Amateur talent show? Top mentors are my students.

Over the next two hours, the instructors watched dozens more videos.

Some performed well, while others were abysmal.

A boy from Class F forgot the moves after dancing for less than 30 seconds. He stood there stunned for three seconds, then bowed to the camera, said "I'm sorry," and turned off the recording.

Zhou Wei's brows were furrowed so deeply they could trap a fly.

There was also a student from Class C who sang while standing still the whole time, and whose dance moves were simplified to just waving his hands. Jung Jae-won criticized him for "attitude problems" and gave him an F.

"Next up, He Xu, Class A."

The atmosphere in the tutor's room subtly changed.

An atmosphere of anticipation seemed to permeate the air.

Jung Jae-won leaned forward, and Kim Hyun put down her coffee cup.

Zhou Wei's expression didn't change much, but his fingers, which were flipping through the score sheet, paused for a moment.

Shen Yiheng took a deep breath.

"Let's look at the daily performance score first." Xu Shutong turned to He Xu's page, and her voice suddenly stopped.

Her gaze lingered on the notebook, her lips moved as if she wanted to say something but then swallowed it back.

Shen Yiheng followed her gaze and looked over—in the daily performance score column, all four mentors gave scores above 8 points, Xu Shutong gave 9, Zheng Zaiyuan and Jin Xian both gave 8, and Shen Yiheng himself gave 9.

Zhou Wei's column—

It says "4".

Everyone was stunned for a moment.

"Four points?" Zheng Zaiyuan was the first to speak, his voice clearly filled with confusion. "Old Zhou, you're giving it four points?"

Zhou Wei didn't say anything, but picked up the coffee cup on the table and took a sip.

"I've seen He Xu's usual behavior several times," Xu Shutong frowned, her tone unusually serious. "He mentored several people in Class A, and Li Bufan's rapid progress was thanks to him. How can you give him four points?"

"The daily performance score assesses the contestant's daily performance, not their teaching ability."

Zhou Wei put down his coffee cup and said in a calm voice, "I've observed his practice these past few days—his vocal practice time is too short. He leaves after less than half an hour each time, showing he's not taking it seriously."

"His voice—" Xu Shutong couldn't help but start speaking, but stopped halfway through.

"I know he has a problem with his voice," Zhou Wei interrupted her. "But this is a talent show. If he can't do well in the vocal part, he can find a solution instead of running away from it."

"He ran away? He ran away?" Shen Yiheng was a little puzzled.

In his mind, the word "escape" was completely incompatible with He Xu.

Zhou Wei looked at Shen Yiheng's slightly bright eyes, his lips moved, but in the end he didn't say anything.

He simply turned a page in his notebook and lowered his voice by half an octave: "Let's watch the video first."

Xu Shutong opened He Xu's video.

The screen lights up—

He Xu stood in the center of the practice room.

There was no one else besides him; it was probably recorded after everyone had left.

He was wearing his usual sportswear, with the sleeves rolled up to his forearms, revealing a section of his well-defined arms.

Her hair wasn't styled much; stray strands fell across her forehead, partially obscuring her brow bone.

There was no makeup or styling.

But that face—

Jin Xian paused for a moment as she held up her coffee cup.

Even under such lighting and at such an angle, that face was still excessively beautiful.

The curve of his brow bone and the lighting created just the right shadow, making his facial features appear more defined than usual.

This time, in particular, he wore a carefree smile that was completely absent from the previous few days, making him appear even more flamboyant.

"That face..." Jung Jae-won muttered to himself, "It's a shame he's not an actor."

Xu Shutong didn't reply, her eyes fixed on the screen.

Shen Yiheng's hand, which was under the table, clenched unconsciously.

The music is ringing.

But everyone could tell something was wrong.

This is not the original instrumental track.

The electronic sounds in the intro are still there, but the underlying chords have been lowered overall.

The drumbeats were even lower, as deep as a heartbeat surging up from underground.

The entire arrangement is like being submerged in deep water and then pulled out, covered in a thick, oppressive dark color.

"He changed the accompaniment?" Jung Jae-won's voice was filled with disbelief. "This... he did it himself?"

Nobody paid him any attention.

He Xu started dancing.

His body felt like it had been struck by an electric current, and a complete wave exploded from his spine.

The ultimate display of every inch of muscle under precise control.

Those eyes held an undisguised arrogance—the corners of his mouth were slightly upturned, more like a provocation than a smile.

Shen Yiheng's fingers clenched white under the table.

He knew that expression all too well.

This is He Xu when he's not pretending anymore.

The next ten seconds were a complete and utter defeat.

He Xu's dancing can no longer be described as "good"—it's an overwhelming, domineering force.

Then, the singing part came.

The accompaniment then transitioned into the verse section.

"The reflection in the mirror overlaps and splits—"

The moment the sound burst from the speakers, the air in the tutor's room seemed to be suddenly compressed by something.

too low.

It was tuned down two full octaves from the original.

Low-pitched.

hoarse.

But precisely in this extremely low register, that hoarseness becomes a powerful force.

"Sweat soaked through at 3 a.m. —"

His breathing was so steady that it didn't seem like someone who was singing and dancing at the same time.

The breathing points were so well hidden that they were almost inaudible, yet every word was enunciated clearly.

As the tempo of the pre-chorus quickened, he increased the range of his movements, but his voice remained completely still.

The chorus is coming.

This time he only lowered the pitch by one octave—that was the limit of his vocal cords' ability to produce a stable sound.

"This is my uncharted ground——"

"The arc that tears apart Earth's gravity—"

His body synchronized to complete the first big move of the chorus—bounce up from the ground, spin in the air, and land on one knee with the other leg straight.

Its center of gravity was so stable, it was as if it were welded to the ground.

"Let every doubt become dust beneath the burden—"

"DEBUT spells out my only way out—"

He poured all his energy into the last chorus.

The low-frequency vibrations made Xu Shutong feel as if her heart was being carried along.

After singing the last word, he tilted his head slightly towards the camera.

That expression conveyed only three words: Who else?

For a moment, no one spoke.

"This is too..." Jung Jae-won took off his glasses and wiped them, his voice carrying a defeated laugh, "He's really only twenty-four years old? When I was twenty-four, I was still a backup dancer."

Shen Yiheng was the second to speak, his voice carrying a sense of defeat and helplessness: "...How do you judge this? I give the dance full marks, and the vocals—although the key was lowered, that low note truly shocked me."

"The issue isn't whether it sounds good or not," Zhou Wei said, putting down his pen. "The problem is—the program's theme song has specific key requirements; the original key is the original key. He changed the accompaniment, lowering it by two octaves. Doesn't that violate the rules?"

Xu Shutong opened her mouth, then closed it again.

Jin Xian took over, speaking calmly: "The rules state 'a complete performance of the theme song's singing and dancing,' not 'must be in the original key.' If he lowers the key but the melody, rhythm, and lyrics remain unchanged, I think it's acceptable."

"So, does that mean everyone can change the key themselves from now on?" Zhou Wei countered. "If you can't sing it, you just lower the key; if you can't sing it, you just rap. What's the point of the theme song assessment then?"

Zheng Zaiyuan frowned: "Old Zhou, your statement is too rigid. He Xu's situation is special; his vocal cords—"

"I know he has a problem with his vocal cords," Zhou Wei interrupted him. "But talent shows are about overall ability. If he can't sing, that's his problem, not an excuse to arbitrarily change the song."

"PD, what do you think?" Kim Hyun threw the question back at him.

Shen Yiheng stared at the frozen image of He Xu on the screen, his heart filled with complex emotions.

"According to the rules, Professor Zhou Wei is right—the theme song assessment requires the original key, and changing the key without authorization is indeed against the regulations."

Jung Jae-won opened his mouth, as if to say something, but Kim Hyun gently pressed his arm.

"Then let's go by the rules." Jin Xian's voice wasn't loud, but every word was clear. "Dance, vocals, and expressiveness—weighted together. How much are you giving for dance?"

"A." Jung Jae-won replied without hesitation.

"And what about expressiveness?" Jin Xian asked again.

"A." This time it was Xu Shutong who answered, her voice a bit more steady than before. "His facial expressions, camera presence, and aura—all of them are top-notch."

"Teacher Zhou?" Jin Xian's gaze turned to Zhou Wei.

Zhou Wei paused for two seconds: "If we follow the original key, it's not up to standard. It's been lowered by two octaves, so I'll give it a C for the vocal section."

Xu Shutong bit her lip but couldn't help but speak up: "Teacher Zhou Wei, isn't a C in the vocal section too low? His low-pitched control, breath control, and articulation—which of these is at a C level? He just lowered the score..."

"I gave him a C, which already takes into account his level of completion." Zhou Wei's tone remained firm. "According to the original key requirements, the pitch deviation exceeds one octave, which strictly speaking is a failing grade. A C is the highest score I can give."

"But—" Xu Shutong wanted to say something, but Shen Yiheng spoke up.

"Shu Tong." His voice wasn't loud, but it was steady. "Teacher Zhou is a professional music producer, and I trust his judgment when it comes to vocal scoring."

"So, the overall score is B." Jin Xian calculated on the paper and finally came up with the result.

No one refuted.

Shen Yiheng picked up his pen and wrote on the comprehensive rating form:

He Xu – B.

He put down his pen and said calmly, "Next."