Everyone is different, and every monster has its own unique characteristics. What we want to popularize is the different features and habits of each monster."
"What are the characteristics and habits of this video?"
"In the middle section," Shu Qing pointed to Director Yang, "Now, everyone understands that high-level monsters have strong learning abilities and the ability to adapt to society. As for Xiao Hong's more unique habits..." She smiled, "I am his supervisor, so it's enough for me to know; it's not appropriate to disclose them to the public."
Upon hearing this, Jiu Su finally felt a little relieved, and he glanced back at Shu Qing, suppressing a smile.
Director Yang pondered for a moment. Jin Wanli really wanted to jump up and express his opinion, but considering his previous feat, Jiu Su cast a mute spell on him, forcibly muting his microphone.
“Ms. Shu’s words make sense.” In the end, Xie Heng gave the crucial advice, “Moreover, judging from the reactions on various platforms, this video has indeed sparked widespread discussion, and the general attitude is quite positive, which shows that this project can indeed achieve the effect we expect. Director Yang, what do you think?”
Director Yang pondered for a long time, a full two minutes, before finally nodding.
"Okay, then you guys go and give it a try."
With the highest leader's approval, all procedures were expedited. That same day, Shu Qing signed a cooperation agreement with the Supermarket Management Bureau and gained the long-awaited access to the Bureau's backend data.
Such rapid progress inevitably comes at a price, and Jin Wanli, the direct partner, had to work overtime with Jiu Su. Jiu Su originally wanted to take Shu Qing home first, but Shu Qing insisted on waiting for him, saying only, "I've been to the Super Management Bureau so many times, do I need to be entertained? I'll wait for you to leave together."
Seeing that Jiu Su seemed to want to say something more, she used the topic of her period to shut him up, "What if you have to work overtime until midnight? What will you do if I'm not there?"
It's nothing really. The Special Operations Department is full of weird colleagues, and more than half of them have similar troubles, so it's understandable. He can just find a place to lock himself away for two hours; it doesn't matter if she's not there.
However, Jiu Su gazed at her for a while, but ultimately said nothing, only smiled and said, "Okay."
Shu Qing said excitedly, "Then I'll find a quiet place and get my work done."
Jiu Su gently kissed her forehead.
Shu Qing watched him walk away, then turned and ran towards another building of the Super Management Bureau—she stayed not just to keep Jiu Su company while she worked overtime, but to visit the Super Management Bureau's archives.
Having finally gained access to the backend system, she didn't want to wait a minute longer. She had countless unsolved mysteries in her mind and wanted to know the answers immediately.
Although called a "room," the archives actually occupy three entire floors of the adjacent building, making it more like a small library. It houses all the records of supernatural beings in the province's history and is connected to the intranet of the headquarters in the capital, so you can access anything.
Shu Qing stood in front of the gate, her hands trembling slightly, as she took out the access card she had just produced half an hour earlier.
A green light flashed, and with a "beep," the mysterious and vast archives opened their doors to her.
She walked in step by step.
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