Far Ahead, They Couldn't Even See His Taillights!

"Mr. Otto, what do you think of this competition?"

Kevin looked at the segment "cheat sheet" tucked in his palm. At this point, as in previous years, he was supposed to ask the judges for their opinions.

Otto smiled faintly and confidently picked up the microphone on the table.

"I have some knowledge of Shenzhou literature as well. This competition includes novelists, screenwriters, and people from all sorts of professions. Their focuses differ entirely. The contestant I favor most is Contestant No. 31."

"She pursues perfection in everything and has delicate emotions. Since this prompt is regret, there is no reason for her to be eliminated."

Contestant No. 31, an outstanding employee and maid of the Destiny Organization, Rita Rossweisse.

Although this was a Shenzhou competition, there had never been restrictions on the identities of contestants. The rule that the capable deserved their place worked anywhere.

Seeing Otto set down the microphone with an exceedingly confident expression, Elysia naturally picked up the conversation.

"Cute young ladies can do anything, you know. Let's look forward to Miss No. 31 achieving great results in this competition, shall we?"

"Mr. Welt, could you share your thoughts as well? Please, please?"

With the topic shifting, Elysia tossed the question to Welt.

"I do have one or two candidates I favor." Welt pushed up his glasses, which reflected white light, and spoke with feigned composure, casually showing off a little.

That pose just now must have looked incredibly cool.

Still a chuunibyo at heart, Welt picked up the microphone and shared his thoughts.

"I favor No. 10, No. 14, No. 38, and No. 46. They are all talented people skilled in science fiction."

Welt also wanted to slip in a little personal agenda and recommend some talents from Anti-Entropy.

But clearly, Anti-Entropy's talents all specialized in scientific research. It was not that they knew nothing about creative work; they simply had no interest in it whatsoever.

Of course, the most crucial point was that time was money.

For others, this was a good opportunity to make a name for themselves. For those two, it was a waste of time.

They might as well spend that time doing more research.

"Science fiction is humanity's imagination of the future. Although ordinary people see science fiction as a genre centered on romance, emotion is not the focus of most science fiction."

"It is very difficult to write a regret that resonates with readers. You must preserve the science fiction content while controlling the emotions at the appropriate moments. But I believe they can handle it and strike the right balance."

Based on their earlier performances, Welt gave an impartial assessment.

Some contestants were clearly at a disadvantage when faced with a prompt they were not good at.

But this was already as lenient as possible. After all, there were no genre restrictions. They might be disadvantaged, but their paths had not been completely blocked, preventing talent from being buried.

"That analysis was spot-on. As expected of a veteran who has worked in animation for many years. Let's give him a round of applause and thank him for his generosity."

Finally, everyone held their breath and turned their eyes toward Eden.

Otto and Welt's insights had value, but they would not have much influence.

But Eden...

This was Eden's first time appearing in person at the competition venue, and she was even serving as a judge.

She had not done so in previous competitions. At most, she had appeared on screen to offer congratulations.

As long as she spoke, she could change the direction of this competition. There was no doubt about it.

No one could match her artistic attainments even now. Her eye was surely just as sharp and discerning, capable of identifying the most crucial elements in this prompt's creations.

As one of the judges, her opinion was far too important.

She brought hope to people. She was the symbol of this era before its curtain fell.

What would Eden say about the prompt of "regret"?

The venue once again fell into deathly silence as everyone awaited Eden's next words.

Faced with such pressure, the veteran artist Eden remained elegant and composed. This segment had already been rehearsed, and Eden had read the script prepared for her.

But since she was meant to share her own insights, then...

Being a little willful and not following her manager's arrangements should not be too much of a problem.

Eden understood the rules. She was not the sort of celebrity who was foolish without realizing it.

She felt that she ought to share her genuine feelings and understanding with everyone present.

Chapter 4: Far Ahead, They Couldn't Even See His Taillights!

What exactly was regret...?

Eden had never personally experienced such an emotion.

She had always been that shining star, arriving in brilliance.

Even when she departed, she would depart in glory.

In this world without Honkai, she had never had any regrets.

Her closest friends were by her side. She symbolized this era, and this era had not come to an end.

Now, the word regret was too distant... and too ethereal to her.

"I have never experienced regret. Many people believe... regret is loss, it is loving someone you cannot have and being unwilling to accept it."

"But now, I believe the greatest regret is not loss, but failing to cherish the present."

A thousand readers saw a thousand Hamlets.

Regret was different for different people as well.

Regret could be unresolved longing, a sense of melancholy when looking back. But Eden believed people should not remain trapped in regret forever.

This prompt, regret, was not an easy one.

Emotion was unique to humanity. Everyone experienced joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness.

But stirring emotions and evoking resonance was extremely difficult.

Music could give every listener a different feeling through its rhythm.

But story-based works could not consist of emotion alone. Emotion had to exist attached to the story.

How could one compose a wonderful story rather than continually dwelling on emotions and overlooking what truly mattered?

That balance was the difficult part. Welt had put it rather subtly just now, but he had also mentioned prioritizing the core science fiction story and making the emotion of regret secondary.

Eden made the most important point clear.

People had to keep moving forward. Her artistic achievements had already reached the pinnacle of this era, yet Eden was still searching for ways to improve herself and continue doing something for this world.

That was why she sponsored this competition and continuously invested in it.

She wanted to foster shining new stars in other fields as well.

That was her wish.

As soon as she finished speaking, thunderous applause erupted throughout the venue.

"Eden's charm is truly immense! Thank you for sharing your perspective with us. Do you have any contestants you favor?"

Elysia continued asking questions, maintaining the atmosphere. The audience's applause even drowned out the microphone.

The online audience was surely just as enthusiastic.

As long as Eden spoke, the viewers' passion was hard to extinguish.

"If we are speaking purely of personal preference, I quite like the works Contestant No. 13 created in previous competitions."

Eden thought carefully. "Though his works lack some detail, like a trace of impurity in a full-bodied fine wine, those flaws do not ruin its flavor. Instead, they are concealed, becoming an aftertaste that lingers after it goes down the throat."

Fine wine was one of the few things Eden liked.

Fans who knew Eden understood that this was incredibly high praise, the highest honor!

It feels like this season's champion has already been decided! No. 13, who knew you were such a dark horse!

That's true, Su Nian's earlier works could be considered classics, but online, I still have to say he needs more practice.

I think even the worst script could become an all-time masterpiece if Eden performed it.

Join Eden's divine church! Shine like starlight! Official fan club, thank you, meow~

I want to watch No. 13, but I also want to watch Eden. Why can't people have two heads?!

"Eden thinks so highly of him that I'm getting a little jealous." Elysia teased Eden, being playfully mischievous for a moment before steering everything back to the main topic.

"Still, I imagine the contestants have not all gotten into the groove yet. Shall we turn the camera toward Contestant No. 13's studio and take a look at him?"

According to the program, they really should check on the contestants' progress.

Eden was here, and the audience's eyes were glued to her, unwilling to look away. This was clearly something they had anticipated long ago.

This situation was not ideal. After all, the brightest stars of this competition should have been the contestants.

Su Nian was fortunate enough to become the first contestant noticed by the public, undoubtedly gaining a huge amount of exposure.

Popularity was very important for contestants with real ability.

Many excellent works were buried for all kinds of reasons, and without encouragement, their creators might not persevere until the day they shone.

The competition was an opportunity for them, as well as a platform and a springboard.

This was not some survival-of-the-fittest competition. There would be no final winner standing atop the corpses of countless peers, nor would there be a scene where one man's success withered ten thousand others.

The entire tone was love and peace. A healthy competitive environment was essential.

The giant screen in the stadium began switching images, and the audience instantly saw the scene inside Contestant No. 13's studio.

Although this time slot was not ideal, the online viewer count had reached several million. News of Eden's presence had only just spread, and the number was still climbing.

At this moment, so many pairs of eyes were fixed on Su Nian.

What was unexpected was that only a little over ten minutes had passed since the contestants entered their studios and began creating.

Most contestants were completely at a loss, unsure what to write. They scratched their heads in agony, wrote and deleted, deleted and wrote, yet spent ages without producing anything useful.

Some forced themselves to look calm and composed, but their actions still revealed their anxiety.

They kept shaking their legs while smoking, and their furrowed brows could crush two flies...

A small number of contestants could remain unfazed even if Mount Tai collapsed before them. At the very least, they were not overly anxious, though they were not writing either.

Only Su Nian was different. He leaned over his desk, and the paper in his hand was already covered in dense writing.

Holy crap, he's already started creating?!

So he was putting on a suffering act to fool his opponents? He's not pretending anymore!

I've been watching since earlier, and his pen hasn't stopped moving! But writing like that is pretty slow. Why isn't he using the top-tier computer provided by the production crew?

You don't get it. Writing while thinking things through is just right, isn't it?

Su Nian had thrown himself wholeheartedly into creation, writing down all the rough content he knew.

Only afterward would he expand upon it according to his own abilities.

In other words, what he was writing now was the so-called outline and character profile cards.

The main text had not progressed yet, but he was already far ahead of the other contestants.

If this were a car race, then... the other contestants could not even see his taillights!

And the preparation time had not even ended yet!

The camera zoomed in, allowing them to see the Previous Civilization timeline Su Nian had organized.

"This prompt is not simple. I never expected the first contestant to move so quickly and already develop his ideas to this extent."

"The framework of the story is already taking shape. To accomplish this much in such a short time, he is excellent."

Eden's unreserved praise made the live comments even more active.

I watched from beginning to end, and he didn't even stop writing once!

Awesome! There wasn't talent like this even in previous competitions, right?

I'm betting a pack of spicy strips! No. 13 will be this competition's champion!

I watched this book get written. From now on, I'm an old fan!