Audition

The title of Xiang Xiaoqun's new movie has been confirmed as "Severed Perception". After posting the relevant information on social media, his assistant sent some excerpts from the script to artists under various entertainment companies.

The actors who received the scripts were those whom Xiang Xiaoqun felt were a good fit for certain roles and whom he hoped would participate in. Of course, this is not absolute; if a better candidate emerged during the open auditions, he would definitely choose the latter.

Industry insiders' evaluations of Xiang Xiaoqun are more or less exaggerated, but one thing is no exaggeration: he is a person who cannot tolerate any imperfections. He refuses to bring his own funding to the production team or allow investors to force their own actors into the project. He only selects the actors he believes are the most suitable, believing that this is the only way to make the movies he wants.

Judging from this point alone, Xiang Xiaoqun is actually quite assertive in the directing industry. After all, he has a fixed investor, the Wang Group, which ensures that he doesn't have to compromise on funding.

The roles for this "Severed Perception" audition are the same as before, including the male lead, female lead, and the final villain, among others. Previously, there was a case where the male lead was a newcomer acting for the first time. Judging from the audience's reaction, Xiang Xiaoqun doesn't make mistakes in choosing people; his choices are always brilliant.

On November 31st, the first day of public auditions, actors who had already registered and received audition notices arrived in a small city in Anhui. This small city itself wasn't particularly well-known, but its name was widely known, and flights were taking off every day...

Wuhu.

Yu Xing rested at home for only a few days before setting off again from Mijin City to Wuhu for an audition. Because of Tang Dao's presence, he had to take a bus and then a taxi, and his butt was almost numb from sitting all the way.

The audition was held at a large tourist attraction in Wuhu that has been renovated in the past two years, an ancient city that has been restored on the basis of the old city.

The ancient city gate tower is very tall, facing the Qingyi River, and the city walls also have a sense of antiquity. Every day, many people come to stroll around the ancient city.

Yu Xing also went inside for a stroll and found that there were more shops than historical sites. They sold all kinds of things, including clothes, food, and souvenirs. The shops were decorated in an antique style, but some of the modern logos were still jarring. The area with many shops could be considered a traditional old-fashioned commercial street.

The development of truly historic buildings is slower, as they need to be carefully protected. There are also several dilapidated buildings that are simply undevelopable, so they are sealed off and marked with warning signs.

Many actors' agencies couldn't understand why Xiang Xiaoqun chose such a crowded and chaotic place for the audition, but given Xiang Xiaoqun's reputation and the film's reputation, they could only cooperate and arrive at the audition location, an old and abandoned school, at the designated time.

Few people go around the school because it's just an empty shell. Almost none of the desks and chairs have been preserved. It's empty, not pretty, and not fun. Tourists basically ignore the road leading to the school. When Yu Xing arrived, the school had already been fenced off, and its neglect had escalated to mandatory neglect.

After a quick glance, Yu Xing could understand why they were auditioning here. His script included a scene of an old school building, which, like this abandoned school, was a low-rise row of buildings. Xiang Xiaoqun probably wanted to see the overall performance effect.

Wait... it's not like no one cares. Today is an exception. Many tourists heard that there are celebrities here, so they stopped on the outskirts to watch the excitement. There were even paparazzi who were squatting here to take pictures.

This was tough on the actors who came to audition. The streets were narrow and cars couldn't get in, so they were all bundled up tightly. Accompanied by their agents or assistants, they would sneak up to the staff on duty and then quickly run inside, leaving passersby to gasp and speculate.

Yu Xing was similar. Although he had a face that was completely unfamiliar to others, the crowd didn't know many celebrities anyway. They didn't care who you were; as long as you were good-looking and a celebrity, there would be a commotion.

Wearing his unchanging white down jacket, mask, and hat, he entered the restricted area discreetly, pulled down his mask to greet the guards, and then strolled into the school building.

A row of people came to audition in the corridor on the second floor. Yu Xing could see the backs of their heads from the platform below. He went up and took his number from a young lady wearing a work badge.

The audition was held in an empty classroom. Yu Xing had already checked that Xiang Xiaoqun, the screenwriter, and the investor representative would conduct the interviews. A row of temporary plastic chairs was placed outside the empty classroom for the actors to wait. His arrival did not cause any ripples. After all, he was wearing a mask, and the dozen or so actors in front of him saw that he did not even have an assistant, so they assumed that he was a newcomer from that small company and did not pay special attention to him.

Yu Xing left his Tang sword at the hotel where he was staying. This time, he brought a bag with him. After sitting down, he took out a printed script from the bag. This was a character summary he received after signing up for the audition for the assassin role, as well as two excerpts that could not be used to predict the overall direction of the script.

Each audition scene was different, but the scripts for the same role were the same. The competition was straightforward: it was all about who acted best and who was the most fitting for the role.

The young man to Yu Xing's right also didn't have an assistant. He was wearing a mask, and his curly hair had clearly been styled beforehand. The young man glanced at Yu Xing casually and, seeing that Yu Xing was holding a killer script, couldn't help but strike up a conversation. "Hi there, you also want to play Ren Xin?"

Ren Xin is the psychologically dark and ruthless killer in the script, and it seems that this young man's goal is also this role.

Yu Xing smiled, her exposed eyes radiating friendliness. "Yes, just come and try it out."

The young man made no attempt to introduce himself. Upon hearing the affirmative answer, he muttered, "Haha, your temperament doesn't seem to match Ren Xin's at all. Maybe that student from the third male lead would be a better fit for you."

Yu Xing ignored him.

The second and third male leads don't matter, anyway... this movie is impossible to film. If everything goes smoothly, Xiang Xiaoqun will be able to go to jail in front of everyone before filming even officially starts.

Just then, a girl walked out of the audition room. She looked unwell and her face was stiff. Accompanied by her agent, she went downstairs and, guided by the crew members, left through a secluded path away from tourists.

Yu Xing glanced at her back, then at the row of actors in front of her, and secretly mocked her in her heart.

I'm truly sorry to all the young people; a movie that was destined never to be made has wasted their enthusiasm.

What followed was a tedious wait. Yu Xing received number 23. More people arrived one after another, but he ignored them and focused on playing on his phone.

The small book kiosk that book lovers used before.

Speaking of which, after returning from Feng Gulan Ting in Nancheng, he studied the [Delay Bracelet] in the Deduction Mall. Actually, he had seen this item before, but because of the name, he thought it was a Delay Bracelet that could delay ghosts, and he didn't pay any attention to it until he saw the related comments. Only then did he vaguely realize that he seemed to have overlooked something very important.

After investigation, it was discovered that... the Delay Bracelet was actually used to postpone the start time of the next simulation. One bracelet could postpone it for five days, costing 200 points, and could be renewed indefinitely until the points were insufficient.

Using 200 points to buy five days of "life" is not expensive at all. It only has one drawback, which is that it cannot prevent other props from opening the deduction entrance, such as Alice's Ruby. Even if a deducer is wearing Delay Bracelet, it will still force entry.

After understanding this, Yu Xing resolved a long-standing question: why it took some members of the Three Great Families several years to advance to the differentiation level.

It turns out that most strategists buy these bracelets to prolong their survival time. After all, for the vast majority of strategists, the Absurd World is very dangerous, and they don't want to face too many life-or-death challenges.

It's only because Yu Xing, who don't care about anything, and Zhao Yijiu, who aren't afraid, that their strength has increased so quickly.

More than two hours later, the young lady standing at the classroom door finally called Yu Xing's name. Yu Xing went over, handed in her number tag, and pushed the door open to enter.

The empty classroom was quite clean. A few tables had been moved from somewhere, and several people dressed in casual clothes were sitting there, looking rather uninterested.

Yu Xing immediately spotted Xiang Xiaoqun sitting in the very center. The director was in his early forties, with thinning hair, especially on the top of his head, which looked quite bald.

Aside from his hair, he has a decent appearance, is rather thin, and has a rather expressionless face, as if he hasn't found a suitable actor and is in low spirits.

This was the first time Yu Xing had seen Xiang Xiaoqun face-to-face. He took off his hat and mask, and the eyes of several people who had been staring at him since he entered the room immediately lit up.

"Yu Xing, right? We've looked at your file. You graduated this year from Ruibo University in Mijin City?" The screenwriter next to Xiang Xiaoqun flipped through some old paper documents from before the new year. "You didn't have any acting experience before?"

"Yes." Yu Xing replied succinctly, displaying neither servility nor arrogance, showing no signs of the great director's nervousness.

Zhu Yan helped him obtain his graduation certificate from Ruibo University. Hacking into the system, then quietly restoring it and erasing the intrusion traces was not a difficult task for a hacker of Zhu Yan's caliber.

"Your appearance is perfectly suited for the entertainment industry," the investor representative couldn't help but praise.

The investor's surname is Dong, and he is a highly valued subordinate of Wang Cheng. According to Zhu Yan's investigation, Dong's subordinate may also have been involved in Xiang Xiaoqun's case, or at the very least, he was an insider.

Yu Xing readily accepted the praise and then answered a few standard questions.

"You're going to play Ren Xin?" Xiang Xiaoqun, who had been watching coldly, suddenly spoke up, his tone ambiguous, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

"Yes, I studied the personalities of each character and found that I like Ren Xin the most." Yu Xing's eyes flashed, and she revealed a slightly strange and subtle smile.

"Several other actors Ren Xin before you, including the ones I sent out to entertainment companies. Everyone was vying for this role, for all sorts of reasons, but no one said they liked him." Xiang Xiaoqun leaned forward slightly, giving off the imposing aura of a top director. "Do you know why?"

Yu Xing said, "Because he's a pervert, his values don't align with those of ordinary people, or perhaps they do but he doesn't dare to show it."

"Then why did you dare? Do you really know what kind of person Ren Xin is? After seeing part of the script, what made you say you liked him?" Xiang Xiaoqun's questions came one after another, even seeming a bit aggressive. If it were an inexperienced newcomer, they might have been so nervous that they were about to cry.

Yu Xing licked her lips under his intense gaze and smiled, "I don't have many other worries. I like him, so I can play him well, that's all."

To those sitting there, his words sounded incredibly arrogant. Xiang Xiaoqun continued to stare at him, his gaze even more serious than before. "Since that's the case, then put on a show and prove to me that you're not just talking big."

Yu Xing said there was no problem.

Xiang Xiaoqun didn't even need to look at the script; he simply said, "I'll be playing role number two."

The script that was given out was numbered 1, 2, and 3. The three scenes of the character Ren Xin are in three different periods. Number 1 is when Ren Xin is disguised as a normal person and stays by the protagonist's side. Number 2 is when the audience sees Ren Xin killing someone for the first time from God's perspective. Number 3 is a dialogue when Ren Xin is chasing the protagonist.

Number 2 was the most difficult of them all. There were no lines from beginning to end, and he could only express himself through his eyes and objects. He also had to perform without props. It was probably Yu Xing's confidence that aroused Xiang Xiaoqun's curiosity, which is why he made things difficult for him right from the start.

Yu Xing had no problem with it. He took two steps back to indicate that he was ready to begin.

The male and female protagonists, whose Severed Perception, are a pair of graduate students who have just started their studies. The male protagonist is studying bioengineering, and so is the female protagonist. They have been in love for two years and have an extraordinary understanding of each other, which is the key to their eventual counterattack against Ren Xin.

Ren Xin is the male protagonist's new roommate. Not long after the film begins, Ren Xin makes her official debut with a very cheerful and talkative personality. She quickly becomes close to the male protagonist and becomes his best friend after he goes on to graduate school.

He is particularly good at hiding his true personality. At most, the audience probably thinks he is a goofball who can both make fun of and help the male and female leads. He is a major contributor to the increasingly better relationship between the male and female leads.

In addition, Ren Xin is very good-looking, and girls often come to confess their feelings to him, but he always rejects them decisively. He is a resolute person.

Regarding appearance, Yu Xing was very confident that Xiang Xiaoqun would be immediately impressed when he entered the room because Ren Xin's face was exactly the same as the character he had written, based on his own template, with an 80% resemblance to him.

Overall, this is a very likable character in the early stages. The editing also creates a tense illusion that Ren Xin is being targeted by an assassin. Therefore, when Ren Xin reveals his identity as an assassin and kills someone right under the protagonist's nose, while the protagonist is kept in the dark, the audience's fear will reach its peak.

Yu Xing began his pantomime performance.