91: Chapter 91 Extraordinary Catalog and Echoes of the Mortal World

Tuesday, December 6, 2011, 10:00 AM sharp.

The notification that the system upgrade was complete did not appear as a sound or a light screen. It was a sensation of "waking up" from a deep sleep, as if a precise area of the brain that had never been used before had been activated by a constant electric current.

Alex was reviewing the comprehensive data report for the 24 hours following the release of "See You Again" with his team. Marcus excitedly pointed out that the song's exposure in non-entertainment media was three times that of "Uptown Funk" during the same period, and it had brought in a large number of new followers over 35 with high education and high income. "This has completely broadened your core audience base; the commercial value assessment model needs to be rewritten!"

Just as Marcus finished speaking, the familiar pale blue system interface unfolded silently in the depths of Alex's vision. But its form had changed completely.

It was no longer a simple information panel, but had transformed into an extremely minimalist "Cube Core" full of futuristic technology, suspended in the center of his consciousness. Every light-emitting face of the cube flowed with different data streams and symbolic icons: one side showed the constantly fine-tuning 【Popularity: 10,023,850 points】; one side displayed the intricate, real-time evolving 【Ability Fusion and Evolution Tree Diagram】; one side showed 【Environmental Information Scan Readings】 (currently displaying the basic vital signs and emotional fluctuation ranges of everyone in the room, and even abnormal components of air particles); and the side facing him directly was the breath-taking, holographically projected—

【Extraordinary Exchange Catalog】.

The catalog categories were clear to the point of being cold:

【Basic Dimensional Manipulation】

· Spatial Movement (Primary): Perceive and mark coordinates within ten meters to perform instantaneous, inertia-free movement. Cooldown: 15 seconds. Exchange Cost: 21,000,000 points.

· Spatial Expansion (Micro): Create an independent sub-space not exceeding one cubic meter, capable of storing non-living objects, where the flow of time is nearly stagnant. Exchange Cost: 18,000,000 points.

【Energy and Matter Interference】

· Elemental Resonance (Basic): Select one basic element (Fire/Water/Wind/Earth) for weak guidance and preliminary shaping (e.g., gathering flames, guiding water flow, forming air currents, hardening small clumps of soil). Exchange Cost: 25,000,000 points/type.

· Bio-electric Manipulation (Primary): Weakly interfere with or strengthen the bio-electric currents of oneself and targets in contact, with effects including: temporary muscle paralysis (weak), pain blocking (localized), and precise adrenaline stimulation. Exchange Cost: 28,000,000 points.

【Life Form Enhancement】

· Cellular-level Rapid Regeneration: Significantly increase the speed of wound healing (superficial wounds heal within minutes, bone injuries accelerated several times over), enhance disease resistance, and significantly delay physiological aging. Exchange Cost: 22,000,000 points.

· Neural Catalysis (Primary): Temporarily and significantly increase thinking speed, memory retrieval efficiency, and sensory sensitivity; duration is proportional to mental load; excessive use will lead to severe headaches and mental exhaustion. Exchange Cost: 19,000,000 points.

【Information Perception and Processing】

· Wide-area Perception Field (Primary): Center on oneself and expand a spherical perception field with a radius of fifty meters, capable of penetrating ordinary non-metallic obstacles to clearly perceive complex information such as object movement, heat sources, and sound wave vibrations within the field. Exchange Cost: 30,000,000 points.

· Information Stream Interception (Basic): Passively perceive and initially parse wireless electromagnetic signals at close range (five meters) (such as mobile phones, unencrypted Wi-Fi data packets), requiring relevant professional knowledge to interpret. Exchange Cost: 16,000,000 points.

Behind every option, there was a brief "Advanced Route" hint, showing more powerful abilities that could be unlocked by investing more popularity. The costs were all over twenty million popularity points. The ten million points Alex currently possessed were merely a "ticket" to enter this domain, not even enough to pay for the cheapest item.

His mind was shaken, but on the surface, he remained calm, even able to naturally pick up Marcus's train of thought: "Very good, this means our upcoming negotiations can be more aggressive. Any new developments from Northrop?"

"No direct attacks for the moment." Rex took over the conversation, pulling up the monitoring, "But the first batch of products from the 'Echo Cage' project started organized social media promotion this morning. Three newcomers or new groups, the style... is highly 'inspired' by the retro funk route of 'Uptown Funk', but the arrangements are simpler, the lyrics are 'safer', and the promotional resources are very concentrated."

"As expected." Alex nodded, while distractedly browsing the abilities in the 【Information Perception and Processing】 category, which seemed most practical for his current competitive environment. "Let them chase shadows. Taylor, I've read the interview outline for this afternoon; regarding the part about the creative inspiration behind 'See You Again', we can further strengthen the connection between 'individual stories' and 'Universal emotions'..."

The meeting continued, and Alex played the role of the team's core perfectly, offering suggestions and making decisions. Yet his consciousness was frantically absorbing and understanding the flood of information brought by the new system.

He discovered that the upgraded system had added a crucial module: 【Reality Simulation Deduction】 (Primary). It could consume a small amount of popularity (currently about 1000 points per time) to perform rough result deductions for certain action choices in the short term, based on existing data and variables. This was a tool tailor-made for his currently complex strategic games!

Additionally, there were hints that the original ability fusion had been strengthened. For example, his 【Spider-Sense (Intermediate)】 and 【Environmental Perception Enhancement】, etc., if he could also exchange for 【Wide-area Perception Field】, could potentially fuse into a more powerful composite ability.

The meeting ended, and everyone dispersed to prepare for their respective work. Alex remained in the living room alone, brewing a cup of black coffee. He needed to think, to think carefully. He had to earn the gap of over twenty million as soon as possible. And what would the next "big event" be? Was it to fulfill the "commercial single" promise to Universal, or to use the residual heat of "See You Again" for deeper social actions? Different choices would lead to different speeds and "quality" of popularity growth.

He attempted to launch his first 【Reality Simulation Deduction】. Investing 1000 popularity points, he set the variables as: "In the next two weeks, high-profile announcement of the next pop single created for the commercial market, and launching promotion."

The deduction results were fed back in the form of blurred images and intuition:

· Popularity growth expectation: Fast short-term growth, potential high peak, but the growth curve decays quickly, and "shallow entertainment attention" accounts for a large proportion of the new popularity.

· Risk warning: May slightly weaken the serious image established by "See You Again"; Universal will be satisfied and increase investment; Northrop may use this as a basis to strengthen the "merchant artist" public opinion guidance.

· Probabilistic event: Low probability of triggering a collaboration opportunity with an A-list pop superstar.

He set another variable: "Delay the announcement of the new commercial plan, concentrate resources, join forces with the 'Child Safety Foundation' and family groups, and launch a one-month 'Safety Pledge' online initiative based on 'See You Again'."

Deduction results:

· Popularity growth expectation: Steady but continuous growth, solid growth curve, with "deep recognition" and "social respect" accounting for a significant proportion of the new popularity.

· Risk warning: Universal will become anxious and apply pressure; commercial opportunities may be lost; requires significant team energy investment.

· Probabilistic event: Medium probability of triggering attention or statements from higher-level (state or federal) political figures.

Two paths, two different types of "fuel". The former might accumulate "quantity" faster, while the latter could more solidly improve "quality" and lay a potential foundation for abilities like the possibly existing 【Faith/Bond System】 (although he didn't plan to prioritize exchanging for them). Although he pursued direct power, he also understood that for some extraordinary abilities to achieve maximum effect, they might also need specific "soil".

More importantly, he needed an "event" that could harvest a huge amount of popularity at once. An event more sensational than "Uptown Funk" and more widespread than "See You Again".

In the afternoon, Taylor quietly found him. She didn't talk about work, just handed him a thermos, which contained throat-soothing honey pear soup. "The way you look at the data is a bit different from before." She leaned against the doorframe, her voice very soft, "It's not exhaustion; it's... further away. You're planning your next step, a very big step, right?"

Alex took the thermos, the warm touch allowing him to temporarily detach from the cold numbers of the Extraordinary Exchange Catalog. He looked into Taylor's clear, concerned eyes and nodded: "It is a very big step. So big that I need to choose whether to continue to strive for perfection on the existing chessboard, or..." He paused, then rephrased, "or try to draw a new chessboard."

Taylor was silent for a moment, then suddenly asked: "Does it have to do with music?"

"It does." Alex said affirmatively, "Music is always a bridge. But the scenery the bridge leads to might be completely different."

"Do you need my help?" She asked directly.

"I do." Alex answered just as directly, "More than ever. Not just your voice, Taylor. I need your judgment, your... coordinates."

Taylor seemed to understand the deeper meaning in his words. She didn't press for more, just gently squeezed his arm, leaving a warm sensation, and then turned and left, leaving behind the words: "I'm always here."

Alex watched her leave, then withdrew his gaze and looked at the system interface that only he could see. Those expensive price tags seemed to be silently urging him on.

He had to speed up.

He not only had to make money but also "create momentum".

His gaze wandered between 【Wide-area Perception Field】 and 【Cellular-level Rapid Regeneration】. The former could greatly enhance survival and early warning capabilities, while the latter was the foundation for sustained combat. And 【Reality Simulation Deduction】 might help him find the most efficient path to those twenty million points.

He summoned the system and issued a new deduction command. This time, the variables were even bolder, combining business, social action, and a secret "dramatic moment" that could only be achieved with the help of potential extraordinary abilities...

The door to the extraordinary had already opened, and the price of power was incredibly high. And his next "song" might no longer just resonate across radio stations and the internet.