Generation Z Artists

Chapter 360 Mysterious Origin
"The Primordial Era" is a novel that offers a sense of exhilaration, but its core emotional experience is not about enjoyment, but rather about shock, impact, and mystery.

Selling books is secondary; derivative products are the main goal.

Selling books is fundamental; only a sufficient number of readers can support the formation of an IP.

Therefore, the story needs to be exciting to build long-term appeal.

The characters need to be well-developed, and multiple adaptations need to be established.

The structure must be grand enough to accommodate complex lifelines.

The point of entry must be mysterious; mystery is the foundation for external communication.

Furthermore, only by being sufficiently mysterious and sufficiently Sinicized can the overseas market only exclaim "Wow, that's awesome!" without being able to learn from, copy, or replicate it.

Therefore, this book is really difficult to write.

The literary and critical circles were full of complaints, deeming this fantasy work utter nonsense and damaging to Fang Xinghe's reputation as a genius writer.

In fact, this is the most difficult work Fang Xinghe has ever written, and the preliminary preparation alone took two and a half years.

As a cultural export product, "The Chronicles of the Primordial Era" needs to establish a large framework that can integrate most of the known Xianxia myths.

To achieve this, Fang Xinghe took the concept to a whole new level.

In the macroscopic cosmological model, the Buddhist concept of "formation, existence, decay, and emptiness" is introduced.

Whether it's the macrocosm or the microcosm, whether it's a bubble structure or a crystal wall structure, the world is always in an eternal cycle of birth, destruction, and rebirth.

This is the fundamental calamity of the universe.

Is there anything that can transcend the limitations of this universe's cycle of reincarnation? I don't know; let the readers discuss it at their leisure.

Then there's the internal structure of the universe.

From lowest to highest, they are: Ruins, Fantasy Layer, Material Layer, Reality Layer, Sublimation Layer, and Transcendence Layer.

This is not a one-dimensional, two-dimensional, or three-dimensional physical structure, but a mysterious structure that encompasses everything.

The material layer is the actual universe.

Below that, the fantasy layer is an endless fantasy world born from the conscious activities of all intelligent life in the real universe.

This layer is much larger than the real universe.

Whether it's Marvel or DC, all the derivative worlds created by comics in the United States and Japan are at the level of fantasy, products of human consciousness on Earth.

Fang Xinghe didn't directly mention this concept; he just created a structure, a model, and wanted to create a debate, letting the fans argue.

He coldly writes about the loneliness of humankind.

"We are well protected, but this protection is also a kind of imprisonment—Earth is wandering alone in a safe zone billions of light-years away, carrying all the data that the gods designed for it."

Generation Z should all know that the solar system is located in a cosmic crater called the KBC Void.

This low-density space has a radius of 10 billion light-years, and the number of galaxies and the mass of matter are much less than in the normal universe outside.

The advantage is that this has allowed Earth to avoid many cosmic catastrophes, such as galaxy collisions, black hole mergers, gamma-ray bursts, and dense meteorite fragments.

The downside is that, given human technology, we may never be able to escape this cage.

Currently, the KBC void has not been discovered, so Fang Xinghe has not elaborated on it, but has left enough hints in the relevant plot.

When KBC's void theory is published in a few years, I don't know if the scientific community will be shocked, but the illiterate community will definitely be in an uproar.

Those spoiled brats raised by the "happy education" system abroad would surely declare with absolute certainty: "The Chronicles of the Primordial Era" is not a novel at all; it is an apocalypse!

This will be fun, haha!

Fang Xinghe didn't write much about the real universe, but his main point was to repeatedly hint at a scientific hypothesis—that our universe was designed and that all the data was too precise.

Therefore, the real universe is called the material layer, and the next level up is the "real layer".

The Real Layer is the original body of the Primordial Continent.

The sublimation layer is the thirty-six heavens mentioned in Taoism, the abode of immortals and gods.

The Transcendent Layer does not exist independently, but is the highest of the Thirty-Six Heavens—the Great Luo Heaven. It is the place where top-level powerful beings reside, and its "weight" is unimaginably large, so it is listed separately.

The universe structure of "The Primordial Era" is extremely complex because Fang Xinghe attempted to encompass all mystical fantasies through this system.

Guixu can be simply understood as the place where everything ends, encompassing the concept of the "abyss" in Western fantasy.

When the entire universe is in the "bad" phase, all structural layers fall towards the void. In the end, only the void and the Great Luo Heaven remain in the universe. After the two collide and are annihilated, the universe enters the "empty" phase.

【Emptiness】is the chaotic state in which the universe shrinks into something infinitely small, yet is essentially infinitely large.

When the void collapses into a singularity and is re-established, a new cycle of formation begins.

The starting point of this great calamity is Pangu creating the world.

The subsequent war between gods and demons, the struggle between dragons and phoenixes, and the separation of witches and demons were all part of the struggle for power during the tribulations.

Above the Ruins of Return lies the [Fantasy Layer], which is not only the fantasy universe of Earth's humans, but also includes the consciousness world of extraterrestrial life.

The protagonist, Chen Ye, exclaimed: "Starting from the material universe, we can never leave the solar system, but in the fantasy layer, we have the opportunity to communicate, learn, and fight with any kind of extraterrestrial life. It's amazing."

By comparing reality with the novel's content, and combining immersion with aspirational imagination, this method is perfect for exploiting immature teenagers, and it works every time.

However, the main story of "The Chronicles of the Primordial Era" hardly touches on the fantasy layer. It is only in future spin-offs, chronicles, and setting books that the fantasy layer will be further unified.

This raises a very important question—how do we distinguish between the "fantasy layer" and the "real layer"?
Why is your fantasy considered reality, while our work is just fantasy?
The core premise of "The Primordial Era" is that there are often special people on Earth who can receive high-dimensional information.

So-called déjà vu, lucid dreams, prophecies, and special abilities are all products of information upgrading or downgrading.

In order to resolve the issue of ultimate definition, Fang Xinghe added a fundamental rule to the core setting: when information is transmitted from a higher dimension to a lower dimension, it will be accompanied by mystery; while when information is transmitted from a lower dimension to a higher dimension, it is just information.

In other words, higher-dimensional information possesses power.

This setting not only revitalized the entire story but also granted Fang Xinghe supreme power.

You dreamt of a story, wrote it down, published it, and it became the Cthulhu Mythos. Sorry, that's too new; it's something from the fantasy realm.

Our "Classic of Mountains and Seas" was written thousands of years ago, in the infancy of human civilization. This is information from the real world, reduced in dimensionality.

You do not believe?
In Chinese culture, there is the practice of cultivating immortality. Due to insufficient spiritual energy, it gradually degenerated into Taoist internal alchemy, and finally into martial arts. The lineage is clear.

Did your Cthulhu teach you how to become a fish monster?
And what about Warhammer 40K? Did you guys really master the power of the Chosen through the warp?

None of them? That's fake.

I'm different. I really know kung fu, and I've even achieved some success in cultivating immortality.

You don't believe me? Come on, get in the ring!
If you don't want to play, then explain why I'm such a genius.
Because I cultivated to the state of pure and constant spirituality, I unlocked the source of wisdom, so I learn everything quickly and am awesome at everything I do.

This is a real and undeniable force, which, together with China's clearly defined mythology, forms solid evidence of the mysterious transmission of information from higher dimensions to lower dimensions.

Believe me or Marvel?
You choose!
……

These ideas are obviously nonsense, but never overestimate the intelligence and logic of ordinary people abroad.

Some people firmly believe in the flat Earth theory, and any cult can easily fool them into wholeheartedly following it. The system of "The Primordial Era" is easily regarded as truth by them.

Furthermore, cultural influence primarily stems from emotions, with logic playing a secondary role. As long as the narrative is grand enough and the story is exciting enough, "The Chronicles of the Primordial Era" will certainly not lack fans.

If you don't believe me, just look at the anime and manga channel on Qidian.com. Warhammer 40, One Piece, Naruto—aren't they all packed with fans?
What Fang Xinghe needs to achieve is the highest degree of self-consistency.

……

Re-examining the Origin of the Universe

This cosmic cycle originated from the creation of the world by Pangu. Initially, it had only a single-layer structure, called the primordial universe.

At this moment, matter and spirituality coexist.

The rising of the pure and the descending of the turbid are essentially a process of differentiation. The pure represents spirituality, while the turbid represents matter, and the two naturally separate.

As time passed and matter and spirit became far enough apart, the primordial universe split into two, forming the material plane and the primordial spiritual plane.

That is: the real universe and the innate world of gods and demons.

As matter in the real universe gradually cooled, it took hundreds of millions of years to form galaxies, and fragile life forms began to emerge.

Throughout the entire material universe, the initial planetary rulers were almost all marine, flying, or reptilian species, because they were able to receive high-dimensional information from the primordial dragons and phoenixes.

However, because the information from the primordial gods and demons was too powerful, its chaotic and violent influence could only create overlords like dinosaurs, making it difficult for intelligent life to emerge. In the middle of the primordial era, Nuwa created humans, and the primordial human race was born. Because they were relatively weak, they cultivated through wisdom, thus ensuring that information was transmitted steadily and continuously to lower dimensions.

Thus, through a coincidence that may or may not have been an accident, the human race, just like in the primordial era, was born on Earth, a planet in the solar system located at a weak point in space.

That is: the various tribes of Huaxia.

……

The primary matter layer is characterized by stability, while the primordial mystery layer continues to differentiate as the real universe slowly develops.

The clear continued to rise, and the turbid continued to fall, gradually differentiating into the thirty-six heavens and the earth, from which ordinary living beings were born.

This land is the primordial continent.

The "Reality Layer" and the "Sublimation Layer" are established respectively.

This is a complete process of one begetting two, and two begetting three, which aligns with the philosophy of Taoism in China.

After that, the Great Luo Heaven was sealed off separately, forming a transcendent layer.

As time continued to move forward, intelligent life in the real universe created civilizations and generated large-scale shared fantasies. As a result, the fantasy layer was born below the material layer, and the universe entered the most prosperous stage of "dwelling".

The mystery of the fantasy layer is bestowed upon it by intelligent life in the material layer.

Therefore, the "lifespan" of fantasy worlds is relatively much shorter.

With the destruction of the first fantasy world, the concept of ending and returning to stillness was born in this bustling universe, and the Void Layer quietly appeared below the Fantasy Layer.

The appearance of the Ruins Layer signifies that the universe is inevitably heading towards its end.

Nothing lasts forever, which is easy to understand.

However, the length of the universe's process of returning to stillness does not depend on the void, but on the highest level—the Great Luo Heaven.

The destruction of the universe is never due to the void actively swallowing upwards, but rather the Great Luo Heaven being unable to sustain itself and sinking downwards.

As the lowest level of the universe's structure, the Void has no power, no mystery, and no consciousness; it is merely a state, a reality.

His terror stems from the concept of annihilation.

His evil characteristics, like an abyss, come from the world of death into which one has fallen.

Some worlds are not completely dead yet, continuing to struggle in the void, becoming mad, absurd, and terrifying because of their desperate struggle. This is the "bottomless abyss" in Western fantasy.

Guixu itself is silent, it simply accepts everything.

How quickly the universe is destroyed depends on whether the Great Luo Heaven can maintain its own stability.

In the "Chronicles of the Primordial Era", due to certain reasons, the state of the Great Luo Heaven was unstable, which squeezed the sublimation layer downwards, and the sublimation layer squeezed the real layer... until all the layers were squeezed into the Ruins of Return, leaving only the most solid Great Luo Heaven, which had an ultimate collision with the Ruins of Return.

This is the end.

The protagonist, Chen Ye, eventually found the reason and traced back to the era of the Dragon and Phoenix Calamity. He used the law of time to become an eternal saint, thus completely stabilizing the Great Luo Heaven and postponing the end-of-days calamity to 129600 trillion years. How awesome is that?

But that happened much later; the middle part is actually the most interesting.

For example, the process of the real universe being squeezed by higher dimensions will manifest as a mysterious revival, or a spiritual revival.

In this way, all future online novels in the "Resurrection" category will be incorporated into the system.

As for online novels with the theme of "Infinite Heavens," they exist within the framework of the fantasy genre.

The early stages of cultivation encompass the entire Xianxia genre.

Thus, from anime fantasy to cyberpunk future to martial arts, then to fantasy, and finally tracing back from Journey to the West and Investiture of the Gods to the prehistoric era, almost all categories of online novels are unified under the overall framework of "The Chronicles of the Prehistoric Era".

If this isn't a masterpiece, then what is?

If this isn't the founding ancestor, what is?

Fang Xinghe devoted very little effort to the most important parts: the Xianxia (fantasy martial arts) and the prehistoric mythology sections.

For example, in the cultivation of immortality, is it classical immortality, golden elixir immortality, Daoist immortality, or spiritual root immortality?
Each is explained according to its timeline.

I. The Dharma-ending Age.

It focuses on the Yin spirit, cultivating the nature but not the destiny, and is bizarre and terrifying.

II. Sublimation layer closure period.

The Heavenly Court has gone far away, but its spiritual energy remains. It is based on the flow of spiritual roots and incorporates the Taoist Golden Elixir system.

III. The Heavenly Court Period.

Primarily Taoist, it involves alchemy, talismans, worshipping gods and exorcising ghosts, and seeking ancestral blessings.

IV. Ancient Period.

Imitating the body-forging techniques of the Witch Clan and learning the Qi-eating methods of the Heavenly Demons, there is no Heavenly Court in this world, no Six Paths of Reincarnation, and all things compete freely under the frosty sky.

……

In order to spread and promote the true Chinese Taoist culture, the second part, the spiritual root system, will be the focus of the early stages of Xianxia cultivation.

As a lay disciple of Taoism, Fang Xinghe's character design must be rigorous. He cannot be portrayed as a useless person with all five elements or a person with unusual spiritual roots such as ice, thunder, and wind. Instead, the work should incorporate traditional Taoist cultivation concepts as much as possible.

There are not seven types of Yin and Yang and the Five Elements, but ten.

Yin Five Elements, Yang Five Elements.

Normal people have all five elements, and their attribute direction is ultimately determined by the ratio, mutual generation and restraint of the five elements.

In terms of attributes, wood is not a plant or grass, but a state of growth, expansion, and upward movement; metal is not a technique of acupuncture or knives, but a dynamic tendency of convergence, sinking, and killing.

Thunder is not a special spiritual root; it can be generated by the friction of Yin and Yang and the Five Elements.

Wind is easier to handle; Yin metal and Yin water can combine with cold wind, while Yang wood and Yang water can nourish spring breeze.

Fang Xinghe did not adopt the Sixty Jiazi Na Yin system of "Gold in the Sea" and "Fire in the Furnace" because that system was too complicated and not conducive to overseas readers' understanding and acceptance.

However, he did not give a perfunctory answer; the basic concepts of Yin and Yang and the Five Elements must be clarified.

I can't afford to lose face if I make a mistake.

The romance and beauty of Xianxia lies not in immortality but in carefree living, so this part of the story is Chen Ye's most positive and happiest period.

As you go further back, the atmosphere becomes increasingly heavy.

When the primordial era arrived and hundreds of races rose up, the sense of destiny to fight against the heavens gradually intensified, and the spirit of battling against heaven and earth was overwhelming. Heroes such as Xing Tian, ​​Kua Fu, Di Jun, and Tai Yi emerged one after another.

In Fang Xinghe's "The Chronicles of the Primordial Era", there are not many purely evil people.

Each race has its own standpoint, and each saint has its own ideals. The struggle for the Dao is grand, and the battle for survival is fierce. Heroes kill heroes, and heroes also cherish heroes. It's all just a matter of victory and defeat.

This results in a decrease in pure enjoyment and an increase in depth in the later stages of the story.

The downside is that the abandonment rate may increase, and many casual readers who don't like to think may not be able to finish reading the book.

The advantage is that every reader who finishes reading it will be enthusiastic enough and have a very strong sense of identification with the entire system.

Fang Xinghe did a quick estimate and found that to write a complete article with high quality and quantity, it would need at least 500 million words, and that's without any padding.

He certainly doesn't have the time to write them all himself.

The creative process for "The Chronicles of the Primordial Era" has always been that he provides the setting and outline, the editorial team writes the manuscript, sends it back to him for revision, then sends it out a second time for polishing, and finally reviews and finalizes the manuscript.

In this way, I can basically produce 200,000 to 300,000 words each month.

The current draft contains 60 words, leaving ample room for error in subsequent content.

Therefore, the release model is to release one episode on the 1st of each month, with approximately 15 words, and the book will be completed in about three years.

Three years later, in mid-2009, preparations for the first film could begin in 2010, with a release in 2013 or 2014, coinciding with either the Marvel Cinematic Universe or Transformers 4.

Any earlier and the technology wouldn't have been able to achieve the best results; any later and it would have been too late to compete with Hollywood's peak. The five years between 14 and 19 were just right.

Therefore, we still need to keep pouring money into the Qingdao film studio and special effects company.

Fang Xinghe checked the accounts and was shocked: Holy crap, where is my money? Where did all the money that Divine Condor just earned go?
Oh, almost all of them have been donated...

Fang Xinghe looked at the financial report with a sense of loss, then suddenly stood up, preparing to go see Dongzi.

This year, no matter what, we absolutely have to get StarNet into the US and make money!
***********
Happy New Year! In 2026, let's start cultivating immortality by staying up all night!
(End of this chapter)