Chapter 138: The Mentors Are Stunned

"Excuse me, are you all right?" the contestant who had nearly knocked Su Tong over asked with a smile as he steadied him.

Su Tong could never be knocked down by an ordinary person; he had only moved to dodge the man, making it appear to onlookers as though he had been shoved.

"Just try not to lose your mind in public next time," Su Tong replied. He ignored the man completely and walked toward Lin Yin.

The contestant’s expression darkened. One of his friends, who had been standing nearby, stepped forward and barked in a low voice, "Kid, you’ve got some nerve. Want to step outside and chat?"

As he spoke, he took a few quick steps forward and reached out a large hand to grab Su Tong’s shoulder.

Su Tong stopped in his tracks, clamped onto the man’s hand, and plucked it off his shoulder.

The young man grimaced in pain.

"Stay away from us from now on," Su Tong said coldly. He applied pressure, and the man let out a howl, causing everyone in the backstage lounge to look over.

This group had harassed Lin Yin after Su Tong went to the restroom, and he naturally held no good impression of them.

It was one thing to think yourself handsome and flirt around because you could play a little music, but to dare hit on his Lin Yin? It was a miracle he hadn't beaten them to a pulp.

Hao Yifang, seeing his friend injured because of him, immediately stepped forward. He realized he had encountered someone with actual combat skills.

"There’s no need for this, right? We’re all contestants. We might all get the coaches to turn around, and we might even end up in the same group," Hao Yifang said quietly.

Su Tong couldn't be bothered to respond. He was certain that the earlier bump had been intentional—Hao Yifang’s revenge for being sent away earlier.

When Su Tong had returned from the restroom, he had found Hao Yifang and his two cohorts shamelessly hitting on Lin Yin, prompting him to drive them off by claiming to be her boyfriend.

"Xiao Tong, what’s wrong?" Lin Yin was somewhat averse to physical altercations; she disliked violence and quickly said, "They were just hitting on me. There was nothing inappropriate, I’m fine."

"Pretty girls are always such trouble. I’m sure Xiao Yu and Xiao Xiao won’t give me any peace of mind in the future either," Su Tong sighed.

Before long, it was Lin Yin’s turn to take the stage.

Lin Yin had no friends or family accompanying her, so the production team hired two girls to play her best friends, screaming and shouting in the broadcast room next to the stage. When the coaches began to turn their chairs one by one, the two girls were ecstatic.

The backstage lounge broadcast the live feed, and Su Tong watched with a speechless expression.

After Lin Yin finished recording, she ran out in a state of pure excitement, hugging Su Tong so hard she nearly burst into tears.

"It’s real, it’s not a dream," Lin Yin choked out. She finally had a path forward.

After nearly being coerced by a director, Lin Yin had become disheartened and wanted to leave the entertainment industry. Yang Feifei and Su Tong had given her a second life.

With talent and a platform, she could carve out a different path.

All four coaches had turned for Lin Yin—without any prompt from the production team—because the song she sang was so subversive it practically "shattered one's worldview."

Laymen might not grasp the difficulty of the arrangement, but as professional coaches, how could they not?

Furthermore, Su Tong’s arrangement was tailored perfectly to Lin Yin’s vocal timbre. Top-tier musicians could see that this version of "Flowers Are Not Flowers" was nothing short of miraculous.

After the performance, the original singer of "Flowers Are Not Flowers," who was one of the coaches, asked Lin Yin who had done the arrangement. Lin Yin dropped a bombshell, revealing it was her teacher—who was even younger than her—and that he would also be participating in The Voice.

The scene erupted. The four coaches were shocked; what kind of talented person with such a classical soul could compose such a piece?

Two rounds after Lin Yin’s performance, it was finally Su Tong’s turn. He told the production team he didn't need actors—if he used actors, how would his rap, "I Speak for Myself," be broadcast?

Hao Yifang had just finished his performance, having secured turns from three coaches, and he and his friends were thrilled.

He ran into Su Tong before heading on stage, his eyes filled with provocation.

Su Tong’s expression was strange. So, the contestant who was supposed to sing "I Believe" turned out to be this Hao Yifang.

Damn, if I’d known, I wouldn't have authorized the song.

Hao Yifang must have practiced that song for a long time. Changing to a different one at the last minute wouldn't guarantee a turn from the coaches.

On the dazzling stage, though there were only a few hundred people in the audience, Su Tong truly felt he had stepped onto the path to stardom. His journey had begun.

The lights dimmed. Su Tong bowed slightly to the band, and the accompaniment began.

"Oh, a touch of opera," the coach Alin said, his back to the stage, eyes showing surprise.

Alin possessed all-around musical talent. He dabbled in covers, subversive fashion, arrangements, and vocal techniques. With a wide range of creative styles, mastery of multiple instruments, and immense stage presence, he was known as the "Musical Urchin."

"This contestant has such courage. In the four seasons since The Voice began, he is the first contestant to dare perform this style of music," the diva coach Na Jie nodded and whispered.

Na Jie was a true diva—one of the few in the Great Qin music scene, and even in all of Asia. She had numerous classic hits. She was straightforward and possessed a bright personality, yet she lacked neither feminine delicacy nor resilience.

Divas like Yang Feifei were just "nuns who became monks halfway"—titles given by fans and those who didn't understand music. In reality, many of these pseudo-divas didn't even count as real singers.

The other two coaches were also renowned musicians.

One was a male coach, a university music professor, a pure musician, and a titan in the music industry.

The final one was also a diva from Taiwan, her fame no less than Na Jie’s. Both women were powerhouse singers with average looks—not the pseudo-divas like Yang Feifei, who relied on their faces and movie fans for their status.

Well, Yang Feifei was caught in the crossfire again.

"The house is built, so desolate,
I am all alone inside.
The door slams shut behind me,
The autumn wind taps on the window,
Weeping miserably for me."

Su Tong began to sing.

"Hm?" Na Jie and the other coaches were surprised. None of them had heard this song before. Was it another god-tier adaptation?

"The voice is so ethereal, a boy untainted by the dust of the world."

"Such a unique voice."

...

"Thunder rumbles in the night,
Morning mist fills the air,
The sunlight has turned completely cold,
Ancient pain follows one after another,
Everyone, get ready."

Su Tong sang up to this point, and still, no coach had turned.

However, he wasn't in a hurry. He spread his legs and struck a cool pose.

"Woo~ ah~~~"

A piercing, earth-shattering dolphin note rang out, and the entire audience was stunned.

The four coaches were stunned.

The contestants backstage were stunned.

Was this sung by a real person?

The four coaches clenched their fists and raised them, goosebumps breaking out on their skin, their faces filled with shock.

"Woo~ ah~~~"

The dolphin note rang out again.

"Boom~"
"Boom~"
"Boom~"
"Boom~"

The four coaches hit their buttons almost simultaneously, their chairs turning around.

"o--o"

Seeing Su Tong’s wail, the four coaches clutched their heads—it was too cool.

The movements were cool, the voice was cool, and the person was even cooler.

"Mine, he's mine..." Na Jie nearly lost her composure. Everyone knew she liked young, handsome men; a boy like Su Tong could absolutely slay her.

"God, I’m about to be captivated by his beauty," Alin said with an exaggerated expression.

The titan coach Liu Fan shook his head and gave a wry smile, lost in thought.

The Taiwanese diva A-Jiu clasped her hands together, her eyes filled with tenderness as she looked at Su Tong on stage.

"The house is built,
I am all alone inside.
The door slams shut behind me,
The autumn wind taps on the window,
Weeping miserably for me.
This is destiny,
I cannot pray for more.
I only know,
That after me,
Is the wind's endless wandering..."