The Person Who Tore Up the Script

"The Fort Master himself said it. Every Water Prison Trial, only one person can pass in the end. I don't think this pretty boy is up to it!"

"Just waiting for this side quest to die off on its own."

"Pure passerby here, speaking objectively, have none of you watched 'Endless Food Bag'? If you'd seen even one exciting clip, you wouldn't be saying this!"

"Agreed. Although I'm Chu Fan's loyal fan, objectively speaking, Zhang Guangmu is incredibly durable!"

"Hahaha, speaking of that, I'm wide awake now!"

"A ten-year Shou Mu Ren here, uninvited! My Mu Zai might be nothing, but he's tough and can take a beating!"

"Who's the best at taking a beating? Changhe Guangmu is the True King!"

"What does getting beaten have to do with being cold-resistant? If your fat layer isn't thick enough, you'll freeze into a popsicle. With his skinny arms and legs, he probably can't handle it either..."

Zhang Guangmu, who was originally shivering from the cold, felt his fighting spirit ignited by the audience's comments.

Otherwise, why would they say that being mocked boosts combat power?

With the enhancement of his 'Manifestation' obsession, Zhang Guangmu's body stopped trembling, his teeth stopped chattering. He sat in the water, expressionless, like an old monk in meditation.

Time ticked by, and Zhang Guangmu silently reviewed the script he had read earlier.

"Wolf Fortress"—Fire Wolves are magical creatures. They possess the speed of leopards, the strength of tigers, the endurance of oxen, and the agility of cats, born with the ability to control fire. Wolf Fortress is renowned for its mastery of Fire Wolves. Yet now, with a great enemy at their gates, the Young Wolf Lord Lin Xuan suffers from Wolf Phobia...

The entire play is a cliché story of a trash protagonist obtaining a fortuitous encounter, defying fate, and succeeding.

After reviewing the entire script, Zhang Guangmu almost blurted out, "Wolf Power, Stage Three."

Director Qian Yiyuan of "Endless Food Bag" is the narcissistic type of director, always pursuing art and yearning for the thematic elevation of his stories.

As for Director Sun of "Wolf Fortress," despite his nickname "Real Director," many audience members see him as a typical commercial film director at heart.

Zhang Guangmu hadn't deeply experienced the differences in filming techniques and the working methods of the production teams between the two.

But even just by reading the script for "Wolf Fortress," he could sense the obvious formulaic structure.

A protagonist who is looked down upon refuses to be dictated by fate, trains relentlessly, overcomes psychological barriers, is favored by luck, obtains a Golden Finger, and thus turns the tide, defies destiny, and charges forward, ultimately eliminating the main villain and reaching a perfect ending.

Although the story of "Wolf Fortress" is no less cliché than "Endless Food Bag," Zhang Guangmu isn't picky.

He really likes happy endings. The only problem now is...

The role he's playing this time is a Death Warrior under the Villain.

If everything goes according to the director's plan, he will inevitably become a trivial stumbling block on the Plot Protagonist's path to success, either kicked aside or ruthlessly crushed.

Zhang Guangmu couldn't accept either outcome.

To make it onto this year's Seven Stars list, I'll have to tear up the script again!

Zhang Guangmu felt that if he could avoid causing too much real-world trouble and negative impact for others during this gradual collapse of the play, that would be even better!

After all, he considered himself a good and kind youth at heart.

Take the "Endless Food Bag" incident last time as an example...

Zhang Guangmu stole the spotlight, gained a batch of fans, and was promoted to a one-star Subconscious Actor. At the same time, the entire play's reputation exploded and it took off. The other actors didn't suffer much negative impact because of him.

Of course, Chu Fan doesn't count!

Chu Ba Zong's downfall was due to his own failed transformation, so Zhang Guangmu wouldn't take the blame for that!

Moreover, from a long-term development perspective...

Stimulated by Zhang Guangmu's performance, Chu Fan began practicing Marksmanship diligently a month ago. Li Xiaoxiao has also been training her pain tolerance during this period, and Boss Zhao has become amiable and approachable, with his heavy, bitter, and vengeful demeanor significantly reduced.

In short, everyone has grown.

Even Director Qian Yiyuan, who was invited for a chat by the relevant authorities, didn't he feel that Zhang Guangmu saved the entire play?

Therefore, tearing up the script last time was a good move, a brilliant move, a move of immeasurable merit!

This time, however...

After reading the script, Zhang Guangmu vaguely felt that it would be a little difficult to manipulate things.

Zhang Guangmu's thoughts raced: "In the 'Wolf Fortress' scenes, the weight of individual combat power is too great!"

"And I can't find any obvious loopholes to exploit like last time..."

"It seems that after the Water Prison Trial, my plot blank period will require a period of good development before I'm qualified to show off again."

As he fell into thought, the number of trial-takers around him began to dwindle rapidly.

Few of the youths undergoing the Water Prison Trial together seemed capable, abandoning the trial much faster than Zhang Guangmu had imagined.

Before long, only two people remained in the entire water prison.

"Ha... ha..."

White smoke mingled with cold air, diffusing throughout the water prison.

Zhang Guangmu opened his eyes. A sweep of his gaze caught sight of a youth, arms crossed and shivering, curled up in a corner of the water prison.

The other person's face was pale, his eyes flickering, and his expression was full of conflict. He seemed to want to give up but was unwilling to do so.

It was clear that he was starting to waver.

Zhang Guangmu originally didn't plan to do anything extra.

He just intended to keep stalling until the other side gave up.

However, among the audience members who had transformed into white balls, two taciturn white balls suddenly became agitated.

"Hou Zhengbeng, it's time for you to shine!"

"Kill Zhang Guangmu, forcefully take his place, and steal his role!"

Holy shit!

This was unacceptable!

Zhang Guangmu immediately became vigilant.

He hadn't really taken these competitors to heart before, as he was supposed to be killed by the protagonist Lin Xuan in the script.

After coming to his senses, Zhang Guangmu immediately learned his lesson—he could tear up the script, and other actors could too!

Zhang Guangmu silently focused his attention, stealthily flexing the muscles in his limbs to avoid getting cramps at a crucial moment, which would be ridiculous.

In this water prison, there was nothing that could be used as a weapon; the only weapons he could rely on were his own fists and feet.

The youth called Hou Zhengbeng by the audience paced in the water prison, rubbing his hands, and seemed to have unconsciously arrived behind Zhang Guangmu.

Then...

He bent his right arm and suddenly exerted force, smashing his elbow towards the back of Zhang Guangmu's head.

Bang!

Hou Zhengbeng pushed off with his feet, splashing a cloud of water.

His posture was exceptionally standard, clearly having undergone professional training. It was fierce and steady, and with his first move, he went straight for the kill, showing no mercy whatsoever.

However, as if Zhang Guangmu had a third eye on the back of his head, he tilted his head and sidestepped, easily dodging the fatal elbow strike.

He even twisted his waist and hips, spinning lightly. Taking advantage of Hou Zhengbeng's imbalance from exerting too much force, Zhang Guangmu suddenly applied force with both hands, pressing Hou Zhengbeng into the cold accumulated water.

Plop!

Hou Zhengbeng, who had fallen into the water, was completely stunned.

He had absolutely not expected things to develop to this point.

Before making his move, he had specifically observed that the other party clearly had no defenses!

How could this be?

He couldn't figure it out, but Zhang Guangmu seized him and locked his throat.

"I knew it..."

Zhang Guangmu's voice sounded behind his head. "Ever since a moment ago, I felt something was off."

"Your eyes, your breathing, your heartbeat, and your steps have betrayed you."

Hou Zhengbeng felt this person was talking nonsense.

He didn't believe anyone in this world could maintain such observational skills in such an extreme environment.

Unfortunately, Zhang Guangmu didn't give him a chance to retort.

"Weak, too weak!"

Zhang Guangmu's smile was full of contempt, and his tone was arrogant. "For someone as frail as you, daring to attack me is already quite commendable!"

"But..."

"Since you dared to attack me, you must have been prepared, right?"

"I mean..."

"Prepared for death!"

[Imperial Body Forging Technique 1] was no joke!

Hou Zhengbeng's elbow strike, which seemed professionally trained, was actually rated a 0 in the "Book of Acting's" evaluation system. It wasn't a proper technique and wasn't recognized.

Let alone in the play "Wolf Fortress," even in the Real World, if everyone fought bare-handed, offline, in a brawl, Zhang Guangmu was confident he could hang this guy up and beat him!

1 vs 0, a complete slaughter!

There was no suspense!

"Please..."

The pain and suffocation made Hou Zhengbeng want to beg for mercy, but he couldn't speak a complete sentence. "Don't... kill..."

As he said this, his eyes flashed with malice and ferocity.

As long as the other party was a little soft-hearted and loosened his grip...

He would have a chance to breathe and counter-kill the opponent!

As long as he could kill this arrogant pretty boy, he would become the sole survivor of the Water Prison Trial, gain the Fort Master's favor, rise through the ranks, and become someone important!

"Shh... bear with it, it'll be over soon."

Zhang Guangmu spoke gently, maintaining his chokehold without any intention of loosening his grip.

Because at this moment, he had remembered who exactly this guy he had subdued was!

Hou Zhengbeng, a subconscious actor who debuted last year, had a period of minor fame. Later, due to fighting and causing trouble in reality, severely injuring someone, he was imprisoned. After his release, due to his criminal record, it was difficult to get suitable roles, and he gradually faded from public view, leaving only a group of loyal fans silently waiting for his triumphant return.

Hmm, although Hou Zhengbeng had never reached the pinnacle.

In fact, let alone Hou Zhengbeng, even the protagonist of this "Wolf Fortress" was not among the very top of last year's batch.

Speaking of Hou Zhengbeng, one must analyze his subconscious.

Besides being irritable, easily angered, and prone to trouble, his biggest characteristic was...

Despicableness.

When he couldn't win in a head-on confrontation, begging for mercy on his knees and then sneak-attacking the victor from behind to kill them was his usual tactic.

Overall, in Zhang Guangmu's opinion, this actor's subconscious was very distinctive, and his acting path was very clear. He could be described as "acting as a villain to the bone, and playing ugly characters superiorly."

Originally, Hou Zhengbeng had considerable development potential.

Unfortunately, this person's series of "brilliant moves" in the Real World ruined his future. After being released from prison, his personal freedom was also strictly restricted by the Empire. He could only leave his small cabin under escort when filming.

Normal directors were reluctant to work with Hou Zhengbeng, which was why this Empire certified one-star subconscious actor, who was rumored to be about to be promoted to two-star, had fallen to such a state.