Universe Infinite Canteen

The banquet lasted until the next morning, but when Ma Lu looked at the Traveler's Bracelet on his wrist, he found that less than 5 minutes had passed.

Zhu Jiu was right. The time inside the novel was completely different from the outside; here, a year or half could be just a sentence away for the author.

After the banquet ended, Ma Lu even took a nap in the village and went to the pond to feed the mutant beasts kept there.

Zhu Qingqing found him, paid him the remaining 40,000 Star Currency as per their agreement, and thanked him and Old Wang again for entering the book to help them prepare the banquet.

Taking the Star Currency, Ma Lu said, "Candle Clan Chief, you are too kind. You can contact us again if you want to have another banquet in the future."

Zhu Qingqing smiled and nodded, then shook her head, "We are probably going to stay in this book for a while. The next Supporting Character Festival might not be until ten years later."

"May I ask another question? This book is so badly written, why don't you consider moving to a different one?"

Ma Lu couldn't help asking, "Or is it that in this plane there's only Big Writer Zheng Qian?"

"Mm, indeed. 'Ancient Emperor Begins with Divorce' is definitely a terrible book from the outside world's perspective, even we ourselves have criticized it a lot.

"But that doesn't mean the book is without its virtues. As supporting characters, we have lived here for a while, and we should still have some say.

"The Big Writer spent a full 70,000 words on establishing this book and even hand-drew more than a dozen maps. He put a lot of effort into the details, but it was overshadowed by the shoddy plot. No one cared except us, and he wasn't like this before.

"When he first started writing online fiction, his stories were pretty interesting. Although sometimes he messed around, he had a lot of whimsical ideas and interesting developments.

"But it did not align with most readers' tastes, so the performance was not very good. After that, he pondered deeply and started researching market trends, all kinds of thrilling clichés, and kept the avoidance mantra at the tip of his tongue, slowly becoming obsessed.

"On one hand, he tried hard to imitate the bestselling works on the charts. But he couldn't completely let go of his personal preferences, and, caught in the middle, he became what you see now—a strange mishmash of styles.

"In the end, he went insane and was sent to Sunshine Mental Hospital, still dreaming of success and fame.

"I say this not to excuse him, nor to say 'Ancient Emperor Begins with Divorce' is not a terrible book.

"I have lived more than three hundred years, and have existed within hundreds of novels, whether they are classics or worse than 'Ancient Emperor Begins with Divorce.'

"No matter how touching the stories inside them, or how realistic the world-building, to me, they are all fictional. Once you realize that, it's very hard to let yourself be completely immersed again.

"Ultimately, we, the characters on stage, are different from the audience below. We always know, no matter how well the story is performed, it is just a story.

"Yet even in such a world completely built on imagination, there is 'reality,' and that 'reality' is the emotions that creators invest and their growth.

"Zheng Qian is writing our lives, and aren't we in turn observing his life?"

Zhu Qingqing said, "The biggest worry when reading a novel is that the author may abandon it. We characters in the book feel the same. Once we have chosen a Big Writer, we will accompany him until the last moment of life, reading through his life, whether it is good or bad, even though he won't know of our existence."

"——No matter when, your work always has readers. Hm, that feeling is strangely romantic," Ma Lu said.

Back on the bed in Sunshine Mental Hospital, that familiar clicking sound reached Ma Lu's ears again.

By this time, the ward lights were off, but Zheng Qian was still hitting the keyboard in the dark.

The dim light emitted from the laptop screen made him look like a ghost.

For five and a half hours straight, apart from taking the medicine delivered by the nurse, Zheng Qian didn't rest for a moment. Not only did he type out the four thousand words for today, he also took advantage of being in a good state and typed an extra thousand.

Only after the plot involving the Shangguan Family reached a pause did he relax, and grabbed the iron lunch box from the windowsill, vigorously eating the already cold food inside.

It was also at this time that he noticed Ma Lu on the hospital bed.

"Eh, have you guys been here the whole time without going back?"

Ma Lu yawned again. Although some time had passed, he felt as if the effect of the previous medication hadn't completely worn off; his head was still groggy.

"Why don't you seem tired at all? Didn't they give you medicine?"

"Oh, I've taken so much that I've developed a resistance to it. Plus, I have to write. No matter how tired I am, I won't sleep if I haven't finished typing," Zheng Qian boasted proudly, puffing out his chest.

"Then you are really impressive," Ma Lu said, yawning again.

"Since you're not sleeping, do you want to check out what I'm writing next?"

"No need, I'll subscribe directly when I get back."

"Oh, even better. Hey, wait a minute." It seemed like Zheng Qian just realized something, his expression suddenly changed, and he slapped his thigh.

"You can't bring cell phones in the mental hospital. If you came in, doesn't that mean I'll forever lose a subscriber?!"

"Don't worry, we will be out soon and won't let you lose any subscribers. Not only will I subscribe, but I'll also get friends to subscribe," Ma Lu reassured, patting Zheng Qian's shoulder.

"For real?" Zheng Qian exclaimed with joy.

"Lying is for puppies."

"Top number one, from now on, you're my top number one brother!" Zheng Qian's smile was so wide he couldn't close his mouth.

"That's really not necessary, your book..."

"What about my book? Is there something else you want to change?" Zheng Qian put down his lunch box and opened a new document, "Tell me, I'll write it down."

"No, nothing," Ma Lu changed his mind at the last moment. 'Ancient Emperor Begins with Divorce' was beyond saving by just changing a few things; it might as well be cut and restarted.

But considering Zhu Qingqing and the others still living within the book, Ma Lu didn't bring up this suggestion.

Instead, before leaving, he said to Zheng Qian, "Keep it up! I'll be waiting for your update."

Zheng Qian was so moved by these words that he was close to crying.

When Ma Lu and Old Wang first tried to enter Sunshine Mental Hospital, it took some effort, but leaving was much simpler.

They directly took out the [This is so Beaver] they had brought. Ma Lu had already used [This is so Beaver] once this month, leaving two more chances to use it.

Considering that it's best to have an emergency, Ma Lu didn't use it when he was admitted, choosing instead to save it for being discharged.

Under the effect of [This is so Beaver], Ma Lu and Old Wang were discharged less than half a day after being admitted, and left Sunshine Mental Hospital to the warm farewells of the doctors and nurses.