From Thug to Idol: Transmigrating to a Survival Show

Flashback, 2020: Shanghai, China

Lin Zhi's entrance into the gang was something Lei had never wanted. For years, he had done everything he could to shield his brother from the darker side of his life, but the walls were crumbling fast.

Lin Zhi had come to Lei with a determination that Lei hadn't seen before he was desperate to make money, more than what Lei could give him.

"I need this, gege," Lin Zhi had said. "I'm going to make it; I just need some extra cash for now. I'll pay my way into Phoenix Entertainment and show everyone what I can do. I don't care how dirty the work is, I just need to get in."

Lei had hesitated, but Lin Zhi's determination won out. And so, his younger brother was thrust into the gang's operations, starting immediately as a drug dealer. It was the fastest way to earn money, and Lin Zhi didn't shy away from the dirty work. In fact, he thrived in it. Lei could see his brother becoming someone else, harder, sharper, with every deal he made. But Lin Zhi didn't care-his eyes were on one prize: to become a rising star.

While Lin Zhi was out making deals and stacking cash, Lei had his mind on something bigger. The information the Phoenix higher-ups had mentioned a few months ago still haunted him. He had worked hard to build an alliance with Kim Young Do, one of the top executives at Phoenix.

Lei had presented an offer they couldn't refuse.

"We'll find the briefcase for you," Lei had said during one of their meetings, leaning back in his chair with utmost confidence.

Kim Young Do had taken a long drag from his cigarette, eyes narrowing as he considered the offer. "And in return?"

"In return, you take my brother, Lin Zhi, into Phoenix. No questions asked. No small roles. He becomes a star."

Kim Young Do had smirked, amused by Lei's audacity. But the offer was good, and Phoenix had been on the rise-still an underdog.

"Alright, Hong. You bring me the briefcase, and I'll make sure your brother gets in."

That had sealed the deal. But Lei knew this wouldn't be easy. The briefcase was no ordinary piece of luggage-it was said to contain the information that could control the entertainment industry, a power so immense that whoever had it could manipulate the fate of every artist and agency in Korea. Lei needed someone skilled, someone who could blend into the shadows like he had done for years.

That person was Chen Jun Hao.

***

Chen Jun Hao had started at the bottom, cleaning up the messes no one else wanted to touch. But Lei had known from the start that Jun Hao was something special. He was smart and capable, and he learned quickly. Even though he was at the bottom of the food chain, he still excelled.

By 2022, Jun Hao had led the team that finally found the briefcase.

But Lei had underestimated him.

Jun Hao had changed over the years, hardened by the life he had lived, and he wasn't someone who could be bought off cheaply. He didn't care about the glory, or the money-he cared about being respected, about being compensated fairly. And when Lei offered him a fraction of what he was worth, Jun Hao refused to hand over the briefcase.

It was Lin Zhi who had lost patience first.

He killed Jun Hao just like that. Lei never thought his brother would have it in him, but it seemed like the gang had scraped the little bit of innocence he had left.

However, looking back on it, he shouldn't have killed that guy-Chen Jun Hao.

Lei had been furious. Not because Lin Zhi had killed Jun Hao-death was part of their world- but because of what Jun Hao represented. In the eight years that Jun Hao had been with the gang, he had quietly amassed an incredible amount of power and influence.

More than Lei had realized.

Jun Hao wasn't just an operative—he was the glue that held everything together. He had connections, alliances, and a way of keeping people in line. Without him, the gang began to unravel.

One by one, people left. Their allies abandoned them. Without Jun Hao's strategic mind, their operations fell apart. And before Lei knew it, everything he had worked so hard to build was gone. The empire he had constructed over the past decade crumbled, all because of one impulsive moment.

Despite it all, Lin Zhi was still accepted into Phoenix Entertainment. The deal with Kim Young Do had been upheld, and Lin Zhi was on his way to becoming the star he had always dreamed

of being.

But for Lei, it was a hollow victory.

Lin Zhi quickly entered Rising Stars, and Lei continued to support him from behind the scenes. There was still bitterness in his heart-for he had lost his gang. However, as days passed, he had his eyes set on overtaking the entertainment industry.

He would do it together with Lin Zhi. They had fewer enemies now, but they still knew what they needed to know.

With Lei's help, Lin Zhi rose through the ranks, and he became a very promising trainee-one who would inevitably make it.

However, it seemed like they still had enemies even in this field-and it came in the presence of June.

June-the guy who came from Phoenix and became an independent trainee. The guy who outsmarted him in all ways he couldn't accept. The guy he couldn't understand.

The guy who reminded him of the person who made him lose White Tiger-Chen Jun Hao.

Now, sitting in the countryside, looking out over the sprawling fields, Lei couldn't help but reflect on everything that had happened. His life had been had been glorious thus far, but the person he started all of this for was now dead.

And here he was, hiding in a house far from the city, far from everything he had once known.

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