Chapter 48 Still Number One
The climax arrives with a brilliant long note from the trumpet.
The entire group sang together, "The other shore is at the other end of the starry sea, following the direction of the light / crossing the torrent of darkness..."
As the song was repeated, Ling Wei's voice suddenly rose up the moment she sang "the other shore is there," her singing clear and high-pitched, perfectly blending into the chorus of the crowd, and then gently falling back down in the second half of the phrase, forming a rich and layered harmony.
She tilted her head slightly, her neck taut with graceful lines. In that instant, the lighthouse beam swept horizontally across the front of the stage, the intense afterglow illuminating her profile.
As the light streaked across her eyes, her bright eyes were clearly visible, as if they held both the distant starlight and the lighthouse glow nearby.
The music slowly faded away, the last line receding like the tide, leaving a lingering aftertaste.
Only the real sea breeze remains, still howling.
One second.
Two seconds.
In the third second, deafening cheers and applause erupted, engulfing the entire coastline.
The ending pose is frozen in time.
Everyone maintained their final pose, slightly out of breath. Ling Wei, standing at the very front, glanced at the cheering audience below.
As her gaze swept across the audience area, she spotted the light board bearing her name. Then, amidst the deafening cheers, a slightly roguish smile played on her lips. She casually made a gun gesture with her right hand, her fingertips flicking upwards in that direction—
"Bang."
She made the gesture silently with her lips.
Qu Chen felt his heart suddenly clench, but the feeling was fleeting, leaving only the booming sound of his heartbeat ringing in his ears.
The result was as expected.
The competition remains a top-five round of 10 from each group, and Zoothys, with her performance of "Crossing the Sea by the Stars," once again secured first place with an overwhelming advantage.
Riding the wind, its momentum is unstoppable.
The live stream platform erupted in celebration the moment the results were announced, with a dense barrage of "Zoothys!!!" and "Well deserved" practically covering the entire screen.
Qu Chen's phone had been vibrating almost nonstop since the performance ended.
He took it out, and the screen was filled with a constant stream of WeChat group message notifications.
He clicked on the [Weifeng Guardian Team (Paradise for Face Value Lovers)] that he had pinned to the top.
The group chat has already been flooded with all sorts of photos and videos from the scene.
One after another, links to solo, unfiltered videos showcasing impressive individual performances appeared, albeit blurry.
Some incredibly fast fansite admins practically squatted down at the scene, using their knees as tables, and started sending unedited photos to the group chat.
Soon, a message with a distinctly organized tone popped up, from [Shouldering the Sky for Wei]:
These are a few unedited photos I picked; the angles are steady, her expressions are great, and Vivi's condition is amazing! [Images x9]
【Protecting Wei】: Feel free to take this, and spread it with the hashtag #zoothys循星渡海# to get it trending.
【Shouldering the burden for Wei】: The retouching team worked hard to produce the first batch of photos within half an hour.
A neat line of soldiers instantly followed:
"Roger that! Sister Tian is awesome!"
"Let's go pave the square!"
"This is true strength! Look at the pictures!"
Qu Chen clicked on the nine-square grid of life chart as if possessed.
Several images instantly zoomed in, taking up the entire screen.
One photo shows Ling Wei turning around abruptly after landing from a backflip; the sea breeze blows her hair past her lips, but her eyes are sharp as swords.
The other photo shows her slightly tilted profile as she sings, with the stage lights and the afterglow of the lighthouse casting a soft halo on her nose. A few special effects lights fall into her eyes, adding tiny bright spots to her clear eyes, as if they were truly filled with starlight.
The most amazing shot is that candid photo of the duet dance, with Ye Zhen wrapping her arms around her from behind, and Ling Wei tilting her head back. The angle between her jawline and Ye Zhen's profile is extremely beautiful, and the tension between the two almost bursts out of the frame.
In the corners of the picture, you can still see the blurry glow sticks waving below the stage, and the dark blue sea in the distance.
Qu Chen paused on the screen for a moment, and then, as if possessed, pressed the save button for the profile picture of her singing with her head tilted back.
Almost the instant he finished the action, he suddenly realized what he was doing.
Before he could figure out where this inexplicable guilt came from, a head came close.
Grandma Yu squinted at his phone screen and praised with a smile, "Hey, this photo is really good. It makes my little girl look so energetic."
Qu Chen froze, instinctively turning off the screen. Had someone seen him save the picture?
Grandma Yu didn't seem to care at all: "Come on, Xiao Qu, add Grandma as a friend. Grandma likes this photo, send me a copy."
He added her on WeChat as instructed, silently reminding himself: This is what Grandma wanted, not something he wanted to save himself.
Thinking this way, I confidently saved those raw photos one by one and forwarded them to Grandma Yu.
After posting, I pretended nothing had happened and put my phone away, letting the photos lie quietly in the album, as if that could cover up a certain fact.
When the event ended, the family members had the privilege of using a special passage to see the contestants. Grandma Yu warmly invited him to come along, but Qu Chen shook his head and said, "No, thank you."
Grandma Yu laughed heartily, didn't insist, and led her old friends to the backstage in a grand procession.
After saying goodbye, Qu Chen wandered aimlessly out with the crowd.
What are we doing backstage?
Are we supposed to listen to that person's infuriatingly sarcastic remarks?
He could almost picture the whole scene: she would raise an eyebrow, her overly bright eyes scrutinize him from head to toe, and then curl one corner of her mouth in a sarcastic tone: "Tsk tsk, you even followed me backstage? If you want to be my fan, just say so."
Or, to go even further, she would sneak up on him when no one was around and let him continue eating.
Qu Chen was lost in thought when a familiar voice suddenly broke in.
Hey! You're here!
He turned his head and saw Li Jinzhao waving excitedly at him. Without saying a word, she squeezed over and grabbed his arm, "Come on, come on, Young Master Qu, my little sister is awesome, she got the best spot!"
The show's over, what good seats are left?
Qu Chen was half-pushed and half-pulled by him to a passageway separated by temporary railings.
The passageway was narrow, and many fans were already waiting there, eagerly anticipating what was to come.
Li Jinzhao pointed excitedly ahead, his tone confident: "Let me tell you, the contestants will be walking this way to catch the bus. If we're positioned at the very front, the chances of interaction are very high! If we're lucky, we might even get a high five!"
Even though he only participated once, this person acted like a long-time fan.
Qu Chen frowned slightly, instinctively wanting to refuse, but the surging crowd behind him gave him no chance, pushing him involuntarily to the very front of the railing, where a wall of people stood behind him.
Now, they can't leave even if they want to.
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