Chapter 157: New Song "Legend"-I Lost My Fame, and Now the System Shows Up?(In ten steps, slay an immortal.)

The entire director's team.

Fell into an eerie silence the moment they heard Xu Mengqi's words.

Everyone stared at her with vacant expressions.

The director opened his mouth, feeling his throat dry up: "You..."

Xu Mengqi spoke up, "Director Ding, you heard me right."

The director felt completely dizzy.

Before this, he had imagined countless possibilities of what might happen when Xu Mengqi came to see him. But he had never imagined that she would make such a request.

Swallowing hard.

The director shook his head and said, "It's too late, it's too late."

Xu Mengqi: "Why is it too late?"

The director said, "There's no time to prepare. The stage effects, lighting design, band... and so on, all need time to be designed. If you had told us three days in advance, we could have rushed it. But now..."

According to the schedule, Xu Mengqi was supposed to go on stage in just over ten minutes.

Changing songs now? How could there possibly be enough time?

Yet, Xu Mengqi smiled once more: "I don't need stage effects. As for the lighting, just shine a single spotlight on me. And I don't need a live band either. Look, here is the backing track; just play it directly when the time comes."

"This..."

The director hadn't expected Xu Mengqi to have thought of everything.

He paused, but still said, "However, without stage styling and lighting effects, the live stage will look visually disappointing."

"This song does not need stage styling and lighting to set it off."

Xu Mengqi's words made the director's heart beat violently.

Looking into her firm gaze, he could no longer find any words to argue back.

...

As time passed, the moment for Xu Mengqi to take the stage grew closer and closer.

Whether it was the audience at the gala or the people watching the live broadcast, they all began discussing animatedly once again.

"Xu Mengqi is about to go on stage."

"It's going to be very hard for her to eclipse Cheng Yonglan's radiance."

"Yeah, Cheng Yonglan sang so well; it was practically divine."

"I really didn't expect the two Best Actresses to start an invisible competition again at the same gala. In the past, they always competed against each other in the film and television industry. This time, that rivalry has actually extended into the music scene. It's truly incredible."

"The pity is that Cheng Yonglan played her trump card right from the start. Her performance just now was so good that even top-tier singers would probably find it hard to beat her. So this singing duel between the two Best Actresses... has already been decided before it even began!"

"Indeed, Xu Mengqi has lost before even fighting."

"..."

Regarding Xu Mengqi.

Many viewers sighed inwardly.

Their anticipation for her appearance had even dropped significantly.

When a dance performance came to an end.

The host returned to the stage, their voice rising and falling with emotion: "Thanks to the lovely ones who just performed that dance! As for the guest about to take the stage, I think everyone has been waiting for her for a long time, right? She is our other Best Actress of tonight! Half an hour ago, Best Actress Cheng Yonglan gave us a breath of fresh air with a brand new song. So next, what kind of surprise will Best Actress Xu Mengqi bring us? Let's welcome Xu Mengqi!"

Here she comes!

On the stage, all the dazzling lights suddenly stood still, instantly making the once brilliant and colorful stage much simpler and purer.

Only a single beam of light shot down from the ceiling in the center, forming a beige illuminated zone in the middle of the stage.

Under the light, wearing a long white dress, her long hair simply tied back, and looking extremely elegant and unassuming, Xu Mengqi stood quietly in place.

At this moment, Xu Mengqi seemed stripped of all worldly hustle and bustle, resembling a fairy descended from the heavens.

Simple and quiet yet breathtakingly beautiful.

However, after being stunned by Xu Mengqi's unusual styling, many people felt a sense of doubt in their hearts.

"Huh? Why is Best Actress Xu's styling so plain?"

"If she's going to sing *Peach Blossom's Promise*, shouldn't the stage be a romantic scene filled with flying peach blossoms?"

"And the stage lighting is so simple too."

"How strange."

"..."

Before the doubts in everyone's minds could be resolved, a line of text appeared on the giant screen:

Song: *Legend*.
Vocal: Xu Mengqi.
Lyrics & Composition: Wuyan.

Then, a gentle prelude played, resembling a cool sea breeze blowing from afar, seeping into the depths of every audience member's soul.

In that instant, everyone's heart experienced a violent shock.

This was not the prelude to *Peach Blossom's Promise*!
This was not the atmosphere of *Peach Blossom's Promise*!

On the screen, what was displayed was not the title *Peach Blossom's Promise*, but a song they had never heard before: *Legend*!

A new song?
A new song!

In a split second, turbulent waves crashed in the heart of every single spectator.

Xu Mengqi had actually chosen to change her song as well! She too had switched to a brand new song!

Good lord!

This turn of events far exceeded everyone's guesses, causing the souls of many to tremble.

The vast majority of the audience had assumed that with Cheng Yonglan's pearl already cast, it would be extremely difficult for Xu Mengqi to surpass Cheng Yonglan's brilliance.

Yet no one expected Xu Mengqi to make the exact same choice as Cheng Yonglan, also singing a new song.

The crucial point was that the title of this new song made everyone's eyelids twitch violently:

*Legend*!

Just the title alone was enough to provoke countless imaginations among the crowd.

Audience members who had previously held no hope for Xu Mengqi instantly regained their spirit, their breathing turning hurried.

In the guest seating area down below.

All the guests who had already finished performing wore complex expressions as they simultaneously looked toward Cheng Yonglan, who was sitting nearby in a mermaid gown.

A faint smile still lingered on Cheng Yonglan's face, but at this moment, her smile had grown somewhat stiff.

She had indeed considered the possibility that Xu Mengqi might change to a new song, but she never imagined that the song Xu Mengqi switched to would actually be titled *Legend*. This made her feel quite uncomfortable inside.

However, Cheng Yonglan quickly calmed herself down.

*Legend*?

You still need to have the ability to handle such a song title.
Otherwise, it will only become a joke.

Cheng Yonglan snorted inwardly, her eyes fixed firmly on Xu Mengqi on the stage.

She wanted to see where Xu Mengqi got the audacity to name a song: *Legend*!

...

Mango TV's backstage monitoring room.

A group of staff members were busy and tense.

Many of them stared fixedly at the screens in front of them, which displayed the gala's real-time ratings.

The supervisor asked in a deep voice, "What are the ratings?"

A staff member replied, "After Cheng Yonglan finished singing just now, the ratings dropped from a peak of 2.85% to around 2%. Before Xu Mengqi took the stage, the rating was 2.05%. As soon as Xu Mengqi went on stage, the rating climbed to 2.45%."

The supervisor nodded, "Alright, keep watching."

The ratings had risen by 0.4%. It seemed that even though many people had lost expectations for Xu Mengqi's performance, as a Best Actress, she still possessed a powerful appeal that pulled the ratings up considerably.

At this moment.

In the center of the stage.

As the soft and comfortable prelude came to an end.

Xu Mengqi picked up the microphone and began to sing:

"Just because I took one extra glance at you in the crowd,
I was never able to forget your face ever since.
Dreaming that by chance we might meet again one day,
From then on, I began a lonely yearning."

When Xu Mengqi sang *Peach Blossom's Promise* earlier, Wang Mo had already discovered that her voice possessed an extraordinary infectious and expressive quality—this was perhaps her greatest strength.

And at this moment, that strength was displayed to its absolute limit during this performance.

Her cool and detached vocals carried a lingering, ethereal charm, as if drifting down from the clouds and slowly trickling into the depths of everyone's soul, making listeners feel as though they were bathed in a gentle spring breeze.

Having sung just a few lines, many audience members found their hearts fluttering.

Even though the stage lighting was extremely simple, everyone felt as though they were enjoying the ultimate auditory feast, their faces blooming with intoxicated expressions.

"Her voice is so infectious."
"It really sounds so good."
"I truly didn't expect Best Actress Xu's voice to be so moving."
"I'm instantly addicted."
"Especially Sister Qi's simple attire and simple stage, paired with this seemingly simple song—it's truly peerless."
"Yeah, I feel like such gentle songs are the ones that touch me the most."
"..."

In the guest area, quite a few people were also listening with ripples stirring in their hearts.

This song!
It seemed to possess a special charm that effortlessly drew people into its spell.

However, Cheng Yonglan, who had previously worn a faint smile, lost her earlier composure, her breathing gradually turning somewhat ragged.

With her level of accomplishment in vocal music, how could she fail to discern the high caliber of this song?

Yet the more she realized it, the more chaotic her heart became.

Cheng Yonglan took a few deep breaths, forcing herself to stay calm as she muttered under her breath, "Impossible. Xu Mengqi can't possibly surpass me. I'm fully geared up in divine equipment, what does she have to win with?"

On the stage.

Xu Mengqi still stood quietly within the circle of light, her whole body seemingly draped in a layer of mysterious radiance, giving her an otherworldly disposition.

Her singing grew increasingly ethereal, effortlessly capturing the hearts of the audience before they even knew it.

Many people wore intoxicated expressions on their faces.

"When I miss you, you are at the edge of the sky.
When I miss you, you are right before my eyes.
When I miss you, you are in the depths of my mind.
When I miss you, you are deep in my heart."

The singing flowed like a gentle spring, making listeners blissfully feel the sweetness of the water.

Quite a number of people were already listening in a trance.

This song seemed to lack intense emotional fluctuations or crashing climaxes, yet it easily plunged people into deep capitulation.

A good song needs no one to praise it.
Those who listen can naturally judge for themselves.

Watching the quiet silhouette singing on the stage, Cheng Yonglan's complexion gradually turned somewhat pale.

Her long fingernails had already dug into her own flesh, yet she felt no pain.

Because at this moment, an answer had faintly taken shape in her heart: *The Tears of a Fish*—the song she took so much pride in—seemed to be losing out against this song called *Legend* performed by Xu Mengqi.

Right at this moment.

Her manager hurried over, flushed and out of breath, holding a smartphone and whispering excitedly, "Lan Jie, I've selected the three top-tier brands that Xu Mengqi is preparing to endorse. Take a look, will these work?"

As soon as the manager finished speaking, she noticed Cheng Yonglan's pale complexion and her slightly trembling gaze.

The manager froze instantly.

At that exact moment, the singing from the stage drifted into her ears.

"I'd rather believe we had a pact in a past life,
That our love story in this lifetime will never change.
I'd rather spend this entire life waiting for you to discover,
That I have always been by your side, never walking far away."

Plop!

The smartphone slipped from the manager's hand, and she instantly understood why Cheng Yonglan's face looked so ugly.

She stood in a daze, listening to the soul-stirring singing, her mind blank for a moment.

At the same time.

The staff members monitoring the ratings were also staring blankly at the screen, their minds equally blank.

Finally.

Someone, though it was unclear who, blurted out: "The ratings have exploded!"

Indeed.

The monitoring screen showed that ever since Xu Mengqi began singing the new song *Legend*, the gala's real-time ratings began to climb rapidly along a curve that made everyone's breathing grow urgent.

2.5%... 2.6%... 2.8%...

In just two short minutes, it broke through the 3.0% rating mark, surging all the way up to a height of 3.06%.

A rating breaking 3!

Every single staff member, including the supervisor, had a boiling heart.

How many years had it been since Mango TV's gala broke the 3% rating barrier?

Even they had forgotten the timeframe.

However, what left them even more incapable of calming down was that because Xu Mengqi's performance was still ongoing, the ratings showed no signs of stopping after hitting 3.06%, continuing to climb slowly upward.

At the venue.

Xu Mengqi's performance was indeed still continuing.

Throughout the entire hall, the gazes of the audience members grew increasingly entranced. They waved the light sticks in their hands, swaying slowly in the night air along with the melody.

And the viewers watching on television or live streams were likewise listening to the song in quiet absorption.

Even in major online streaming chat rooms, the scrolling comments became sparse.

It seemed that at this moment, quietly listening was the only proper way to enjoy the music.

The melodious singing echoed and rippled across the sky above the massive exhibition center.

Until the very last line of the song slowly faded away.

Xu Mengqi stood quietly within the pillar of light, and as the beam retracted, she slowly melted back into the darkness.

The song had finally come to an end.