Chapter 39 — The First Battle of Nebula
Three weeks.
That was how long Nebula Entertainment had officially existed.
And during those three weeks, Li Chen had learned something very important.
Starting a company was easy.
Making people take it seriously was another matter entirely.
The small office was already becoming crowded.
There were now eight employees.
Two administrative staff.
One accountant.
Two marketing employees.
One legal consultant.
Xiaoyu.
And Li Chen.
That was the entire company.
There was no giant executive floor.
No army of assistants.
No luxury conference rooms.
No company cars.
No enormous recording studio.
But there was something else.
Momentum.
Yueyin's independent single had continued climbing.
Yara had released a new rock track.
Wanqing had begun preparing her first official Nebula project.
And all three artists were attracting attention.
Which was precisely why the first problem arrived.
The Phone Call
Xiaoyu walked into Li Chen's office carrying three documents.
"We have a problem."
Li Chen didn't look up from his computer.
"How expensive?"
"Very."
He finally looked up.
"What happened?"
"Golden Vision Media."
Li Chen's expression changed slightly.
Golden Vision Media was one of the largest entertainment marketing companies in the country.
They handled promotional campaigns for major releases.
If a company wanted to dominate the online conversation surrounding a new song, Golden Vision was one of the companies they called.
"What do they want?"
"They've cancelled our contract."
Li Chen frowned.
"We don't have a contract with them."
"Exactly."
Xiaoyu placed the documents on the table.
"We were negotiating a promotional package for Yueyin's next release."
Li Chen picked up the first document.
"They suddenly changed their terms."
"How?"
"Exclusive marketing rights for all three artists for twelve months."
Li Chen immediately put the document down.
"No."
"I know."
"What else?"
"They want approval over promotional schedules."
"No."
"And they want the right to determine which media outlets receive priority access."
"Absolutely not."
Xiaoyu nodded.
"I rejected the proposal."
Li Chen smiled.
"Good."
"But that's not the problem."
She handed him another document.
"They've now informed several media companies that Nebula is difficult to work with."
Li Chen read the message.
His eyes narrowed.
"So they've decided to punish us."
"It looks like it."
"How many companies?"
"At least six."
Li Chen leaned back.
For a moment, he said nothing.
Then he smiled.
"Good."
Xiaoyu stared at him.
"Why do you keep saying that?"
"Because every time someone closes a door..."
He stood.
"...I learn which doors they're afraid we'll enter."
The Industry Meeting
That afternoon, Li Chen received an invitation.
A marketing industry conference.
Most major entertainment companies would be there.
Nebula wasn't supposed to be.
But after the Golden Vision dispute, someone had apparently decided that the small new company should be publicly reminded of its place.
Li Chen decided to attend.
Yueyin wanted to come.
Li Chen refused.
"This isn't your fight."
Yueyin frowned.
"It concerns my career."
"Exactly."
Yara immediately raised her hand.
"I'll go."
"No."
"Why?"
"Because you'll start a fight."
"I might."
"That's why."
Wanqing quietly asked:
"Then who will go?"
Li Chen looked toward Xiaoyu.
She sighed.
"Of course."
The conference hall was enormous.
Executives from major companies gathered in expensive suits.
Agents.
Producers.
Marketing directors.
Platform representatives.
Distributors.
Li Chen and Xiaoyu entered through the side.
Almost immediately, people noticed them.
Whispers spread.
"That's Li Chen."
"The Ghost Producer."
"That's Nebula?"
"He's really serious about starting a company?"
"Where's the rest of his team?"
"Probably couldn't afford to bring them."
A few people laughed.
Li Chen ignored them.
Until a familiar voice appeared.
"Mr. Li."
He turned.
Han Wei.
The Vice President of Aurora Music Distribution.
The same man who had previously tried to secure Lin Yueyin's next three releases.
Han Wei smiled.
"Long time no see."
"Not long enough."
Han Wei laughed.
"I heard about your company."
"Congratulations."
"Thank you."
"I mean it."
Han Wei looked around.
"Although I have to admit, I didn't expect you to start this small."
Li Chen smiled.
"Everyone starts somewhere."
"Of course."
Han Wei lowered his voice.
"Between us, you should reconsider."
"Reconsider what?"
"Leaving Jinhai."
Li Chen said nothing.
Han Wei continued.
"Jinhai has everything you need."
"Except ownership."
Han Wei's smile faded.
"You still haven't learned how this industry works."
Li Chen looked directly at him.
"No."
"I've learned exactly how it works."
He stepped closer.
"That's why I left."
Han Wei's expression became slightly colder.
"Be careful, Mr. Li."
"With what?"
"Dreams."
Li Chen smiled.
"Dreams are cheap."
He walked past him.
"It's making them real that's expensive."
The Announcement
The conference resumed.
A senior representative from Golden Vision Media stepped onto the stage.
He spoke about cooperation.
Industry standards.
Strategic partnerships.
The future of entertainment.
Then came the subject of independent companies.
"Small companies often underestimate the importance of infrastructure."
The representative smiled.
"Talent alone is not enough."
Several executives nodded.
Li Chen sat quietly.
Xiaoyu glanced at him.
"You know they're talking about us."
"I know."
Then the representative continued.
"Without established distribution, marketing, and platform relationships, an independent company will struggle to survive."
A few people laughed.
Li Chen finally raised his hand.
The room became quiet.
The representative looked surprised.
"Mr. Li?"
"May I ask a question?"
"Of course."
Li Chen stood.
"You said talent isn't enough."
"Correct."
"And established infrastructure guarantees success?"
The representative smiled.
"Not guarantees."
"Then what does?"
The man paused.
"Execution."
Li Chen nodded.
"Good answer."
He looked around the room.
"Then perhaps we should stop arguing about who has the bigger company..."
His eyes moved toward the Golden Vision representative.
"...and see who can execute better."
The room became noticeably quieter.
The representative smiled.
"Are you challenging Golden Vision?"
Li Chen shook his head.
"No."
He smiled.
"I'm challenging myself."
That answer surprised everyone.
Because it meant he wasn't asking anyone to believe in Nebula.
He was promising to prove it.
The First Battle
That evening, Li Chen returned to the office.
The entire team was waiting.
Yueyin looked nervous.
"What happened?"
"Golden Vision refused to work with us."
Yara crossed her arms.
"So?"
"So we won't use them."
Wanqing asked:
"Who will replace them?"
Li Chen smiled.
"We will."
Everyone stared at him.
Xiaoyu blinked.
"Us?"
"Yes."
He walked to the whiteboard.
"We don't need to become a traditional entertainment company."
He wrote:
NEBULA MEDIA
Then underneath:
Direct Promotion.
Artist Content.
Fan Communities.
Independent Creators.
Data Analysis.
Live Interaction.
Yueyin slowly understood.
"You want us to build our own marketing network."
"Not exactly."
Li Chen turned around.
"I want us to build something Golden Vision can't sell us."
Yara smiled.
"Fans."
"Exactly."
Li Chen pointed at the board.
"Three artists."
He pointed at Yueyin.
"Pop."
Then Yara.
"Rock."
Then Wanqing.
"R&B."
He looked at Xiaoyu.
"Different audiences."
Then back at the board.
"One ecosystem."
Xiaoyu's eyes widened.
"If we can get the fans of all three artists interacting..."
"Then we don't need to buy attention."
Li Chen finished the sentence.
"We already have it."
Two Weeks Later
The first test was Yueyin's new promotional campaign.
There was no Golden Vision.
No expensive advertising package.
No massive billboard campaign.
Instead, Nebula launched a fan-driven challenge.
Fans could create short performances using a short section of Yueyin's new song.
Yara joined.
Then Wanqing.
Then hundreds of fans.
Then thousands.
Within forty-eight hours, the campaign had spread beyond Yueyin's existing audience.
The song began climbing.
Not explosively.
Not impossibly.
But steadily.
And more importantly...
Organically.
Xiaoyu stared at the data.
"Engagement is three times higher than the Golden Vision proposal."
Yara looked at Li Chen.
"Did you know this would happen?"
Li Chen shook his head.
"No."
Yara laughed.
"You're terrible at pretending to be a genius."
"I never claimed I was."
Yueyin looked at the numbers.
"Then why are you smiling?"
Li Chen looked at the screen.
"Because now we know."
"Know what?"
He pointed toward the numbers.
"That Nebula can build its own audience."
At that moment, his phone vibrated.
[System Notification]
[Mission Progress Updated.]
Independent Power: 21%
Condition achieved: Establish independent promotional capability.
Reward: Business Analysis Enhancement — Advanced.
Li Chen stared at the notification.
Then smiled.
"Twenty-one percent."
Yara looked at him.
"What?"
"Nothing."
He closed the notification.
Outside, the Nebula sign was still small.
The office was still old.
The company was still young.
And the major entertainment companies still didn't consider them a serious threat.
But for the first time...
Nebula had won a battle without borrowing anything from them.
No Jinhai.
No Aurora.
No Golden Vision.
No established giant.
Just Li Chen, his team, and their audience.
And somewhere across the city, Zhou Kang received the latest report.
He read it twice.
Then slowly put the document down.
"The little company has learned how to walk."
His assistant asked:
"Should we stop them?"
Zhou Kang smiled.
"No."
He looked toward the city lights.
"Let them walk."
"Then?"
Zhou Kang's smile became colder.
"When they think they can run..."
He closed the folder.
"We'll see how fast they really are."
To be continued.