[

"These two know each other too? Blue Planet novelists really are one big circle."

—

"Strange. According to my research on Blue Planet, Canghai is supposed to have a pretty good temper. Back when Xunming was going around picking fights with everyone, Canghai even took the initiative to praise people because of his good nature."

—

"But 'like mushrooms' doesn't sound like a compliment. The dictionary says mushrooms are a very common type of fungus on Blue Planet."

]

Xi Yujin urgently mobilized every brain cell in front of his optical computer, trying to find a way to patch up this slip. In his view, Canghai's behavior was completely OOC (out of character). Doing something so out of character could very easily allow other species to see through the truth about Blue Planet.

"I originally set them up as not getting along just so I wouldn't have to write more dialogue. So many alternate identities would be confusing," he sorted out his thoughts. "Now that Canghai suddenly brought this 'conflict' out into the open, it's actually still within my plan. No need to panic. I just need to reinforce Qiongtian's persona."

Qiongtian replied beneath Canghai's post:

 [

"Some people's writing isn't even up to the standard of field mushrooms."¹

—

"Novelists always look down on each other, because it's hard to rank stories objectively. Honestly, this is always my favorite part to watch."

—

"Hahaha, these two really do hate each other."

—

"What happened between them?"

]

As expected, gossip was the primary motivation for onlookers. Alien readers flooded in from all directions, eagerly asking each other if there was more drama.

At that moment, the longevity literature faction made its move.

A long-lived species author solemnly posted a memorial-style preface, followed by the main text: Years Flow Like Water.

They were liquid beings living in vacuum containers, produced in a laboratory from some unknown era. Unable to come into direct contact with air, they communicated with the outside world through various sensors.

Reproduction involved first constructing a sealed container, then separating a portion of liquid tissue and merging it with another, forming a new life. When a container lost all its liquid, that individual died. Because of this, the phrase "years flow like water" carried profound sorrow for them. Many readers familiar with their kind shed tears upon seeing the title alone.

On Xi Yujin's end, he had Qiongtian release Volume One of Born Again with the Spring Wind: "The Wilds of Tianmu," drawn from the Classic of Mountains and Seas, Great Wilderness West Classic, the place where Xia Qi once performed music and dance.² From there, the full sweep of the Xia dynasty's evolution began to unfold.

But there was too much background to explain, and this wasn't an era where readers could sit quietly and absorb dense material. As a result, Xi Yujin sent his pen names one after another.

[

Xunming: "You two, stop arguing and read the story. Starting from the Xia dynasty? Back then, the tribes that favored the abdication system launched several campaigns, but Xia Qi won every time, and 'the world for all' became 'the world of one family'..."

—

Canghai: "I'm not arguing with him. I've never been able to win an argument with him anyway."

—

Qiongtian: "Such a close relationship."

—

Jung: "Some historical records describe Xia Jie as a cruel ruler. One example is that he 'spread his nets on all four sides' to capture every bird in existence. By contrast, Shang Tang's 'opening three sides of the net' was seen as an act of benevolence. This story, however, uses Xia Jie's martial prowess as its entry point, using it to reveal the decay of that declining dynasty. The protagonist witnessing the transition from Xia Qi to Xia Jie must feel quite emotional."

—

Fuling: "Yes."

—

Feiniao: "I never want to memorize history again... The moment I see 'Xia, Shang, Zhou,' a flood of facts comes rushing back! Blue Planet history is way too hard to memorize! Tang of Shang overthrowing Xia, Yi Yin exiling Tai Jia, the Nine Generations of Chaos [image attached]."

—

Jung: "If you want to pass the Blue Planet Novelists' Official exam, you do need to memorize all of this."

—

Feiniao: "Waaah, I'll study hard for the exam!"

—

Qiongtian: "If you make a promise, you should keep it. Don't grow up to be the kind of person who breaks their word."

—

Mingxing: "Ah, here to support a colleague. Keep it up!"

—

Canghai: "I don't understand it either. Maybe to some people, promises are as cheap as mushrooms."

—

Mingxing: "I shouldn't even be here. I should just be a mushroom..."

—

Qiongtian: "Who was the one who first started treating promises like mushrooms?"

—

Mingxing: "You're both right, but mushrooms belong to the Agaricaceae family and the genus Agaricus. As for Pan Geng's capital before the move to Yin, its location is still disputed. Di Xin promoted development in the Huai River and Yangtze River basins. When evaluating rulers, remember to consider their historical context. And when answering humanities exam questions, always remember to write 'view historical issues dialectically.'"

—

Yongye: "..."

—

Canghai: "We're not students anymore. Let's settle things through literature instead."

—

Yongye: "...?"

]

In front of his optical computer, Xi Yujin's hands flew at lightning speed. Not only did he push Born Again with the Spring Wind to its second volume, but he also opened a separate new thread for Canghai.

[

Novel Serialization:

A Hundred Years Together

Author:

Canghai [Blue Planet Civilization]

—

"The year begins today; what was a year ago is already gone. A hundred years of sorrow, no different from a single year."

]

This poem was by Yuan Zhen, expressing that a hundred years can feel no different from one. Canghai wrote a tomb-raiding novel, and to a grave robber, the poem was a fitting reference as they consider history to be little more than piles of valuable rubble. As a happy coincidence, Yuan Zhen was a close friend of Bai Juyi, and it was Yuan Zhen who wrote the famous line, "Having once seen the vast ocean, no other water can compare" — the very line from which Canghai's pen name was drawn.³

Everything lined up almost too perfectly.

A Hundred Years Together follows a protagonist who joins various factions for a mysterious purpose. Some groups are less than honorable, raiding tombs purely for profit. Others are official organizations, entering tombs for archaeological purposes. The protagonist doesn't care about any of them. He only wants to go from tomb to tomb in search of a certain answer. Along the way, he displays exceptional skill, turning the tide time and time again, and becomes a legend in the field.

As a further coincidence, the first tomb the protagonist of A Hundred Years Together raids dates back to the Xia dynasty. All the historical background that Xi Yujin couldn't conveniently explain through his other pen names, he packed into this story. He applied more web novel techniques throughout, working to keep Canghai and Qiongtian clearly distinct.

Getting readers to finish a book with a high barrier to entry is difficult. But getting readers to finish a book while they're in the middle of enjoying some drama is like adding a powerful buff.

After updating both novels, Xi Yujin finally let out a long sigh of relief. "At least my... personas aren't quite so chaotic anymore."

Across from him, Gano continued translating with practiced ease. "As long as Yujinno is alright," he said calmly.

"It really wasn't that big a deal," Xi Yujin replied, a little guiltily.

Gano's tone shifted to concern. "I never realized the relationships between Yujinno's personas were so complex. If there's anything I can help with—"

"Hmm... hmm? Complex? Isn't it just Canghai and Qiongtian?"

"I'm sorry, I'm not very good at this sort of thing," Gano answered honestly. "I only understood a little after reading the readers' analyses."

A bad feeling crept over Xi Yujin.

He went back and carefully read through the reader comments from the beginning.

[

"Xunming's here too; he and Canghai have always been close."

—

"Wasn't Xunming friends with Yongye? Is the Blue Planet information I read wrong?"

—

"You're behind. Xunming and Yongye used to be close, but they fell out for some reason. He's clearly closer to Canghai now; you've seen them appear together several times."

—

"Canghai's reply feels like it hides a whole story."

—

"Qiongtian's response has layers too."

—

"Could it be that their falling out has something to do with Xunming? That sinful novelist..."

]

Seeing this, Xi Yujin comforted himself: Xunming had already accumulated more than a few black marks against him. One more wouldn't hurt.

The readers' theories below, however, became increasingly outrageous.

[

"Feiniao is so pitiful. They clearly admire Ms. Jung; they mention her in so many replies. But Ms. Jung only sees them as a student."

—

"That's because Ms. Jung is obviously closer to Fuling. And Fuling only ever replies to Jung."

—

"Wait, Feiniao is female? I couldn't find any information about their gender."

—

"Maybe a third gender. As we all know, species with a binary gender system are prone to extinction, but Blue Planet has only ever had two genders, which doesn't conform to scientific law."

]

Xi Yujin rubbed his forehead as he sat before his optical computer. You aliens really are ahead of your time...

[

"I never noticed before... but mapping it all out... Blue Planet novelists... their relationships are so messy..."

—

"That's how writers' circles are. Because novelists have more delicate emotions, they're better at expressing themselves, whether it's cursing someone out or caring for them. This makes the drama especially entertaining."

—

"Mingxing and Yongye stuck between Canghai and Qiongtian is hilarious. What on earth happened between those two?"

—

"I can actually sense genuine confusion just from Yongye's question mark. Great detective, please solve their mystery for us!"

—

"By Blue Planet's close friend standards... does Mingxing not have a single close friend? Past, present, or future?"

—

"Is Mingxing really the only one in the Novelists' Office without a close friend?"

—

"No wonder Mingxing doesn't want to go to work. I'd be unhappy too."

]

The alien readers swiftly reached a unified consensus.

Xi Yujin attempted to post a clarification using his "Yujin" persona, which hadn't yet appeared in the thread, stating that Blue Planet novelists were all one friendly family. That there had only been a few minor misunderstandings and small frictions, and that their real relationships were very good.

But the very next moment, the alien readers brought up Yujin.

[

"Looks like all the Blue Planet novelists have come to this thread, except for that one."

—

"You know the one."

—

"What is Yujin doing? Working? He's always so busy."

—

"I've already come up with a name for this Blue Planet novelists' group photo thread."

—

"The Secret History of Blue Planet Novelists?"

—

"No: Yujin Is Dating."

]

Xi Yujin immediately gave up on posting any clarification. Rather than having Yujin wade into the Blue Planet literary drama, it was better to simply let the rumors place him in a relationship with Gano.

Although... Gano might also see that reply.

Xi Yujin stole a glance at Gano across from him. His expression was perfectly normal, so he probably hadn't seen it. Or perhaps in Zerg customs, "dating" carried a different meaning, and so Gano didn't misunderstand.

He took the initiative to say, "My personas are completely innocent! Ahem, well, maybe a few of them are a little unusual, but I... I am a normal person."

He nodded firmly to emphasize his point, though for a second or two, he didn't quite believe his own words.

But Gano would always believe him. Gano rarely doubted Xi Yujin.

Sure enough, Gano said, "You are normal," looking at Xi Yujin with clear, unwavering eyes.

In his heart, Gano thought to himself: since a close friend on Blue Planet can be equated with a partner, then dating on Blue Planet was probably just a common, everyday term. Blue Planet civilization was vast and complex. It was only natural for him to have some misunderstandings.

Xi Yujin looked at the rumors spreading across the forum, which sounded so convincing and real. A complex feeling welled up inside him. He let out a breath, relieved, and prepared to make the most of his time writing Qiongtian and Canghai's novels. He had completely forgotten all those pen-name marketing strategies since he really wasn't cut out for that sort of thing.

As long as he focused on writing, readers probably wouldn't come up with even more outrageous theories about the relationships in Blue Planet's literary world...

The AI Forum had grown unusually lively. Hot threads appeared every day, but today there were especially many. Years Flow Like Water from the longevity literature faction, and Born Again with the Spring Wind and A Hundred Years Together from Blue Planet civilization, all attracted enormous attention.

One alien reader, who had arrived purely for the gossip, found themselves drawn deeper and deeper into Blue Planet's novels. They found Born Again with the Spring Wind the most immersive of all. The protagonist was an alien unfamiliar with a primitive, barren planet, and the many questions that the alien protagonist posed about various phenomena were questions the reader themselves had. It felt as though they were the alien protagonist, personally witnessing the rise of a dynasty on this desolate world.

"This barren planet may be technologically backward, but its culture and customs are truly fascinating..."

Suddenly, the reader snapped out of their immersion. Frowning, they cross-referenced Born Again with the Spring Wind and A Hundred Years Together against each other, then looked back through the other comments left by Blue Planet novelists, and broke out in a cold sweat.

"The history written by Blue Planet novelists... isn't it a little too rigorous?"