Their attack on them had only just begun, yet it came like a violent storm, a barrage of punches that left them completely caught off guard.
"TT Group only has these few tricks up its sleeve: put out some gimmicks, hire paid posters to promote them, and wildly smear us. It was only to be expected."
Fang Zheng waved his hand dismissively. He knew TT Group's three standard moves all too well.
"I'm not worried about TT Group smearing us. I'm worried about the higher-ups' attitude."
"The higher-ups?"
Zhang Siyu was stunned when she heard this, but she immediately understood.
As the company's CEO, her judgment was sharp. Upon hearing Fang Zheng's words, she keenly sensed the heart of the matter.
"Akame ga Kill!" now occupied an awkward position. After that declaration from Professor Yang on Weibo, it was as if the series had been placed on a stake and roasted over a fire.
They claimed that "Akame ga Kill!" was anti-national and that its intentions were criminal. But looking at it from the other side, one could just as easily say that "Akame ga Kill!" proclaimed a spirit of resistance.
Hadn't a great man once said, 'Wherever there is oppression, there will be resistance'?
The stance and intent of "Akame ga Kill!" depended entirely on the higher-ups' attitude. Their bitter struggle with TT Group was, in reality, completely dependent on a single word from above.
How it would ultimately be defined would still depend on what the higher-ups meant. That was why Fang Zheng was worried.
"Then what should we do about the opinions online...?"
Zhang Siyu understood. She nodded thoughtfully, then looked at Fang Zheng, wanting to ask whether they should fight back appropriately.
"Just wait and see. Before the authorities make a statement, the company will proceed according to the original plan. "Akame ga Kill!" should continue updating as usual."
"Understood!"
Zhang Siyu left the office to handle what came next.
Meanwhile, the opinions online grew even more heated. What had begun as attacks on Fang Zheng personally had now spread to the entire ACG Culture Company, as well as the entire anime-loving community.
In a sense, this was a full-scale collision between the traditional film and television industry and the emerging anime industry!
And the anime-loving audience caught in the crossfire was nothing more than innocent bystanders suffering because of a fight at the city gates.
"Comrades, I'm back. I've returned covered in wounds!"
"Waaah, people insulted me! I just genuinely like anime—what's wrong with that? Why are they insulting me?"
"Damn it, this is so frustrating!"
"Where are you, Top Fanboy? We need you~"
In Fang Zheng's largest fan group, countless fans poured out their grievances.
The online incident had already begun affecting their real lives. Their friends looked at them with strange expressions.
Some people had even anonymously insulted them through messaging apps~
Under the attacks from those around them, they felt deeply aggrieved.
They simply liked anime. They liked the fun of following series together with a bunch of silly netizens.
But at this moment, they felt that the entire world was filled with hostility toward them. It seemed as if everyone was ostracizing them and hurling insults at them.
Helpless, they could only return to the fan group to complain. It was the only place where they could find like-minded comrades and receive a brief moment of comfort.
"Brothers, I've heard everything that happened. I'll only ask you one question: Do you believe in Big Shot Fang?"
In the fan group, after countless fans @ed him, the Top Fanboy they spoke of finally stepped forward. His username was actually 'Top Fanboy Under Big Shot Fang.'
Seeing Top Fanboy's message, countless fans fell silent.
Although the Big Shot Fang they liked was a professional ghoster who enjoyed messing with them and arguing with them, and had even tricked them by claiming that "Akame ga Kill!" was a hot-blooded battle series—
None of that mattered. As their fan group's slogan went, Big Shot Fang could hurt them a thousand times, yet they would still treat him like their first love.
"Top Fanboy, we know Big Shot Fang's character very well. "Akame ga Kill!" definitely isn't as vile as people online are claiming!"
"Exactly. Big Shot Fang likes to mess around, but isn't that precisely why we like him?"
"Top Fanboy, just tell us what to do?!"
"Right, we'll all listen to you!"
Begging all the Big Shots for your support~~~~~~~~~*
In the fan group, Top Fanboy watched the fans' messages and nodded in satisfaction.
"Very well. Though I'm not particularly talented, I'll lead everyone into battle!"
"First of all, A Company is definitely our home base. There are many like-minded comrades there who are still holding on. Before A Company is completely overrun, we have to take back our home base!"
Many fans in the group read Top Fanboy's message and nodded in agreement.
Without a doubt, A Company was the focal point of today's online battle. It was also their home base, and they absolutely couldn't let anything go wrong there!
Otherwise, they would truly have lost~
"Damn it, my speed after being single for more than twenty years can finally be put to use!"
"Charge, charge, charge! I've been sick of those mad dogs for ages!"
"The A Company army marches forth—gods and demons, scatter!"
"Beat the hell out of them!"
The countless fans in the group were fired up. Top Fanboy had a hard time calming down this bunch of hotheaded bros.
The attack from online was fierce. There were paid posters, passersby joining in for fun, and various other people with ulterior motives trying to fish in troubled waters.
Therefore, the fans of A Company could be said to be completely isolated. Aside from themselves, they had no allies at all.
Top Fanboy hurriedly contacted the leaders of other fan groups, calling on them to fight alongside him.
At exactly seven in the evening, A Company began airing "Akame ga Kill!" on schedule.
"Trash anime, and it still has the nerve to air? Just wait to be banned~"
"I can only laugh. Why are you enjoying an anime with such strong anti-national undertones?"
"What right do you have to call yourselves people of Xia Country while watching this kind of anime?!"
"Trash anime, trash author. Get out of Xia Country while you still can!"
The moment the anime began, countless dense barrages swept across the screen. They were all filled with insults and moral blackmail, seriously affecting the audience's viewing experience.
Many users saw those barrages and instantly went from being in a wonderful mood to feeling utterly miserable. Quite a few irritable fans cursed as they closed the player, preparing to head to A Company's forum and argue with those brain-dead idiots.
But when those hotheaded bros who had switched over from "Akame ga Kill!" prepared to start cursing, they discovered that someone had beaten them to it. The forum had already descended into chaos.
"Hey, moronic trolls, look over here! Your grandpa just likes anime, just likes "Akame ga Kill!", and just likes Big Shot Fang! If you've got the guts, come troll me~!"
"You people keep making everything into some huge political issue. I'm watching an anime, and you're dragging patriotism into it. You watch Marvel all day, yet I don't see you calling yourselves traitors!"
"A bunch of hypocrites. You don't even know what anime is, and you're here spouting crap. What the hell are you barking about~!"
"You call Big Shot Fang a spy? The country is vigorously developing its cultural economy, and Big Shot Fang introduced the concept of anime. I think some people are just jealous~!"
"..."
The almost completely one-sided opinions on A Company's forum left many people dumbfounded.
Some A Company users' outrageous tactics were especially laughable.
After the membership payment controversy, A Company's users had realized that the ACG Culture Company's finances might not be doing well. As a result, everyone had more or less purchased memberships as a way of supporting Big Shot Fang.
But those paid posters and people who had come over just to join the fun certainly weren't going to buy memberships just to insult people.
This led to A Company fans' colored and bold text filling the screen. Quite a few posts even applied for official recommendations.
With A Company's official moderators deliberately favoring one side, the paid posters watched as the entire screen filled with the other side's messages, while their own comments were pushed into the least noticeable corners.
They were utterly frustrated~
Who were they?
Paid posters! They had always been the ones attacking others. When had they ever suffered this kind of humiliation?
Yet the paid posters who were invincible online had been utterly defeated at A Company. In the end, they had no choice but to flee A Company in disgrace, slinking away with their tails between their legs.
Yang He heard the report from the paid posters he had hired, and he was so furious that he ground his teeth.
How could professional paid posters be driven out by the fans of a video platform like stray dogs?!
Were they sure they were the paid posters, rather than the other side being the paid posters?!
Yang He cursed as he hung up the phone. Although he was rather frustrated, he didn't take it too seriously.
Although he had suffered a setback at A Company, he still held an absolute advantage online.
Yang He opened Weibo, wanting to see how much attention his post had attracted.
But the instant he opened Weibo, he was dumbfounded.
Only we can troll Big Shot Fang. Who the hell do you think you are?!
Pfft~
Yang He spat out a mouthful of blood when he saw the title.
What was going on? How had this post reached the top of the trending searches?
What about his post? Had the other side also spent money to buy a trending spot?!
One question after another rose in Yang He's mind. He had spent a fortune getting onto the trending searches earlier.
Extremely depressed, Yang He clicked on the post.
"Today, I saw someone insulting Big Shot Fang's character, and I just want to ask: Which of your damn dog eyes saw that?"
"Big Shot Fang tricked us? We fans haven't even said anything, yet you're sticking your nose into our business and barking first. Your backer must have paid you quite a bit, huh~"
"And those saying that "Akame ga Kill!" is anti-national—have you even watched the anime? You say "Akame ga Kill!" is anti-national, but I'll say that "Akame ga Kill!" praises the resistance of our predecessors~"
"Whether we like anime is our freedom. In my opinion, Big Shot Fang's anime is a hundred times better than those brain-dead films and television shows. Do we have to spend all day worshipping pretty-boy celebrities like you brain-dead idiots before we can be considered patriotic?!!"
Before you continue