The Path to Lordship Begins in the North

It's finished!!!

To be honest, I never thought I would be able to write an author's note. After all, it started out of interest. I was really happy when I found out that people liked reading my novel.

Because this is my first book, there are many shortcomings in various aspects. I am very grateful to my readers who have been so kind and tolerant all along. I am truly grateful. Without you, I probably wouldn't have been able to persevere until now.

When I first started writing the book, I didn't think too much about it. I just came up with a rough story and started writing with the idea that "this might be very interesting." But to be honest, writing a novel is not as easy as I imagined, because as the plot develops and the story progresses, many situations may arise that even the author did not expect.

So as you can see, many plot twists are very abrupt and melodramatic, which is one of the factors that everyone has been criticizing. I finally understand why a certain author I like said that writing a book is a painful yet joyful thing. Filling in the gaps while digging new ones, it is indeed a painful yet joyful experience.

Of course, a mother doesn't dislike her child for being ugly. No matter what this book is like, it's still my own creation. I like this book, and I like everyone else too.

However, compared to those abrupt plot twists, the character I found most difficult to write about in the whole book was Isa, because she was too idealistic and very intelligent.

From the very beginning of writing the book, I determined that Linde would eventually become the sole ruler of the empire, and there would be no other political system. After all, in this worldview, the top priority should be to achieve unification.

Therefore, it was determined from the beginning that Isha would not be the female lead and would sacrifice herself. I originally wanted to arrange a grand funeral for Isha during the final battle in the northern border of the Golden Harvest Plains, because logically and emotionally, Isha should die halfway through, and then be elevated to a higher level.

But I can't do it. I suddenly remembered some novels I had read before. I don't want to see chapters that deliberately torture characters to death and then elevate or preach them. I'm just an ordinary person. I want a happy ending, where everyone makes dumplings together in the end, and many characters escape death because of this.

As for the next book, it will still be a Western fantasy, but it won't be a farming novel or a traditional knight adventure; instead, it will be a modern Western fantasy.

Potions, dreams, and gods.

Blood, disease, and sacrifice.

Steam, machinery, and metropolis.

Esoteric Buddhism, believers, and ascension.

The protagonist transmigrates into the body of a surgeon in a remote fishing village, who is also the only parish doctor.

Well, this time the protagonist won't have to rely on his wife's savings like Linde did. His start will be much smoother than Linde's, and he won't have as many worries. It's a typical "power fantasy" story. (There won't be any situations where the protagonist is already capable of creating a star but still compromises. If there's a trolley problem, I hope the protagonist can just create a trolley and make it fly.)

To be honest, I was hesitant about traditional cultivation novels versus this genre before. After all, as you know, apart from one novel I really like (specifically the first one), the rest of this genre has been very poor. Even some excellent works are critically acclaimed but not commercially successful. However, I still dared to try it out.

But before that, please allow me to take a short break.

With the New Year approaching, there are many things to prepare in real life. Moreover, I finished writing this book without taking a single day off, which even I find somewhat unbelievable. Therefore, I plan to take a short break and also sort out the outline of the new book, write more drafts, and avoid making the same avoidable mistakes as with this book.

I'll probably take a break for about half a month, and I'll start serializing it right after the busy Chinese New Year period is over.

There will be three more bonus chapters, or rather, an epilogue, which I will release together tonight. With that, the book will be truly finished. In any case, thank you for reading my novel.

I would also like to wish everyone a Happy New Year in advance. Let's raise a glass together and hope that everyone lives well in the new year, and that you all have a harmonious and happy ending in life.