XIXI December 31
As usual, the novel industry was moving smoothly, with different novels topping the rankings while others struggled in the shadows, hoping to rise.
Until, two weeks ago, everything changed.
An individual named 'Realityking' out of nowhere disrupted the balance with the appearance of his new book.
In less than a month, his novel 'Heavenly Path Awakened: I Shall Grow Through Every Storm' had gained 15.7 million views and 300,000+ readers across the globe had already added it to their libraries, despite only having thirty-five chapters.
Banners. Promotions. Recommendations. The book was featured everywhere on the app due to its fast growth.
The internet was dumbfounded by this. The worst part was that the author remained strangely unknown, completely hidden in the dark no matter how much research was done.
The novel's rapid growth left readers and fellow authors baffled. Some called it luck, others believed he had some unfair advantage, even accusing him of hacking the platform.
Even the platform officials stepped in to deny all such claims of hacking, which only deepened the mystery surrounding RealityKing.
Meanwhile, in a large room buried under soft neon lights, a nineteen-year-old boy sat before a table filled with high-end computers. From a single glance, it was clear how expensive the room was.
Slow, calming music played through his headset, helping to ease his mind into a relaxed state as he was deeply focused on his system's screen.
"Dammit! This MC is an idiot!" Alden muttered, cursing as he clenched his fists.
His expression changed from anger to disappointment and then back to anger as he kept reading.
BAM!
After a few minutes, he let out a frustrated groan and slammed his fist on the desk. "Who the hell wrote this crap?" he shouted into the room.
His voice echoed, breaking the silence.
"A waste of my precious time!"
With a loud thud, Alden yanked off his headset and hurled it across the room.
After days of sleepless nights in front of his computer, he was completely drained of energy, his body asking nothing else but rest. Just before heading to bed, ready to welcome the new year with a real sleep…
He decided to check the webnovel rankings, something he hadn't done in a long time.
His jaw dropped in shock.
There it was.
Heavenly Path Awakened had claimed the #1 spot in popularity and several other categories.
"How did this happen?! GreatPanda's been dominating the rankings for a year now. How did this book out of the blue with only thirty-plus chapters surpass it in just a few days?" Confusion overwhelmed him.
As a popular streamer, Alden was no stranger to the buzz around new releases but seeing this for himself was shocking.
Over the past few days, he had seen countless streamers broadcasting about this particular book, but he had been too deeply occupied with his project to read or bother about it.
"What is so interesting about this book that sets it apart? Let me use this little time to check it out." He clicked on it, expecting to find some unique plot that explained its fast growth.
He stared blankly at the screen, mentally drained by what he'd just read. Now, he deeply regret opening the book.
Alden let out an irritated sigh, running his hand through his hair as he stared at the screen in disbelief.
"You've got to be kidding me..."
"These days, people just jump into writing without understanding the basics," he said bitterly. "They think they can slap some words together and call it a story."
His heart grew heavy… seeing an unworthy novel rise to fame was deeply infuriating.
He didn't even finish reading all the chapters, stopping at chapter fifteen.
For a few minutes, he sat there trying to calm down, but the thought wouldn't leave. How could such a poorly written story become this popular?
His anger only grew as he imagined readers blindly praising the plot, hyping it up like it was a true masterpiece.
He laughed bitterly as he scrolled through the reviews, which were filled with praise. "What a joke! Are these people blind or just ignorant?"
Click! Click!...
"I can't stay idle watching something not even deserving of its accomplishments go viral," he muttered in thought. "I need to tell my fans and stop them from wasting their time on this trash before it rots their brains."
Without hesitation, Alden's fingers ran over the keyboard as he set up his live stream and cam.
He took a few deep breaths, regaining his calm before clicking 'Go Live.'
"Hey yo, what's up, guys? It's been a while since my last stream. Work's been crazy, my back hurts."
"And HAPPY NEW YEAR in advance to you guys," he added with a wide grin on his face. "I want to thank you for your support and dedication till this moment."
Next, he wasted no time getting to the point. "I'm sure by now you've all seen or heard about the trending novel going around the place. The so-called, Heavenly path awakened."
"You guys know how I usually give reviews after reading novels. But you see this one..." He facepalmed himself. "I can't just stay silent about it. IT'S ABSOLUTE TRASH."
"READ MY LIPS, 'ABSOLUTE TRASH.'"
Almost immediately, comments started flowing in.
- Infinityqueen: Oh? Why are you pissed Den-Den?! Spill it, bro!
- Meetmehere001: Happy New Year, too, dude. You finally remember us after a long time of abandoning us! ^_^
- Vivian: That new book that is madly making waves everywhere.
- A_boy_called_john: Aldie, give us a sneak peek of your project as a New Year gift!
- Alden_jnr: Ohhhh, you mean that wild book. *laughing emoji* It's crazy, man.
- Anonymous_user: Go ahead!!
- PotatoOnCouch: Little one, don't hold back. Roast it like my burnt sweet potatoes.
- CallMeYourLord: Say it loud, say it even louder! We're all ears…(◠‿◕)
Within minutes, the livestream hit 98,000 views, 3,000 reactions, and comments still climbing.
- Badguy: Finally, someone's gonna roast this overrated mess.
Alden chuckled seeing some of the comments, adjusting his mic. "I sacrificed an hour reading this so-called 'peak novel' that everyone is hyping.
Let me share my observations... This is my point of view though, so if it doesn't sit well with you or makes you angry, you can go ahead and punch yourself in the face."
He pulled up the novel and shared the screen with his followers.
For some minutes, he scrolled through a few chapters, his expression darkening.
"See, some grammar is off... there's no character development, the pacing isn't even organized... and the structure is a mess.... The MC is so braindead.... This novel doesn't deserve the hype...."
He took his time to point out numerous mistakes.
He shook his head while maintaining his composure.
"And the title? Doesn't even match the storyline. How is the MC supposed to survive in that world with no talent? It's like a level 1 player trying to beat enemies a hundred times stronger than him. Total bullsh*t. I doubt the author even understands his own plot."
- NotAvailable: Needs hours of editing before it can even count as a 'novel.'
- Damnedplayer: I've always known you to be an honest man, unlike those other liars. Much love for this man.
- KeyboardWarrior: I tried reading it, but my IQ dropped so low that I almost forgot my name.
- WeebLord: I dropped it after three chapters. Not promising.
- DarkMan: A big-time hype, nothing else. Should be called 'Heavenly Path Wasted' instead ಠ_ಠ.
- NextDoor: Haha, it's being shoved in our faces, but there is no soul in it!
"I'd rather read random forum posts; at least those have more emotion. This? They're just empty words."
Alden leaned toward the camera. "You guys know something is off, right? This thing has millions of views, but why? It's like someone is pulling strings from behind."
- AnimeLord: Aldo going full detective mode!
- MadDude: Expose it, bro! Let's see if it's worse than my Wi-Fi connection!
- User262: Bunch of clichés thrown in to grab attention.
- ChosenOne: Trash goes trending, and the true gems stay hidden.
- User234074: *sighs* Real talent buried under stuff like this. Well, that aside, tell us about your project.
Typing...
More comments continued to flood in.
"There are so many talented authors who deserve attention. But no, it's always the worst ones getting the spotlight. The system is really rigged..."
He nodded. "So yeah, Heavenly Path isn't worth your time. Let's support the real gems instead."
"Oh and one more thing!" He broke into a smile. "Tomorrow, my team and I will be releasing the game project for beta testing as our New Year gift to you!"
After dropping the announcement, he ended the livestream without bothering to read the flood of praise pouring in from fans, clearly in a hurry to finally get that long-suspended sleep.
As Alden clicked to shut down his system, something strange happened, the interface froze.
At first, he thought it was a glitch. But then the screen went black… and turned back on.
"W-What the hell?"
He jumped out of his chair in shock.
A message appeared on the screen.
⟨Oh, Alden, why don't you put yourself in my MC's shoes? Are you sure you'd do any better?—RealityKing⟩
"REALITYKING?! HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE?" Alden shouted, nearly falling backward.
His eyes widened. "F*ck! What did that bastard do to my system?" he muttered, trying to shake off the creeping fear.
"He's just messing with me. Why would I be scared of him?"
Gathering his courage, he sat back down.
He quickly typed a message filled with curses, but deleted it all and sent a middle-finger emoji instead.
Seconds later, another message popped up.
⟨Let's say you get sent into that world. Are you sure you will survive?⟩
Click! Click!
He typed furiously.
⟨Dude, even if you've read the coolest web novels, don't think that stuff works in real life. But about your question, I think yeah, I'm 100% sure I'd survive in that world.⟩
He hit send and waited, his eyes locked on the screen.
RealityKing's reply came instantly, as if pre-written.
⟨Alright then, hehe. So be it. Good luck xD⟩
"Foolish psycho."
He waited for a minute, but no more messages came.
"How the hell did he even hack my system?!" Alden growled, quickly opening his firewall settings to check it out.
Just then, Alden began to feel his skin turning cold. The air felt colder, and strangely, a faint hum filled the room, vibrating through everything.
His pulse quickened as the hairs on his body stood up.
...He looked around. Nothing seemed out of place. But the eerie feeling didn't go, causing a frown to form on his face.
"What is this feeling?"
Then, it hit. A burning pain, so sharp and sudden, shot through his chest as if someone had driven a knife into him.
He fell off the chair as he struggled to breathe.
"What's… happening?" His voice was gradually becoming weak.
"I-is this... the end—?"
Blood spilled from his mouth as he blacked out.
..!
The pain spread like wildfire. His vision darkened.
For a moment, it felt as though the room itself had disappeared, replaced by a void of swirling lights and shadows.
Moments later, Alden's eyes opened slowly, a pounding headache crashing through his skull.
"Look! He's finally waking up."