Lin Wei spent the next six hours obsessively checking his jade slip.
Views: 0
Engagement: 0
Subscribers: 0
[Stop refreshing, you're going to drain the spirit stone.]
"Someone should have seen it by now," Lin Wei muttered. He was sitting in his shack, freshly washed and wearing clean robes. His Attraction Rating had indeed jumped to 4.5, according to the system, though he wasn't sure how that helped if no one was watching his content.
[The sect network has thousands of posts per day. Your video is buried in the feed. Patience, Host!]
"I have sixteen hours left!"
[Then we should make MORE content! Volume increases visibility. Plus, you need practice. That first video was... adequate. Let's aim for 'good.']
Lin Wei rubbed his face. "What kind of content?"
[Great question! Let me show you some EXAMPLES.]
A screen materialized showing what looked like sample videos, Lin Wei leaned forward to look.
The first video showed a cultivator in a meditation pose—basic lotus position, hands in a standard formation. Simple but professional.
"See? Like that. I can do—"
The image flickered.
Suddenly the cultivator's pose looked... different. The camera angle was lower, emphasizing the curve of their back, their robes had somehow become form fitting, there was dramatic lighting from an unknown source.
"What just happened?"
[Oh! Sorry, the example library is glitching, old files from previous hosts. Let me find something more appropriate—]
The screen flickered again.
Now it showed someone doing stretches, But the stretches were... extremely suggestive. Legs spread wide, back arched, face turned toward the camera with half-lidded eyes.
Lin Wei's face went hot. "That's not cultivation! That's..."
[Technically it IS cultivation! Enhanced flexibility training, very important for Qi circulation. Also very popular with audiences, 47,000 views on this one!]
"I'm not doing THAT."
[Of course not! Your Shamelessness stat is way too low, I'm just showing you the full spectrum. Let me find something more your speed—]
The screen cycled through several more examples, each one seemed more provocative than the last. A "sword form demonstration" that looked more like an exotic dance. A "breathing exercise" that involved a lot of slow hip movements. A "Qi circulation guide" where the cultivator was in a bathtub.
"These are all insane!"
[They're EFFECTIVE! But fine, fine. Let's start simpler. How about this: Do a basic cultivation demonstration but make it ENGAGING, show your face, explain what you're doing, be natural. Think of it as teaching someone, not performing.]
Lin Wei took a breath, that sounded reasonable.
"Okay.... Teaching, I can do that."
[Excellent! Set up your recording array. Let's try take two!]
Twenty minutes later, Lin Wei was positioned in front of his recording array again, he'd cleaned up the space as best he could, moved some clutter out of frame and mentally prepared what he wanted to say.
"Ready?" he asked.
[Ready! Remember: Be natural, be engaging, and for the love of the Dao, SMILE. You look like you're attending a funeral.]
Lin Wei forced his face into something resembling a smile.
[...That's terrifying. Never mind, just be yourself.]
He activated the recording array and sat down cross legged.
"Hello again. Lin Wei here, also known as TrashPhoenix. Today I'm going to demonstrate basic Qi circulation—the foundational technique for all cultivation."
He closed his eyes and began guiding his Qi. With the Lust Core installed, even in its dormant state, the energy moved more smoothly than it had in years.
"The key is to breathe in rhythm with your Qi flow, inhale as you draw energy from your core, exhale as you guide it through your meridians..."
He fell into the familiar pattern, explaining each step as he went. It felt good, actually. Like he was finally doing something he understood.
Behind his closed eyes, he didn't notice the recording array beginning to glow brighter.
[Oh! Oh no. Uh, Host? We have a situation—]
"Don't interrupt, I'm concentrating—"
[The array is glitching! It's activating an auto-enhancement filter—]
"What?"
Lin Wei's eyes snapped open.
The recording array was now glowing with soft pink light, the air around him had started to lit up, and was that... wind? Inside his closed shack?
A gentle breeze picked up from nowhere, lifting his hair dramatically.
"What's happening?!"
[The Thirst Enhancement Filter! It's a premium feature I haven't unlocked yet, but apparently the array detected your Lust Qi signature and auto-activated it! I CAN'T TURN IT OFF!]
The lighting in the shack shifted. Suddenly everything looked softer, warmer—The harsh morning light became golden and flattering.
Lin Wei tried to stand up, but his body moved in slow motion.
"Why am I moving so slow?!"
[SLOW-MOTION EFFECT! It makes everything look more dramatic! Just—just keep going! The array will run out of power eventually!]
Lin Wei had no choice, he continued his Qi circulation but now everything felt absurd. The phantom wind kept blowing his hair at perfectly timed intervals. When he shifted his position, the slow motion effect made it look like some kind of sensual dance.
He tried to maintain his explanation, but his voice came out lower, slightly breathy from the effort of fighting the slow motion effect.
"As you... guide the Qi through your meridians... maintain... steady breathing..."
He moved his hands in a standard formation gesture. In normal speed, it would have looked clinical but In slow motion with dramatic lighting, it looked like he was caressing the air.
"For the love of—"
The wind picked up again, blowing his robes open slightly at the chest.
Lin Wei gave up trying to maintain dignity and just pushed through to the end of the circulation cycle. The moment he finished, the array's glow faded. The wind stopped and the slow motion effect ended.
He sat there breathing hard, staring at the now normal recording array.
"Please tell me that didn't save."
[Oh, it saved! And it looks AMAZING. Well, 'amazing' in a 'absolutely ridiculous but somehow compelling' way. Want to see?]
"No."
[Too bad!]
The system projected the recording for him.
Lin Wei watched in horror as his "serious cultivation demonstration" played back. With the enhancement filter, he looked like... like he was performing for an audience at a brothel. Everything about it screamed "thirst trap" despite his completely innocent intentions.
The worst part? It actually looked good. The lighting was flattering, the slow motion made his movements look graceful instead of awkward. Even his voice sounded better—less nervous, more confident.
"I can't post this," Lin Wei said. "Everyone will think I'm... that I'm trying to—"
[Seduce them? Yes! That's the POINT! This is Lust Qi cultivation, Host. This video is PERFECT for the path.]
"It makes me look like an idiot!"
[It makes you look INTERESTING. Trust me. Post it.]
"No."
[HOST. You have fifteen hours until mission failure. Your first video has THREE VIEWS and ZERO ENGAGEMENT, You need something that will actually get ATTENTION. This will get attention.]
Lin Wei stared at the video still paused on his screen.
The system was right. His first video was honest and heartfelt but it was also... boring, Just another sob story in a sect full of struggling disciples.
This video was ridiculous. Absurd. Completely unintentional.
But it was definitely not boring.
"If I post this and it doesn't work, I'm blaming you."
[Noted! Now POST IT before you chicken out!]
Lin Wei pulled out his communication jade with shaking hands, he uploaded the video to the sect network, tagged it with #CultivationTutorial and #AlternativeMethods, and after a moment's hesitation, posted it.
[UPLOADING...]