THT Television had little to no prior foundation, yet its show achieved surprisingly strong ratings—let alone within our own domestic market.
The domestic Star Journey series had built up its audience over earlier episodes, and the flashy publicity didn't hurt either.
By the seventh episode, the enthusiasm was through the roof. Drums thundered, fireworks boomed, red flags waved, and crowds surged like tides!
Chu Zhi took the stage at the Philharmonic Concert Hall. In the live comment feed, his name was the only thing appearing. Fans and casual viewers alike were spamming:
"High-energy ahead!"
"WC, is this high-energy? This is nuclear energy!"
"My high-energy lord?! This voice gave me peed myself!"
"Go to hospital if you've lost control!"
"Chu Zhi YYDS [Forever God]!"
"The foreigner's face on stage is my face watching this!"
"When's this song dropping? It's going to be my alarm tone!"
What does "double, double, win"? It's winning four times.
The show captured the hype, Chu Zhi captured the spotlight, viewers got their divinely epic performance, and marketing accounts got their juicy clips.
Fans came in four flavors: "mom," "girlfriend" (face), career-focused, and die-hard. With each epic foreign stage show, career-focused fans grew by the month.
When Chu Zhi's career-focused fanbase thrives, good news streams in like clockwork—he steadily grows stronger, then blinds everyone with brilliance.
The most intense career fan was Su Shangbai, who had backed several artists before with little result.
Headline after headline:
"All‑Around Review: Feel Chu Zhi's Power" — Sina News
"At a table with a dozen world‑famous tenors, only his high notes shook everyone" — NetEase News
"Voice of Heaven: Another Side of Chu Zhi" — Penguin News
"Revealed: Why Chu Zhi's Singing Skills Shoot Up So Fast—Turns Out He Used This Method…" — Toutiao
Mandarin-speaking internet exploded. News apps pushed it as a hotspot; even Youth Daily and Guangming Daily gave brief coverage.
Every app tried clever clickbait headlines. Kuaishou and Baidu Maps went over the top.
In the age of the internet, apps desperately clamor to hold users' attention.
Few apps intentionally 'lock in time' like Chu Zhi. His fan hub, Orange Home, is planning something big—but that's for later.
Remember those netizens who doubted he belonged at the St. Petersburg International Culture Forum? Episode 7 made it crystal clear.
The tide reversed—
Users commented:
Xiao K Mr: "I expected Chu Zhi might do well, but not carry it this hard. I'd call this the strongest voice ever."
Suolin: "I must confess—I doubted Chu Zhi's skill. But man… there's a poem: 'This melody should exist only in heaven; how often is it heard on earth?'"
Mo Oke: "Now it's clear. Before, Chu Zhi let no one survive his vocals–'Night's Seventh Chapter,' 'Drunken Concubine.' Now he's cut off his own retreat? Is this 'no retreat'? Damn, I love it!"
Wai Wai Wai: "THT wanted a side dish; they didn't expect a full feast."
Dongxue Qingge: "I thought Chu Zhi was purely technical, mastery of skill. But now I see—he hides physical power with technique. That body-level dominance left other guests speechless."
You could tell these weren't Little Fruits fans. Hitting them with next‑level skill is a knockout—no answer.
The shock hit not just viewers, but the industry. Take the new generation of stars like Lin Xia, Wu Tang, Su Zhou, Li Fei, etc.
Lin Xia and Chu Zhi were hailed as the young vocal duo of the music world. Technically Chi forced the duo label—but yes, Lin Xia had solid technique.
Lin Xia remarked: "What did I say? When I sing, it's like singing a song. When Chu Jiu‑ge (brother Jiu) sings, it's like performing a full opera. Even his 'Night's Seventh Chapter' and 'Drunken Concubine' blew me away. They're not comparable."
"Why didn't human evolution bring me along?" Lin Xia said, almost in a trance. A year ago he beat Chu Zhi on a singer show? Wu Tang meanwhile, a singer‑turned‑actor shooting a costume romance, saw stage clips of Chu Zhi at Philharmonic Hall online. He wasn't watching Journey Among the Stars, but Opera 2 clips went viral—whether he wanted to see or not.
Wu Tang murmured: "I've known… Gauguin had bipolar, Van Gogh… borderline, Michelangelo… autism, Josephson… schizophrenia, Xu Wei… depression… I knew Chu Zhi was no ordinary person."
People fall into three categories: those with self-awareness, those without—and Wu Tang. He fits the first exactly.
"Demon, reveal your true form! From the ending high notes I knew—this high‑note horn has become a living spirit!" he said, goosebumps everywhere.
Former "mom‑fan ceiling" Su Yiwu, now mom‑fan-tier-two, and her agency hated Chu Zhi for stealing fans.
Su Yiwu listened to Opera 2 and even tried mimicking its funeral‑tone high notes twice—left her uncomfortable.
"Differences between people are even greater than between humans and pigs," she muttered.
Top stars Li Fei and Zhou Guowu skipped comments after hearing Opera 2—the former, with classical background, felt shot down; the latter just clung tighter to alliances.
When morning came, the trending topic was still yesterday's news. Chu Zhi arrived early at the company—ready to work.
"Brother Chu, next year's St. Petersburg International Culture Forum wants to invite you as a Main Guest," said Niu Jiangxue. "Being main guest is not the same as being just a guest."
"What's the difference?" Chu Zhi asked.
"Main guests sit up front on stage at opening ceremonies—the top twenty-two or so," Niu Jiangxue explained.
"That invitation feels… weighty," Chu Zhi said, curious. Even with a stellar Opera 2, did that elevate him to main guest? It felt excessive.
Many so‑called 'international forums' or music festivals may look grand, but few ordinary people feel their impact—news flow is blocked.
Film festivals are different since they award prizes and represent national pride; forum events, not so much. Unless covered by Tass, few back home even notice.
Take St. Petersburg Forum for example—Chinese guests always perform well, but who really knows?
In the era of online influence, forum events now carry clout. Chu Zhi brought huge traffic to China, Russia, Korea, Japan—making this edition the most popular yet. Ordinary audiences even cared.
The committee invited him as main guest because of this.
"This is our first Main Guest invitation, thanks to THT's platform," Niu Jiangxue said. "Even if Chu‑ge does well, this kind of invite doesn't happen for pop stars automatically. The committee is giving an olive branch. We should accept—it signals Chu‑ge's recognition by the Russian art scene."
Not a matter of chasing fame—it's true artistic validation.
"If no new Russian song is ready by then, we can just perform Opera 2 again," suggested Niu Jiangxue.
Chu Zhi agreed.
Another topic followed.
"I think it's time to schedule a Russian-language EP," said Niu Jiangxue. "Seventeen Russian labels reached out yesterday wanting to represent you."
"Let's not rush, Niu‑jie," Chu Zhi interjected, "We already released an EP in Japan. Back home we only have one album after my comeback, though with a few singles and two movie themes—'Listen to Mom' and 'Night Vampire.' That's around twenty songs total."
"Expanding fame abroad is good, but our foundation is still domestic," he continued. "Let's finish the second album after New Year, then decide on a Korean single or Russian EP."
Being an 'Emperor Beast' means not getting overwhelmed by sudden fame. But Niu Jiangxue was clearly excited—too eager.
"My apologies, Chu‑ge," she said. "I worry that missing this chance might lose it forever."
Thinking calmly, Chu Zhi responded: "No need to apologize. I know you're acting for the team's good. But our schedule is packed. We need to finish recording second album before the new year and release after. Then we have Fuji Rock in Japan, followed quickly by a China‑Japan‑Korea joint concert. We don't have cloning tech."
Without realizing, nearly a year's schedule had packed in.
"I need to adjust mindset," admitted Niu Jiangxue. "Journey Among the Stars's results in Japan and Russia are unprecedented. I feel… a bit unmoored. But our foundation at home is weak. We should prepare three albums and earn major domestic awards first."
Chu Zhi nodded. Ensuring a strong domestic base makes external expansion sustainable. They could take ad money abroad, but shifting focus too soon risks it all.
"Two months to produce new album—enough time?" she asked. "If tight, we can trim some dates."
"Currently fine. Second album is self‑produced. More work, less controversy," said Chu Zhi.
Having heard the plan, Niu Jiangxue sent ad proposals for Chu Zhi to choose from. Half an hour later, he left his office.
"Whew—this year-end… how much did I earn this year?" Chu Zhi wondered, logging into bank cards:
Construction Bank: ¥240 million
Agricultural Bank: ¥140 million
Bank of Communications: ¥320 million
Other cards totaled nearly ¥100 million.
"¥800 million?" he nearly choked—it was far more than he expected.
"After personal and team bonuses, I still have over ¥700 million, without full ad payments yet. Top streamers make bank," he muttered. Even public companies cough up less annually.
"All tax‑compliant—no shady hiding needed."
Personal branding profits were already huge even before launching his own label.
"Foreign market development means next year income will be even higher," he concluded swiftly. Business calls.
Plans couldn't match changing tides—Chu Zhi never expected Opera 2 to cause such uproar in Russia.
"I underestimated Vitas's influence in Russia," he thought. Better to remove Opera tracks from domestic album and use them for Russian EP.
"For complicated tracks, record two versions. New album has twelve Chinese-themed songs…" he polished the plan. Removing "Night's Seventh Chapter" and "Sad Pacific" helped flow.
He contemplated: "That's nine songs—two more needed."
As his exclusive coin (个性币) balance shrank, he sighed—maybe he should donate. Over next two days, Opera 2 buzz sustained—and he anonymously donated ¥20 million. Do you know how much thought that took?
He didn't. But as an individual making such large donations, authorities took notice.
Accumulating ¥50 million in low-profile donations earned him five exclusive coins. Two coins left.
"Open it, open the prize box."
"To get rich, you gotta open blind boxes."
"System bro, you know the drill."
He took a deep breath and triggered a draw.
[Emperor Voice]
[Jazz Dance Mastery]
["By Lake Baikal" gift pack]
["So Many People in This World" gift pack]
[Album: Wukong]
[Album: Faith]
"Have I drawn too many packs recently? Rewards feel repetitive—Jazz and Emperor Voice appeared before," Chu Zhi asked.
===
Night's Seventh Chapter (Yè de Dì Qī Zhāng)
新贵妃醉酒 ("New Drunken Concubine")
Listen to Mom (Tīng Māmā Dehuà) – movie theme
Night Vampire (Yè Fǎng Xīxuèguǐ) – movie theme