Chapter 97

Because *Raging Thunder* was a newly released book, its total subscriptions were the same as its January subscriptions. Tong Yan updated 59 VIP chapters in January, with an average of 3,110 subscriptions, making the total subscriptions 183,490. Each chapter by Tong Yan was over 3,000 words but less than 4,000, and any fraction of a thousand was not counted, so each chapter was calculated as 3,000 words.

Although readers subscribed to the novel, the subscription prices varied due to different membership levels such as initial VIP, high VIP, and regular members. The price per thousand words ranged from two cents to five cents, but the split between the author and the website was a fixed one cent per thousand words (Note: This was adjusted years later). Therefore, Tong Yan earned three cents per subscription, and with 183,490 subscriptions, that amounted to 5,500 yuan!

5,500 yuan! This was much higher than what Sister Gua had predicted. There were two main reasons for this: first, Tong Yan's update volume was large, with the number of words updated in just over ten days matching the monthly update volume of many other released works. Second, the subscriptions continued to rise, from an average of less than 1,800 at the beginning to 3,100 now, with high subscriptions reaching 3,900, almost doubling. Tong Yan had already gained initial recognition from readers.

As for other data, the book had 36,000 favorites, with hundreds added each day, 900,000 clicks, and over 100,000 recommendations. For a few days, *Raging Thunder* even made it to the homepage's weekly recommendation list, though it only stayed there for a few days before being pushed down, lingering around 12th or 13th place. These achievements were likely due to the book's strong performance on the monthly ticket list, which had become an important ranking for many readers looking for good books. Being in the top 15 was enough to attract the interest of seasoned readers, and making it to the top 10 would be even better.

Tong Yan's earnings also included a 2,500 yuan monthly ticket reward, bringing the total to 8,000 yuan! This was surprisingly close to his goal of earning over 10,000 yuan a month!

Of course, a portion of this money would be deducted for taxes. Tong Yan remembered what Sister Gua had taught him: since the earnings exceeded 4,000 yuan, 11.2% of the total earnings, or 896 yuan, would be taxed. Damn! Nearly 1,000 yuan in taxes! The remaining amount would be 7,100 yuan, which was equivalent to his parents' earnings over two months of hard work.

Although the January earnings were not yet displayed in the author's backend and would not be visible until the 5th and payable after the 10th, Tong Yan was still elated. This was different from the first time he received over a thousand yuan for *Cat Planet*, which was a one-time payment. *Raging Thunder* provided a sustainable income, and as long as the book was not completed, he would continue to earn a substantial income. This income was even higher than the salary of Old Song, a national-level teacher (excluding bonuses). Thinking of this, Tong Yan felt a surge of confidence, especially in his relationship with Song Rao.

To start February on a good note, Tong Yan released five of his six saved chapters all at once, along with a single chapter titled "Thanking January, Looking Forward to February!"

"Dear fellow readers, brothers and sisters, words cannot express my gratitude. So, I will update five chapters to show my appreciation. Thank you to the 4,000 readers who subscribed to the book, and thank you for pushing *Raging Thunder* to 15th place on the monthly ticket list! They say the higher you go, the colder it gets, but I prefer the grandeur of looking down on the world. Brothers, can you help me?"

"These five chapters are just an appetizer. If the book can enter the top 10 of the monthly ticket list by 6 PM, I will update five more chapters! That's a total of ten chapters! This is unprecedented for the book. With everyone's support, I hope all readers who like the book can join in the celebration. See you soon!"

Tong Yan then spent some time in the reader group, where this victory was largely due to their support. Those who were willing to join the group were deeply interested in the book, and many had already used all four of their monthly tickets. Tong Yan thanked them and called out, "I've already updated five chapters, everyone go check them out, and don't forget to vote. The more votes, the more chapters tonight!"

One Smile, Many Worries: Wow, ten chapters, I can't stand it, I'm going to vote!

Reader 291: I'm going too!

Heavenly Book: Why didn't you say earlier? I've already voted for Jingguan.

Clear Lotus: Then let's buy more and vote again.

Smiling Book Tong: Already voted, the monthly tickets are rising so fast, Wujie is so popular!

Little Fish: Yes, yes, already 100!

Sleeping Lazy Cat: I see 120, is your internet slow, Little Fish?

Little Demon 820: Stop joking, isn't it 130?

It was already 1 AM, but the *Raging Thunder* reader group was still lively. Tong Yan had already turned off his computer and gone to sleep. He had only one chapter left in his saved drafts, and to keep his promise for the next day, he had to work hard. The prerequisite for working hard was to be in good spirits, so he needed to rest and prepare.

After breakfast, Tong Yan went to the Five Flavors Bookstore and started writing without connecting to the internet. He wanted to check the monthly ticket count and ranking, but he was afraid it would affect his writing mood. If it was low, he would be disappointed, and if it was high, he would be proud, so it was better not to look. He would wait until after 6 PM to see the results.

When his cousin Liu Ming got up and saw Tong Yan, he naturally asked about his performance last month. After all, Liu Ming was not as familiar with the rules of Qidian as Tong Yan, the author.

When Liu Ming heard that Tong Yan had earned 7,000 yuan, he was truly amazed. He felt that the calm boy writing in front of him was no longer Tong Yan but a Tong Yan with a halo. "I heard that the best authors in the web novel circle are called 'Great Gods.' You should be considered a Great God, right?" Liu Ming could already see the divine light around Tong Yan.

Tong Yan smiled modestly, "What kind of god am I? It's just because of the new book monthly ticket bonus that I have such high income. I'm not sure if I can exceed the first month this month."

Compared to Tang Jia San Shao, who earns over 50,000 yuan a month, and Xuehong, who reportedly earns over a million yuan a year, his income was negligible.

"I'll check the monthly ticket list for this month." Liu Ming had been on Qidian for a long time and knew that the monthly ticket list was an important indicator of an author's popularity and strength.

"You can check it yourself, but don't tell me. I don't want to know yet." Tong Yan reminded his cousin and continued writing.

After checking the monthly ticket ranking on Qidian, Liu Ming scratched his head, wanting to say something to Tong Yan, but he held back because his cousin had asked him not to.

Finally, it was 6 PM, and Tong Yan was about to leave. Liu Ming said urgently, "Can I tell you now?"

"Go ahead." Tong Yan had written six chapters, and with the saved drafts, he had a total of seven chapters. Uploading five chapters would not be too much pressure.

Liu Ming took a deep breath and spoke quickly, "When I checked this morning, you were 8th on the monthly ticket list. An hour later, *From Zero* and *Beauty of the Empire* surpassed you, making you 10th. Half an hour later, *Exquisite Young Master* also surpassed you, dropping you to 11th. By noon, you had risen to 9th, but at 2 PM, *Riding the Waves: A Generation of Masters* surpassed you again, and at 3 PM, *A Big Star Loves Me* also surpassed you, dropping you back to 11th. At 4 PM..."

Tong Yan checked his manuscript and said slowly, "I'm not interested in the process, what's the result?"

"The result is that you are currently 10th with 532 votes, but *Heart of Canaan* is catching up quickly." Liu Ming sounded a bit worried.

Hearing this, Tong Yan logged into the author's backend and released five new chapters. This should stabilize the top 10 position on the monthly ticket list...

[PS: Thank you to Ranran0909, Luhan Tianhe, Residual Star Dream, Smiling Book Tong, Reader Tianhuang, and Lonely Wild Man for your support!]

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