Westerners love saying "oh my God." Polite translation, my heavens. Literal, my Lord. Whether they believe or not, they keep Jesus on their lips.
Backstage, the last pair who hadn't performed yet, Toothless Elephant Ted and Football Player Danny, watched the screen with totally different minds. They were opponents, sure, but their moods split.
Cannon Danny's eyes went a little blank. Who's Azazel? That voice's way too good. If someone like that's in the mix, there isn't any hope of taking the crown.
The technique's ridiculous, and if a quarter of the planet's heard his songs, he's a big boss.
Logically, you can count big bosses on your fingers, maybe toes too, but Danny couldn't match that voice to a name in his head.
Ted wasn't a pro singer, he just came for show, so he only felt regret. If he had to go, he'd rather lose to a monster. That's a better ending.
Then the song climbed in three gleaming steps, the money notes:
🎵 Yes, Jesus loves me. Oh, yes, Jesus loves me. Oh, yes, Jesus loves me, for the Bible tells me so. 🎵
Chu Zhi unleashed the power of a full choir alone. One voice rode over the sweeping orchestra.
It was harder than that time Tan Jing flattened the suona in "Jiu'er." Emotion stacked line by line, the singing hung a shining road that led straight to heaven.
A lot of people pressed their palms together and shut their eyes. It was a prayer pose.
In front of them, a phantom hundred-voice choir. The four panelists were drunk on it. Jennifer's hand clamped Kang Jiang's arm again, and he didn't even flinch.
In master control, director Lukinsky listened and praised his own genius. Inviting Chu Zhi was the right call. When this episode aired, it'd blow up.
Think about it, how many Christians are there? About one third of the world. Even if that's inflated, he only cared about the States. More than seventy percent of American adults are Christian. Discussion would explode, exactly as expected.
Note the man's name, Lukinsky. No, not "Handsome," more like "Double Standard."
He didn't invite Chu Zhi himself. As director, he could draft a list, but Fox HQ shoved Chu Zhi straight in. He complained at first, then grabbed the credit.
Four minutes later the song reached the coda. He reeled the emotion back, but the angelic color kept glowing.
🎵 For the Bible tells me so, see, I know that He loves me, Whether I'm right, whether I'm wrong… 🎵
While singing, he understood why so many people believe. Maybe it's shallow, but it's direct. The sinner goes to church to pray. Who knows if the victim forgives, but the pastor tells you God does. The sinner's heart settles.
The final line's meaning is simple, because the Bible tells me so, I know He loves me, no matter if I'm right or wrong.
He finished. No applause, no cheers. He was used to the silence that follows a thunderclap, so he just stood there.
Quiet.
Quieter than dawn in Boris's town.
Professional reflexes kicked in. Host Nick recovered first, walked up and said, "Forgive my shock. Are you an angel in disguise?"
"Still just human," he said.
In Masked Singer, all talking's run through a voice changer. Only the singing's clean.
"Hard to believe that's human," Nick said.
Their exchange snapped the panel and the crowd awake. People started chanting "Angel" and "Azazel."
Oh my Lord, this scene was straight middle school fantasy, but the Emperor Beast didn't feel the slightest shame. His face is thick enough.
Applause broke, then the flood of chatter.
"An angel's voice, the Lord loves the world."
"I searched my phone. The net doesn't have this version. It's the best gospel song I've heard."
"Right or wrong, the Lord loves us. That's a song that hits faith. Azazel's definitely an artist."
"Why the name Azazel? In Jewish lore, Azazel's a fallen angel who betrayed God."
"Because even a fallen angel longs for heaven. His singing felt like a Sunday service. I was standing in church."
It went on and on. Every mask gets cheers, sure, but making eyes mist in minutes, that's one of a kind.
Tiny knowledge drop, by the way. In Chinese, words like "lǐbàitiān" for Sunday come straight from religion.
The panel couldn't even wait for the host to cue them.
"I'm stunned," Hartman said, palm on her chest, waves rising. Not exaggerating, it felt like her soul got rinsed clean.
Kang Jiang stood and bowed toward Chu Zhi. Being a Korean American who survives in Hollywood variety shows depends on going even bigger than Americans with body language.
"You don't need a powerful alias to be strong," Kang Jiang said. "You're already the strong one of God."
In the clue reel, Chu Zhi had said he chose "Azazel" because in Hebrew it means "strong one of God," and he wanted to feel stronger.
It smelled like humblebrag again. Kang Jiang felt it, but this bird in front of him made Red Lion look subtle. Seriously, every masked singer was flexing.
"I've been on this panel six seasons. Now it's the seventh. I've never been shaken like this," Austin said.
Jennifer said, "Your voice felt like a classic Broadway musical. So many stories, so much feeling. It was amazing."
"Calm down, panel. Don't let people think we've never seen the world," Nick said, tracing a quick cross in the air.
He asked, "So, who do you think Azazel is?"
"I'm more sure of my first thought. Azazel's a legendary singer. That young sound is like lizard skin, just a disguise," Austin said. "I have a name."
"Say it," Nick cued.
"He's Louis O'Ray," Austin said like a hammer.
The name drew a roar. Louis O'Ray's huge in the States.
He helped found New Age music, a pioneer, second youngest lifetime Grammy winner, born in the New Orleans projects.
New Age is broad, a blend of electronic and classical. Most light music falls there.
"O'Ray's devout. His 'Christmas Night of Wonders' has probably reached a quarter of the world. The clues fit," Austin added, feeling very self-consistent.
"Did production really bring Louis O'Ray?" he asked Nick.
"Who knows? Until we lift the mask, anything's possible," Nick said.
"But O'Ray's taller," Kang Jiang said, then tossed out a two-time Album of the Year Grammy winner.
"Azazel's British," Jennifer said. "That accent's strongly London, like my ex-husband. I think I know."
"Oh, another ex. Say the name," Nick said.
Jennifer was a chocolate-skinned beauty. Compared to blonde Hartman, her figure was a little less headline, but she had more exes. They were all still friends.
"He's David Robbin," Jennifer said. "The build matches. And Robbin's tone doesn't sound aged. It's young."
David Robbin's the frontman of British legend Sex Dream. Over sixty million records sold, three songs on Universal Magazine's World Top 100 Rock Songs. If a quarter of the world's heard him, that tracks.
"He's O'Ray," Austin said. "Robbin's not a believer. He flipped off a cross onstage."
"I heard soul in there," Hartman added.
She offered a soul titan. All four guessed legends. At worst, household-name singers.
The panel argued among themselves.
"I really want to know who you are," Nick said, then called Red Lion back. The two masks faced off left and right.
Anna Goran's lion head blocked her side-eye, but she still couldn't fight the urge to turn. Even if he wasn't one of the names the panel threw out, he had the aura of a singer in his forties who'd once ruled a generation.
Whoever he was, with this performance, once it aired he'd explode again. She didn't feel jealous. With that level, a comeback's deserved.
"It's time," Nick said. "Audience and panel, cast your votes for our second duel. Red Lion, or Azazel. Vote for who you want to hear again. The loser risks unmasking."
Unlike China's hardware clickers, the States used an app the audience and panel downloaded.
"The winner, who won't need to unmask, is… Azazel," Nick declared. The roar said it all.
Backstage, the third duel, Toothless Elephant Ted versus Football Player Danny, headed to the stage.
Passing Azazel's dressing room, Danny saw the door open and peeked. Looked empty. Must not be back yet, nothing inside.
Even through a screen, Danny felt like handing over his soul. Terrifying singer. He kept guessing who it was.
"Can't place him. Not someone I've met," Danny decided.
He was wrong twice in minutes. First, he had met Azazel, on the French show "Taratata." Second, the Emperor Beast wasn't "not back yet," he'd already ghosted.
Chu Zhi slid into the van and headed for the airport, hopping from L.A. to New York. He was going to a Manhattan screening. Unsinkable would go global in a few months, and tonight was the internal preview. He had an invite, so of course he'd go. It'd be a bit on the plane. He reclined and caught a nap. This time he left early. The Masked Singer hadn't even wrapped.
In the third duel, Football Player Danny lost.
He was salty. Toothless Elephant Ted, an MLB star, pulled a sneak.
In his VCR, Ted explained the alias. Twenty-five thousand elephants die for ivory each year, so he chose the name to call out butchers.
Meaningful, sure, but what's that got to do with Masked Singer? Danny didn't get it.
Ted wasn't done. He picked a famous charity single about protecting animals.
Great, so after that combo, even though Danny sang better, he still lost the vote. The panel went four for four on "Toothless Elephant." They didn't want animal rights groups on their backs.
The three losers were Magician, Red Lion, and Football Player.
The panel voted for who'd unmask. Magician went home, revealing comedian Nevis, who still got a nice round of applause.
The show gave Chu Zhi one extra perk. Leaving early popped a hidden track. He hit the "Early Checkout King" milestone, Early Exit x50, netting 7 personality coins. Balance 49. Almost back to 50.
Say this for him, his work ethic's solid. Five years in this world, and he only now hit fifty early exits.