Chapter 260 — Epilogue

New Book Release: *Prequel to Slaying the Immortals: The Savage Wilds*

At long last I've filled in one of the pits I dug over a decade ago. It's now readable on Qidian; the book number is 1003606291, or you can just search *Savage Wilds* directly on Qidian and find it—provided, of course, that the pen name is Yunhai Library.

*Savage Wilds* tells the story of Wan Jiangu, Daoyan, Zhuque, Tian Buhui, Cangsong, Su Wan, Shuiyue—the story of that generation, that is, the story of Xiaofan's masters and mistresses.

Many friends may not even know this book exists, so I'm telling you all here: those who like these characters can go and take a look.

*Savage Wilds* totals two hundred thousand words. Apart from the final chapter, which will be charged for, the rest will be released free of charge—a gesture, if you will, to the fans who love *Slaying the Immortals*. When I wrote this short piece, I never considered profit, so I discussed it with Qidian and we agreed it would be entirely free; but because Qidian's channel arrangements for recommendations differ between free and paid books, we had no choice but to charge for the last chapter.

I wrote this story with my heart, and when I finished, I let out a long breath. Looking back, I feel it's not bad.

Actually, these people and these events had been circling in my mind for a long time. The reason I chose to write them now is that they had piled up for far too long, and I myself wanted to see whether I could still tell this story well.

In the end I found—ha!—it's passable. I don't know how you'll feel after reading it; I hope I haven't let you down.

So let this *Prequel to Slaying the Immortals: The Savage Wilds* be dedicated to those friends who loved *Slaying the Immortals* in the past, who love it now, or who will love it in the future.

Thank you all, my dear readers, for your affection. I will do my best to write more and better works. (To be continued.

)

New Book: *Heaven's Shadow*

Ten years have passed since *Slaying the Immortals*, and in these ten years far too many stories have piled up in my mind. What is past must pass. Often I recall those days of writing—joy and sorrow, anger and delight accompanied me every day, and I would fall in love with the stories I wrote and the characters I created. In those moments I was happy.

And so

came this new book, titled *Heaven's Shadow*.

Ten years ago and now are utterly different. *Savage Wilds* was written to settle a few regrets in my heart, and there are many gaps still unfilled—perhaps, if I get the chance later, I'll fill in a few more.

The story of *Heaven's Shadow* was conceived over a long time, and I thought about it a great deal. My way of telling stories is a little different, and this story is different too. It will be a tale longer even than *Slaying the Immortals*; I wrote it with great care, and with deep feeling.

Whether it's Black Wolf or Lu Chen, whether it's Old Ma or Dingdang—each vivid character made me rejoice in their joy and grieve in their sorrow.

I once wondered: if I were to write a completely new story, how exactly should I go about it? This year the chance happened to come—I traveled to a small city called Xuan'en County in Hubei, a place of enchanting scenery. At the time, a group of us were strolling through a small village near the county town; the village was called Qingshuitang Village. Beautiful scenery all the way, streams all the way—and it was then that I began to conceive how the story of *Heaven's Shadow* should be written.

Starting from Qingshuitang Village, the story of *Heaven's Shadow* gradually surfaced in my mind. After returning, I set to work sorting through all kinds of materials, began to construct the grand setting, the plot, the characters—and only now have I written out the opening of the story.

To this day, *Slaying the Immortals* still lives in the hearts of many readers. Perhaps one day *Heaven's Shadow* will be branded deeply in your hearts as well, and you too will remember that there was such a group of people, in the story of *Heaven's Shadow*, with all their joys and sorrows!

Finally, I wish you all happiness and joy.

Remember—visit Qidian often, and cast your votes for *Heaven's Shadow* as it's released! (To be continued.)