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Kuang Youfang was frantically contacting the troll farm company, telling them to pull back the paid commenters and press releases they had put out. He had no time to answer him.

Ambition Studio's press conference had descended into chaos, and Xie Ran Studio's venue was no better.

Meng Feixuan's sudden transformation was simply too shocking. Not a single question the media had prepared was of any use now.

After all, who could have imagined that a celebrity press conference that was supposed to be all about mudslinging and drama would feature such futuristic technology?!

Not even UC-style shock headlines could describe how everyone was feeling right now!

The media stood there in a daze, but Meng Feixuan remained perfectly composed. He blinked, looked toward the reporter who had just stood up to question Xie Ran for "running away at the last minute," and asked, "Do you have a question?"

The reporter had originally wanted to make things difficult for Xie Ran and snag a headline. He had never expected the situation to reverse so instantly. His face flushed red as if he were being publicly executed, and only after a long moment did he belatedly gape at Meng Feixuan in shock. "Y-you... are you talking to me?"

Meng Feixuan asked in confusion, "Who else would I be talking to?"

"You can interact?" The reporter was even more stunned. "Are you a real person or a program?"

"A program." Meng Feixuan's expression cooled as he answered blankly, "What, got a problem with that?"

Reporter: "..."

Everyone else: "..."

Seeing a program solemnly declare that he was a program—and seeming a little annoyed about it—was... a very strange feeling.

But no one had the time to process their emotions. Once they realized Meng Feixuan could actually interact with them, the silent venue erupted again.

Ever since the rise of virtual idols, this was the first virtual character to answer press conference questions on his own!

In the past, debuted virtual idols could also perform some basic interactions, but they all relied on pre-programmed, standardized Q&A templates.

Never had there been a virtual idol like Meng Feixuan, who, without rehearsal or any prior run-through, suddenly took the initiative to call on a reporter and displayed such vivid emotions.

The media scrambled to question Meng Feixuan. No one cared whether their questions had any substance; they simply threw out everything they could think of.

But Meng Feixuan did not actively engage with them as everyone had hoped. Instead, he blinked and looked toward Xie Ran questioningly.

Xie Ran was not particularly interested. He merely waved a hand. "This press conference is over. We're going home."

Meng Feixuan immediately nodded. "Yes."

With those words, the light around him abruptly changed. Like shattered glass, his entire body became dazzling colored fragments scattering in every direction, then crumbled into dust before gradually dimming and vanishing under everyone's gaze.

Only the young man's slightly metallic voice remained.

"I'm off now. Please keep following my journey."

How could the media possibly let it end there? The entire venue instantly stirred into an uproar. Unable to hold themselves back any longer, everyone crowded toward Xie Ran, hurriedly shouting questions over one another, terrified that he would get away.

"Xie Ran, was Meng Feixuan's transformation sequence specially designed by your studio?"

"Is Meng Feixuan really artificial intelligence? Were those interactions pre-programmed or random?"

"Was Meng Feixuan really developed by your studio? Are you planning to enter the tech industry in the future?"

Xie Ran was unmoved by their enthusiasm. He turned and left without hesitation. The prearranged security guards skillfully blocked the media, and the livestream cameras were cut off as well.

Leaving everyone with nothing but excitement they had no outlet for.

Truly heartless.

Xie Ran left decisively, but the internet exploded completely.

Media outlets rushed to report the news, their headlines more exaggerated than the last:

"Meng Feixuan's Sudden Arrival May Reshape the Virtual Idol Industry?"

"Xie Ran Studio Set to Launch a Virtual Idol Revolution!"

"Meng Feixuan Makes Stunning Debut as Nangong Xu Fades into Obscurity"

"Inside Scoop: Quest Technology Offers Astronomical Price for Cooperation with Xie Ran Studio?"

At the same time, Xie Ran and Meng Feixuan practically took over the entire trending list. Recordings of the press conference spread across the internet, especially the breathtaking transformation in which Meng Feixuan seemed to be revived by magic. It was clipped out separately and watched over and over by netizens.

Under the trending topics, netizens were arguing intensely everywhere.

[Meng Feixuan's model is fucking incredible. I've only seen effects like this in movie post-production before. This is my first time seeing a live projection like this!]

[Meng Feixuan's on-the-spot Q&A was amazing, wasn't it? Does he really have consciousness?]

[Come on, how could that be possible? It's just a speech recognition system. Plenty of smart assistants can do that now. What consciousness are you talking about?]

[Why does my Tengu Sprite only know how to say, "Sorry, I don't understand what you're saying"?! I got so mad I jumped up and beat up the Tengu!]

[Those saying it's just a voice system, did you forget what the experts said? I don't really understand it, but didn't they all say Xie Ran had the ability to make breakthroughs in AI?]

[Give you an inch and you take a mile, huh? If Meng Feixuan really is AI, why didn't Xie Ran let him keep answering the reporters' questions? It's obviously just a gimmick!]

[Don't you think this is surreal? I still feel like I'm dreaming. The most advanced virtual idol technology in the country was actually developed by a celebrity???]

[Be precise. A celebrity studio. Don't make it sound like Xie Ran developed it himself.]

[That said, am I the only one who noticed that Meng Feixuan and Xie Ran are kind of sweet together?]

Netizens argued endlessly over whether Meng Feixuan was artificial intelligence. Although his performance had been stunning, most people still did not believe he truly possessed independent consciousness, and the "speech recognition system" explanation won the support of many.

Even so, it did nothing to stop Xie Ran Studio's valuation from soaring wildly. Not only were talent agencies seeking partnerships, but many major tech companies were also competing to invest.