The Novelist Forced to Become Famous

Chapter 84

The next day, Ji Feng came over specially to take away the love poster that Jian Jing had kept. He said he wanted to compare it with the writing in this case to check the origin of the love poster's ink.

If the murderer was someone with good aesthetic taste who liked using special ink to paint, then they might be able to grab his tail by the ink.

Of course, ink testing had to be sent to a specialized agency, and results would be hard to get in a short time.

Ji Feng told her the hard truth: "Don't hold too much hope for Liu Bao Feng's case. All the clues so far point to you, and you don't know anything, so it can't be solved."

Jian Jing asked, "Will he strike again?"

"Not necessarily," Ji Feng said. "This person has both the arrogance of a murderer and the caution of a killer. We can't determine his motive, so we can't find a pattern in his actions."

After a pause, he added, "But one thing is certain - you're special to him, so be careful."

Jian Jing was very calm: "I signed up for a mixed martial arts class and found a coach at the shooting range."

And she had binged on fitness classes.

By the time Jin Meixian's case was over, she had a total of 60 courage points and 30 contribution points. Then, for her own safety, she drew several cards at the gym, which were:

[Enhancement Card - Endurance (1 point)], [Enhancement Card - Explosiveness (1 point)], [Enhancement Card - Strength (1 point)], [Enhancement Card - Constitution (1 point)], [Skill Card - Sales (Beginner)], [Knowledge Card - Alphabet (Beginner)]

Cough cough cough, the enhancement cards were of course very practical, the system still valued her personal safety very much. The subsequent knowledge and skill cards were indescribable. Anyway, they probably revealed some personal secrets of private tutors that Jian Jing didn't want to know or learn.

She combined the nutrition card she drew last time with the two beginner cards this time, synthesizing them into an advanced card to upgrade her beginner martial arts card to intermediate level.

[Name: Skill Card - Trainer’s Martial Arts (Intermediate Level)]

[Description: Gain martial arts proficiency through professional training, able to deal with most ordinary people]

[Note: Different physiques lead to different effects]

And her character panel was as follows:

Name: Jian Jing

Gender: Female

Age: 21

Reputation: Somewhat Famous (Limited Pool Unlocks Once Every 60 Days)

Status: Composure +30%, Intuition (Passive Trigger), Senses +50% (Choose One of Five)

Basic Stats:

Constitution: 7 (You have a very healthy body with enhanced immunity)

Strength: 8 (You can subdue ordinary adult males)

Agility: 7 (You are slightly more agile than ordinary people)

Explosiveness: 8 (Those critical seconds determine victory)

Endurance: 6 (Longer is more fun~~)

Talent: Literary Creation (Locked)

Knowledge: Trace Evidence Science (Beginner), Cryptography (Beginner), Forensic Science (Beginner)

Skills: Observation (Intermediate), Martial Arts (Intermediate), First Aid (Beginner), Horsemanship (Beginner), Firearms (Beginner)

Items: High-Tech Glasses (Main Unit + Night Vision + Telescope), Handwriting Identification (2/3), Wolf Repellent Spray (1/3), Meal Replacement Bars (5/5)

It seemed like she had gained many skills, but compared to the Hawaii training base, it was still shabby.

Jian Jing thought about where to do [Righteousness] side quests to grind more points for future needs.

Ji Feng didn't know about her cheats and felt it unreliable. He said, "Listen, if you're being followed or attacked, let me know immediately and we can arrange protection. This is serious, got it?"

Jian Jing nodded: "Don't worry, I won't be reckless."

All her preparations were to prevent the first assault. If she got lucky and made it through the first time, she could then ask the police for help. If she couldn't make it through the first time, there was no point thinking further.

"Here's the stuff I promised you." Ji Feng gave her a flashlight-shaped item and a small notebook.

Jian Jing took them and weighed them in her hands happily: "A stun gun?"

"This is the carry permit," Ji Feng told her. "Keep it in your bag normally. When going through security checks, take it out and show them this. It has a serial number on it, just like a driver's license."

He had applied for it just in case originally. He didn't expect it to come in handy so soon.

Jian Jing readily put it away: "Thanks."

Ji Feng held out his hand: "500 bucks. Weapons have serial numbers so there's a fee."

Jian Jing: "..."

"I only make a few bucks in salary and still have to raise my sister the bottomless pit. Show some understanding, Teacher Jian." Ji Feng made no move to retract his hand.

Jian Jing: "I'll transfer it to you."

"Payment received, 500.1 yuan," her phone prompted.

Ji Feng: "What's with the extra 0.1 yuan?"

"To let you earn a bit extra," she smiled.

Ji Feng: "..."

After paying, her sense of security rose considerably.

But the man did not appear again.

From the 5th to the 10th day of the new year, Jian Jing slept with the weapon under her pillow every night.

But nothing happened.

The intuition card would warn her of danger, but it never triggered.

There's truth in the saying that a thief can lurk a thousand days while a guard can't defend a thousand days. Jian Jing didn't want to live in fear every day, so she decided to take the initiative to look for clues herself.

Of course, considering personal safety, her approach was very low-risk.

She didn't look for Scarface, but Qi Tian.

Although this idea was far-fetched without any basis - just because he killed Madam Qin, would he go looking for Qi Tian? That would be overestimating herself too much.

But for Jian Jing, this was a no-lose gamble.

Anyway, Qi Tian was also a fugitive. If she could find him, it would be eliminating harm for the people and avenging those seven corpses. Catching a big fish would be hitting jackpot.

In fact, this was also because she was too bored over the new year and wanted to find something interesting to pass the time. In the writer chat group that Xia Xing had added her to, some were learning instruments, some practicing calligraphy, some learning editing skills - her looking for a murderer was also gaining experience.

The permit Ji Feng gave her had a code on it, similar to a student ID number.

Using that number, she could log in to the official website and access some semi-open materials, including information about a series of wanted fugitives.

She searched for "Qi Tian" and found the 0921 case, gaining access to all the reports related to Qi Tian over this period.

The reporters' information was all anonymous and unidentifiable, but the content was public - over a thousand posts total.

The quality varied, with things like "I heard from my mom's friend's uncle that the elders in our village back then knew about this weird occult art..." followed by a thousand words that could be summarized as a short horror story from an occult forum.

There was also "The art of Seven Star Coffin Seal has to start with me. Let me tell you about the Book of Changes blah blah blah, passed down to only the Qi family today. Of the three doors and nine mysteries circulating in jianghu, the Qi family's coffin art is one of them..." which gave the family history of the Qi's in full detail, sounding very knowledgeable, not sure if true or false.

There were also more normal reports, like "When I rented a place in such and such housing complex, my neighbor was a weirdo who rarely went out, but I could always hear children's voices from his home. Later when I asked the landlord, the landlord said the tenant was a single man and never had kids, but then the guy moved away. He looked a bit like the man on the wanted poster, wonder if it's him."

Jian Jing squatted at home searching for a long time but found nothing useful.

Ji Feng mocked her: "Pie in the sky."

Jian Jing blocked him, then unblocked him again after over a week.

Why?

Because she had found a clue.

To be precise, the clue took initiative and delivered itself to her door.

It started with the hot broadcast of Demon Doctor.

*

Before Lantern Festival, the entire first season of Demon Doctor finished airing.

The TV ratings were just average, apparently not to the taste of the parent demographic who occupied TVs. But this was aired simultaneously on TV and online, and the online play count was extremely high.

On the first day after finale, the play count had already reached over 3 billion.

The drama rating on fan sites was 8.9.

A typical highly-rated and well-received comment:

"Director Huang filming a TV drama is really effortless and unhurried. Only 16 episodes total, yet every episode is dense without filler, pacing just right - not suspenseful and tense throughout, which is tiring to watch, but also not just showing off and being humorous the whole time. The combination of coldness and humor is truly TM well-done. Love it so much, look forward to Season 2!!"

Jian Jing read the heated online discussions and hoped her fame would increase another level.

But it didn't.

She was very confused: "When can I unlock the next stage?"

[System: A thin veneer of fame—you're more famous than ordinary people, at least ten thousand know who you are; A bit famous—you have some notoriety, many feel your name is familiar; Quite famous—you have very high fame, most people know who you are; Famous—you have extremely high national fame, people of all ages know you; World-famous—you have extremely high prestige in all countries globally]

Jian Jing: "..."

[System: Here are some reference examples]

It gave examples to illustrate that "a thin veneer of fame" was the simplest, like being the school prince or princess at a certain school, or an online blogger with 100,000 fans; A bit famous was basically already a top blogger with millions of fans, with some notoriety in the industry.

Quite famous? A second-tier celebrity.

Famous? A top star who's been on the Spring Festival Gala.

World-famous? If you can't get the Nobel Prize in Literature, at least get the Hugo Award.

Jian Jing: "Excuse me."

Leveling up from "a thin veneer of fame" to "a bit famous" was too easy, she thought advancing later would be simple too.

But looking back now, it was only because she rode on the coattails of the horror house show.

She thought too much.

- At least for now, Jian Jing thought she was thinking too far ahead.

Regardless of Jian Jing's own fame, "Demon Doctor" had genuinely succeeded.

Director Huang was very happy and treated everyone to a meal at his own expense.

The location was a hot spring inn in a small town below the next city over.

In the dead of winter, eating hot pot and soaking in the hot spring, very cozy.

Jian Jing was also invited. Director Huang strongly requested her attendance.

It was perfect timing, sitting at the computer searching for clues these past few days made Jian Jing's waist and shoulders sore. She thought soaking in the hot spring to unwind sounded great, so she agreed.

When Kang Mu Cheng heard, he adjusted his work schedule to accompany her there.

"You didn't have to come with me," Jian Jing said. "It's not like it's far away."

But Kang Mu Cheng said, "They called you over, they'll definitely bring up the script for the second part. Didn't you say you don't plan to write about the demon again for the next book? We should discuss it properly."

Jian Jing pressed her forehead: "They want to write the second part already?"

"Who would think money is too hot to handle," Kang Mu Cheng said. "Just wait, it's our turn to name the price now."

He was right.