The office was quiet—too quiet.
Yu sat in front of the computer, frowning at the headlines that blinked across the CRT screen.
"BrightByte Receives Early Angel Investment from Local Telecom Giant"
"Teen Prodigy Li Zixuan Launches 'TalentHub' Beta"
"A New Era for Youth-Driven Media?"
Yu's chest tightened.
Li Zixuan.
Of all people.
He leaned back in his chair, letting the cheap springs squeak beneath him.
In his past life, Li Zixuan had become a legend by the time Yu's startup even got off the ground. He wasn't just rich—he was ruthless, charming, and backed by silent powerhouses. And now, in this timeline, Li was already building something dangerously familiar.
A talent discovery platform.
Just like SkyVoice.
"Déjà vu," Yu muttered. "No. Rewind."
He clicked on the article. It showed a photo of Li, seventeen years old, in a blazer three sizes too large, shaking hands with the founder of one of the top telecom firms in Southern China.
Yu remembered that meeting. It had led to Li's first big break: exclusive access to early 3G channels, which gave his app a massive head start.
And now, it was happening again.
But Yu was here too. This time, he wasn't starting behind.
"Everything okay?"
Yu turned. Jiang Meixuan stood in the doorway, a towel slung around her neck, hair still damp from practice.
He nodded. "Just researching."
She stepped in, looked at the screen, and frowned. "That guy again?"
Yu closed the window. "Competitor."
"He looks… rich."
"He is," Yu said. "And dangerous."
Jiang hesitated. "Do we stand a chance?"
Yu paused.
Then smiled—slow, confident, but cold.
"We don't need to beat him today. We just need to move before he realizes we exist."
That night, Yu pulled an all-nighter.
He and Lin Zheyuan optimized their site architecture, tweaked upload protocols, and built a crude moderation system.
Yu also started compiling a secret list: micro-influencers, early blog admins, QQ group leaders, even dial-up BBS forums. He remembered from 2025 which ones would blow up.
It was time to make SkyVoice visible.
Not just to users.
But to the entire market.
By dawn, their slogan had changed:
SkyVoice: Where Talent Rises. Not Just the Rich.
And underneath it, a new line:
"Bigger isn't better. Better is better."