The novel is finished-scatter the flowers! Hooray!
Before I knew it, two years and three months had passed, and this book was finally, officially complete.
As usual, it was time to look back on the process of writing it.
I, Old Chen, hid this book's theme in the oath the protagonist swore upon his Dao Heart while he was still a mortal. One element was that good and evil receive their due, and heaven and earth show no favoritism. This belonged to the realm of kindness, virtue, and positive values, and from it emerged a deeper core beyond "Joy of the Heart Becomes Fragrance": "Virtue incense transformation."
The protagonist's joining the Orthodox Path, bringing peace to the region, and even competing for territory all took place beneath the main theme of upholding righteousness, in service to the Heavenly Court's Orthodox Path. This was itself a form of incense blending in the broader sense. Disciple after disciple, successor after successor, became his ingredients, with the ultimate aim of spreading his ideals throughout the world and filling the mortal realm with fragrance.
Thus, the book's overt storyline was the story of the protagonist's growth along his personal Dao Path, his success in his endeavors, and ultimately his spreading his teachings throughout the world and becoming the Incense Ancestor.
A simple, ordinary cultivation novel in the sect-leader subgenre.
Its underlying storyline, however, unfolded around the questions of what fragrance was and what the Incense Path meant.
From Joy of the Heart Becomes Fragrance, to virtue incense transformation, to incense resonance enduring forever, it echoed a beautiful atmosphere in which incense Dao essence filled the mortal realm, pursuing an ideal of survival and development.
From this came the conclusion that the Incense Path should be something positive and beneficial.
Sounds impressive, even if you