Chapter 133.1: Two Dramas
Among the three dramas, the first to be released was Phantom Realm.
Phantom Realm starred Qiao Mengyao and was one of Deyi Film & Television’s major projects of the year. Although Qiao Mengyao had suffered a setback with The Empress, the success of her subsequent dramas had stabilized her reputation.
None of those dramas were historical.
Qiao Mengyao was gradually considering a career transition. After all, for an actress like her, the older she got, the more she needed to focus on mature and realistic genres.
It wasn’t that she couldn’t act in historical idol dramas anymore, but she couldn’t keep doing them indefinitely.
In this context, she chose to take on Phantom Realm because the script was of exceptionally high quality.
Modern audiences preferred straightforward storytelling.
Angst should be truly heart-wrenching, sweetness should be genuinely heartwarming, and under no circumstances should the story intentionally frustrate the viewers. While creators could pursue their artistic vision, they couldn’t ignore the audience’s emotions—doing so would come at a cost.
The first episode of Phantom Realm depicted an ordinary mortal woman, Lu Yao, falling in love and forming a deep bond with the male lead, Xiao Shengyang, who had reincarnated as a human. However, since Xiao Shengyang was originally an immortal, he was destined to return to the celestial realm. How could a mere mortal woman be a match for a banished deity like him?
Thus, Xiao Shengyang’s admirers in the celestial realm took it upon themselves to kill Lu Yao’s daughter. They also left Lu Yao gravely injured, barely clinging to life—but she survived.
From that moment on, her sole purpose was to use her fragile mortal body to annihilate those lofty, noble immortals who regarded human love and loss with indifference.
Even if it cost her everything.
In the previous scene, the love between Lu Yao and Xiao Shengyang had been undeniable—plain for all to see. Lu Yao wasn’t the typical adorable and naive heroine found in idol dramas. By immortal standards, she wasn’t even considered beautiful. She was just an ordinary mortal woman—no, a wife.
After marrying Xiao Shengyang, she lived a loving and harmonious life with him as husband and wife. She was not particularly knowledgeable, nor had she ever imagined that her husband was actually an immortal from the heavens.
All she had ever wanted was a warm and simple life.
She had never once enjoyed the benefits of his immortality, yet she was forced to pay a price she had never wished to bear.
Those so-called “immortals” did everything they could to demean her, claiming that she had taken advantage of Xiao Shengyang’s fall to the mortal realm, coveting him and giving birth to a “sinful child” that should never have existed in this world.
“I married my husband of my own free will—I never forced him!”
Yet Lu Yao’s defense was met with even colder ridicule. “You didn’t force him? Do you even know who Xiao Shengyang is?”
“My husband is just an ordinary scholar. He met me after being injured, and only after receiving my parents’ consent did we—”
Lu Yao tried to explain, but in return, she received a slap filled with hatred. “You dare call him your husband? Do you even deserve to?”
The very same Xiao Shengyang whom celestial maidens dared not approach had fallen to the mortal world, married a simple village woman, and fathered a child with her. This filled his admirers—who rarely had the chance to descend to the human realm—with unbearable jealousy.
They never believed Xiao Shengyang was at fault. To them, it was Lu Yao who had seduced him. Now that he had returned to the celestial realm, everything he had left behind in the mortal world had to be erased.
Phantom Realm wasted no time in setting up its central conflict. Unlike many idol dramas that dragged out their setups with excessive foreshadowing, this story dove straight into the heart of the matter. Without a doubt, this was exactly the kind of strong female lead narrative that Qiao Mengyao excelled at.
Lu Yao’s suffering in the first two episodes was infuriating, making viewers seethe with anger, longing for the day she would cultivate immortality and tear away the false facades of these so-called celestial beings.
But for a mere mortal, the path to becoming an immortal was long and arduous—not something that could be achieved simply by wishing for it.
And yet—there was something in Lu Yao’s eyes that was utterly heartbreaking.
Beneath the dark hillside, she lay alone on the ground. The rain had started to fall, mixing with the blood and mud on her body. She looked utterly wretched, as if she had just awakened from a nightmare.
But it wasn’t a nightmare—it was her reality.
The house where she had once lived lovingly with Xiao Shengyang, where their daughter had been born, where she had taken her first steps and spoken her first words—had been reduced to ashes by lightning and fire. Smoke and soot had blended with the mud, and before long, even the last traces of that house would vanish completely.
Everyone else had forgotten Xiao Shengyang. They had erased all memory of his child.
Only she would never forget. Not in this lifetime, not in three lifetimes.
Hatred filled the darkness. Her eyes burned like they had caught fire, unblinking for what felt like an eternity.
She would not die!
She would spend her entire life answering this hatred!
…
[This is amazing!!!!]
[The pacing is insane!! I really hope Lu Yao stays independent—please don’t let her get back with that ex-husband!!]
[Even though… I got burned watching The Empress before, Phantom Realm doesn’t seem like it’ll pull any of that nonsense where they cast a male lead who rides the female protagonist’s popularity while complaining that she’s too old. I trust Sister Qiao won’t disappoint me.]
[+1, a stubborn, resilient, and strong-willed female lead is Qiao Mengyao’s specialty. That moment when Lu Yao looked up at the sky… I couldn’t even bear to look too closely—it was too heartbreaking.]
On its very first day, Phantom Realm received overwhelming praise.
Unlike The Empress, which marketed itself as a “strong female lead” drama but was ultimately bogged down with unnecessary male storylines, Phantom Realm made its cast lineup crystal clear—female lead: Qiao Mengyao. Male lead: Rong Xiu. No one else.
Rong Xiu wasn’t even known for acting in idol dramas.
His industry status was somewhat similar to Shao Yao’s—not particularly famous, but well-respected for his acting skills. In other words, he didn’t bring a large fan following.
But Phantom Realm didn’t need its male lead to be popular.
Qiao Mengyao alone was enough.
In recent years, dramas where both the male and female leads were high-profile celebrities certainly garnered immense attention. But oftentimes, the off-screen drama was just as spectacular—battles over billing order, disputes over on-set treatment, real-life partners clashing with CP fans, and CP fans attacking the real-life relationships of the leads.
Some actors would hype up their on-screen chemistry when a drama was popular, only to hastily sever ties afterward. If a show flopped, the blame game would ensue, turning into a full-blown spectacle.
In a way, The Empress was the peak product of this chaotic trend.
Having just one feuding lead pair was already bad enough, but The Empress featured multiple male leads. The ensuing conflicts were nothing short of a bloodbath, with every entertainment company pulling out all the stops.
By contrast, actors like Rong Xiu were the safer choice.
—
Many in the industry had their eyes on Phantom Realm’s premiere performance.
With Phantom Realm, Lives Beyond Death the Chivalry, and Flames of War all airing in the same season, speculation ran rampant—would this turn into another showdown like The Empress vs. The Path of Bones?
Despite the intense infighting between The Empress and The Path of Bones, the feud ultimately propelled The Path of Bones to unexpected popularity. If history repeated itself, the otherwise uneventful drama industry could see another breakout hit.
For those hoping for a major success, this was far from a bad thing.
—
[The numbers are out!]
[Whoa! As expected of Qiao Mengyao—she’s incredible! Phantom Realm’s premiere popularity score hit 14,900!]
[So close to breaking 15,000! That’s insane!!]
[Now it’s time to see how Flames of War and Lives Beyond Death the Chivalry perform!]
Following the first episode’s release, Qiao Mengyao personally reposted five different Weibo posts to promote the drama.
Her enthusiasm stood in stark contrast to her lukewarm attitude when promoting The Empress.
Back when The Empress flopped, none of the male leads managed to break out, and the hype naturally died down. Although the male leads’ agencies tried to shift the blame onto Qiao Mengyao, over time, the audience began to see through the situation.
Setting aside the heavy cuts to the female lead’s storyline in The Empress, Qiao Mengyao herself had shown noticeably less enthusiasm for promoting it compared to her other dramas. Had she not seen through the production team’s shady tactics, she wouldn’t have been so indifferent.
[Tsk tsk tsk, so actors actually know what’s up behind the scenes, huh?]
[If a drama is good, of course they’ll rush to promote it. If it’s bad, even the actors won’t want to acknowledge it as their own work.]
Qiao Mengyao’s reposts weren’t entirely because she loved Phantom Realm—it was also because her other transition drama had far less heat in comparison.
While it had a solid reputation, its popularity score never broke 10,000, making it incomparable to Phantom Realm, which had nearly hit 15,000 on its premiere.
Qiao Mengyao needed a good reputation, but she also couldn’t afford to give up on dramas that could bring her major exposure.
She was indeed transitioning into more serious roles, but at the same time, she carried numerous brand endorsements. If she wanted to maintain those deals, she needed long-term and stable popularity.
As the female lead of Phantom Realm, Qiao Mengyao naturally wanted the drama to completely overshadow Lives Beyond Death the Chivalry and Flames of War, dominating the season’s rankings. But she also knew that was unlikely.
In fact… the most she dared to hope for was a narrow victory over Lives Beyond Death the Chivalry.
Lu Xu was not an easy opponent to beat.
—
At Zheng Xiao’s strong insistence, Lives Beyond Death the Chivalry’s two leading actors, Lu Xu and Shao Yao, deliberately reposted a promo for Flames of War.
[???? Are they really that close?]
[Don’t tell me you guys forgot you’re supposed to be competitors!]
[LMAO, I’d love to see Director Liu Chunfeng’s reaction—his two lead actors just straight-up betrayed him.]
After Lu Xu and Shao Yao reposted the promo, Zheng Xiao popped into both of their comment sections and dropped a [dog head] emoji.
#Shocking: Rival actors utterly bewitched by me#
#Zheng Xiao, the drama industry’s resident siren#
Flames of War’s official account gleefully jumped in, thanking Lu Xu and Shao Yao for their support.
But then… Phantom Realm’s official account unexpectedly reposted the post as well, adding: [What about me?]
[We got you! We got you!]
[So spoiled omg!]
[Wait, what is even happening right now?! Aren’t you all supposed to be competing?!]
[Can you guys PLEASE start some drama instead?! Who wants to see all this wholesome nonsense?!!]
However… whoever was running Phantom Realm’s social media had zero shame and cheekily replied:
[Sorry, we fell in love.]
Netizens: “……”