[New Year's Eve Concert, Day Minus Six]
"Hello? Hello?"
Inside the vast 'Aurora Aria' Concert Hall, Jing Liuli was making final adjustments to the microphone.
Her clear, pure voice reverberated under the dome, creating a sense of inexplicable relaxation.
Jing Liuli cocked her head, listened carefully to her echo, then turned to Tendo in the front row of the audience, proudly lifting her chin.
"Did you hear that, Tendo? I'm not pitchy at all!"
You can doubt my intelligence, but you absolutely cannot doubt my singing ability! Not even you, you big bad Tendo!
In response, Tendo leaned lazily against the back of his chair, spinning a Rubik's Cube he'd pulled from who knows where. He said carelessly, "Yes, yes, yes. Your singing is the best."
Hearing Tendo's dismissive, cooing tone, Jing Liuli's cheeks immediately puffed out like a pufferfish.
She glared angrily at Tendo. If looks could kill, Tendo would have been slaughtered hundreds of times over by now!
But unfortunately, her eyes couldn't kill anyone.
"Hmph."
Jing Liuli grunted, then closed her eyes again.
There were about six days left until the concert started.
Although she had held dozens of concerts, big and small, over the years, averaging one a month, she couldn't help but feel a little nervous facing this upcoming, extremely important New Year's Eve Concert.
That's because her previous concerts were held with a playful attitude; it was fine even if she made a mistake.
But this time was different.
This time... was too crucial.
It's often the way with people: the more you care, the easier it is to lose control.
Under immense psychological pressure, the originally relaxed Jing Liuli not only looked serious, but even the rhythm of her breathing visibly became heavier.
The dimensional audience, observing Jing Liuli rubbing her throat repeatedly and delaying the start of her rehearsal after adjusting the microphone, keenly sensed that something was wrong.
'Oh no, oh no, Liuli is clearly nervous!'
'Based on my years of watching anime/series, this is when accidents usually happen.'
'It's not going to be one of those situations where the concert is about to start, but Liuli can't sing temporarily due to various issues, right?'
'OMG, don't say that! It feels like that might actually happen.'
'Then what should we do? Let Old Tendo go up and sing?'
'Huh? Why do I suddenly think that version sounds more interesting?'
'Letting Old Tendo sing? Hehe, don't even joke about it, but it actually seems like a decent idea.'
Meanwhile, the dimensional audience wasn't the only one who noticed Jing Liuli's unusual behavior; Tendo, sitting in the audience, did too.
He looked at Jing Liuli, who was repeatedly rubbing her throat on the stage. The quantum Rubik's Cube spinning in his fingers slowly came to a stop, and his brows furrowed.
He knew better than anyone the importance of this concert to Jing Liuli.
This was not just a simple commercial New Year's Eve performance; it was a crucial turning point in destiny that would determine Jing Liuli's 'future.'
The astonishing pressure contained within this event was clearly felt even by Tendo as an observer.
In addition to the influence of the external environment, Jing Liuli herself was experiencing an issue.
It must be noted that in the original movie plot, the unexpected situation of Jing Liuli being too nervous to sing never occurred.
In that timeline, without Tendo's intervention, Jing Liuli not only relied on sleeping pills every night but her singing also harbored an unforgettable trace of pain and exhaustion.
However, this 'pain' unexpectedly created the unique singing style in the original version—'healing pain with sweet dreams'—making it highly representative.
But the current Liuli was different. She was... too happy. So happy that something was missing from her song.
So, should I let the current situation continue, or should I intervene early?
Just as Tendo bowed his head in contemplation, Jing Liuli took a deep breath, finally stabilizing her mindset.
As the melodious accompaniment slowly began, Jing Liuli's voice flowed out like water, clear and sweet.
Instantly, large numbers of light purple dream butterflies blossomed around her, flying along with her song and the melody, creating a beautiful, dreamlike sight.
Unlike her usual childishness, a seriously singing Jing Liuli radiated an indescribable level of focus.
It was clear this was because she genuinely loved what she was doing.
Yet, listening to the beautiful voice, Tendo's brows slowly furrowed.
The movie camera angle, as if on cue, focused on Tendo in the audience.
The dimensional audience, who were initially immersed in Jing Liuli's beautiful singing and gorgeous stage performance, immediately understood the film crew's visual language upon seeing this.
'Why is Old Tendo frowning? Does he think Liuli's singing isn't good? But I think it's super sweet!'
'It might not be about the singing. Don't forget, Liuli's event isn't just a concert; it's an Awakening Ceremony.'
'The person above me is right! Does that mean Old Tendo has discovered a problem with Liuli that's separate from her singing ability?'
'Foreshadowing alert! I think Old Tendo definitely found the problem!'
Just as the dimensional audience predicted, as the song concluded and the dream butterflies gradually dispersed, Jing Liuli opened her eyes.
She looked at Tendo sitting in the audience, her smug little expression clearly anticipating his praise.
However, what she didn't expect was for Tendo to stand up immediately, the quantum Rubik's Cube in his hand clicking shut.
"Liuli, this won't do."
Jing Liuli froze at his words.
After a moment, she tightened her grip on the microphone and asked, "What's wrong, Tendo? Is there a problem?"
The next second, Tendo's figure appeared on the stage.
He looked at Jing Liuli in front of him and spoke without holding back.
"It's hollow. Your singing is too hollow."
"Hollow?"
Jing Liuli blinked, her expression a little hurt.
"But I sang very seriously..."
"You were very serious, but you are only living in your own world."
Tendo interrupted her, his sapphire eyes showing a rare seriousness.
"Don't forget, not everyone in this world is as happy as you, and not everyone is as joyful as you."
"The dream you sing is too sweet. So sweet that for many people, it's like the stars in the night sky—visible but forever unreachable."
"If you continue with your current style, your concert will certainly be successful, but you absolutely will not be able to evoke 'resonance' from the audience, and you certainly won't be able to construct a 'beautiful dream' for a hundred thousand people."
"Because the sweet dream you are portraying is too distant for most people."
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