Pop music—music the public loved.
And they were part of the public too.
In just half a night, Ye Chang'an had become a singer as famous as Eden.
And the name of their duo, Sleepless Chang'an, had been given a brand-new interpretation across the internet.
—Don't listen to Chang'an sing. Once you do, you won't sleep all damn night.
—What night? Even the moon looks like the sun to me. I'm way too hyped.
"Hehe~ Honey, what am I supposed to do? I won't even be able to sing without feeling embarrassed in the future."
Eden leaned against Ye Chang'an's chest, giggling as she scrolled through her phone. Everything she saw was about Chang'an.
Ye Chang'an chuckled and shook his head, stroking Eden's soft red hair. "Just sing. I'll love listening to anything you sing."
"Haha, then I'll just sing whatever I want from now on."
"Sing whatever you want. I'll accompany you."
People who loved music never treated it carelessly. Their "whatever" truly wasn't casual.
"Oh my, honey, if you accompany me, won't people get upset? Look, they're all eagerly waiting for your next concert."
With a mischievous grin, Eden pulled up a post titled "The People of Shenzhou Petition in Blood for Chang'an to Hold a Concert in Shenzhou." The replies begging for it had already surpassed a million.
It couldn't be helped. Many of Ye Chang'an's original songs were in Shenzhou language, and people from Shenzhou found them especially pleasing to hear.
He wanted to visit Shenzhou and hold a concert as well, but for now, he merely wickedly kneaded Eden's softness and said,
"What they want is their business. Right now, all I want is for you to sing to me."
"Mmm~ What should I sing?" Eden's cheeks flushed red, her emotions stirred.
"Morning Joy!"
Morning lovemaking. Being young was great.
PS: I suddenly thought of a line—Who stands at the peak when the road of music ends? At the sight of Chang'an, the night becomes empty.
Genesis Chapter: Journey to a New World: What If Someone in the Previous Civilization Wants to Become Otto?
More than a year had passed since Ye Chang'an first took the stage to sing, and the entire world appeared very peaceful.
But that peace was only superficial. Destruction still occurred frequently all over the world.
Although Chang'an Melody could free people from the suffering of Destruction Sickness, the disaster Destruction brought to human civilization was not limited to Destruction Sickness.
Every minor outbreak of Destruction came with natural disasters, destroying the homes local people had worked so hard to build.
Even if the scattered Destruction energy was not enough to erode humans who had gradually adapted to Destruction, it could erode creatures other than humans.
And the monsters formed after that erosion were Honkai Beasts.
They appeared in this world and trampled civilization without restraint.
Then the humans who witnessed them filmed them and uploaded the footage online.
It didn't cause an uproar.
The posts were controlled the instant they went up.
Ordinary citizens didn't know, but Ye Chang'an did.
Because he was currently having tea with the big shot who had ordered the control.
The number one leader of Mu Continent—K.
After waving away the secretary who had been playing the footage, K, who was past fifty but still vigorous and sharp-eyed, looked toward Ye Chang'an across from him.
"You don't seem surprised by any of this." K asked with a smile, as though they were simply making casual conversation.
Yet it was his first time meeting Ye Chang'an.
"Sir, with your capabilities, you should know that I've seen these things before." Ye Chang'an admitted with a wry smile.
He had experienced an outbreak of Destruction when he and Eden had gone traveling. He had even fought his way out with Eden and been placed under a gag order afterward.
This old man had definitely investigated it.
"Even if you've seen them before, your reaction is unexpectedly calm. It seems your year-long career in entertainment has helped you grow considerably. Even this old man feels somewhat ashamed by comparison."
The flattering words of someone like him were best treated like a fart. They couldn't be trusted.
Ye Chang'an didn't believe a single word. He put on a fake smile and humored him, wanting only to escape this big shot's grasp as soon as possible.
He truly didn't want to deal with people who played politics, especially not the number one leader of Mu Continent right off the bat.
He wanted to run. He wanted to slip away.
But K hadn't invited him over just to let him leave without doing anything. Only after chatting about a few insignificant matters did he finally turn to the real issue.
"Was Chang'an Melody created by you to deal with Destruction?"
Terms like Destruction and Destruction energy had been published by Mobius, gaining recognition and widespread use in academic circles.
So Ye Chang'an wasn't surprised. He merely played dumb in an attempt to muddle through.
"Stop playing dumb. The fact that I brought you here means I've already confirmed many things. Continuing to pretend won't help you."
K, wise with age, exposed him without mercy. Seeing Ye Chang'an fall silent, he continued,
"You are from Mu Continent, which makes you one of my people. Since you are one of my people, I will not harm you. I will even protect you.
"So you can speak boldly about some things. You don't need to worry so much."
Trust him? Not a chance.
Ye Chang'an didn't trust a single leader from the Previous Civilization's peaceful era.
But having lived on Mu Continent for over twenty years, he also knew how many great achievements K, this old leader, had made. Setting aside the game factor, the old leader truly was deeply beloved.
After all, K had led Mu Continent into becoming the most developed region in the world.
That was why he held the greatest authority on Mu Continent, to the point where his word was nearly law.
And the old man had already made himself so clear. How could Ye Chang'an possibly refuse?
With the influence of a superstar? That probably wasn't enough.
"Sigh, could you tell me why you brought me here first?" Ye Chang'an asked with a sigh, considering how much information to reveal based on the answer.
At the very least, he needed to figure out K's attitude first.
"I brought you here to save people."
"Save people? I know a little about art, not medicine."
"Those who understand medicine are useless. Your art is what matters."
K pushed a paper file toward him, and Ye Chang'an hesitated.
To read it or not to read it—that was the question.
He still picked up the file. Then his face turned extremely ugly, and he couldn't help swearing.
"Damn it, are these people fucking insane?! Fuck!!"
He truly couldn't hold it in.
The file showed that some mad scientists had been gathering Destruction energy and attempting to use it. They were also conducting an utterly inhumane experiment.
Destruction energy infusion experiments.
It was similar to how he had helped Mobius infuse volunteers with Destruction energy, but their experiments were far crueler and more painful.
After all, their infusion forcibly injected the energy, while Ye Chang'an's simply gathered Destruction energy and allowed the human body to absorb it naturally.
"Aren't those bastards afraid of playing with fire and getting burned?!"
Ye Chang'an's face was filled with rage. K, who had taken a sip of tea, nodded in agreement.
"They are indeed playing with fire. That is why I stopped their experiments and gathered the test subjects together, intending for you to treat them."
K was a compassionate leader. That could be seen from this matter.
But Ye Chang'an had no intention of agreeing. He shook his head. "Just play them records of Chang'an Melody. Play them a few more times."
Chang'an Melody records could already replace him and Eden. There was no need for him to go personally.
"We tried. It didn't work." K shook his head and flipped the file to the part Ye Chang'an had not finished reading. He showed him. "The Erosion Markings on their bodies are spreading too quickly. The records' effects cannot keep pace with the erosion.
"According to the quantified data, Chang'an Melody is three times more effective when you perform it in person. When your wife Eden performs it, the effect is equal to the records.
"So at present, the only person who can help them recover is you."
Quantified data was a new term proposed by those mad scientists, primarily used to quantify the rate at which Chang'an Melody increased the human body's resistance to Destruction energy.
They had designated the unit as hw, which was also applicable as a unit for quantifying Destruction energy concentration.
As for tools for detecting and collecting Destruction energy, they too had only been developed over the past year.
Honestly, human creativity really was powerful.
But the curiosity that drove that creativity also made humans reach toward fields they should not yet touch.
Gathering and then infusing Destruction energy—they weren't afraid of infusing someone into a Herrscher?
Although Herrschers were destined to appear, humanity couldn't go and create one like this.
Were they all trying to become Otto or something?
The more Ye Chang'an thought about it, the angrier he became. After barely calming down, he said sullenly, "I'm not going. This is too dangerous."
The erosion rate exceeding the records' effectiveness was proof enough that the area where the test subjects had been gathered contained an extremely high concentration of Destruction energy.
A large amount of Destruction energy gathered in one place could create a Herrscher at any moment.
Wouldn't going there be asking for death?
But K still didn't know about Herrschers. He raised a brow and asked, "Tell me where the danger is. I'll handle it for you."
You don't have the ability to handle it, brother.
Ye Chang'an dearly wanted to say that, but he swallowed the words at the last moment and muttered the reason instead.
In a speculative tone, he predicted a monster capable of gathering a vast amount of Destruction energy and called it a Herrscher.
He said nothing about the Cocoon of the End, because K was not Mobius.
"A Herrscher that gathers a vast amount of Destruction energy..."
K considered the possibility of the prediction, then said, "What if we send people to artificially dilute the Destruction energy there? Could you go then?"
"What? Artificially dilute it?"
PS: That's about enough. Time to enter the prelude to becoming a Herrscher.
PS2: Calling him an emperor or monarch felt odd, so I'll stick with number one leader. This old man will have quite an important role in the Previous Civilization simulation later.
Genesis Chapter: Journey to a New World: People Only Learn They're Wrong After Making Mistakes
Artificially diluting Destruction energy was indeed feasible.
As long as a large number of living creatures were gathered in an area where Destruction energy concentration was too high, the Destruction energy in that area could be absorbed separately by those creatures.
It didn't matter even if it wasn't distributed evenly, so long as it was ensured that no single creature absorbed it all.
So K's method was to increase population density and ensure that a Herrscher would not be born in the area where the test subjects were located.
"If you had a method like that, just use it. After diluting it, play them Chang'an Melody records, wouldn't that work?"
Ye Chang'an had complained, only to be shot back by K, the old leader.
"If you don't go to the site, what reason would I have to gather people there?"
Before you continue