Chapter 138: Album Release

Time flows like water, cast away with a smile, the future is full of promise!

Encouraged by Liao Yuan’s inspiring words, Tian Xingde and the others felt their spirits soar.

At six o'clock in the afternoon, Song Bailing’s debut album, *Fairytale Town*, was officially released.

There was no autograph signing session, no press conference, not even a music video. All there was on the album cover was the silhouette of a slender figure standing gracefully beneath a banyan tree.

Compared to the grand and boisterous promotional campaigns of Zhou Tingting, Jiang Chuhong, and others, Song Bailing’s promotion consisted merely of news announcements across major mainstream self-media websites and Weibo, along with official pushes from the three major music platforms.

Aside from that, there was nothing else.

Across the entire album, except for the advance single *Fairytale Town*, which was free to stream, tracks such as *By the Lake Baikal*, *Red Mountain Apple*, *Those Years Gone By*, *The Thief and the Sovereign*, *Big Fish*, and *Running Wild* were all placed behind a paywall.

Each song cost two yuan, making it twelve yuan for the six songs, with the free advance single *Fairytale Town* included as a bonus. Finally, purchasing the entire album as a package enjoyed a discounted price of ten yuan.

Fans who loved *Fairytale Town* and adored the singer Song Bailing naturally clicked to purchase the moment it went live.

Yet, there were also hesitant fans who began searching the entire internet for reviews and overall impressions of the album *Fairytale Town*.

"This is not a banquet for metalheads; this is a carnival for literature lovers!" — Cat with a Hidden Tail.

"One afternoon, I accidentally clicked on Colorful Music, and then accidentally clicked on *Fairytale Town*, the new song that had been dominating the soaring charts for a whole week. I believe this is a song that can only be written by someone with a certain amount of life experience. A good work doesn't necessarily have to cover a wide range of age groups, but one that can spark resonance across a broad age span definitely possesses the potential of a masterpiece. *Fairytale Town* is the latter. It allows younger demographics to appreciate its beauty, makes slightly older demographics feel a sense of fragmentation, and ultimately brings a song of hope and courage to listeners with richer life experiences." — Quiet Bitter Smile.

"Today, Song Bailing’s debut solo album *Fairytale Town* was released. I couldn't wait to order the entire album. I am loyal to my ears, and I trust my ears. After listening through every song on the album, I am so glad that my choice wasn't wrong." — Audrey Hepburn Downstairs.

"Aside from the title track *Fairytale Town*, the song I clicked on the most was *Big Fish*. The title itself was captivating. Its lyrics filled me with even deeper sorrow: 'Every tear flows toward you, flowing backward into the sea of the sky.' Goodness, after listening to the whole song, I couldn't control my sobs and was already drenched in tears." — Quietly Watching Flowers Bloom and Fall.

"This album is simply too brilliant! The sorrow of *Big Fish*, the freshness of *Red Mountain Apple*, the regret of *Those Years Gone By*, the melancholy of *Running Wild*... The most surprising and unexpected ones are *By the Lake Baikal* and *The Thief and the Sovereign*. Both are duet songs. Previously, I thought Song Bailing’s voice was the most beautiful sound in the world, but now, I’d like to add 'one of' to that statement." — Crazy Dog Li Moran.

"I had never heard of Liao Yuan before. When I saw that the lyrics and composition for the entire album were all by Liao Yuan, I was stunned. Later, I pulled up Liao Yuan’s encyclopedia profile. I couldn't believe it, yet I had no choice but to believe it—Liao Yuan’s existence proves a very cruel fact: in this world, there are people who are simply more talented than you, smarter than you, damn it, even better-looking than you, and on top of all that, so damn low-key..." — Windward Unfluttering.

"He is a true poet. The internet's defamation has never been able to bring him down." — Flower Branch.

"*By the Lake Baikal* makes me feel as though I am immersed in nature, experiencing its gentleness and beauty. It's fantastic!"

"I’ve fallen in love with Song Bailing’s voice. It’s celestial—ethereal, lazy, casual, mournful yet touching, striking deep at the heartstrings, like the murmuring chant of a spring swallow, elegant and ethereal, making one feel as though they’re living in a dream..."

"Goodness, is this still that same Liao Yuan who danced to *NONONO*? His singing is so good!"

"A God of Vocals delayed by other pursuits!"

"At first, I wasn't very fond of *The Thief and the Sovereign* or *Running Wild*, but after listening to them for a while, I ended up putting them on endless loop."

"Liao Yuan, I want to bear your children!!"

Countless hesitant netizens looked at these reviews and comments, feeling somewhat incredulous.

Zero negative reviews?

How is that possible!

Bot-driven!

It must be bot-driven!

Suppressing the urge to buy pulsing within their hearts, they went successively to check the review sections under the new albums of the three singers: Zhou Tingting, Jiang Chuhong, and Zhao Ya.

"Can just about anyone be a singer these days?"

"A torture to the ears, can't hold a candle to *Fairytale Town* next door!"

"I'm a bit disappointed in Zhou Tingting. Out of the ten songs on this whole album, seven are RAP. Is rap really that popular now? I feel absolutely nothing for it!"

"Feel nothing +10086!"

"Why is Jiang Chuhong singing when she should be acting properly? It lowers my impression of her!"

"Zhao Ya’s songs are decent, but I'm just sick to death of this kind of music. I find that every song ends up sounding exactly the same once it comes out of Zhao Ya's mouth. Terrifying!"

"I guess I'll obediently crawl back to listen to *By the Lake Baikal*!"

"Actually, these songs are all pretty decent. If it were in the past, I might have really bought the whole album. But the market fears comparison the most. Even though Song Bailing is a newcomer, every single song hits my sweet spot!"

"Keep it up, Song Bailing!"

In the comment sections of these three well-known singers' new albums, there were simply so many suspected hired trolls for Song Bailing that many paranoid netizens fell into hesitation.

This must be PR manipulation!

Right, it definitely is PR!

They're all paid trolls! Trolls! Hahaha! You can't hope to escape my discerning eyes!

Deliberately slandering other people's songs just to boost the sales of their own?

Tsk, this Song Bailing is truly a scheming girl!

Yes, it must be like this!

Yet, while these wavering netizens were deeply trapped in various palace dramas of conspiracy and intrigue, the sales of *Fairytale Town* kept climbing and rising steadily.

At first, compared to the other three singers, the sales of the album *Fairytale Town* were merely at the bottom.

However, an hour later, *Fairytale Town* gradually began to pull off a corner-cutting overtake.

First, it surpassed Jiang Chuhong’s new album *Azure Sea*, then it surpassed Zhao Ya’s album *Strolling Through the Clouds*. Soon enough, after six hours—by midnight—the sales of *Fairytale Town* finally reached a satisfying milestone: 270,000 copies!

Yet, compared to Zhou Tingting’s new album *I Have My Feel-style*, it still lagged behind by nearly double.

Because before midnight, Zhou Tingting had already achieved the stellar result of selling 500,000 copies in six hours.

Nevertheless, by comparison, the phenomenon of *Fairytale Town* having virtually zero negative reviews left quite a few industry singers and companies utterly astonished.

One had to know that just a week ago, *Fairytale Town* was still a work being wantonly smeared across the entire internet, relentlessly attacked and cursed at by netizens!

It seemed as though overnight, the wind had completely shifted.