Chapter 39: Preparation for the Second Performance (2)
Ke Zi’an whispered, “We have to do everything ourselves—from lyrics to melody to choreography? That’s terrifying.”
Zhou Tong muttered under his breath, “It’s only been six days of training and they’re already tossing us into the deep end. The production team sure has a lot of faith in us…”
Shen Xiu’s mind was still caught in a whirlwind from what the system had told him. He couldn’t think straight, so he picked up on the bits and pieces of what his teammates were saying behind him and pieced together a generic response suitable for this kind of situation:
“Teamwork.”
He was just trying to get through this—dealing with Teacher Xue’s sharp tongue and the system’s warning had his brain in knots, and his hands had gone cold with anxiety.
Xue Yi nodded approvingly. “Very good.”
He had thought Shen Xiu would be like last time—taking care of everything for the team like a babysitter.
But based on Shen Xiu’s current response, it seemed that wouldn’t be happening again. Teach a man to fish instead of giving him a fish—there would be no second round of hand-holding. Shen Xiu clearly had strong principles.
[Xiu Xiu is strong, no doubt, but working as a team is the fair way to go!]
[Yeah, I just don’t want to see him get as exhausted as he did during the first performance.]
[+11111]
[But… there are nine people on a team. Everyone’s going to have their own ideas. Writing one song and choreographing one routine together? That’s not realistic.]
[That’s when you need a leader who can keep the team in check.]
[Ahem. If it’s Boss Shen, though… does he even need to keep them in check? One look from him and no one would dare say a word.]
“Shang Yu, how about you?”
Shang Yu: “I…”
Hearing that Xue Yi had moved on to questioning Shang Yu, Shen Xiu immediately tuned out again, turning his full attention back to what the system had told him.
Still, the brief interruption from Xue Yi helped calm him down. Shen Xiu’s emotions weren’t as raw now as they’d been when he first heard the terrible news—at least his body wasn’t as tense as before.
[Duan Mingfei… who is he?]
Shen Xiu searched his memory. In all his life, he had never heard of that name before.
[Why is he investigating me?]
The system couldn’t be bothered to explain and simply threw over Duan Mingfei’s entire file:
[Here, see for yourself.]
Since binding to Shen Xiu, any data the system transmitted didn’t need to be read—it directly entered Shen Xiu’s mind.
As a being superior to all life in this world, the system’s ability to investigate someone was no joke. Saying it stripped Duan Mingfei down to nothing wouldn’t be an exaggeration.
Within moments, Shen Xiu knew everything about Duan Mingfei—his life from birth to now, every event he’d experienced, every person connected to him, all clear as day.
Shen Xiu: [This guy… does he have something wrong with his brain?]
As he had suspected, there had never been any interaction between him and Duan Mingfei.
Their only point of overlap was…
No—being precise, Duan Mingfei had once participated in the boy group survival show “Better Days of Youth”, while Shen Xiu was currently competing on “Youth Unstoppable.”
That was it.
There was no grudge. No history.
System: [Let’s just say he’s messed up. Baseless malice, the ugliness of human nature—Shen Xiu, haven’t you experienced enough of it already?]
Shen Xiu froze, a faint crease forming between his brows.
Yeah… hasn’t he seen enough of that kind of unprovoked hatred?
He couldn’t imagine his parents’ and his own painful past being dragged into the light—picked apart by the public.
Whether it drew sympathy or accusations of “playing the victim”—either way, there would be no peace.
Shen Xiu: [System, what do I have to do, for you to…]
System: [Did you forget? You’re bound to me—you’re my host. Before my host finishes my mission, how can I let anyone else b*lly you?]
Shen Xiu: “?”
System: [Relax. Besides you, there’s no third person in this world who knows about your past. I’m just informing you about this because you and Duan Mingfei are in the same industry. You’ll probably meet eventually.]
It didn’t want Shen Xiu to face the creeping, unprovoked malice of the shadows without knowing anything.
Shen Xiu: “!”
So… what the system meant was, before even telling him about it, it had already handled everything—no one could uncover his past!
[…Thank you. You’re amazing!]
Not only had it saved his life and given him another chance to live—it also helped him out in such a huge way.
Shen Xiu didn’t hold back his gratitude: [You’re the best system I’ve ever seen!]
System: [Wait… you’ve seen other systems?]
Shen Xiu: […Well, no.]
System: [Good. All right, everything’s been said and sorted. Bye.]
The system logged off just as Xue Yi finished questioning the last C-position team leader.
“Now, let’s talk about the rules for the second public performance.”
“There are eight teams and four rounds of head-to-head matchups. Before the second performance, matchups will be determined by random draw, so you must be prepared with the mindset that—other than your own team—all seven remaining teams are your opponents.”
“Seven days from now, the second performance will be held. Time is tight, so make the most of it.”
“A friendly reminder: the number of eliminations in the second performance will be much greater than in the first. Give it your all. Also, the format of the second performance will be different from the first.”
At this point, Xue Yi deliberately left them hanging: “As for how it’ll be different—you’ll find out after the second public performance.”
“Teacher Xue, that’s as good as saying nothing!”
“Ugh, I got tricked by Teacher Xue again today!”
“You’re making us super anxious when you say stuff like that!”
Xue Yi chuckled, his gaze sweeping over the trainees with a touch of pity: “All I can give you is this—my best advice: you must work hard. Very, very hard.”
His words only made the already nervous trainees even more uneasy and anxious.
“Alright, it’s now free activity time. See you later.”
Since time was tight, the moment Xue Yi left, each C-position leader immediately led their team to the exclusive practice rooms assigned by the production team.
In Shen Xiu’s team, aside from Xia Wenhao, Ke Zi’an, and Zhou Tong—who had worked with Shen Xiu before—the other five members were partnering with him for the first time. They walked at the back of the group, unconsciously feeling nervous as they watched Shen Xiu up ahead.
On the way back to their practice room, the eight trailing members gradually fell out of sync with Shen Xiu, who was leading in front.
Shen Xiu, walking ahead, noticed the footsteps behind him growing fainter and felt troubled.
Should I… wait for my teammates to catch up?
But if I get too close, wouldn’t that make everyone uncomfortable?
Hmm… better to keep some distance!
Behind him, the eight team members were whispering to each other.
Ye Cheng: “Seriously now—Zhou Tong, Ke Zi’an, Xia Wenhao, why are you three acting so scared?”
Song Junying: “Yeah, out of all of us, you three are the most familiar with Captain Shen. Why are you guys walking at the back too?”
Zhao Mingwei: “You think Brother Shen will be mad at us for this?”
Yuan Jiafei: “Zhao Mingwei, the way you said that… why does it sound so weird when I think about it?”
Ke Zi’an muttered nervously, “Just because we’ve spent more time with Captain Shen doesn’t mean we’re not scared of him.”
Zhou Tong agreed wholeheartedly, “Just walking behind him gives me chills. What is this? Natural intimidation from a top dog? Spending time together doesn’t make us braver. Is being scared a problem? Nope! Totally valid!”
Watching Shen Xiu already entering the practice room, Xia Wenhao glanced at the seven still huddled and chatting, and spoke up with exasperation:
“Let’s get in there already. We’re wasting time. If we keep dawdling, Shen Xiu’s glare will only get colder. If you don’t want to be on the receiving end of that death stare, move now.”
In an instant, the seven scattered like startled birds and dashed into the open practice room at lightning speed.
Within five seconds, only Xia Wenhao was left standing in the hallway.
Xia Wenhao: “…6.”
[This is the intimidation aura of Demon King Shen, LOL.]
[The moment Xia Wenhao spoke, they all zoomed in faster than rockets. It’s unintentionally hilarious. I already made a gif of it.]
[Xia Wenhao: I’m just speechless!!!]
*
Inside the practice room.
Shen Xiu had just walked up to the multimedia station and picked up pen and paper when he heard a flurry of hurried footsteps.
Looking up, he saw the previously distant group of teammates suddenly flooding into the practice room.
Yes—flooding.
The door was so narrow, he actually worried the seven of them might break the frame trying to squeeze through at once.
Shen Xiu gave the poor doorframe a sympathetic glance.
For the sake of this team, it had quietly endured far too much…
As the seven burst in, Shen Xiu raised his eyes and gave them a cool, calm glance.
Caught off guard by his icy gaze, the seven immediately froze, then quickly lined up obediently and greeted him—awkward but respectful.
“Captain Xiu.”
“Ahem… Captain Xiu, what should we do first?”
Captain Xiu…
No matter how many times he heard it, Shen Xiu still felt embarrassed by the title.
He lowered his head and flipped open his notebook, pretending to be busy, trying to hide his embarrassment.
After a minute, when he felt his face was no longer burning, he finally looked up.
To avoid making eye contact with the eight teammates, Shen Xiu just glanced at them briefly, then raised his notebook, his gaze falling on the pages.
There were nine of them in total, and of course, each person’s style would be different. The lyrics they wanted to write and the dances they wanted to perform would also vary.
But… what kind of style did he like?
Shen Xiu stared blankly at the notes in front of him.
Because he realized he had absolutely no preference in this regard—it seemed like he could go with anything.
…
Inside the practice room.
After the eight teammates entered, they noticed that Shen Xiu only glanced at them briefly before his gaze returned to his notebook. He pressed his lips together and said nothing.
The eight of them: …Wait, what? Could it be that they came in too late and Shen Xiu was upset because they wasted time?
Shen Xiu was going bald from stress.
He couldn’t think of a style he liked—he simply couldn’t!
So—
Shen Xiu shifted his gaze to his teammates and handed the responsibility of choosing the style to them.
“What kind of style do you all like? Speak up, I’ll write it down.”
Although Shen Xiu’s voice was still cold and his expression remained indifferent, at least he was speaking. So, he probably wasn’t that angry.
Shen Xiu, with his cold and detached appearance, seemed like a ruthless leader. Yet now, he was actually asking for their opinions!
The new team members thought that Shen Xiu’s intimidating look made him appear unapproachable, the kind of cool guy who should only be admired from afar and never gotten close to.
But once you get close, the illusion shatters.
However… the truth is, what illusion? There’s no way even the Demon King Shen could disappoint them!
Today was, as expected, another day of further admiration for Shen Xiu!
But… everyone still believed that Shen Xiu was only asking them out of respect.
Even though, in the practice room on the 10th floor, Teacher Xue had said that the style, lyrics, and choreography were all up to them, the C-position captain was still the C-position captain, and everyone had implicitly accepted that the captains had the final say on things like style, choreography, and lyrics.
So, when everyone answered, they didn’t hold back. They thought, “It’s just a casual question, no one’s going to take it seriously, it’s just a formality,” and they openly expressed their thoughts.
Xia Wenhao was the first to speak: “For the style, I prefer something wild, like last time, with Ying Zi’ang’s cool and wild wolf vibe, I really like that.”
Zhou Tong: “Something hip-hop, passionate and lively would be great.”
Ye Chen: “I like the intense, emotionally charged kind, the kind that’s so cool it breaks the sky.”
Ke Zi’an: “As for me, I like classical style.”
Yuan Jiafei: “The style I want is simple, one word: cool. From the lyrics to the music to the dance, cool from beginning to end, cool enough to make people’s scalps tingle when they listen or watch!”
Zhao Mingwei: “I like dark rock, something cool enough to leave a deep impression.”
Song Junying: “I like punk style, but it should be cool too.”
While the team members shared their style preferences, Shen Xiu’s pen moved swiftly, taking notes.
Five minutes later, Shen Xiu looked at the words in his notebook, his head spinning.
‘Can everyone just keep it simple?’
Out of the eight of them, aside from the word “cool,” not a single style was the same!
How are they supposed to decide on a style with this?
This isn’t going to work.
Shen Xiu scanned the text in his notebook into the multimedia device and projected it onto the big screen, deciding to use a vote to determine the style.
The team members: …So, what does this mean?
Looking at the sharp handwriting on the screen, the team members felt their cheeks flush. When they had spoken, they had assumed the captain wouldn’t take their words seriously and hadn’t thought much of it, but now that it was being shown publicly, it made them look so superficial.
In the entire text, the word “cool” stood out so much.
Would Captain Xiu… think they’re superficial? Is this some kind of public execution of their shallowness?
How embarrassing!
Shen Xiu looked at the team members and said seriously, “Eight styles, eight people, each with one vote. The vote will decide.”
As for him, the person who didn’t even know what style he liked, he’d skip participating.
After hearing Shen Xiu’s calm words and seeing his serious expression, the team members finally realized something.
Captain Xiu really plans to use their preferred styles to decide the basic style for the lyrics, music, and dance!
Everyone wanted to say something, but when they saw Shen Xiu’s cold, ice-like face, they lost the courage to express their excitement and joy.
Fearing that Shen Xiu might grow impatient, the team members suppressed their excitement and eagerly began speaking.
“Actually, I still want something super cool. Yuan Jiafei expressed it really well, I vote for him!”
“Cool enough to blow up the universe, I love it, I vote for Yuan Jiafei!”
“Cool is forever, I vote for Yuan Jiafei too!”
In the end, the voting ended with Yuan Jiafei getting seven votes.
Yuan Jiafei: “…”
Ah, ah, what are they even talking about? This group of people picked him just because of the word “cool”!
Damn it, the only one who’s embarrassed is him, and that achievement is all his!
[One word: cool, that’s all that matters, so genuine, haha]
[Who cares about the style, it’s all about being cool from start to finish!]
[Honestly, being cool without realizing it is the most stylish. If you try too hard, it just becomes cringey, please don’t make me lose faith!]
[This choice… seems a little strange, but I can’t quite figure out why.]
[Because it’s about the style, and they’re all thinking “cool,” so they picked “cool,” haha]
Looking at the option with the most votes, Shen Xiu fell silent.
Hmm… how should he put it? A group of people picked an option that seemed like it said everything, but actually said nothing at all.
When did “cool” become a style? Or is it just that he didn’t know?
Are they all serious? Shen Xiu’s gaze unconsciously turned toward the team members.
Seeing that Shen Xiu was looking at them, and knowing that he would base the second public performance’s music and style on their thoughts, the team members were excited, their eyes shining brightly.
Faced with the eager expressions of the team, Shen Xiu: “…”
Alright, they do seem genuinely serious, so serious that he’s beginning to question their mental state.
Whether it’s lyrics, music, or dance, the team members wanted one thing: “cool” from start to finish, but they also don’t want it to make the audience feel sick.
Can this… really be done?
Shen Xiu’s gaze fell on the other style options provided by the team, and he seemed to be deep in thought.
After a long moment, Shen Xiu suddenly seemed to have thought of something. His eyes, which had been lowered, lit up, and he leaned slightly forward. His fountain pen made several swift marks on the paper.
After finishing the marks, Shen Xiu paused, worried that what he was about to say might be too long, and he might end up stuttering.
To preserve his face and avoid social death in front of the live-stream audience and his team, Shen Xiu quickly flipped to a new page and started scribbling down what he was about to say.
[What did Xiu Xiu write? Let me see, let me see!]
[Damn it, the live stream in the practice room is still on, but the camera isn’t zoomed in, we can’t see anything!]
[Be satisfied, sisters. Be careful, the production team might suddenly cut off the stream.]
[Shh, don’t say that, don’t remind the production team (secretly).]
The team members were just as curious about what Shen Xiu was writing, but none of them dared to get too close.
They could only sneak peeks from a distance, but of course, none of them had the ability to see anything clearly. All they could do was admire Shen Xiu’s handwriting.
The black fountain pen moved quickly, drawing black characters on the paper.
The team members: How can someone’s handwriting exude such an unmistakable sharpness?!
Five minutes later, Shen Xiu stopped writing, straightened up, and slightly lowered his gaze to look at the words on the notebook.
Up until now, it wasn’t clear which teams would face off against each other on the second public performance stage, so Shen Xiu wrote out the situations of all eight teams.
Additionally, the reason why the team leader is the team leader is that, in times of disagreement, they have the final say.
Without knowing the preferences of the other team members, Shen Xiu could only analyze the preferences of the team leaders.
He hoped he could guess right. If he couldn’t, there was nothing to be done.
He had really tried his best!
From the brief training sessions, he had only learned this much from them!
Shen Xiu looked down at the words on the page and, with an emotionless voice, began reading aloud: “I’m going to explain the situation of the other seven teams to everyone.”
Yes, Shen Xiu had even written that opening line down on the paper.
“Xiang Yueting has excellent dance skills and can almost do any style. Choreography comes easily to him, and as the captain, he’ll likely focus on the expressiveness of the dance.”
“Song Chengwang pays attention to tone and atmosphere. The music and dance will probably serve the mood, emphasizing ambiance.”
“Shang Yu is detail-oriented with his costumes. On stage, he may surprise the audience with unexpected and striking makeup. His voice is deep and magnetic, so the song will likely be more lyrical.”
“Jiang Yanxi likes to draw small designs on his face to catch attention, and he enjoys slow, emotional songs. The choreography he creates won’t be too intense or complex, as the dance will complement the song.”
“Zhuang Yi likes mechanical dance movements, and the music will likely be simple.”
“Mu Zhenchu enjoys rap. This group will probably focus on rap.”
“Ning Sinian leans toward classical dance, so they may focus more on that aspect of the performance.”
After hearing these words, the team members were stunned.
To just calmly and precisely identify what aspects their competitors would likely focus on for their stage performance—this was Shen Xiu, no doubt about it. His observation and analysis skills were incredible!
To be honest, even after spending so much time together, they had never thought about paying attention to what others emphasized. For the powerhouse contenders, they just thought they were strong, without ever carefully observing what made them stand out.
Now, after Shen Xiu’s analysis, they suddenly realized.
The viewers in the live stream were equally stunned.
[I don’t know what to say except 66666.]
[As expected of my Xiu Xiu, so observant! I’ve never thought of these things while watching the live stream!]
[Is this the ‘know yourself, know your enemy, and you will never be defeated’ everyone talks about?]
[No wonder Shen Xiu is so calm no matter what happens—he must already know everything about the people around him. With that kind of knowledge, there’s no need to panic!]
Meanwhile, the other seven teams were also analyzing each group.
When it came to analyzing Shen Xiu’s team, everyone was at a loss because none of the other teams could figure out what Shen Xiu would focus on.
Because—
Shen Xiu was truly an all-around ACE!
In Shang Yu’s team.
A team member scratched their head: “Captain Shang, what do you think Shen Xiu would focus on? Ahhh, I can’t figure it out at all!”
Another team member suggested: “Captain Shang, how about you try to get some information from Shen Xiu tonight after you go back to the dorm? You know, casually fish for some hints?”
The rest of the team members agreed.
“That sounds like a good idea!”
Shang Yu smiled thinly, his tone skeptical: “You really think it’s that easy to get Shen Xiu to spill anything?”
Thinking about Shen Xiu’s silent and distant nature, coupled with his icy gaze, the team members shuddered.
Ah, this is terrifying! There’s no way they could get him to talk—absolutely impossible!
So—
“Know yourself, know your enemy, and you’ll never be defeated. Captain Shang, this difficult task is all on you!”
Shang Yu: “…”
Oh, so it’s all about sacrificing him for the good of the entire team, huh!
But… well, if he included the others, it wouldn’t be too bad either.
…
The live stream ended at 10 p.m., and Shen Xiu didn’t leave the practice room until 11 p.m.
He assumed that by this time, his roommates would all be asleep.
Before pushing open the dorm door, Shen Xiu took a quick glance at the bottom of the door. It was pitch black, not a single glimmer of light shining through.
This meant that the lights in the dorm had already been turned off, so, naturally, his roommates should be asleep.
Shen Xiu carefully opened the door, but before he could fully push it open, the door was suddenly pulled wide open from the inside.
Shen Xiu: “?”
In the instant the door was fully opened, the previously dark dorm room instantly became bright with the sound of a switch flipping.
Shen Xiu froze in place, his legs trembling with shock as he stared at the seven people standing at the door.
He wanted to ask: What happened to the basic trust between people?!
