Honkai Impact 3rd: Join Anti-Entropy at the start and dominate the entertainment industry.

Little did he know that Gretchen had already shown his painting "Ink Bamboo" to his parents via video. His parents were shocked and kept asking Gretchen which master created the work.

When they learned that Gretchen was going to work as an assistant to the artist of this painting, the two of them readily agreed and were more than happy to accept it.

Chapter 229 Pretending to be a pig and eating a tiger

The opportunity for their daughter to learn painting from such a master is something money can't buy, so how could the two of them possibly stop it?

However, Gretchen did not tell her parents that Bai Qianqu was Qu Yin, after all, she had promised to keep it a secret, so her parents only thought that Bai Qianqu was a reclusive big shot who did not like fame and fortune.

On the third day, Bai Qianqu summoned Gretchen directly to the art studio.

Gretchen looked around curiously. To be honest, the studio was not quite what she had imagined. The space was a bit small, and the painting tools were not very complete.

It feels like a studio set up by a complete beginner in painting, with many things still missing.

Seeing this, Bai Qianqu felt a little embarrassed: "I just rented this place, so it may not be perfect. Can you take a look and see where it needs to be supplemented, and I will prepare it."

Greta quickly said, "Actually, you don't need too many tools to draw comics, but if you want to draw other things in depth, you do need to prepare more. Don't worry, Teacher Bai, I have all these tools, I'll take care of it."

Seeing how sensible Gretchen was, Bai Qianqu nodded with satisfaction.

She's such a good girl.

"Teacher Bai, you said we should draw comics, so what kind of comics should we draw?"

Bai Qianqu tidied her words a bit and then introduced the work to Gretchen: "The manga we're going to draw is called 'Initial D,' and it's a car racing story. It's still in the preparation stage and hasn't started serialization yet."

Greta paused for a moment upon hearing this: "Initial D? What a strange name."

"This name actually has a meaning. It can also be called 'The First Letter D,' which refers to the word 'DRIFT,' which in racing specifically means 'drifting,' or what is commonly known as 'tail-sliding.' As for the deeper meaning, you will understand it in the comic later."

Bai Qianqu offered a brief explanation, but didn't elaborate on the deeper meaning.

Greta didn't ask any further questions; she nodded and got into work mode.

"No problem, Teacher Bai, have you prepared the comic's framework and character illustrations?"

"It's finished."

Bai Qianqu took a stack of papers out of a box and handed them to Gretchen. The two of them spread the papers out on the table one by one.

The manga style of Initial D leans towards Japanese style, but that's not a problem for Greta; she can draw all kinds of manga styles.

Greta's eyes lit up when she saw the handsome protagonist, Takumi Fujiwara, with his hands in his pockets and a slender figure.

She looked at Bai Qianqu: "Teacher Bai, is this the protagonist? Fujiwara Takumi, is he Inatsuma?"

Bai Qianqu nodded: "Yes, the background of this comic is set in the mountainous area of ​​Inazuma, and it is a story about racing cars in the mountains."

Greta picked up the paper and continued reading, glancing at the main characters one by one: Itsuki Takeuchi, Ryosuke Takahashi, and Keisuke Takahashi.

Gretchen was increasingly surprised.

Although she had long known that Bai Qianqu's sketching skills were very strong, she did not expect that Bai Qianqu's creative ability was also so outstanding. You know, there is a difference between sketching that is simply imitative and sketching that is creative. The former only requires imitation, while the latter requires more imagination.

The character sketches in front of me are incredibly detailed; they were definitely not done simply and require considerable effort.

Gretchen wasn't good at traditional Chinese painting, but she was good at sketching. It was precisely because of her skill that she could see the uniqueness of these sketches.

It seems that Mr. Bai's desire to draw comics was not a spur-of-the-moment decision; he had actually prepared for it seriously.

Bai Qianqu handed over another notebook.

"Here's a rough outline of the story. You can take a look first. Here's how we'll divide the work: I'll be in charge of the main storyboards, and you'll work on the storyboards and character designs, doing post-production polishing. Of course, if you're too busy, I'll help out. How about that?"

"No problem!" Gretsch said confidently. "Mission accomplished!"

The storyboards were all drawn; it was just post-production work. Gretchen didn't find it difficult at all; on the contrary, she found it very easy.

She asked with some anticipation, "Teacher Bai, if I complete my task, can you teach me to paint traditional Chinese paintings?"

Bai Qianqu thought for a moment and said, "Of course, no problem. As long as you complete a certain amount of work and work hard, I will teach you when I have time."

Currently, Gretchen's painting level is probably A-level. As an S-level artist, Gretchen can still teach her some skills. If all else fails, he can commission custom works. With commissioned works, Gretchen's level can break through S-level and directly reach the level of a painting master.

Faced with Bai Qianqu's rosy promises, the naive Gretchen took the bait without a second thought.

"Okay, Teacher Bai! I will definitely work hard! I will work hard to draw comics!"

It's not surprising that Gretchen took the bait so easily. After all, there are very few people in this world who can reach the level of a painting master. Those people are mostly elderly people with white hair. They don't take on students and don't have the energy to teach.

Gretchen has great talent, but she can't find a master-level teacher. Before reaching A-level, her painting skills improved by leaps and bounds, but after entering A-level, she encountered a bottleneck and could not break through no matter how hard she tried, which made her anxious. Now that she has met Bai Qianqu, she will naturally not let go of this rare opportunity.

Seeing that her flatbread had successfully attracted Gretchen, Bai Qianqu revealed a sly smile with satisfaction.

"Then let's get started. Let's try it out first and see if it works, and get used to the art style. This is the content of the first three chapters. Get familiar with the art style first."

Bai Qianqu took out her drawing tools and began drawing the storyboard for the fourth chapter, while Gretchen started reading the comic.

Greta wasn't particularly interested in this so-called racing manga. She was mainly interested in BL (scratch that) female-oriented manga, and this so-called racing manga was probably aimed at boys.

However, after reading the first chapter of Initial D, Gretchen knew that she was already hooked.

Countless thoughts flashed through her mind before she finally realized the truth.

So this is how hardcore comics can be drawn?

So it turns out you can explain professional knowledge well without using long strings of technical jargon?

So there's another school of thought called "pretending to be weak to eat the tiger"?

Is this how you play the invincible build?

Yes, there are invincible protagonists in this world, but almost all of them are male protagonists who are invincible from beginning to end, killing gods and ghosts. But there has never been a case like this comic, where the protagonist pretends to be weak while actually being strong.

The author employs a technique of building suspense before culminating in a satisfying final explosion that delights the reader.

Little Gretchen became the first reader of this entirely new genre and was immediately thrilled.

Chapter 230 Painting the World

She devoured the first three chapters, still wanting more, and then picked up the notebook with the general plot written on it to read.

"So he's the fastest on Mount Akina!"

"Takumi Fujiwara and him have this kind of relationship?!"

"What?! They actually train racing skills this way?"

"A drainage ditch around a bend? Is that even possible?"

After reading the plot, Gretchen did not forget her job and began to copy the character illustrations.

It must be said that Gretchen's painting talent is indeed very strong. She can draw a picture that is almost identical to the one on the paper in a very short time. It is so realistic that it is hard for anyone else to tell that it was drawn by two different people.

Bai Qianqu was also very satisfied. Wasn't this the reason he went to so much trouble to lure Gretchen in? She could draw right away without needing to spend too much time guiding her.

If he had hired a regular assistant, she would only be able to do some simple tasks and help out. But Gretchen is different. She can do almost all the work. With a little more time to get to know her, Bai Qianqu could even hand over the storyboards to her. Then he could truly be a hands-off manager.

Of course, what made Bai Qianqu happiest was that Gretchen didn't want her to pay her salary; she just wanted him to teach her to draw.

You couldn't find such a good assistant even with a lantern.

Back in the original world, many fan artists would copy famous characters, and the best ones could create works that were exactly the same as the original artwork, or even surpass it.

Such people are called "fanfiction masters".

Gretchen is clearly a master; with just a little guidance, she can perfectly handle Bai Qianqu's job.

What Bai Qianqu didn't know was that Gretchen was actually a very famous doujinshi artist in private. She had anonymously drawn several famous doujinshi for women, such as "Four New Transfer Students", "Gentle Yet Dangerous Love", "The Domineering School Prince Falls in Love with Me", and "Four Brothers Under the Moon".

Of course, Gretchen kept all of this a secret and never told anyone!

However, these things were not important to Bai Qianqu. As long as Gretchen's skills were good, he didn't care what she had done in the past.

With Gretchen as her assistant, Bai Qianqu's comic work became much faster. What used to take two days to draw a chapter now only takes one day.

Both of them are experts in sketching, so drawing comics is naturally a piece of cake for them. Now, not only has their speed increased, but the number of things that need to be revised has also decreased.

Finally, before the War of the Gods began, Bai Qianqu and Gretchen finished drawing the first volume of the manga. The plot then progressed to the point where Fujiwara Takumi used the drainage ditch to navigate the bend, which was considered a climax.

After finishing the drawing, Bai Qianqu checked it over and found no problems. Satisfied, she began to pack it up and prepare to send it to Prometheus.

Greta asked, "Ms. Bai, did you come up with the plot of this comic yourself? Although it involves a lot of professional knowledge, it doesn't seem to be a problem at all. On the contrary, I have learned a lot without even realizing it. It's really amazing."

"The plot," Bai Qianqu thought for a moment, then coughed twice and said, "I actually asked Qian Jian to write the plot."

"Senken!" Gresh suddenly realized, "So that's it! It's the story written by Senken-sensei, no wonder it's so good!"

Her eyes sparkled as she asked, "Teacher Bai, did you get Teacher Qianjian's autograph for me?"

"I'll get it for you when I get back today."

Gretchen's eyes lit up again, and she secretly wondered what was going on.

'Does Teacher Bai and Teacher Qianjian live together?'

She had already seen the rumors about Qu Yin and Qian Jian that night. Many people knew that the two were acquainted. Because netizens did not know the genders of the two, there were many speculations about their relationship.

The most widely accepted theory is that the two are close friends of the same sex, and many speculative versions have circulated. Gretchen has even seen a lot of fan art about the two.

Now that Gretchen knows that Qu Yin is a boy, is Qian Jian also a boy?

She felt her gossipy soul burning brightly.

Bai Qianqu was unaware that he and Qianjian had become certain inappropriate images for children in Gretsch's mind; he was busy packing.

Seeing this, Greta asked again, "Teacher Bai, should we show these drawings to Teacher Qianjian? After all, he wrote the plot."

Bai Qianqu didn't even look up, and said with absolute certainty, "No need, he will definitely agree."

Greta smiled like an aunt.

It seems that Teacher Bai and Teacher Qianjian have a closer relationship than I thought. Teacher Qianjian trusts Teacher Quyin so much that he doesn't even need to verify her identity. This is not something that can be explained by an ordinary relationship.

Bai Qianqu packed the work and wrote the name "Zhiyin" in the creation section.

Seeing this, Greta asked curiously, "Ms. Bai, is your pen name for comics 'Zhiyin'?"

"Yes, Gretchen, you should add your pen name too."

Greta shook her head repeatedly: "No, no, I'm just an assistant, I'm not qualified to have my name signed."

"It's okay, you can just sign your name. After all, you did most of the work on this comic, so it's essentially a work of two people, and naturally, both names should be signed. What's your pen name?"

Upon hearing this, Greta looked at Bai Qianqu with some surprise.

Many comics have more than one creator. Usually, there is a lead artist with a group of assistants, just like Bai Qianqu. The lead artist is responsible for storyboarding, while the assistants are responsible for tedious work such as polishing and post-production. However, only one lead artist is listed in the creator column, and the assistants are often not entitled to be credited.