Chapter 553 - 360: With Li Wei Here, No Surprises

Chapter 553: Chapter 360: With Li Wei Here, No Surprises

Unlike the peripheral forest shot last week, the set here was noticeably more elaborate. The ground was covered with a thick layer of moss and decaying leaves. Several stout oak trees stretched from the floor to the ceiling, their trunks entwined with glowing mushroom props that emitted a faint light.

Standing among the oaks was the mechanical Ogre Del Toro had spent five million USD to build. Approaching four meters in height, its mechanical skeleton was draped in grayish-brown silicone skin. Every single fang in its cavernous mouth was the size of a human hand.

The reason they had returned to the studio today wasn’t just because of the incredible set, but also because this was the main cast’s first action sequence. Massive robotic arms and lifting rigs loomed overhead, their suspended wire harnesses strapped to the shoulders, backs, and thighs of Li Wei and his co-stars.

Li Wei quickly reviewed today’s scene: The Knight Commander, Lovi, and Thief Tucker were searching the forest for traces of the Ogre. After their active pursuit yielded no results, the beast ambushed them. The trio engaged in a bitter struggle and managed to slay it, liberating the elf who would then join their party.

The actual filming process was even simpler. Since the mechanical Ogre could execute a variety of attack motions, all Li Wei had to do—having memorized his blocking—was hit his marks at the exact right time, chaining together the correct actions and facial expressions.

A French man with a ponytail walked over. He was the film’s martial arts choreographer. Word had it that he had trained with the Jackie Chan Stunt Team and had previously designed action sequences for *Game of Thrones* and *The Witcher*.

"Are you sure you don’t need a stunt double?" he asked. "You’re a major star now, and doing wirework carries a real risk of injury. Honestly, being strung up isn’t a pleasant feeling."

"I don’t need a double," Li Wei shook his head. He thought, "If I use a double, how am I supposed to grind my attribute points?"

"I still highly recommend using one," the choreographer insisted. "Today’s action sequence is tough. You—"

"I said I don’t need it," Li Wei repeated. "Just tell me what to do."

The choreographer swallowed the rest of his sentence and nodded. "The core of this scene relies on your finishing blow," he said, gesturing. "Do you see? After the Knight Commander and the Thief distract the Ogre, Lovi leaps up from the side and drives his sword into its neck." His expression clearly showed he didn’t quite believe Li Wei could pull it off.

"How high do I jump?" Li Wei asked, not bothering with small talk.

"About one and a half to two meters," the choreographer pointed at the Ogre’s knee. "You need to step on its knee, spin onto its back, and thrust the sword into its neck."

Grabbing a prop sword, he requested a scissor lift and rode up with Li Wei to a height of over four meters. Flipping back a cover, he revealed a sliding mechanism equipped with a locking caliper.

"Thrust your prop sword in here," the choreographer instructed repeatedly. "Once it’s in, the mechanism will lock the blade, and then—" He blew a whistle toward the ground and shouted an order. "After the sword goes in, you’ll hear a click," he explained, sliding his sword into the device. "Like this."

CLICK.

The choreographer then let go of the sword. Immediately, the mechanical Ogre began to shudder violently. The sword paused at its neck for a few seconds before ripping entirely around it in a massive circle. The head of the Ogre apparatus slowly separated from its body, guided down to the floor by steel cables.

"Understand?" the choreographer asked. "In the plot, after the protagonist stabs the sword into the Ogre’s neck, it struggles desperately. However, by throwing its head back, it inadvertently allows the protagonist to decapitate it."

"Got it," Li Wei nodded. "Let’s do this."

The choreographer stared blankly at Li Wei, his eyes brimming with doubt. "There are two difficulties in this scene. First, you need to nimbly step on its knee, spin, jump, and land on its back," he explained. "Second, when the mechanism rotates, you must hold onto the sword without falling. Can your fingers handle that?"

"Of course they can," Li Wei replied. "Let’s start."

"Alright," Del Toro picked up his megaphone. "All departments, get ready!"

"Lighting, ready!"

"Camera, ready!"

"Wire team, ready!"

"Sound, ready!"

"Mechanical, ready!"

"Special effects smoke, ready!"

One by one, the departments called out their status. Del Toro glanced around, ensuring everyone was in position.

"Action!" he shouted.

The studio’s overhead lights abruptly cut out, leaving only the set lighting and the ambient glow emitting from the props themselves. The Ogre rig activated. Accompanied by a hiss of hydraulics, the massive silicone torso slowly turned. Its jaws parted, and the speakers blared out a terrifying roar.

Shot F-2 featured the Knight Commander shielding the other two by raising his buckler. The advantage of practical effects was that seeing the physical apparatus helped the actors get into character much faster. Furthermore, the lighting, camera, and stunt teams all had tangible references, massively reducing post-production time and effort while producing a far more realistic texture. The drawback, however, was equally obvious: it was time-consuming.

The martial arts choreographer stood beside Del Toro, both men staring at the same monitor. After filming Shot F-3—where Thief Tucker circled behind the Ogre to goad it into turning around—they took a five-minute break to adjust the camera angles and positioning for the next shot.

Del Toro took a moment to slip off his headphones and chat with the choreographer. "What time do you think we’ll wrap up today?" he asked.

The choreographer smacked his lips. "Normally, for a star filming an action sequence of this difficulty for the first time, without a double..." He pondered for a second. "...It wouldn’t be surprising to see a dozen retakes in a row." He looked at the dense web of wire slings and tracking equipment on the ceiling. "I’d estimate a few days."

"I figure about two days," Del Toro said. "There are only eighteen storyboards for this Ogre scene in total. Two days should be enough."

"I actually think it’ll take five," the choreographer shook his head. "Action scenes are different from drama. I don’t know much about acting; if you guys say he’s good, then he’s good, and maybe he can nail a dialogue scene in one take. But action..." He pointed at the wires on the ceiling. "Being on a wire takes time just to overcome the fear and weightlessness. Mid-air twists aren’t that simple. For many people, just adapting to the harness takes days. I’ve been a martial arts choreographer for fifteen years," he shrugged, "and I’ve never seen a non-classically trained actor complete an action sequence like this in under three days. Five is a conservative estimate."

Del Toro thought about it, glancing over at Li Wei, who was currently rehearsing his blocking with the actor playing the Knight Commander. "But he’s a professional athlete, a Super Bowl MVP, and one of the most physically fit men on the planet," he replied. "You can’t lump him in with ordinary stars."

"Four days, then," the choreographer shrugged.

"Care for a wager?" Del Toro asked. "A hundred bucks?"

"Make it five hundred. Let’s raise the stakes." Both were long-established industry veterans to whom this amount of money meant nothing.

"Deal." Del Toro slipped his headphones back on. Once the mechanical department finished calibrating, he clapped his hands. "Alright! Let’s continue! F-4! Take one!"

The Ogre kicked out a foot, sending the Knight Commander flying. The wire behind the actor yanked sharply, dragging him through the air for a half-spin before he landed on the crash mats.

"Cut! That’s a print!" Del Toro called out. "Moving on!"

The choreographer craned his neck, looking as if he wished he could shove his face right onto the set. The upcoming shot was the very one he had dubbed the hardest. In this sequence, Li Wei needed to leap onto the Ogre’s knee while dodging a sweeping strike, rotate a half-circle in mid-air using his core strength to twist, and jump onto the back of the crouching beast.

The head of the wire crew was fully prepared to execute an emergency stop. Mid-air rotational maneuvers like this were exceedingly difficult to pull off cleanly within three takes, even for professional stunt doubles.

Instead, Li Wei executed a light jump, stepping perfectly on the Ogre’s knee. The entire motion was as fluid as flowing water. His angle of rotation was flawless, and both feet landed solidly on the support platform of the Ogre’s back.

The choreographer’s jaw dropped. Del Toro’s eyes gleamed with excitement. Instead of yelling cut, he let Li Wei continue the scene.

Planted on the mechanical Ogre’s back, Li Wei took a massive stride forward and thrust his prop sword down, slotting it flawlessly into the locking caliper on the rig’s neck.

CLICK.

Seeing the director hadn’t called cut, the mechanical team immediately hit the switch. The Ogre apparatus began shuddering violently, simulating its death throes. Gripping the sword with both hands, Li Wei hung from the Ogre’s neck. As the beast thrashed endlessly, it violently threw its head up, sending the prop sword—and Li Wei with it—spinning 360 degrees around its neck.

Everyone broke into a cold sweat for him, fully expecting his grip to fail and send him flying. This movement, akin to a gymnast performing a giant swing on a horizontal bar, placed immense demands on forearm grip strength. It wasn’t something an ordinary person could hold onto.

Yet Li Wei pulled it off with consummate ease.

Guided by the steel cables, the Ogre’s massive head slowly separated along the neck tracks, finally plummeting to the floor with the screech of grinding metal. Li Wei slowly fell alongside the Ogre’s mangled torso before the wire rig jerked him to a halt in mid-air.

"Cut!" Del Toro sprang up from his chair. "That’s a print!"

The entire set erupted into applause and whistles. Rooted to the spot, the choreographer stared at Li Wei, who was now surrounded by the crew. His mouth was open wide enough to fit a large egg. This was the first time in his career he had ever seen an actor nail their very first action sequence with zero retakes. No, it wasn’t just impressive for a first-time action shot; even a highly experienced stunt double couldn’t pull that off on the first try.

"Don’t forget to wire me that five hundred," Del Toro twisted the knife, grinning ear to ear. "At this rate, we’ll probably finish shooting the entire film in two months. It’s too easy. I’ve been making movies for forty years," he reiterated, "and this is the first time I’ve ever felt that filmmaking is too easy."

As for Li Wei, amidst the starry-eyed adulation of the crowd, he discovered that the system had surprisingly gifted him another 0.1 attribute points.

[You encountered and defeated a rare monster for the first time: Ogre]

[You protected the safety of the farmers around the forest, practicing the Knight’s virtue: Valor]

[You have obtained 0.1 free attribute points]

He rejoiced inwardly, "It’s at 4.0! Once I head back, I can allocate my points!"