Starting as a Manga Editor-Chapter 203: Incomprehensible

The phone kept buzzing incessantly.
Li Xue and Cai Quan stared at each other in bewilderment.
But soon enough.
Li Xue composed herself, took a deep breath, answered the call while turning toward the elevator.
Cai Quan watched Li Xue's retreating figure with a dumbfounded expression, then turned back to look at the website on the screen before a staff member came rushing over, shouting from afar: "Boss! The manga review department is about to explode!"
"?"
Hearing this, Cai Quan looked at the staff member with equal confusion.
The panting staff member explained: "A flood of users are submitting works! Where did all these manga artists come from? And they all seem to have pre-prepared drafts! The department is completely overwhelmed! Boss, what's happening?"
Cai Quan finally regained his composure, looked toward the entrance, and slowly said: "To be honest... I want to know that too..."
"...Did the parent company do this?"
The staff member seemed to realize something, pointing upstairs.
"Of course... Did you really think we just got lucky?"
Cai Quan looked at the staff member with a bitter smile: "I just don't know exactly what they did..."
As he spoke.
He glanced at the entrance again, feeling both shocked and intensely curious.
When he originally sold the website, his boldest dream... was to build ANF into a well-known platform among the 2D community, becoming the best vertical video site.
But clearly, Avalon had different ideas... or rather Tang Yao had different plans. The money poured into ANF was staggering—just the budget for anime licensing alone was enough to terrify Cai Quan.
The thing was, ANF still wasn't profitable, and they hadn't even found a viable business model.
Recently, when a developer finally approached ANF for joint operations with their game "Dark Night Decree"... Cai Quan felt they had to take it, seeing it as the perfect test subject to validate ANF's business model.
But Tang Yao rejected it...
Not only rejected it, but actively opposed them, engaging in direct competition.
During this period.
FGO's popularity kept rising while Cai Quan's stress levels skyrocketed.
Tang Yao seemed completely unconcerned about ANF's profitability, continuously investing money into it.
Honestly.
Cai Quan had been genuinely worried—could the site really survive like this?
This anxiety gnawed at him, fearing ANF would disappoint Tang Yao.
Though he knew even if Tang Yao was disappointed, she probably wouldn't abandon ANF...
But it would still be embarrassing! While Avalon flourished, ANF remained a financial black hole...
He'd already decided to discuss with Tang Yao soon about finding another cooperative game to test ANF's business model.
But before he could speak up,
Before he could figure out how to find another suitable test subject,
Dozens of game developers came knocking on their door.
And it wasn't just game companies—the manga section also exploded overnight...
The manga platform was actually another revenue stream Cai Quan had envisioned. Though an online manga platform, it launched with a paywall since Wenxin Press's digital platform also used this model, which most readers accepted.
Recently, with the explosive popularity of "Chainsaw Man," ANF's manga section showed signs of growth.
Cai Quan had been considering discussing the manga section's future with Tang Yao.
But before he could ask, the manga section suddenly boomed...
All his worries were instantly resolved...
While Cai Quan remained completely clueless about what happened! How did Tang Yao pull this off?
Incomprehensible.
Most of Tang Yao's decisions were utterly incomprehensible to Cai Quan...
Yet profoundly impressive.
Wait.
Just like that, everything's fixed?
...
Actually, the confused ones weren't limited to Cai Quan.
Many ANF staff members also didn't understand—how exactly did Avalon achieve this? How did launching a game update trigger ANF's explosive growth?
Of course, some staff members had figured it out, but they were too swamped with work to dwell on it.
While they were occupied,
Li Xue had time to think. She took the call while returning to her workstation upstairs.
Tang Yao sat at her desk, drawing something.
Her tall figure didn't appear fragile at all—her silhouette showed graceful curves, mature and full.
Li Xue apologized to the caller before hanging up, then hesitated while looking at Tang Yao's back: "Tang Yao."
Tang Yao paused her movements, turned around, and upon seeing Li Xue, set down her pen: "What's up?"
"Dozens of game companies are seeking collaborations with ANF..."
Li Xue pulled out a chair while organizing her words: "What exactly is happening?"
She looked curiously at Tang Yao, barely restraining the urge to shake answers out of her immediately.
But the recent distance between them had erected an invisible barrier... forcing her to maintain a professional demeanor.
"Dozens?"
Tang Yao's eyes lit up, as if confirming something: "Then have them send their demos as usual! I'll try them out."
"Understood..."
Li Xue nodded instinctively before realizing: "Wait, that's not what I meant. I'm asking why so many developers are suddenly contacting us?"
"Ms. Li."
Tang Yao smiled and countered: "You didn't really think... Dark Night Decree was the only domestic game eyeing ANF and the 2D mobile game market, did you?"
"......"
Li Xue froze momentarily, deep in thought.
"Actually, our publicity battle with Dark Night Decree has been watched by the entire gaming industry."
Tang Yao explained: "Because it's a free control group... Though there's a quality gap between the two games, FGO and Dark Night Decree genuinely represent traditional distribution channels versus ANF's emerging platform."
"Since its launch, FGO's revenue kept breaking records—its popularity and profitability are undeniable. In this situation... how could only Dark Night Decree enter the market?"
"Those developers calling you now."
Tang Yao pointed at Li Xue's phone with her slender finger: "Their games were likely developed around the same time as Dark Night Decree, some even earlier. If not for an unexpected development... they would've contacted ANF much sooner."
Li Xue blinked: "An unexpected development... you mean Dark Night Decree?"
"Right. I don't know how Rumi's mother negotiated with Season Technology, but after we rejected Dark Night Decree's team, they clearly chose a path many competitors wanted to see—direct confrontation with FGO."
Tang Yao nodded gently: "They began aggressively promoting their game through channels other than ANF, making quite a spectacle. Noticing this, many ready-to-launch games chose to wait and observe."
"And just now, when we announced our revenue figures, the results became clear."
"The industry realized... promoting through non-ANF channels is a dead end. ANF is the only viable path."
"From their perspective... the platform's advantage far outweighs any difference in game quality itself!"
"......"
Hearing this, Li Xue gradually understood.
Her beautiful eyes widened as she stared at the elegantly seated girl: "So you anticipated this from the beginning? That's why you deliberately opposed Dark Night Decree, even timing FGO's update to launch one day later than theirs..."
"Mhm."
Tang Yao lightly scratched her fair cheek: "Had to make the comparison obvious... A head-to-head showdown creates better discussion and stronger convincing power."
Li Xue simply stared at Tang Yao, speechless.
Noticing her silence, Tang Yao proactively added: "Ms. Li, if the early callers bother you, just have them send their demos... These are just small fry. Wait a bit longer, and major studios will come knocking."
"...Major studios?"
"Yes, they'll be tempted too. 2D mobile games can't ignore ANF now. During this growth phase, who wouldn't want additional revenue streams—even if it means sharing profits? Though reaching agreements won't be easy."
Tang Yao chuckled: "So brace yourself, Ms. Li... Also, prepare Dou Pai. The landscape is about to change—a wave of 2D mobile games is coming, including ANF's own. That's when our differentiated game Dou Pai should make its entrance."
"......"
Li Xue's red lips parted slightly as she stared blankly at Tang Yao.