Chapter 117: A Battle Without Gunfire

Based on Su Mu's impression of past film and television themes in China, he recalled that there really hadn't been any grave-robbing series. Of course, that wasn't absolute. It wasn't that no one had ever tried to film such stories; in fact, many web authors on major platforms had written about them. It was just that the quality—whether in film, television, or literature—was always a bit lacking, and ultimately, nothing had ever truly taken off.

However, Su Mu knew that in his past life, this genre had been incredibly popular for a time. *Ghost Blows Out the Light* and *The Lost Tomb* were the undisputed titans of the genre back then. And now, if the name "Hu Bayi" was correct, then this script was very likely from the *Ghost Blows Out the Light* series.

In truth, some film and television projects can become breakout hits based on their subject matter alone, while others rely on the actors' performances, and some depend entirely on nuanced content and a grounded, realistic atmosphere. This project, without a doubt, held an absolute advantage based solely on its theme. It was just that this trend didn't seem to have taken off in China yet. Of course, part of the reason was that the original lead actor hadn't been able to perform due to an accident, causing production to pause. Otherwise, it might have already taken flight, and Su Mu wouldn't have had the chance to pick up the pieces now.

Su Mu sighed inwardly. How fickle fate could be.

Qian Jida: "Su Mu, what’s with the blank stare and the sighing? Give me an answer—do you want it or not? Honestly, if you take the role, you’ll definitely be better than that other guy; I have faith in you. But I’m just worried about the negative public sentiment online, so I’m quite conflicted and hesitant..."

Su Mu narrowed his eyes and rubbed his fingers: "Divining the dragon and splitting the gold, watching the mountain's coil; each coil is a barrier. The minimum pay is fifty million, let’s meet again in the spring."

[Action Proficiency +1]
[Line Proficiency +1]
[Skill Points +0.01 +...]

"???" Qian Jida looked confused: "Speak like a human."

Su Mu: "Seventy million this year is a premium; I’m aware of that. But it shouldn't drop below fifty million in the future. That’s my bottom line. If it’s too low, I won't act, no matter how good the project is."

Qian Jida: "The guy who went inside only got twenty-five million."

Su Mu: "That’s exactly why we need to cherish those of us still on the outside. Tell them, for every extra twenty-five million, I guarantee I won't end up inside."

Qian Jida: "...!"

...

In May, summer officially arrived. Su Mu had been much more relaxed lately. Apart from attending a few promotional events for *Xin Qiji*, he didn't have much urgent work.

Meanwhile, the three major platforms—Qiyi, Youku, and Penguin—were moving quickly. Their respective big-budget films centered on historical heroes were all scheduled for release in June and July. After all, they didn't need to worry about theater distribution, as they were self-produced by the three major platforms. Therefore, they could decide the release schedule as they pleased without any resistance.

The one generating the most buzz was undoubtedly Su Mu’s *Xin Qiji*. During this time, the "Black News" account had temporarily stopped updating, leaving everyone feeling as if they had lost something. Everyone was still stuck on that one photograph of him looking like a god descended to earth, so expectations were absolutely sky-high.

...

At the Oulai Film Investment Building, the office was silent. Wang Taiming sat at the front, his expression somewhat dark. In fact, the atmosphere in the meetings over the last few days hadn't been particularly pleasant. Everyone present knew the main reason: the response to their promotion of *Warriors of the Shadow* had been lackluster. It had been drowned out by the new films from the three major video platforms. It was like skipping a stone across water—it made a splash, but a small one, and then nothing more. Few people were discussing it, and there didn't seem to be much anticipation for it.

Wang Taiming found this truly unacceptable. He had originally wanted to avoid the heat surrounding Su Mu, and he had finally waited until this month, thinking things would settle down. But the three giants had acted as if they had conspired together, all rushing to release their new films at once. It wasn't the same track, so it shouldn't have been a big deal, but the problem was that attention and topics of conversation were limited. Now, no one cared about the foreign production he had bought at a high price; everyone was waiting for the broadcast of *Xin Qiji*.

This was definitely not the result Wang Taiming wanted. As the Venture Capital Director of Oulai Film, the projects he had selected in previous years had never once lost money. In his view, China’s box office environment was still far behind foreign markets. Therefore, as long as you brought foreign blockbusters into the Chinese market, making money was a certainty. Of course, films produced by Western industrial standards would naturally not lose to a web movie. One didn't even need to look to know that the special effects and production costs were on a completely different level. No matter how much money those three platforms spent, the technological advantage was right there.

Yet, it hadn't met expectations at all. Wang Taiming couldn't figure it out. Why was everyone obsessed with a Xin Qiji? Even if the Ministry of Culture was advocating for national hero themes this year, hadn't that been the case in previous years? If mere advocacy could dictate public taste, then foreign films couldn't possibly dominate the domestic market.

After a long time, Wang Taiming slapped the table: "Move up the release schedule. We are hitting the theaters in June, make the official announcement!"

"!!!"
"???"

Everyone in the office was stunned. But soon, some guessed what was going on. This was a move to compete with the others on reputation.

...

The next day, Oulai Cinema’s official account announced a change in the release date for *Warriors of the Shadow*, clashing exactly with the timing of *Xin Qiji*. It immediately hit the trending topics. Before, few people had paid attention, but now, people were actually discussing it.

[Comments:
Is it on the same day as *Xin Qiji*?
Although domestic themes in previous years weren't worth watching, I'm backing Su Mu this year!
Quality is something you can see if you put in the effort. We'll know who's better after they air. I hope I won't be disappointed this time.

I definitely wouldn't have watched this kind of domestic theme in previous years, but I hope Su Mu's performance won't let me down this year!
Seems like both are hero themes. Hope they're good.
Whatever Su Mu acts in, it must be fine!]

...

In June, the long-awaited moment arrived. *Xin Qiji 1162* was officially released. Qiyi gave it massive promotion on its homepage. Su Mu’s trending topic surged to the top of the list again. Meanwhile, Oulai allowed *Warriors of the Shadow* to go live as scheduled. Although they were two different tracks with no overlap, they represented the two camps of domestic and foreign works, beginning a battle without gunpowder.

...

At the Qiyi building, Zheng Quan stared at the backend data in his office. This was the first time he had felt nervous because of a film. The key wasn't how much profit this film would bring him; what he wanted was the audience's feedback and the result.

Just then, his WeChat group buzzed with many messages.

[Su Mu Salary Exchange Group:]
Yu Hong: Zheng Quan, the responsibility of promoting national history from the Ministry of Culture this year is in your hands.
Zhao Zhouming: I admit, the one our Youku filmed definitely isn't as good as your *Xin Qiji*, so you must set a good example this year! Even as competitors, we support you in this!
Zheng Quan: ???
Zhang Huaimou: Oulai deliberately chose the same day as you. In my opinion, this is a challenge to our domestic themes.
Chen Anzhi: Don't worry, I have confidence in myself, and even more in Su Mu!
Yuan Zheng: That's right, our own historical stories aren't bad at all!
Yu Hong: Wait, where is Su Mu? Come out and say something.
Zhao Zhouming: Yeah, why hasn't the lead actor appeared? Looking at this, the investors are more anxious than the lead, haha.
Zheng Quan: ...
Su Mu: Oh, sorry, I was just chatting with my agent about a new project, I forgot.
Yu Hong: Huh?!!!
Zhao Zhouming: Hold on!!
Zheng Quan: What new project?

Ten minutes later.
No response.
A long time passed.

Liu Qiangxi: Huh? What group is this?
Yu Hong: ...
Zhao Zhouming: ...
Zheng Quan: ...
Zhang Huaimou: (¬_¬)