Forced Me to Regress, Huh?

Korean manhwa was one of the many challenges for people trying to quit porn.

Its art style was distinctive, and its content was worthy of criticism!

Many people, while reading, really hated the glaring holy light in the comics.

Cheng Zhu, being well-read and experienced, had naturally seen a few. A few manhwas had left a lasting impression on him, and he could still remember their names.

So, how did he end up stepping into this world?

It was because, back then, he had a bed companion who was a big fan of manhwa, and she would often bring him along to read, adding some fun to their time together.

Sometimes, she would even engage in roleplay with Cheng Zhu.

In fact, he could never figure out why those websites always seemed to disappear suddenly, and he had no idea where she found them.

What Cheng Zhu had to do now was simple: take inspiration from the art style of manhwa and commission an artist to create some illustrations.

Using the photos he had taken, he would have them redrawn as comic-style images.

Later, he would combine the photos and comic illustrations into complete product photos and post them.

Many adult product merchants would later adopt this technique, and it proved quite effective.

Some stores even developed it into a signature feature.

It was important to know that many people liked comics!

Some people even preferred them to real-life photos.

Seeing real photos would elicit no reaction.

But with comics? Slurp, slurp!

Years later, even after being inundated by the internet and becoming more experienced, people would still fall for this approach.

It was only 2014 now, and Korean manhwa hadn’t yet risen to prominence or welcomed its golden age. How could the market withstand this?!

Of course, if the strategy worked, there would inevitably be a wave of imitators.

This was the reality of things…

—An unplowed field invites no competition. Once tilled, it becomes a battleground.

But so what?

I have so many cards up my sleeve. When the time comes, I’ll just pull out some new tricks.

I’ll overtake you so fast you won’t even see my tail lights. You’ll be left in the dust, eating my wake!

* * *

Cheng Zhu contacted several lesser-known artists on Weibo.

Among them, two of them would later become highly popular, though they were still unknown now.

In the art community, especially among illustrators, the proportion of seasoned perverts was quite high.

Some renowned artists known for their explicit work even made it to the top of Weibo’s most popular illustrators list, with a few taking first place.

Netizens jokingly dubbed these artists as: Illustrators even AI couldn’t replace.

Because emotionless machines simply couldn’t match how creatively perverse and unabashedly lecherous they were.

The illustrators I’ve picked all have impressive skills, yet they’re very affordable.

Honestly, if I set a new trend again, I’ll create even more job opportunities for them!

The reality was that many illustrators barely made any money throughout the year.

Soon, Cheng Zhu finalized a deal with one of the artists.

The artist’s quote was within Cheng Zhu’s budget. Moreover, he came across as humble and eager to make money, expressing he would draw whatever the patron wanted.

Some creators had their own stubborn streaks.

In Cheng Zhu’s memory, the art style of Korean manhwa was quite suitable for the fashion industry.

Otherwise, the term ‘manhwa fashion’ wouldn’t have become popular later on.

Many platforms had fashion bloggers who took this route. They would use illustrations as references to recreate the outfits depicted.

In reality, many would put together the outfit first and then create an illustration afterward.

At this moment, this artist named ‘Fox Talk’ couldn’t have imagined that the patron would commission him to create illustrations for lingerie products!

Damn, this patron really has a discerning eye. He could tell at a glance that I have a knack for lewd themes!

I couldn’t hide it, couldn’t hide it at all!

After listening to Cheng Zhu’s request, the artist had a strangely wonderful feeling, as if he had found a kindred spirit, a like-minded partner.

His ideas match well with many of mine! Great, this job feels just right! Fox Talk thought.

Though, from his tone during our conversation, he seems to think I’m a guy?

Oh, patron, you just don’t get it. When it comes to lewds, we women know best!

Fox Talk decided to stay up late to sketch a few samples to show her patron tomorrow.

First-time collaborations always had areas that needed adjustments.

During the conversation, Cheng Zhu was true to form, spinning grand promises while negotiating prices.

2014 wasn’t like a few years later. This tactic was still very effective.

In any case, Fox Talk eagerly bought it. Her income wasn’t high, and she was hungry for opportunities that could lead to long-term partnerships.

When she received the photos from Cheng Zhu, she exclaimed, “Wow, this girl’s figure is amazing.

“Woah, this lingerie is really interesting!

“Paired with my art, it’ll be perfect!

“Who can resist this? No way, absolutely no way!”

Just like that, Fox Talk dove into her work, drawing with full concentration.

* * *

The next day, Cheng Zhu woke up early.

He opened WeChat and saw that Fox Talk had sent over images at four in the morning.

Cheng Zhu took a good look at them and nodded slightly. Not bad. We can use them after a few adjustments.

He figured this pervert Fox Talk was probably still sleeping, so he left a brief message, detailing a few changes that needed to be made.

Afterwards, he returned to photo editing.

It wasn’t until 3 p.m. that he received a reply from Fox Talk. It seemed her sleep schedule was flipped, and she could sleep well into the afternoon.

Her reply was short and to the point. “I’ll make the changes right away!”

Cheng Zhu liked working with people who had high efficiency because he was the type to get things done quickly and decisively without procrastination.

Procrastination was a very tough illness to treat.

You want to treat your procrastination, but your procrastination tells you, “How about waiting a little longer?”

And you probably end up doing it.

It’s almost incurable, really!

It was even more difficult than becoming sexually abstinent.

At 5 p.m., Cheng Zhu received a message in the WeChat group. Jiang Wanzhou and the others had already left and were on their way.

Didn’t Cheng Zhu promise to invite them to Yunlai Restaurant for dinner?

Today was the day he was going to keep the promise.

Cheng Zhu specifically asked his mother to reserve the restaurant’s only private room, making sure it wasn’t booked by anyone else.

When Xu Yun heard that he was inviting friends over for dinner, she readily agreed.

She and Old Cheng planned to observe secretly whether any of their son’s friends were girls.

Recently, Cheng Zhu had been going out early and returning late, and even when he was at home or the restaurant, he was always on the phone.

Most importantly, when he used his phone, he would deliberately avoid his family, not letting them see what was on his screen.

It really looked like he was dating!

Xu Yun and Old Cheng had been paying attention to this matter for a while. Since Cheng Zhu had invited a group of friends to eat at the restaurant today, Old Cheng decided to personally serve in the private room and observe carefully!

Cheng Zhu was already an adult, and they didn’t mind him dating now, but they were naturally a bit curious.

The investigation team was established, and the couple was determined to uncover the truth about their son’s secret tonight!

However, Old Cheng and Xu Yun had already agreed that even if they found concrete evidence tonight, they wouldn’t confront their son directly. They would just pretend they didn’t know anything.

At around 5:30 p.m., Cheng Zhu saw a white Range Rover backing into a parking spot in front of the restaurant through the glass windows.

As the host for the evening, he stood up and went outside to greet the guests.

Xu Yun, who was working at the cash register, looked over and observed secretly.

As soon as Cheng Zhu stepped outside, he saw the passenger-side window slowly roll down, revealing Lin Lu’s exquisite face.

She waved and greeted him with her usual smile, showing her cute dimples as her eyes curved into happy crescents. She said energetically, “Hello, Cheng Zhu! Hello there!”