The response exceeded his expectations, with more than 20,000 people answering the call after he uploaded a video outlining his plan to Bilibili, where he is better-known for posting about video games and career exploration, and, in doing so, has managed to accrue more than 120,000 followers since 2015.

Applications flooded in from all parts of the country, including Tianjin, and Jilin and Qinghai provinces, as well as the Tibet autonomous region and Hong Kong.

"I figured it was because a lot of them had a habit of taking photos, and the threshold for taking part was very low," Li says.

He then asked applicants to fill in a questionnaire, and made a point of choosing people with different career backgrounds, who had a certain level of photography experience and good ideas.

He eventually picked 34 photography enthusiasts, each from a different province or region.

Li also included a notebook with the camera, so that participants could record how they felt during the process.

He handed the camera to the participant in Beijing in person, but the rest of the relay was conducted via express delivery.

When the camera came back safe and sound, Li discovered that many of the photos were unexpectedly good. He chose one from each of the participants and posted it on Bilibili.

The first one from Beijing was of an autumn street scene, with golden ginkgo leaves reflected in the roadside puddles after rain, revealing the charm of the city.

As the camera moved south, the scenery changed.

The photo from Fujian province captured a market adorned with red lanterns on the eve of the Spring Festival and moved many viewers with its strong festive atmosphere.