After seven or eight hours on the train, Huang Yifan finally arrived at a hotel called Ruxin in Jing'an, Modu.
The Ruxin Hotel was the gathering place for Lingdian's writing training camp. Since fifty authors had come from all over the country, events like this were usually arranged at hotels. By the time Huang Yifan arrived, it was already 2 a.m., yet several editors were still waiting at the front desk.
Of course, when Huang Yifan appeared and gave his pen name, The Number One White Under Heaven, it immediately caused a stir. Some authors who had already checked in were even woken up and came downstairs to see for themselves. After more than half an hour of shock, disbelief, and near dizziness from both editors and authors, they finally confirmed that the person before them was indeed the real The Number One White Under Heaven.
However, to avoid too much attention, Huang Yifan lied about his age, saying he was eighteen. Although some still doubted it, seeing that he didn't behave like a minor, they reluctantly accepted it for the time being.
Since it was already very late, Huang Yifan, under the arrangement of his editor Wuyue, went to rest early.
The next morning, Huang Yifan went with the others to the hotel for breakfast.
"Boss White, I really didn't expect you to be only eighteen."
Sitting with him were several authors he had previously chatted with online.
"Heh, there have been eighteen-year-olds writing web novels before. What's so strange?"
Huang Yifan replied calmly, without any airs, taking a sip of soy milk.
"How is that comparable? Sure, even thirteen-year-olds write web novels, but most of them are just messing around. Very few become famous. How can they compare to you? The best among them is Maomi, who's nineteen and only a four-star author."
"But I'm only one star… no, two stars."
Including rewards, The Number One White Under Heaven had reached two-star status a few days ago.
"Come on, Boss White, you're joking again. Your two stars aren't like anyone else's. In-game terms, you're a high-level player using a smurf account to crush newbies. Totally shameless."
"Exactly! Before you came, we were all discussing you. And then you show up and shock us just with your age. If this were in a novel, readers would love it."
"Yeah, yeah, Boss White, let's take a photo together. I need something to show off when I get back."
"Me too, I want a picture with Boss White."
"One at a time."
"Get lost, that's too slow. Let's all take one together."
They were all writers, and after chatting for a while, the atmosphere became lively and familiar.
Half an hour later, after breakfast, everyone headed to the conference room on the top floor.
The authors took their seats, while Huang Yifan, as a special guest, was invited onto the stage by the editors.
The session was hosted by editor Tank from Sihai.
Tank was tall and imposing, over 1.85 meters, but despite his strong appearance, he was humorous and approachable. Wearing round glasses and smiling with a small dimple, he immediately made everyone feel at ease.
"Everyone, welcome to Lingdian's writing training camp. This session is different from previous ones. Before, it was mostly us editors rambling about writing techniques. But honestly, we're editors, not frontline authors. Even if we used to write, we're no longer in the trenches. Our understanding of writing and readers may differ from yours. So this time, we've invited The Number One White Under Heaven to share his experience."
With that, Tank truly stepped aside, moving the microphone to Huang Yifan and sitting down to listen.
Huang Yifan hadn't expected him to be so straightforward. After a brief pause, seeing the editor's gesture for him to begin, he cleared his throat.
"What should I say? Most of you here have been writing longer than I have. In terms of experience, many of you surpass me. Honestly, I feel a bit embarrassed sitting here. But since I've been invited, I'll share some of my thoughts."
He didn't believe that writing techniques could be universally applied.
Some people could understand everything just by reading.
Others, even after learning from countless masters, still couldn't grasp it.
Still, since he was here, he would share what he could. Whether they could absorb it was up to them. He also noticed a few high-star authors in the audience and found it a bit odd that they didn't really need this training, but he didn't dwell on it.
What should he talk about?
After thinking for a moment, he had an idea.
"I believe that after reading my novels, many of you are interested in my so-called noob-style writing. Some even analyze my techniques on the Feilong forums. But in my opinion, these techniques are low-level. The highest level of web novel writing is innovation."
As expected, someone from the audience immediately spoke up.
"Boss White, web novels have been around for decades. What's left to innovate?"
Huang Yifan smiled and continued, "Yes, that's the common question. Has everything already been written? Rebirth, fantasy, history, supernatural, time travel, sports, gaming… It seems like every idea has been used. But I say no. Innovation is not finished. It will never be finished."
He knew many didn't believe him, and that was exactly what he wanted.
"I know you don't agree, so let's take an example. Let's talk about gaming novels. They started as strategy guides, then evolved into virtual reality games where players enter immersive worlds. But now, this genre feels repetitive. Large-scale innovation may be hard, but micro-innovation is everywhere. For example, combine gaming with rebirth."
Everyone understood instantly.
A gaming author in the audience stood up excitedly.
"Boss White, you mean being reborn and then playing games?"
"Exactly. Everyone writes about rebirth into business or literature. Why not be extravagant rebirth just to play games?"
Though said jokingly, the entire room buzzed with discussion.
Right! Rebirth into gaming!
Why didn't I think of that?
If I use this idea, my next book will explode!
In just one idea, Huang Yifan had already won their admiration.
"Boss White, how did you come up with that?"
Someone asked.
"As I said, it's micro-innovation. Take elements that don't seem to fit together and combine them; you might get something unexpected. And that's just one example. You can apply rebirth elsewhere too. For instance, rebirth into an animal. Or even into a chick. Yes, a chick. Write from its perspective, have it cultivate, evolve from chick to eagle, from eagle to phoenix… Or rebirth as a giant snake, threatening the entire planet."
At this point, the authors were almost trembling with excitement.
Another brilliant idea.
And immediately, someone shouted:
"Boss White! I'm taking the chick idea. I'm starting a new book when I get back!"
"Shameless! That idea was meant for me!"
"Get lost, both of you! Boss White never gave it to you. I've already started outlining it on my phone. Deal with it!"
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