Life countdown begins, ice queen bursts into security room

Yang Lele's round eyes widened as she stared intently at Xu Qingya's face.

Xu Qingya casually tossed her Hermes bag onto the sofa.

"Have they gone silent? What happened to the brand?"

Yang Lele suddenly snapped out of her daze and took two steps forward: "Qingya! Where did you go last night? Your skin..."

She circled Xu Qingya halfway around, her eyes filled with disbelief.

"Did you secretly get the latest hyaluronic acid injection? Or did you use some secret miracle water? Your complexion is absolutely amazing! You can't even see your pores!"

Yang Lele reached out to touch it, but then pulled her hand back, her tone full of envy.

"Qingya, you didn't even put on foundation today, did you? You look even younger than when you first debuted!"

Xu Qingya avoided her assistant's gaze.

She casually flipped open a document, concealing the emotional turmoil in her eyes.

"You slept well last night. Enough with the chit-chat, let's get down to business."

"Oh..." Yang Lele hadn't recovered from the shock yet, and muttered to herself as she handed over the documents.

"What skincare product is so amazing? It can rejuvenate like this after just one night's sleep! It's like I have a completely new skin..."

Xu Qingya's fingers tightened unconsciously as she gripped the pen.

The image of the security guard involuntarily surfaced in her mind.

In one night, not only was her severe insomnia cured, but her exhausted body also felt incredibly light.

This could not possibly be a coincidence.

What exactly did that security guard do to her?

..............

After leaving Tianyu Media, Jiang Fan went directly to the north of the city.

He spent an afternoon finding a single room with a monthly rent of 1,200.

After paying three months' rent and deposit, the landlady threw down the keys and left.

Jiang Fan locked the door and sat on the edge of the bed.

He closed his eyes and let his consciousness sink into the system panel.

The system's online store interface unfolds, revealing an astonishing amount of information.

The music section alone has tens of thousands of songs, neatly arranged by era, style, and language.

Jiang Fan first looked at the pricing structure.

The lyrics, music, and arrangement of a complete song can be exchanged for anywhere from 100 to 300 life points, depending on the original work's influence on Earth.

A movie script costs at least a thousand points, and top-tier ones can cost tens of thousands.

Novels are priced according to word count and quality; a complete novel can cost anywhere from a few hundred to several thousand points.

Skill-based items cost even more.

Beginner level: 500 points; Master level: 5000 points; God level: 50000 points.

Jiang Fan stared at these numbers and did some calculations.

A deep conversation with Xu Tianhou only costs 1000, but exchanging it for a god-level skill would cost...

Jiang Fan rubbed his lower back, feeling a heavy responsibility and a long way to go.

He currently has 2000 life points remaining.

If we want to exchange enough of these massive resources for something that can make a difference, then this number isn't so plentiful.

Jiang Fan didn't hesitate.

He had made up his mind when he came out of the security room.

Life is meant to be spent; if you don't, it will eventually go to zero.

The question now is, how to spend money most cost-effectively.

To get a ticket into the entertainment industry, you need to choose the fastest and most effective path.

acting?

With no acting experience and no agency willing to sign an unknown amateur.

Writing novels?

The cycle is too long. From finishing the writing to publication to market feedback, it takes at least half a year, which he can't afford to wait for.

music.

Jiang Fan hardly hesitated.

The music scene of this era is in a transitional phase, lacking new talent.

Talent shows are popping up everywhere, and idol groups are everywhere, but truly memorable and catchy songs are becoming increasingly rare.

Moreover, a hit song can go from release to becoming popular in as little as one night.

But songs alone are not enough.

He needs a stage, a place where people can hear him.

Jiang Fan took out his phone, opened the search engine, and entered "Kyoto live music".

After searching for twenty minutes, he located a spot.

Houhai, Blues Bar.

One of Kyoto's most famous live music bars.

Every Friday is Open Mic Night, where anyone can sign up to sing a song on stage.

No connections or background are needed; all you need is a voice and a song.

It happens to be tomorrow.

He re-entered the system store and started selecting songs in the music section.

This selection process took two hours.

It's not that there aren't good songs.

There are just too many good songs.

He needed to find a song that would fit the current market aesthetic and also have the greatest impact in a bar environment.

In the end, he spent 200 life points to exchange for a song.

The moment payment is confirmed, the complete lyrics, music, arrangement, and singing techniques are all imprinted into memory.

But this is not enough.

Then, he gritted his teeth.

Open the skills section.

Beginner singing skills, 500 life points.

Beginner guitar playing, 500 life points.

Seeing his lifespan value drop from 2000 to 800, Jiang Fan admitted that his heart was racing.

Others spend money, he spends his life.

The feeling of infusing skills is different from that of singing.

It wasn't like writing memories; it was more like the body was being adjusted.

The dexterity of the fingers, the vocal cords, and the way of using breath were all reconstructed within seconds.

Jiang Fan moved his fingers around and felt that each joint was much more sensitive.

But he also knew that a beginner's level was still a beginner's level.

It's just enough.

To acquire stronger skills, you need to earn more life points.

To earn more life points, you need to interact with more targets with high compatibility.

To reach more targets, you need to have sufficient social standing and exposure.

All paths ultimately lead in the same direction—to become popular first.

The next day, at 8 PM.

Jiang Fan arrived at the Blues Bar in Houhai.

There was a bald man standing at the entrance to the registration area.

He looked Jiang Fan up and down.

Wearing a black T-shirt and jeans, his hands were empty, and he didn't bring any musical instruments.

Have you sung it before?

"no."

"name?"

"Jiang Fan".

What song are you going to sing?

"Original content".

"Original?"

The bald man looked up at him, his tone ambiguous, neither curious nor sympathetic.

"Did you write this yourself?"

"right."

"Okay, you'll be sixteenth in line. If the others are quick, it should be your turn by eleven."

Jiang Fan found a corner seat and ordered the cheapest lemonade.

Time passed little by little.

Different people took turns on stage, some playing guitar and singing, others singing in a chorus, their skill levels varying greatly.

Most of the songs are covers, with only one or two original compositions, and the quality is generally average.

By the thirteenth time, a third of the people in the bar had left.

Number 15 finished singing and left the stage.

The bald man at the bar shouted from the corner:

"Number sixteen, Jiang Fan."

Jiang Fan stood up, walked through the tables and chairs, and headed towards the stage.

As he passed a table in front of him, he glanced at it out of the corner of his eye.

Sitting in the middle was a man in his early forties, with a buzz cut, a gold chain around his neck, and a cigar between his fingers.

When he entered, he heard someone next to him say that it was Zhou Hai, the owner of the Blues Bar.

There was also a man in a suit sitting at the same table as Zhou Hai.

The two were talking in hushed tones, and neither of them looked up at him.

Jiang Fan went on stage.

The warm yellow light fell down.

There were only a few dozen people scattered in the audience, most of whom were looking down at their phones or chatting in groups.

Nobody paid any attention to the sixteenth unknown person to take the stage.

Two girls were already packing their bags in the corner, ready to leave.

Jiang Fan picked up the bar's communal guitar from the shelf on the side of the stage.

An old folk guitar, the paint on the neck worn away.

He tested the string.

The moment your finger flicks the swipe, muscle memory automatically takes over.

The third string was half a note too low, so he turned the knob to adjust it.

The entire process takes no more than five seconds.

The man in the suit who was chatting with Zhou Hai glanced at him unexpectedly.

After tuning the strings, Jiang Fan lowered the microphone a little.

"This song is called 'Sorrow'."

There was no extra self-introduction.

The right hand lowers the string.

When the intro started, the two girls who were about to leave stopped packing their bags.