128: Five hundred yuan is not a small amount.

Starport.

Star Sea Building, top floor.

Dedicated press conference hall.

Two hours before the press conference began, a large contingent of foreign media reporters stationed in Dragon Country had already arrived.

All domestic media outlets that could attend were present, and they had already occupied all the prime spots in the front row.

"Old Chen, Star Sea hasn't held a press conference in over two years, has it?"

"If you don't count the last new product launch event, it has indeed been over two years."

"I have a feeling this matter isn't simple."

... Half an hour remained until the press conference began.

Star Sea's core executives arrived one after another.

When the reporters below the stage saw the scene—good heavens, all the CEOs of the Star Sea system were present—they realized this level of formality hadn't been seen in a long time.

As staff members wheeled a fish tank onto the stage, three large question marks simultaneously appeared on the foreheads of all the reporters present.

In such a serious setting, the appearance of a fish tank containing a dead fish floating belly-up was bizarre.

What were they trying to do?

Flashbulbs fired repeatedly, capturing this somewhat incongruous scene.

In the corner of the venue, a young man with slicked-back hair stood on his tiptoes, aiming his phone camera at the front of the stage.

"family members, the press conference hasn't even started, but there's a fish tank with a dead fish on the Star Sea stage. I bet they're going to demonstrate some kind of resurrection potion or something similar."

The comments section in Xin Ya's live stream instantly exploded.

[Holy cow, what is Star Sea up to? Could it be an upgraded version of longevity water that brings dead fish back to life?]

[Xin Ge is awesome, he actually managed to sneak into the Star Sea press conference!]

[Are there any fishing enthusiasts in the live stream? What kind of fish is in the tank?]

[It looks like a topmouth culter, but it's too far to see clearly.]

[It is a topmouth culter.]

Xin Ya glanced around and saw a young man leaning against the wall in the distance, scrolling on his phone.

He walked over to the young man, acting overly familiar.

"Brother, which platform are you from?"

The young man looked up, glanced at his own attire, then looked at Xin Ya, and immediately understood.

"I'm from Yinlang."

"Yinlang? I haven't seen you around. Did you just start your account?"

"That's right."

"Brother, be honest with me, do you have any internal information? Spill a little."

"If you don't have internal information, how could I possibly have any?"

"I can tell you're not a reporter. Anyone who can sneak into this venue must have some connections."

"Didn't you sneak in too?"

Xin Ya: "My aunt is a cleaner here. I had her sneak me in. That's different."

The comments section in the live stream was instantly amused.

[Xin Ge is awesome! His connections are rock solid—he actually knows a Star Sea cleaner!]

[Don't underestimate the cleaners, upstairs. They all have at least bachelor's degrees and need connections and recommendations to get the job.]

[Holy crap, is the competition that fierce?]

[You guys haven't seen anything worse. We had a guy with a doctorate try to apply for a security guard position at Star Sea, and guess what? He was rejected. How ridiculous is that?]

... The young man chuckled softly, raised his hand, and glanced at his smart bracelet. Less than fifteen minutes remained until the press conference began.

"It seems like they are going to establish some kind of academy."

Seeing that the young man was willing to talk, Xin Ya immediately leaned in, looked left and right, and, seeing no one was paying attention, pulled two one-hundred-yuan bills from his pocket and slipped them into the young man's hand.

"Brother, reveal a little more."

Seeing Xin Ya bribe someone on the spot, the viewers in the live stream immediately started sending gifts.

[Xin Ge understands social dynamics! Brothers, send gifts! We can't let Xin Ge lose money.]

[Spaceship gift sent! Xin Ge, be more generous! Only two hundred yuan? Who are you looking down on?]

[Give him more!]

... The young man stared at the two one-hundred-yuan bills in his hand and fell into contemplation.

Xin Ya thought the young man felt it wasn't enough, so he quickly pulled three more one-hundred-yuan bills from his inner pocket and slapped them into the young man's hand.

"Brother, five hundred yuan, that's quite a lot!"

The young man put the five hundred yuan into his pocket, looked toward the stage, and said, "I heard Star Sea found an Elf on an alien planet. Look at the fish tank on the stage—they are going to demonstrate magic."

Huh?

Xin Ya immediately burst out laughing at the statement.

"Brother, you're good! You're quite the storyteller."

Just as Xin Ya was about to point the camera at the young man, the other party blocked it even faster.

"I'm quite shy and don't like being on camera."

Xin Ya: "Then I won't force you."

"I even wanted to put you on my account to help you gain some followers."

The young man: "You're surprisingly nice."

Xin Ya: "Brother, if that doesn't work, let's do a QR code transfer. One thousand yuan. Give me some solid information."

"The press conference is about to start. Why don't you just wait and watch?"

Xin Ya: "How can that be the same? I'm doing this because I want the brothers in my live stream to know some inside information ahead of time."

The young man figured it out: Xin Ya wanted to warm up the crowd and create some dramatic effect before the press conference started.

Just then, a voice rang out in the young man's ear.

"Sir, Fan Xi is in position. We can start at any time."

"Then let's begin."

Having said that, he walked straight toward the internal staff passage.

Xin Ya looked at the young man's retreating figure with confusion, shaking his head and sighing toward the camera.

"The moment I first saw this brother, I knew he wasn't simple. He can just walk into the internal staff passage. His background must be incredibly strong."

"I should have added him on WeChat earlier."

Internal staff passage.

Fan Xi was wearing a sharp business suit, with a pair of flawless white beautiful legs visible beneath the pencil skirt.

Her upper body was taut; the buttons looked like they were about to burst.

She subconsciously tugged at her skirt. Seeing He Ming walking toward her, a blush appeared on her face.

"Sir."

He Ming looked Fan Xi's attire up and down. Although it was incongruous, her high beauty compensated for it.

"Don't be nervous. You don't need to speak. Just follow the planned procedure."

As the host took the stage, the reporters below immediately raised their cameras and telephoto lenses, standing ready.

"Please welcome the first principal of our Star Sea Elemental Academy, Ms. Fan Xi, to the stage."

Fan Xi took a deep breath, silently encouraged herself, and, stepping in high heels, walked toward the stage, step by step.

Her posture was graceful, carrying an innate air of nobility.

Her steps were light, unlike those of an ordinary person.

When the spotlight hit Fan Xi and illuminated her face, a chorus of gasps immediately erupted from the audience.

"She's so beautiful!"

"What's with those ears? Is that cosplay?"

"I mean, cosplaying an Elf in such a serious setting seems a bit inappropriate, doesn't it?"

... Pointed ears, silver hair like moonlight, skin as fair as jade, a perfect face, a voluptuous figure, all contrasting sharply with the business suit.

Fan Xi's appearance instantly became the sole focus of the entire venue.

A young Elf woman, seemingly stepping out of a fantasy epic, appearing at a press conference hosted by the tech giant Star Sea.

The visual impact was overwhelmingly powerful, completely subverting everyone's worldview and exceeding all expectations.

At the same time.

In the global simultaneous live broadcast, the comments and reviews on major streaming platforms completely exploded, like a comet hitting Earth.

[Holy hell, my eyes are burning. What is that? An Elf?]

[Star Sea's press conference just fried my CPU. What kind of conference is this, exactly?]

[Did she walk onto the wrong set?]

[As everyone knows, official live streams don't use beauty filters. If she naturally looks like that, I am truly impressed.]

... The host led Fan Xi to the center of the stage and began the introduction for everyone.

"Principal Fan Xi comes from an alien planet—yes, exactly the kind of extraterrestrial you are thinking of."

"She is an Elf race member whom our Star Sea boss encountered by chance during interstellar travel."