I Keep Getting Thrown into Love Triangles While Striving on a Survival Show

My new story, The True, the Good, and the Beautiful at the Peak of a Subconscious Livestream Survival Show, is now underway.

Livestream + comments + holograms + beautiful, tragic, and strong~

240414 Main story complete

240814 Extras complete

The full afterword is in the author's notes for Extra 42 and Chapter 238~

If there are any more extras for this story, they'll be released as bonus chapters~

From an author who only figured out the bonus-chapter rules today

*Not based on real people. Every character is imagined with an anime-style face.

[I love revising my work] I'm not responsible for errors in pirated copies.

The story mainly follows the survival show's filming schedule.

It follows the filming timeline, with lots of detail, character descriptions, and inner thoughts. You could also call it:

Five Months at the Training Camp Before Debuting in the Center Position

The Days I Worked Hard on a Survival Show After Being Reborn

If you're looking for a passionate, fast-paced, high-powered wish-fulfillment story, this may not be for you!

Gu Yening has been reborn!

He returns to the initial evaluation of the survival show Starlight Shines, the very show that led to him being bullied, ostracized, reviled, cyberbullied, and ultimately abandoned by everyone in his past life:

Heavy eyeliner, a leather jacket, and a red rose: the very picture of a tacky, wannabe tough guy.

Gu Yening: ...Let me take off my makeup first.

This time around, he plans to avoid trouble, aim for the center position, and follow a hard-work-pays-off path.

Gu Yening: Since you all hate me so much, I'll just focus on my career.

He'll steer clear of trouble, work on both his looks and skills, and craft a persona that won't put off the audience:

He can't be too laid-back, or he'll get criticized.

He can't be too ambitious, or he'll get criticized.

He can't be too quiet, or he'll get criticized.

He can't be too outgoing, or he'll get criticized.

He can't be too close to anyone, or he'll get accused of fanservice.

He can't be too distant from anyone, or he'll be called an outcast.

Secret crushes, open crushes, and surging feelings swirl around him, but he remains unmoved.

Unwittingly, he creates a battlefield of romantic entanglements, then just as unwittingly declares them all his friends forever.

Important:

*The plot comes first! A traditional survival-show story! No romance! Idols have no business dating!

*The protagonist is adored by everyone in both lives, but everyone else's feelings for him are unrequited. He won't reciprocate or flirt! He's a man who will debut in the center position by a landslide!

TIPS:

1. A traditional survival-show story, based on the formats and unspoken rules of the Chinese, Korean, and Japanese Produce 101-style shows, with many fictionalized details. There is a golden finger, but it's very minor.

2. Please treat the protagonist as completely asexual. He will never feel “love” for anyone. Everyone has unrequited feelings for him, but he won't flirt, and there is no romance plot. He only feels friendship, family affection, or camaraderie toward others. He's not responsible for returning anyone else's affection.

3. This is realistic fiction. When faced with trouble, the protagonist confronts people directly or gives them a face-slapping comeback. But scenes where he punches someone just because he dislikes them, or similar feel-good wish fulfillment, are basically nonexistent. In real life, he'd be condemned from every angle and possibly kicked off the show for doing that.

4. The bonds between the debut group and the upper-ranked contestants are an idealized vision of a survival show. They're among the few unrealistic aspects of this otherwise realistic story.

5. There are forum posts, on-screen comments, fan reactions, and shipping content. Skip them if you don't like them. They're just fans entertaining themselves and have nothing to do with the protagonist.

6. The future life is an idealized world; the past life is realistic.

Beautiful, tragic, and strong. “I'm not as great as you think, but I'm not that bad either.” “The blood, sweat, and tears I've shed will never betray me.” A hardworking male protagonist who believes effort will be rewarded.

*There's no need to tell me if you're dropping the story. Everyone has their own preferred style.

Maybe our paths will cross again~

Moral: On the road to pursuing your dreams, a steadfast will and an indomitable spirit will always lead you to success.