It was a video about Honkai: Star Rail.
The title read: So, I made my move.
That doesn't make sense—Black Swan's gig shouldn't have gone viral so soon.
How are people already making memes out of it?
Curious, Xia Wen clicked it...
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The video content is actually not about Black Swan.
Instead, it features an average-looking woman wearing heavy makeup.
The very first line of the video is a shocking opener:
"So, I submitted."
"This is a part of the Black Swan short film that I really like~."
"Although Black Swan mentioned the content in the end, I still find this kind of confidence very attractive."
"This kind of confidence where no one else dares, but I dare—I think that's the key point of the video."
At the beginning, the uploader named Fan Fan Who Loves Dramas launched into a long monologue.
Only afterward did she get to the main point.
"Recently, the second episode of Penacony has exploded in popularity, and the whole world is talking about it."
"Everyone is saying how great it is, but I'm here to pour cold water on it."
"I'm not optimistic about the content of the third episode."
Fan Fan smiled confidently on camera, as if already expecting a barrage of comments.
"In the second episode, Mihoyo kept flipping and flipping again, creating three particularly memorable characters: Acheron, Sparkle, and Gallagher."
"But have you ever thought about a question—this constant twisting and raising of audience expectations, how is it going to end?"
"If there are no even more intense twists later, the viewing experience will inevitably drop significantly."
"And judging by the current plot planning of Penacony, I can't think of how it could twist further—this is also what everyone is discussing recently."
"How else can it twist?"
Fan Fan's words resonated with many viewers in the comments.
The recent buzz isn't just about the plot, but also about speculation on what's to come.
Penacony's 'Werewolf' twist is indeed exciting.
But even many professional screenwriters can't figure out how the story will develop next.
And Fan Fan has clearly already envisioned the whole thing.
"Right now, Penacony is at the finale stage, the truth must be revealed."
"The only one who could take on the role of the villain boss is The Watchmaker."
"But unfortunately, if Mihoyo really makes the Watchmaker the villain of the Penacony storyline, it would be the worst of the worst."
"Because the Watchmaker is unqualified!"
"No matter how much they hype him up, did the Watchmaker actually do anything shocking? Honestly, no—not even close to Acheron's sword strike."
"Where is the real twist? It's Acheron!"
"Enough foreshadowing, strong enough, shocking enough, and the way the plot develops supports it in the audience's mind."
"The only place that could have a twist is with Acheron—in the third act, have her, for some reason, become the final boss, attack Penacony, and thus unite Penacony, the IPC, and the Express to defeat her."
"The audience's sense of 'safety' with Acheron would be overturned, creating an emotional twist."
"A famous article once said, a gun introduced in the first three chapters must fire by the third chapter!"
"And Acheron is that gun!"
At this point, Fan Fan showed disappointment and emphasized, "I'm very disappointed. Mihoyo created such a strong female character only to destroy her in the end. There were clearly better ways to handle it."
"I feel like this is just another case of writer's block."
"The more complex a show is, the harder it is to end it well."
"All that talk about Acheron being strong is just an illusion."
"Her character setup is pure trash—trash among trash—a hook created just for her destruction in the end."
"Even her acting is bad, no facial expression changes throughout!"
"Don't be fooled by cheap tricks—Penacony is a script destined for a bad ending!"
"To make everyone realize this, that's why I'm standing up and going against the tide while the whole internet is passionately praising Mihoyo!"
"That's also where the title comes from!"
As Fan Fan continued, a seemingly reasonable argument was formed.
That is—Mihoyo has been building up Acheron as the final boss all along.
At the very least, her motives are still unclear.
And unclear motives mean room for manipulation and twists in the finale.
Currently, there doesn't seem to be any character who can assume the role of the final boss—that's how it appears.
After all, in the plot, the appearances of Sunday and the Dream Master have many hints, but placed in the storyline, they feel a bit too subtle and may not work.
However, all of this had long been foreseen by the Destiny Slave Elio, and hints about dreams started as soon as the Express jumped to Penacony.
Everything will climax when The Trailblazer enters the dream a second time—it'll be a classic twist within a twist, a werewolf kill within a werewolf kill.
All the foreshadowing will be resolved in the finale.
Acheron's motive, the Watchmaker, Mikhail.
However.
What Fan Fan described is exactly the classic case of high-concept black swan.
She first constructed a scenario, then turned that scenario into a 'fact' through emotional venting, and then redirected her attack—toward the character Acheron and toward Mihoyo.
An emotionally charged performance turned into a stiff expression.
A character arc that hasn't even concluded yet was forced into a premature summary.
"She, she's completely wrong."
Secretly watching the video from behind Xia Wen's back, Ayaka bit her lip and angrily said, "She's quoting out of context and drawing the target after shooting the arrow!"
Xia Wen was quite gratified. Ayaka was smart enough to see through it at a glance.
But many of the comments were misled.
They didn't think deeply and just felt like it was some kind of cheap trick.
The comments below were even more outrageous.
...
: Hiss, it's true, the more brainy the plot, the harder it is to wrap it up at the end.
: No wonder a powerful Emanator of Nihility suddenly popped up.
: Anyway, everything leads back to Nihility. Just hearing that path sounds like a villain.
: Have you even watched any analysis? Honkai: Star Rail paths don't have clear villains. The Stellaron Rangers... whatever, the core point is...
: Then you tell us, how would you wrap this up logically? It's impossible!
: Exactly, seems like Mihoyo has really run out of steam.
...
These comments made Xia Wen frown.
Just as Ayaka was gradually getting more and more heated, Xia Wen suddenly closed his phone with a snap.
"Don't look anymore."
He was quite confident, curling his lips, "If you let these comments affect your emotions, it means you've fallen into their trap."
No matter what reason that Fan Fan had for making this video—
Whether it was for views or because of some bigger influence—
It's unfortunate for them, because they're up against MiHoYo.
The storyline of Penacony is destined to be a pinnacle.
All the current smearing will only make the upcoming brilliance shine even more.
But think about it another way...
Such a storyline, such character setups—
If there weren't a bunch of great voice actors, system support, and ready-made templates,
It would be impossible to produce a long-running series like this.
Reversal after reversal, leading to the ultimate twist, logically explained within limits.
A movie only lasts so many minutes,
But Penacony has already run for several hours, packed with dense information.
It's normal for some people not to believe it.
"But if we let it go like this, a lot of bad actors will fuel the fire from behind," Ayaka clutched her sleeve and said in a low voice.
Ever since Honkai: Star Rail burst onto the scene, it revealed so many secrets in the entertainment industry.
Now that a seemingly reasonable excuse has appeared, it's only natural that those shady companies will pile on.
They're betting on Penacony's third episode falling flat.
"Don't worry."
"Let the storm get even bigger."
"The bigger the waves, the more valuable the fish!"
Xia Wen gently patted Ayaka's head to comfort her.
In the end, he actually had to thank that little hater.
Originally, the third episode already had enough twists.
Now, with that hater's help, tons of people will be watching with a critical or disappointed mindset.
He couldn't even imagine how explosive it would be when the episode aired!
That emotional reversal from the audience in real life is worth its weight in gold—
Even rare and hard to come by.
"No, I have to tell Silver Wolf to rally some more bots, increase the push!"
Just thinking about the response after the third episode aired, the public opinion, the haters' reactions—
Xia Wen got excited all over again.
He immediately planned to contribute some effort himself.
"Huh?"
"Wait, what are you saying!?"
"You want to slander MiHoYo yourself?" Ayaka's eyes widened—she never expected such a move.
"Why not? MiHoYo's biggest hater—that position has to be me!" Xia Wen declared resolutely.