Chapter 126 2/2

Facing this unimaginable vote count, the contestants on stage could hardly control their own volume.

And Jin Yuan, the person in question, felt his mind go blank, feeling a blur before his eyes.

Two billion… two billion…

This was more than the entire population of the P country combined.

Even the shocked audience members from before, witnessing Jin Yuan’s vote count, realized that it was just a fraction of the online votes.

He had actually received so many votes.

Jin Yuan had undergone rigorous training and was usually adept at managing his expressions. However, in the face of such a colossal two billion votes, he completely forgot about the concept of expression management.

This contestant, who seemed to be shining all over, almost instantly developed a red circle around his eyes, unable to determine if it was due to excitement, joy, or fear.

He was so afraid that all of this might be an auditory hallucination.

“What, what is it? Could you please say it again?” Jin Yuan asked.

“Two hundred and forty-six million!” Baixing, understanding the excitement of this P-country contestant, announced again.

This number directly indicated that two hundred million people liked and supported Jin Yuan.

Such data, compared to the previous fan numbers of idols, was enough to propel him directly to the throne of idoldom.

Of course, it seems impossible now.

Because Jin Yuan wasn’t the champion.

“Next, Wu Xiangwang.”

Still dazed by Jin Yuan’s two billion votes, Wu Xiangwang stepped onto the stage with a still-astonished expression. Before he could compose himself, An Baixing dropped a bomb on him.

“Wu Xiangwang, your live audience vote count is one hundred and fifty-three million.”

“Your total online votes are two hundred and fifty-nine million.”

Wu Xiangwang: “…”

“How much did I get?”

This eloquent and talented Chinese contestant, Wu Xiangwang, was actually shocked into stuttering.

Baixing patiently repeated the numbers.

In the sky, two huge vote counters were also reminding Wu Xiangwang of the glory he had received.

Soon, the previously dumbfounded Jin Yuan had a similarly dazed companion in Wu Xiangwang.

The contestants on stage had completely forgotten that they were live.

They whispered to each other in shock and exchanged expressions.

“It seems like they are the first and second.”

“Who is the third?”

“Two billion votes! Amazing!”

“But Wu Xiangwang indeed has better expressiveness than Jin Yuan.”

“Is the third Tu Zhu?”

“But I think Tu Zhu’s performance is also excellent.”

“Maybe he is the first; the order was clearly called from low to high.”

After someone said this, others quickly disagreed, “How could it be? This total vote count is already five billion. Didn’t they say that each person can only vote twice, once for a male contestant and once for a female contestant?”

“Five billion votes have already been cast, and there probably aren’t many left.”

Other contestants thought about it and also became excited: “Our show unexpectedly has an audience of five billion! I’ve never heard of any talent show with so many viewers!”

Tu Zhu’s roommate, Jing Tian, tall with wheat-colored skin, patted him on the shoulder.

On the stage, An Baixing called out Tu Zhu’s name next.

“Tu Zhu, please come forward.”

Taking a deep breath and encouraged by the gaze of his friends, Tu Zhu walked confidently to the front.

An Baixing asked him, “Have you ever thought about how many votes you might get?”

Tu Zhu remained silent for a second and gently shook his head.

He hadn’t thought about it.

He didn’t dare to think about it.

Expectations led to disappointment.

Having learned this lesson, this 18-year-old teenager didn’t dare to have any expectations.

“Well, let me announce it. Tu Zhu, your live audience vote count is: thirty-seven million!”

“Your online votes…”

“Six hundred and thirty-four million!”

“Congratulations, Tu Zhu, on winning the championship!”

Tu Zhu: “!!!”

Contestants: “!!!!”

After a few seconds of silence, the contestants on stage erupted into huge cheers.

“Ah, ah, ah! Incredible!”

“Six billion votes!!! My goodness!”

“I, wait, can I not swear? Can we censor the live broadcast?”

“God! One person received six billion votes! This is six billion! My goodness!”

Cheers, excitement, discussions—all eyes were on Tu Zhu.

A spotlight shone on Tu Zhu.

He looked up, and there seemed to be stars twinkling in his eyes.

The barrage during the live broadcast had gone completely wild, entirely covered by comments like, “Ah ah ah, so good, so good-looking!”

“The light is indeed dazzling, but I guess his tears shouldn’t be caused by the spotlight.”

Shengquan made this comment.

Jin Jiu smiled and looked sideways; when he was on stage, he appeared as a mature mentor, but in front of Shengquan, he seemed like the slightly shy young man he used to be.

“You were even more dazzling back then.”

Shengquan looked at Tu Zhu on stage, who was shining brightly, and couldn’t imagine how she could have been more dazzling than such a perfect person.

So, she concluded that it was Jin Jiu’s boss filter at work.

The big stars of Starlight had always had filters for Shengquan.

Next was a frenzy of vote announcements.

The girl group that lost in rock-paper-scissors began announcing their votes.

Lan He, with seven hundred and thirty million votes, firmly held the championship position.

Qingtian and PD took second and third, respectively.

Even the contestant with the lowest votes now had a substantial number.

They didn’t feel disappointed about being at the bottom because, essentially, everyone was in a state of joy.

Because these votes could be transformed into real, living fans!

While these vote counts were at the bottom in “Crossing the Star Sea,” they would easily secure the top three positions in a medium-sized talent show!

The contestants have a good understanding of their own skill levels. Those who are relatively weaker knew from the start that they couldn’t compete with the other outstanding contestants, so many of them focused on psychological preparation.

However, what they didn’t expect was that, despite being less skilled, they would still receive so many votes! Everyone, in their ecstatic joy, calculated frantically and was shocked to discover that the total votes for this round exceeded a staggering 2.4 billion!

It was calculated based on the assumption that each viewer could give one vote to a male and one to a female contestant.

12 billion!! Over 12 billion people watched the show!

Is all of this real?

As the audience watching the live broadcast heard the contestants expressing such doubts, a barrage of “233333” comments erupted.

[Of course, it’s real.] [I can testify; I’m alive.]

Haha, I’ve never seen contestants questioning the votes. Are they even real people? ]

[Hahaha, I can download and watch this scene several times.]

[One more alive person here!] My vote was carefully selected! ]

The barrage was filled with memes and jokes, leaving those who had not participated in the show regretting their decisions.

But what could they say at this moment?

They could only console themselves: “The number of votes doesn’t necessarily mean anything. Many people voted just for fun, and it may not necessarily translate into becoming fans of the contestants.”

Yes, thinking about it this way eased the pain of those who hadn’t participated in the show.

“People who debut through talent shows tend to have inflated fan counts, which may not be sustainable. Even those who pass through the Star Sea program can’t avoid this problem.”

Just as the person who made the above statement finished speaking, An BaiXing unexpectedly said in the live broadcast:

“Everyone has worked hard and achieved success. Of course, we should celebrate and reward you. Our CEO has specially set aside some rewards from the company, and the top ten contestants can all receive these rewards.”

The fourth-place contestants, who originally thought they had no chance, perked up with surprise.

BaiXing directly announced, “The top ten contestants will be guests on the next episode of ‘Entertainment Flight.'”

The contestants couldn’t believe it.

“Entertainment Flight! That’s the hottest variety show right now!”

“Ah, ah, ah! The guest positions on Entertainment Flight are highly competitive!”

“Top five contestants, each of you will have an opportunity for an endorsement deal with a brand. The brands are Rain Grace, Gio…”

All were big brands, endorsements that the contestants hadn’t dared to dream of before. The contestants naturally stirred with excitement.

“The top three contestants will be invited to cameo as an idol group in several upcoming movies such as ‘Night of Revelry,’ ‘Starlit Sea,’ ‘My Mother,’ and more.”

The contestants exclaimed, “!!!!”

If the first two rewards already made people envious and unable to stop marveling, the last one was heavyweight.

Why are idols pushed by companies to act in movies? Because acting in movies maximizes exposure! However, idols usually have mediocre acting skills, leading to criticism while filming.

But! The reward for the top three contestants from the Star Sea program was a direct cameo on stage in movies!

This not only allowed them to showcase their expertise to the audience, but also significantly increased their popularity in real life.

It would also attract some idol fans to support them offline after watching their movie performances. After all, these dozen or so movies already had big stars confirmed in leading roles! Could the audience numbers be low?

What made Star Sea exceptional was that the rewards given to the contestants were not just simple prizes. Each reward equated to providing the contestants with a better opportunity, a chance that, if seized, would undoubtedly pave the way for their future in the entertainment industry.

Instantly, the remaining contestants were ignited with determination. While envious, they also secretly decided to work even harder.

Of course, their ability to think this way was also thanks to the eloquence of An BaiXing, who didn’t forget to add:

“Oh, by the way, before coming on stage, our CEO secretly told me something.”

The camera and lights immediately focused on Sheng Quan. She smiled, waved, and greeted

An BaiXing continued:

“In the next holographic stage, a month later, half of the contestants will be eliminated again.”

“And the remaining half will have the opportunity to perform on an open reality holographic projection stage. At that time, this stage will be open to a live audience.”

“The tentative audience size is 10 million.”

—Bang!

The director of the ongoing talent show, who had been sitting and watching the live broadcast, fell off his chair.

“10 million?!!!”

“What is she joking about?! Do you know how many people 10 million is?! Even the biggest concerts usually accommodate only a few thousand or tens of thousands. 10 million spectators?! How can they watch the stage? Moreover, is there even a venue for that?”

After a chaotic outburst, the unfortunate director, who had collided with the godly program, got up with the help of friends.

“But think about it, that’s Sheng Quan. Maybe she can really find a venue that can accommodate 10 million people.”

Not entirely sure, he said to his friend, but still in disbelief:

“But that’s 10 million people!”

“Even if there are so many people, where is she going to put them?! Nationally! No! Globally, there’s no concert venue that can accommodate that many people!”

The friend remained silent throughout and only quietly took out his phone.

—a very competent bystander indeed.

After the program director steadied himself, the friend handed over the phone: “I think I might know where she plans to accommodate 10 million people.”

Program Director: “?”

He took the phone with half-belief, glanced at it, and almost dropped it again.

#ShengQuanPurchasesWorldsLargestPrivateIsland#