Dad, Please Let Me Support Just One!

Chu Wangshu had been deeply moved at first, but the longer she listened, the more it felt like she was back in class. She unconsciously straightened her back, adopted a proper attitude, and nodded obediently along from time to time, her head beginning to spin.

Boohoohoo, Qingqing, I'm so touched, but please stop talking!

The live broadcast room mercilessly mocked her for it:

"LMAO, ten million people listening to her serve chicken soup."

"Don't say it, seriously, don't say it—the chicken soup is authentic. I'm already moved."

"This is killing me. They didn't know each other before, right? Why do they seem so close?"

"Hahahaha, that move where she entered the competition together with her and sat beside her all the way to the second-to-last row really isn't something ordinary friends would do."

"They're both adorable, but it's kind of boring when we can only watch their camera feed."

"There's Nothing to Be Done. It can only be said that the officials understand variety-show appeal. Once the live broadcast room could only see the Competition Venue, whatever choices the trainees outside made became completely unknown."

"Damn it, this is stressing me out. The trainee girl I like hadn't left earlier either. I don't know if she'll compete."

After Chu Yuanqing chose to compete, the Program Group in Sea Capital proactively shut down the Remaining channels, turning the other trainees' choices into an unknown.

That tormented the Fans of some highly popular contestants. If they were not extremely confident in the abilities of the idol they supported, who would want them to join such a crazy show?

What if they were eliminated? They would never be able to become an idol for the rest of their life.

The Elimination Mechanism was far too severe. It was so severe that any fan who cared even a little about their idol would camp in the Live Broadcast Room to learn the result as soon as possible, watching to see whether the person they supported stepped into the trap.

Time slowly passed, and the giant screen onstage suddenly Lit up.

"It's here! The classic segment!"

"What company logo will it be?"

"I'm not asking for much—just don't let it be Yunlan Entertainment! Most of the trainees I support are from that company!"

Yet contrary to expectations, after the Dream Weaver Rabbit logo Lit up on the screen, it jumped straight to the Countdown. As it ticked down from three to two to one, an energetic BGM began to play.

The girl walked through the passageway and into the vast venue. Her features were sweet, with an innocent air of being untouched by the world. Her pure white dress further emphasized that quality, making her look pure and lovely.

She was the Little Idol who had interacted with Chu Yuanqing earlier.

Kiriwake Yayoi had excellent expression control. Even knowing she was being livestreamed, she could suppress her nerves and display a perfect, sincere smile.

This would be her final chance.

If she Could not successfully debut through Shining Stage, the stage would draw a clear dividing line across her life.

Therefore, the Program Group's Elimination Mechanism had not made her hesitate for long. The reason she had only entered now was simply because she had taken some time to reply to fan messages and contact her family and friends.

At that moment, the Bullet Comments were chaotic and noisy.

The trainee who had Walked out of the entrance was pretty, certainly, but utterly unfamiliar. Yet if she were an amateur, she showed no nerves before the camera at all. Her expression and bearing were natural, making her seem remarkably poised.

Chu Yuanqing Looked Towards that familiar face and blinked. Just as she was about to say something, her daughter seized the topic.

She introduced her.

"Kiriwake Yayoi. I know her."

"Is she famous?"

Chu Wangshu thought about it and said,

"Don't know. Probably not?"

"Back when I was in the Waiting Room, I heard other contestants talking about her. It seems she's been an idol over on the Island Nation for quite a few years, but nothing ever really took off. She probably came this time hoping to use the popularity of this project to make a comeback and debut."

After hearing the conversation between the two, the Live Broadcast Room launched into analysis.

"When this contestant entered, no company logo appeared on the screen, which means she's an independent trainee. She most likely terminated her contract with her previous company."

"I can't say for sure. That situation's a little complicated. Isn't there a Shining Stage sub-project in Tokyo, Island Nation? Why didn't she compete in her own country? Why travel all the way here to compete?"

"LMAO, maybe she thinks Chinese Entertainment Industry artists are easier to compete against."

"Maybe she has a bad reputation in the Island Nation's Entertainment Industry?"

"Not very clear. I follow the Island Nation idol scene too, and I genuinely don't remember her. Her looks are definitely strong enough, though. If she's fallen this low, it can probably only mean her professional skills aren't good enough."

The viewers from Great Xia Nation clearly did not have a particularly favorable opinion of Kiriwake Yayoi.

Although Shining Stage was a global project, ordinary viewers would not want a contestant from another country to win a project show held on their home turf.

Not to mention that the absurdity of this show's Elimination Mechanism had already made certain contestants' Fans so sensitive that they saw danger everywhere.

Kiriwake Yayoi being unpopular was almost an inevitable outcome.

Chu Yuanqing watched that fool who had fallen like a penguin in the rain. She recalled the girl waiting in the downpour, as well as the scene of her bowing so earnestly to her, and her thoughts began to wander.

Idols seemed like a profession with an enormous gap between its floor and ceiling.

Using her own impressions as an analogy, the lowest-tier idols were obscure, neglected heroes, while the most exceptional were Saviors who single-handedly protected the spark of humanity.

Well, that said, by the time she became a Savior, there had not been many humans left alive. She had never received many flowers or applause, nor much love or support.

Thinking about it that way, maybe being an idol was actually pretty great?

Young Lady and the Genius Choreographer.

Competition Venue.

As Kiriwake Yayoi walked toward the contestants' seats, her gaze first locked onto the Center position at the very top. After finding it empty, as well as the high-ranking seats around it and on the level below, she continued looking downward in confusion.

Huh? Why is there still no one?

Kiriwake Yayoi refused to believe it. She dutifully swept her gaze from high to low in order, until her eyes finally landed on the darkest, most remote corner, where she saw the leader who had entered first.

The girl froze. Her pupils shook as she exchanged a distant look with Chu Yuanqing, seated in Seat 101. For a moment, neither of them spoke.

To Be Honest,

when Kiriwake Yayoi had seen Chu Yuanqing enter the competition so quickly, she had assumed that she was aiming for the Center position. She had even been moved by that unwavering determination and secretly felt ashamed that she herself had wavered.

But now...

Mm~ Chu Yuanqing must have her own reasons for doing this!

This was most likely some unique tactic suited to Great Xia Nation's conditions!

Kiriwake Yayoi tried hard to convince herself. She then revealed a friendly smile, nodded at Chu Yuanqing in greeting, and politely introduced herself in Great Xia Language. After bowing again in thanks, she headed up the stairs and, without the slightest hesitation, went straight to Seat 7 and calmly sat down.

For a moment, the Live Broadcast Room erupted in an uproar.

"What? She just sat herself in the high-ranking seats?"

"Seriously, can't she learn from the two girls before her? Even if she doesn't hang around in the low-ranking seats, she could at least be modest and go to the middle-ranking seats."

"LMAO, does she really think that after being a bottom-tier idol in the Island Nation for a few years, she can come to the Chinese Entertainment Industry and sweep everyone?"

"There's no need to be this hostile, right? Maybe she really has the skills. The stage performance later will prove everything."

Because there were still few people in the Competition Venue, many viewers with established fan loyalties did not rush to stir things up.

The Bullet Comments questioning Kiriwake Yayoi's ability mostly disappeared after more trainees began entering, shifting instead to discussions about the new contestants.

As time passed, more than thirty trainees gradually appeared in the venue.

Almost all of these contestants had information available online. They were either promising Entertainment Industry newcomers with considerable popularity and released works, or outstanding trainees who had undergone years of professional training at companies. Their skills were exceptionally solid.

Among them, the most eye-catching was Chen Yining, the tenth contestant to enter.

This Young Lady of Yunlan Entertainment possessed a strikingly beautiful face, the classic bold-featured type.

The girl's makeup was exquisite and her skin fair. Even her carefully styled hair was a captivating raspberry red. She wore a dress matching the overall color scheme, its cut emphasizing her excellent proportions and graceful figure. She was alluring and bewitching without seeming ingratiating.

It can be said that this was an exceptionally aggressive, powerful kind of beauty. In particular, her swanlike pride and self-possession were like the finishing touch, blending into a unique charm that belonged to her alone.

"Damn, the moment Chen Yining came in, all the girls around her seemed dim by comparison."

"That's just how bold-featured beauties are. The key is that hair color—it has such a strong idol vibe. It practically comes with its own halo effect."

"Raspberry red is the GOAT!"

"Even though she's a complete rookie, that background alone maxes out the hype."

"True. Never mind the artists incubated by Yunlan Entertainment itself; just the huge number of influencers incubated by its subsidiaries could easily promote her enough to crush a whole bunch of ordinary contestants."

Chen Yining entered alongside three trainees from Yunlan Entertainment, but she apparently had no intention of sitting with her teammates. She watched the three say goodbye and choose their seats while she remained standing where she was.

Soon, as a company logo flashed across the giant screen, a striking trainee walked calmly into the Competition Venue.

The girl wore a thin velvet top beneath a KENZO jacket. Her visual silhouette was full, yet at a glance she looked both slender and delicate, with exceptionally beautiful lines. Her long legs in particular had especially eye-catching proportions.

Her face was beautiful, and her brows and eyes carried a detached expression. She looked unsmiling, a cool and aloof beauty.

This coolness was different from Chu Wangshu's.

Chu Wangshu was the type who easily broke character and created a huge contrast, which only made people find her adorable.

This girl, on the other hand, had the kind of air that kept people a thousand miles away. Her features could be categorized as world-weary, and because she had single eyelids, cool-toned fair skin, and very pink lips, when she smiled, she had a sweet, cool charm that was easier for women to appreciate.

Her appearance prompted a wave of discussion among the surrounding trainees.

"That's Ji Shuzhu, the well-known Genius Choreographer in the industry."

"She's a big shot, right? I heard she has uploaded dozens of original choreography videos to her personal Youtube channel, and some have even reached tens of millions of views."

"I remember her. When she was fourteen, she competed in a dance variety show and won the championship without any suspense."

"But wasn't she preparing to join a famous synchronized dance troupe in the Sacred United Nation recently? Why is she competing in Shining Stage?"

The trainees still needed to restrain themselves and maintain their image, but the viewers in the Live Broadcast Room did not care at all. They were furiously hammering their keyboards and sending Bullet Comments.

"Holy shit, although the media said Ji Shuzhu was coming, her social media accounts never updated, so I always thought it was bullshit."

"I saw her earlier when the Live Broadcast Room still had split feeds, but I didn't expect her to choose to participate after hearing those rules!"

"Ji Shuzhu joining a Talent Show is absolutely grabbing onto a golden thigh. Anyone who teams up with her will hit the jackpot."

"Seriously. If not for her lack of seniority, based on her choreography skills alone, she would be more than qualified to be a choreography mentor on a normal Talent Show."

"Here's some tea: Chen Yining and Ji Shuzhu have known each other since childhood, and they attended the same middle and high schools. Chen Yining joining this competition has something to do with this Young Lady, and there's an extremely high chance these two will team up later."

"Damn, wouldn't they be unstoppable together?"

And just then, when the viewers were wondering whether this was fake news,

Ji Shuzhu Swept Over the surroundings, spotted a certain Young Lady, and walked directly to her side. In a soft voice, she asked,

"Where do you want to sit?"

Chen Yining revealed a familiar smile, then replied confidently,

"This show still hasn't revealed how many Debut Spots there are, so naturally, the higher we sit, the better."

As her words fell,

Chen Yining's gaze Swept Over the high-ranking seats. When she did not find Chu Yuanqing there, she raised her brows in surprise. She continued examining the seats below until she discovered a contestant who appeared to be dozing in the darkest corner.

—Seat 101.

Is she deliberately creating a show effect? What a boring tactic.

The girl frowned in disappointment. She preferred an upright, straightforward victory and had no interest in opponents who chose to evade through roundabout means. She stopped thinking about it and slowly climbed the stairs, taking Seat 2.

Ji Shuzhu sat beside her in Seat 3. The two each occupied one of the high-ranking seats, causing an uproar.

Talent Shows had always been dominated by Fans who admired strength. Once the golden duo of Chen Yining and Ji Shuzhu appeared, Chu Yuanqing and her daughter, who were idling around, lost their sense of presence.

The Live Broadcast Room busily began shipping the two of them, along with the other beautiful girls who kept entering and maintaining the audience's sense of freshness.

And amid this heated atmosphere, the number of contestants entering the venue had gradually reached eighty.

Yet no one still dared to claim the solitary throne at the peak of the pyramid, as though it were waiting for someone's arrival.

Great Demon King.

Competition Venue.

Chu Wangshu Looked Towards the trainees dancing to the music in the distance. This was already the eighth contestant to issue a challenge.

The little girl could not help but sigh.

"The competition is really intense."

Although the seat-selection stage did indeed have a mechanism where contestants could battle for seats.

But how should she put it?