Chapter 10: "Harry Potter"

“How can there be such clichéd plots!” Zhou Ran had just finished recording his show and returned to the hotel, intending to read an online novel to experience the literary culture of Blue Star. But little did he know—once he started reading, he was shocked. The development of novels on this planet was far too backward. It was so slow that Zhou Ran could hardly believe it.

On Earth, online novels had long since blossomed into a myriad of genres: Cthulhu-inspired, mortal cultivation, time-travel, even interactive book review styles. Yet Blue Star was still stuck in the era of all-powerful protagonists dominating the story, much like Earth in 2003—a truly primitive age. There were no stories about the Great Wilderness, no broken engagements, no system-driven plots. All that existed were invincible main characters who crushed their opponents from the outset, endlessly flaunting their superiority, humiliating others, and repeating this cycle until the story ended. The most astonishing thing was that such books were incredibly popular, and their authors earned fortunes.

Zhou Ran could barely keep reading. With stories of such quality, he could easily take any classic from his previous life and surpass them all. This situation stirred his heart; he wanted to introduce the classics from his previous world and cleanse the readers’ palates. Yet Zhou Ran hesitated: online novels often ran into millions of words. He simply didn’t have the time—he needed to record shows, head to the studio to produce music, and attend various program invitations. After much consideration, Zhou Ran abandoned the idea of plagiarizing online novels, as daily updates would be too troublesome.

But he had already discovered a business opportunity, and giving up now felt impossible. After pondering for ten or twenty minutes, Zhou Ran finally devised a solution. If online novels wouldn’t work, then he’d turn to physical books.

Zhou Ran decided to let Blue Star’s readers witness the power of Harry Potter—the seven-book series by J.K. Rowling. The first book, “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone,” was published in 1997 by a small press. The money-making ability of Harry Potter was terrifying—it was practically a printing press for cash.

The series had been translated into seventy or eighty languages and sold a total of 500 million copies worldwide. Each new book sold better than the last, creating an ever-more intense Harry Potter whirlwind, and was regarded as a legend in the publishing world. But this wasn’t the most astounding aspect—the real marvel was in the film adaptations. The movies based on Harry Potter became the highest-grossing film series in history, with global box office revenue reaching a staggering $7.8 billion. There were countless Harry Potter-themed products, even games. Scholars coined the term “Harry Potter Effect” because of its cultural impact. J.K. Rowling, thanks to this series, rose from nothing to become one of the highest-earning authors in the world, achieving financial freedom through Harry Potter alone.

This novel perfectly fit young people’s tastes—it had the thrill points necessary for web fiction, moments of humor, and never felt too dull. Most importantly, Harry Potter could help Zhou Ran open the door to film adaptations; after all, his mind harbored a treasure trove of stories. And before Zhou Ran traveled to Blue Star, the entire Harry Potter series had already concluded, so he wouldn’t need to worry about updates.

Zhou Ran acted immediately, opening his laptop to begin editing. Sitting before the computer, he closed his eyes—not rushing to write, but recalling the storyline. The entire plot of “Harry Potter” surfaced in Zhou Ran’s mind, as if etched there. Although he hadn’t gained any system or cheat-like abilities after crossing worlds, his memory seemed enhanced. Anything he’d ever seen or read in his previous life was remembered perfectly; if he focused, he could recall every detail—even punctuation marks!

In other words, Zhou Ran’s memory now resembled a computer database. Whatever he needed, he simply accessed it. After mentally reviewing the plot, Zhou Ran began typing. Although his writing speed wasn’t as monstrous as some infamous authors, the story was already in his mind—he just needed to transcribe it, with no need to think. His slender fingers flew across the keyboard.

On the computer screen appeared the title of the first chapter of the first Harry Potter book:

“The Boy Who Lived”

The Dursleys of Number Four, Privet Drive, always bragged that they were a perfectly normal family, thank you very much. They did not hold with strange or mysterious things, because they simply didn’t believe in such nonsense.

The first book was around 200,000 words; Zhou Ran planned to finish it in five days, recording songs in the studio by day and happily writing in the hotel by night. Though it seemed somewhat dull with no time to go out, Zhou Ran felt perfectly content—busy, yet fulfilled.

“At last, the book is finished,” Zhou Ran smiled at the completed content on his computer, stretching lazily. He had written himself a money-making machine that would bring in steady income. Next, he needed to submit it for publication—a process he wasn’t familiar with, so he planned to message Li Mi for recommendations on good publishers.

Just as Zhou Ran was about to contact Li Mi, his phone rang. The caller was Bai Ning.

“Hello! Sister Bai Ning, what’s up?” Zhou Ran answered.

“Xiao Ran, your song has reached number one on the Newcomer Chart. I was worried you might not know and wanted to let you know.”

Zhou Ran wasn’t surprised by the result—after all, “Sunny Day” had always been at the top of the charts in his previous world.

“But your online reputation is unusually high, and your popularity has shot up to third place on Weibo. There may be people trying to set you up for a fall. The program team is investigating, so be careful until things are clear,” Bai Ning warned him over the phone.

“Alright, I understand,” Zhou Ran replied.

“So someone wants to sabotage me?” Zhou Ran pondered after hanging up. “Who could it be?” He thought back to whether his former self had any enemies, but after much reflection, he realized his previous incarnation was practically invisible, with a pitifully small social circle.

It was likely someone from the program team—a case of stepping on someone else’s toes.