LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 5: Thunderstorm
Bronze Chest?
Lin Yuan looked at the system’s inventory with a hint of unease: “Is there a bomb in this chest?”
The system didn’t respond to Lin Yuan’s concern.
To be safe, Lin Yuan found an excuse to go to the restroom before opening his first bronze chest.
[Task Reward: Professional-Level Piano Skills]
The moment the chest opened, Lin Yuan’s mind was suddenly filled with countless piano techniques—arpeggios, chords, fingerings, leaps, octaves, and even scales in thirds and sixths.
"Is that all?"
Lin Yuan wasn’t particularly impressed.
The original owner already had a Level 10 piano skill, which wasn’t too difficult for someone dedicated to music from a young age.
It would have been better if the reward had been a song or a novel.
The system seemed displeased with Lin Yuan’s attitude. It replied in a flat, emotionless synthetic voice, “Chests are classified into four levels: Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Diamond. Even the lowest level bronze chest contains items of certain value.”
“So, what is professional-level piano skill?”
Lin Yuan needed to understand the system’s standard for “professional.”
The system responded, “The piano skill you now possess is beyond the reach of most ordinary people. Even exceptionally talented piano prodigies would need at least ten years of rigorous practice to achieve this level. As for the Level 10 piano skill you mentioned, isn’t that something even elementary school students can pass?”
“Alright then.”
Lin Yuan accepted the result, ignoring the system’s faintly sarcastic tone. “So, what comes after professional-level?”
“After professional comes top-tier, then master-level, and finally perfect-level. These correspond to Silver, Gold, and precious Diamond chests, respectively.”
“When will I get these chests?”
“Obtaining these requires your own skill and luck. Generally, there are two ways to acquire them: completing system-issued tasks or reaching certain prestige thresholds, such as having a total prestige of over ten thousand.”
“What’s my current prestige?”
As soon as Lin Yuan finished asking, a few lines of light blue text appeared before him:
[Age: 19]
[Lifespan: 22]
[Painting: 45]
[Literature: 105]
[Music: 2509]
[Overall: 2659]
[Others: Awaiting Unlock]
The categories for painting and literature hadn’t changed, but music had increased significantly.
This was likely due to the recent boost from the piano skills and the prestige earned from recording the song “Blooming Like Summer Flowers.”
It seemed that breaking ten thousand in total prestige would have to wait until “Blooming Like Summer Flowers” was officially released.
Lin Yuan washed his hands and left the restroom.
At that moment, people from Xingmang’s finance and legal departments arrived to have him sign a contract. It was a standard procedure for the “Blooming Like Summer Flowers” release.
The contract specified—
Once “Blooming Like Summer Flowers” was released, 80% of the revenue from the song would belong to the company, with the remaining 20% divided between Lin Yuan and Sun Yaohuo.
Sun Yaohuo would receive 0.5%.
Lin Yuan, who handled both the lyrics and music composition and also completed the arrangement alone, would receive 1.5%.
Sun Yaohuo had no objections.
He kept a low profile, viewing the song’s performance not as a money-making opportunity but as a chance to debut, so he signed the contract without hesitation.
Lin Yuan had no objections either.
Though he would have liked a larger share, both he and Sun Yaohuo were newcomers. Newcomers didn’t have the leverage to negotiate terms with the company. Whatever the company decided, so be it.
Only industry veterans could negotiate better terms with the company.
After signing, the finance department reminded Lin Yuan, “The song will be released on November 1st, and it will be available on all major channels cooperating with the company.”
“Got it.”
Lin Yuan nodded.
After finishing the contract, the resource and promotion department staff came to have Lin Yuan sign another form, asking him to fill in some information.
“First is your name.”
The staff guided Lin Yuan, “In the lyrics and composition sections, you can use your real name or a pseudonym. Just make sure not to change it casually after you’ve written it.”
“Xian Yu , would that be okay?”
“You don’t want to use your real name?”
Lin Yuan nodded. He preferred to remain low-profile, so he chose a pseudonym.
“Sure.”
The staff confirmed it.
Lin Yuan then wrote “Xian Yu ” in the fields for lyrics and composition.
Though his memories from the past life were quite vague, Lin Yuan could still recall some classic lines, like this one:
“Admire the fish in the depths, but it’s better to retreat and weave a net.”
Though “Xian Yu ” sounded a bit like “salted fish,” it felt appropriate.
Next, the form asked Lin Yuan to provide some background on the song’s creation.
Lin Yuan pondered for a moment.
Seeing Lin Yuan’s hesitation, the staff said, “Don’t worry too much. Just write something vague. Other songwriters do the same. Nobody really cares.”
“Alright.”
Lin Yuan thought for a while and wrote: “Blooming like summer flowers in splendor, dying like autumn leaves in serene beauty.”
This was the origin of the song’s title.
After writing it, he turned and left.
The staff looked at the line Lin Yuan had written and was momentarily stunned—
“Blooming like summer flowers in splendor, dying like autumn leaves in serene beauty.”
Without Tagore on Blue Star, such a simple poem still held considerable impact.
Even those with no literary talent could sense the weight and life-like quality in these elegant words.
Coming to her senses, the staff smiled and murmured, “Looks like the promotion team won’t have to worry about the title this time.”
…
When Lin Yuan left, he sent Zhao Jue a message. Seeing no reply, he took a cab back to school.
Meanwhile, in the general manager’s office at Xingmang.
Zhao Jue was facing pressure from the company’s boss and had no time to check her phone.
“Shah Hai plans to debut Qian XingYu during the newcomer season this year. How do you plan to handle it?”
The boss’s voice was calm.
Zhao Jue could detect the frustration behind his calm demeanor.
There was indeed reason for frustration. Qian XingYu was not a newcomer but the second male lead from a popular drama last month.
What is the default rule for the newcomer season?
As long as someone is a new singer, they can release songs during this period.
So, if a somewhat famous actor like Qian XingYu wants to release a song, he could be considered a new singer.
After all, he had only acted in dramas before and had never sung.
But this wasn’t fair to other newcomers.
Thus, some industry insiders had suggested not allowing actors to debut as new singers because the newcomer season should be reserved for fresh talent from the entertainment industry!
However, this suggestion was not adopted by higher-ups.
Nevertheless, the suggestion wasn’t entirely useless.
Many famous actors, despite their interest in music, would avoid releasing songs during the newcomer season to prevent controversy and not compete with pure newcomers.
However, newcomer actors were not bound by this rule.
Qian XingYu , before his recent hit drama, hadn’t acted in any other shows and was also a newcomer in the entertainment industry!
So, his situation was quite special.
Even if he competed with pure newcomers in the newcomer season rankings, it wouldn’t cause much controversy, especially since he suddenly became popular close to the newcomer season.
This gave Qian XingYu a significant advantage.
After all, he had the backing of a hit drama, making promotion easy. Even if the song wasn’t top quality, his existing fans would help with the rankings!
Realizing this, Zhao Jue carefully prepared her response: “Qian XingYu is definitely aiming for first place. If he secures that, the value of second and third places will increase as well…”
“You certainly are smooth with your words.”
The boss, a sophisticated middle-aged man, appeared amiable but was known to be extremely formidable when angered.
With his fingers lightly tapping on the desk, the boss said, “Your targets for this year’s newcomer season were set rather hastily… The goal is the top three! If you don’t meet the target, even I won’t be able to make excuses… If that happens, I’ll have to reassign you for a while. You might have to spend a year or so in a lower position before you can return to your chief agent role.”
“Understood.”
Zhao Jue took a deep breath. Ever since Lin Yuan’s vocal issues, she had been mentally preparing for this.
“Also…”
The boss reminded, “Even if no one makes it into the top three, we need to secure more spots in the top ten and elevate our new talents’ highest ranking. Only then can I try to advocate for you among the higher-ups.”
“Got it.”
Zhao Jue knew that the boss had been supportive of her. Her position as chief agent was thanks to his direct promotion over the years.
“Go on.”
The boss waved his hand.
Zhao Jue nodded, left the office, and after adjusting her mindset, she took out her phone and called Lin Yuan: “Where are you? I’ll give you a ride back to school.”
“I’m already back at school.”
Lin Yuan replied, “I just sent you a message; you might have missed it.”
Zhao Jue paused, then said, “Alright, then. Be safe on the way. I’ll see if I can arrange better resources for you during the November newcomer season to aim for the top ten
. Personally, I think your song is good and has potential.”
“Thanks, Zhao .”
Even Lin Yuan, despite being somewhat slow on the uptake, could sense Zhao Jue ’s care for him. It was clear from many details that she genuinely appreciated the original owner.
“No need to thank me. Just hang up.”
Zhao Jue said with a smile, though it was tinged with bitterness.
Helping you is also helping myself. If we can secure one more spot in the top ten, the pressure on me might be a little less…