Don't call me a singing god, I just want to go back to doing scientific research.

Upon hearing this, Feng Yuxi immediately perked up, turned around and chuckled, "That's right, I'm from the Beijing Conservatory of Music. I heard that if you pass the first round of the competition here, you can earn an extra credit, so I came to give it a try."

Upon hearing this, Gu Yang opened his mouth in surprise.

Adding academic credits? Are schools this competitive now?

"What a coincidence? I'm also from the Beijing Conservatory of Music."

"Huh?" Feng Yuxi perked up even more. "You too? Which department are you in? What year are you in?"

"Vocal performance, sophomore year."

Feng Yuxi glared at him, adopting a friendly, buddy-buddy stance, and raised his hand high as if to slap Gu Yang on the back: "Damn it! Junior! I'm a junior!"

Gu Yang cleared his throat unhurriedly: "If we count by the time you enrolled, you're my senior. But if we count by the time you debuted... you'd have to call me senior."

Feng Yuxi's raised hand froze in mid-air, his expression incredibly interesting.

The two were staring at each other when the host announced, "Next up is contestant number 17."

I went on stage on the 17th, and on the 18th I need to go to the backstage entrance to prepare.

The program's assistant also appeared at the right time, urging Feng Yuxi to make preparations.

"Go quickly, good luck." Gu Yang gave him a push.

He also wanted to see just how good this senior, who was fighting for credits, really was.

Ten minutes later, Feng Yuxi stepped onto the stage. He chose a classic pop song that was widely sung.

Singing this kind of song in a competition with an audience is a disadvantage, as the audience already has the original singer's voice in their minds, making it difficult to stand out.

But Gu Yang was stunned when Feng Yuxi opened her mouth.

His voice possessed a naturally subtle electronic quality, completely different from his usual speaking voice. That unique timbre infused this old song with a fresh soul.

After the song ended, the scores were quickly released: eleventh place.

  

With this ranking, as long as the people behind me aren't all monsters, making it into the top twenty is basically a sure thing.

Backstage, Feng Yuxi looked relaxed: "Hehe, thanks, good luck to you later too."

"rest assured."

After another half hour, Gu Yang, who was feeling drowsy, finally heard his name called.

The last to perform was so exhausting that not only the judges and audience, but even the contestants backstage were nearly at their breaking point. If it weren't for the cameras, they probably would have all collapsed by now.

"Go for it, junior!" Feng Yuxi clenched his fist.

Gu Yang gave an OK sign and walked towards the preparation area.

The host, forcing a spirited tone, announced in a high-pitched voice: "What kind of surprise will this last contestant bring us? Please welcome Gu Yang, who will perform his new song, 'Long Time No See'!"

The moment these words were spoken, the live stream chat exploded.

[A new song? Are you crazy? Besides Teacher Zhuo, who else dares to sing a new song today?]

[Singing a new song as the finale? This guy is either a god descended from heaven or he's lost his mind.]

I checked, and Gu Yang has been in the industry for two years, but he's not very popular. I think he just lacks talent and is trying to grab attention with his new song.

[Watch your mouths! Our Yangyang is really strong, okay!]

[Go, Guyang! Guyang brings sunshine wherever it goes, ensuring a smooth and successful path for you!]

Gu Yang's fans aren't numerous, but they are clear-headed enough. They usually stay quiet and lurking, afraid of bringing trouble to their idol, but now that someone is questioning him, they can't hold back anymore and immediately jump in to control the comments.

On the stage, the lights shone precisely on Gu Yang with a "snap".

There was no dazzling background, no glamorous makeup.

A beam of light, a person, and a standing microphone.

He stood quietly in the center of the spotlight, and a silent sense of loneliness instantly enveloped the entire stage.

On the big screen, several lines of text appeared.

"haven't seen you for a long time"

Performed by: Gu Yang (Eason Chan)

Lyrics: Luo Mu (Shi Li)

Composer: Luo Mu (Chen Xiaoxia)

[The curtain falls? Who is that? He wrote the lyrics and composed the music? I've never heard of him.]

[I don't know this person, and I can't find them online. Could it be an alias?]

Stop arguing! Listen to music!

A deathly silence fell over the room. On the judges' panel, Zhuo Tongyu, who had already shown signs of fatigue, instinctively sat up straight when he heard the words "new song." When he saw that the lyricist and composer was the unfamiliar name "Luo Mu," he pushed up his glasses and his gaze became completely focused.

A quiet piano prelude begins, its tone clean and distinctly articulate, like a soft whisper in your ear.

Gu Yang held the microphone and closed his eyes.

I came to your city

Walk the path you came from

Imagining life without me

How lonely are you?

... "

As soon as the song started, the entire studio seemed to be put on pause.

Zhuo Tongyu's pupils suddenly contracted.

What audacity!

This kind of arrangement, stripped bare of all embellishments and reduced to just a skeleton and a heart, is a hellish test of a singer's vocal skills and emotional control. A slight misstep can result in a hollow and dull performance.

He immediately flipped through the contestant's information in front of him, and when he saw "twenty years old" written in the age column for Gu Yang, he could hardly hide the surprise in his eyes.

Twenty years old? How could someone sing with such feeling? The sense of story in that voice couldn't have been cultivated without thirty years of experience.

The song continues.

Will you suddenly appear?

A coffee shop on the street corner

I will wave and greet you with a smile.

Let's sit and chat

... "

The transition from verse to chorus is so smooth that there is not a single pause, giving people no chance to catch their breath, and so easily dragging people into a deeper emotional vortex.

Gu Yang's voice was very soft, yet it was like a hand that gently yet domineeringly choked everyone's breath.

After the first verse ends, a short interlude follows, and the second verse begins.

This time, a very subtle violin sound was quietly added to the piano's base. The sound was hidden deep, like a faded scar, almost imperceptible if you didn't listen carefully, yet it instantly doubled the depth of emotion, causing a faint ache in your heart.

On the judging panel, one of the female judges had already closed her eyes, completely absorbed in the moment.

Zhuo Tongyu held his breath, staring intently at the young man on the stage, afraid of missing any detail.

Just then, the back door of the studio was gently pushed open from the outside.

A tall, slender figure walked in against the light. He looked up at the large screen above the stage, which showed a close-up of Gu Yang with slightly red eyes.

The person took off his baseball cap, revealing a handsome but slightly tired face.

Ling Luo's lips curled up almost imperceptibly: "Luckily, I made it in time."

"Take the photo you gave me"

That familiar street

It's just that your image is no longer there.

We can't go back to that day...

The singing faded, and the last note drifted down like a feather before disappearing.

The huge studio fell into an even more complete silence than before the show began.

There was no applause, no discussion, not even the sound of breathing.

Everyone was frozen in place, as if their souls had not yet been extracted from that song.