Two Extremes

Li Chen arranged for people to scout talented producers. Money was no object.

Then a question occurred to him.

If he was going to do it, he might as well do it big.

The singers who were already hugely popular were out of the question, but what about those who hadn't made it big yet?

Li Chen asked the system in his mind and learned that he could also earn prestige points by making singers famous. That piqued his interest.

As long as there were prestige points to be earned, everything else was negotiable.

With the development of the internet, superstars like those of the last century were actually hard to come by.

The likes of Michael Jackson and the queen of pop Madonna would be hard to replicate.

Of course, the new century had produced its own smash hits.

Britney Spears, for example, had still taken the world by storm and broken countless records.

And then there was Avril Lavigne, whom Li Chen had once liked a lot. Unfortunately, they were all famous already.

At the end of 2008, who was still waiting for their big break?

The first person he thought of was naturally Taylor Swift. As the hottest country music queen of the internet age, she was in a completely different league from everyone else.

But Taylor Swift had released her debut album two years ago. Although she wasn't hugely popular yet, her turning point came in 2008.

Not long ago, she had released the single "Love Story," which became the turning point in her career.

She wasn't yet the country music queen she would later become, but she was clearly already getting attention.

Even with money, he couldn't sign her anymore.

Big Machine Records already treated her like a treasure. After investing so much in her early on, how could they possibly let her go?

It was no longer a question of money.

There was nothing he could do but express his regret, and a number of other names came to mind.

There was the "Shaanxi diva" Dua Lipa, Sabrina Carpenter with her cutesy voice, and Olivia, the creator of funny music...

But without a doubt, those people were still too young in this era.

So getting ahead of someone else is this hard too.

Li Chen only liked listening to songs. He actually knew nothing about music.

So if anyone asked why he only remembered the names of female singers, that was why: he only listened to girls sing...

Still, Li Chen did think of one person.

Katy Perry.

She seemed to have just debuted!

Li Chen delegated the task. Starlight Pictures had more than a thousand employees, so naturally, the boss couldn't be expected to do everything himself.

Thus, only one other person remained in the office.

Li Chen looked at Li Qianhuan. "Can you drive?"

"I have a driver's license."

Li Qianhuan nodded at once.

"Then you'll be my driver from now on."

Li Chen decisively fired his previous driver.

The company had assigned that driver to him, and he didn't trust him all that much.

A driver could lack every other skill, but they had to be someone he trusted.

Whatever else might be said about Li Qianhuan, at least she would be loyal to him.

"Okay."

Li Qianhuan nodded, perfectly content.

She had actually been rather unlucky.

As an Asian, she already faced unfair treatment in North American society.

Even more unfortunately, she was also a Mutant.

The debuffs were practically stacking up.

Mutants were shunned by all normal people because they feared their powers.

So Li Qianhuan had no particular dreams. She just wanted to escape.

That was also why she had chosen to cling to Li Chen's thigh. With a big shot to shelter her from the wind and rain, she was overjoyed.

A few days later, Li Chen wasn't planning to go to the office.

He sat on the sofa at home, watching TV.

Tony Stark had finally decided to face the public.

Both the military and S.H.I.E.L.D. had given him scripts. All he had to do was read from one.

But the outcome was still the same. Tony Stark simply tossed aside the script in his hand.

"I am Iron Man!"

He made that startling declaration to hundreds of media outlets from around the world, ushering in a new era.

But for now, the biggest impact of those words was actually on Stark Industries' stock.

Li Chen had acquired a little more during this period. Although his stake was less than one percent, he could still make a profit.

With a major conglomerate like Stark Industries, it was impossible to quietly acquire a majority of its stock.

But making a modest profit was still no problem.

The phone rang, and a surprised Gwen Stacy discussed it with Li Chen.

"Darling, you guessed right."

She truly admired Li Chen.

So much so that her friends said Li Chen had seduced her. Whenever she had time, she would call him and then show him off to her friends.

This made Gwen Stacy's few friends a little envious of her.

How could someone be so annoying?

But Gwen Stacy didn't care at all. She was immersed in love.

Li Chen smiled. "Then what's my reward, our Ghost-Spider?"

Aside from studying and dating, Gwen Stacy had also made a name for herself in New York.

But it was as Spider-Man.

She went around fighting for justice and gradually came to enjoy the feeling.

Everyone actually had a sense of justice, so everyone liked doing good deeds.

It was just that, for various reasons, many people could only suppress their sense of justice.

When good deeds went unrewarded, who would still be a good person?

Not everyone had superpowers.

But Spider-Man was different. They all believed, "With great power comes great responsibility."

To put it bluntly, they'd been manipulated.

And Gwen Stacy had also received a new title: Ghost-Spider.

In her black-and-white suit, she appeared and vanished like a ghost.

Although Gwen Stacy didn't particularly like it, there was nothing she could do to resist it.

At Li Chen's words, she immediately said shyly, "What do you want?"

"How about learning some other things?"

Li Chen said, "A mouth can be used for more than eating. It can also..."

"Pah!"

Gwen Stacy immediately spat out a "pah."

But soon, she said in a voice as quiet as a mosquito's, "The next time you come to New York."

"Really?"

Li Chen immediately cried out in surprise.

Gwen Stacy was wonderful in every way, except that she was too traditional.

He just liked making traditional women turn bad.

"No!"

Hearing how delighted he was, Gwen Stacy immediately grew embarrassed and annoyed.

Li Chen was wonderful in every way, except... he was too bad.

But it was precisely because he was bad that Gwen Stacy had fallen for him completely.

She hadn't even realized it herself, but that was what she liked about Li Chen.

The two chatted a while longer before Gwen Stacy hung up. She had to go to class.

Li Chen, meanwhile, wasn't planning to go to the office. He was going shopping.

Only, he wasn't taking a maid with him, but Saitama.

Saitama had grown impatient waiting here.

He had taken it upon himself to choose the most secluded spot on the estate and spent most of each day in his room, paying no attention to Li Chen's life.

Li Chen had been a little wary before, but he no longer was.

Just as Saitama had shown, he wasn't interested in women at all... he was far too laid-back.

He and Li Chen were complete opposites in that respect.

The only things Saitama was interested in were playing games and shopping for discounts.

Of course, he could also watch TV and the like, but they weren't high priorities.

Aside from that, Saitama loved being a hero most of all. His sense of justice was extraordinarily strong.