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But Meng Feixuan was livestreaming!

No virtual idol had ever displayed such natural interactions during a livestream.

The scrolling comments were filled with praise and amazement, and someone even started spamming: [Nangong Xu and Meng Feixuan are seriously worlds apart!]

[I was kind of misled by Nangong Xu's marketing before. If they were really on the same level, how could Nangong Xu have been so thoroughly crushed at the launch event?]

Kuang Youfang could no longer keep his cool. Ignoring Fang Huiwang's feelings, he immediately bought special-effect comments with his own account and posted: [Putting on quite a convincing act. Who knows if they're actors Xie Ran arranged?]

But before he could steer the discussion, Meng Feixuan defeated another contestant. With a flick of his finger, Xie Ran selected a new registered ID and read aloud, "Next, Lan Zhi."

The contestant entered the Fight the Landlord room, then typed in the public chat: "Hello, Xie Ran. I'm Lan Zhi from Quest Technology."

The comments: [??????]

[Lan Zhi is competing too???]

[What's going on?]

Lan Zhi was Quest Technology's chief technology officer. When Meng Feixuan debuted, it had been Lan Zhi who had strongly praised Xie Ran's professionalism on Weibo.

Later, Lan Zhi had also recommended that the company purchase joint operating rights for Meng Feixuan. However, Quest's several offers had failed to reach an agreement with Xie Ran Studio. In a fit of anger, Quest had instead approved a project submitted by its Tianyin Idol Studio to invest in Nangong Xu.

Yet Lan Zhi personally remained deeply interested in Meng Feixuan. It was not until Meng Feixuan suddenly posted today, claiming to be the champion of the Fight the Landlord tournament, that Lan Zhi abruptly realized Quest's previous valuation of Meng Feixuan might have been far too low.

Therefore, when he saw Meng Feixuan livestreaming Fight the Landlord with online users, he registered an account specifically to join in.

Lan Zhi's appearance caused a huge stir in the livestream room, but the people involved were unfazed. Xie Ran merely raised his eyes to glance at Lan Zhi's message before suddenly asking, "If Meng Feixuan wins, will you return his prize money to him?"

The comments: [HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA]

[Heartless President Xie, collecting debts live!]

[Lan Zhi: I'm the CTO of Quest, at least. You're making this really awkward for me. Aren't you giving me any face?]

[Is Xiao Ran standing up for Meng Feixuan? So sweet, I'm shipping them again!!!]

Sure enough, Lan Zhi's ID fell silent for a while before slowly replying: [Yes.]

Then it stubbornly continued: [Meng Feixuan may not necessarily win. But regardless of whether he wins or loses, we'll give him the champion's prize money.]

Xie Ran ignored Lan Zhi's latter remarks. Having received the answer he wanted, he nodded and gave a soft "Mm." "Let's begin."

The system dealt the cards, and the three accounts began playing. This round went even faster. Lan Zhi's side nearly played instantly as well, and just as Lan Zhi had said, Meng Feixuan did not win every time. However, whenever Meng Feixuan lost a round, he forfeited the moment he saw his hand, without even playing a card.

Someone tried to mock Meng Feixuan, only to be immediately refuted by someone knowledgeable: [Fight the Landlord is highly random and also involves strategic play against your teammates. No matter how strong your computing power is, there's nothing you can do against an unbeatable opening hand. Most of Meng Feixuan's forfeits were basically in situations like that. But at every other time, no matter how bad his hand was, as long as there was even the slightest chance of winning, he turned it around.]

[Shocked. The person above could actually see the cards they were playing? My eyes are already going crossed!]

[Lan Zhi is incredible. How does he play so fast too?]

More than twenty rounds passed at such speed. In the end, Lan Zhi's ID lost more often than it won. Finally, he stopped and posted in the public chat: [I think there's no need to continue. The one playing cards with Meng Feixuan just now wasn't me.]

Xie Ran slowly lifted his eyelids. "I know. It was an algorithm system playing, right?"

Lan Zhi: [The Fight the Landlord algorithm is very simple and doesn't have much reference value. If possible, I'd like to invite Meng Feixuan to play Go.]

The moment Lan Zhi said this, online viewers let out a collective gasp. Go algorithms were extraordinarily complex. At present, only a very small number of truly cutting-edge global giants had developed corresponding algorithms, and Quest was one of them. Yet now, Lan Zhi was actually inviting Meng Feixuan to play Go?

Before Xie Ran could speak, Meng Feixuan indignantly said, "Losers have no right to call it simple!"

Xie Ran looked at him. Meng Feixuan said proudly, "It is simple, but it's more convincing when the winner says it."

Xie Ran: "...Mm."

Lan Zhi: [...] You really aren't giving this CTO any face!!

By this point, Xie Ran Studio no longer needed to explain anything publicly. What remained was a private meeting and discussion between Xie Ran and Quest's upper management, none of which needed to be put on display.

Guan Shunan stepped forward to announce that the first Mug Fight the Landlord Championship had officially concluded. The studio would contact the contestants afterward to distribute the prize money.

Having said that, she ignored the comments clamoring for more and mercilessly shut off the livestream camera.

Just before the screen went black, Meng Feixuan suddenly looked up at the camera. His eyes shone brilliantly, as though he were looking at someone through the lens.

Then he smiled faintly and said in a strange, mocking tone, "Nangong Xu, why haven't you come to face me yet? I've waited so long the flowers have withered."

Online viewers: "..."

Meng Feixuan's fans: "..."

The beautiful young idol filter slowly shattered.

Meng Feixuan's Fight the Landlord livestream had already caused an enormous sensation online, and Lan Zhi's participation pushed the heated topic to its peak.

Recordings of the livestream spread widely. People not only from the entertainment industry but from nearly every field watched it, while those in the technology sector rushed to analyze Meng Feixuan's livestream performance.

If public opinion had previously generally believed that Meng Feixuan merely had more mature and advanced modeling, audio, and intelligent interaction systems, then his livestream performance—especially his performance in Fight the Landlord, as well as his subsequent private Go match with Quest—powerfully proved to everyone that he possessed deep learning models and intelligent systems ahead of every company today.