Chapter 45.2: Preparation for the Second Performance (8)
With Xia Wenhao taking the lead, Shen Xiu’s team quickly caught on. They began firing off questions at other groups too.
Deep down, Shen Xiu’s team members knew very well how rocky their own training actually was — they were feeling super guilty.
But hey, didn’t they say “know yourself and know your enemy, and you’ll win every battle”? So, they questioned the others with even more enthusiasm.
The other teams hadn’t expected Shen Xiu’s group to be that aggressive in their questioning. Thinking about the messy state of their own training, they were all too scared of embarrassing themselves to say anything reckless.
After a few vague replies, everyone quickly dispersed.
To avoid accidentally spilling any team gossip during dinner, the trainees even silently agreed to sit scattered all over the cafeteria.
Ning Sinian’s Team:
“Phew, that was close. We almost exposed the fact that our practice looks like we’re performing an exorcism.”
“I used to think classical dance would be easy. I mean, it looks so graceful and effortless, right? Turns out making it look effortless is ridiculously hard!”
“Hurry up and eat — we need to squeeze in a few more practice rounds after this. At least we can try not to get totally annihilated.”
Song Chengwang’s Team:
“Shen Xiu’s team is definitely doing great.”
“Of course they are. With Shen Xiu as captain, how could they not be doing well?”
“Let’s do some extra practice. Hard work can make up for lack of talent.”
Shen Xiu’s Team:
Zhou Tong: “Sounds like the other teams are doing pretty well.”
Gao Yongshi: “…As much as I don’t want to admit it, it feels like we’re the worst team right now. We’re dragging Captain Xiu down.”
Ke Zi’an suggested, “Let’s squeeze in more practice after dinner.”
“But with Shen Xiu’s workaholic tendencies, he’s probably still at the practice room. Honestly, I’m kinda scared of him.”
Xia Wenhao chimed in, “Tsk, you clearly don’t know Shen Xiu well enough. When he’s doing extra practice by himself, he usually doesn’t stay in the rooms assigned by the program.”
“In that case, if he’s not there, we better hurry up, eat fast, and outwork the others!”
Fueled by desperation and pride, trainees from all the teams wolfed down their dinners and rushed back to their practice rooms, determined to protect their team’s reputation no matter what.
Meanwhile, viewers in the livestream chat were practically dying of laughter.
[Who would’ve thought? Everyone’s mouths are tighter than a vault — things are developing in such a bizarre way. No, actually, it’s more like everyone’s competing in the weirdest way possible.]
[Trainees right now: Sigh, for the sake of our team’s pride, we have no choice but to fight!]
[Meanwhile, deep inside: “Heh, bet you didn’t expect this — our team actually sucks! We totally fooled you!”]
[“Hehe, joke’s on you — we fooled you too!”]
[Honestly can’t wait for the day after the second public stage when all the trainees sit down to watch the behind-the-scenes training footage together — their faces are going to be priceless. Straight-up public shaming session~]
[Trainees after the second performance: “WHERE is the most basic trust between people?!!!”]
—
Inside Shen Xiu’s team practice room.
Zhou Tong clicked on the footage recorded earlier in the day. When he saw the timeline at the bottom of the video, with each member’s name carefully labeled next to their section, he froze in shock.
“So this is what he meant… I thought he was going to rename each video file with our names.”
Turns out, the names were marked right on the video’s timeline itself, making it super easy for each person to find and review their specific segments for focused practice.
Zhou Tong’s stunned expression quickly drew the others over. When they saw it for themselves, they shared identical looks of amazement.
They started clicking through the rest of the videos. Every single one from that afternoon’s practice had the same clear, organized labeling.
Plus, they quickly realized that the videos were even neatly named and numbered in chronological order — 1, 2, 3, 4 — according to the exact times they were recorded.
“Captain Xiu is working so seriously for us. If we don’t give it our all too, we’d be letting him down.”
“Let’s do it — practice! Right now!”
—
The Next Day.
Because they had been so fired up and motivated last night, everyone had trained too late — they didn’t finish until two in the morning. As a result, this morning, no one managed to come early like they used to. Almost everyone only stepped into the practice room right at nine o’clock.
When they entered the room and saw that Shen Xiu had still arrived earlier than them, the team members felt a pang of guilt.
Shen Xiu was standing in front of the multimedia station. Hearing the noise, he looked up at the clock on the wall.
Nine o’clock — the members had arrived on time.
Thinking about the idea he had mulled over for a long time last night, Shen Xiu felt somewhat guilty facing everyone now.
But — there was no helping it. For the sake of the stage performance, he had to say it.
‘I’m sorry, everyone — just bear with me for now!’
After silently apologizing to the trainees in his heart, Shen Xiu finally spoke the words he had thought over since the night before:
“Before we start today’s training, there’s something I want to say to everyone.”
When they came in earlier, Shen Xiu had already lifted his eyes and swept them coldly with his gaze — and now he was saying he had something to say?
‘We’re doomed. Shen Xiu must be angry!’
The team members immediately stiffened, sitting up straighter as tension seized them. Their voices were nervous and stammering:
“Captain Xiu, y-you go ahead!”
“Ahem, yeah, say it — we’re listening!”
Since the idea had first popped into his head last night, Shen Xiu had mentally prepared himself countless times.
He said, “If…”
Even though he had rehearsed the words over and over in his mind, the moment he actually tried to speak, he couldn’t help but stumble slightly.
The team members: “!”
That familiar pause again! Every time Shen Xiu had paused like this before, it meant he had been rendered speechless by their singing or dancing — and he’d always fix them with that cold stare while doing it.
It’s over — he’s definitely about to transform into the demon king again!
Shen Xiu’s Adam’s apple moved slightly as he nervously swallowed, forcing himself to calm down before continuing the words he hadn’t managed to finish.
“If… this were your last performance on this show, ask yourselves honestly — would you still perform the way you did during yesterday’s practice?”
After last night’s training, Shen Xiu had lain in bed, reflecting on why his teammates’ minds had been so restless.
The song lyrics and dance moves were undeniably cool, which gave everyone an illusion: that just by singing this song and performing this dance, they would look dazzling and amazing in the eyes of others.
Carrying that kind of mindset, it was impossible to truly settle down and focus.
When standing on stage, they were thinking more about themselves than about the music and the dance itself.
Naturally, they couldn’t capture that feeling of finding hope in utter stillness — that explosive, desperate, all-or-nothing intensity — and without that, there was no way to truly move an audience.
Practice was important, yes, but mindset was just as critical.
So today, Shen Xiu decided to change tactics. He would start by adjusting their mindset.
If breaking them down was what it took to rebuild them properly, then so be it.
He wanted to try using words to strike their hearts, to suppress the restless energy in them.
“I hope that from now on, in every practice,” Shen Xiu said, “you keep only one thought in your minds: ‘After finishing this last dance, this stage will have nothing more to do with me.’ Remember that.”
Everyone’s faces froze in shock.
Their minds went blank, a loud buzzing ringing in their ears.
In that moment, they completely forgot how they were supposed to sing, how they were supposed to dance.
They stared up at Shen Xiu in disbelief — at their captain — unable to form a single coherent thought.
Standing before them, their captain wore an expressionless face.
After delivering those heart-stopping words in a voice as cold and merciless as ice, he simply looked back at them without a hint of pity or guilt.
He was as cold and untouchable as a god — a being who could either save them or strike them down without a second thought, gazing indifferently at their desperate struggle.
So, in Captain Xiu’s eyes, their skills were so bad they didn’t even have a chance to make it to the third public performance!
Shen Xiu’s words were harsh.
To put it bluntly, they felt like a venomous curse.
The practice room fell into a suffocating, oppressive silence.
In that moment, everyone thought of Lin Jiashi.
When Lin Jiashi had been treated so ruthlessly by Shen Xiu, they never expected that today, they’d receive the same treatment themselves.
As expected, the strong couldn’t tolerate weakness.
Yesterday, Shen Xiu had patiently practiced with them, step by step, even drinking multiple glasses of iced water to suppress his anger, just to avoid blowing up at them.
Shen Xiu had been kind to them.
Clearly, they had failed to live up to his kindness. Their performance had been disappointing, and Shen Xiu was now utterly disappointed — to the point where he could no longer hold it in, and finally exploded.
When he exploded, he crushed them in an instant, leaving them utterly defeated and broken, their mental state shattered.
Looking at Shen Xiu’s clenched jaw and tight lips, everyone felt a sense of panic and confusion. Five minutes had passed since his words, and no one dared to speak.
At the multimedia station, Shen Xiu was so tense that his whole body was rigid, his eyes fixed on the clock behind the team members, counting the seconds as if each one was a year.
Five minutes had passed!
The team hadn’t said a word, and his words… had been too cruel, hadn’t they? They were all too stunned to respond.
Are they silently cursing me in their hearts?
‘I deserve it, but this was the only way I could think of!’
Guilt and unease spread through Shen Xiu’s heart.
Staring at the clock on the wall, thirty more seconds ticked by. Shen Xiu couldn’t take it any longer.
He spoke again, his voice quiet but firm: “Everyone… is there anything you want to say?”
It would be better for them to yell at him than to stay silent.
Hearing the familiar pause, the team members’ scalps went numb.
This was definitely a sign of Captain Xiu losing his patience, wasn’t it? If they didn’t speak up soon, would Captain Xiu switch back into demon mode and tear them apart with his sharp words from beginning to end?!
Having just experienced one blow, everyone silently agreed they didn’t want to go through it a second time. Though they still felt confused inside, they all rushed to speak up.
“Y-yeah… we understand…”
“We… we got it.”
“Captain Xiu, don’t worry, we know what we’re supposed to do now.”
Shen Xiu: “!”
The unexpected surprise made Shen Xiu raise an eyebrow.
Their ability to understand was amazing! They’d figured out his intentions so quickly. He was touched!
After they spoke, seeing the slight twitch in Shen Xiu’s brow, everyone’s heart started racing again.
It’s over, did they answer in a way that didn’t satisfy him?
Shen Xiu: “Since everyone understands what I said, then let’s begin today’s training.”
He hoped that from now on, they would approach every training session as if it were their last performance.
Hearing this, the tension in everyone’s hearts finally eased.
Phew… thankfully, Captain Xiu had become merciful again.
In the following training, the members of Shen Xiu’s team couldn’t help but remember his cold expression and his ruthless words.
“Last stage,” that phrase echoed like a nightmare, becoming etched into their minds alongside Shen Xiu.
During practice, they didn’t dare to let their minds wander again. Every movement carried a sense of caution and pressure, as if it were their final performance.
As the date of the second public performance drew nearer, the atmosphere within Shen Xiu’s team grew even more bizarre, with everyone feeling as if they were in a high-pressure environment…
For the next few days, training proceeded as usual.
During meal breaks and leisure time, the trainees from other teams couldn’t help but gossip about Shen Xiu’s group.
“Have you guys noticed? The members of Shen Xiu’s team have been acting kind of strange lately.”
“You just noticed? Yesterday when we ran into them in the cafeteria, they were all excited and cheerful, but today, after training, when we saw them in the cafeteria, they looked like wilted eggplants.”
“What’s going on with them? Should we send someone over to ask their table?”
