“Okay, that’s good here.” Li Ran raised his hand to call a timely halt.
This run was much better than before. Lin Qinghe was gradually finding the balance he wanted. Li Ran spoke: “Little He, your acting is showing some flavor now. The hair-tucking part was perfect. Getting through it smoothly already meets my expectations. But there’s still room for improvement.”
Receiving even a bit of affirmation was a huge encouragement for Lin Qinghe. His tone was humble: “Please, go on.”
Li Ran’s attitude was always gentle toward hardworking and humble newcomers: “When you were acting opposite Jiang Nian, you were a bit tense. This makes your acting seem unnatural. No big deal; after a few more takes, you’ll get comfortable.”
“Another point: when you reached out to touch Jiang Nian’s forehead, the movement was too slow. Your expression and tone need more control. Here, Celine isn’t commanding Devin. Rather, after Devin exposed his hypnotic attempt, Celine is inwardly wondering how Devin broke free from his Spiritual Power. Celine also sensed the human’s anger. With things exposed, his ‘Quiet’ contains an unashamed comfort, said casually.”
“It might sound complicated, but basically, when you speak, don’t be too forceful. Soften it a bit.”
Lin Qinghe committed these words to heart and nodded to show he understood: “I’ll think on it more.”
“Good. Let’s repeat this part a few more times. Once it works, we’ll film for real. Jiang Nian, keep it up.”
They ran through the scene once more.
Celine was grabbed. His Spiritual Power couldn’t fully hypnotize the person before him. A flash of confusion crossed his face, gone so quickly it was nearly imperceptible. Then he extended his index finger, lightly touching Devin’s forehead without the slightest effort, his voice ethereal: “Quiet.”
Devin was a member of the royal family. That status alone determined the nobility in his very bones. Celine’s approach was tantamount to defying royal authority. He narrowed his eyes and released Celine almost roughly.
“Good, pass!” Li Ran emphasized with satisfaction: “That’s it. Remember to act like that.” Lin Qinghe’s performance exceeded his expectations. The young man’s comprehension was strong; he only needed rough guidance to grasp the deeper meaning. Striking while the iron was hot, Li Ran said: “Staff, hurry with makeup touch-ups. Help tidy the two actors’ appearances. Everyone, get ready. We’re starting to film!”
The first hurdle was over. Lin Qinghe let out a silent sigh of relief. Once overcome, even the greatest difficulty seemed minor in retrospect. He returned to his earlier position to let the makeup artist adjust his attire.
“Scene One, Shot One, Action!”
Filming officially began. The machines rolled. Li Ran sat in front of the camera to watch the image.
The rehearsal had greatly eased Lin Qinghe’s nervousness. At the very least, he wouldn’t make rookie mistakes like forgetting his lines or looking completely lost. Although the first shot was later NG’d over a dozen times during continuous takes, each time he improved, his acting becoming more proficient as he grasped the essence.
On the last take, Li Ran made an OK sign. He was something of a perfectionist; this was what he considered the most flawless version yet.
“Good, wrap for now. Everyone take a break.”
Over two hours of intense work. Xi Nian knew Lin Qinghe must be exhausted. She stepped forward and said, “Brother Qinghe, have some water.”
Finding a spot to sit, Lin Qinghe unscrewed the cap and gulped down several mouthfuls. Fine sweat beaded on his forehead; his whole body felt warm. There was still one more shot in the first scene. He took the script from Xi Nian’s hands, not daring to slack off.
Xi Nian saw all of Lin Qinghe’s effort. She believed that as long as he persisted, her idol would eventually earn the recognition of many.
The second shot was slightly simpler than the first. The interaction between Celine and Devin was reduced; most were individual shots, so the issue of not being able to keep up wouldn’t arise.
This shot required more actors. They were smeared with fake blood plasma—some on the chest, some on the face. At first glance, it was startlingly realistic.
The set was quickly arranged by the staff. In a corridor, all doors stood wide open. The walls were stained with chaotic blood smears. Pale, ghastly lighting added to the terrifying atmosphere in the cramped space. People lay sprawled on the ground in various poses of death.
Celine appearing before Devin—this part would need special effects added in post-production. After his break, Lin Qinghe was carefully helped to a clean spot, three meters away, face-to-face with Jiang Nian.
Li Ran snatched Fan Wenbo’s loudspeaker: “Little He, pretend for a moment you have magic. Your magic can revive the people on the ground. You’re very powerful—powerful without showing it. The moment you cast the spell, blue light will appear everywhere. What we need is for you to unleash your imagination.”
After that, he aimed the loudspeaker at Jiang Nian: “Devin, you get what I mean, right?”
Jiang Nian smiled: “Understood, Brother Li. I have to pretend to see the blue light.”
“Good.” Li Ran continued his instructions: “Everyone playing dead in a moment, listen for the cue. When I say ‘Cut,’ and Old Li counts to three, you slowly struggle to get up. Absolutely don’t spring up suddenly. You need to project a feeling of confusion and not knowing where you are.”
“Understood, Director.”
“Got it.”
“Scene One, Shot Two. Ready, Action!”
In the silent corridor, the lights cast a deathly pale glow. Black shadows fell on the walls like monsters that would eat people. The only vivid brightness was that figure not far ahead, robed in deep blue.
Celine’s gaze passed Devin and landed on the corpses. The next moment, he raised his hand with noble grace. Threads of deep blue light flowed from his fingers. Spiritual Power hovered and circled in the air, dispersing into the bodies of the deceased.
Devin’s eyes reflected the soft blue light. This was the second time he’d seen a merman cast magic—not surprising, but certainly not without any thought. Wherever the Spiritual Power passed, it was like dead wood meeting spring, vitality bursting forth, as beautiful as an illusion.
Li Ran: “Cut!”
“One, two, three, okay, up!”
A moment later, faint murmurs sounded out of place in the corridor. As the blue light gradually faded, the corpses lying on the ground began to rustle and stir, propping up their upper bodies with faces full of bewilderment.
“Ugh… What happened?”
“My head’s so dizzy… What’s going on?”
“Ugh… Ugh… Where did all this blood come from… Ugh…”
“Waaah, Mother, Mother, I want my mother.”
“Ah, my arm hurts so much! It’s going to break! Save me, someone save me!”
Wails rose and fell. The people killed by the pirates had regained their lives—but only their lives. Their wounds hadn’t fully healed; severed limbs hadn’t seamlessly reattached. Spiritual Power was limited; this was the best Celine could do.
“Resurrection?” Devin found it bizarre. He laughed a few times, unreadable: “How incredible.”
Just then,
“You check over there for survivors.”
“I think I heard crying.”
“I heard it too, there is crying!”
“Let’s go, hurry and check!”
“Halt.” Li Ran suddenly called out: “Do it again. Someone got up too fast just now. Pay attention, don’t overdo it.”
The retake went well, everyone on point.
The rescue team came down to the corridor. The scene was truly gruesome. Every single one of them wore expressions of unbearable pity. The leader commanded: “Carry the wounded to our ship. Quick, the fire is spreading this way.”
“Duke Devin, it’s chaotic here. Please, go up first.” Simon finished speaking and walked toward Devin. He hadn’t paid close attention earlier, but when Devin slightly turned, he widened his eyes, his heart skipping a beat.
Devin seemed to sense something and turned his head. That merman had silently appeared behind him, his gaze clear and pure, as if nothing had happened.
“This is…?”
He shouldn’t have asked, but Celine’s presence was too strong. For an instant, Simon was captivated by such a flawless appearance. Their surroundings were filthy, decayed, and broken; only that person stood apart, solitary and transcendent.
Double images gradually appeared before his eyes. Simon couldn’t distinguish reality from dream. This guest had followed his parents to North Scale Bay for the jewelry trade. They were attacked by pirates, and both his parents died. At the critical moment, Duke Devin saved him. Duke Devin saw he had no home to return to and ultimately decided to take him in.
Simon, under mental control, opened and closed his mouth: “The Duke saved him. The Duke is sending him back to the mainland. I’ll go prepare a room for this guest right away. He should stay next to the Duke.”
Simon immediately turned, as if to go and relay the message.
In the shadows, Devin’s expression was unreadable. Time and again, his bottom line was tested. He changed his mind. Since that was the case, he would make the person stay.
The Duke of the Central Realm Kingdom was never one to be bound by rules. Use him to get to the mainland? Well then, he wanted to see what tricks this merman could pull on his turf.
He stepped closer, looming over that face: “Latching onto me comes at a cost. For example…”
Celine’s waistband was hooked and pulled forward. A murmur like a lover’s lowered upon him: “Your freedom.”
.
After smoothly filming both shots, it was nearly noon. Fan Wenbo had ordered boxed meals, which the staff distributed to everyone.
Lin Qinghe held his boxed meal with a rather novel expression. Inside was one vegetable dish, two meat dishes, plus a chicken leg—steaming hot, and looked decent.
“Qinghe.” Li Ran came over.
“Brother Li.”
“Mhm.” Li Ran had also been given a boxed meal. Holding his chopsticks in one hand, he said, “After we finish eating, we’ll shoot your scenes. In the second scene, you’ll need to go underwater—filming inside the glass tank. Mentally prepare yourself. Once this is done, your work for the day is over. Go home, take a hot bath, and rest well.”
According to the plot, this second scene should have come first. But since getting in the water would ruin the makeup, it was arranged last. Besides, the weather wasn’t exactly hot yet. Li Ran was worried Lin Qinghe’s constitution couldn’t handle it.
“I’ll have someone boil a few kettles of hot water to mix into the tank. It might still feel cold, so bear with it.”
Lin Qinghe had no objections and said professionally, “I’m fine with it.”
“Alright.” Li Ran said briskly: “Let’s eat.”
Halfway through his meal, Jiang Nian set his boxed meal down in front of him and sat down naturally, saying, “Keeping you company. Saw you were alone.”
He lifted his eyes: “Senior Brother.”
Jiang Nian acknowledged him: “Never touched acting at all before? Your performance was quite good.”
“Thank you.” Lin Qinghe thought Jiang Nian was just being polite with praise. He responded: “I’ve touched on it, but only the surface. The teacher taught much; it was I who couldn’t learn it.”
“Not necessarily that you can’t learn.” With his rich experience in the acting circle, Jiang Nian was an excellent judge of people. Lin Qinghe’s image was suited to specific roles, but he didn’t elaborate: “Tomorrow there are scenes with the two leads interacting. Might have close proximity and contact again.”
