At 3 a.m., the landmines in front of the station

"Yes. That makes sense."

Su Che rubbed his forehead, supporting An Qing with his left hand and holding Xiao Xiao with his right, struggling to sit up like a half-paralyzed old man, which made the women laugh.

“However, we have another major piece of bad news…” Yu tide said.

"what?"

"Because I never thought I would win, I only prepared one new song. If I want to use a new song for the quarterfinals, I might have to write and practice it on the spot..."

"!?"

Upon hearing this, Su Che was stunned.

Thinking about it, it's true.

Creating and mastering a song in two or three months is already quite an achievement. Who could have imagined that their team would win so smoothly and face the next round of competition?

"What should we do? Six days, is that enough?" Gu Zhi asked, her face showing worry.

“It’s definitely not enough,” Su Che said confidently.

"Then...choose a cover song? Choose one we're best at?" Yuan Xiao asked nervously.

"Won't the Cover take away points?" An Qing said, expressing her uncertainty.

"No, no, didn't the host say that the next round will be without judges, and will rely entirely on audience scores? So the audience doesn't care about original songs; on the contrary, derivative songs are more recognizable to them." Xiao Xiao had a different opinion.

After careful consideration, Su Che felt that since things had come to this point, he might really have to choose a cover song to prepare for the next competition. Otherwise, if he forced himself to perform an original song, there wouldn't be enough preparation time, let alone rehearsal time, and he would almost certainly be defeated.

"Sigh. Let's leave it at that for now, and choose the song when we eat later."

He had a headache.

If they were fully prepared for the last match but almost collapsed, they will have no chance of winning the next match if they are unprepared.

"The quarterfinals are also the group championships. Whoever wins becomes the group leader. Then the semifinals are against the winner of Group B, and the final is against the top teams of Groups C and D. So we have a total of three more matches. Of course, the premise is that we don't get eliminated early."

Xiao Xiao reached her little hand into the back of his shirt, groping around while analyzing the situation with a serious expression.

Su Che had no intention of stopping her from taking advantage of him; a gloomy mood enveloped him: "Let's just take it one step at a time."

He gestured for the women to get dressed and then headed to the izakaya downstairs from the hotel.

-

……

On the way, based on official information, Su Che learned that the next team was called "Void Realm," an advanced team with an experimental electronic core style. The name itself sounded intimidating, and it possessed all the advantages of Xiang Xuechuan's team—

The band is professionally trained, has a recording engineer, excellent equipment, has overcome numerous obstacles, has crushed all its opponents, has a harmonious atmosphere, and the musicians are quite good-looking...

In terms of configuration, there are four people in total. The female lead singer is named Asagiri, who is also a master of both vocal and keyboard. According to her profile, she is a graduate of the music production major. Her voice is ethereal like a ghost and her level is extraordinary.

Lead guitarist Shen Zhou, known in the music scene as "God Zhou," is a well-known young guitarist in the Tianhai music circle, specializing in math rock.

In his online vlog, you can see that one wall of his home is filled with his effects pedals and individual pedals, covering a two-meter-high display case like a collection of anime figurines...

That's the jingling scent of wealth, enough to make any discerning musician drool.

The bassist's name is Hoshikawa Fuyu. He's a musician from Japan who is currently studying music. He plays a five-stringed guitar and usually plays with his eyes closed on stage.

This demonstrates his exceptional ability to memorize music and improvise; the piece he is about to play is etched into his very being, making mistakes extremely rare.

The final drummer is named Sang Qi, a rare and talented female drummer in the music industry.

Unlike Xiaoxiao, Sangqi is a working professional. Judging from the photos, she is a short-haired, mature woman with a clean and efficient demeanor. Her drumming skills are decent, and she is currently studying for a professional degree abroad while working part-time. She came here specifically to help her teammates in the PK competition.

The team is self-contained, with complete information and no major flaws.

"I'm impressed. I feel like this team is tough; they can't possibly score below 95 points on the field."

"Hmm, it seems their choice for the last competition was a remix of 'Senbonzakura,' which shows that their habit is to adapt famous songs into their own style of digital rock, focusing on thematic innovation rather than pure originality. This is good news for us," Yu tide analyzed.

"Let's just leave it to fate. Since we're here, let's make the best of it. We have 6 days, 5 and a half days for rehearsals, and the remaining half day for resting. Let's just leave it at that."

Su Che started setting it up.

His desire to win isn't as strong as it used to be; after all, the resources he's fully prepared can only sustain one attack, and he'll be severely lacking for a second.

If you've already sent it, then just tell the heavens that you've been defeated by your father. There's no shame in that, and you don't need to cling to anything anymore.

If I manage to win by a narrow margin, I'll use the last two months to prepare for the finals and write two more songs.

That's all we can do. Everyone has done their best. This is the team's limit. No matter how hard we try, we can't create a new song in an afternoon like Mikami Fubuki.

"Thank you all for your hard work. Let's eat first. I ordered tempura, thick-cut pork cutlet, okonomiyaki, cabbage stir-fried noodles, a large platter of 52 gunkan-shaped hand-rolled noodles, and beef and tofu sukiyaki..."

Inside the izakaya, one man and seven women were gathered together.

Wisps of steam rose from the hot pot, and the waiter filled the wine glasses with Asahi.

Xiao Xiao: "Eat when you're hungry, drink when you're thirsty, and don't take things to heart."

Come on, let's raise a toast to our captain, who works as hard as an ox, striving to lead everyone to victory!

All the women: "Cheers!"

Su Che: "..."

Hesitantly, he raised his glass, unsure of what expression to make.

To be honest, winning or losing doesn't seem to matter as much as it did initially in this harmonious atmosphere.

Su Che looked at everyone's faces and noticed that whether it was An Qing, Yuan Xiao, Gu Zhi, Xiao Xiao, or even Jiang Nai and Bai Qiao who came to keep him company, everyone's expressions were quite happy and cheerful, completely different from his own, without any worries at all.

【yes……】

It seems they don't care so much about the result of the competition anymore.

Even the senior student who was initially obsessed with winning...

He was also drinking heavily, downing his glass in one gulp, his cheeks flushed.

—"They seem to be enjoying the moment."

Su Che realized that he was the only one living in a "cocoon".

I am trapped in this cocoon, like a headless fly or a fluttering moth, crashing into the wall without turning back, and unwilling to give up even when I am covered in wounds.

It felt as if the whole world was separated from me by a transparent barrier. Everyone in front of me was on that side, while I was on this side of a vacuum, watching everyone laugh and have fun, but I couldn't feel happy myself.

In Dr. Yan's words, it means: "Have you forgotten how to laugh?"

"Su Che, have you lost the ability to laugh?"

"How often do you feel you've genuinely laughed out loud recently?"

"Have you deliberately counted them?"

"If you don't remember it, then you didn't laugh."

"If you laugh, but only a handful of times, then you are sick."

"Your illness isn't too serious right now, but you'd better not let it escalate further, stop getting stuck on those minor issues, and stop obsessing over things that are impossible. I'll leave it at that; the only one who can truly help you is yourself after you've let go of your inner turmoil."

I used to dismiss Dr. Yan's words with disdain.

But since he was able to become the director and even has a chance to be promoted to associate professor, it means that what he said has some basis, and I am just one of the many patients in Tianhai City.

I really should let myself off the hook.

Why won't you forgive me?

Seeing them so happy, I couldn't smile; it felt like I didn't fit in.

[Actually, it's unnecessary.]

You should be happy when you win, and sad when you lose.

But if you lose, you lose. Losing means you have no more chances, and it's equivalent to giving up.

My father is strong, but I am weak. Everyone knows that I, a coward, want to defeat a strongman I can't possibly beat, yet they still naively choose to follow me, steadfastly sharing my tears, laughter, play, and sleep. What more could I ask for? Why can't I compromise and change my conditions for victory?

If you really can't beat your dad, can't you just beat him up?

Grandpa said his health wasn't good and he probably couldn't withstand a full-force attack from me.

[Isn't knocking him to the ground and forcing him to say "Son, I was wrong, I'm sorry" a kind of victory?]

Will my mom stop me?

-

Su Che drank and drank, his mind hazy and confused. He silently began to consider the issue of taking the high ground by force.

……

……

Chapter 282 Feeding Fruit - Flaw

The cover track is "Pain Flies Away," a new work by a new generation composer named Mi.

"Only today, I dare not face the dawn."

"I just flipped the switch in my brain."

"But continuing to be weak like this will not help."

"One day, everything will be alright"...

The light and distinctive keyboard, paired with a refreshing rhythm, gives the whole piece a feeling of washing away the dust and relieving fatigue.

In the rehearsal room, Su Che was leading several girls in intensive training.

The guitar and bass parts aren't too difficult; the real challenge lies with the keyboard.

However, with Yu tide's superb technical support, the keyboard can even play two keyboards simultaneously—one hand plays chords and the other hand plays music box effects.

This made her the core of the performance effect on her own, and her role in this round of competition was almost on par with that of a vocalist.

For the lead vocal part, Su Che instructed An Qing to let loose and sing in the most relaxed state, without thinking about anything else.

An Qing did as instructed, letting go of her inhibitions and singing however she felt comfortable.

It must be said that the house cat, no longer hesitant and cautious, performed very steadily and well. It was more natural than when singing original songs, and it better showcased the team's characteristics, resulting in a greater sense of cohesion.