182: Chapter 180 180 is still two and a half meters away from my height!

The recording of the special episode of twelve star messengers: records of survival in the mortal realm on the streets of Myeong-dong—a mix of absurdity, shame, hilarity, and hardcore advertising—came to a temporary halt as the IZ*ONE members retreated backstage, physically and mentally exhausted. However, the subsequent effects were like water droplets thrown into a scalding oil pan, instantly exploding and spreading outward at an alarming speed!

The grand occasion of the recording site and various inconceivable yet impressive "famous scenes" (the roast duck man dancing to secret story of the swan, the benevolence Mermaid, the Lion Charge Duck Punch, the 400,000 mineral water bottle headgear, the milky ramen rap, etc.) had already been frantically spread by countless audience members and waiting fans via SNS, forums, and short video platforms. Hashtags like #IZONE Myeong-dong Cultivation#, #Lion Charge Duck Punch#, #Jang Wonyoung Water Bottle Spirit#, #roast duck man secret story of the swan#, and #Is Jiang Zhiyu a Devil# shot up like rockets, dominating the top of the trending lists across major South Korean online communities, with their popularity and discussion levels exploding geometrically!

This wasn't just a heated discussion about ordinary variety show clips; it was a phenomenal national carnival born from the collision of extreme "social death" and extreme "creativity" (or rather, "parody"). The IZ*ONE members, abandoning their idol baggage to contribute shameful yet hilarious footage, were turned into various memes, GIFs, and remix videos, spreading virally. What made industry insiders and brand owners widen their eyes even more was that all the sponsored products appearing in the show reached an unbelievable peak in exposure!

Jufu Zhai Roast Duck? The clip of the "roast duck man" dancing and the "pre-battle roast duck resupply" footage instantly garnered unprecedented attention and discussion for this traditional roast duck brand among young consumers, causing search volumes and online orders (especially at stores near Myeong-dong) to skyrocket!

Iceberg Source Crystal Mineral Water? The elegant (?) image of Jang Wonyoung with the "400,000 Crown" on her head while dancing, along with the later giant mineral water bottle headgear, although making Jang Wonyoung herself feel like dying of shame, successfully carved the impression of this high-end mineral water's "luxury" and "uniqueness" (and price) into the public's mind in an extremely dramatic way.

orion pie? Despite Jang Wonyoung's strong resistance, the chibi-style advertisement of "I love Orion the most" and the related gags in the show caused its buzz to soar once again.

Others like XX brand juice, YY brand soap, ZZ brand stress relief toys, AA brand ramen, BB brand sports drinks, CC brand energy bars, and so on... any brand that appeared in the show in any form (even if it was just in the lyrics of an awkward song or as a prop in the background) enjoyed exposure and social discussion far exceeding regular advertising placements.

And the "instigator" and "chief designer" of all this—Jiang Zhiyu—saw his name pushed to the forefront once again along with the show's explosive popularity. Only this time, in addition to titles like "genius PD" and "ace producer from SM," a brand-new title, tinged with a bit of awe and disbelief, began to circulate in the industry and among the public:

"Midas Touch" Jiang Zhiyu!

This implied that he seemed to possess magic, able to turn stone into gold, transforming variety show ideas that seemed absurd or even potentially damaging to an artist's image into terrifying levels of topic traffic and real commercial value that would make all brand owners envious! The projects he handled were not just successes in content, but also a textbook example of commercial cooperation—albeit in an extremely "special" way.

The dressing room was filled with a post-disaster-like exhaustion and a subtle silence. The members gradually took off those shameful plush headgears, revealing faces flushed from the heat and cheeks damp with sweat. They took off their tracksuits stained with roast duck sauce and unknown sequins and changed into their comfortable private clothes. Their movements were somewhat slow, as if they were shedding not just clothes, but the overloaded sense of absurdity they had endured for the past two hours.

No one spoke; there was only the rustle of fabric and the occasional soft sigh of relaxation. Everyone was silently digesting everything that had just happened—from "Charisma Combat" to "Guarding the Sausage," from "Lion Charge Duck Punch" to the "benevolence Mermaid," from holding a tactical meeting while wearing bizarre headgear to watching the roast duck man dance to secret story of the swan... The amount of information was overwhelming, and the level of shame was off the charts, such that their brains were in a temporary state of protective shutdown after being overloaded.

Kwon Eunbi carefully wiped her face with a wet wipe, trying to erase the sticky sweat and possible tear tracks (she had almost lost it earlier). The mirror reflected her slightly tired but still determined face. As the leader, she had to adjust the fastest. She looked at her younger members in the mirror, opened her mouth to say something encouraging, but found that all words seemed pale and powerless in the face of the absurd drama that had just unfolded. Finally, she just cleared her throat and said in as steady a voice as possible: "Everyone... take a break and have some water."

On the other side, in sharp contrast to the low pressure inside the dressing room, was the TG Entertainment command center temporarily rented near Myeong-dong.

Here, the ringing of phones and message notification sounds were going off continuously at an almost explosive frequency and volume! It wasn't just one or two; almost all external communication lines were in an unprecedented state of busyness!

"Ring, ring, ring—!!!"

"Buzz, buzz, buzz—!!!"

"Hello, this is the twelve star messengers: records of survival in the mortal realm production team... Ah, yes! The product placement for Jufu Zhai Roast Duck has received a very enthusiastic response? You want to add more sponsorship and discuss further in-depth cooperation? Okay, okay, please wait a moment while I record your contact information!"

"Hello? XX Juice Brand Department? Yes, yes, I'm the person in charge! You're very satisfied with the 'Juice Person' idea? You want to invite IZ*ONE members to participate in the filming of offline promotional activities? We need to coordinate this with their respective agencies..."

"What? YY brand soap? You think the connection between scorpio and gemini is very innovative? You want to launch a limited edition collaboration for Kim Chaewon-xi and Jo Yuri-xi?!"

"ZZ brand stress relief toys? Sales have surged because of the viral spread of the show's clips on SNS? You hope to sign a long-term endorsement contract?"

"Iceberg Source Crystal Mineral Water? You are very satisfied with Jang Wonyoung-xi's performance and have decided to officially start the signing process for the 'Extreme Luxury Edition' young spokesperson?!"

"And... Brothers Ramen Shop? You want to invite An Yujin, Yabuki Nako, Kang Hye-won, and Lee Chaeyeon to serve as image ambassadors? Along with the 'Zodiac Ramen' concept?"

"Happy Amusement Park Food Group? Choi Yena's 'Sausage Saint' image has left a deep impression, and you want to introduce the Pisces Sausage Stall as a permanent project in your parks? And invite Choi Yena to serve as the Annual Gourmet Promotion Ambassador?!"

Calls came one after another, and emails arrived one by one—all from major brand owners, investors, and partner institutions! Inquiries, praise, cooperation intentions, and requests for additional sponsorship flooded in like a tide!

The newly hired assistants and interns at TG Entertainment responsible for answering the phones were flustered, their pens sliding rapidly across their notebooks, their faces filled with shock and disbelief. They knew their PD had a knack for variety shows when they joined, but they didn't expect this "knack" to reach directly into the sponsors' pockets and cause so many financial backers to scramble to stuff money in! The requests were specific, and the budgets sounded more terrifying than the last!

Without exception, these calls were from brand owners who had seen the leaked shots of today's Myeong-dong filming, the trending topics online, or had learned of the show's amazing (and peculiar) product placement effects through internal channels, and had flocked to the scene wanting to catch this train of "traffic and buzz"!

From food and beverages to daily chemicals and personal care, from toys to home furnishings, and even those who had cooperated before and wanted to renew or upgrade their partnerships after seeing the new hype (like Orion)... the scope was so wide and the enthusiasm so high that it was simply jaw-dropping.

And this information was also fed back at the fastest speed to the respective agencies of the IZ*ONE members—Starship, WM, 8D, Woollim, Yuehua, and so on—as well as to their joint project group's management, CJ ENM/Off The Record.