The metrics on Leo Vance's official TikTok account were enough to make a data scientist weep. The likes on his first video had already surpassed 28 million.
In his previous life, Leo had never even seen a video with ten million likes, let alone nearly thirty. However, this world was different, the global population was denser, and the appetite for digital entertainment was insatiable. Currently, the most liked video Leo had seen was a post by the legendary "Heavenly King" Arthur Sterling, which sat at a comfortable 30 million.
Looking at the trajectory, Leo knew it was only a matter of time before he dethroned the veteran legend.
He leaned back in his leather chair at the Celestial Peak headquarters and opened his private message requests. He wanted to see what the "fans" were saying.
"Teacher Leo, can you give it to me just once? I'm your biggest male fan! My gym PR is 315!"....
Leo was momentarily speechless. Good lord, he thought, are there really this many thirsty male fans on this platform? I thought Reddit was the epicenter for this kind of energy.
He scrolled past the "Sword-Crossers" and found a series of messages from a female fan that read more like a daily diary.
"February 2, 2018: Hubby, I might be home late tonight, remember to go to bed early."
"February 3, 2018: The bed is a bit cold today, hubby. I wish you were here to warm it up."
"February 4, 2018: The braised ribs you made in my dream today were so delicious. Next time, I want chicken feet."
Leo rubbed his temples. The "Gojo Effect" was truly a double-edged sword.
Aside from the DMs, the TikTok trending list was dominated by the #WangYeChallenge. Five of the top ten hashtags were related to The Outcast. This didn't surprise Leo. He knew the magnetic appeal of the "Salted Fish" Daoist. The line "Wudang's Wang Ye... pays his respects to the High Priest" was currently the most sampled audio on the platform.
He considered posting a response video, perhaps a behind-the-scenes look at Wang Ye's "Salted Fish" state just to interact with the fans and gain some more "Reputation Points" for the System.
As The Outcast continued to dominate the national ratings, Leo received a call from Chloe Vance.
She was officially on summer break from UCLA and was planning to fly out to the Celestial Peak studio the next day. Since the Jujutsu Kaisen prequel movie, Hidden Inventory, was about to start filming with Ava starring as the tragic Riko Amanai, Chloe wanted to tag along and watch the production.
But before Leo could play host, he had to finish the most critical part of pre-production: the casting for the "Sorcerer Killer," Toji Fushiguro.
Toji was a character who required a very specific, rare aura. He needed to be 1.8 meters tall, visibly muscular but lean, and exude a sense of calm, cruel, and absolute dominance. He was a professional killer who had abandoned his family name, the first man to ever make Gojo Satoru truly fear for his life.
In the lore of Hidden Inventory, Toji was the one who systematically broke the "Strongest" duo of Gojo and Suguru Geto in a few cold, calculated moves. Even though he was eventually taken down by the resurrected Gojo, he remained one of the most popular characters in the franchise.
Leo needed an actor who wouldn't just be an "opponent." He needed a man who could steal the screen from Gojo.
He immediately thought of Andrew 'Andy' Stone.
Andrew was a martial arts veteran who had made a name for himself in the mid-2010s in hard-hitting action films. He was famous for his terrifyingly realistic fight scenes.
A legendary director had once said of him: "Every time I ask Andrew Stone to film a fight, I'm afraid he'll actually beat the protagonist to death."
After receiving the invitation from Celestial Peak, Andrew Stone had agreed without even reading the script. He had watched the first season of JJK in a single 24-hour binge. He knew exactly what kind of energy the "Sorcerer Killer" needed. He told Leo he could fly in by the end of the week.
With the villain secured, Leo turned his attention to another pivotal role: Yuki Tsukumo, the Special Grade sorcerer known to the fans as "Sister Full Responsibility."
Without Yuki's intervention and her specific philosophy, Suguru Geto might never have "turned dark." She only had about two minutes of screen time in the Hidden Inventory arc, but those two minutes changed the course of history.
This role was ultimately given to Tiffany.
Tiffany was part of the "Grand Trinity" of industry beauties, alongside Maya West and Seraphina Vale. She was famous for her role as the ethereal goddess and she possessed the perfect blend of playful mystery and hidden power that Yuki required.
The story of how Tiffany got the role was quite interesting.
A few weeks ago, when news broke that Leo was making a movie, Maya West had been flooding his DMs with "subtle" hints that she was available for a role.
Maya West had been the Queen of Television for nearly a decade. Her ratings were untouchable. But in the world of the silver screen, she was notoriously "cursed." Almost every movie she had ever led had flopped, either critically or commercially.
Except for a tiny cameo she did as a child in a 90s, she had never managed to break her "Box Office Poison" reputation. It was a dark cloud that had followed her for her entire professional life.
When she heard Leo, the man who had just turned a "Bad Drama" into a NAC winner was making a movie, she saw her chance. She wanted a "Celestial Peak" miracle to break her curse.
But Leo had looked at her stats and realized she didn't fit the "Sorcerer" profile. He'd given the role of Yuki to Tiffany instead. Maya, however, didn't give up. She had sent Tiffany as a "Trojan Horse" to the set, hoping that once Leo saw the results of the JJK movie, he would reconsider her for a future role in The Outcast or JJK Season 2.
Leo sat in his office, looking at the finalized cast list for Hidden Inventory.
Toji Fushiguro: Andrew Stone.
Yuki Tsukumo: Tiffany.
Riko Amanai: Ava.
The pieces were in place. The tragedy was set. And the "Sorcerer Killer" was about to meet the world.