Kong Xi's Main Quest

[Main Quest]

[Initial stage of cultivating a music-loving young man who had suffered setbacks completed]

[Reputation settled: 100000]

[Next stage unlocked: Advanced cultivation]

[The host has successfully brought the setback-stricken young man Hu Wei into the spotlight and earned him industry recognition. Next, make him rise to fame quickly.]

[Mission requirement: Within one year, have Hu Wei make at least ten songs popular, with more than three reaching the top three of the charts, including but not limited to the New Song Chart, Hot Song Chart, Popularity Index Chart, and so on.]

[Reward for success: A large amount of reputation, high-tier treasure chests]

[Mission failure: A large amount of the host's reputation will be deducted]

[Main Quest, Hu Wei Branch, Stage Two: Silver Treasure Chest x1]

Song Dao took a deep breath, thinking, So a punishment mission has finally appeared?

Still, he did not take it too seriously.

As long as it was not some inhumane mission where failure meant immediate death.

Besides, he had great confidence in the golden songwriting duo of Shiyilang and Zhang Yu.

Even if this was not the nineties, classic songs would always have a market.

Wasn't it just the top three?

Since someone else had written the lyrics and music, they could not make the Original Ranking, but he was still confident about the Soaring Chart, the New Song Chart, and the revamped Popularity Index Chart.

As more songs were released, Hu Wei's fame would only grow. Breaking into the Hot Song Chart was merely a matter of time.

Ten songs within a year—if the mission treasure chests all contained songs on the level of A Lifetime of Loneliness, then he was completely confident.

With the state of the music scene today, he would not say there was absolutely no competition, but honestly, aside from the songs given by the system, Song Dao did not think much of anyone else.

Unless I fight myself.

The shameless cheater thought to himself and silently said, Open the treasure chest.

The shining Silver Treasure Chest slowly opened amid a burst of light, and a line of words appeared before Song Dao's eyes.

The instant he saw the song title, Song Dao pumped his fist hard.

Yes!

Absolutely yes.

This song had won quite a few awards back then and had even ranked first on the Golden Melody Dragon Tiger Chart Mandarin Ranking!

It could be considered Teacher Zhang Yu's first truly iconic work.

While A Lifetime of Loneliness was still red-hot, releasing another golden hit of comparable quality would take Hu Wei to the next level.

Song Dao still remembered what Hu Wei's ex-girlfriend had said that night—"I'll be the woman with the highest status you'll ever sleep with in your life!"

That was roughly what she had meant.

Very soon, she would understand just how ignorant she had been.

Song Dao was not worried that releasing songs too quickly or in too great a quantity would cause overcrowding.

The current Chinese music scene was much the same as the Chinese-language music scene on Earth when he had transmigrated.

It had been stagnant for far too long!

It was long overdue for a good, drenching storm!

Then let me use classics from another world to summon clouds and rain for you, and give you all a proper soaking.

The system notification was not only about Hu Wei.

There was also Kong Xi!

Perhaps because Kong Xi had made Always Been Quiet popular, the system had actually opened an entirely new... Main Quest for her as well!

[Main Quest]

[Cultivate the young, music-dreaming beauty Kong Xi]

[A healthy music scene cannot consist only of older powerhouse vocalists; it also needs plenty of fresh blood]

[Mission objective: Cultivate the young female singer Kong Xi, who bears the label of an internet celebrity, into a versatile Little Heavenly Queen of the music scene, drawing more young people to like and love music]

[Activation reward: Premium Bronze Treasure Chest x1]

[The mission will officially begin after singer Kong Xi passes the host's test]

[When singers perform works provided by the host, their popularity will be converted into reputation and returned to the host at a certain ratio]

In other words, the system would tailor songs specifically for Kong Xi in the future, rather than as before, when it gave him songs from treasure chests that suited film and television dramas but not necessarily her.

However, when Song Dao opened this Premium Bronze Treasure Chest, the song that came out left him somewhat speechless.

At the same time, it made him question the system's choice.

Did Kong Xi's ethereal, crystal-clear voice really suit the slightly husky texture of this Unpopular Singer's voice?

He also knew that Kong Xi had a very wide vocal range, and that her tone changed to some extent across different registers.

Still, he felt that the song the system had provided this time might have been somewhat poorly considered.

But there was definitely nothing wrong with the song itself.

And this style really did represent a move toward greater diversity for Kong Xi.

After returning home, Song Dao first "created" both songs.

For the next two days, he never stepped outside.

He occasionally kept in touch with Hu Wei, Kong Xi, Yan Yu, Lin Fei, and the others. He also exchanged messages with Kang Peng, sharing information.

Since all contact information for Miao Xiu had been completely cut off, they had never gotten in touch again.

The news about Lu Wen being photographed cheating had also been suppressed. Times Media had probably stepped in.

For Song Dao, this kind of life was very comfortable.

Relaxed and free.

There were no unnecessary disturbances, nor were too many people paying attention to him.

His pen name, however, had remained extremely popular lately. Unable to find him, many people seeking songs had contacted Feiyang Music Movement instead.

Having struggled for years before finally getting back on his feet, Hu Wei had also begun steadily accepting suitable appearances under the company's arrangements.

After all, he had only just risen to fame and still needed to boost his public recognition through various public events.

Whenever he was asked about the mysterious Teacher Water Strike Three Thousand in interviews, he wore a grateful expression and said that Teacher Sanqian was his mentor.

That also sent some online speculation in the wrong direction.

Although Hu Wei was a newly famous newcomer in the music industry, he was not that young.

The term "mentor" naturally led people to assume that Water Strike Three Thousand was also fairly old.

The reason for choosing such a pen name was most likely because he did not want the public to know who he was.

But the more that was the case, the more curious people became.

From top-tier lyricists and composers to famous singer-songwriters, even hall-level godfathers who had retired for years were not spared.

Netizens went through them one by one.

Yet most lyricists and composers had never liked appearing in public, and many renowned figures from the past did not even have a single photograph available.

So uncovering Water Strike Three Thousand's true identity was truly not easy.

In the blink of an eye, time reached mid-July.

Immortal Sword Asking for Love, already destined to become the year's smash hit, finally welcomed its finale.

The second female lead quietly stepped aside in order to fulfill the male and female leads' relationship.

But unable to stop worrying about the male lead, she continued following him in secret.

At last, when the main villain tried to kill the male lead and the female lead, an immortal maiden, was held back by her enemies, she stepped forward at the critical moment.

She sacrificed her life to save the male lead.

At the end of the show, the second female lead transformed into a colorful butterfly in the Heavenly Realm.

At the grand wedding of the male and female leads, it landed on the Heavenly Gate and quietly watched the festivities within.

At that moment, Kong Xi's "Always Been Quiet" played once more.

Countless viewers were moved to tears by the scene.

What appeared to be a perfect ending left countless people unable to move on because of the second female lead's lovable character and outstanding performance.

That night, Immortal Sword Asking for Love dominated the trending searches.

Nearly half of the top ten were related to it.

"Always Been Quiet" and "Feeling Sorry for the Second Female Lead" were both prominently listed.

It was not just the already hugely popular male lead Qin Ge and female lead Zhao Xue who became famous through this drama.

The second male and female leads, and even all kinds of villains, rose to fame along with it.

Their value soared!

And Kong Xi, originally just an interlude singer with little connection to the drama, rode this wave to shake off the label of internet celebrity singer and become a genuinely popular young female star.

Her popularity was no less than that of those currently famous second-tier actresses!

Water Strike Three Thousand, the lyricist and composer, had not broken into the mainstream, but he had exploded in popularity within the industry!

In the eyes of many entertainment companies and singers, this name held far more weight than the recently skyrocketing Hu Wei and Kong Xi.

People had already begun approaching Lin Fei to commission songs.

Some major companies had even proactively sought out Lin Fei, hoping she could introduce them to him.

Others openly called out online, offering high prices to commission songs.

Amid the turmoil.

Director Zhang Yi, Xia Kingdom's top filmmaker, had set his big-budget 3D xianxia epic Demon Love for the summer release window.

It would officially premiere on July 17!

Life is Messy Studio.

Song Dao, Lin Fei, Yan Yu, Kong Xi, and Hu Wei were all there.

Given the current popularity and buzz surrounding the two of them, especially Kong Xi, it had become difficult for them to swagger into Life is Messy Studio as openly as they had in the past.

Not only did they have to disguise themselves completely, they also dared not casually take taxis.

Even Lin Fei had not driven her own car. Instead, the company driver had brought the two of them over in a very low-profile business van.

Because rumors had recently begun to circulate—

The last Queen of the Chinese music scene this century was about to make a comeback!

It had started with an interview Zhang Yi gave while promoting his film.

The reporter had asked Zhang Yi at the time, "Director Zhang, every one of your previous works produced one or two good songs. Will this one be the same?"

The reporter had only asked because, during this period, two rather impressive newcomers had suddenly appeared in the long-dormant Chinese music scene. Bringing it up was bound to generate buzz.

He had not expected to pry anything valuable from Director Zhang, who had always kept his mouth tightly shut. But the moment Zhang Yi heard the question, his mouth split into a wide grin.

His old face bloomed like a chrysanthemum.

It practically said: I've been waiting forever for someone to ask me that!

"You should all know that I started following a newly risen musician some time ago..."

Reporter: "We know, we know, Director Zhang. Do you mean Teacher Water Strike Three Thousand, who created Always Been Quiet and A Lifetime of Loneliness, and wrote Red Beans Grow in the South?"

Zhang Yi: "..."

He felt as if the other party had stolen half his lines.

Still, he kept smiling and replied, "Yes, that's the one. The theme song for Demon Love was personally composed by Teacher Water Strike Three Thousand. The lyrics are as beautiful as that poem. But that isn't what I want to talk about."

Reporter:!!!

Zhang Yi: "What I want to say is that the song is unbelievably good, and the singer is unbelievably amazing... You'll never guess who it is! When the time comes, everyone will be so shocked their jaws drop, and countless people will thank me!"

Good heavens, he had not named anyone directly.

But once those words came out, it was practically the same as laying all his cards on the table.

Netizens could be ridiculous, sure, but when they were not being ridiculous, every one of them was practically Sherlock Holmes.

Especially when it came to things like this—their IQs were outrageously high.

More importantly, Director Zhang's words pointed too clearly in one direction.

So the answer was obvious.

Lin Fei!

Although many people still remained skeptical.

Countless Lin Fei fans had already begun cheering!

It was not hard to guess. First of all, Zhang Yi's words had been far too obvious.

In today's music scene, even those Heavenly Kings and Queens who had retired or semi-retired would not make countless people grateful simply by returning.

Only Lin Fei—the National Goddess whom countless people still felt was deeply wronged—had that kind of influence!

If she truly opened her golden voice again after several years, it would indeed cause a sensation.

Secondly, Lin Fei and Water Strike Three Thousand, the mysterious producer who had suddenly emerged, were probably very close!

That had already become the consensus within the industry.

Otherwise, how could someone whose name had never appeared in the Chinese music scene before suddenly write two high-quality songs for two artists signed to Feiyang Music Movement?

If he could write songs for Feiyang Music Movement's artists, then naturally he could write for its boss as well.

Lin Fei had been slandered all the way up to the present, with people throwing dirt at her from every possible angle. Yet there was one thing she had never been attacked over.

That was her nearly unbeatable singing ability ever since her debut!

Thus, even though Lin Fei had not said a word, the attention she received skyrocketed wildly.

Her name appeared on the trending searches almost every day.

As a result, Lin Fei, whose life had originally been quite comfortable, once again experienced what it had felt like before she left the industry.

Her every move was watched, and she had no freedom.

Inside the recording studio.

Hu Wei's song had already been recorded.

Everyone unanimously praised it.

The reason they weren't shocked or awestruck was mainly because Song Dao's talent had numbed them by now.

Just like when Song Dao brought out the new song he had prepared for Kong Xi.

The moment Kong Xi saw the lyrics and hummed a few lines, she froze. Her face filled with delight and astonishment as she asked Song Dao, "How did you know I'm from Chaoshan? I don't think I ever said I was raised by my maternal grandmother, did I? You actually... actually managed to add Minnan into it... That's incredible!"

As soon as she said that, the others were left speechless.

They had no idea what words could express the Holy crap deep in their hearts.

Song Dao broke into a cold sweat. That was the system's doing; it had nothing to do with him.

Even if he remembered songs from Earth, there was no way he could know about Kong Xi's background.

But there was no explaining something like that, so he could only smile calmly and say, "You mentioned you were from Chaoshan when we drank last time, and that you were very close to your maternal grandmother. That gave me a little inspiration..."

That's right, I'm just that awesome. What can I say?

The others racked their brains and felt that Kong Xi did seem to have mentioned it in passing when she was drunk.

And that gave you inspiration?

Wasn't that a little too monstrous?

Somersault Cat Girl immediately bowed at Teacher Song's denim-clad feet.

Calling him her benefactor, she said she was willing to offer up two portions of her share as tribute.

That was more or less how it went.

Though it sounded a little exaggerated, it wasn't really that exaggerated.

After successfully shedding her influencer identity, the girl had actually become calmer than before.

Perhaps someone had given her advice, or perhaps she had seen that Hu Wei had gone from an ordinary person to wildly famous with just one song.

Of course, the bigger reason was that Teacher Song was just too amazing!

Writing good lyrics and melodies was already difficult enough, yet he also possessed profound skill in arranging.

Even harder to come by, he tailored songs specifically to each person!

She might have been relatively innocent, but she had never been stupid.

Her attitude toward Song Dao had gone from admiring him as an impressive Senior Brother, to seeing him as the insanely awesome Teacher Song, to willingly taking the initiative to lower her share.

There was only one reason.

This was a real powerhouse!

She had to hold on tight.