Chapter 343: The Rumors About Anthem Corporation Are Not Rumors

The light swept away the dark clouds; Ai Lin flapped her wings and descended slowly under the setting sun, standing atop the Anthem Corporation building.

At this moment, the eyes of the whole world were focused on her.

This was the first time Ai Lin had revealed her true form before the cameras, but no introduction was needed; everyone guessed her identity in that instant.

Anthem Corporation’s greatest masterpiece, the new type of artificial deity, the Light of Eternal Purity, Ai Lin.

Having experienced the apocalyptic scene earlier, and comparing it to the current spectacle, no one doubted the success of Anthem Corporation’s artificial deity project.

Those voices of doubt vanished into thin air the moment Ai Lin appeared.

Facing the world’s cameras, Ai Lin first spread her arms, scattering thousands of light particles from her embrace.

The light particles descended like rain, soothing everyone’s emotions while healing the injuries they had just sustained in the chaos.

Whether it was trampling injuries from the crowd or wounds from being knocked over by the gale, everything healed rapidly in the light, leading to continuous shouts of "a miracle."

After scattering the light, Ai Lin flapped her four wings, shot into the sky, and vanished in the blink of an eye.

The departure of the deity sent the media below into a frenzy.

They stormed Anthem Corporation, shouting at the staff:

"Let us see the Light of Eternal Purity again."

"Just one look, just one, we’ll do anything."

……

Some were sincere, others were driven by traffic and hype, but regardless, both proved the success of this publicity stunt.

But no matter how the media pleaded, the Anthem Corporation security guards held the company gates firmly and refused to provide any assistance.

Although Wu Chang had prepared the identity of a new-generation artificial deity for Ai Lin, he never intended for her to appear as some artificial object within close range of the public.

Distance creates beauty; a powerful and mysterious deity is always better than a technological construct that anyone can see up close.

On the top floor of Anthem Corporation, Wu Chang glanced at the tree beside him that had grown into the Pillar of the Divine Kingdom, and stepped down from the temporary altar with satisfaction.

Creating that realistic apocalyptic scene earlier had taken little effort for him.

It only required a simple method of summoning clouds and rain, combined with yellow monsters projected from the void into reality, to easily intimidate the mortals below.

After harvesting enough faith, he had become quite skilled at playing the god.

Returning to his desk, he was just about to welcome Ai Lin back when he saw a message from his secretary on the computer.

The company’s Level 9 partners and Level 8 department managers were all requesting an audience with Wu Chang.

Ai Lin’s debut hadn't just stunned the global audience; these "insiders" were stunned too.

Wasn't the Light of Praise project just a new PowerPoint folder created by the new Chairman to stabilize the company’s status and structure?

Everyone was preparing to talk big at the press conference later, so how did the real thing come out?

When the department heads compared notes, they found that none of them had received any R&D plans from the Chairman, nor had they cooperated on any part of the development.

The core of the Light of Praise project was still the News Force.

The company’s top brass were instantly numb; could it be that the world-ending monsters outside and the suddenly appearing artificial deity were all hand-crafted by the Chairman himself?

Although the former Chairman, Schultz, would also come up with some shocking inventions, Schultz needed their help to turn plans into reality.

Chairman Xiao En, on the other hand, bypassed everyone and did it himself.

If this continued, wouldn't the company only need the News Force, making all other executives dispensable?

Thinking of their future, the company executives couldn't sit still.

Wu Chang knew they were anxious, but anxiety was useless; the scheduled time for the press conference had arrived.

It was a perfect opportunity to leave them hanging for a while, giving them enough sense of crisis to know that if they didn't perform well, they could be replaced at any time.

Once they were eager to prove their own value, it would be much easier for He Yun to take over Anthem Corporation.

Just like that, the executives, in a state of distraction, steeled themselves and entered the press conference venue.

Compared to the media asking questions below, they had even more question marks in their hearts.

Fortunately, with Wu Chang controlling the scene, he could ensure the press conference went smoothly.

At the press conference, the media had only one question.

That was the Light of Praise project.

What exactly was Ai Lin’s existence, was she a more advanced weapon, and to what extent had the Light of Praise project progressed?

Facing this question, Wu Chang was well-prepared.

In this copy plane, there were many conspiracy theories regarding the sudden rise of Anthem Corporation.

The most widespread one was undoubtedly the alien speculation.

People suspected that Anthem Corporation had been invited by the Lianbangzheng Prefecture to study an alien spacecraft hidden in a secret base in Area 53.

Others suspected that Anthem Corporation had bypassed the Lianbangzheng Prefecture and found an alien spacecraft themselves, or even that the former Chairman, Schultz, was an alien.

To this, the first sentence of Wu Chang’s answer was, "There is something I need to clarify for everyone: the rumor that Anthem Corporation obtained an alien spacecraft is not a rumor."

"Aliens truly exist. We have always kept this hidden, fearing that the news would trigger public panic."

"But everyone has seen the monsters from earlier; the apocalypse is gradually approaching, and the truth is hard to hide any longer. I can only tell you the truth."

Wu Chang paused, reached out and gestured backward, causing Ai Lin to walk out slowly from a special passage.

"The so-called artificial deity project is just a term for the public's convenience. In fact, Miss Ai Lin, who appeared earlier, is a deity from the Light Divine Kingdom of the M87 Nebula."

"She upholds love and peace, carries a mission and responsibility, and has descended upon our planet to fight to help us escape the shadow of the apocalypse."

Since there was no Ultraman in the Anthem Corporation plane, he simply transferred the settings of those guys who could only last three to five minutes and would shout about full-power blasts when time was up, directly onto Ai Lin.

"During her interstellar journey, Miss Ai Lin was ambushed by monsters and had to hide her form to recover from her injuries."

"Now that she has basically recovered and can block the monsters bringing the apocalypse outside the planet, she has appeared at my invitation."

As soon as this was said, it instantly caused a tremor across the entire plane, including Anthem Corporation’s major financiers and the company’s senior management.

Regarding the popular conspiracy theories, as members of the elite class, they scoffed at them on the surface, but in reality, they had no idea either.

After all, the technology Schultz brought was too advanced; for example, the Primordial Armor and the Psionic Excitation Surgery were at least a century ahead of current technology.

When Chairman Xiao En, Schultz’s most trusted cousin who had just created a miracle, confirmed the existence of aliens, they believed it even faster than the media below the stage.

Coupled with the fact that Ai Lin had indeed appeared before people’s eyes, the unique aura of a deity she possessed made it even more convincing.

For a time, the reactions of different factions varied.

Inside the White House, the Meishen Sect was furious, berating the Lianbangzheng Prefecture’s deep state for hiding the truth and colluding with Anthem Corporation, causing Anthem Corporation to hog the benefits and causing the Lianbangzheng Prefecture to lose the opportunity to be great again.

Anthem Corporation’s financiers were a mix of joy and anger; they were happy because the shares of Anthem Corporation they held would likely multiply many times over after today.

They were angry because they all considered themselves as close as brothers to Schultz, so how could such a big thing happen without them hearing a whisper?

The meat had been eaten, so why were they stingy enough not to share even a sip of the soup, leaving only the dishwater?

As for the senior management and employees of Anthem Corporation, all that remained was ecstasy.

What could be cooler and more promising than working at a company that mastered alien technology?

Before Anthem Corporation appeared, one only needed to hype up going to Mars to become the most sci-fi tech company.

But look at it now: Mars? The M87 Nebula!

Just hearing the name, it was already far beyond Mars.

But after the ecstasy came a huge sense of crisis.

Previously, high wages and benefits had already made working at Anthem Corporation the ultimate dream for employees, and now it was likely even more so.

If they didn't want to do it, there were plenty of others who would.

In the past, they could get off work at four o'clock, but now they would have to stay until five, no, five-thirty!

After a brief silence, the media realized what Wu Chang had said, and the next moment they fell into total madness, wanting to rush forward to interview Ai Lin at close range.

No one could refuse the chance to interview an alien; even if they could only get close enough to say one sentence, that event could be engraved on their tombstone in the future.

But Wu Chang had long been prepared for their actions.

Ai Lin raised a hand, and everyone present was bound by light magic, as if hit by a freezing spell, their bodies remaining in their previous positions, motionless.

Wu Chang said:

"Sorry, the Light of Eternal Purity is not good at communicating with people and is not accepting any interviews for the time being."

"However, you don't need to worry. She has established a mental channel with me and will communicate with me telepathically. If any danger occurs, I will convey it to the world on her behalf."

This display of light magic by Ai Lin stunned everyone in the room once again.

If killing the yellow monster earlier had been too far away from the crowd, and healing the injured had only been experienced by a few,

then this time, everyone felt the majesty of a deity firsthand.

The feeling of helplessness as their bodies completely lost control made them truly realize the difference between a deity and a mortal.

Seeing the power of faith continuously gathering toward the Pillar of the Divine Kingdom, Wu Chang signaled for the stone-faced Ai Lin to exit.

A cold, aloof persona didn't suit Ai Lin, and he was afraid she wouldn't be able to hold it and would reveal an approachable expression.

Appearing too easy to approach wasn't always a good thing; it would make some people get carried away, thinking that being protected was a matter of course.

In the Anthem Corporation plane, Ai Lin’s positioning was that of a savior of humanity, a savior who belonged only to Anthem Corporation.

Ai Lin received Wu Chang’s hint; she slowly floated into the air, her two pairs of wings slowly spreading, revealing her true divine form.

Then, with a flap of her wings, she vanished into thin air before everyone’s eyes.

As Ai Lin left, the bindings on everyone disappeared, and they regained their mobility.

They looked up at the spot where Ai Lin had disappeared, and a moment later, they lowered their heads, turned their gaze toward Wu Chang, and rushed toward him excitedly.

"Chairman Xiao En, can you really communicate with the Light of Eternal Purity?"

"Chairman Xiao En, can you let the deity Ai Lin appear for a while longer?"

"Xiao En..."

Wu Chang hissed, secretly thinking he had miscalculated; he had released the binding spell too early.

He retreated while waving his hand to signal, "Security, stop them!"

The chaos lasted for nearly half an hour; once people were calm enough, Wu Chang returned to the scene to accept interviews from the media.

However, it was not an interview for all media, but rather a selection of a few representatives.

During the waiting time, the News Force had already completed the screening based on background checks.

Those who usually liked to say that Anthem Company was monopolistic, criticized Anthem Company for lacking diversity and minority employees, or questioned the Primordial Armaments and artificial gods were all excluded.

With the monsters and demons filtered out, the remaining questions were much more harmonious, and they were all questions that people cared about most.

For example, questions about what was going on with the end of the world, what the future of Earth would be like, and whether the Light of Eternal Purity would appear often.

The only question with a "hook" came from the official media of the Federation.

"Chairman Xiao En, you previously said that technology from outer space is the wealth of all mankind, so have you considered making all alien technology public and sharing it with other countries or companies?"

Wu Chang was stunned for a moment and asked, "Sorry, I didn't hear you clearly, please ask again."

The other party seemed not to understand Wu Chang's meaning and opened their mouth to repeat, "Chairman Xiao En, you..."

Although the official reporter of the Federation could not understand Wu Chang's meaning, the security members of Anthem Company could.

This time, without waiting for the other party to finish speaking, two muscular men, each one point nine meters tall, arrived behind them, grabbed their arms, covered their mouths, and dragged them out of the venue.

Everyone present looked at their noses and kept their hearts calm, as if they could not see the guy being dragged away.

Time inside the venue seemed to have been pressed with a pause button.

Wu Chang maintained a smile, watching the struggling reporter.

No, buddy, I let you ask, and you really asked.

This was the reason he did not want Ailin to appear approachable; once some people think you are reasonable, they will take a mile if you give them an inch.

Once the other party had completely disappeared, Wu Chang said with a smile:

"Since everyone has no other questions, let's move on to the next segment."

"With the physical recovery of the Light of Eternal Purity, the Hymn of Light Project has officially come to an end; next, the operations of Anthem Company will enter the next phase."

Hearing Wu Chang's announcement, the executives of Anthem Company present all pricked up their ears.

They had not been able to contribute to the Hymn of Light Project, so they had to grasp the upcoming work well.

Wu Chang joked, "Friends who have come here should have some understanding of my resume, and should also know that I am not a talent in research and development."

The reporters present had strange expressions; saying he was not a talent in research and development was putting it too mildly.

In terms of education alone, this Chairman Xiao En was not just behind the employees of Anthem Company, but even behind this group of reporters.

It was precisely because of this that when Ailin appeared, all forces were infinitely optimistic about Anthem Company, while simultaneously dispelling doubts about Schultz's state.

With the abilities Ailin displayed, she had already surpassed the artificial gods in Schultz's Hymn Project and gone a step further.

If Schultz had not died, then his existence would be the soul of Anthem Company, and Anthem Company would still be the same Anthem Company as before.

If Schultz had died, then it could be confirmed that Ailin was an alien.

Everyone understood that based on Xiao En's IQ, let alone improving the Hymn Project, being able to sing a hymn correctly would be considered a hobby of his.

The Light of Eternal Purity was either Schultz's handiwork or truly an alien.

Whichever it was, it could allow Anthem Company to maintain a transcendent status that would not be shaken.

Wu Chang continued, "So next, I will appoint a Vice Chairman to cooperate with Chief Technical Consultant Jeffrey to control the technical analysis and research and development of Anthem Company in the next phase."

"This Vice Chairman is a student of the former Chairman, Mr. Schultz; in two days, when she finishes the research on hand, she will come to the company to report."

He paused, giving the various media and company executives sufficient time to react, then continued:

"The focus of the company's next phase of development is still the Primordial Armaments; the previously scheduled Primordial Armaments will be delivered successively in the future."

"Because our Vice Chairman has developed a new technology, she will continue to manufacture a new generation of more powerful Primordial Armaments, and even the mechs that often appear in science fiction works."

The word "mech," as long as it was on a technological plane, had a fatal attraction.

The breathing of those in the venue became rapid; the media imagined a science fiction future, the financiers thought about the changes in the world situation that mechs would bring, and the executives of various company departments thought about how they could play a role in the new phase.

Wu Chang said:

"Anthem Company is an enterprise that focuses on scientific research and is determined to lead humanity toward the future; such an enterprise is indeed more suitable to be steered by someone who understands technology."

"Therefore, when I am not at the company, this Vice Chairman will have all my permissions."

"Finally, the Light of Eternal Purity will protect humanity through the end of the world, and the new Vice Chairman will lead humanity toward the future."

"The above is all the content I want to say at this press conference; I hope everyone can look forward to the next phase of Anthem Company."

This press conference of Anthem Company, from every angle, caused the world to undergo drastic changes.

People's cognition and lives seemed to have undergone a qualitative change in just one or two hours.

Whether it was the end of the world, alien technology, alien gods, or future mechs, taking any one of them out would seem like a fantasy.

People soon fell into confusion, but they also quickly walked out of it.

Because their attention had all shifted to Ailin, the alien god who briefly appeared at the press conference venue.

So it turned out that for such a long time, the world they lived in had been safe and sound because of the protection of this Goddess of Light behind the scenes.

Now, Ailin's favor could truly never be repaid.

With the completion of official information, the Church of Eternal Light, with Ailin as its deity, spread rapidly across the Anthem Company plane.

Since Wu Chang mentioned in the press conference that Anthem Company's technology came from Ailin, joining the Church of Eternal Light as a prerequisite for becoming an Anthem Company employee seemed reasonable.

Driven by this rule, the trend of joining the Church of Eternal Light swept through the Federation and even all universities around the world.

The Pillar of the Divine Kingdom in the Chairman's office stabilized, and the Anthem Company plane merged into the large Divine Kingdom.

Simple matters came to an end; next, it was time for the most difficult part.

Wu Chang rubbed his temples and secretly glanced at Ailin.

He had to take Ailin to the underground shelter to pick up his Vice Chairman.

(End of this chapter)