Chapter Thirty: The Comic’s Meteoric Rise

Chapter Thirty: The Comic Takes Off!

At ten o’clock in the evening, Gao Yang finally finished his homework and burrowed under the covers. This was his favorite time of day—no need to worry about teachers making rounds or his parents urging him on. He could finally read comics in peace.

Times had changed. In the past, he could only read comics in books or catch a glimpse on TV, but now, with a mobile phone, he could enjoy them right from his device. Although phones of this era weren’t fully touchscreen yet, they could already access a browser for some simple browsing.

With practiced ease, he typed in “AnimeLove.net” and entered the site. This was currently the titan of the animation world; most new domestic comics debuted here.

“Huh?” As he entered, Gao Yang paused in surprise. “What’s this? ‘The Adventures of Zhang Gouzi’? That’s certainly an unusual name.”

“But since it’s featured on the homepage, it must be decent,” he reasoned, choosing to read.

“Whoa!” His eyes lit up instantly. “What a style!”

He flipped to the next page, “Dog Fist?! Hahaha… Is this for real?”

He kept reading, only to find, “Huh? That’s it?”

He scrolled further, “What the—!” He shot straight up in bed, “It really is over! Are you kidding me? Is this supposed to be a joke?”

He quickly opened the comments section, ready to unleash a tirade, but saw the number of comments had already surpassed a hundred thousand. “As expected, plenty of people feel the same way I do.”

“This is the wildest comic I’ve ever read! Hands down!”

“The plot, the art, the sheer audacity—nothing like it before or since!”

“The creators and their whole family must be… well, never mind…”

“A masterpiece! Everyone has to keep reading.”

“Keep reading? There’s nothing more! It ends after four pages!”

“Good news! The second part is out—just take a left at the homepage!”

…

“The second part? This thing has a sequel!” Gao Yang rushed to check if it was true.

“Damn! There really is a second part! Does this author have any shame left?”

His words were critical, but his actions were honest; he clicked in regardless.

“What? An old lady?!…”

“No way! You can do that?!…”

“Are you for real? Hahaha…”

Late at night, Gao Yang laughed like a fool. “Let me see who created this madness!”

“It’s… Just For Fun Studios? No way, this is the work of a whole company! Are you all preschoolers who stayed back a few years? Your level is out of this world!”

He quickly opened his QQ Space, reposted the comic, and added his own comment:

“The coolest martial arts comic in existence! The future of Chinese anime! A worthy rival to Japanese comics—everyone has to read it! I refuse to be the only one traumatized!”

…

A night passed. The next day, Shi Bai went to school as usual. He hadn’t slept well the previous night; even though his mission was completed, his reward still hadn’t arrived.

He walked into the classroom, a bit weary, only to find everyone animatedly discussing something.

“Dude, I’ve never seen a comic like this!”

“It’s like it drags everyone’s IQ through the mud!”

“Completely breaks the mold, but… somehow addictive!”

“Exactly! I almost died laughing!”

…

Shi Bai was puzzled. Noticing Gao Yang among the group, he walked over and asked, “What comic are you all raving about?”

Gao Yang grinned, “It’s in the class group chat. Go check it out—‘The Adventures of Zhang Gouzi’!”

“What?!” Shi Bai was shocked. “You’re all talking about ‘The Adventures of Zhang Gouzi’?”

“Yeah!” Gao Yang replied, puzzled. “Why? You’ve read it?”

Shi Bai quickly feigned ignorance and laughed. “No, I haven’t. But that name is so tacky!”

“Tacky? It’s just anti-cliché, a parody comic!”

Shi Bai felt as if he’d taken a punch to the chest. “A parody comic? It even has its own genre now?”

He hurried to his seat, pulled out his phone, and opened QQ. “No way! The group chat is nothing but this comic!”

“Check out Zhang Gouzi’s Dog Fist—powerful or what?”

“I think the dog’s the real powerhouse here!”

“Am I the only one who finds the old lady super sexy?”

…

Shi Bai nearly coughed up blood. “Sexy, my foot! You’re the sexy one!”

He opened his QQ Space—everywhere he looked, images from the comic. Some people had even turned the images into GIFs and memes.

“Watch as Zhang Gouzi is smashed to bits by a two-centimeter cliff!”

“Can you handle it?”

“Take this—my handstand pee attack!”

…

Shi Bai was even more dumbfounded. “This is allowed?”

But a sense of crisis crept over him at the same time. “No, wait! If it’s like this, does that mean my mission… failed?”

“No, it didn’t fail.” Just then, the system’s voice sounded.

Shi Bai froze. “It didn’t fail? Then why haven’t I gotten my reward yet?”

“Your reward has arrived.”

“Huh?” Shi Bai was still confused when suddenly his phone rang. He checked—an editor from AnimeLove.net was calling.

“Why is he calling me now?” Shi Bai answered, puzzled, and was greeted by an excited voice.

“Hello! Is this Mr. Shi Bai?”

The editor’s enthusiasm startled Shi Bai. “Yes, it’s me. What’s up?”

“Congratulations! Your company’s marketing strategy is a huge success!”

Shi Bai was taken aback. “Marketing… strategy?”

“Yes! Let me tell you, your anti-cliché approach has brought your company three million new fans!”

“What?!” Shi Bai’s exclamation drew curious looks all around. He apologized with a smile and quickly left the classroom for the restroom.

“Tell me clearly—what’s going on?” Shi Bai lowered his voice.

The editor sounded just as delighted, swallowing before continuing, “Let me tell you, your comic is truly terrible!”

“Yeah,” Shi Bai replied matter-of-factly.

“But because it’s so bad, it’s actually attracted a huge audience! It’s gone viral! Check the new comics leaderboard—‘The Adventures of Zhang Gouzi’ is number one!”

“What?!”

The editor chuckled. “Surprised? Happy? But there’s more good news!”

Shi Bai could only laugh bitterly. “What else?”

“LeNet Game Company just called—they want to buy the animation and game adaptation rights for ‘The Adventures of Zhang Gouzi’ for one million yuan!”

Shi Bai’s mind went blank. “The reward’s here!”

“Congratulations on completing your mission. Failure value: 20,000 points,” the system chimed in.

“Damn! Amazing! I actually completed the mission—and in this way!” Shi Bai couldn’t help but shout.

The editor paused. “What?”

Shi Bai quickly laughed it off. “Nothing. So, when is LeNet Company making the purchase?”

“They said anytime is fine, but you don’t have to worry about the details. Leave it to our site—we’ll transfer the million yuan directly to you, after tax.”

“No problem!” Shi Bai readily agreed. With them handling it, it saved him the hassle.

Of course, the site would take a cut, but as long as he got his million, he didn’t care. With a system like his, he needn’t sweat the small stuff.

“Alright, that’s everything for now. Just wait for our good news. I’d say no later than tomorrow. These deals move fast—everyone’s afraid of missing out.”

Shi Bai agreed promptly. “No problem, I’ll leave it all to you!”

“Great, talk soon.”

“Okay.”

After hanging up, Shi Bai felt a weight lift from his shoulders. “Yes! With a million yuan, I can finally buy a house!”