Afterword

【Q&A Session】

Q: Is it finished?

A: Yes, it’s finished.

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Q: How do you feel about the ending?

A: It’s the kind of calm and simple ending I like.

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Q: By the way, are you a newcomer?

A: Both yes and no. It’s not my first time writing a book, but my previous works were all fanfiction, so my skill level with cultivation-themed simulation was a bit lower. Back then, my mindset hadn’t fully shifted.

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Q: What made you choose to publish on Tomato (Fanqie)?

A: When I started, I felt this kind of story would have a lot of everyday, slice-of-life moments. If it were behind a paywall, many readers might skip those parts to save money. So I wanted to offer free reading so most readers could enjoy a complete experience.

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Q: Do you think you wrote well?

A: I’d say it’s average. I really want to hype myself up, but I’m also realistic. In the middle and later stages of the book, inspiration inevitably started to run dry. Luckily, it still landed smoothly.

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Q: Does the simulator have an origin, or was it created by the Xu Xi system?

A: The current setting is that Xu Xi is a self-contained closed loop. In early drafts, there was an origin leaning towards the Daoist sect, but I thought it wasn’t necessary. Since it’s almost the finale, I didn’t want to add any tragedy, so I removed that setting.

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Q: Why is it called Xu Xi?

A: The surname was chosen randomly. The character “Xi” actually means system, because when I was outlining, I always felt Xu Xi was like a “grandpa with a cheat code,” handing out power-ups to the heroines.

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Q: After finishing this book, when do you plan to start a new one?

A: Planning to rest for two months. I’ve thought about a few ideas, but none of them sparked a strong urge yet, so I want to take a break first.

【Author’s Note】

Before I knew it, this book has reached one million words.

I started writing on September 10th, 2024, but counting from when I truly began outlining, it’s been a full year.

On my computer desktop, I always kept a TXT document to store inspirations for this book. Every time I finished a section of the story, I’d delete parts of the outline and add new ideas.

Just now.

Having finished all the storylines, I deleted the entire outline from that document.

Staring at the blank page, I opened and closed it about ten times, finally feeling the true weight of completion.

The document was created on July 9th, 2024.

Coincidentally, today is exactly one year later—no more, no less.

No more updates will be needed.

The story of Xu Xi is now set in stone, exactly one year later.

Should I say thank you? That doesn’t feel quite right. I’m just very happy so many people enjoyed this work and followed Xu Xi to the very end.

The completion of a book is never just the author’s achievement.

Every reader who saw it through to the end was part of this effort.

I’m simply the one who worked the hardest.

That’s all.

There probably won’t be any extras or side stories. To hit the one million word count, I really racked my brain (laughs).

Anyway, thank you all for supporting this book.

Although I rarely interact in the story itself, I remember every active reader. I truly appreciate each and every one of you.

Whether you sent gifts or left comments, everyone expressed support in their own way.

From posting twice a day, to once a day, to frequent breaks.

Although the journey was tough, in the end, completing over a million words is truly something to celebrate.

For now, farewell. I’ll be back to surprise you all again someday.