13: Chapter 13 was just so-so.

The boos and whispers in the Studio had not yet fully died down.

"Are you even awake yet, coming up here to sing?"

"Hurry up and get off the stage, stop embarrassing yourself!"

A few harsh remarks drifted from the front rows of the audience.

Hua Xingyu leaned back against his Star Mentor chair, the corners of his mouth curving slightly as his gaze fell upon the sitting figure in the center of the stage.

Everyone was waiting to see the "Backstage Sleeping Guy" make a fool of himself.

In the center of the stage, Jiang Fan acted as if he hadn't heard those voices at all.

Sitting on a high stool, his slender fingers pressed against the guitar fretboard, and his right thumb gently plucked the strings.

“Twang—!”

A clean, unadorned single note flowed from the speakers.

Then came the fourth string, the third string, and four of the most basic chords.

How basic were they?

Any beginner who had studied guitar for three months could play them.

Hearing this intro in the waiting area, Zhao Tianyu almost laughed out loud.

How many techniques had he used in his song "South Wind" just now?

Capo on the third fret, a key change in the chorus, and even an improvised solo during the interlude.

This guy, on the other hand, just looped a four-chord progression.

How dare he bring stuff from the very first lesson of introductory guitar onto the stage of Tomorrows Star?

The bullet comments reacted even faster than he did.

"That's it? That's it? I've been learning guitar for a month and even I can play that!"

"It's over, this guy really is just here to be a clown."

Hua Xingyu leaned back in his chair with his arms crossed, already having thought of at least ten different ways to deliver a scathing critique.

The moment Jiang Fan opened his mouth, he would ruthlessly tear him to shreds, and in doing so, complete the task assigned to him by Shenghai Entertainment.

On the judges' panel, the originally nonchalant Xue Zhiheng suddenly froze.

As the "Melody Wizard" of the Chinese music scene, his ears were sharper than anyone else's.

As soon as the intro of these few bars started, he heard something different.

Sophisticated.

A minimalist yet extremely catchy sophistication.

The guitar set the stage for a dozen or so seconds.

Jiang Fan leaned close to the microphone and parted his lips slightly.

"Lingering, on the road."

"Are you leaving, via, via."

His voice was very soft. So soft it was almost like he was talking to himself.

There were no vocal flourishes, no techniques.

Among the five hundred audience members, some began to frown.

They were originally waiting to hear a piece that could rival Zhao Tianyu's "South Wind".

Instead, they got a murmur that sounded like street busking.

"Fragile, yet proud."

"That was once my likeness as well."

Jiang Fan looked up.

The stage lights shone directly from above, casting a sharp shadow across his face.

"Seething, restless."

"Where are you going, via, via."

The rhythm of the guitar began to intensify, each strum carrying a driving force forward.

"Enigmatic, silent."

"Are you really listening to the story?"

The chorus arrived.

Jiang Fan's right hand suddenly swept down, all six strings vibrating simultaneously.

"I once crossed mountains and seas, and passed through crowds of people."

"Everything I once owned vanished like smoke in the blink of an eye."

"I was once lost, disappointed, and had lost all direction, until I saw that the ordinary is the only answer."

His voice suddenly opened up at this moment.

The five hundred public judges on-site all looked up now, staring blankly at the slender figure holding a guitar on stage.

A few emotional girls already had teary eyes.

The bullet comments in the Livestream Room fell into a complete vacuum for a full ten seconds.

Then, an explosive surge erupted.

"Holy shit! Holy shit! Holy shit!"

"Is this fucking amateur? Is this fucking original?"

"These lyrics... why does a thirty-year-old grown man like me feel like crying?"

"Who was the one saying he was just seeking attention earlier? Step forward and say it now!"

In the control room.

Chief Director Liang Boyuan had just picked up his water cup, but the moment he heard the chorus, he set it straight down on the control console.

He grabbed the walkie-talkie.

"Cut all camera angles over to him."

On stage, Jiang Fan's fingers flew across the strings.

"I once destroyed my everything."

"Only wanting to leave forever."

"I once fell into boundless darkness."

"Struggling, yet unable to free myself."

"I was once like you, like him, like those wild weeds and wildflowers."

"Despairing, longing, crying and laughing, living ordinarily."

After the chorus, he dialed back the intensity during the interlude.

"Time is silent, and so it goes."

"Tomorrow is already before our eyes."

"Where the wind blows, the road is still far."

"Where has your story reached?"

The sound of the guitar faded layer by layer.

Jiang Fan plucked the strings one last time, and the sound dissipated into the stage lights.

On the judges' panel, Xue Zhiheng could no longer sit still at all.

He had written lyrics for half his life and considered himself virtually without rival in the Chinese music industry.

But these few lines of lyrics from Jiang Fan made his scalp go numb.

This was truly the ultimate simplicity where the greatest truth lies!

Hua Xingyu's face was incredibly unsightly.

The harsh words he had prepared were now stuck in his throat like a fishbone, unable to be spat out or swallowed.

Sitting right in the middle of the judges' panel, Xu Qingya looked at Jiang Fan in confusion.

Is he really that security guard?

Why would someone capable of creating such a god-tier song be content to be a security guard?

There was no applause in the entire venue.

It wasn't that they didn't want to clap, but that they hadn't processed it yet.

The silence lasted for a full six seconds.

Until Xue Zhiheng suddenly stood up.

“Clap! Clap! Clap!”

He clapped vigorously, his palms turning red.

This applause was like a signal, instantly igniting the entire Studio.

The five hundred public judges stood up spontaneously, the thunderous applause nearly bringing down the roof.

Screams and cheers intertwined, creating an even greater uproar than when Lu Ming had made his entrance earlier.

This was true stage presence.

No flashy dancing, no industrialized fan-service glances; with just a single song, he made everyone submit.

In the waiting area, Zhao Tianyu rested both hands on his knees, his knuckles turning white from clenching them.

Just moments ago, he had been smugly pleased with how tightly integrated the lyrics and music of his song "South Wind" were, and how sophisticated its chords were.

But compared to this song now...

A contestant next to him whispered, "This song... isn't it just too strong?"

The bullet comments in the Livestream Room had gone completely wild.

"So badass! This is the best song I've heard all year!"

"This guy's name is Jiang Fan, right? I'm a fan now!"

"I'm sorry, I was shouting too loud when I was criticizing him before, I kowtow to God Jiang!"

Xue Zhiheng picked up the microphone.

"Jiang Fan," Xue Zhiheng's voice could not hide his excitement, "did you really write the lyrics and music for this song entirely by yourself?"

Jiang Fan nodded.

"Genius. Although the Arrangement of this song is simple, the emotional build-up is simply perfect. Especially the lyrics—I, Xue Zhiheng, have written lyrics for so many years, but today before you, I am utterly convinced. On the Solo Track, this song of yours is a well-deserved trump card!"

The entire venue erupted in an uproar.

Xue Zhiheng was notoriously proud and critical, so for him to say he was "utterly convinced" meant the quality of Jiang Fan's song required no further proof.

He pressed the scoring button.

A number popped up on the screen.

98.

The entire crowd gasped.

The highest score of the day.

Compared to this number, Zhao Tianyu's score of 93 suddenly seemed a bit glaring.

Xu Qingya picked up the microphone, her gaze colliding with Jiang Fan's.

"You are a very contradictory person," her voice was very steady, "your attitude makes people uncomfortable, but your song makes it impossible to say no."

"95 points."

With the two scores revealed, the contestants in the waiting area fell dead silent.

Everyone's eyes turned in unison to the third Star Mentor.

Hua Xingyu picked up the water cup on the table, took a slow sip, and set it down.

This action bought him a few seconds of buffer time.

He knew very well in his heart the weight of this song.

But knowing it was one thing; sitting in this chair today, he wasn't here to act as a music judge.

"To be honest, I have never expected anything from your work. I don't think someone who sleeps backstage deserves this stage."

He spoke very slowly.

"As for this song... a loop of four chords, a generic melody, and an Arrangement that is practically non-existent. While everyone else is praising it, I, on the contrary, feel—"

"...it's just so-so."