Superstar Ch.110

Chapter 110: The Phoenix

Almost the moment Xie Xizhao’s voice fell, the stage lights dimmed.

In the dim glow, he took a seat at the center. The others followed one by one, sitting beside him.

Together, they formed a semicircle.

A gentle, flowing blue spread from the screen behind them, enveloping the entire venue like ocean waves. The fiery atmosphere from just moments ago had completely disappeared, and the whole world seemed to fall into sudden silence.

Below the stage, scattered light sticks flickered.

In the midst of this absolute stillness, Xie Xizhao picked up the microphone and began to sing:

—The distant horizon

—The warmth is spreading

His voice was slightly hoarse, and the unfamiliar yet tender accompaniment drifted through the air, leaving the fans below momentarily dazed. But upon closer listening, they could still make out the original melody of Boundless Sea.

It was as if…

The once raging ocean had suddenly calmed, leaving behind a final trace of mercy for the last human on earth—

A chance for him to have one last conversation with the world.

Amidst the gentle piano notes, Zou Yi picked up the microphone:

—The seawater burns under the scorching sun

—The seagulls fly toward the distance

He had been deeply moved by the fans just moments ago, his eyes still tinged with red.

His voice was soft—low and tender.

Next, Yun Pan and Ai Qingyuan took over.

Ai Qingyuan rested a hand on Yun Pan’s shoulder, swaying slightly as he sang, pulling Yun Pan along with him:

—The boundless waters stretch beneath the vast sky

As the final note lingered, Fu Wenze took the microphone, singing the last line before the song reached its climax:

—The world shifts, the tides change, nothing lasts forever

This was the final stage.

Xie Xizhao and every member of TP had come together to present—

A reimagined version of Boundless Sea.

There was no restless band accompaniment, no stage burning with passion. At the very end, Xie Xizhao had reworked this song, transforming it into one led by a piano—gentle, delicate, and even tinged with sorrow.

It was a farewell, but also a thank you.

At the song’s climax, something unexpected happened.

The overhead light on the far left, which had been casting a blue halo, flickered once—then suddenly went out. Xie Xizhao paused for a moment, startled, but soon, the light wavered and flickered back on again.

Like a small blue flower blooming in the midst of ice and snow, full of life.

He paused for two seconds, his eyes curving into a smile.

Softly, he sang:

Before the world ends,

Please, meet me once.

My love, the vast and boundless sea.

Before the waves swallow the world,

Please, meet me once.

My friend—though we are strangers.

—Though we are strangers.

But in this moment, they had gathered here together.

And this was the best moment.

Doomsday had not arrived; dawn had come first.

On the VCR screen in the background, the rising sun leaped over the once-surging sea.

The lights came on.

*

Almost the instant the lights brightened, a deafening wave of cheers erupted.

The members of TP bowed in thanks, then left the stage for the next group preparing to perform.

Two back-to-back performances had left them all a little exhausted.

But before heading backstage, they still insisted on greeting the fans one last time.

It wasn’t until they finally stepped into the dressing room that Zou Yi let out a breath of relief.

Loosening his collar, he said, “I sang myself into a sweat.”

“Nervous?” Fu Wenze asked.

“More like excited,” Ai Qingyuan replied. “I was pretty hyped too.”

It was hard to put into words exactly what this feeling was.

If their interactions with fans during the competition had mostly relied on that closed iron gate, then after their debut, the distance between them had become much closer.

The achievements of the past month weren’t just their success—

They were the result of their combined efforts with the fans.

Even someone as composed as Zou Yi had struggled to hold back a trace of sadness while singing the final song, Boundless Sea.

But fortunately, this was just their debut.

The future still held years for them to walk together.

After touching up their makeup slightly, the group rested for a bit in the lounge. Before long, a staff member arrived to inform them it was time to prepare for the stage again. The five of them stood up.

The final performance of the night belonged to Newstar.

Technically, today was also their farewell stage, but their number of attending fans was noticeably lower than TP’s.

On top of that, tensions had always existed between the two groups, so the audience reaction during their performance remained lukewarm.

As Xie Xizhao stepped onto the stage, he caught sight of the red-clad boy beside him struggling to keep his expression in check.

If he remembered correctly, the boy’s name was Xue Zixiao.

Zheng Yunli was nowhere near him. As if deliberately avoiding suspicion, the two had taken positions on opposite ends of their formation.

Xie Xizhao walked over to stand beside Zheng Yunli. The latter’s expression was much calmer than when they’d passed each other in the corridor earlier. He said,

“Congratulations in advance.”

This was the final first-place ranking for the show.

Both the predicted scores and the live votes had TP leading by a significant margin.

The outcome was already beyond doubt.

Xie Xizhao smiled and responded politely, “Thank you.”

And just as expected—

After a brief transition from the host, the results appeared on the large screen.

First Place:

The Phoenix

Fireworks erupted, and the host handed the trophy to TP’s leader, Zou Yi.

His eyes turned red again as he choked out his acceptance speech.

Everyone gathered around him.

Xie Xizhao watched for a moment before smiling and reaching out—gently plucking a stray ribbon from Zou Yi’s hair.

—This became the final scene in everyone’s memory of TP’s debut promotions.

–

From that point on, everything unfolded swiftly and predictably.

TP’s debut activities officially came to an end, but Rift was far from retiring.

And not just Rift.

Choosing Boundless Sea for their final music show performance would later be hailed—envied, resented, and begrudgingly admired—as a brilliant move.

Because after that stage, Boundless Sea, which had already experienced a small surge in popularity, exploded once again.

This time, it was massive.

Rift had already been sitting comfortably at the top of the daily streaming charts. Now, Boundless Sea, riding the wave of the performance, rapidly climbed into the daily top ten—then the top five—then the top three.

A week later, the two songs stood side by side at first and second place.

Yet another record-breaking achievement.

TP was at its peak, and the eyes of rival companies burned with envy.

During this time, all kinds of tactics came at them in waves.

Once, Fu Wenze went out for a simple meal with an old friend, and suddenly, his past was dragged out and dissected all over again.

Some claimed he had been a delinquent. Others accused him of still b*llying his teammates.

Ai Qingyuan had it even worse.

He was undeniably the little prince of Shenghong Entertainment. Given his scandal during the competition, all eyes were on him, just waiting for him to slip up.

Meanwhile, Xie Xizhao had become TP’s biggest star, their undisputed top member.

With clear-cut conflicting interests, he and Ai Qingyuan were the perfect targets.

And so, hired trolls and gossip accounts took turns fanning the flames, pitting members against each other, desperately hoping TP would tear itself apart.

Ai Qingyuan was beyond frustrated. For a while, he dragged Xie Xizhao onto livestreams every single day, making a point to showcase their deep brotherly bond.

He exaggeratedly praised Xie Xizhao’s cooking. He regularly posted selfies of the two of them.

Xie Xizhao didn’t say much—he let Ai Qingyuan do whatever he wanted and played along each time.

Ai Qingyuan, smug after each broadcast, thought to himself, ‘There, now no one can doubt our friendship anymore.’

The result?

Their CP tag skyrocketed to the top of the trending charts—but at the same time, the solo stans were tearing each other apart even more viciously.

A flood of comments accused Ai Qingyuan of clinging to Xie Xizhao to whitewash his image. Others told Xie Xizhao to stay away from that bloodsucking royal.

Ai Qingyuan: “…”

Miao Haicheng patted him on the shoulder in consolation. “Don’t worry, this is just the inevitable path for every top-tier group.”

“…Oh,” Ai Qingyuan muttered, sulking all over again.

In the end, it was Xie Xizhao who cheered him up—with just one simple trick.

“I’ll get Fu Wenze to cook something good for you tonight,” he said.

And just like that, a single meal completely bribed the formerly dejected Ai Qingyuan.

—

And this was just one of many incidents.

But…

No amount of underhanded tactics could stop TP’s rise to legendary status.

Rift dominated the top spot on the charts for two straight months. Just when it seemed like it was finally starting to drop, and everyone could breathe a sigh of relief—

Shenghong announced TP’s first comeback.

This time, TP continued the conceptual theme from their debut.

With Fu Wenze as the central figure, they crafted a fresh, forest-inspired aesthetic.

The story followed the God of Justice and his fateful encounters with a mute child deep in the woods.

The God of Courage saved the child—creating the first fracture in his divine nature.

And this time—

The entire musical direction was handed over to Xie Xizhao.

Xie Xizhao did not disappoint.

After over a month of seclusion in creative mode, he emerged with yet another masterpiece—”Spring Dance”.

The song was light, bright, and full of energy. TP’s comeback landed right at the turn of spring and summer, and their stage outfits reflected the season—soft pastel tones, flowing fabrics. From the music to the performance, everything radiated the fresh and gentle warmth of spring.

And with that, TP’s core concept was fully formed.

A mythological universe centered around the Phoenix, the god of creation.

Each of the five members embodied a different aspect of this world, with every comeback unraveling a new narrative arc tied to their individual traits.

Each member had their own unique musical identity, but the overarching theme of every comeback remained the same—

Lightness.

Sometimes light and alluring. Sometimes light and refreshing.

For their third comeback, Yun Pan became the focal member, shifting the style to something light and playful.

And just like that—

Daily charts. Weekly charts. Monthly charts. Year-end charts.

TP dominated every single ranking.

First-place trophies, Rookie of the Year, Best Album, Best Song.

A group that had already debuted at an elite level now walked the path of legends.

And every time people predicted their fall, TP shut down the speculation—over and over again.

They could go on for another hundred years.

Meanwhile, Xie Xizhao, who was actively involved in every comeback, had cemented himself as a household name—an all-rounder idol.

People heard of him.

People learned about him.

People fell in love with him.

His fanbase grew exponentially, but with that came more haters, too.

Many waited eagerly for the day his creativity would run dry—but just like TP’s rivals who kept getting proven wrong, his haters never got the meltdown they were hoping for.

And so, time continued to flow.

In the blink of an eye—

Two years had passed.

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