Having her coronation as President broadcasted was just a small thing for Zhao Youyue. So was removing people she detested from her sight.

It had not required any effort on her part. After all, she could care less about what people thought of her.

Cao Chuanguang was no longer in the picture. Now, she could start placing her chess pieces down. As for those who were competent at their current roles and knew their places, she would grant mercy. Her influence as an empress had definitely won over their loyalties.

Zhao Youyue would never waste her time over such small matters. Even if something prompted her to take action, she would not depend on her character cards.

Under such circumstances, she promoted the silent Bai Yunshan and inconspicuous roommate Yu Xuefei to manage the small matters and the well-being of other members.

People were jealous of how lucky these two were. They were once nothing, and in the blink of an eye, they were now secretaries of the president. Now that Lady Zhao had nothing to worry about, she did what she loved the most… exploring the “Two-Dimensional Gate.”

Zhao Youyue had not only yielded a great harvest from the source world, she had also replenished the cooldown of the “Two-Dimensional Gate.” By sacrificing a character card, she could now select a novel with potential.

She sacrificed the card that allowed her to speak to cats. In the source worlds, this card allowed her to transform into a black cat.

Gone were the glorious days of the horror genre. The character card had long been sitting dormant — it was close to expiring soon.

Perhaps the trend of animal-themed novels was also dying. Perhaps they might rebound, but that’s for another day.

By her memory, the author often indulged himself in Mahjong games. He did not even need that side income. His tenants kept him well-fed.

If he was one day forced to pursue his career in writing, he might produce something better.

Zhao Youyue always believed that iconic novels could only be written by two types of authors. One would be like Han Leng — highly gifted in writing talents and keen on pursuing the beauty of words. The other would be Su Li, disciplined and dedicated, always striving for self-improvement. Every post she made was fresh and trendy. She did not need the improvement, but she went for it anyway. As long as her passion remains, so would her popularity and along with it, her income.

WIth how competitive novels were, the only way one could keep oneself irreplaceable was to have a fresh and unique character in our masterpieces. When you define the genre of your novel, you would be one of a kind.

However, the reality was never ideal. No masterpiece would ever be one of its kind. Billions of people passing through the passage of time — a repetition of ideas was bound to happen somewhere. To remain relevant, one had to follow the trend.

Zhao Youyue found a novel worthy for the sacrifice of her character card. It was titled “Endless Apocalypse,” written by one whose fans called him, Master PhD[1].

PhD was an enigma. Even his gender was unknown, but they largely assumed him to be male, based on his style of writing. His story was always firm and logical, while the chemistry between his paired couples always wandered towards eternal friendship, rather than romance. Master PhD often exaggerated on brotherhood and the bonds between men. Reading his work was more like a gay romance than the story between friends.

This was the age of Yaoi[2]. He was not deliberately promoting Boy Love, but fujoshis[3] often gave his work praise. Master PhD was just so good at portraying how men strengthen each other with trust and encouragement. His stories were so great, so manly.

Readers assumed that only a man could write such a great novel. The author might even be a muscular gym junkie.

Two elements determined his success. One was the exclusivity of the platform he used. Yes, he was an Ancient High God author, but he had taken a risk when he left Qidian, a.k.a. China Literature Limited before that platform monopolized that sector. He had joined an equally solid competitor, just because they offered him far better pay than Qidian’s.

As time passed, that platform changed its course and no longer could afford to keep an Ancient High God author such as Master PhD. The other element was his genre of choice. It was neither mainstream, nor popular. In the end, both parties decided to mutually end their contract.

Master PhD then returned to Qidian and published his novel, “Endless Apocalypse.” Having left Qidian for so many years, his image needed some rebuilding.

As a veteran author, Master PhD had braved through many storms and lived through them. Perhaps it was his attitude that kept him going. He was highly passionate when it came to writing — nothing would shake his faith. His efficiency was unwavering.

Authors like Master PhD could usually be trusted when it came to producing remarkable stories. His novels all started with a few great opening chapters. Eventually, he would twist his stories into unacceptable endings that left readers greatly disappointed. Some even called him the “the crazed devil that burns its tail”…

It was not that he was not a terrific writer. It was his readers who were misled into expecting more from such promising opening chapters. They wanted better endings. They had set their expectations through the roof. How could they still blame the author?

Master PhD was actively involved in the fight against the apps that promoted piracy like Baidu Tieba. [4] He mocked readers who supported piracy, earning their ire in return. It was an era where blatant piracy was rampant. Readers of pirated works firmly believed that they were supporting the author’s hard work…

Now, things were different. As the management of online platforms improved its quality, readers have begun to realize the greater good in banning piracy. With the increase of wealthy readers online such as Lady Zhao, online novels were moving towards a better direction.

Lady Zhao was impressed with PhD’s “Endless Apocalypse.” It had the makings of an original, iconic apocalyptic novel!

Translation Note:

[1] “Master PhD” (p大) is a nickname for the author PhD.

[2] Yaoi fandom (基者见基,腐者见腐) refers to readers of yaoi (also called Boys’ Love or BL), a genre of male-male romance narratives aimed at those who participate in communal activities organized around yaoi, such as attending conventions, maintaining or posting to fansites, creating fanfiction or fanart, etc. In the mid-1990s, estimates of the size of the Japanese yaoi fandom were at 100,000-500,000 people, but in 2008, despite increased knowledge of the genre among the general public, readership remains limited. English-language fan translations of From Eroica with Love circulated through the slash fiction community in the 1980s, forging a link between slash fiction fandom and Yaoi fandom.

[3] Fujoshi (腐女): Most yaoi fans are teenage girls or young women. In Japan, female fans are called fujoshi, denoting how a woman who enjoys fictional gay content is “rotten,” too ruined to be married. The male equivalent is called a fudanshi. The words’ origin can be found in the online image board 2channel.

[4] Baidu Tieba (Chinese: 百度贴吧; pinyin: bǎidù tiēbā; literally: “Baidu Paste Bar”) is the largest Chinese communication platform provided by the Chinese search engine company, Baidu. It is an online community bound tightly to internet search services, one of the central business of Baidu. The website functions by having users search or create a bar (Forum) by typing a keyword, and if the bar has not been created before, it is then built upon the search.