Chapter 41: God-Level Music Mastery and Elimination of Unexpected Incidents

Just as Qin Feng was reviewing Dr. Isabella Rosen's files and preparing to have Su Wenqian arrange further contact, the system interface in his mind—long dormant—suddenly surfaced a new prompt on its own.

【Ding! Detected that the Host's core team has preliminarily formed, industrial layout initiated, and influence steadily rising. To enrich the Host's capability dimensions, a random auxiliary talent—'God-Level Music Mastery'—has been activated as 'non-core but highly valuable'.】

【Talent infusion in progress…】

A cool, vast stream of information surged instantly into Qin Feng's consciousness. Countless knowledge of music theory, harmony, counterpoint, form, orchestration, and performance techniques from every ethnic group and historical era across the globe imprinted themselves upon his soul as if innate. From the majestic movements of classical piano to the hallucinatory rhythms of modern EDM, from the lingering resonance of the Eastern guqin to the passionate fury of Western rock—all secrets of music lay utterly exposed before him.

The sensation was strange—not the formation of muscle memory, but an absolute understanding and mastery. At this very moment, if he wished, he could instantly become the world's greatest composer, performer, and music theorist.

"'God-Level Music Mastery'…" Qin Feng slightly raised an eyebrow, momentarily surprised by this sudden ability, then relaxed. The system's methods were unfathomable; this seemingly 'non-core' talent might yet prove unexpectedly useful in some future moment. At the very least, it enriched his life experience.

He subtly shifted his thoughts, his gaze sweeping over an antique phonograph placed in a corner of the study. Instantly, his mind filled with all its history, structural principles, and even the subtle tonal imperfections it would produce if playing a record.

"Interesting." Qin Feng's lips curled into a faint smile. He set aside this newly acquired talent for now and returned his attention to the matter of contacting Dr. Isabella Rosen.

Yet, just as the tree wishes for stillness, the wind refuses to cease.

Just as Qin Feng was about to issue orders, Su Wenqian's communication reconnected—this time her voice carried a hint of seriousness: "Boss, an unexpected situation has arisen that requires your report."

"Speak."

"Three minutes ago, the online sentiment monitoring team discovered that a well-known entertainment blogger with millions of followers, 'Old Dog in the Circle,' suddenly posted a series of maliciously edited, fact-distorting short videos and long-form articles on Weibo, directly targeting you. The content falsely accuses you of 'unexplained massive wealth,' 'unfair competitive tactics,' and fabricates deeply offensive rumors about your personal life. Related topics have been rapidly pushed by massive bot armies and have surged to #17 on the trending list, with popularity still climbing fast."

Su Wenqian spoke calmly, but the content she reported was enough to plunge an ordinary person into panic. In the internet age, a public-opinion storm could destroy a person's reputation in moments.

Almost simultaneously with Su Wenqian's report, the avatars of Lin Wei, Tang Rou, and Lin Xuan on Qin Feng's Tablet Computer lit up at once, requesting access to the emergency communication channel.

Qin Feng's expression remained unchanged as he activated the encrypted multi-party communication.

"Boss, I've monitored the negative sentiment." Lin Wei's voice came first, calm yet edged with lethal intent. "Initial tracing shows the funding behind this public-opinion attack originates from an overseas account masked by multiple hops, but the ultimate source points to a fund linked to an M Country tech giant that may compete with us in the chip field. Should I deploy financial countermeasures? I can cause 'technical' fluctuations in their affiliated companies' stock values within twenty-four hours."

The Financial Empress's methods were simple, direct, and struck straight at the vital point.

"Boss," Tang Rou's voice followed, still elegant but sharpened with the precision of a politician. "This is a classic case of commercial defamation and public-opinion pressure. I've drafted three statements—ranging from mild clarification to stern warnings and even legal action—ready for immediate release. I also recommend immediately initiating emergency communication with mainstream media and platforms to demand control over false information dissemination and preparing a small press conference for me to respond."

The Strategist's approach focused on controlling the public-opinion arena and leveraging official channels.

Finally, Lin Xuan's icy voice cut in, carrying a chill nearly solidified into substance: "Boss, the real identity and location of the rumor-spreading blogger 'Old Dog in the Circle' have been locked—located in a coastal city. Seventeen primary bot army leaders' IPs and partial communication records have been captured. Evidence chain preliminarily secured. Requesting execution of 'Cleanup' protocol."

The Security Officer's method was the most direct—and deadliest.

The three core Secretaries, the moment crisis struck, had already delivered solutions from their respective domains. Efficiency and speed far surpassed any traditional corporate crisis team.

Qin Feng listened to their reports, his face utterly expressionless—as if the online defamation targeted someone else. He lightly tapped his desk, his mind instantly weighing the pros and cons of each option.

Deploying Lin Wei's financial tactics would certainly inflict damage, but risked alerting the enemy and prematurely escalating the business rivalry into uncontrollable financial warfare. Adopting Tang Rou's public-opinion counterattack was conventional and necessary, but the process might be slow and unable to fully erase all negative impact.

And Lin Xuan's 'Cleanup' plan…

Qin Feng's gaze, through the encrypted communication, seemed to see Lin Xuan's unwavering, icy eyes.

"On the public-opinion front, execute Tang Rou's plan. Use the harshest version of the statement, and hold the platforms accountable." Qin Feng issued his first order to Tang Rou.

"Understood." Tang Rou replied.

"Lin Wei, hold position. Maintain surveillance on fund flows and gather more evidence."

"Yes." Lin Wei, though puzzled, executed without hesitation.

Finally, Qin Feng spoke to Lin Xuan: "Lin Xuan, execute your 'Cleanup' protocol. Targets: all primary participants. Requirements: clean, thorough, sufficiently deterrent—but… maintain restraint. I want them silenced and permanently afraid to repeat, not to draw unnecessary attention."

He didn't need to know exactly how she would do it—he only needed the result. This was absolute trust, and a test of Lin Xuan's capability.

"Received. Mission guaranteed. No loose ends." Lin Xuan's reply was brief and forceful; the communication cut off immediately.

A sudden public-opinion storm had been met with thunderous efficiency by Qin Feng and his team in mere minutes.

One hour later, the negative sentiment surrounding Qin Feng was forcibly suppressed; major platforms began bulk-deleting false information and issuing apology notices. The blogger 'Old Dog in the Circle' and all his social media accounts vanished as if erased from existence, along with all unpublished 'black material' on his computer. The dozen or so bot army leaders involved suffered simultaneous 'accidents'—motherboards mysteriously burned out, storage drives irreparably corrupted, some even suddenly taken away by authorities on suspicion of 'other illegal activities.'

All malicious defamation against Qin Feng was utterly 'eliminated' in an almost tyrannical manner within an extremely short time.

The speed of the storm's resolution and the ferocity of the response left the mastermind behind the scenes chilled to the bone.

In the study, Qin Feng acted as if he'd merely done something trivial. He picked up the tea Su Wenqian had freshly brewed, took a sip, and showed no particular concern for either his newly acquired 'God-Level Music Mastery' or the effortless resolution of the public-opinion crisis.

His gaze had already turned farther ahead—to his meeting with Dr. Isabella Rosen, and the more substantial progress of the Galaxy Chips.

The real game had only just begun. These specters' tricks were nothing but dust brushed aside on the path to the summit.