After the final chapter of Pure Love was released, Su Li's follower count on Weibo actually began rising even faster than during the story's peak.
It certainly wasn't because the ending had attracted a wave of new, enthusiastic fans.
Instead, thousands of readers who had been completely tricked by the author's promises simply followed her account so it'd be easier to curse at her every day. Judging from the endless scrolling of replies under her latest post, the backlash from the readers was intense and unrelenting. The notification pings on her phone must have sounded like a constant, mocking drumbeat.
"Pure Love's ending is basically feeding us poison and garbage! I'm never reading your work again! But I'll still come to your Weibo every day just to roast you."
"That scumbag male lead Yang Ming dying is fine. I hated him anyway. But why couldn't you give Xu Jing a better ending? She already suffered so much in those earlier chapters. Couldn't you show even a little sympathy for your own creation?"
"I think Su Li must be a fan of Urobuchi Gen. She deliberately created an almost total annihilation ending just to mess with innocent readers like us. I admit she pulled off a huge stunt, though. I probably won't ever forget Pure Love for the rest of my life! Xu Jing goddess forever!"
"I'm seriously pissed off! That sudden shift in tone at the ending came completely out of nowhere. It's straight-up toxic to the fans who supported you!"
"When I saw Xu Jing at the beach in that pure white dress at the end, looking so beautiful it almost hurt, tears instantly came to my eyes. I just wanted to jump into the page and hug her…"
"Yang Qianqian's character is disgusting. Just to force Xu Jing into a tragic ending, the author suddenly made Yang Qianqian absolutely loyal to her brother Yang Ming forever. That's ridiculous. In reality there'd never be such an extreme 'Good Boat' ending. Sailing toward the sunset while holding a severed head? That's beyond gross. You must have done it on purpose to traumatize us!"
"I will just laugh and repost your earlier promises so everyone can see how scheming you are. Every time you said Pure Love would end with a happy ending. Turns out you were just baiting more readers into the pit before harvesting them all at once. I see through you now. Wow, society's really dangerous. Wait, why don't you go eat shit? Livestream yourself eating shit for the fans!"
Seeing the flood of angry comments from the Pure Love readers on Weibo, Zhao Youyue couldn't help smiling slightly while she reclined in her room.
After all, this really was Su Li's fault.
If Su Li hadn't suddenly taken such an interest in Xu Jing's character and started scheming around her, Zhao Youyue could've quietly continued studying in peace within the manga world. As Xu Jing's host, Zhao Youyue naturally felt she had to retaliate for the creator's constant interference.
Besides the direct attacks on Su Li's Weibo, the arguments about Xu Jing's character were becoming more and more heated across every forum and tieba.
About seventy percent of the readers stood firmly on Xu Jing's side. They sympathized deeply with her tragic journey and believed Su Li killing her off at the end was basically the author deliberately going against the readers just to upset them. Some readers even claimed that after seeing the ending, they would probably remain depressed for at least ten or fifteen days.
There are also readers who liked attracting attention by taking unconventional, contrarian stances. These people chose to criticize Xu Jing instead. Their arguments sounded like this:
"If you look at the entire story of Pure Love, the person who caused the most trouble was actually Xu Jing. That's right. This female character's the real culprit behind the manga's tragic ending. Some people just get emotional. They see Xu Jing's miserable background and how she always looks like a diligent student, so they automatically sympathize with her. But in reality, this character's extremely scheming. Her calculations run too deep.
Her values are questionable. She always takes things to extremes. If she hadn't stirred up trouble everywhere, the male lead wouldn't have turned into a scumbag. Then everyone could have been happy. So Xu Jing's tragic ending's deserved. She basically brought it on herself."
"Pitiful people often have hateful sides. A woman like Xu Jing's honestly terrifying. She is basically the natural enemy of men. As a straight guy, I dislike two things about her. First, she goes for girls, stealing female resources. Second, she secretly manipulates Yang Ming's life behind the scenes. I have no idea what Su Li was thinking when she created such a troublemaking character.
She isn't even part of the male lead's harem. That already deviates completely from the route of a harem manga. Thankfully my mental endurance's strong; otherwise, I would have dropped this manga long ago. In short, Xu Jing dying at the end isn't bad at all. At least she won't keep living with that miserable expression that annoys people."
When comments like these appeared, Xu Jing's loyal supporters immediately couldn't sit still. They jumped in to defend her with frantic typing and heated replies.
"What's wrong with Xu Jing scheming against the male lead for the sake of true love? If Yang Ming had shown even a little responsibility and didn't fall for temptation like some creature that only thinks with his lower body, her schemes would never have worked. Yet somehow people are acting like everything's Xu Jing's fault. The logic some people have's truly amazing! Yang Ming was born a scumbag. He deserved to die. Xu Jing was innocent!
Unfortunately, she was blind and fell in love with another scumbag, Yang Qianqian. Sure enough, those siblings really are cut from the same cloth. Yang Qianqian used Xu Jing from beginning to end, treating her like a substitute before kicking her away at the end. And somehow people still praise Yang Qianqian for being loyal and devoted.
If she loved her brother so much, why didn't she reject Xu Jing directly from the start and let Xu Jing fall in love with studying instead? I believe Xu Jing was strong, but later she clearly sank deeper and deeper into despair. That tragic ending can only make me sigh. But no matter what, I still say this: the soul of Pure Love is Xu Jing. Only Xu Jing truly deserves the words 'Pure Love.'"
"I will always support my goddess Xu Jing! To be blunt, if Xu Jing didn't exist, could this second-rate cliché harem manga have ever become popular? I never expected some people had say she deserved to die and brought it on herself. When you say that, doesn't your conscience hurt?"
"If Xu Jing goddess didn't exist, you clowns wouldn't even have the chance to make exaggerated comments just to attract attention. I suspect the ending traumatized you so badly that you deliberately posted those opinions just to provoke arguments."
Watching countless readers argue endlessly over Xu Jing's character, perhaps even continuing the debate for years, Zhao Youyue knew she had truly succeeded in creating a classic female character.
Inside her mind, she could see the mysterious Dimension Gate again, its surface shimmering with an otherworldly light.
On the gate's surface, a new card had appeared.
It depicted a two-dimensional character in exquisite detail. Xu Jing stood there wearing a pure white dress, her hair pulled into a simple single ponytail. She held a book in her hands, her face remaining expressionless and serene.
Zhao Youyue used her soul consciousness to touch the card, feeling a faint, cold vibration.
For now, she discovered three possible ways to use it. Perhaps more would unlock as she explored further.
The first method was the normal one. She could use it to obtain all the abilities that came with Xu Jing's possession, allowing her to utilize those skills in the real world.
The second method was a one-time sacrifice. By offering the character card back to the gate, she could choose to enter the world of a fictional work that existed on the same energy level.
The third method was also a one-time sacrifice. By offering the card, the next time she entered the Dimension Gate she would definitely be sent into a world with a higher energy level.
Of course, that higher level world had be random.
It couldn't be chosen.