Chapter 40: Filming
To be honest, the cinematographer realized the true depth of Lu Xu’s abilities as an actor during that first killing scene.
As he continued to adjust to Lu Xu’s performance, he noticed something even more impressive: although the scenes were all about killing, Lu Xu managed to bring nuance to the role.
It was as if the golden retriever had gradually morphed into a one-headed hellhound, then a two-headed one, and finally a three-headed beast—each level escalating in ferocity and menace.
During filming breaks, the cinematographer reminded himself that it was all an act. Yet whenever Lu Xu’s gaze swept in his direction, he couldn’t help but feel a chill on his skin, sometimes even breaking into a shiver.
“Now you understand how I felt, don’t you?” the assistant director said with a knowing expression. “Look, even Qian Ji is struggling to keep up.”
The actors chosen to play the antagonists in The Path of Bones were all seasoned professionals with impressive skills. However, none of them had anticipated how quickly Lu Xu would dive into Yu Yi’s mindset. His immersion left gaps in their shared emotional rhythm, forcing the crew to reshoot scenes when their reactions couldn’t catch up.
In the past, these same actors were usually the ones whose co-stars failed to keep pace with them.
Among them, Qian Ji was the fastest to adapt.
From the very first shot, he realized that Lu Xu was vastly different from the young actors he had worked with in the past.
He initially thought the scene would take a long time to film—Lei Ai had casually instructed them to shoot Yu Yi’s revenge sequence in one go. Although Qian Ji listened attentively on the surface, deep down, he felt quite dismissive.
The core of the revenge scene clearly rested on Lu Xu, who was playing Yu Yi.
These scenes not only needed to highlight Yu Yi’s ruthlessness during his quest for vengeance but also had to portray his emotional turmoil. They were among the most significant and weighty moments in the entire drama.
Could a rookie like Lu Xu handle this?
If not for Lei Ai’s perpetually cheerful demeanor, Qian Ji might have suspected that the director was trying to set Lu Xu up for failure.
But when filming truly began, Qian Ji quickly understood why Lei Ai had arranged things this way.
Lu Xu had indeed changed into his costume—though the wardrobe for The Path of Bones was essentially just everyday attire.
He had also undergone a styling transformation—yet from Qian Ji’s perspective, Lu Xu’s striking appearance was almost too prominent, making his styled look indistinguishable from his everyday one.
The reason he emphasized the costume and styling was that the same person could switch from an ordinary appearance to that of a terrifying executioner in an instant.
One moment, Lu Xu was politely introducing himself, mentioning that he had recently signed with Feiyang Entertainment and was playing the lead role of Yu Yi in The Path of Bones.
The next moment, his face transformed into one of cold cruelty. After slashing his target’s throat, he methodically delivered cut after cut, as if performing a mechanical process, amid the crimson blood splattered across the floor and before the victim’s half-closed eyes.
Yet his expression remained indifferent, as if revenge was merely a ritual to him.
It was as though he had k*lled so many times that it had become routine—a task that could no longer elicit any sense of satisfaction from him.
The moment the scene wrapped up, the entire crew fell into silence.
Everyone’s gaze, whether intentional or unintentional, drifted toward the center of the set.
After a long pause, hushed murmurs began to surface.
“…Oh my god, has Lu Xu always been this good at acting?”
“This is Yu Yi!”
Book fans had always approached adaptations with skepticism. Typically, film or TV adaptations failed to meet their expectations. After all, while reading, the imagination could run wild, but adaptations confined that limitless vision to the small frame of a screen, shattering expectations instantly.
Of course, aspects like set design, costumes, and special effects were subjective. Even if they weren’t perfect, book fans didn’t have rigid standards for those.
Characters, however, were different.
Appearance, styling, physique—these were important. Yet, compared to the resonance an actor could achieve with a character, they seemed less critical.
If an actor could embody a character with exceptional skill, even if external factors made book fans feel some dissonance, as long as the actor could capture the essence of the character, certain shortcomings could be overlooked.
When Lu Xu joined the crew of The Path of Bones, many in the team felt his appearance aligned well with Kong Le’s description of Yu Yi.
Handsome, but reserved.
When Lu Xu was silent, there was an innate sense of melancholy about him.
However, while Lu Xu had proven his acting skills in Son of Heaven, the crew of The Path of Bones still had doubts about whether he could fully embody the role of Yu Yi. After all, a supporting role wasn’t the same as a lead. A supporting role’s performance wouldn’t be scrutinized by audiences frame by frame under a magnifying glass.
At this moment, the director, Lei Ai, was quietly chuckling on the side, and Kong Le wore a look of satisfaction.
When Lu Xu first joined the crew, no matter how much they emphasized their satisfaction with him, most people remained skeptical.
But now, the truth was clear.
“Is he really from an idol group?”
“If someone from an idol group can act like this, I’d be embarrassed to admit I graduated from a professional acting academy.”
“Exactly! So… what was Lin Ge Entertainment even thinking?”
“They must’ve lost their minds. Either that, or the other members of Verse are so talented they forced Lu Xu out.”
“Lin Ge Entertainment should’ve just said they didn’t want him! If they had, we could’ve signed him. But no, now Feiyang Entertainment got ahead of us and Xu Wen snatched him away…”
Imagining such a possibility, everyone couldn’t help but shake their heads silently.
They couldn’t have won that fight anyway.
…
After this scene wrapped up, the pressure on Lu Xu within the Path of Bones crew eased significantly.
The team had high expectations for the character Yu Yi. It wasn’t just about meeting general standards; with the original author watching closely, the stakes were higher. If this series ended up as poorly done as Undercover, the book fans in the crew wouldn’t be able to show their faces in public again.
And when the image of Yu Yi from the novel was brought to life so perfectly, it meant the success of The Path of Bones was already halfway secured.
After a series of emotionally intense scenes, it was time for the first major bonding moment in the script.
The “01” squad, reunited for their first mission after retirement, gathered around a warm campfire, chatting about their dreams for the future.
“I’m going to get my uncle an apartment with an elevator. Climbing stairs is getting too hard for him. After my mom passed, it’s been my uncle and aunt who kept me going. I wouldn’t be here without them.”
“I’m just going to buy my daughter a doll. She’s been pestering me every day. Tell me, why are dolls so expensive these days?”
“I… I’m going back to propose!!”
A round of teasing and laughter erupted around the campfire. Yu Yi, not one to join in on such antics, couldn’t help but curve his eyes into a faint smile as he watched the scene unfold.
In the squad, as their captain, he often played the role of the listener.
Though he remained quiet, the warmth radiating from him was something everyone present could feel.
No one could have imagined that this warm and tightly-knit squad would soon face a tragic fate.
And that this young man, now listening intently to his team’s dreams, would eventually let himself become a demon.
The camera focused primarily on Lu Xu.
The crew finally felt completely at ease—transitioning seamlessly from emotionally devastating scenes to portraying a kind and compassionate character, Lu Xu handled it effortlessly. At the very least, his state of mind hadn’t been shaken by the previous intense performance.
Yu Yi’s icy demeanor and warm heart were portrayed by him with perfect nuance.
…
While Lu Xu was diligently shooting The Path of Bones, the news that he was cast as Yu Yi began to spread.
The book fans, surprisingly, remained relatively silent. After all, the responsibility for casting had been taken on by Kong Le himself. Having retreated from the public eye for six months following the disastrous failure of Undercover, Kong Le’s return was marked by a heightened dedication to The Path of Bones.
Everyone knew Yu Yi was a challenging role to cast.
In fact, the initial reaction of most book fans was that Lu Xu as Yu Yi was… better than expected.
[At least he’s good-looking!]
[As a hardcore Qin Zhao fan, I’m ecstatic! Who else understands my joy after being obsessed with the character Qin Zhao for two whole months? I’m going full editor mode to make compilation videos!]
[Good looks + decent acting = suitable!!]
While the book fans remained relatively calm, the industry was deeply concerned about The Path of Bones. After all, the catastrophic failure of Undercover had set a new low for novel-to-screen adaptations.
Back when the actors of Undercover took on the project, their careers plummeted from their peak, and they still hadn’t recovered to this day.
[Lu Xu has worked hard to build his popularity with My Baby Prince and Son of Heaven. Jumping into a project with this kind of baggage right away—isn’t that a bit too bold?]
[I’m more worried that audiences won’t be interested in anything adapted by Kong Le. They might just see the title and immediately hit the close button.]
[Before Undercover, Kong Le was a top-tier author pursued by investors. His books sold better and better with each release. But after Undercover, his commercial value plummeted. A series relying only on book fans isn’t enough to sustain hype.]
There were doubters and supporters alike. Meanwhile, as a fan of Lu Xu, Tan Qi finally got an opportunity to visit the set.
Since Verse disbanded, she hadn’t had a chance to see Lu Xu up close.
Lu Xu had gained recognition as an actor through My Baby Prince and Son of Heaven, smoothly transitioning into his new career. Yet, to Tan Qi, he seemed more enigmatic and distant.
It was a good thing, of course. But as a fan, she felt like Lu Xu had grown in ways she couldn’t keep up with. She had known him well during his Verse days, but now, she could only see his growth through the roles he played.
Still, Tan Qi had rekindled her admiration for Lu Xu.
She went to the set of The Path of Bones with a friend, and during the car ride, the two of them kept sharing compilation videos.
There were plenty of videos about Lu Xu, spanning from his Verse performances to his portrayal of the disheveled Qin Zhao, and even to his quiet moment reading under a tree as Yu Wei. Most of these videos had titles like Transformation.
Many fans still remembered the wave of scandals and negativity that surrounded Lu Xu when he left the group.
The fact that he had made it this far—how could it not be considered a transformation?
The two of them were happily scrolling through videos when Tan Qi’s friend suddenly exclaimed, “The trailer for Supreme just dropped!”
Tan Qi immediately leaned over as her friend’s phone started playing the trailer.
It began with He Ziqing and Yun Hui passing by, setting the tone for a heart-wrenching story.
Then, as the antagonist Ji Xiuya’s profile appeared on screen, both Tan Qi and her friend couldn’t help but let out a piercing squeal, drawing several curious glances from the driver.
Tan Qi clapped a hand over her mouth. “He’s so handsome.”
“Handsome enough to make me cry.”
“That’s my husband!!!”
The production team of Supreme had previously released cast photos, and Ji Xiuya’s close-ups had already been stunning. But in the trailer, the animated Ji Xiuya was a thousand times more captivating!
His makeup wasn’t overly elaborate, but the subtle shift in his gaze carried a seductive menace. His expression wavered between a smile and something far more ambiguous—one moment soft as a feather, and the next, black mist billowed from his figure, and blood splattered violently.
Unpredictable, domineering, cruel—this was the immortal and peerless Demon Lord!
In just a few minutes, the trailer’s view count skyrocketed past ten thousand.
Though Ji Xiuya appeared for only a few seconds, GIFs of his scenes spread across the internet like wildfire.