Brother Dao Took the Entertainment Industry by Storm, Fans Beg Me Not to Kill Anymore

In the subsequent scenes, several actors playing Celestial Masters were actual masters with genuine skills, recruited by the Celestial Master Association.

The middle-aged master with the highest "status" among them was even a disciple of the Lushan Sect, a very orthodox descendant of that lineage.

Because of this, watching them film these scenes was a uniquely eerie visual treat, providing the thrill of witnessing real masters performing exorcism rituals on-site.

Although Xiao He still didn't believe in ghosts and gods, seeing them form hand seals and engage in magical combat with his own eyes—using the bizarre dharma artifacts seen in old-school Hong Kong movies—he had to admit these Daoists perfectly matched his fantasy of what a Celestial Master should be.

Drawing talismans and performing sword dances on set, every move was fluid and graceful. Even in ordinary short-sleeved shirts, they maintained the aura of grandmasters, feeling like people from a different world than ordinary folk.

It [N O V E L I G H T] wasn't just Xiao He; whenever these scenes were filmed, many people from the Film Crew would gather to watch, letting out gasps of wonder as their scientific worldview was "shaken."

The only pity was that even when these Celestial Masters came to the set, they were very aloof, essentially leaving as soon as they finished filming. Xiao He didn't even get a chance to chat with them, and the rest of the Film Crew dared even less to approach the masters, maintaining a respectful distance from anything related to ghosts and gods.

Thus, these mysterious masters came and went in a hurry. Aside from leaving a deep impression of being hidden experts, they didn't bring much change. Even the "supernatural" occurrences that old seniors used to talk about when filming ghost movies never appeared in the Film Crew.

One couldn't help but wonder if there were simply too many masters here, scaring away any "evil spirits" that might have been drawn in.

In the end, Daoist Hu remained the friendliest. He even enthusiastically played the role of Zhou Zhiyi's master, smiling as he thanked Xiao He and the Film Crew for letting an old man like him indulge in being an actor.

As for Xiao He, his wirework during this period of filming never seemed to stop.

He had no idea how many prop peach wood swords he had gone through. Meanwhile, the heaviest member of the Film Crew, Lv Dun, was gradually thinning down due to the increasingly heavy workload. If it weren't for a special effects makeup artist like Feng Songyue helping to maintain his appearance, Lv Dun might have become so thin that his shots would look inconsistent.

For some reason, over the last few days, Director Zhuang would stare at Lv Dun for a long time after every scene, making Lv Dun feel quite uneasy.

"Director Zhuang, Director Zhuang, this is genuine fat! I didn't expect to get thinner the more I filmed. Please stop looking at me like that; you're scaring me!"

Lv Dun complained piteously.

The recent filming had been exhausting. He really didn't want to face the temporary task of "gaining weight" after enduring high-intensity work that felt like a weight-loss program.

That was simply not something a human should be put through!

Xiao He, sitting on a small folding stool nearby, couldn't help but look over upon hearing Lv Dun's words, his face full of curiosity as he looked at Zhuang Hongyi.

The scenes lately were all filmed in the studio, which was like a natural weight-loss furnace. Just being cooped up inside was unbearable. On the hottest days, they even had to use dedicated pipes to cool down the cameras, otherwise the equipment would have gone on strike, let alone the actors who were filming action scenes every day.

So, Xiao He could sympathize with Lv Dun.

He also quite admired Director Zhuang.

To be able to work a long-time solid fat man down to a medium-fat, sturdy build—Xiao He could only say that Zhuang Hongyi was quite the character.

"Ah, no, no, how could I be so heartless?"

Zhuang Hongyi immediately denied it, but he kept staring at Lv Dun: "I just suddenly had a new spark of inspiration."

"Huh?"

Lv Dun quickly covered his chest, trying to fight for a glimmer of hope for his character: "Director Zhuang, you aren't suddenly thinking of killing off my character, are you?"

"Ahahaha—"

Zhuang Hongyi scratched his head and laughed, saying nothing.

Suddenly, several heads crowded in front of him.

"No way? Director Zhuang, are you really thinking about that?!"

Lv Dun stared at Zhuang Hongyi in shock. Xiao He also looked at Zhuang Hongyi and asked tactfully, "Didn't Director Zhuang say that all three members of the main trio survived?"

Of course, there weren't many people left in the end anyway.

If Zhuang Hongyi continued to "blade" the characters, the plot of 'Mang' would literally end in a total wipeout.

Although Cheng Jingyu didn't speak, she kept nodding along, clearly very dissatisfied with Zhuang Hongyi's sudden urge to kill off characters.

The friendship of their iron triangle had gradually grown through their time together. Since they had all immersed themselves in their roles, they naturally loved their characters very much.

No one wanted their character to meet a tragic end.

It was only human nature.

Faced with the accusations of the three leads, Zhuang Hongyi was very composed: "Heaven is my witness, I really didn't plan to wipe out the main trio. You should know that this version of the ending is already the result of me revising the old script."

"There was an older version of the ending?"

The corner of Xiao He's eye twitched; he already had an ominous premonition.

"Yeah, in the original setting, I planned for two deaths and one person going blind," Zhuang Hongyi said the most ruthless words with the calmest face. "Names like Zhou Zhiyi, Wang Budao, and Chu Xin—when I was setting them, I hid the omens of their fates within the names themselves."

—Prophecies hidden in names, half a life already fated.

"Zhou Zhiyi, knowing the metaphysical and following the will of heaven. So he would die doing what he was best at—slaying ghosts. He would die deep in the tombs, using himself as fuel, his soul unable to find peace, eternally slaying the Mang monsters to guard the Dragon Vein."

"And Wang Budao, though named 'Never Falling,' was destined to fall before the dawn, drained of all his blood to trade his life in a blood sacrifice."

"Chu Xin, because of her Yin-Yang eyes, became a beacon in the darkness. So she was destined to sacrifice herself as the 'lamp wick,' burning until the end. Thus, even if she narrowly escaped, her eyes would be completely burnt out, leaving her blind..."

"So 'Mang' itself has metaphors, and the names of the main trio were never chosen at random."

Finishing his explanation, amidst everyone's shocked gazes, Director Zhuang shrugged with a look of regret: "Sigh, so I'm still too merciful."

After hearing Director Zhuang's description, everyone gasped.

...Director Zhuang, please, have some humanity!

Suddenly, no one dared to keep asking about Zhuang Hongyi's thoughts.

If Zhuang Hongyi actually filmed that grand finale he had in mind, it would truly be a silent tragedy, and he'd just have to wait for the audience to send him blades in the mail.

"Okay, Director Zhuang, let's just say that the more you revise things, the easier it is for problems to arise. So it's better to just leave it as it is. I think the current state is really good."

Xiao He tried to persuade him with unprecedented seriousness. "Director Zhuang, we've all seen the ending of the 'corner' manga. Back then, when the main cast there was wiped out and ended up in the same cemetery, weren't you so angry that you ignored Yan Shaohan for months? We can't have double standards! Look how much you hated Bad Endings then. How can you put blades in your own script? That's just immoral!"

"Yes, Director Zhuang, I also think our current ending is great."

Lv Dun also spoke up.

Even Cheng Jingyu joined the argument: "Director Zhuang, a plot where only one person lives is a bit too tragic. Nowadays, many viewers don't like watching movies that are so miserable and heart-wrenching."

It just goes to show that these plots couldn't stand the comparison.

Previously, they felt that although the main trio survived in the current plot, it was basically a pyrrhic victory. But compared to Zhuang Hongyi's old version of the horrifying plot, it could truly be said without exaggeration that a 'kind' version of Director Zhuang had taken over the account.