Chapter 225: I Have To Buy This Book
Gao Yiye, holding the book she had created, beamed with delight as she leafed through its pages. Li Daoxuan watched her, a smile touching his lips.
With the diorama box's "focus" feature, Li Daoxuan no longer needed a magnifying glass. By simply focusing on the book, he could instantly zoom his vision in, observing every detail. "Remarkable!" he thought, "This book is printed even better than *Generals of the Yang Family*." He realized the engravers had approached their task with profound reverence, carving each line with exquisite precision.
Gao Yiye's actual drawing skills were quite rudimentary, with many sections poorly rendered. But it didn't matter; the engravers' artistic prowess far surpassed hers, and they simply perfected her work.
If she drew a line astray, the engravers would rectify it with ten precise strokes. If she distorted Daoist Master Ma's face, they would meticulously restore it to its proper, dignified form. During the printing process, the artisans also demonstrated the utmost care, ensuring the ink flowed perfectly without smudges or blotches.
Even the final binding was impeccable, not a single page out of place. Gao Yiye, after quickly leafing through it, was ecstatic. "Oh, this is marvelous! It's printed beautifully! Let's get this book on sale immediately!"
Dao Xuan Tian Zun said, "You understand, right? For those two hundred picture books, the cost of materials, the engravers' labor, and all associated expenses—those will be your responsibility."
San Shier nodded. "If not a single copy sells, whatever the books cost, you'll have to pay that much to reimburse the village treasury. If they do sell, then the proceeds can be used to replenish the village treasury.
Any remaining surplus will then be your author's fee."
"Oh?" The Village Chief's face fell. "What kind of book is this? If it's not as good as *Generals of the Yang Family*, I won't buy it." He said this while impatiently flipping open a copy.
The Village Chief didn't even wait for the clerk to turn another page; he swiftly pulled out a handful of copper coins. "I have to buy this book!" A collective gasp swept through the onlookers, and suddenly, everyone was fumbling for their money. In the blink of an eye, all two hundred copies were sold out.
Little did he know, this phenomenon was simply Dao Xuan Tian Zun "riding a wave of the Heavenly Lord's IP popularity." How could ancient people possibly grasp such a modern concept?
"Oh?" Dao Xuan Tian Zun mused. "So if they sell out, I can still earn money? Is that what an author's fee is?"
However, the sacred image of Dao Xuan Tian Zun, depicted on the cover, was instantly recognizable to everyone.
"A new book?" The villagers leisurely browsing Gao Family Village's commercial district were instantly captivated, swarming towards the commotion.
"I'll buy one!"
He instructed the bookstore clerks to move the two hundred copies of *Dao Xuan Tian Zun's Demon-Slaying Legend* to the shelves outside the entrance. Before they were even fully displayed, he dispatched two clerks to stand at the main doorway, shouting loudly, "New books at the bookstore! New books just arrived!"
Those who failed to get a copy erupted in frustration outside the bookstore. "Are you serious? You print so few copies of such a vital book?"
Dao Xuan Tian Zun understood. San Shier had mentioned it before: the engravers' wages for this job would also be his responsibility.
San Shier was utterly caught off guard. He hastily waved his hands, announcing, "Everyone, please don't rush! The printing plates are already carved! We'll print more right away, immediately! With the plates ready, printing is very quick. It won't take more than two or three days to produce many, many more copies. I guarantee you'll all get one!"
He now spent all day selling bamboo crafts in the commercial district, so he was close to the bookstore and had arrived with incredible speed.
"How dare they?"
San Shier chuckled. "Bookstores always pay authors an author's fee for their publications. This is an established practice in the prosperous Jiangnan region, but here in our desolate little village in northern Shaanxi, few people publish, so you wouldn't be aware. Simply put, books that sell well command a high author's fee; those that don't sell well receive a small fee, or none at all. If, like you, one self-publishes and the book doesn't sell, you might even lose money."
San Shier smiled. "Mischievously self-publishing a book that doesn't sell well will lead to losses. Please, Saintess, keep this in mind."
At the forefront of the excited crowd was none other than the old Village Chief of Gao Family Village. As he looked, he couldn't help but exclaim, "Oh, my! This... this is the story of our Gao Family Village! When the Heavenly Lord first manifested, it was just like this! This old man has no divine connection and couldn't see the Heavenly Lord's hand; only that child Yiye could—"
"—see it! Who would have thought... that the scene back then looked exactly like this? It's a blessing that Yiye managed to draw it all!"
Everyone stared intently and immediately grasped the narrative: Dao Xuan Tian Zun had descended to roam the mortal realm and beheld a small, impoverished village. Bandits dwelled on a nearby mountain, and when they descended to loot, the Heavenly Lord simply stretched out a hand and, *smack*, crushed them to death.
The clerk wore a peculiar expression. "Whether this book is good or bad, I wouldn't dare say; you'd better see for yourself." The two clerks, equally perplexed, then announced, "This book was personally drawn by the Saintess herself, and its title is *Dao Xuan Tian Zun's Demon-Slaying Legend*. I'll flip through a few pages now, and you can all see for yourselves."
Dao Xuan Tian Zun now completely understood. "Then I get it!"
"Even if I have to sell my last pot and pan, I have to buy this!"
Most of the literate villagers were currently touring the new school, so they weren't here. The crowd gathered at the shop entrance was entirely illiterate, meaning not a single person recognized the written title, *Dao Xuan Tian Zun's Demon-Slaying Legend*.
Upon hearing this, the nearby villagers suddenly had an epiphany. "So, by buying this book, we can learn about the Heavenly Lord's story from when he first manifested!"
"Exactly! This is the Heavenly Lord's story; shouldn't they print many more copies?"
Hearing that the bookstore had new books, the old Village Chief instantly seemed to shed seventy years, darting to the entrance with the agility of an arrow. "Is it *Generals of the Yang Family* volume eight?" he exclaimed, practically bouncing. "Quickly, I've been dying to read it!"
San Shier said, "Before it goes on sale, I have a few words I must make clear to you."
"Everyone, stop this commotion!"
Gao Yiye asked curiously, "What's wrong?"
While its symbolic meaning outweighed its practical implications, she knew she should still abide by this rule. Otherwise, as the Saintess, if she set a bad example, others might indiscriminately appropriate village treasury resources, and that would be a very bad thing indeed.
San Shier shook his head with a smile. "Alright, you may sell them yourself."
After saying this, a clerk raised his hand and displayed *Dao Xuan Tian Zun's Demon-Slaying Legend* for everyone to see. "Oh! Isn't that the Heavenly Lord?" someone exclaimed.
The two clerks chuckled. "It's not *Generals of the Yang Family*."
This sudden commotion seriously startled the clerks, who quickly invited San Shier out to handle it. San Shier, for his part, had never imagined that Gao Yiye's whimsical picture books, with their stories cobbled together from various recollections, could sell so spectacularly.
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