CH 9

Today's scene to be filmed is a grand spectacle, gathering various immortal sects and prestigious families from [Qing Chen]. This was the reason they needed so many foreground extras to portray disciples from each sect.

Zheng Baozhu received a Taoist sword prop and stood in the designated position with Wang Jingyi. The director had just explained the scene to them. Today, they were filming the scene where disciples from various sects gathered at the male lead's doorstep, asking him to play the role of the demonic cult demon. If the male lead refused, they planned to barge in.

"This is the siege of the six major sects at Ming Summit," Zheng Baozhu whispered to Wang Jingyi beside her.

Wang Jingyi was staring in the direction of Lin Ziqin. The director was still discussing the scene with the main actors, "Do you see that actor wearing the costume over there? He's a well-known stuntman here. He will have a fight scene with Lin Ziqin later."

"Oh," Zheng Baozhu nodded. That actor's appearance wasn't particularly handsome, but he must be skilled since he was chosen for the role.

"Ah, I really want to be a stuntman. Maybe then I'll have a chance to have a fight scene with Lin Ziqin!" Wang Jingyi said.

Zheng Baozhu asked, "How can you become a stuntman?"

Wang Jingyi replied, "After running as an extra in the film and television city for one or two months, you can sign up for the stuntman exam. There are different requirements for major, medium, and minor stunts. I went to take the exam last week, but I didn't pass. Sigh."

"Oh... well, it's just about gaining more experience," Zheng Baozhu said.

"Everyone, get into position. We're about to start shooting," After the director finished talking with the main actors, they were ready to begin filming. The focus of this scene was on the male lead. Disciples like Zheng Baozhu were there to fill the scene. Their role was simple. When the leaders of their sects confronted the male lead, they would draw their swords together.

The director let them practice once before officially starting the shoot. In this scene, the male lead was facing a large group, and almost all the action belonged to Lin Ziqin. Although they hadn't reached the point where Zheng Baozhu and others drew their swords, they still had to stand there and wait.

Since the camera wasn't on them at the moment, they could relax a bit. Wang Jingyi quietly approached Zheng Baozhu and whispered, "Lin Ziqin's action scenes are so impressive, he isn't even using a stunt double!"

Zheng Baozhu had also noticed that. Although the crew had prepared a stunt double for Lin Ziqin, he didn't use one. Even the elders from the sects who fought him had stunt doubles, but Lin Ziqin insisted on doing it himself.

"He's dedicated," Zheng Baozhu said quietly.

Wang Jingyi nodded repeatedly, "Yes, nowadays many actors filming action scenes aren't trained at all. It's all slow motion and camera tricks! Lin Ziqin actually learned some martial arts before. Look how great he looks!"

Wang Jingyi, as a devoted fan of Lin Ziqin, always praised him. As they conversed, the scene was finally over, and the director let them rest for a few minutes before starting the next scene.

In the next scene, it was finally time for Zheng Baozhu and others to draw their swords!

Although there were no lines this time, there were close-up shots of them. Zheng Baozhu felt a bit nervous. Several cameras were pointed in their direction, and the actor standing in the front began delivering their lines. Zheng Baozhu didn't pay attention to what was being said; she focused on the director's voice.

"Draw your swords!" The director commanded, and everyone swiftly unsheathed their swords with a "swish, swish, swish".

"Your movements are still not synchronized enough," the director said in heavily accented Mandarin, waving his hand to stop, "Make them more synchronized, more spirited. Also, pay attention to your facial expressions. Now, you're going for a fight. Show some vigor! Let's do it again."

Everyone sheathed their swords and stood in position, waiting for the director's signal. When they drew their swords for the second time, their movements were much more synchronized. The director scrutinized them and didn't find any flaws, "Okay, this one passes."

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, except for Zheng Baozhu, who wasn't satisfied yet. The previous segment was too short, not allowing her to fully showcase her acting skills! Although they didn't have any lines in the upcoming scenes, they couldn't leave. They had to stay and fill the scene.

In winter, the daylight was short. The sky started to darken before 7 o'clock. The crew didn't know when they would wrap up today's filming. The director dismissed some people and changed the shooting location. Zheng Baozhu and Wang Jingyi were still needed, so they followed the rest of the crew to an area outside the mountains. Since it was almost dark, the specially arranged mountain area looked eerie.

With the cold wind blowing, everyone took their positions and filming quickly resumed. Zheng Baozhu continued to follow their sect leader, as they had heard that special effects actors would be appearing later. As long as they followed their sect leader, they would be able to run away.

While filming, Zheng Baozhu vaguely heard some rustling noises behind her. Maintaining a professional demeanor, she didn't turn around to check until something firmly grabbed her ankle, causing her to slightly turn her head and glance.

"Roar..." A creature with a grotesque face covered in water crawled on the ground, its blurry eyes gazing up, emitting incomprehensible growls toward Zheng Baozhu. And the one gripping her ankle was its bandaged and decayed hand.

For a brief second, Zheng Baozhu's mind went blank. She was so scared that she jumped straight up from her original spot, "Ah ah ah ah, there's a ghost!"

Her reaction was so intense that even the creature that had grabbed her was kicked away by her. Everyone on set was drawn to the commotion and looked over. The director, somewhat annoyed, waved his hand to stop the filming and asked, "What's going on? Why are you screaming?"

"What... What is that thing? It suddenly crawled out and grabbed my leg!" Zheng Baozhu, not caring about the director's anger, hopped away while pointing at the creature on the ground.

Everyone now looked down at the ground, where the creature had been kicked away by Zheng Baozhu. It seemed dazed and curled up. The director ordered the lights to be directed towards it to get a clear view and became even more furious, "What's wrong with you? It's not yet time for your scene. What are you causing a disturbance for?"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," A staff member quickly came out to apologize and picked up the special effects actor from the ground, "He probably didn't hear clearly."

"Keep an eye on your people! What are they doing, running out like that?"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," the staff member repeatedly apologized and hurriedly led the special effects actor away. The director then pointed at Zheng Baozhu and scolded, "And you, stop getting scared so easily. Show some professionalism!"

"...I'm sorry."

"Alright, let's continue filming."

The director instructed everyone to return to their positions and the shooting resumed. Zheng Baozhu thought about straightening her costume when she realized that her clothes and shoes had been stained red. The outfit she was wearing was a simple and elegant white, and the red stains were highly visible, especially the clear handprint left on her shoes by the person who had grabbed her.

"Director, my costume got stained," Zheng Baozhu could only report the situation to the director. Seeing the significant red stain on the costume, the director had someone come over and said, "Quickly get it changed, we need to keep shooting."

The costume designer hesitated and explained, "There are many extras today, these sect costumes are one set per person. We don't have any extras."

The director furrowed his brow impatiently, then turned to Zheng Baozhu and said, "In that case, you can go back for now. Return the costume and you're free to leave."

"...Alright," Zheng Baozhu waved to Wang Jingyi and followed the costume designer to return the costume. When she arrived at the Starlight Farm, it was just past 9:15 p.m. Meng Yaxin and Qu Zhi were sitting on the couch in the reading area, chatting.

Zheng Baozhu approached them and asked, "What's going on? You two are still chatting?"

Meng Yaxin held an apple with a few bites taken out of it and looked over upon hearing Zheng Baozhu's voice, "Baozhu, you're back? I just finished dinner and happened to run into Dr. Qu, so I came to plead with him to not tattle about you to your parents."

"Oh, now you're trying to fix the situation? Are you trying to fix the stable door after the horse has bolted?" Zheng Baozhu sat down on the nearby couch and asked, "Why are you still here? Aren't you supposed to be working?"

Meng Yaxin replied, "I took a vacation. I planned to treat my injuries here."

Zheng Baozhu: "..."

Qu Zhi sat on the couch across from them without saying a word. He leaned back and lowered his gaze, reading a science magazine he had taken from the hotel's bookshelf.

Meng Yaxin took another bite of her apple, producing a crisp sound, "I have to say, the apples here are really delicious. I think I'll go to the orchard and pick some tomorrow," She then curiously turned to Zheng Baozhu and asked, "Why did you come back so early? It's still early for the crew to finish work."

"Finish work early? I came back ahead of time," Zheng Baozhu shook her head, "I went to the film studio twice, but both times were unsuccessful. Maybe it's because someone passed their bad luck on to me."

"..."

Meng Yaxin glanced at Qu Zhi sitting across from them. He truly was a stoic adult, unaffected by Zheng Baozhu's misfortune. She cleared her throat a few times and asked Zheng Baozhu, "Tell me, what happened today? You didn't get into an argument with someone again, did you?"

"Of course not. Today's incident..." Zheng Baozhu vividly described the situation to Meng Yaxin, "We were in the middle of filming when we arrived at a desolate place. The night wind was howling and it was dark all around. Suddenly! I felt something grab onto me! When I turned around, oh my goodness, there was a blurry zombie-like creature crawling towards me from under my feet!"

As Zheng Baozhu reached this point, she deliberately grabbed Meng Yaxin's leg and let out a low growl. Meng Yaxin was startled and almost threw her apple away, "You, just sit there and talk. Don't touch me."

Zheng Baozhu retracted her hand and clicked her tongue, "Let me tell you, the set design, makeup effects, and atmosphere on that set were scarier than any horror game we've played before! I was so scared that I jumped up and kicked that thing away with one foot!"

"..."

Meng Yaxin pursed her lips and tentatively asked, "So the director sent you back?"

"... More or less."

"..."

You truly are something, Zheng Baozhu.

Qu Zhi, who was still reading the magazine across from them, chuckled lightly without looking up and sighed, "Let's look forward to what mishap Zheng Baozhu will cause tomorrow."

"You..." Zheng Baozhu looked like she was about to go fight Qu Zhi but was promptly restrained by Meng Yaxin.

"Haha, anyway," Meng Yaxin changed the topic, pretending to be very interested, "I heard that, Qu Zhi, you're researching artificial intelligence, right?"

"Mm," Qu Zhi responded casually.

Meng Yaxin asked with feigned curiosity, "So, can you create those human-robot hybrids like in the movies?" She sighed and continued, "It's so tiring to interact with humans. I want to buy a robot boyfriend."

Qu Zhi said, "In theory, it's possible, but it will still take some time. It will be up to my descendants to make it happen."

Zheng Baozhu exaggeratedly laughed and said, "What? Do you actually think you'll have descendants? Who would have descendants with you? Hahaha!"

"..."

Qu Zhi put down the magazine, turned his head, and walked away.