Chapter 4: The Wilderness and the "Special Effects"

The announcement of the variety show, "AETHER: Survival of the Ethereal," hit the internet like a tidal wave. Nebula Corp’s bots were already hard at work, claiming that without the "high-tech filters" of the Star-Reach studio, Lin Xiao would look like a "common potato."

Manager Wang was pacing the length of the airport lounge, clutching a bottle of antacids. "Xiao, please. I’ve packed three types of waterproof concealer. If the 'No-Filter' crowd catches a single pore on your face, our stock drops five points!"

Lin Xiao, sitting cross-legged on a plastic airport chair, was focused on a small, withered bonsai tree in the corner of the lounge. She didn't look at him. She just tapped the soil. The tree, which had been brown for months, suddenly sprouted a tiny, vibrant green bud.

"The air in the city is 'Clouded'," Lin Xiao remarked. "A mountain is exactly what this vessel needs. Do not worry about the 'concealer,' Wang. Worry about the camera crew. They have weak hearts."

## The Ghost-Mist Mountain (Ch. 12: The Arrival)

The "Ghost-Mist Mountain" was infamous. It was a place where GPS signals died and tourists frequently got lost in the sudden, thick fogs. To the production crew, it was a "spooky" filming location. To Lin Xiao, the moment she stepped off the helicopter, her eyes widened.

"A Spirit-Leak," she realized. The mountain wasn't haunted; it sat atop a cracked meridian of the Earth. The "ghosts" were just pockets of ancient, confused energy.

The Cast:

AETHER: Zaria (clutching a designer hiking boot), Nyx (looking bored), Mika (terrified), Sloane (calculating the lack of 5G), and Lin Xiao.

The Rivals: Two members of 'VIXEN' from Nebula Corp, led by Roxanne, who was wearing enough makeup to survive a sandstorm.

"Alright, girls!" the Director shouted, drones buzzing overhead like mechanical hornets. "The rules are simple. Reach the summit by tomorrow morning. No managers, no stylists, just you and the 'True 4K' drones. The fans are watching live!"

The "Face-Slap" in the Fog

Thirty minutes into the trek, a thick, unnatural fog rolled in. Roxanne from VIXEN laughed, pointing at Lin Xiao. "Look at her! She’s probably shaking because her 'AI skin' is glitching in the humidity!"

Lin Xiao stopped. She looked at a nearby rock formation. In the "Spirit-Vision" only she possessed, she saw a cluster of Vile Qi—a swarm of mountain insects driven mad by the spirit-leak.

"If I were you," Lin Xiao said calmly, "I would stop talking. The vibration of your voice is attracting... guests."

"Oh, shut up! You're just—"

Suddenly, a cloud of black mountain gnats swarmed Roxanne. They ignored Lin Xiao entirely, as if she were made of stone, but they coated Roxanne’s expensive makeup like a living mask. Roxanne screamed, flailing her arms, ruining her "cool" image in front of 5 million live viewers.

[Live Chat]

User_X: "LOL Roxanne is losing it! But wait... look at Lin Xiao."

Deep_Diver: "The fog is literally moving around Lin Xiao. Like there’s a bubble of clear air around her. Are the drones glitching or is she actually magic?"

## The CEO's Office: The Observation

Back in the city, Lu Chen was ignoring a board meeting to watch the live feed on a 100-inch screen.

Assistant Yan Chao ran in. "Sir! The Nebula CEO is on line one. He’s demanding we stop the stream. He says we’re using 'Aerosol Hallucinogens' to make Lin Xiao look better and make his girls look crazy."

"Tell him to sue the mountain," Lu Chen said, not taking his eyes off the screen. "Yan Chao, look at her feet. She’s walking on mud, but her boots are perfectly clean."

"Maybe it’s... hydrophobic spray?" Yan Chao suggested weakly.

"No," Lu Chen whispered. "It’s something else."

## The Night Camp: The "Saint" and the "CEO"

As night fell, the girls were shivering around a pathetic fire that Zaria had tried to light with a luxury lighter.

"I’m hungry, I’m cold, and I have zero bars," Sloane moaned.

Lin Xiao sighed. She walked into the dark woods. Five minutes later, she returned with a handful of wild mushrooms and some roots that looked like ginger.

"Eat," she said, tossing them into the pot of water.

"Are those poisonous?" Roxanne hissed, still red-faced from the bug attack.

"To you? Perhaps. Your karma is heavy," Lin Xiao said. She then turned to the drone hovering nearby. She knew Lu Chen was watching. She looked directly into the lens. "CEO Lu. The 'Metal Box' you gave me is vibrating."

In the office, Lu Chen realized she was talking about the satellite phone in her bag. He picked up his handset. "Lin Xiao. You’re supposed to be 'surviving,' not calling the office."

"The 'Spirit Vein' of this mountain is broken," Lin Xiao said, her voice clear even through the satellite interference. "I am going to fix it. It will be loud. Tell your 'Netizens' it is a thunderstorm."

"Wait, Lin Xiao—"

## The "Thunder" Performance

Lin Xiao stood at the edge of the camp. She began to hum—a low, resonant frequency that vibrated in the bones of everyone present. This was the "Heavenly Harmony Mantra."

She started to move. It wasn't a dance; it was a series of martial forms designed to stitch together the torn energy of the mountain.

The "Drone" Feed:

To the millions watching, it looked like the most incredible performance in history. As Lin Xiao’s hands cut through the air, the "Ghost-Mist" began to glow with a soft, blue bioluminescence. Lightning flickered in the clear sky above her, striking the peaks in time with her movements.

[Live Chat]

God_of_Simps: "THIS IS THE BEST MV EVER MADE. Star-Reach’s budget is insane!!"

Physics_Student: "Uhh... that's not pyrotechnics. Those are actual atmospheric discharges. Is she a weather goddess??"

Lin_Brother_Official: "Xiao... what the hell are you doing?" (Captain Lin Jian was watching from the precinct, his jaw on the floor).

As Lin Xiao finished the final form, she stamped her foot. A shockwave cleared the fog for five miles in every direction. The stars above shone with unnatural brightness.

Lin Xiao turned back to the camera, her face serene, not a single hair out of place.

"The mountain is quiet now," she said to the stunned world. "Goodnight."

## The Assistant's Drama

The next morning, Yan Chao was at the office, looking at the "Post-Match" data.

"Sir... we didn't just trend. We broke the internet. Again. But... there's a problem."

"What now?" Lu Chen asked, nursing his fifth espresso.

"A group of 'Ancient History' professors from the National University are here. They claim the 'Dance' Lin Xiao performed is an exact match for a ritual depicted on a 3,000-year-old stone tablet they just unearthed."

Lu Chen froze. He looked at the emerald brooch on his desk—the one Lin Xiao had "brightened."

"And?"

"And... they want to know why a twenty-year-old pop idol knows a 'Language of the Gods' that has been dead for three millennia."

Lu Chen stood up. "Tell them she's just a very dedicated 'Method Actor'. And Yan Chao? Buy that university. I want those tablets in my office by noon."

🥙🧆🧆🥙🧆🥙🧆🥙🧆🧆🍣🧆🍣🧆🍣🧆

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