Webnovel.Forum

TianLei have you turn on farming option in the setting page?

TianLei they want you to use the app. They seem to really love their app and would like people to stop using the browser. If you have the app and your reading time isn't being counted, you should contact support@webnovel.com with your phone information and a description of the issue along with any applicable screenshots.
I couldn't tell you why the app might be more advantageous for them over the browser. Perhaps it makes it easier to send you targeted advertising. They might think app users are more likely to eventually spend money. Or it could simply lead to higher retention as it's harder to uninstall an app than it is to never visit a website again. There's always more conspiratorial conjectures like it's able to access more data than you expect, but it's a drop in the ocean compared to what Google, Facebook, Amazon, etc. have been confirmed to have collected.