Wolf Fortress

After playing in the [Endless Food Bucket Group] for a month, Li Xiaoxiao naturally knew Zhang Guangmu's situation.

This guy had only reached the minimum age requirement for a Subconscious Actor in February. In the past year, he had been traveling all over the world for more than half the year.

It could be said that Zhang Guangmu had wasted a lot of time just to snatch his first Extra role.

To put it pessimistically, he had "lost at the starting line."

In Li Xiaoxiao's opinion, when Zhang Guangmu was still a complete newcomer, the outstanding New Generation Subconscious Actors of this session had already completed at least five films.

The most terrifying thing was that the most hardworking among the new generation had basically already churned out ten works.

It wasn't scary that others worked hard; what was truly terrifying was that those hardworking guys also had explosive talent!

Li Xiaoxiao had always been confident, believing that his subconscious was flawless and his abilities were strong enough that no problems would arise for a considerable period.

Even so, he was only ranked sixth among the Seven Stars.

Now, glancing at the time...

The Xuanlong Empire celebrated the New Year according to the lunar calendar, and it was already close to the end of the year.

This meant that it wouldn't be long before the annual Seven Stars list would be finalized.

Zhang Guangmu, who had just finished one film, wanted to cram at the last minute, squeeze into the Seven Stars list, and become a Supernova of this session...

If others said this, Li Xiaoxiao would think they were underestimating everyone in the world, being overly arrogant, and simply a clown.

But, the one saying it was Zhang Guangmu...

Because this guy often made strange jokes, and Li Xiaoxiao spent a month chatting with him in the group, he had gradually adapted to his speaking style and habits. So, Li Xiaoxiao didn't take Zhang Guangmu's words seriously at first, just laughing a couple of times to play along with the atmosphere.

But...

As he laughed, Li Xiaoxiao couldn't keep laughing.

The Battle Youth with the Zhang Shaonü Lian looked intently at Zhang Guangmu, his voice dry as he said, "You're not serious, are you?"

Zhang Guangmu raised an eyebrow, his tone light and cheerful, "The Supernova list can change at any time before the dust settles."

He even had the mood to make a meme: "The QK is undecided now, and both you and I are Dark Horses!"

"If I can squeeze into this list... I can seize the first-mover advantage and speed up my upgrade progress!"

Although Zhang Guangmu's life goal was to become a Subconscious Film Emperor, he also knew the importance of being grounded.

The most important task at the moment was to save up the fifty thousand Dragon Shields for the surgery fee and cure the Genetic disease that was holding him back.

Otherwise, he would die suddenly at the age of twenty-five...

Who could possibly accept this?

"Whether it's Supernova or Seven Stars, they're just harmless titles. I don't care about them."

Li Xiaoxiao said, his expression suddenly turned serious, and he lowered his voice: "But you have to know, the list of Supernovas for the year-end is not just an empty name."

"Many excellent Subconscious Actors, even if they fight tooth and nail, desperately want to secure a spot. You should understand this, right?"

Zhang Guangmu nodded slightly, his demeanor calm.

He naturally knew this.

To not understand anything, think something is good, and instinctively try to snatch it away would be too foolish.

Zhang Guangmu had been transmigrated for many years. His most practical pastime was wearing a helmet and watching Subconscious Films.

He never missed the annual blockbuster, "The Path of the Great Emperor," having watched over a dozen installments so far.

Based on extensive viewing, Zhang Guangmu could infer some of the hidden rules and differences in treatment within the industry.

"Every Supernova is assigned a special role when 'The Path of the Great Emperor' begins filming."

Zhang Guangmu quickly organized his thoughts and simply stated his guess: "Those special roles hold the power to influence the Main Plot."

Those powers could be Prestige, authority, money, or even supernatural abilities that don't exist in reality.

In other words, every Supernova could get a head start in "The Path of the Great Emperor" filming the following year.

The Xuanlong Empire had been established for over a thousand years on ruins. Countless Supernovas had seized this opportunity to distinguish themselves and achieve upward social mobility.

"Your understanding is generally correct."

Li Xiaoxiao didn't refute Zhang Guangmu's understanding, but said earnestly: "The annual May blockbuster, which claims to be for everyone, actually has a minimum invitation standard of a nationally certified one-star Subconscious Actor."

"This is equivalent to the ancient Imperial Examination, and it could directly change a person's destiny."

"Supernovas are like candidates who are already well-known and favored by the examiners and graders. Their starting point is different from others."

"The competitive pressure is too great. You'd best not have too many expectations, otherwise, the greater the hope, the greater the disappointment."

Li Xiaoxiao was sincere. He didn't want such an optimistic and interesting guy like Zhang Guangmu to become dispirited, or even utterly dejected.

Speaking of which, Li Xiaoxiao lowered his voice and whispered in Zhang Guangmu's ear: "Director Sun valued my Supernova title and wanted to make the cast look more impressive, which is why he agreed to arrange a role for you."

"Both of us are roles that were squeezed in at the last minute, minor Supporting Characters with no important scenes."

"'Wolf Fortress' is a standard commercial drama, with a mature formula and a capped ceiling. Minor characters have almost no chance of a comeback."

"So, don't overthink it."

"Daydreaming too much isn't good for your health."

Despite saying that, Li Xiaoxiao was actually conflicted.

If Li Xiaoxiao truly wanted to persuade Zhang Guangmu to give up struggling, he had a hundred reasons to predict failure, and he wouldn't have said these words at all.

By saying this, he was, in his own way, encouraging Zhang Guangmu.

The truth was, although Li Xiaoxiao wasn't optimistic about Zhang Guangmu, believing he started too late to seize this opportunity and couldn't possibly become a Supernova, he still wanted to stimulate Zhang Guangmu's subconscious before filming. He hoped it would create a faint obsession, like the thought, "You say I can't do it, but I'll prove you wrong."

Zhang Guangmu blinked and chuckled, "Good brother, when you encouraged others before, were you always this indirect? It feels a bit stiff..."

"As someone who's been through it, I'll give you one piece of advice: it's best not to be too tsundere. Men who are tsundere, no matter how handsome, have a hard time finding partners."

Li Xiaoxiao froze for a moment, then immediately turned away, too lazy to look at him. "Classic self-importance. I don't even bother talking about you."

Everyone who had ever appeared in his life had never needed his encouragement or help.

No one had ever held any expectations for him.

From childhood to adulthood, he only needed to be observant and cautious, trying his best not to cause trouble for his mother and sister. That was enough.

So...

That was actually the first time Li Xiaoxiao had ever encouraged someone in his life.

He just hadn't expected his little secret to be seen through on the spot, which was a bit embarrassing.

Thinking of this, Li Xiaoxiao added, "Mu Zai, listen to Uncle's advice. This 'Wolf Fortress' is different from 'Endless Food Bag.' From the director to the actors, they're not like the people in our group. They're a bit difficult to deal with. Be cautious with your words and actions, and don't offend anyone."

"Let's go, let's go! Don't worry about that! We're already arriving late as it is, it'll be bad if we're even later!"

Zhang Guangmu slapped Li Xiaoxiao on the back and walked into the Skyscraper first.

Inside the building, silver-white Infiltration Pods were neatly arranged, their metallic surfaces reflecting the artificial light with a hint of coldness.

"It looks a bit like a coffin..."

Zhang Guangmu muttered softly. From not far away, a hearty laugh, almost like a standard template, could be heard.

"Handsome Guy, you must be the recently popular 'Changhe Guangmu,' right? I've seen your videos several times! You're truly a heroic youth!"

Zhang Guangmu looked in the direction of the voice and saw an ordinary-looking middle-aged man with a polite smile walking towards him.

"Hello, Director Sun. My name is Zhang Guangmu. I'm the man who will become the Subconscious Film Emperor. Nice to meet you. I hope you won't be ignorant..."

"Cough!"

Li Xiaoxiao, who was still rubbing his back, interrupted Zhang Guangmu's speech with a dry cough and stepped forward to smooth things over. "Director Sun, what Zhang Guangmu means is that he hopes you can guide him more, give him more script hints during the play, so he doesn't break character and his fans don't betray him. If this collaboration is pleasant, we can keep in touch more in the future!"

Director Sun's smile was a little stiff, and his voice was slightly displeased. "Ah... very good."

"Everyone should have read the script. Time is short, and we're about to start filming, so... please get into the infiltration pods!"

Thus, Zhang Guangmu and Li Xiaoxiao, with the help of the staff, entered adjacent infiltration pods respectively.

Seeing this, Director Sun's smile gradually faded, and he muttered expressionlessly, "Li Xiaoxiao, I can't comment on him. He has a famous teacher guiding him, and his skills have been honed since childhood, completely integrated into his subconscious. His baseline is very high, and even in a small supporting role, he has the potential to shine."

"Zhang Guangmu came from a less conventional background, without much educational resources to train his professional skills, so he can only rely on his subconscious to forge a path."

"Those scenes of his in 'Endless Food Bag'..."

"Although there was an element of luck, with Zhang Guangmu not only meeting the senior Zhao Zhengrong who favored him, but also perfectly fitting Qian Yiyuan's almost criminal world-building, it was a case of timeliness, popularity, and harmony. However, his performance was indeed brilliant."

Online, many people called Zhang Guangmu a "Momentary Sage," a sage for that one second, with a touch of divine nature hidden in his subconscious that was detached from worldly affairs.

But Director Sun didn't think so.

From the perspective of a professional subconscious director, he felt that Zhang Guangmu had serious self-destructive tendencies and should see a psychologist immediately.