The mic was passed to Wang Yuan, but her throat choked up and she couldn't get a single word out.
"I…" She tried hard to hold back her tears, telling herself not to cry and ruin her makeup. But the moment the camera zoomed in, her carefully done makeup was already smudged.
"Sister Wang, what song do you want to hear? I'll sing it for you." Chu Zhi knew her personality. He didn't say anything cliché like "don't cry."
After taking several deep breaths, she finally calmed herself a little. "My favorite song is 'Sleepwalking,' from the third album 25,117 Possibilities."
What an obscure choice. Chu Zhi thought seriously about it. If she hadn't requested it, there's no way this track would've appeared on the world tour setlist.
🎵 "You once could've easily chosen to give up, thank you for not forgetting to be yourself." 🎵
Since Wang Yuan couldn't carry a tune, she just recited that one line, then said, "I've sung this song to my past self countless times."
Every family has its own troubles. Even someone born into wealth like Wang Yuan had her share of pain.
At concerts, it wasn't rare for singers to forget lyrics. With hundreds of songs and years gone by, that was normal. But not for the Emperor Beast. He never forgot. The memories of creating each song were his to draw on. Even if it'd been years, a little recall was all it took.
Zheng Xianbi, Yan Xin, and the other mama fans who'd volunteered just to sneak into the concert watched as he gave Wang Yuan this special treatment. Their hearts swelled with both gratitude and envy.
The gratitude came from thinking, "What could be better than seeing your kid express real appreciation?"
The envy came naturally. Wang Yuan was not only a representative mama fan, she was also a high-ranking exec at Aiguo Entertainment. No wonder she'd become the one standing in that spotlight. Even Yan Xin, who normally avoided interviews, wished she could trade places.
During "Sleepwalking," Chu Zhi clearly saw Wang Yuan's expression of satisfaction, as if all her wishes had been fulfilled at once.
The spiritual satisfaction an idol could bring was overwhelming.
Just then, a cool midnight breeze swept across the stage, making him shiver.
"Chilly…" he muttered.
Even though the encore section didn't involve jumping around, singing a dozen songs back-to-back had drained him like running a half marathon.
The hoodie that should've kept him warm now felt like punishment. The fleece lining was soaked with sweat, and once the wind blew through, the chill was unbearable.
It was about time to wrap things up. Following the concert plan, Chu Zhi moved into the final segment.
"I want to switch roles with the Little Fruits. I'll be your fan tonight." He smiled, holding the mic. "Can you grant me this one wish?"
The eighty thousand fans roared their approval. Singing for their idol—it sounded impossibly romantic.
"Alright, then I'll be waiting."
He sat at the edge of the stage, legs swinging like a kid on a swing. The stage itself had been built higher than most people imagined to fit all the gear and lifts.
He had no clue what the fans would sing.
With so many voices, the loudest ones won out. At first it was a mess: "Brightest Star in the Night Sky," "Most Beautiful Sun," "Angel." Then suddenly, one female voice rang clear.
🎵 "My friend, do you know, because of you I've found the most caring embrace in the world, and the best prayers, lasting until the end of time. Fate is so important, so strange, in the crowded world of chaos, you're still in my arms." 🎵
It was Wang Yuan again… flat and out of tune, nine words out of ten off-key. But because she still had the mic from earlier, her voice spread through the whole stadium.
The song was "You Are My Greatest Pride in Life," a fan-dedicated track from one of Chu Zhi's albums. Many stars had covered it as a thank-you to their fans. Even if it wasn't as famous as "Brightest Star in the Night Sky," plenty had heard it before.
Some Little Fruits reacted instantly and joined in.
🎵 "I want, I want you to live better than anyone else, I want your life to be filled with sunlight.I want, I want you to stand taller than the sky, I want you to get the most beautiful, complete return." 🎵
It was a strange reversal, fans singing back the song idols usually sang for them.
Soon the entire stadium realized how perfect it felt. The lyrics matched the mood so well. More and more voices joined in. Even those who didn't know the words just howled along.
🎵 "If I worry, it's because I see you worried. Do you know my smile exists so you can smile? You suffer for me, I know it, but I'll never give up, because you've become my greatest pride in life." 🎵
Realizing her mic was overpowering everyone else, Wang Yuan stopped using it after the first line. Still, she sang with raw emotion, the most unrestrained she'd ever been in public since adulthood. When she reached the words "you've become my greatest pride in life," her voice cracked completely.
That line struck deep, not just for her but for countless mama fans and Little Fruits.
Among them was Xiao Yi, a thirty-three-year-old hardcore fan. He never missed a fan event. People joked he didn't even have enough body hair to match the number of flames in his name, but everyone knew him as the guy who lacked fire in his life.
His obsession with Chu Zhi was rare for a man his age. But to him, the idol was a source of confidence. Born with congenital hair loss, he'd always been insecure. Put simply, "Before thirty, he'd never even dared raise his voice in an argument." It wasn't because he was mild-tempered, but because he was too afraid, too self-conscious.
That all changed the day he saw Chu Zhi on a National Day parade float. His first thought had been, "Holy shit, what kind of insane background does this kid have? So young, yet already standing there?"
Curiosity drove him to search more. He found clips, especially Chu Zhi's interview on Perch With Bass. When asked why he worked so hard, the idol had said:
"I don't actually have much confidence. I've never felt worthy of so many people's love. I'm scared of waking up one day and realizing it's all a dream. So I want to be better, to deserve them more.
But I'm afraid of getting lazy. That's why I wrote my goals into an app for all the Little Fruits to see, so they could hold me accountable. No way out, no excuses.
I just hope I can be worthy of their love."
Xiao Yi recognized the truth in those words. He'd read novels where authors made bets with readers, swearing to update or face humiliation. Most failed. But Chu Zhi? He'd written down goals equal to "become a global superstar," back when he was just another fresh-faced idol. And he'd done it, even surpassed it.
That gave Xiao Yi immense strength. Over the past two years, he'd grown far more confident.
Now, with Chu Zhi one of the world's biggest singers, it only proved the words of that song.
During the second chorus, Xiao Yi screamed with all his heart:
🎵 "I want, I want you to live better than anyone else, I want your life to be filled with sunlight.I want, I want you to stand taller than the sky, I want you to get the most beautiful, complete return!" 🎵
Chu Zhi, the idol who often made his fans cry, felt something off right from the start of this song. Then he looked at the fans' eyes as they sang.
Eyes brighter than the stars, filled with sincere blessings.
"Holy shit, I let my guard down."
Obviously, a brick had just flown into his eye. He turned his head quickly, blinking hard, secretly wiping away the "water" dripping from his eyes.
The singing didn't stop. "Most Beautiful Sun," "Brightest Star in the Night Sky," and more poured out, all dedicated to him.
With tears he couldn't hide, the six-hour concert finally came to an end. Even though the last half hour had been led by fans, his own performance still spanned over 330 minutes. He sang fifty-eight songs in total, without a single guest.
Without question, even in hyper-competitive South Korea, nobody had ever done this.
In China's entertainment scene, the King of Involution had made his move again.