In the morning, Xiao He went to work as usual.
But just as he was doing his makeup, Xiao Song called again.
Xiao He found it strange.
"Hello? What's up?"
"Xiao... Xiao Ge! You've gone viral! You're trending!"
"Huh?"
Xiao He pulled the phone away to check if he'd answered the wrong call: "What happened? How did I go viral?"
Could it be that Ran Yunrui had exposed his face online and wanted to cyberbully him?
That couldn't be—it wasn't even his car, they'd just had a minor altercation—
It took Xiao He a few seconds to realize that "Mu Ze" referred to the serial killer he'd portrayed. He was stunned: "What? Seriously?"
He quickly borrowed the makeup artist's phone to open Bilibili. Sure enough, the moment he logged in, he saw a video featuring the killer's face as the thumbnail.
[First comment!]
[Watching this daily guarantees no sleep.]
[Kill kill kill! Pure evil is so satisfying!]
[After watching this yesterday, I kept being chased by the killer in my dreams. Scared me so bad I instantly hit like, favorite, and share.]
[Absolute slaughterfest!]
[Time to give the domestic entertainment industry a wake-up call!]
[Is this really a newcomer? I thought he was some established actor from another country.]
[Anyone know his name?]
[Isn't it Mu Ze?]
The barrage of comments was overwhelming, almost entirely discussing Xiao He's portrayal of the killer.
Xiao He hadn't expected such an enthusiastic response. He watched the entire edited video along with the comments, feeling deeply moved.
The video was essentially a compilation of all his scenes from "Heart of Embers," expertly edited to match the music's rhythm and action sequences.
Thanks to Xiao Zhao the Roamer's years of experience on Bilibili, she perfectly balanced the gore levels through clever black-and-white transitions—pushing right against censorship limits while enhancing the video's thrilling pace. It was utterly addictive, making viewers unable to look away as they followed the killer's "chainsaw massacre," their scalps tingling with tension.
The most shocking part was the ending. Using fragmented clips, Xiao Zhao the Roamer had reconstructed an alternate ending:
After being shot dead by the protagonist, the killer reappears in the woods, chainsaw in hand, humming elegantly as if everything prior had just been his game. Having grown bored of his old life, he sheds all restraints to return to his "artistic creations."
Finally, he turns to stare directly at the camera—his profound eyes filled with greed and obsession, as if locking onto the viewer as his next target!
At that moment, every viewer who met his gaze shuddered involuntarily, a primal fear rising from their hearts—does he... actually exist?
Of course he doesn't!
Then why am I still terrified?!
Driven by "if I have to suffer, so should others" mentality, viewers massively shared the video, determined to drag more people into this nightmare.
This became another reason for its explosive popularity.
Let's just say... everyone's so "kind" (smile).
Xiao He instinctively hit like, favorite and share before realizing it wasn't his account. He hurriedly canceled and returned the phone: "Sorry, accidentally used your account to triple-interact."
"No problem," the makeup artist waved dismissively. "Teacher Xiao, was that really you in the video? The editing was amazing! And you looked incredibly handsome!"
"Th-thank you—"
Blushing slightly, Xiao He returned to his call with Xiao Song: "I've seen it. Seems like organic promotion from a content creator. Has it affected our show's ratings?"
Xiao Song had been waiting eagerly: "Since last night, our viewership skyrocketed! Even user engagement metrics jumped significantly. Our show is totally riding your coattails, Xiao Ge!"
Xiao He: "Don't say that—it's just good luck."
"Luck is part of ability!" Xiao Song laughed. "By the way, many fans are asking about you, so I tagged your account under our official post. You'll probably get lots of new followers—you should check and manage your account."
"Got it, thanks."
"Oh, one more thing—our director specifically asked me to tell you..."
"Go ahead."
"Given your current momentum, Xiao Ge, you should consider signing with an agency for better career development. But be very careful when choosing—don't get trapped in bad contracts. If you ever need help, just reach out to us."
Xiao He: "Understood. I really appreciate it."
Encountering such a supportive crew at the start of his career was incredibly fortunate.
"I'll let you go now, Xiao Ge."
After hanging up, Xiao He immediately checked his account. The app lagged severely before showing his notification bar flooded with red alerts.
His follower count, previously under three digits, was now approaching ten thousand.
Wait—
He refreshed.
Okay, surpassed ten thousand.
But that wasn't the only good news. His cheat system suddenly popped up:
[Auto-update complete]
[Current points: 369]
Xiao He: Oh? The system can upgrade?
Over three hundred points already—huh?
Three hundred sixty-nine?!
Blinking in disbelief, he watched the number jump to "373" before his eyes.
Xiao He: ?
Overnight wealth?
After checking the system panel, he found an update notice timestamped early this morning.
Presumably, the sudden point surge had triggered the update... but why?
Thinking about the Bilibili video and the system's point calculation rules—
Suddenly, Xiao He's eyes widened: Of course!
Criminal influence!
Previously, he'd only focused on points from the criminal acts themselves, nearly forgetting the importance of influence—the "prestige" of the crime!
He'd originally interpreted this as difficulty and severity, but now realized it meant how much fear or attention the criminal could generate!
As an extra who never showed his face, his previous "murders" naturally gained no attention. But his "serial killer" performance had attracted massive exposure.
While not all reactions were "fear" or "terror," any strong emotional response seemed convertible to points!
At this moment, Xiao He desperately wished "Killing Life" would release immediately.
His role as "Zhu Third Brother" would surely earn him massive points!