Chapter 126 1/2

Although they had already been on the holographic stage, the contestants in “Crossing the Star Sea” were still in a closed state.

There are no phones, no internet, and no one to inform them about the outside world.

It was a situation of total isolation.

They went on stage in such a state of ignorance.

Next, they returned to the production team in the same state of ignorance.

Even after coming down from the stage, when they saw the packed audience seats and even cases where three audience members squeezed into one seat, they were still extremely excited.

“Is our show exceptionally popular outside? How can there be so many viewers? I saw so many people, and I was so scared that my breath almost stopped!”

“Holographic stage! If I were an audience member, I would definitely come to watch!”

“I wonder how many new fans I’ve gained on my Weibo. Ahhh, I saw my Star Card; it’s so shiny!”

The contestants returned to their daily training routines, so when the cameras weren’t focused on them, they gathered together to discuss their excitement in hushed voices.

“Shouldn’t the first episode be broadcast by now?”

“I think the first episode has already aired. My parents must be sitting in front of the TV!”

“My parents too. They might even invite all our relatives over.”

As they chatted, they couldn’t help but bring up the issue of the “network voting terminology not being finalized.”

“Why is it taking so long?”

“Yeah, normally, shouldn’t it be quick to vote online? Isn’t network voting just a matter of tapping on the phone?”

“Ahhh, the network voting hasn’t ended yet, and the audience seat voting hasn’t been announced. I’m so nervous.”

“I think on our side, the championship should be between Tu Zhu and Jin Yuan.”

“I agree. When they were dancing on stage, I was watching from below, and my eyes were about to pop out. How can they be so amazing?”

These young contestants gathered together to envy the talents of Tu Zhu and others in their batch for a while. The topic then shifted to the announcement of the vote counts.

“Is the production team intentionally leaving it suspenseful? It’s that kind of deliberate withholding of information to attract viewers to keep watching.”

“I think so. Isn’t it common for them to do this? Viewers want to see rankings, so they will keep tuning in, but the wait is too long.”

While they were criticizing the production team for deliberately delaying the announcement of the vote counts to create suspense, they didn’t realize that their every word and action had been transmitted clearly to the live broadcast.

The viewers who sympathized with the contestants gathered in the live chat, nearly laughing to death.

“Hahaha, they even sympathize with the audience for not being able to see the vote counts!”

“Laughing so hard, the production team is really mean. They didn’t tell the contestants that the real-time vote counts have been open to the public online as long as there is an internet connection.”

“So, in the whole world, only the contestants themselves don’t know their vote counts? Hahaha.”

“Laughing so hard. Last night, I saw Jing Tian Gao guessing his vote count. The way he clenched his teeth, stomped his foot, and tried to guess higher, in the end, he guessed three thousand. Even if it’s the votes from the live audience, he already has several million votes, hahaha.”

“I really want to know what expressions the contestants will have when they find out the real-time votes have exceeded 2.4 billion.”

“The production team is definitely doing it on purpose. During the live broadcast, the camera always focuses on those contestants who are guessing the vote counts. It’s so evil, hahaha.”

While they were talking about the production team’s intentionally dragging out the announcement of the vote counts, they were unaware of how entertaining their words were for the viewers.

Indeed, as the contestants speculated, a large number of viewers were eagerly anticipating the announcement of the vote counts.

However, what they were looking forward to the most was seeing the contestants’ reactions when they found out their real vote counts—a moment of disbelief and astonishment!

“I bet someone will be dumbfounded.”

“I bet five cents! Someone will fall off their chair!”

“I bet a pack of spicy sticks. After Jin Yuan hears his vote count, his first reaction will be disbelief!”

Netizens were making various bets, all centered around the excitement of watching the show.

In such an eagerly anticipated situation, the production team was finally about to announce the vote counts.

Naturally, it was done through a live broadcast.

The mentors took turns going on stage. This time it was An Baixing’s turn.

He was always lively, even after becoming a mentor. When he stepped on stage, he intentionally went around in circles.

“Normally, other production teams report the lowest vote count first. But for Crossing the Star Sea, we like to play a bit differently.”

“So, we will directly announce the team with the highest vote count.”

The contestants below were visibly nervous, as An Baixing didn’t follow the usual pattern. He deliberately shook the list in his hand and said, “Of course, whether I will announce the champion for this team first or not, you still need to guess.”

Shengquan sat in the guest seat, smiling and shaking her head. “Maybe he should report something like variety show rankings; he naturally knows how to play with program effects.”

Jin Jiu also smiled. “Ever since he knew he would be a mentor, he has been looking forward to this program.”

Yan Hui, looking a bit tired, yawned subtly with his hand covering his face, “More than looking forward. He ran to my room last night to practice speaking on stage. He tossed around until one or two in the morning before going to bed. I haven’t stayed up this late in a long time. Tonight, he must treat us to dinner.”

 Shengquan immediately turned and echoed, “Great idea! After it’s over, let’s go eat together, and let An Baixing treat us to a good meal.”

Xu Man appreciated An Baixing’s lively presence on stage, saying, “I need a lively singer for my next project; I’ll recruit him then.”

She then turned to Jiang Zhen and added, “And you, Teacher Jiang Zhen, you must come to support us.”

As the project itself belonged to Starlight, Jiang Zhen naturally agreed.

The mentors and guests above were enjoying themselves, even starting to fantasize about what to eat that night and whether to have some drinks.

However, the contestants on the stage were nervous to the point where they hardly dared to breathe, as An Baixing intentionally opened his mouth, then closed it, and opened it again.

It could be said that he had perfected the art of announcing vote counts and learned from various other talent shows.

Finally, seeing everyone’s suspense reaching its peak and the cameras capturing the nervous expressions of the contestants, An Baixing waved his hand:

“First, Jin Yuan!”

On the stage, Jin Yuan from the P country had been diligently learning the Huaxia language since joining the show, and his proficiency had improved by leaps and bounds.

Hearing his name, despite being a well-known idol in his own country, Jin Yuan couldn’t help but feel a sudden tremor in his heart.

He, unexpectedly, was on the team with the highest vote count—

If it were before coming to Huaxia, Jin Yuan would undoubtedly have been confident in winning the championship. However, upon arriving at the production team and seeing so many outstanding contestants with no apparent flaws, he felt a bit weak.

Especially Tu Zhu.

Although some contestants felt that he and Tu Zhu were evenly matched in the male group, Jin Yuan could see that Tu Zhu’s stage abilities were superior to his own.

The reason Jin Yuan had worked so hard to participate in “Crossing the Star Sea” was that he had identified a bottleneck in his career.

Although idols in the P country tended to have longer-lasting careers than those in other countries, they still depended on singing and dancing to make a living. As they got older, they would naturally be replaced by younger talents.

Jin Yuan didn’t want that fate. He wanted to progress and continue moving forward.

So he worked hard to secure a spot on this show. Only if he succeeded could he qualify to continue his journey. But if he failed, he would have to return home with a significant reduction in resources from his company.

Jin Yuan nervously walked forward at An Baixing’s call. As he passed by other contestants, these newly acquainted friends encouraged him one after another:

“Good luck.”

“You must have a high vote count.”

“Go for it!”

Jin Yuan approached Tu Zhu, and he couldn’t help but glance at him.

Tu Zhu was truly dazzling. Since coming to the show, he has seemed like a gradually polished pearl, becoming more radiant day by day.

Although the two hadn’t communicated much, at this moment, Jin Yuan couldn’t help but hope for Tu Zhu’s support.

Fortunately, this opponent he admired also showed a small smile and said, “Good luck!”

Jin Yuan instantly felt relieved, nodding heavily and saying, “Thank you!”

He stepped onto the stage, took a deep breath, and luckily, this time, An Baixing understood his feelings and didn’t continue to play around.

He only asked one question:

“Contestant Jin Yuan, you once won a championship in a talent show held in the P country and debuted in the C position. Do you remember how many votes you received at that time?”

Jin Yuan held his breath and answered, “Eight million votes.”

These eight million votes were the peak of his life. In the P country, they represented the support of eight million people, a crucial factor that allowed him to become a top idol in the P country.

Why did An Laoshi ask this?

The contestants’ information was public, so he couldn’t be unaware of Jin Yuan’s record of receiving eight million votes.

An Laoshi asking in this way probably meant that this time, Jin Yuan had received more votes than eight million.

“Alright, now I will announce, Jin Yuan, the votes you received from the live audience at the scene.”

With a wave of An Baixing’s hand, a giant vote counter appeared in mid-air, rapidly increasing at a flying pace.

Finally, it stopped at a number.

Holding a microphone, An Baixing’s voice was powerful.

“One hundred and thirty-six million!”

Jin Yuan:

He widened his eyes in disbelief.

Live audience votes?

One hundred and thirty-six million?

This was the live audience vote!

It even surpassed his previous record of online votes.

“Before celebrating, hold on a moment.”

With another wave of An Baixing’s hand, another massive vote counter appeared on the right side: “Up to this moment, Jin Yuan, your global online votes are!”

The newly appearing counter started moving even faster this time. In just over ten seconds, it froze at a number.

Jin Yuan almost looked dazedly at the series of numbers, and his mind went blank.

Beside him, An Baixing had already announced:

“Two hundred and forty-six million! Congratulations, Jin Yuan!”

—Roar!!!

The entire venue erupted into a huge exclamation.

“Two hundred million?”

“A billion???!!!”

“Two billion?!!! My goodness!”

“So many votes?”