Leon Lai stars an emperor in Ever Night. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Following Andy Lau, Leon Lai has recently appeared online as the second star of the iconic Hong Kong "Four Heavenly Kings" to join a web drama.

Lai, the best actor winner of 2002 Golden Horse Awards, plays an emperor in Ever Night, a 60-episode online series which has run on the streaming site Tencent Video since Oct 31. It accumulated 200 million "clicks" on the first day.

Earlier this year, Andy Lau produced the five-episode web series The Trading Floor, a Wall Street-style tale about financial schemes.

Based on the namesake novel by Mao Ni, or more famously known by his pen name Xiao Feng, the story Ever Night fictionalizes a border town's soldier who rises to become the most powerful swordsman in the fictional dynasty.

Chen Feiyu, son of renowned director Chen Kaige, headlines the soldier-turned hero, and the cast also includes 71-year-old Hong Kong star Adam Cheng Siu-chow, whose classic roles such as swordsman Chu Liuxiang and Emperor Qianlong have shaped a collective memory of a generation.