124: Chapter 124 Domestic Netizens: Just Who is this Chen Yuan?

This was prime time for programmers, xianxia enthusiasts, and internet trolls.

Weibo, Douyin, Zhihu, and even the major Tieba forums were currently noisier than a wet market at noon.

The trending search topic that Chen Tianba had spent a fortune to buy—《Rebellious Scion of a Wealthy Family Harms His Own Kin, Humanity Lost!》—was firmly occupying the number one spot like a malignant tumor.

In the video, Chen Yu was crying his heart out in a dog cage, covered in filth; that miserable sight was enough to stir the sympathy of any uninformed passerby.

The comment section had long since fallen, with insults surging like a tidal wave.

"What a beast! This is his own cousin! How could he bring himself to do it?"

"Is having money all that great? Does having money mean you can act lawlessly abroad? I suggest the country launch an international arrest!"

"My heart aches for brother Chen Yu, such a pure and kind person, actually being tortured like this! Scum like Chen Yuan should be executed!"

"What sin did the Chen family commit to produce such an ingrate! The culprit must be severely punished!"

Countless keyboard warriors were firing bullets of justice from behind their screens, wishing they could crawl through the internet cables to destroy Chen Yuan in the name of the moon.

In their eyes, Chen Yuan had become an unforgivable national sinner, a super prodigal son who squandered money abroad while relying on his family's legacy, only to turn around and bite the hand that fed him.

However.

The tide of public opinion often only requires a more explosive and visually impactful "truth" to shift.

Just as the online abuse reached its peak and Chen Tianba thought victory was in his grasp.

"Hum—"

A mysterious torrent of traffic crashed through the server defenses of major platforms without warning.

Countless alt accounts showing overseas IPs, like a well-trained ghost legion, suddenly flooded major forums and comment sections.

There were no pale written explanations, nor any hypocritical PR statements.

There were only a few 4K high-definition videos and several extremely high-resolution photos from the scene, slapped simply, brutally, and directly into everyone's faces.

First video: The Nevada desert, where the sky full of yellow sand swirled like snow.

A black bio-mecha, standing five meters tall, tore open the frontal armor of an m1a2 main battle tank with its bare hands amidst a teeth-grinding sound of metal friction.

The scene was too real. So real that you could see the twisted textures of the armor plating and the flames of the secondary explosion inside the tank.

And in that cockpit, Chen Yuan, wearing a tactical vest, held up a long middle finger to the camera and to the entire world. Arrogant, overbearing, and unbridled.

Second video: The streets of San Verde, the setting sun like blood.

Thousands of fully armed Umbrella Guard members wearing skull masks were lined up for a military parade. That uniform pace, those pitch-black gun barrels, and that murderous aura that seemed to overflow from the screen made those watching the video hold their breath subconsciously.

Third photo: The Scottish Highlands, ancient castles towering, rain falling continuously.

Chen Yuan, dressed in a proper tailcoat, knelt gracefully on one knee to receive an honor from the British Duchess. The background featured the royal honor guard and the pure gold emblem symbolizing his title.

Once these things came out, the keyboard warriors who had been furiously typing were suddenly as if grabbed by the throat by an invisible hand. They collectively lost their voices. Silence.

A full five minutes of eerie silence, as if the entire Chinese internet had been disconnected. Then, it exploded.

A torrent of traffic ten times more violent than before instantly crashed Weibo's servers; at this moment, the programmers' hair collectively decided to leave home.

"Holy crap!!!"

"Is this f*cking special effects? A bio-mecha? Tearing apart a tank with bare hands? What sci-fi movie trailer is this from? Did Pacific Rim release a live-action version?"

"Don't be stupid, upstairs! I went to check on the foreign internet! I climbed over the firewall to take a look, that 'Umbrella' company is real! It's registered right on the US-Mexico border! That Chen Yuan is the local warlord there!"

"That knighting ceremony is also real! It's recorded on the British Royal family's official website! Chen Yuan... Baron Chen Yuan?!"

"My God, how is this some prodigal son supported by his family? This is clearly a local warlord overseas!"

The tide of public opinion began to drift 180 degrees. People no longer cared about Chen Yu, who was crying for his father and mother in a cage. In the face of absolute aesthetic power, the tears of the weak became worthless.

All attention was drawn to Chen Yuan's cheat-like life resume. An abandoned son kicked out of his family.

In just a few short years, he built a massive business empire in a foreign land and even possessed his own private army? This script, even the most daring web novels wouldn't dare to write it like this!

"Guys, I suddenly feel like Chen Yu deserves it. Look at Chen Yuan, tearing tanks apart and chatting calmly; then look at Chen Yu, crying in a cage like a 200-pound child."

"This is the difference! One is a true dragon, the other is a giant baby."

"I have a feeling the Chen family has kicked a steel plate this time."

"What steel plate? This is f*cking kicking a nuclear missile silo!"

"What exactly is Chen Yuan's background? How come he feels even more fierce than a novel protagonist?"

"I heard he also monopolized that kind of 'miracle drug' abroad, even Hollywood best actress winners have to queue up to beg him! This is what we Chinese call face!"

New York, Titan Center.

Chen Yuan watched the instantly reversed comments on the screen, a playful arc curling at the corner of his mouth.

He was swirling a glass of expensive red wine, his eyes revealing a cold indifference that saw through the secular world.

"This is human nature," he said to Victor beside him, his tone flat. "When you are weak, even your breathing is wrong. When you are powerful enough to make them look up to you, even if you commit murder and arson, they will think you look cool, and will even take the initiative to make excuses for you."

Victor stood to the side, holding a tablet, his face full of amazement and worship, his little eyes full of stars.

"Boss, you are truly a god. Our official website traffic has exploded, the server almost crashed."

"Countless people back home want to climb the firewall to worship you; some even sent emails asking if we are hiring, saying they would be willing to just be an accessory or clean toilets for you."

"Hiring?" Chen Yuan chuckled softly, taking a sip of the red wine, the mellow taste blooming on his tongue.

"Tell them, Umbrella only recruits madmen and geniuses."

"We don't accept trash who only know how to tap on keyboards."

He put down the wine glass, his fingers tapping gently on the tabletop, making a rhythmic "knock knock" sound. "The timing is about right."

"The netizens' curiosity has been hung up to their throats now. They are desperate to know why such an awesome figure was thrown out like trash by the Chen family back then."

"This contrast is the most lethal poison."

Chen Yuan turned his head to look at Alice, who had been standing quietly in the corner. "Red Queen, is that account ready?"

"Ready, boss." Data streams flickered in Alice's eyes, her voice as calm as a precision instrument.

"Account ID 'Insider from Back Then'."

"IP address disguised as local Jinghai."

"Identity set as an old butler who served in the Chen family for thirty years, just retired, and 'found his conscience'."

"Very good." Chen Yuan stood up and walked to the floor-to-ceiling window.

He watched the night that belonged to him outside the window.

The lights of Manhattan flowed beneath his feet like a golden river. He could almost see Chen Tianba's livid face on the other side of the ocean.

"Then send it."

"Let everyone see, that so-called century-old family, under that glamorous skin..."

"What kind of dirty, rotting organs are hidden."

"I want to make it so that when Chen Tianba goes out tomorrow, he won't even be able to lift his head."

With Chen Yuan's order, a long article titled 《The Truth About the Chen Family's Abandoned Son: Who Turned the Wealthy Family Into a Man-Eating Den?》 appeared silently at the bottom of the trending list, accompanied by a few yellowed old photos and several secret documents that could shake the legal world.

Then, driven by Red Queen's massive computing power, it was like a rocket with a lit fuse. With an unstoppable posture, it instantly shot to the top! Exploded! It completely exploded!