Chapter 24: The You of the Past

The man did not agree with Lilia’s claim that he was a loser.

He wore a mocking expression. "A good song also depends on who is singing it, don't you think?"

"Are you implying that I don't sing well???"

If the man on the other end of the comms had been standing in front of Lilia, she likely would have swallowed him whole.

However, separated by the light screen, she could only glare at him with a face full of fury.

"Lilia, there’s no need to be so hot-headed. The only reason I called is to give you a reminder."

"Don't try to spout nonsense on the StarNet. Otherwise, as a D-rank female, there’s no telling what kind of 'accidents' might happen to you on Azure Star."

This was a naked threat.

Although the Interstellar regulations regarding the protection of females were indeed very strict, they were not without loopholes.

For instance, she could accidentally encounter a pirate raid on the city, or be torn apart by a stray beast that had snuck in.

They could even specifically arrange for a male beastman to abduct her to a wild planet.

In short, the man had plenty of ways to deal with a low-rank, low-status female.

So, his warning was serious.

If Lilia kept her mouth shut, they were happy to abide by the law, but if she didn't know her place, then having one less female in the Federation wasn't a big deal.

It must be said that Lilia was truly intimidated.

She had originally intended to strike first, accusing the other party of their wrongdoings to leverage some benefits, such as a transfer or the arrangement of resources.

She hadn't expected the person on the other side to be such a madman, daring to provoke Interstellar law.

Lilia was afraid; she didn't dare think about any benefits anymore. Now, she could only swallow her anger.

Fortunately, the money they had given her to frame Jiang Qin hadn't been taken back.

With these Star Coins, she wouldn't be completely unable to survive, but the bright future she had planned for herself for so long had been ruined just like that!

Lilia gnashed her teeth in hatred.

She hated the stinking males who discarded her after use, she hated the defiant Jiang Qin, and she also hated Jiang Rumeng.

Why was she being blacklisted across the entire network and facing the risk of expulsion, while Jiang Rumeng could sit safely in the shadows and watch her fight with Jiang Qin?

Hmph, she would drag her down with her. She wanted to see if she could still remain so high and mighty then.

After making up her mind, Lilia, whose face had been full of rage, seemed to see some pleasant scene, and the corners of her mouth curled upward.

***

Inside the livestream room, Jiang Qin was preparing to sing her sixth song.

The request was for rock music.

It had to be said that this genre of music was indeed a challenge for her.

It wasn't that she couldn't do it at all, but she might feel a bit inhibited, especially with her voice, which would cause the effect to be somewhat compromised.

However, she firmly believed that a good song could make up for her shortcomings.

So, she lowered her head to ponder which one would be most suitable.

After deciding, she stood up, hugged her guitar, and cleared her throat. Afraid of feeling awkward, she changed the background of the room to a simulated grassland mode.

In an instant, the bright room transformed into a vast prairie.

That was the one good thing about the Interstellar era; if you wanted to lie down anywhere, you just had to adjust the room's holographic simulator.

Though, this gadget wasn't cheap.

Once ready, Jiang Qin lowered her head and strummed the guitar casually.

She began with a hoarse, lazy voice

"I once dreamed of traveling the world with a sword, To see the prosperity of the world. The heart of youth is always a bit reckless, Now you make your home in the four corners of the earth..."

It was clear she was intentionally deepening her voice.

But even so, everyone still thought it sounded good.

Only, some people disagreed.

[Is this even rock?]

[It obviously is. You don't have a problem with your ears, do you?]

[It’s different from the music library!]

The owner of Nalan Bar seemed to have found a point to smear Jiang Qin and immediately contacted the internet trolls to flood the screen with claims that this wasn't rock!

The Interstellar perception of rock was that it had to be explosive, passionate, and surging!

So, many people began to flood the screen.

[The song is good, but it doesn't fit the title.]

[Could it be that the songs were all prepared beforehand, so now that she’s encountered one she wasn't prepared for, her true colors are showing?]

[Heh, let's see how you guys keep hyping her as a genius composer.]

[Everyone, let's go. It's all just a persona.]

[No, doesn't this fit the title quite well? You can tell just by listening; it definitely has a rock style.]

[If you don't like it, leave, okay? We love listening to it!]

[This is rock. What you call rock is just a template. It’s precisely because everyone composes according to templates that our music scene hasn't had a single talented newcomer in so many years.]

[Such a free-spirited song. Listening to it really makes me want to wander the world.]

[I want to go to a tourist planet, feel the breeze, and see a different life...]

"Dilililidilililidada, There is sadness and there is brilliance. Every time I feel sad, I just look at the sea alone..."

[Wow!! It sounds great! This is rock music, no doubt about it!]

[You have to understand, Jiang Qin only has a guitar. Unlike those songs that can synthesize sounds at will, this is just a simplified version.]

More and more people began to come out to support Jiang Qin, even starting to question whether the large-scale critical comments were from trolls.

After all, the barrage had been abnormal since the start of the stream.

Lao Zhan, a mercenary, was a regular at the bar.

He had lived alone for many years and was experienced in many things, so he naturally noticed the changes in himself very quickly.

Thus, he kept Jiang Qin's special nature a secret, only paying attention to her in private.

He didn't care at all about the true and false arguments on the StarNet; he only cared about tangible benefits.

Whether Jiang Qin was a plagiarist or a genius, he didn't care, as long as he could keep hearing her sing.

So, he didn't pay attention to the noise on the barrage.

He just quietly drank his inhibitor while listening to the song.

After those few songs, his purification value hadn't dropped at all. He guessed it was because he was behind a screen and couldn't come into contact with her overflowing spiritual power.

But it didn't matter. Although it couldn't purify him, it made his emotions much calmer and eased the pain in his mind.

That was enough for him to get a good night's sleep.

It wasn't until this rock song appeared that his spiritual fluctuations changed.

His beastman gene was a Unicorn.

Listening to this song, he actually had the urge to transform into his beast form and run wild in the wilderness!

When the song ended, there was no doubt: his purification value had dropped—it had decreased by one percent!

Lao Zhan was ecstatic!

He hadn't expected to be purified even through the StarNet. He just didn't understand why the first few songs hadn't caused a drop.

Could it be because they didn't resonate with his spiritual sea?

After all, with the previous songs, he only felt they sounded good and that his spirit was soothed after listening.

But with this one, he felt as if he had truly seen a vast world!

And his spiritual body had almost lost control, causing him to transform back into his beast form.

Thinking of this, his eyes shone with brilliance.

Although he wanted to keep this matter buried, as more and more people discovered it, this little female wouldn't be able to stay hidden.

So, should he use this to make a big profit...

Perhaps with wealth, he could find a female partner, and then he wouldn't have to worry about having no one to soothe him in the future...

*Once Upon a Time You* (Xu Wei)

(End of chapter)