42: Qianqian took first place

"Who dares to cross the pass of love?"

"Gazing at the bright moon, the heart is desolate."

"Eternal regrets, tasted through reincarnation."

"With eyes closed, who is the wildest?"

The super-strong vocal transitions stunned the audience. The quality of some songs isn't determined by the equipment used, but by the music's own rhythm, arrangement, composition, the singer's skills, and their personal style.

As for the song "moonlight," experts could tell at a single listen that the style was too unique; ordinary people simply couldn't imitate it.

Lu Qingyu was already immersed in the song. At this moment, the MV he had seen in his previous life flashed through his mind, giving him a deeper emotional connection to the lyrics.

"The impermanence of this world."

"Destines those who dare to love to a lifetime..."

When the last line of the lyrics ended, everyone remained dazed for a long time.

There was no other reason than it being good—it was simply too good to listen to.

Lu Qingyu's song seemed to transport everyone to another world, a world where talents emerged in succession, maneuvering with strategic brilliance, featuring devoted beauties and hearts full of tender sorrow.

Someone took the lead in applauding, and the others, coming back to their senses, immediately followed suit. The shouting could no longer be contained. They had thought Lu Jin's live performance just now was the limit, but they hadn't expected Lu Qingyu's to be even more spectacular.

No one who heard this song left without being pleasantly surprised.

It wasn't surprising that everyone reacted this way; the 'Gu-feng' (Ancient Style) genre wasn't mainstream or popular in this world. Although many dabbled in it, there were only a handful of truly good songs.

Take Lu Jin's song "searching for you," for example. Even Lou Qingran could feel that the song wasn't actually that exceptionally good, yet it managed to stay popular for two years. Part of the reason was the scarcity within this creative circle.

And "moonlight" felt like a god suddenly descending to the mortal realm; it was a total dimensional strike.

Bullet Chat: "My lifelong favorite has been found, it has to be 'moonlight'."

"Little brother sings so well, this song is incredible."

"I originally thought his 'dispelling sorrow' and 'orchid pavilion preface' would be hard to surpass, but I never expected this."

"How many more surprises does Lu Qingyu have? I love it. I declare that from now on, you are my one and only idol."

Watching the reaction at the scene, Lu Jin tried his best to control his expression, though his hands were almost digging holes into the sofa.

His previously confident and calm demeanor was completely gone. He stared nervously at Lu Qingyu's vote count on the stage. When the Host announced the start of voting, the progress bar began to race forward.

1.35 million—he easily surpassed Lou Qingran. Then 1.48 million, 1.58 million... Even then, the progress bar showed no signs of slowing down.

Lu Jin felt like his heart was about to leap out of his chest, and his eyes hurt from staring so hard.

When the progress bar surged past his own mark, Lu Jin gnashed his teeth. Looking at the final position of the progress bar, the audience erupted in another round of cheers.

1.92 million. Even Chen Ting hadn't expected Lu Qingyu to get 1.92 million votes. This was simply a massive surprise.

Looking at the final tally, the Host announced on stage, "Congratulations to Lu Qingyu for taking first place in points for the first episode!"

Lu Qingyu smiled, revealing his small canine teeth.

After leaving the stage, as he passed Lou Qingran, this slightly aloof older sister stood up and offered Lu Qingyu a sincere congratulation.

Lu Qingyu politely gave Lou Qingran a quick hug. "Thank you, Sister Qingran."

After the first episode ended, Lu Jin went back in a gloomy mood. To celebrate Lu Qingyu's great success, Chen Ting took him out for a big feast.

The song "moonlight" became a total hit in the Gu-feng circle. In the face of this song, Lu Jin's "searching for you" simply couldn't compare.

Originally, "searching for you" held some status in the Gu-feng circle, but as soon as "moonlight" came out, it was an instant kill.

Because Lu Qingyu's popularity eclipsed Lu Jin's, the fans of both sides began to clash fiercely.

"So what if he's 16 and singing? Without talent, he couldn't sing 'moonlight' even if he were twice that age."

"Lu Qingyu is just a newcomer. Are his fans so arrogant that they aren't afraid of attracting hate to him?"

"Hilarious. You guys started the trouble first, okay? Is it wrong for us to fight back legitimately? Are we supposed to just let you bully us?"

"Lu Jin debuted earlier than Lu Qingyu; he's a senior no matter how you look at it. Where's the respect?"

"Moral kidnapping? When your strength fails, you start talking about seniority. Got it, Lu Jin is just that cowardly."

"Your idol is the cowardly one! Watch your mouth. Lu Qingyu's fans are so arrogant, his house will collapse sooner or later."

The two sides were locked in an endless spat. Su Jixing had the contact information for the Fan Club, and for the sake of a harmonious online atmosphere, Su Jixing subtly stated:

"Don't start rumors, don't smear others, but don't let yourselves be bullied. We aren't even in the same company anymore, so do as you see fit. If anything happens, come to me."

This was the professional capability of a top-tier Agent—first-class at providing backup.

A wave of covers for "moonlight" also arrived.

007 was a big shot in the Gu-feng circle. He usually live-streamed on TikTok and would sing a few songs for everyone every night.

Just as he started the stream at eight in the evening, everyone was frantically recommending a song called "moonlight" to him. 007 looked at the unfamiliar name and asked the viewers in the stream.

"I haven't heard this song. Is it a recent release?"

Bullet Chat: "Great God, it's a fresh, hot-off-the-press song. It's super good. Can you sing it?"

"Yeah, yeah, this song is amazing. Great God, please sing it once."

"'moonlight' is a bit difficult. Can you handle it, Great God?"

007 hadn't cared much about the song at first. In fact, people requested many songs every day when he went online; it was just that there were quite a few people requesting "moonlight" today.

However, seeing someone actually doubt his ability—well, he was a bit provoked. He was an outstanding graduate of a proper music conservatory, and C5 high notes were a breeze for him. He had never been afraid of anyone when it came to covers.

"Since everyone likes the song 'moonlight' so much, I'll give it a listen first."

007 opened a music app to search for moonlight. His ability to memorize musical melodies was very strong; he could basically pick up a song after listening to it two or three times.

The day after Lu Qingyu finished the program, Chen Ting had him record an exclusive version and post it on music apps. The company handled the copyright fees, giving Lu Qingyu almost the same treatment as when Chen Ting released his own songs.

007 clicked on the song to look at the information. The performer was named Lu Qingyu. He hadn't heard this name before; was he a newcomer to the Gu-feng circle?

The accompaniment started, making his eyes light up. The sound of the pipa, carrying an ancient charm, pierced through his ears, instantly drawing him into the musical realm.

When the accompaniment finished, Lu Qingyu's voice came through.

"moonlight color, woman's fragrance, tears break the sword, love is sung often, how much pain, wordless fragrance, forgetting you~"

After hearing the first few lines, 007 gave a cold laugh. He had thought it would be difficult, but while the lyrics were decent, the difficulty was simply not worth mentioning. This song was probably being overhyped.

Bullet Chat: "Great God, how is it? It's good, right?"

"Great God, can you sing this song? If you think it's hard, you can listen to it a few more times."

007 raised an eyebrow and replied to the netizens, "The lyrics are pretty good and have that ancient charm, but the difficulty is average. For me, listening to it twice is enough."