Chapter 101

--It's so soft.

This time, instead of just brushing it against my lips, it hit the bullseye perfectly, and I officially got the taste of my first kiss.

That youthful and brief kiss, which ended in a flash, was as tempting as a peach, overflowing from the lips and teeth, seeping into the soul and body. The tingling sensation that ran through the body sent a burning warmth up to every limb, distilling a rich joy.

--If... we could do it a few more times, just how good would that feel?

Chu Yuanqing's eyes widened slightly. She had accidentally kissed him much harder than before, and with the dance nearing its end, she began to drift away from her immersive stage presence.

The taste of the Golden Haired Doggy's lips is exceptionally vivid in my mind—the warm softness, the raw sensation against my teeth, the moistness tinged with saliva, and every detail permeates my mind like a virus.

Chu Yuanqing realized how terrible the thing he had done was, and became slightly flustered.

Fortunately, the camera didn't capture her expression at that moment, and Xie Qingxuan was responsible for connecting the next set of actions, so these unusual things were not noticed by the Live Broadcast Room.

Xie Qingxuan followed the dance, and also her desires. She adopted the air of someone about to remove their manicure, her eyes filled with lust. She forcefully flipped over and pinned Chu Yuanqing down, her slender hands lingering on his waist, instantly bringing him back to his senses and into the zone.

Then, the two of them got up one after the other, suppressing their different thoughts, and skillfully completed the final closing action amidst satisfied and exhilarating screams and hysteria in the Live Broadcast Room.

The stage lighting system is off.

The indoor Virtual Reality System was unveiled, and the surroundings returned to pure white and bright.

This ambiguous and suspenseful scene, filled with dramatic subplots and power struggles, was so realistic that it felt like you were actually there. It was a duet of tug-of-war literature, and its overflowing neon bronze aura and powerful sexual tension successfully garnered unanimous praise from the Live Broadcast Room.

Offstage, Chen Baijiu rubbed her temples, looking at the two people on stage with a mixture of helplessness and realization. Amidst her complex emotions, she couldn't help but sigh with relief.

[Flow State], again [Flow State].

How many future idols with the potential to reach world-class status will this episode of Flashdance ultimately identify?

Kiriwake Yayoi, Chu Yuanqing, and now Xie Qingxuan, who has the highest overall ability index.

Any one of these three, if taken to the neighboring Capital node, would be a king among kings, like a trainee frying fish in a pond.

It's not that Capital was too weak, but rather that Sea Capital was too lucky. Apart from Xie Qingxuan, the other two were completely unpopular and had no foundation. They just stumbled into Sea Capital's node and became shining gems that soared to the top in the competition.

If we're really talking about stage presence outside of [Flow State], the average strength of the A-Class contestants from Capital isn't much weaker than here. The current difference in popularity is mostly due to the two explosive performances of Chu Yuanqing and Little Sakura during their Second Evaluation stages, which triggered a series of chain reactions.

The viewers in the Live Broadcast Room felt a lingering aftertaste and a sense of emptiness, and they all typed their comments:

"Somewhat unexpectedly, when I first saw Qing Bao draw <Dangerous Party>, my interest was actually entirely focused on the nude bronze element. But this performance not only satisfied that need, but it also felt like watching a fast-paced, somewhat dramatic play with a very rich emotional impact."

"Waaaaah, just like the upgrade from fast food to a feast, it was so unexpected! I was having a blast the whole time, the immersion was incredibly strong, I love this feeling so much!"

"Xie Bao's style has truly undergone a qualitative change! Such rapid progress! Did he master [Flow State] using the training method Rabbit mentioned? He's practically like Great Demon King, possessing an incredibly captivating charm."

"She's amazing. I don't know when it started, but I couldn't take my eyes off her. I was incredibly excited the whole time. I was completely captivated by her."

The mentors have also begun the formal scoring process.

Zhao Dapan is a vocal coach, and his comments and scores only focus on singing. Xie Qingxuan got a perfect score, and Chu Yuanqing would probably get a good score, so they lost four points in total.

Luo Siling, whose main job is acting, only scored the two performers on facial expressions, stage presence, and how well they matched the music. She was very satisfied with their performance, but deducted two points because of some minor details.

Jiang Chi adjusted his sunglasses. As a professional rapper, he was told not to force himself to give comments. He glanced at the teleprompter, didn't waste the audience's time, said a few words symbolically, and then handed the speaking rights to Chen Baijiu next to him, without even giving a score.

Chen Baijiu praised:

"Chu Yuanqing, you have made great progress."

"If I hadn't watched you grow step by step from knowing nothing to what you are now, I would find it hard to believe that you've only been formally learning to dance for about a month."

"Although this dance isn't particularly difficult, it's no easy feat to capture the essence of the music in such a short time, develop it based on the lyrics, and create an atmosphere that is distinctly ambiguous and wild, yet not vulgar at all, like the flickering lights."

"I believe that as long as you maintain this pace, you will eventually shine in the entire Chinese Entertainment Industry and fulfill the dream you spoke of when you first debuted."

Normally, these words would have made Chu Yuanqing's scalp tingle, and he would have repeatedly given an awkward yet polite smile.

But right now,

Chu Yuanqing was preoccupied with the momentous incident of allegedly stealing the Golden Haired Doggy's first kiss, and was somewhat distracted. She began to agonize over how to apologize to the other party, and was so engrossed in listening to her mentor's comments that she missed a chance to dig her toes out of Notre Dame Cathedral.

After Chen Baijiu finished speaking, she emphasized Xie Qingxuan's near-perfect dance down to the tips of her hair, and even the sexual tension revealed through the beauty of her body. Then, she changed the subject and asked:

"I noticed that Chu Yuanqing used a different approach in a certain dance segment compared to the original. Was the kiss on the lips a simple mistake, or was it pre-planned?"

Chu Yuanqing was struck dumb, panicked for a moment, but then quickly realized that the stage camera couldn't see her kissing Xie Qingxuan, and regained her composure.

At that moment, the brain automatically retrieved information, stirring up a storm that forcefully pulled the memory of kissing the other person's lips from the corners of memory, vividly reenacting and reproducing it in consciousness.

Chu Yuanqing was stunned. She was utterly shocked that she had made two consecutive mistakes on this public stage, and both of them landed on the other person's lips.

Oh no, anyone would think this is deliberately taking advantage of someone, right?

Chu Yuanqing was filled with trepidation, but she couldn't explain herself now. To avoid being accused of a mistake and losing more points, she could only steel herself and answer with a serious expression:

"It was prepared in advance."

Xie Qingxuan seemed lost in thought and remained silent, causing the girl beside him to dig her toes into the ground, wishing she could just vanish on the spot.

Chen Baijiu didn't ask any more questions and continued to praise the dance, completely abandoning her usual sharp-tongued style. It wasn't until the final stage that she revealed her true colors, deducting more points than the other mentors, giving the dance a full five points off.

At this point, a total of 11 points have been deducted.

The mentors began a formal discussion, this time deciding on the most crucial project score.

--Stage effects.

This comprehensive score evaluates the specific chemical reaction that occurs when all the items are combined, accounting for 50% of the total score. Such a scoring method is very rare in previous talent shows and seems to be specially designed for those who excel in only one area.

The results were quickly announced amidst much anticipation. The scores given by the four mentors were 49, 48, 49.5, and 49. After removing the highest and lowest scores, the average score was 49. Including the remaining scores, the total score reached a high of 88.

It was obvious that the Great Demon King's [Flow State] was too domineering. The judges faced the terrifying dominance of this stage and couldn't deduct any points in the stage effect category.

After hearing their scores, the two performers on stage went back to the dressing room to wait for their turn.

Correspondingly, the next double-A team officially took to the stage and began their dance.

--<Naughty>.

The dance that Chen Yining and Ji Shuzhu drew was a famously difficult duet, a masterpiece once performed by an international girl group.

It's fair to say that drawing this dance was both unlucky and lucky.

Unfortunately, the learning difficulty in all aspects was too high, and there were extremely high demands on both myself and my teammates, requiring too much time investment in the initial stage.

Fortunately, this dance only requires an 80% completion rate to perform, and the final effect far exceeds the difficulty of dances like "Dangerous Party," making it a classic double-edged sword combination.

For this golden duo, the arrival of <Naughty> was a gift.

Ji Shuzhu's Memory Palace choreography library already contained the structural template for this popular dance. On the same day, based on Chen Yining's strengths, focus, and even dancing habits, she created a new version that was simpler and easier to learn, yet still retained its original charm.

The essence of <Naughty> lies in tutting, which is the framework of hand gesture dance and the style of Egyptian hands. The fusion of the two makes the details of the dance style exquisite and gorgeous. With the premise of tacit understanding between the two, it can fully show a flamboyant yet exceptionally unified beauty.

Chen Yining's basic skills were not wasted. She had learned almost all the popular girl group dances on the market, including <Naughty>, but she was not as proficient as her. She was even more adept at learning Ji Shuzhu's choreography version.

Ji Shuzhu herself, due to her Hyperthymesia and even her talent for dancing, has always been praised as a dancing machine that never makes a mistake. The two of them mastered <Naughty> in six days, achieving a very high level of completion.

Therefore, Chen Baijiu previously thought the previous group was bound to lose. In terms of the upper limit of the dance music alone, the former was completely outclassed, not to mention the added advantage of the perfect teamwork between childhood sweethearts.

As the background music fades, the performance officially begins.

Whether in the Live Broadcast Room or among the mentors, it was clear that the two childhood sweethearts were in excellent form on stage. Their coordination and control were perfect, their timing was crisp and clean, and their chemistry was simply unbelievable.

It's important to know that the combination of hand gestures and Egyptian hand gestures results in dance movements that are both intricate and difficult to remember. The hand gestures of the two dancers, sometimes coordinated, can resemble the Thousand-Hand Guanyin, highlighting the dance's flamboyance and exquisite beauty.

Therefore, if either of them makes a mistake in timing, their movements will become a continuous blur, ruining the beauty of the dance and causing the overall viewing experience to collapse.

Neither Chen Yining nor Ji Shuzhu disappointed each other's expectations. Their coordination was so perfect, their timing was crisp and smooth, their movements fluid and crisp, and they performed the extremely difficult dance with ease. Even until near the end, there was not a single mistake to be seen.

This is an excellent stage that can win public praise, amaze mentors in any setting, and earn extremely high scores.

But strangely,

Whether in the Live Broadcast Room or among the mentors, the emotions were like stagnant water. Even though reason told the brain that this stage was amazing, absolutely incredible, the result was like throwing a few pebbles into a lake, the ripples spreading slowly, without any feedback of surprise or satisfaction.

It's as if everyone's emotions had already been fully expressed on the previous stage, forcibly overdrawn by the terrifying dominance, leaving them unable to fluctuate again for a short period of time.

The dressing room.

Xie Qingxuan's expression was calm. She glanced towards the stage, the swirling light in her pupils slowly expanding, black mist swirling and burning, as she whispered:

"The outcome was already decided the moment the order of appearance on stage came out."

"It's despicable, but... hand over your personal choreographer to me, Young Lady Yunlan Entertainment."

Volume 1: 107. There's absolutely no reason needed for me to step onto the stage except for you. (6K)

The stage lights shone all at once.

Chen Yining's hair cascaded in a beautiful arc, her rose-red eyes sparkled, and she stood back to back with her perfectly in sync childhood friend, smiling as she looked ahead. She finished the performance with impeccable skill, bringing to a close a stage that should have won countless cheers.

I'm very tired, but also very satisfied.

Although she didn't achieve "Flow State," her state was better than ever before. It was as if the world was gradually unveiling itself to her. Her five senses were so acute that time seemed to slow down, and she could clearly feel the body temperature of the person behind her.

Great! This is what progress feels like, this is what it feels like to be approaching Flow State.

At this moment,

Chen Yining could hear the sound of Qingmei's heartbeat. Her heartbeat miraculously overlapped with it, and they intertwined to create a simple melody in her ears, as if to witness the years they had spent together, and to feel the joy brewed by time in the depths of their souls.

If... if she could perform on stage with Xiaozhu again with the same quality, she would definitely be able to break through the Shackles of the past ten years and awaken her own unique "Flow State".

Once you obtain the ticket to the world-class arena, you will be one step closer to the dream you promised!

Xiaozhu will definitely be very happy then, right?

The mentors began scoring the students.

Singing and dancing skills, facial expression management, stage presence...

All these various items combined resulted in a total deduction of only 4 points, which is extremely excellent.

In contrast, Chu Yuanqing's group had already lost 11 points at this stage, which meant they were now 7 points behind.

Chen Yining looked relaxed. She didn't know exactly how many points the previous group had scored, but deducting only 4 points in this range was already the limit. Even if it was [Flow State], there was no reason for them to surpass the tacit understanding between the two of them; they would only deduct more points.

Therefore, the key lies in the 50 points of stage effects.

Regarding this point, the Young Lady also had rational confidence that perhaps the other party had a great advantage in this aspect of "Flow State" and could get a near-perfect score.

However, their own team's <Naughty> has a natural advantage in stage presence, and with the two members' smooth and seamless teamwork, the final score won't be much different, and their chances of winning are quite high.

The mentor's seat.

Chen Baijiu was conflicted. Based on the stage performance, he wanted to give it a high score, but emotionally, he felt nothing after watching the whole thing, which was an undeniable fact. He could only ask himself:

Have the scores been determined?

Zhao Dapan saw things clearly and said frankly:

"It's confirmed. No matter how strange Xie Qingxuan's [Flow State] is, it's based on the result of her stage performance. Even if it creates a situation of overwhelming her, it doesn't count as cheating. We can judge based on our conscience, and I believe the audience can see the reasoning."

Luo Siling nodded and said:

"Not a fault of war."

Jiang Chi didn't say anything, but silently wrote down a score.

--40, 41, 39, 39.5.

The mentors' scores are out. After removing the highest and lowest scores, the stage effect received a score of 39.75, which is barely considered excellent, but it is still far from the quality of the stage performance.

--Total score: 85.75.

The viewers in the Live Broadcast Room were discussing it animatedly, but few questioned the result:

"Xie Qingxuan has absolutely mastered the [Flow State] state. That <Dangerous Party> was truly like attending an exhilarating party, leaving you completely exhausted and emotionally drained afterward."

"The nickname 'Great Demon King' has truly come into its own now. This domineering style of always winning by taking the first move is like a tyrant on the stage, it's a bit outrageous."

"Chen Yining and Ji Shuzhu did their best. The music, the coordination, and the execution of every move were all perfect. It's hard to believe that such a high level of performance could be achieved in just six days. For a dance of this caliber, the stage effect only deserves 39.75 points. The only reason they lost was because of their order of appearance."

"It's really strange. I can tell that the Young Lady's group danced really well, but my mind is completely focused on 'Dangerous Party,' and I can't spare any other emotions for it. I still haven't recovered."

Even Ji Shuzhu and Chen Yining's fans, whose emotions were still dominated by the lingering power of the Great Demon King [Flow State], had to admit that their idols' loss was not unjust, and could only feel resentful about the number of rounds they appeared in, expressing a sense of sadness and regret.

On the stage,

Upon seeing this result, Chen Yining's heart sank, and she felt as if she had fallen into an abyss.

--39.75 points?