0713: You who shine in the parallel world

When the staff informed them to go to the backstage area for the last stage, Yu Yu and her four teammates stood up and waved to their brothers: "Brothers, hang in there a little longer, you'll be off work soon."

"Get off work, get off work, going to work is for getting off work!" Ma Boqian immediately smiled and led his former teammates from the first public performance to shout the campaign slogan for "Up the Mountain Down," while banging on the table or the back of the sofa to keep the rhythm.

The recording sessions for Brother Pi are never short; it's common for him to go into the studio at noon and come out at night.

By the end, not only are the audience members who have been standing on stage for most of the day exhausted, but the artists behind the scenes, who have to be careful not to let themselves go too much, are also mostly physically and mentally exhausted.

While audiences may have a stronger impression of the closing acts, this is also the downside of having an act appear last.

The audience, who had been standing all day and could only occasionally sit on the ground, and who had to go to the toilet in groups of ten, had their passion largely worn away over time. The performers, who had been waiting for the entire show and maintaining a high level of concentration, were also far from being full of energy.

"I've been waiting all day for your 'Investigation,' and I'm really looking forward to your live performance," Lin Zhiying said. "I heard that your pipe organ was custom-made by Yu Yu, right?"

Yu Yu and his brothers didn't publicize the fact that he was playing the pipe organ by hand, but somehow the news still reached the ears of his other brothers.

But that makes sense, since many of these celebrities are quite high-profile and they would have inside information channels within the production team.

"Go for it, I'm waiting for you to blow the whole place away and gently awaken their sleeping souls." Wang Yaoqing understood that the audience was just as excited at the beginning as they were exhausted now, so what he said was partly a polite and witty remark to maintain his humorous persona.

"Under Investigation" is a stage for singing and dancing, and with an uncommon large instrument like the pipe organ on the table, it always manages to create a lively atmosphere.

"That's not quite accurate, Uncle. When those guys go up there, it won't be a gentle wake-up call, it'll be a heavy blow." As one of their own, Zhang Yuan is the person who knows this stage best, besides Chen Chusheng's team.

The audio effects played by the music player during rehearsals were enough to blow the entire audience away, not to mention Yu Yu playing the pipe organ live, which would probably be even more explosive.

The production team scheduled "Under Investigation" for the end, not only to dampen their stage presence but also to create a lively ending. In addition, the pipe organ modified by Yu Yu is quite large and inconvenient to move.

"This should actually be the most special stage we've had in the past three seasons," Wu Mengzhi sighed, looking at the enormous figure on stage.

This song wasn't actually a particularly competitive piece among all the songs performed in the second round of the competition. It was the TV series that boosted its popularity, and the copyright fee wasn't that expensive. The version that the production team initially adjusted, which incorporated classical opera elements, still sounded a bit cliché. The reason for this is that it's quite difficult to associate it with opera; it's a typical pop song.

But Yu Yu managed to do it, even elevating the overall musicality and artistry of the work to another level. The original author would probably be very pleased to see this adaptation.

The audience members in the row closest to the main stage could vaguely see the stage crew carrying up a huge black object, and there were many more people moving back and forth on the stage, seemingly decorating something, which left them somewhat confused.

Could it be that the last stage is a performance stage? What kind of giant scene is being set up on stage?

Then they started counting on their fingers how many of the brothers had not yet appeared.

"The last group should be Chen Chusheng's group, right? They only had one stage performance before, 'Walking Fish'." A girl who looked to be in her early twenties sat on the ground, looking somewhat indifferent. "They are really lucky. They had a singing and acting performance in the first and second performances. Singing and acting performances are easy to score points. 0713 is indeed the favorite son of Fruit Entertainment."

Clearly, she is not a fan of 0713, is not interested in re-employment, and even has a rebellious attitude towards the soaring popularity and traffic of her friends in the past two years.

"Don't say that, sister. If you knew even a little about what happened back then, you wouldn't say they were Dogmang's favorite sons." A fan standing next to her retorted, somewhat speechless.

"Why should I understand them since they're not my favorites?" the girl said, pursing her lips. "Even if they weren't my favorites before, they are now, right? They give us the attention we want, the stage we want, and the group we want. Isn't that good? My uncle and his fellow excellent actors don't even get a chance to perform, while a few of them, singers in their thirties and forties, get to perform two rounds of shows. They can sing quite well, but can't singers just sing properly instead of always dominating areas they're not familiar with?"

"Heh, the royal family and the Celestial Dragons, what more needs to be said? They were all pre-selected." The girl's companion also sneered.

The woman who had just helped explain felt a surge of anger rising within her, but during the offline recording of the show, she was still able to maintain some rationality and restraint and reason with her rivals: "Brother Pi's stage was won by the brothers during the reality show. Who can blame others for not getting it? Besides, the last stage hasn't even started yet, so no one can be sure if it will be a singing and acting stage."

"You really believe the production team doesn't have a script? All those reality shows that have been released are just child's play."

She wanted to argue a bit more, but then a staff member came over to remind the audience that the last stage performance was about to begin. She could only snort and get up from the ground, deciding to calm down and enjoy the brothers' performance first. After all, there were only Yu Yu, Wang Yuexin, Yu Haoming, Huang Pinguan, and Su Xiaoding left who hadn't performed yet. 0705 had already taken up three of them. She wished her eyes were cameras so she could record every detail of the stage. How could she have time to argue with other rivals?

Of course, if the other side still wants to smear her after the performance ends, she doesn't mind continuing to battle with them.

Generally speaking, aside from the first stage, some audience members who are not interested in the remaining stages will choose to continue sitting on the floor to rest. This phenomenon occurs on all stages, including the last one.

The show's official cameras won't capture this scene, but soon the audience members standing around them will notice that when the music for the final stage starts, most of those sitting on the ground involuntarily stand up until the real climax arrives.

The suspense of the last stage was not revealed until the very last moment before the performance. The song was familiar to many in the audience: the promotional song for last year's dark horse TV series, "Under Investigation".

At first, the accompaniment was nothing special, and could even be described as simple. It relied entirely on the harmony of the five singers to drive the melody forward. This is a choice that really tests the singers' skills. In the case of Pi Ge, who usually sings live, weakening the background music will infinitely amplify the characteristics of the vocals.

As we all know, the opening of a stage performance is crucial to the overall sensory experience of the entire performance.

But the five people on stage were able to completely impress from the start. Even Su Xiaoding, who was the weakest among them, was able to withstand the pressure of being almost unaccompanied!

The audience was completely surprised by how well the five singers harmonized, creating a miniature symphony. Those unfamiliar with their voices couldn't distinguish whose voices were being sung throughout the venue; they only felt that the ethereal high notes were like the moon drawing the tides.

It was a completely natural melody, intertwining with the harmony and guiding them to rise and fall until the last verse of the opening lyrics receded. The harmony, which had been shifting between reality and illusion, also slowed down and entered the illusion until it dissipated.

It wasn't until this moment that many audience members could recognize that the guide from before was Yu Yu. However, on stage, they couldn't find the unforgettable figure of the "Gothic priest" who had appeared several times on the big screen not long ago, even in the lighting.

On stage, in the abandoned European-style castle created by the production team, after the chorus was used as the opening chorus, the verse began with Huang Pinguan's cello-like voice slowly drawing back the long-sealed curtain of the castle.

It's not an exaggeration for the audience to mistake "Under Investigation" for a singing and dancing performance. After several discussions by Yu Yu and the others, the singing and dancing stage has been given some simpler plot elements, and the dances are more like transitions to advance the story.

Huang Pinguan, Wang Yuexin, and Yu Haoming slowly rose from the bench, like unexpected visitors visiting the place for the first time. They looked around warily and, through a few simple dance moves, explored the castle. Their presence disturbed the long-sleeping vampire Su Xiaoding.

Without anyone noticing, they not only listened to the music but also watched it. This subtle influence was imperceptible. Some might think that the simple plot or the novel and attractive set design was the key, but what was truly important was the exquisite arrangement behind the scenes.

The music captivated the audience's emotions and attention. Most viewers even forgot about the high-pitched harmonies hidden in the darkness at the beginning and the person singing them. They only felt a silent tension permeating the venue, realizing that the three unexpected guests were no match for the vampires.

The chorus changes key here.

"After abandoning the rules, the world criticizes you; after abandoning redemption, you are condemned as sinful; after abandoning cowardice, what choice do you make..." The slowed-down melody, in Wang Yuexin's voice, becomes a painful question.

Just like a hero who spends his life fighting evil and protecting the righteous path, only to find that the "righteous path" he was protecting was actually the "demon," when righteousness cannot prevail over evil, devout believers question where the merciful God is.

If God is merciful, if God loves the world, if He truly loves all living beings, why does He not give even the slightest, barely audible response when faced with suffering and evil in the world, when He is in despair?

A solemn and majestic siren descended upon the entire arena the instant he uttered his painful question.

God gave His response.

Before the menacing, cold steel instruments, the figure playing the divine oracle is His response.