7:03 PM.
Shanghai Underground District.
Rain poured lightly over the neon-lit streets as crowds gathered outside the old industrial venue.
The building itself wasn't impressive.
Old walls.
Rusty metal beams.
A capacity of barely eight hundred people.
But tonight—
it was chaos.
Fans crowded the entrance.
Phones out.
Voices everywhere.
Security guards were already struggling.
Inside a black SUV parked across the street—
Zhou Kang watched silently.
One of his assistants sat beside him nervously.
"…The tickets sold out in seven minutes."
Silence.
The assistant continued carefully.
"And the livestream reservation count already passed two million."
Still silence.
Then—
Zhou Kang smiled.
A faint one.
"Interesting."
But his eyes were cold.
Very cold.
Because this wasn't supposed to happen.
Li Chen should have panicked.
Should have retreated.
Instead—
he turned pressure into publicity.
The assistant hesitated.
"Sir… should we proceed with phase two?"
A pause.
Then Zhou Kang answered calmly.
"Yes."
Backstage.
The atmosphere was tense.
Staff members ran everywhere.
Sound checks.
Lighting adjustments.
Last-minute equipment setups.
Xiaoyu looked like she was about to collapse.
"We are NOT prepared for this many people online!"
Yara laughed while tuning her guitar.
"Relax."
"I thrive in chaos."
"That's exactly the problem!"
Yueyin sat quietly in front of the mirror fixing her makeup.
But even she looked nervous.
This crowd…
was different.
Not idol fans.
Not casual listeners.
Tonight, the entire industry was watching.
One mistake—
and they would be torn apart online.
Wanqing stood near the wall silently reviewing lyrics on her phone.
Calm as always.
Li Chen entered the room.
Everyone immediately looked at him.
"Three minutes."
Yara grinned.
"Finally."
Xiaoyu rushed toward him.
"The livestream numbers are exploding!"
"How bad?"
"…Good bad."
Li Chen glanced at the monitor.
3.4 million waiting viewers.
He raised an eyebrow slightly.
Even for him—
that was higher than expected.
Yueyin looked at him through the mirror.
"You're not nervous?"
Li Chen answered honestly.
"I am."
The room went quiet.
Yara blinked.
"…Wait, seriously?"
Li Chen nodded once.
"Because tonight matters."
No jokes.
No arrogance.
Just truth.
"This isn't just a performance anymore."
His eyes sharpened slightly.
"It's a declaration."
Silence filled the room.
Even Wanqing looked up from her phone.
Li Chen continued calmly.
"If we succeed tonight…"
"The industry can't ignore us anymore."
"And if we fail?"
Yueyin asked quietly.
Li Chen smiled faintly.
"Then they'll bury us."
No one laughed.
Because everyone knew he meant it.
Outside the venue—
The host walked onto the stage.
The crowd roared immediately.
Lights flashed wildly.
Phones filled the air like stars.
"WELCOME EVERYONE!"
The audience exploded.
"Tonight…"
The host grinned dramatically.
"You're about to witness the most controversial lineup in the industry right now!"
Cheers erupted instantly.
Online comments flooded the livestream.
"START ALREADY!"
"WHERE'S SU YARA?!"
"MU WANQING PLEASE STEP ON ME."
"YUEYIN MY QUEEN."
"GHOST PRODUCER REVEAL WHEN?"
Backstage—
Yara nearly choked laughing.
"The internet is insane."
Xiaoyu looked exhausted.
"It's getting worse every second…"
Then—
The venue lights suddenly flickered.
Once.
Twice.
Then—
darkness.
The music cut off instantly.
The crowd outside gasped.
Inside backstage—
everything froze.
Xiaoyu's face turned pale.
"…No way."
One of the staff members ran toward them.
Panicked.
"The main power system just failed!"
Yueyin stood up immediately.
"What?!"
Another staff member shouted:
"The backup system isn't responding either!"
Yara's expression darkened.
"…That's not an accident."
Wanqing's eyes became colder.
Li Chen stayed completely still.
Too still.
And that terrified Xiaoyu.
Because she had learned something recently.
Whenever Li Chen became perfectly calm—
someone was about to suffer.
The venue manager rushed backstage sweating heavily.
"I-I'm so sorry!"
"We're trying to fix it!"
"How long?"
Li Chen asked calmly.
The manager hesitated.
"…Maybe thirty minutes."
The room froze.
Thirty minutes?
For a live audience?
For millions watching online?
That was death.
Absolute death.
Online viewers were already spamming comments.
"Technical problems?"
"LMAO they're finished."
"Told you underground venues suck."
"Did the industry sabotage them?"
"No way this timing is coincidence."
Yueyin clenched her fists.
Yara cursed under her breath.
Xiaoyu looked ready to cry.
Then—
Li Chen moved.
He grabbed his phone.
Dialed a number.
The others stared at him.
"…Who are you calling?"
Xiaoyu asked.
Li Chen placed the phone against his ear.
Then—
someone answered instantly.
A lazy male voice.
"You finally called me."
Li Chen spoke calmly.
"I need a favor."
The man laughed softly.
"That serious, huh?"
"Very."
A pause.
Then the voice replied:
"…Five minutes."
The call ended.
Yara blinked.
"…Who the hell was that?"
Li Chen put his phone away.
"A friend."
Xiaoyu stared at him.
"You have terrifying friends."
Then—
Outside—
An engine roared.
LOUD.
The crowd turned.
A massive black truck pulled up in front of the venue.
Then another.
And another.
People began murmuring.
The truck doors opened.
Workers jumped out rapidly carrying equipment.
Huge speakers.
Portable generators.
Professional lighting systems.
The venue manager's jaw dropped.
"No way…"
One of the workers shouted loudly:
"Move!"
"We're live in four minutes!"
Backstage—
Yara stared at Li Chen.
"…What."
Li Chen adjusted his sleeves calmly.
"I said we attack first."
Wanqing looked at him silently.
Then—
for the first time—
her calm expression genuinely cracked.
Just slightly.
Because now she understood.
Li Chen wasn't just fighting the industry.
He came prepared for war.
Meanwhile—
Inside the black SUV—
An assistant looked horrified.
"Sir…"
Zhou Kang stared at the venue entrance.
The emergency production team moving rapidly.
The crowd getting louder instead of leaving.
Then—
for the first time—
his expression darkened.
"…Interesting."
But this time—
he no longer sounded amused.
End of Chapter 28