Shi Zhou wasn't the only one who hadn't expected this. Nobody had, right?!
The live comments exploded.
With Bai Shen and Xie Jiali stripping like that, four or five of the Interstellar Network's top ten trending searches were taken over in no time!
All thanks to the thirsty girls and boys.
Director Zhang was grinning so hard his mouth might split.
It took Shi Zhou a while to recover. Then he remarked slowly:
"I knew about Brother Shen, but I never expected you to be this impressive too, Brother Xie."
He called them both "Brother" with heartfelt admiration.
After all, neither of them was missing a single chest or abdominal muscle. They even had serratus anterior muscles-shark muscles-which took serious training to develop.
Lin Yuxi couldn't help smiling a little lecherously this time. She genuinely couldn't control her expression. Holy shit, what kind of paradise was this? So many men blessing us with their bodies! What a treat, what a treat!
Xie Jiali really knew what he was doing. That fleeting glimpse alone had left an incredibly deep impression!
This was more tempting than stripping completely.
It was like readers looking for something innocent in a steamy book, and something steamy in an innocent one.
That was what made it satisfying.
Xie Jiali ignored everyone's stares, seemingly oblivious to the impact he'd made. Smiling, he took one of Shi Zhou's hands and moved to place it against his abdomen.
"Still underestimating me?" Watching Shi Zhou's bowed head, scarlet ears, and wildly fluttering lashes, his eyes darkened a little.
Shi Zhou's thoughts were in complete disarray. Wasn't he supposed to be a bottom?
How had he built muscles like that?
The point was-the point was, surely this broke the rules of BL novels!
"N-no. I wouldn't dare."
It had even left him feeling a little inadequate and questioning his life. His mind was a mess.
Holy shit!
Su Yue saw every expression on his face. Sitting beside him, he could practically feel Shi Zhou's panic.
Su Yue's expression grew more serious, his sharply defined jaw subtly coming into view. He raised his broad hand and tugged his own collar open a little.
Once the "punishment" ended and the two men dressed again, everyone finally felt comfortable looking their way.
That segment had been way too good.
Mostly because the guests their production team had invited were no ordinary people. People online would replay that clip until it wore out, wouldn't they?
Zheng Yu and Lin Yuxi needed the restroom. Su Yue seemed to have drunk a little too much; he was red from his ears down to his neck. He silently got up to wash his face.
The others stayed seated, eating and chatting while they waited.
Yu Manman brought up what had just happened and said with a smile, "...Of course Jiali has a good physique. He often wears ancient Han clothing and performs with a spear. That definitely takes a lot of strength."
Heart-Pounding Expedition had an enormous audience, and Xie Jiali's fans made up only a small portion of it. Plenty of casual viewers knew him, but wouldn't go out of their way to search for his videos.
That was also why the guests competed to get on this show. Any little standout quality could win them a huge wave of fans, never mind Xie Jiali, whose shining qualities could form an entire sea of stars.
Xie Jiali glanced at Yu Manman. Knowing she meant well, he returned the favor with a smiling remark.
"Yes, our team has worked with Manman's team before. She once helped me recreate a Han Dynasty Uniform from Ancient Earth. It was extremely faithful to the original and beautifully made."
Since everyone was chatting, he went ahead and gave them a little explanation.
"Spearmanship emphasizes 'the body as a bow, the spear as an arrow.' You need a solid stance to master a long spear and execute thrusts, jabs, snapping strikes, and parries."
In skilled hands, a long spear moved with a dragon's fluid grace, making it a spectacular sight.
"As the saying goes, the spear draws its courage from the waist. All the force travels to the spear's tip through the twisting of the waist and hips. Special techniques like the Reversing Horse Spear Thrust put explosive core strength to the ultimate test."
Long-term practice naturally developed a narrow waist and broad shoulders, turning the body into a perfectly structured framework of muscle for generating power.
He smiled faintly, his voice gentle and unhurried. With his clothes back on, there wasn't a trace of the striking, fierce figure he cut in his videos.
The guests could only imagine it, but viewers could follow the recommendations and fully appreciate his performance. Naturally, they fell willingly into his fandom.
He had always presented himself as gentle. After today, everyone would see him in a different light.
Not a single one of these guests was ordinary.
"Exactly. You should all watch him if you get the chance. He's incredibly cool," Yu Manman added admiringly.
And spear training gave him a strong waist and excellent stamina. His future partner was in for a treat.
That last part sounded a little indecent, so Yu Manman kept it to herself.
Recovering from his shock, Shi Zhou remarked:
"...That's seriously impressive."
He'd been thoroughly shaken today, mostly because the contrast was so great.
Bai Shen was one thing. Everyone knew he was impressive, but he kept a low profile and never showed it off.
Xie Jiali, on the other hand, had completely overturned everyone's impression of him.
After listening to everyone shower him with praise, Xie Jiali said nothing. He turned toward Shi Zhou and gave him a gentle smile.
He raised his glass and drained it.
Xie Jiali's principle when pursuing someone was to quit while he was ahead and take things slowly. Coming on too strong would only scare them away.
They chatted, and before long, the other three returned one after another. That "punishment" had heated up the atmosphere, making the game even more exciting.
One draw meant squats and push-ups; another meant scrolling through a guest's Mindnet for ten minutes to see what content came up.
Zheng Yu's Mindnet, in particular, was completely at odds with the image he'd been presenting-
It was all muscular men, in every variety.
Still, after spending these past few days together, everyone had picked up on a little of Zheng Yu's "flamboyant side."
Besides, after the stimulation they'd just received, these men fell far short of their two exceptional male guests. Everyone's reaction was much calmer than expected.
What really floored Shi Zhou was Lin Yuxi's phone. It was full of videos of men with men, pictures, and novel recommendations. Some even needed censoring and couldn't be broadcast!
Shi Zhou had lost two years of memories just after reaching adulthood and hadn't encountered any of this yet. One look left him stunned.
Then he looked at Lin Yuxi's sweet, lovely face. Ah, you really couldn't judge a book by its cover.
They had only looked at a few pictures, suppressing their laughter, before Lin Yuxi scrambled to put her Mindnet away.
"...Okay, okay, this is my alt account. My main isn't like this!" she stammered in explanation.
Unfortunately, the platform displayed account levels, so her desperate attempt to save face failed.
Her face turned scarlet, and she nearly dropped her Mindnet twice. Everyone decided not to torment her any further.
Later, the two of them drew a dance together, and Zheng Yu and Lin Yuxi laughed.
"We're so unlucky tonight. We keep getting paired up."
"Asta's famously lucky. Sitting beside him has sucked all our luck dry."
Zheng Yu made a show of complaining with a smile. Asta was famous for winning every bet.
Shi Zhou marveled at it too. Asta, sitting opposite him, had hardly been picked at all. He'd only had to do push-ups once.
To show off, he'd done them on two fingers, knocking out dozens in one go without even getting winded.
The strands of Asta's brown hair gleamed under the lights. A smile appeared on his handsome, slightly flirtatious face as he raised an eyebrow.
"Not at all. Luck balances out."
He said, "I'm lucky now, but that might change in a little while."
Lin Yuxi wasn't much of a dancer, so nobody forced her to perform. She drank a glass and got a pass.
To everyone's surprise, Zheng Yu actually volunteered to dance.
He played some music on his Mindnet, stood by the window, and performed a Latin dance to the accompaniment of the rain.
He powered his movements through his hips and core, every twist and thrust showing effortless control.
His hips pressed lightly on the drumbeats, then his waist and abdomen drove each accented beat. His turns traced crisp arcs with supple strength, his weight shifting steadily as he pivoted on the balls of his feet!
Against the passionate, uninhibited music, he occasionally glanced back with a curling smile, his delicate face full of allure.
As the music reached its climax, everyone laughed and clapped along,
Zheng Yu lifted his neck slightly, power rising from his soles through his calves and core, layer by layer, as he danced faster and faster-
Every movement was clean and sharp, yet the rotation of his hips and the rise and fall of his arms radiated an effortless sensuality, lingering in the faint tremor at the end of each motion...
Zheng Yu finished with a queenly pose, deliberately lifting his chin with a smile as he panted lightly.
Even without makeup, his demeanor was noticeably different from usual. Instead, it matched the way he'd dressed aboard the spaceship yesterday.
He was done pretending. He was laying his cards on the table.
Whatever happened, happened.
He didn't look at anyone's expression, unwilling to see whatever disgust or surprise might appear in the other guests' eyes.
To his surprise, clap, clap, clap-
Everyone applauded. "That was amazing!"
"Exactly, you danced so well. I could really feel the passion in it."
Lin Yuxi, who hadn't danced herself, even cupped her hands around her mouth. "Amazing, amazing, amazing! Brother Yu, that was so good!"
Zheng Yu was surprised instead. Maybe the alcohol had made him a little emotional tonight.
His eyes were slightly damp when he sat back down. He blinked while taking a drink, then said with a smile:
"I thought you'd find it strange that a guy would dance like this."
Asta looked puzzled. "What's strange about it? Men and women can both dance Latin."
Zheng Yu had heard the words he'd most wanted to hear, and from Asta's mouth, no less.
His eyes lit up. He hadn't expected Asta to recognize the dance style!
After a pause, he finally said, "Thank you."
There had been so many pleasant surprises on this show. He couldn't help grinning foolishly to himself and downing several more glasses.
The live commenters could all tell he had something weighing on his mind. Though his earlier behavior hadn't been particularly likable, most of the comments about Zheng Yu this time were praise:
-He's so different when he dances. Usually he's, how do I put it? Emmm, a little conflicted. But when he dances, he's confident and really captivating.
-Yeah, I think this is a dance style from Ancient Earth. It's pretty uncommon, but he's really good.
Everyone urged him, "Okay, okay, next round. Ease up on the drinking."
Tonight's game had been enjoyable and satisfying, with relaxed smiles on everyone's faces. Ending it here would have left the atmosphere just right.
"How about one last round? It's getting late," the production team suggested.
"We still need to leave time for your heart-fluttering texts later," a crew member added with a smile.
Asta was in charge of shuffling this round. He sighed theatrically. "I've barely had a chance to shine tonight."
Xie Jiali was riding high tonight, mainly because Shi Zhou's attitude toward him had changed significantly. He could feel it.
All his efforts had finally paid off.
He glanced at Asta and pushed up his glasses with a slender index finger, thinking, Haven't you had enough of the spotlight these last two days?
It's time someone else had a turn.
He also glanced at Su Yue. This suspected romantic rival, who seemed to like Shi Zhou, had been very quiet since returning from washing his face.
Xie Jiali raised an eyebrow and said with a smile, "Let's make this the last round. Su Yue looks drunk already."
Though Xie Jiali's tone and expression were no different from usual, Su Yue could sense his smugness.
It was as if only the two of them could pick up on that subtle undercurrent.
Just then, Shi Zhou leaned forward to take something from the table, and the two men's gazes met directly,
One pair of phoenix eyes held a smile; the other was calm and resolute.
Xie Jiali saw it. For some reason, his smile faded, and he frowned slightly as a bad feeling crept over him.
Su Yue said evenly, "All right. One last round."
Sitting on Shi Zhou's other side, he could feel the change in Shi Zhou's attitude toward Xie Jiali during the latter half of the game even more clearly.
It made Su Yue's expression unusually grave.
He had to do something.
Sometimes a man really had to trust his instincts. His told him that if he didn't act tonight, he might find himself at a disadvantage.
And if he fell behind at the starting line, even chasing with all his strength afterward might not get him anywhere.
He believed Xie Jiali could count cards and read faces too, but fortunately-
His turn came before Xie Jiali's, and he was sitting right beside Shi Zhou.
As long as Xie Jiali didn't start with the Joker Card, he was confident.
The atmosphere around the table had subtly changed, though perhaps that was only Xie Jiali's imagination.
Still, he could tell Su Yue was plotting something. But it was only one last round...
The bad feeling inside him gradually intensified, yet that was all he could tell himself for comfort, until he heard Shi Zhou say with a smile beside him:
"Well, Brother Yue and I have the Joker Card this round."
"Brother Yue, let's hope our luck isn't so bad that we draw some terrifying punishment."
Xie Jiali's heart abruptly sank, as though some dreadful premonition was about to come true.
Everyone laughed and egged them on. "Don't chicken out, Zhouzhou!"
"No way, no way! It's the last round. You've got to draw the wildest one!"
Asta even said, "Want me to help? My luck's pretty good."
He was feeling a little uncomfortable too as he watched Su Yue. If he drew an Interaction Card...
Su Yue smiled, a hint of ferocity actually appearing on his refined, handsome face. With that same intensity, he glanced at Shi Zhou.
"No need. I'll draw it myself."
His fingers were long and slender, their joints defined and strong. Once he settled on a target, he never hesitated.
After drawing, Su Yue raised the card and looked at its face for two seconds,
Then actually smiled at the camera, his features handsome and sharply defined.
He held up the card for everyone to see.
[Interaction Card] [Upon drawing this card, designate two players to kiss]
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