Huayu 2004: Starting with The Return of the Condor Heroes

The room wasn't big; there was a long table by the window, and three people were sitting behind it.

In the very center is a middle-aged man in his forties, with a square face, thick eyebrows, and a serious expression, directed by Yu Min.

On the left is the assistant director, and on the right is the casting director; each of them has a stack of documents spread out in front of them.

On the open ground opposite the table, there was a video camera and a simple microphone.

This is the audition venue.

Simple, but professional.

"Hello, I'm Lin Hao, I'm seventeen years old."

After standing still, Lin Hao introduced himself in a humble yet assertive manner.

Yu Min looked up and sized him up for a few seconds.

"Seventeen?"

"Yes."

"Formally trained?"

"I haven't taken the art exam yet."

Yu Min and the assistant director next to her exchanged a glance.

A high school student who has never even taken the art exam comes to audition for a role in a serious drama. To be honest, this situation is not uncommon. Every time there is a casting call, there are always some young people who are too arrogant to wait and try their luck.

But most people end up giving themselves away as soon as they open their mouths and are then politely asked to leave.

However, Yu Min was in a pretty good mood today.

I looked at more than twenty this morning and picked out three that are pending. The progress is not bad.

Moreover, although the young man in front of me is young, he has a rather interesting demeanor. He stands there without being intimidated, and his gaze is steady, unlike others who become stiff as soon as they enter.

His appearance is beyond reproach; he has sharp eyebrows and bright eyes, regular features, and stands tall and straight at 1.8 meters.

"You dared to audition for Zhen Zhibing at the age of seventeen, your courage is commendable." Yu Min leaned back in her chair, her tone neither warm nor cold. "Then I won't hold back and will play the scene where Zhen Zhibing tries to assault Xiaolongnu. It will be a performance without props, without too many lines. Just bring out Zhen Zhibing's inner state at that moment."

Upon hearing this, the people waiting outside the door gasped in shock.

The undecided contestants waiting in the corridor looked at each other in bewilderment.

During their auditions, they mostly played scenes of Zhen Zhibing's daily life, such as talking to his senior brothers, practicing martial arts, or staring blankly at Xiaolongnu from afar.

While these scenes also required portraying the complexity of Zhen Zhibing's character, the difficulty was on a completely different level compared to the "violation of Xiaolongnu" scene.

The core of that scene is to portray the entire psychological process of a person going from repression to explosion, from struggle to depravity, solely through one's own facial expressions and body language, without any props or opponents.

This isn't an audition, it's like an extra question on a final exam!

"Is the director deliberately making things difficult for him?" someone muttered.

"Not necessarily, maybe they just want to test his potential."

"What upper limit? Even if the King of Heaven himself came, it wouldn't be easy to act out this kind of nonsensical, perverted drama, would it?"

Lin Hao himself rolled his eyes inwardly.

A 17-year-old high school student was able to portray a pervert remotely through a performance without any props.

Who could stand this?!

But he didn't show it on his face, he just nodded.

"Can."

Yu Min raised an eyebrow. This kid is quite composed.

The stage manager made the decision.

"Snap"

Lin Hao closed his eyes briefly.

three seconds.

He quickly constructed a scene in his mind.

Inside the ancient tomb, the moonlight was as clear as water.

Little Dragon Girl was immobilized by pressure points and lay on her back on the stone bed.

Zhen Zhibing stood in front of her.

This person is contradictory.

He was a disciple of the Quanzhen School of Taoism, and from a young age he learned the Three Cardinal Guides and Five Constant Virtues, as well as moral ethics. He knew that what he was about to do was wrong, heinous, and would lead to his eternal damnation.

But he couldn't control himself.

His infatuation with Xiaolongnu had permeated every nerve of his body like a poison.

He fears.

He was excited.

He felt disgusted with himself.

But he still walked on step by step, driven by desire.

When Lin Hao opened his eyes, his expression had changed.

He was no longer the sunny and sharp-witted young man he once was.

Instead, there was a gaze that almost made one physically uncomfortable.

His gaze was initially unfocused, as if searching for something, or perhaps trying to escape from something.

Then it gradually coalesced and focused on an unseen point, which was in the direction where "Little Dragon Girl" was located.

His lips trembled slightly.

His facial muscles were twitching slightly, and a thin layer of sweat had even appeared on his forehead.

These details are Lin Hao's "emotional memories" from his previous life. He recalled the frustration, anger, and extreme repression he felt when he was betrayed by his company in his previous life, and grafted them onto the character of Zhen Zhibing.

Different situations, similar emotional core: the process of a person gradually giving up the struggle when faced with something they know they shouldn't do.

His hand slowly reached out.

My fingertips trembled slightly in the air.

The expression on his face went through hesitation, fear, excitement, and self-loathing in just a few seconds, finally settling on an almost insane determination.

Then he abruptly pulled his hand back!

He clutched his head, bent over in pain, and trembled all over.

A few seconds later.

When he straightened up again, there was no longer any struggle in his eyes.

All that remained was a chilling... calm.

That was a person's last moment of peace before he completely fell into depravity.

Then he reached out his hand and took a step forward...

"Click!!"

Yu Min called a halt.

The room was quiet for about five seconds.

then

"Holy crap..."

The few people peeking through the door were the first to break their silence.

"Is this guy a born freak?!"

"That's incredibly skilled! You must do this all the time!"

"Bro, I'm impressed! You're truly blessed with natural talent! You can be an actor or you can stay in jail!"

The assistant director's lips twitched, and the casting director stared at Lin Hao in disbelief, forgetting to put down his pen.

Yu Min herself was also taken aback.

To be honest, he looked at more than twenty people this morning, and none of them could perform with this kind of quality.

Those few who are still pending have at best achieved the "likeness" of someone else, like a pervert secretly coveting others.

But this kid... he didn't just "look like" the character; he "is" a pervert secretly coveting something.

The psychological arc from repression to explosion to depravity becomes smooth and fluid, and most importantly, the final gesture of stopping.

Zhen Zhibing's hesitation and retreat at the last moment, and then his determination, were perfectly portrayed by a simple "head-holding" gesture.

This shows that this kid not only has acting skills, but also an understanding of the character.

Although the overall performance was still a bit raw, given the young age, and the emotions conveyed in some parts were not yet deep enough, it was commendable that the performer put in the effort.

This depth of understanding of the character can compensate for technical deficiencies.

In her mind, Yu Min moved Lin Hao from "a passerby" to "a backup option".

But of course, you can't say it out loud.

"Alright, go outside and wait."

Lin Hao nodded and turned to walk out.

As soon as I reached the door, I was surrounded by several auditionees waiting in line.

"Hey bro, which school did you go to? Did you study acting?"

"Wow! How did you manage that with your hand shaking just now?"

"That final clutch to the head was absolutely brilliant; it gave me goosebumps!"

Lin Hao smiled politely and dealt with each of them.

But what he was thinking about was something else entirely.

On the system panel, the acting level of the character "Zhen Zhibing" has been lit up.

Although he hasn't received his salary yet, he has already memorized the correspondence between his level and his price.

[800 per episode, fitting the character, unforgettable.]

[One episode, 1000 words, deeply resonating with audiences, achieving classic status.]

[1500 per episode, reflecting reality, indistinguishable from the real thing.]

[2000 episodes, Heavenly Rank Battle Techniques, Ghost Possession.]

The total pay for the role of Zhen Zhibing is 2000 yuan per episode, which means that 2000 yuan is enough to bring the acting skills to the highest level.

This is only the price for a supporting role...

If I ever get to play the male lead, earning hundreds of thousands per episode, wouldn't that be...?

The phrase "middlemen make a profit" flashed through Lin Hao's mind once again.

However, before the beautiful blueprint could even unfold, reality dealt him a heavy blow.