There was nothing more exciting than writing a summary.

"That righteous, above-board feeling of goofing off, it really hit just right."

When I wrote "End of Volume Two," a thought suddenly flashed across my mind.

If this book could get an anime adaptation, then when Zhengwei first went to the Celestial Court Tavern, the very first time he met Le Yin on piano, Ting Zhaozao, Luo Zhen, Quan Xin, Lan Jianbo and the others, they would definitely need to take a group photo.

When Leyu lay in the rain, wordlessly questioning the heavens, the screen would suddenly pop up with that yellowing group photo of the Silver Blood second generation. Rain would soak it, everyone's face would blur one by one, then fire would burn right down the middle, transforming into a line of blazing text,

"All wild delights are destined for wild, brutal ends."

"I wonder if I managed to truly explain that vibe, how everyone's so full of life at first, but in the end, everything changes, nothing and nobody stays the same, and damn, isn't that just wonderful (?)."

Oh right, speaking of "wonderful."

Spirit vaguely remembered this was supposed to be a power fantasy.

Actually,

It really was a power fantasy.

What? You telling me Zhengwei seizing the family assets, ruling over Silver Blood, swaggering, leaning on borrowed power to crush people, being downright arrogant, undefeated in Dongyang, one and only king, reward never staying overnight—this still isn't "wonderful"?!

Even at the end, going past his own level to kill enemies, using an intermediate to outsmart a high-ranker, basically an undying silver outplaying a golden top dog—how's that not a rush!?

Right? Spirit really did write a power fantasy (cough cough).

Alright, alright, jokes aside.

After that "demonstration" in Volume One, and all those flags stabbed into Zhengwei's character arc, everyone basically knew that Unit 3 was fated to be scrapped.

Maybe some people were hoping,

What if Unit 3 just got a happy ending after all,

Retired on a high note, took his wife on a trip home to the Divine Demon Well,

The whole book ends right there (good, good, sounds great).

But, well, but…

Spirit still wanted to write that gut-punch kind of storyline.

In a classic hero's epic, a hero should have three stages: rise, peak, and downfall. Most novels nowadays only have the first two, or sometimes, nothing but the peak—they show up already superpowered and just stay that way, always invincible.

"Don't get me wrong! Spirit likes reading that stuff too. We're all just old degens at this point, love seeing wild, imaginative stories that make your blood pump and your mind race, makes perfect sense."

It's just…

Apart from all that crushing, all-powerful coolness, Spirit also loved that sense of tragic impermanence in a hero's downfall.

"That 'it just doesn't sit right' feeling."

"Still remember the first time I read the kids' version of Romance of the Three Kingdoms—seeing Zhuge Liang fall at Wuzhang Plains, I was just crushed. My mind was blank all day."

"Not really sadness, more like 'How could it end like this?'"

"That persistent sense of "unfairness," that's probably why the Three Kingdoms era is the most popular for time travelers."

"All that 'How many tales from times old and new end in a joke,' yeah right. Screw that, I want to go back and change history."

"If there's regret, I want to fix it."

"If there's a dream, I want to live it."

"If it just won't sit right, then I'll keep fighting until it does."

That was what Spirit wanted to write, plain and simple.

After finishing Volume One, Spirit honestly still had no idea what kind of mood or reason actually made me pick up the pen for this book—halfway through Volume Two, I finally figured it out.

I wanted to write about a hero's rise, a hero's peak, and a hero's end.

I wanted to write about how everyone copes as the end approaches, an anthem to courage, unwavering determination, the grief of farewells, and the joy of reunion.

I wanted to write about regrets being overcome, dreams being achieved, and that "unfairness" finally melting into laughter.

"Because it's only with death that you truly get something immortal."

"So passing out "bento" is only fair, too."

"Maybe some will say this is just bowing down to reality… Fine, fine, Spirit can admit it—maybe my XP system is a bit weird, but hey, reality is reality."

"Still, the market's already yeeted me into the dirt. These stats speak for themselves. Going against the current in an age of light-hearted stories—guess I'm just an idiot. When you curse me, please go easy and maybe just swap it for 'love you' instead."

"By the way, maybe nobody noticed while reading, but the outline for Volume Two actually changed partway through."

"Spirit's original idea was a super traditional 'assassin' arc."

"Le Yin would've changed identities a bunch of times, kept stirring up trouble in Xuanzhu County, then faced off against the Silver Blood Association president, stylishly dropping the line, 'If you treat people like machines, don't blame the gears for being cold as steel,' and then—slash—off with the president's head."

"Sounds pretty wuxia, pretty damn cool, right?"

"But somewhere along the line, I started feeling that plot just…wasn't it."

"So what you all actually got was: Unit 3 becoming the Silver Blood president, then someone else dropped the killer line, then he died a horrible death."

"So maybe the back half of Volume Two was actually written by my stand-in—Spirit's just a keyboard monkey, what do I know."

"By the way, anyone got tricks for getting the stand-in to write by themselves? Spirit's done typing."

Alright, rambling over, let's talk plot.

First, almost all the Silver Blood Association characters who debuted this volume bit the dust—only the Ting Family survived.

Some might ask, "Why was it only the Ting Family that survived?"

Answer, Look at my pen name, this is a black whistle.

Plus, a lot of people asked, "Now that Leyu switched his ride, what about Qing Lan?"

Answer, All I'll say is, there's no toxic romance drama here, no cheating, at most you'll get some stomach cramps. By the way, don't forget what kind of author I am!

And then, when Spirit said the book title might change, lots of people suggested calling it "Legend of Blueflame."

My readers have crazy insight—picked up on Blueflame's special traits right away. I thought that was awesome.

However, it seems lots of folks think Blueflame is the ultimate big boss—so let me clear that up right now.

In Volume One, Blueflame screwed over Unit One, but in Volume Two, almost got wrecked by both Unit Three and Four; going forward, he'll keep switching between "ally, fat sheep, enemy"—basically a recurring character through the whole book.

The thing about Blueflame, though, is that he's the final boss-level ride of this book.

Just like Spirit mentioned a bit ago—the three steps of a hero's rise, peak, and downfall—these are usually done by Leyu personally.

But Blueflame is different.

He climbs the ladder on his own, reaches his own peak, and only at the very end—right before becoming the world's number one hypercar—gets bought by Leyu at full price.

Also…

While writing this, Spirit only had two characters really plotted out.

One was Qian Yuliu.

The other was Blueflame.

Spirit honestly is looking forward to Blueflame's arc the most.

Of course…

Assuming the book lasts that long (cough cough).

Last thing, I'm taking a day or two off; even so, there'll be updates for Assassin After and Assassin Extra—gotta patch all the plot holes before starting Volume Three.

The main thread for Volume Three is mostly settled, but there're still details to hammer out, and the volume intro isn't decided yet.

Actually, the way I'm writing this is a lot like how I did Little World near the end—except in Little World I could drag out the thinking time with daily life fluff, but this time with all these volume titles and intros, there's nowhere to hide…

So I'll be "considering" things a bit longer (meaning goofing off).

Though at least the title's already set.

Volume Three, Loyal Servant.

-------------------------

"Volume Two, completed."

"Successfully wrapped up the Assassin arc—60 points,"

"Total of 190 chapters—three times Volume One—5 points,"

"Finally premium quality. If my next book isn't a light comedy, I'm a dog—5 points,"

"Bounty mission, No new Chief Patron, so no extra updates—0 points,"

"One hundred thousand received, Subscription ratio is honestly embarrassing—0 points,"

"Nowhere to be seen on the charts, In the authors' server, even the big names bully me—0 points,"

"Hardly any comments, Silence is the answer, being ignored is the answer, and no engagement is the answer—I've known all along—0 points."

"Final score is 70 points, rating: Decent."

"Mission rating this time: 70 points (Decent), highest mission rating: 70 points (Decent)"

"Due to scoring a 'Decent' rating, which meets hidden requirements, you have earned hidden side quest information."

"Side Quest: Fling Dung on Walls—Keyboard-writing waifu goes berserk, daily update explosion!"

"Side Quest: Invincible Harem—Romance mode activated, lots of love drama!"

"Side Quest: Recruit Book Buddies—Make a readers' group, cling to big shots for dear life!"

"Side Quest: Find a Sugar Parent—FF14 activated, Ghost of Tsushima activated, P5S activated!"

"Do you want to upload this as your final result? Uploading will net you credit and exclusive rewards according to your rating."

"No"

"This book… It's not time for the final verdict yet!"