peninsula asteroid.

Chapter 864 Bad Premonition

Because of the complicated mood caused by the previous emotional fluctuations, Ji Jingyuan's speech was a little simple. The fans in the audience could not feel the change in his mentality. He did not seem to be as emotional as other members. Even Kim Junmyeon and Byun Baekhyun choked up.

But he still received tearful cheers and shouts from the fans below... This is what's so lovely about A.R.L.S., no matter what he said, as long as he said it, they would support and cheer him unconditionally.

"Kansangmida..."

Finally, all the members bowed to the audience below, and then did not return to the artist seats, but walked towards the artist passage next to the movable door... After all the awards were presented, it was the last part of today's MMA. As the last stage of EXO, they now had to go around and go behind the screen door to prepare for their appearance.

"Dafa!"

"Clap clap clap..."

As soon as they got off the stage, they met their manager An Chengyuan and several assistants waiting for them at the entrance. When they saw Chi Jingyuan and others coming off the stage, they immediately smiled and applauded to celebrate the grand award they had just won.

The EXO members all laughed happily and high-fived each other to celebrate. Kim Junmyeon handed the trophy to his assistant, laughed and clapped his hands, then suddenly remembered the trick in the artist seats when the Crystal Boys were on stage just now. He frowned and said to An Chengyuan, "By the way, brother, when the Crystal Boys seniors were on stage just now..."

The other members also stopped laughing.

They have all been in the industry for so many years and can all feel that something is clearly wrong.

"I've seen this, too, and have just sent a question to the organizer."

Speaking of this, An Chengyuan's smile faded and he nodded slowly.

The management team always paid attention to the artists on stage when they were downstairs, and would occasionally go over to the staff passage to communicate, give bottles of water, etc. They all noticed the situation just now, but An Chengyuan didn't say much at this time: "You go prepare the stage first, and we'll talk about this when you come back."

There were no other performances on the stage at this time. Only Ahn Seung-ho was chatting there and saying some summary words to buy time for EXO's transition, so their time was very tight and they had no time to say these things.

Hearing this, the members all nodded, said a few words at the end, drank a sip of water, and then everyone quickly ran to the designated stage location, adjusted their earphones, held their breath, and prepared to go on stage.

……

At this time, An Shenghao at the front desk was also reminded by the director. He stopped talking nonsense and made a summary before announcing loudly: "Next, welcome XO!"

As he shouted, cheers rang out and the lights on the stage dimmed. A specially prepared VCR began to play on the huge screen door, and all the audience and idols looked at the screen expectantly.

「Debuted in 2012」

Accompanied by XO's iconic self-introduction background sound of 'we are one, we are EXO', a few silver fonts emerged from the black fog-like screen, as if leading everyone back to 2012 when the legend began.

"The group that has won the most first place in music programs"

As the subtitles changed, countless screenshots of members holding up their trophies and giving their speeches while presenting awards quickly emerged in a distressed tone. Each smile and trophy recorded the splendor along the way.

"Fan club exceeds 5 million"

Under the huge EXO logo, there is a very important statement: 'Officially certified fan site with the greatest influence.'

"One million album sales after twelve years, three million album sales miraculously"

From "MAMA", to "Roar", to "EXO-L" and this year's "EXACT", the cover of each album appears side by side on the screen, staggered and orderly, and each unique LOGO represents a brilliant glory.

"The best-selling artist on the Asian charts for a long time, his concert tickets sell out in 0.4 seconds, the most influential K-pop star in the world"

A bird's-eye view photo of the concert emerged, showing more than 50,000 AI sticks densely packed in the venue, shining like a galaxy of stars.

"The most influential group in Asia"

The exciting background music reached its climax, and the nine-square grid of portraits of nine people in the dark style of "Monster" slowly emerged. As the photos gradually darkened, the last row of subtitles slowly emerged:
"EXO's record can only be broken by EXO"

"Ahhh..." One amazing title after another, accompanied by a high-pitched background sound and flashbacks of EXO members' voices when they were interviewed. Seeing this, all the A.R.Y.s could no longer contain their blood, and even many fans of other groups were infected by the unstoppable momentum of EXO in the VCR, and everyone started shouting wildly.

"Dafa!"

Even the idols in the artist seats couldn't help but whisper to each other when they saw this VCR. The newly debuted Blackpink members looked at each other and saw each other's astonishment.
The eyes of the young men in Seventeen were filled with shock and envy, and they hoped that one day in the future, they would be able to shoot such an awe-inspiring VCR.

We sat in the same artist seat and knew each other. I didn't think much of it when we were chatting privately without any filters. But after watching this VCR, I truly felt that EXO is indeed the mountain that people look up to in Kpop today.

Amid the cheers of the audience, the screen door lit up again, and the logo of the re-issued cover of EXO's latest third regular album "EXACT" lit up on the screen. It flickered and turned into the original album logo of the third album, and then kept going back to the regular second album in 15, the mini second album in 14, and the "Roar" logo in 13, and finally stopped.

"Boom, boom, boom, boom..."

The next second, the screen door slowly opened, and accompanied by the iconic looping electronic music of "Roar", Kim Jong-in and Kim Min-seok walked out, each with two dancers standing beside them. They took a step forward and started dancing to the melody of the chorus.

"I Eu-Reu-Reong Eu-Reu-ReongEu-Reu-Reong you."

"If you don't step back, you might get hurt."

Familiar music, familiar choreography, familiar people.

There is no need to elaborate on the song "Roar". Among the entire audience, even fans of other groups and even black fans who hate EXO very much have heard this song.

This song is no longer just a hit, it seems to represent a year and an era. When the melody sounds, everyone can't help but hum along and shake their legs. It is still one of EXO's most classic songs.

This opening seemed to bring everyone back to the year 2013, but the chorus of only seconds was not satisfying at all. When everyone was still reluctant to leave, this part ended. The first group of people quickly left the stage, and the screen door at the back began to change again. With a flash, the classic maze logo of EXO's second mini album "Addicted" appeared clearly, and then slowly opened the next second.

"Someone called the doctor and grabbed me and said to me~"

"Too Much of You, Your Love, This Is Overdose~"

Kim Junmyeon and Do Kyungsoo's "Addicted" had just become addictive, and the classic puppet-controlled choreography hadn't made all the audience shake their legs excitedly, when Oh Sehun and Kim Jongdae came on stage with their choreography.

"There are so many strange things in the world, it is hard to tell the truth from the false."

"call me baby~~call me baby~~"

Their standard hip-thrusting movement once again aroused everyone's enthusiasm, and the sound of chorus was endless.

Most of the MMA stages tonight were very exciting. No matter how they sang, just looking at the costumes, choreography, and even the dance breaks on each stage made people feel that the idols had been carefully rehearsed and prepared.

As the last to perform, EXO is no exception.

And if we were to ask how the fans and even passers-by feel when they see EXO's performance...

That's the surprise.

A strong sense of surprise and excitement.

The carefully prepared stages by others are naturally wonderful, but because of the spread and accumulation of the songs, the impact may be slightly weaker. However, EXO's stage of a medley of hit songs from previous years is even more passionate. Some of them, especially the kind that make you sing along when you hear the melody and can't help but dance, give you that feeling of 'I've heard this song before' that makes you intoxicated.

This practice seems to be somewhat ostentatious, as if showing off their rich music library and telling everyone "every year, the title song of every album is a big hit, and everyone will sing it when the music starts."

But this is EXO.
After "Call Me Baby" ended, a new LOGO appeared on the screen amid everyone's expectant eyes. Amid screams that resounded through the sky, Ji Kyung-won, Park Chanyeol, and Byun Baekhyun walked out of the door with their dancers.

He stood in the center, with the other two standing a little bit back. After getting into position, they lowered their heads, as if they were building up emotions and atmosphere.

The next second, the music of "Boy with Luv" sounded. In the close-up on the big screen, he gently raised his head, curled the corners of his mouth, and smiled at the camera. Before the audience could scream, he stepped perfectly in the rhythm of the drums and raised his legs high to dance the chorus:

"Yeah you made me a boy with luv~"

"oh mymymy~~"

The reason why "Roar" is one of EXO's most classic songs is because of the existence of "Boy with Luv". This song is EXO's first real global hit song. It has caused a huge response in the local market, Southeast Asia, Japan, which has always been difficult to enter, and even the European and American markets. It is EXO's most well-known song in the world today.

The extremely addictive chorus melody, the graceful choreography, Chi Jingyuan's blue hair and the look back at the beginning in the MV have long become classics in the hearts of fans.

"oh mymymy~~"

"oh mymymy~~"

There was no need for Chi Jingyuan and the others to start singing, as the entire audience immediately started singing in chorus, singing the 30-second chorus from beginning to end. The sound was so loud that even the Gai speakers were outshined. No other sound could be heard in the entire Gocheok Dome. I don't know how many times the organizer had to mute the sound during the live broadcast to relieve this shocking momentum.

The sound seemed to shake the ceiling, and it was even more shocking when you were there in person, so much so that the eardrums of the idols in the artist seats next to them seemed to be somewhat deafened by the noise.

Sitting in the artist seat, Lin Nayeon, who was still immersed in the excitement and emotion of winning the first grand prize since her debut, and still crying with her head down, was shocked and stopped for a moment. She raised her head with tearful eyes and took a strange look, wrinkled her nose, and took a deep breath.

Zhou Ziyu opened her big eyes like black gemstones, staring blankly in the direction of the stage… Even though she had already debuted, was still able to sit in the artist seat, and had excellent results, but when she saw Chi Jingyuan's stage at this moment, listened to the deafening chorus in her ears, and felt the incomparable momentum, she felt as if nothing had changed from before. She was still the little fan girl who was under the stage, across the dinner table, in the co-pilot seat, amazed and dependent on the person next to her before her debut.

Minami Naiyoshi's eyes were glistening with tears because of the afterglow of the grand prize, revealing her crybaby nature while she kept looking at her boyfriend on the stage... After experiencing the grand prize and feeling the current boiling atmosphere, she suddenly developed a strong attachment and desire to talk, she really wanted to stick close to her boyfriend, she had a lot to say to him.

As everyone was feeling mixed emotions, Kim Ji-soo in the back row frowned slightly because the noise hurt her ears, then leaned close to Kim Jennie's ear and asked with her hand cupped over her mouth, "Didn't you say last time that you would ask for his contact information next time we meet?"

"Yes, I am." Jin Jieni was also shocked and had a headache. She leaned over and said, feeling a little tired, "But I walked around the backstage several times this afternoon and didn't run into him. Let's see if there is any chance after this is over."

“If it doesn’t work, let Chaeyoung ask Sehun oppa for it later…”

…………

"Well……"

After the last performance, today's MMA officially ended, and the EXO members walked into the backstage panting.

Because it was the last performance, and because there were so many Ailis present today, they did not leave the stage immediately after the performance ended. Instead, they stood on the stage and interacted with the fans and thanked them for a long time. When they returned to the backstage, the other idols had already returned a few minutes ago.

Several people were greeting the staff passing by. Chi Jingyuan also saw a group of Twice members gathered together on the other side, apparently filming some behind-the-scenes footage, but he said nothing and followed the members back to their lounge.

"Today's stage performance was very good! The audience's reaction was also absolutely amazing!"

“It’s truly a historic stage. We were all so excited watching it from below… I think it will definitely become a classic on the MMA stage.”

With the help of his assistant, he wiped the sweat off his face and drank some water to catch his breath. An Chengyuan smiled and encouraged and praised him for a few words. When he saw that it was almost done, he changed the subject and talked about something that everyone was concerned about: "I have already asked about the matter during the Crystal Boys' performance just now..."

Speaking of this, all the members perked up, and Chi Jingyuan put down his water cup and listened with his lips pursed.

"At that time, there was a staff member on the scene who came from the artist's passage to the artist's seats. He directed all the idols in the back row of the artist's seats to stand up."

An Chengyuan's expression was not very good: "She left directly after Twice stood up. I don't know if she did it on purpose."

"Ah? This must be intentional. How could they miss us? We were all looking at the stage at the time. The noise was so loud that we didn't even notice what was happening behind us."

Park Chanyeol didn't even think twice and just started yelling.

Kim Jong Dae also nodded and added, "Yes, H.O.T. is a super senior. If everyone else stood up and we were the only ones who didn't, we would definitely be accused of being impolite and disrespectful to our seniors. We don't know how we would be scolded then."

We are all smart people who have been in the circle for many years. Everyone can see the consequences of not standing up. No one believes that it was an unintentional act. Without thinking, everyone is sure that the stage manager did it on purpose.

Chi Jingyuan had the same idea.

They have seen this kind of shady trick many times since their debut, some of which happened to them, and some of which they saw happen to others.

"So, brother, how do we deal with this?"

"I have communicated with the organizers, but they said it was just an unintentional mistake by the staff, and it can't even be called a mistake... and there are no serious consequences... If we take a strong stance, they said they can apologize."

An Chengyuan talked about the results of his recent communication with the organizer.

"I don't think it's that simple." Kim Junmyeon thought about it and began to analyze: "Today it's not just about the stage management. I think there are some problems with the waiting room as well. Even with the senior H.O.D. here, our practice room shouldn't be this small. At least it shouldn't be as big as other groups."

"I didn't think so before, but now that they're connected, something seems fishy."

"There is definitely something wrong with that groundskeeper."

The members also started discussing it.

"It's really hard to talk about this kind of behind-the-scenes trick, because even if you know the other party is targeting you, you don't have any evidence at all."

An Chengyuan's expression was not very good, but he still added: "But the company will certainly not let it go. We are still communicating with the organizer, but the specific results have not yet come out..."

"..."

Chi Jingyuan listened to the whole process and made his own judgment.

It was similar to what he had thought before, that is, someone played a dirty trick on EXO and probably didn't ask them to stand up when asking others to stand up, hoping to make them be accused of disrespecting their seniors.

Although the method is relatively simple, the intention is indeed quite vicious.

As for the result of the handling, Chi Jingyuan didn't really pay attention to it. They didn't need an apology or anything like that... Even if they knew that the stage manager was playing dirty tricks, they had a reason to say, "I was just notifying the idols to stand up for the reaction. EXO didn't stand up because they didn't hear me when I called out, or they just forgot."

Even if the company becomes more powerful later on, the most they can do is ask the organizer to fire the venue staff, and there is actually nothing else they can do.

So the processing result is not really important.

The key point now is that we don’t know whether this incident is the behavior of an individual, or the behavior of a single hostile company... or a collective behavior.

This kind of shady trick is not uncommon. EXO encountered it many times when they first debuted, but it became less common as their popularity grew.

But now Chi Jingyuan thought about it and found that he seemed to have started to encounter these inexplicable, conscious or unconscious targeting again recently.

In connection with what happened today, it can be seen that there are indeed some people and forces around who are targeting them, and Chi Jingyuan actually has some guesses in his mind about the reasons for this... EXO is too popular.

You, a boy band, occupy nearly one-third of the entire physical sales market and the largest market share, suppressing all other boy bands and even girl bands are under their shadow.

And if it was only popular for one or two years, it would be fine, but now it is getting more and more popular every year, making other groups and companies breathless. Who else should they target if not you? Even if SM is a big company with a deep network of people, they don't care about this because they are facing market competition and pressure to survive.

Let me pull you down from the altar first.

If it is just the hostility of an individual or a single company, it would be fine. What Chi Jingyuan is worried about now is the reason he is thinking of... If it is because of this, then there must be more than just small tricks like today, there must be all kinds of dirty water and shady tricks in the future.

It is not impossible to directly expose the members' love without going through SM's PR...

If this is the case, even he would be somewhat helpless... Currently, many people in the industry know something about his background and would not dare to do anything. Some of their tricks would certainly not be used on him.

But if these people don't target him, but target the group or other members, Chi Jingyuan will actually be unable to do anything.

His background ensures that he can stay out of trouble. If he or his close friends are provoked, they will definitely respond with a severe counterattack and tell them who they should not mess with.

But if someone tries to expose Park Chanyeol for having multiple relationships, being the Seoul sex king, and fans choosing a concubine, what can he do? He can use his connections to stop it. He can stop it once, but he can't stop it all the time.

Of course I can help other members when they are in trouble. After all, our relationship has been good over the years... but I can't always be other people's babysitter.

It is SM company that runs EXO and makes money, and it is also SM that is responsible for maintaining and protecting the group and the reputation and image of the members...but he is him and SM is SM, this is not his job, and he can't always use his connections to support the company.

Some bad thoughts came to his mind, and Chi Jingyuan couldn't help but sigh deeply.

Alas, it is true that a good blacksmith must have strong tools himself. It would be great if all EXO members were as flawless as him...

"Okay, the company is still dealing with this matter, so we don't have to worry about it for now."

As if sensing the atmosphere was a bit dull, An Chengyuan forced a smile and waved his hand: "Let's not talk about this for now. There will be an award interview later. Let's take the certification photos now. The operation department is waiting."

(End of this chapter)