Chapter 34[]
(March 20th, 2023)
PS: I made revisions to two places in the scripts. When I wrote the last loop, I was thinking of a vague date, so I only wrote early April in general terms in those two places. Now that I have confirmed the specific date, I find March 29th aesthetically pleasing.
Anyway, due to the exact date being end of March, now there is a slight error with the previous “early April” phrases, so I added “late March” right before “early April” to make it “late March early April”.
Actually, if I really wanted to, I could find a reasonable explanation to justify the difference in dates, but it's not necessary.
Chapter 48[]
(March 27th, 2023)
PS: I am explaining the ritual/ceremonial magic in detail because it will be used extensively in LOTM 2: COI.
After all, some people will be praying to the gods for their blessings and obtain powers. This is the new system I mentioned before, and later on, there will be things related to spirit world creatures and contracts.
Chapter 56[]
Firstly, I want to mention that the book will not go VIP on Qidian on April 1st, but rather on April 10th, as I feel that the current free word count is too low and it would weigh on my conscience if I don't at least write more. No matter how one looks at it, a web novel should have at least 200,000 words or more of free content available for readers, right?
Monthly votes on Qidian are very important for new novels, so even though the novel has not yet gone VIP, I would like to ask everyone for their April minimum monthly votes. You can start voting for me after midnight, and I will continue to update the book according to the old schedule (2 chapters a day) until it goes VIP on the 10th. Starting from April 10th, I will start doing a period of bonus chapter updates along side the regular two per day.
This month is mainly a stage for expanding the world view, and it also happens to be a good time to explain the mystical knowledge that this novel, LOTM2: COI, will use extensively in the future. This will help new readers avoid becoming confused, and old readers can also take this chance to review the old materials.
Therefore, even though the pace slowed down because of this decision, I will still aim to finish explaining all the necessary old (and some new) knowledge during the free chapters before the novel goes VIP, so that everyone does not have to pay for repetitive old knowledge content. I want to make sure that every penny spent by readers is worth it (TL note: so once novel goes VIP, there will be little to no review lessons and it will probably go back to the natural way of acquiring in-novel knowledge for us - through the story).
Friends and readers who have read my novel up to the current chapters (Chapter 56) should know that this novel introduced a new system of praying for gifts from the gods.
This is similar to the system of "charm reception" that exists in the may-or-may-not-be-written-LOTM-Book-3 that I mentioned before, but not entirely the same.
Praying to an eastern style "Dao" and "Heavenly Court" (semi-active sefirot posing as "heavenly court" and "Dao") can be done in a special way to avoid some negative effects, forming a unique eastern style process. On the other hand, praying to living gods and outer deities there are no shortcuts or tricks that can be used to lessen the price, unless of course, if there are corresponding powers who are providing support to the person praying.
By the way, I want to clarify that the black, seal-like marks (TL note: the monster had 3, the Padre had way more) and the thorn-shaped symbol that chains around the body are not the same thing, and this will be explained later.
Umu, most of the groundwork has been laid and the build-ups have been completed now, and the plot will gradually intensify starting from here onward. Once again, I would like to ask for everyone's April minimum monthly votes, as they are very important for a new novel on the month that it is going VIP!
My sincere appreciation to all who are reading, thank you! Everyone~
Chapter 74 (Entering VIP section)[]
(April 9th, 2023)
It's time for another novel to be released. After midnight passes, in about five minutes, I will upload the first privileged chapter of <Lord of the Mysteries 2: Circle of Inevitability>.
To tell you the truth, this novel wasn't originally titled <Circle of Inevitability>, and no one decided Lumian was going to end up becoming a "Dancer", or walk on the COI Pathway.
Back then, the publishing platform Qidian asked me for a novel title. I came up with several conventional ones, but they were not satisfied and vetoed the titles back to me. Out of frustration, I decided to name it using the LOTM approach (drawing Tarot card to pick a name), so I picked some nice-sounding Sequence 0 and the Great Old One sequence names from the Outer Deity Pathways that I had designed, and threw the name list at Qidian, letting them choose.
(TL Note: Wow, that's a big casual drop of crucial info there Cuttlefish. We are eager to see how Outer Deity Pathways can have Sequence 0 and Above-the-Sequence tier in the story in a reasonable way. Because many of us readers cannot think of how that fits into the current system on Earth. Wouldn't that mean these Outer Deities have to give up a lot of their powers just to create a Sequence 0 pawn? There's definitely some context we are missing! Exciting~)
What I didn't tell them was that the Sequence name they chose will determine which Outer Deity's blessing Lumian would obtain, and will also affect certain plot arrangements and entry points in the novel.
Then they picked "Circle of Inevitability". When I saw it, I thought, "Hey, this goes well with the Hunter Pathway," and it seems like it might help resolve a key plot point in the later stages of the novel that I was having trouble with.
In that moment, the whole storyline became clear, and this CoI Pathway seemed to align better with the story than another OD Pathway that I was personally favoring for Lumian at the time.
Perhaps, this is the arrangement of fate.
So, <LOTM 2: Circle of Inevitability> was born under the arrangement of fate.
As the second installment of the Mysteries Series, writing LOTM 2: COI has its unique challenges.
First, the general worldview has been deciphered already, so I can no longer adopt the slow exploration and gradual unfolding type of pacing from LOTM 1. It must have it's own new elements, new attractions points.
Second, under the backdrop of the many popular characters from LOTM 1, both the protagonist Lumian and other characters in LOTM 2: COI will inevitably face a lot of pressure. With the previous work being so well-received, they will always be compared. And from the very beginning, I don't want Lumian to have the same personality as lil' Klein, nor to be equally gentle as Klein. He should have his own experiences, both good and bad sides to his character. So, I chose the Hunter Pathway and the starting point of "being contaminated by an Outer Deity" for him.
Until now, the first step of Book 2 Volume 1 - Nightmare, which is expanding the worldview, can be considered as generally done, revealing some things related to the Outer Deities. As I mentioned before, writing the second installment of the Mystery Series is not just rehashing old stories. There are, in fact, many Sequences and Pathways that I have never written in detail, many countries that haven't been specifically described, and many new things that haven't been revealed yet. When I was enriching the settings for the Outer Deity Pathways, many aspects have made me excited and intrigued, especially considering how to present these OD Pathways in the context of the Western Continent and its Oriental (cultivator-ish) background (Potential Book 3).
Alright, let's get back on track. Regarding LOTM 2: COI, you can all see that it has its own unique elements and rhythm after inheriting the framework of LOTM 1 and using it as the foundation.
There will be many new characters who will interact with a large number of old characters from LOTM 1, and together they will complete one new story after another.
I cannot pound my chest and guarantee that I will write this novel exceptionally well, but I can assure you that I will invest all my efforts and passion into my work, because for me, this is also a brand new challenge.
Writing the same thing all the time would make me bored and aesthetically fatigued. I remember saying before that I hope my writing career will always remember a sentence: "Never satisfied, always challenging."
Now, I am ready to embrace this challenge.
In the early hours of today, LOTM 2: COI will officially go on shelf in Qidian (premium chapter in Webnovel), and I sincerely ask for your support and subscriptions.
Of course, there will definitely be extra updates. At 00:05 A.M. on Monday April 10th, I will update the first bonus chapter (Ch. 75), and at 00:10 A.M. on Monday April 10th, I will update the second chapter (Ch.76). Another extra update will be added at 12:35 P.M. noon tomorrow (alongside the regular 2 chapters update).
On Tuesday and Wednesday, there will be extra updates as well!
The End of Volume[]
The following summary contains spoilers. If you have not finished LOTM 2: COI Volume 1, it is not recommended to read this, as it will significantly affect your reading experience:
Different books have different structures and meanings for every volume, and when I first thought about the plot of LOTM 2: COI, I already had the idea that volume 1 should be an introduction and a prologue. It needs to take the first step in showing what the world is like now after several years have passed since LOTM 1, what major changes have occurred compared to "LOTM 1", and roughly establish the image of the protagonist, Lumian. What volume 1 needs to accomplish is to lay down some key clues of sufficient importance. the rest of the things can be slowly refined in future volumes.
After having a general idea, the question is how to implement it. At the beginning, I had no preconceived position and looked for inspiration through a lot of reading, thinking, and playing games. At this stage, a reader recommended the game "What Remains of Edith Finch" in the comments of my public WeChat account.
I played for less than half an hour, and I couldn't bear the severe symptom of vertigo caused by the 3D effects, so I had to give up. But afterwards, I still went to Bilibili and Zhihu to watch related videos and read articles on the game, and completed the game in this way (not really).
Then, I thought, this way of telling a story through symbols and metaphors is very interesting, and it has a particularly psychedelic and detached feeling and atmosphere that matches what I want to capture and show.
With this idea in mind, I decided to YOLO and do something different for Volume 1 of LOTM 2: COI.
Humans, humans, tsk, tsk. They always have the impulse to take risks even if it's life threatening, and always want to challenge themselves while not acknowledging their own limitations. But life is short, and repeating oneself is boring.
And, I have played with symbols and metaphors before in some capacity, like in "Throne of the Magical Arcana", the dream sequence of Xiao Lu and its interpretation is used to symbolize the character's personality, tendencies, and thoughts.
So I think this time, I can still use dreams as a device, but it cannot be limited to just a few dozen chapters, it cannot be shallow, and it cannot be limited to just be Lumian's psychological reflection of himself. We need to deconstruct the story that has already happened [Reality], abstract it into elements with various symbols and different metaphors, and reassemble and stitch it together with Aurore's novel scenes that Lumian has read and daydreams that he had, and present it as a complete and visible story [Dream] in front of every reader.
Well well, guys, this is so very interesting. Though I am telling one such a story [Dream], but it is in reality another story [Reality]. From the perspective of the creator, it is truely entertaining.
However, as an online web novel, I must still ensure readability and worthwhileness.
The former [readability] means that the author cannot get so high on crack and play around so much that the readers become confused and unable to understand. This requires that the reorganized story [Dream] is told in a simple, easy-to-understand, and interesting way. Moreover, some clues and abnormalities should be presented in a simpler and more straightforward manner, so that when the plot is reversed later, readers will have a feeling of "Oh, so that's how it is," rather than "WTF are you writing".
The latter [worthwhileness] means that I cannot write a hundred chapters and then tell everyone that it was just the protagonist's dream.
That will inevitably make readers think "What's the point of this then?" Therefore, this volume cannot simply just be a symbolic and metaphorical retelling of what has already happened. It must also have a more important role in the story structure of the whole book.
Therefore, after the chapter where the dream is shattered [CH.107], I immediately used reverse chronology to tell everyone, through a future investigation report [CH.108], that this volume not only deconstructed the protagonist's inner world and gave him the inner driving force for future actions, but also revealed that many of this volume's plot points has symbolic significance, and are metaphors for currently still unknown things, and buried within it are many clues that are crucial to the development of the story. This is not just a simple dream.
When looking at it from this perspective, This volume, called "Nightmare", is indeed an introduction, and the holes I dug and left behind will be slowly filled in later on. The most important hole/mystery may not be revealed until the third-to-last or even the second-to-last volume.
Now let me continue to discuss my ideas during creation and actions that I've executed:
After I figured out what I wanted in the first volume, I didn't start writing for a long time because of laziness, because I hadn't finished reading the materials, and because it was still a long while away from official release. It wasn't until the funny incident I mentioned in my book pre-release announcement that things started to move along. I mentioned that I gave some book title choices [all Outer Deity names] to Qidian, let them choose, and their choice would determine Lumian's second pathway and the direction of some of the stories in the novel.
They chose "Circle of Inevitability", and when I saw it, I thought, "COI, huh..?" I touched my chin:thinking~1: , and realized that I could add the element of Loop to the first volume.
The before-and-after comparison of certain events can also have symbolic significance, and more elements can effectively enhance the reading experience.
At this point, the idea was completely settled, but what I initially wrote was not what everyone sees now, but rather I wrote down the story that actually happened [Loop Zero, aka Reality], including every single important detail.
I named it "The Real Storyline" [Reality].
After "The Real Storyline" is finalized, the next step is to extract the key plot and details and combine them with Dreamscape and Loop elements to create the "The Visible Storyline"[Dream].
During this process, sometimes "The Real Storyline" is first symbolized or metaphorized before being placed in the "The Visible Storyline". Aurore's novel scenes and Lumian's own daydreams and fantasies are then used to eliminate any inconsistencies. Other times, "The Visible Storyline" is created first, followed by the consideration of which section of "The Real Storyline" will be placed into it, and how to metaphorize it. Ultimately, this is a process of eating a spaghetti from both sides.
Once these steps are completed, the next step is to write down key writing reminders.
This refers to the specific writing methods for certain characters and stories. For example, my notation for the three investigators are "they have to be described in my normal writing style". While my notation for Aurore is "has to write her as if I am writing Lumian's embellished fantasies and idealized impressions of her; as if I am writing Lumian's idea of Aurore, created from looped manifestations of his deepest memories of her". [So, no Alabama]
For stories, I note down the need to use novel elements to reconcile and repair some details, and the appropriate amount of display of abnormal behaviors.
For example, I note down that for each subsequent loops I must write the villagers and Aurore to make them "becoming increasingly human and capable of rational thinking/actions" [to reflect Aurore and the villagers' soul pieces in Lumian becoming increasingly active]. And so on.
Later on, I submitted the outline to Qidian for review, and I removed all explanations and notations of the symbolic and metaphorical meanings that spoils the "The Real Storyline". Leaving only "The Visible Storyline" for the qidian editors. I did not want anyone to know the answers and the true story before it was finished, not even the editors.
Once all these aspects are clear, formal writing can begin.
However, many readers often ask if following such a detailed outline means that the subsequent writing process is purely a matter of following the plan. The answer is no - inspiration can strike at any time, and sometimes the discovery of a better treatment for a certain plot point down the line won't reveal itself until you write the novel up to a certain point.
For example, when writing about Naroka going to Paramita on a carriage [CH.40], when Aurore and Lumian faced many undead [CH.41], I used a relatively simple metaphor [using warlock ability to push Lumian away] to represent a key scene from "The Real Storyline" - Aurore pushing away Lumian during the original ritual that caused everything [CH.107]. At the same time, i also considered how to fill in the remaining content and details.
If you read Chapter 109, it is apparent that, in "The Real Storyline", Aurore only said the words "My..notebook" to Lumian when she pushed him out of the ritual.
So in Lumian's dream, he needs to use his own imagination for any additional dialogue details and story developments. So he drew inspiration from Aurore's romance novel.
After much deliberation, I ultimately decided to use a more cliché and "anime" way to improve this particular scene [in CH.41], which would better reflect and hint at that this was all a dream and that some elements were clearly drawn from cringy romance novels.
[This is how Aurore's touching [cringy/anime-like] line of "My stupid brother, live on.." was created in CH.41].
But I also know that this kind of cliché will definitely make many readers uncomfortable. After all, it is really different from the overall style presented up to that point, and too sentimental in an old-fashioned way.
I revised it again and again, constrained by time, I really couldn't think of a better way to handle it, so I left it that way [in CH.41]. However, during the thinking process, I felt that this could be used as a way to end the volume, a double down, an echo!
[This is where the last line of Chapter 109 came from: "live and and well, you silly" - A line from Aurore's novel, used by Lumian to fill his dream in Chapter 41.]
By doing so, for one, it can further demonstrate the essence of the dream - heavily influenced by all the novels that he read.
Secondly, when it echoes for the second time [in CH.109], along with the groundwork laid out earlier and the uncomfortable memories, along with the reader's acute analysis skills and noticing how the dialogue in Chapter 41 was too overly sentimental,
I can turn this old-fashioned romantic dialogue or anime dialogue into a sharp knife [at the end of CH.109], precise and emotionally moving [EMOTIONAL DAMGE].
There's no such thing as a bad or outdated dialogue, only in how it is used.
All this is to demonstrate that, I was only able to obtain the ending to the first volume - Nightmare, when my writing reached the Paramita [CH.40] part. Simply creating an outline did not give me an idea for the ending.
There were two originally envisioned but eventually abandoned endings to volume 1:
The first one is: After Lumian escaped, he slept in the grazing area of another mountain and dreamed of Cordu village, of Aurore, and of his friends. In the dream, Cordu village was so peaceful and harmonious. This idea came from the title "Nightmare."
The second one is: The scene cuts directly to a bar in Trier. Lumian once again started telling that story, "I'm a nobody, with no time to notice the brightness of the sun." This shows a structured beauty of loop and inevitability.
Yes, the first sentence of Lumian's story, which is also the first sentence of the beginning of the first volume, is a highly refined and condensed expression of the entire story of the first volume. This sentence served both as the introduction, and the summary.
Since the whole first volume is playing with symbolism and metaphor, how could the story Lumian made up, which is the beginning of the whole book, not have any significance?
Based on Lumian's personality, this story must be mostly false, with the true parts being symbolically presented, concealing key clues to the storyline.
Everyone, I used the story Lumian made up at the beginning to tell you what the first volume would be like, this is its role, its symbolic significance.
The above are all about the creative ideas, writing notes, and my own satisfactory parts of the first volume, but there are certainly some flaws:
1st, the exposition of the ritual magic knowledge in the first volume was placed in the plot acceleration stage, which caused some damage to the overall rhythm. In fact, I should have adjusted the order and introduced this knowledge before the looping story gets intense, or dispersed it across chapters using writing techniques such as flashbacks and interjections.
2nd, between exploring the church underground and before Lumian hunts the flame monster, there was a period of vaccum where the plot was presented with relatively low energy since the early clues were used up, and the abnormal events for later has not yet occured. When I initially outlined the story, I did not foresee this situation. When I got there, I needed to slow down the pace a bit, but I couldn't slow down for too long. Not to mention, the entire dream ruin is mainly about solo hunting and exploring areas, which is not attractive enough to carry the story alone.
Regardless, at the time, several story line were still in the process of being laid down, some small stories has to be told, to make the overall structure more complete. So I controlled my impatience and gradually finished telling them.
Of course, I trimmed the stories down and obviously accelerated the pace. I already felt the result of this dicision before receiving feedback from readers because I had chapters saved up for release. Therefore, when I saw reader's comments pointing out the exact thing I was worrying about, on the one hand, I chuckled at the fact that I had already made adjustments and was ready to face the storm, and on the other hand, I was pleased that as a creator, my writing still in tune with the readers.
3rd, there is a discrepancy in expectations. I expected the first volume of LOTM 2: COI to be an introduction and a key to opening up the story that follows.
It has its own structure, but all the clues and questions left by volume 1 has to wait until subsequent volumes to be solved.
However, many readers expected a complete resolution, expected it to be like the volume 1 of LOTM 1, expected it to have a strong enough climax. There is absolutely no problem with these expectations. The problem lies in me - I don't know how to tell people "This dream metaphor is a foreshadowing meant for later volumes" without giving away to people that this IS a dream.
4th, character portrayal is sacrificed for the overall conceptualization of volume 1. It can only be gradually outlined and fleshed out later. However, the parts that I anticipate that will "flesh out" the characters, may not be the same as what readers expect, and might be crazier than what you are expecting, probably, haha.
5th, there is a problem with the early sequence advancement. I should have talked earlier about how low tier potions and BCs now have significantly less negative effects when one drink them, due to the end of the world approaching.
In this way, Lumian's quick advancement at the low-level sequences would not feel too abnormal and unrealistic. After all, LOTM 1 has been completed for a few years now, not every readers will remember all details from LOTM 1 [like the fact that the will of TOC is weakening]. When I realized this, Lumian was already on his way to becoming a "Provoker" so I had to quickly use Aurore to explain [CH.97] and make up for it.
Tomorrow, I will post the character cards for Aurore, Lady Pualis, the padre, and the official investigator trio. After that, as usual, I will take a three-and-a-half-day break to finalize the outline for the second volume and rest. On the 28th, which is Friday at 12:30 noon, I will update the first chapter of the second volume.
After much consideration, I have chosen a title for the second volume that has been used before, as it is the most fitting and there is no alternative. The title is "Lightseeker" - Remember, you are but dust, and to dust you shall return.
This volume 2 will be relatively shorter compared to the "Faceless" volume in LOTM 1, consisting of around a hundred chapters or so, and won't be much longer than volume 1 - "Nightmare."
Of course, there will be larger volumes in the future, depending on the theme, structure, and purpose of each volume.
Finally, I would like to thank reader Livy37 for their generous support [another platnium donation].
Lastly, please remember to vote for my story with your monthly ticket!
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