That evening, the plane landed, and Wang Haoran returned. When he discovered the chaos that had erupted in just two short days, he was utterly dumbfounded.

A Douyin account being permanently banned wasn’t something he cared about—it was just a whim. But a 5 million bounty to target him? That was simply outrageous!

After hearing this news, Wang Haoran immediately instructed Cui Xiao to find Qiu Qianwei, while he himself headed to a nearby internet café.

…

Qiu Qianwei’s phone was turned off, so Cui Xiao could only inquire about her whereabouts through her friends. Most of Qiu Qianwei’s friends were familiar with Cui Xiao, her apprentice. Therefore, when Cui Xiao asked, they shared what they knew.

The responses were mostly similar. After hearing about Qiu Qianwei’s award, her friends had wanted to call or meet her to celebrate. However, Qiu Qianwei had been avoiding everyone and seemed to have vanished without a trace.

Cui Xiao was very anxious and went directly to the places Qiu Qianwei usually frequented. She searched tirelessly from evening until morning without resting.

Fortunately, her diligence paid off. Just as evening was about to fall again, Cui Xiao found Qiu Qianwei at a primary school in the Qingling Mountain area that Qiu Qianwei had sponsored.

“Master, I finally found you!” Cui Xiao exclaimed joyfully.

“Why aren’t you with your sweetheart? What are you doing here?”

After not seeing her for a couple of days, Qiu Qianwei looked noticeably haggard, her complexion pale, and her eyes bloodshot. It seemed her sleep quality had been terrible recently.

“Master, you’ve got it wrong. There’s nothing between Wang Haoran and me. We were just acting to fool you,” Cui Xiao hurriedly explained.

“What?” Qiu Qianwei was taken aback.

“Master, if you don’t believe me, see for yourself!” Cui Xiao showed Qiu Qianwei the entire video from that day in the bedroom.

The first part of the video showed Wang Haoran and Cui Xiao rehearsing. Then, Qiu Qianwei entered, mistaking it for an affair, and ran away heartbroken. Immediately after, Cui Xiao emerged fully dressed from under the covers…

Upon seeing this, Qiu Qianwei no longer needed to watch further and suddenly felt as if she had awakened from a dream.

“Master, your performance of ‘Injury’ was a pinnacle of perfection. Congratulations on achieving your dream. As your only apprentice, I truly feel honored,” Cui Xiao said with a smile.

Hearing this, the pain and gloom that had plagued Qiu Qianwei vanished instantly, and her mood brightened considerably.

[Ding, the female lead Qiu Qianwei’s favorability towards the host has increased by 15. The current total favorability is 90 (undying devotion).]

[Ding, the host has significantly influenced the plot direction, earning 1600 villain points. Lin Chen’s protagonist halo -80, host’s villain halo +80!]

“You deserve some credit for this honor. But honestly, besides your musical talent, your acting is quite good too,” Qiu Qianwei said, her face lighting up with a smile.

“Master, actually… I wasn’t acting.”

Qiu Qianwei was momentarily stunned.

“I really do like Wang Haoran,” Cui Xiao confessed, her expression turning gloomy. “But I know I’m not good enough for him. Only someone as outstanding as you, Master, is his perfect match.”

“Xiaoxiao…” Qiu Qianwei wanted to comfort her but didn’t know what to say.

“Master, I’m fine. Playing his girlfriend for a few days was quite satisfying, and it gave me some nice memories,” Cui Xiao said cheerfully, moving past her moment of sadness.

“By the way, where is he?” Qiu Qianwei’s cheeks flushed slightly as she asked.

“I don’t know, but he’s probably in hiding by now,” Cui Xiao said, suddenly becoming nervous.

“What happened?” Qiu Qianwei’s phone had died, so she was unaware of major events.

“Master, let me show you some news.” Cui Xiao opened her phone and showed Qiu Qianwei some headlines.

A 5 million bounty… How could this happen?

Qiu Qianwei’s face quickly turned pale. She never imagined that a simple award acceptance speech would lead to such danger for him.

Anxious, Qiu Qianwei immediately took Cui Xiao’s phone to dial Wang Haoran’s number. However, the receiver indicated the number was turned off.

“Let’s go back to the city, immediately!” Qiu Qianwei said urgently.

“Master, it’s already dark, and driving on mountain roads is dangerous.”

“I can’t care about that now. Give me the keys, and I’ll drive back myself.”

“Let’s go back together then. I’ll drive,” Cui Xiao decided quickly, fearing that Qiu Qianwei might have an accident in her haste.

…

Late at night.

Wang Haoran emerged from an internet café, feeling slightly weary. After all, he had been working intensely for 24 hours straight, and even someone as robust as him was feeling fatigued.

In today’s information society, finding someone in real life through their online traces isn’t particularly difficult. Given enough time, his identity as the “Piano God” would soon be exposed online. But fortunately, he possessed “top-tier hacker skills.”

He spent 24 hours creating a super virus. Just moments ago, it had taken effect, erasing all online information about the “Piano God.”

Anyone trying to find Wang Haoran’s real identity through the “Piano God” online would find it nearly impossible. Unless someone exposed him offline.

And the only ones who knew Wang Haoran was the “Piano God” were female leads like Yang Jingwan and Xu Muyan. Given their level of affection, they would never do such a thing.

The 5 million bounty issue should be resolved for now. However, to be safe, Wang Haoran spent 12,000 villain points to exchange for 24 years of internal energy, directly boosting his power to 50 years.

Once internal energy reaches 50 years, true energy undergoes a qualitative change, allowing one to form a protective aura, making them impervious to blades and bullets.

Additionally, all senses are enhanced, and combat power significantly increases. His combat power value on the attribute panel had risen from 1369 to 2449.

This combat power was already quite terrifying. Only martial arts veterans with over 50 years of internal energy could pose a threat to Wang Haoran.

However, at their level, they were at least grandmaster-level and unlikely to lower themselves to act as henchmen for 5 million.

Looking at the villain points, they had shrunk to 9500. Wang Haoran couldn’t help but feel a pang of heartache.