Open the door.

Three simple words that made Chen Xiaoyan's heart skip a beat. Her gaze locked on the room door, carrying a hint of nervousness.

After that, she rose and slowly reached for the door. She adjusted her breathing, then opened it.

Unlike what she imagined, there was nobody outside the door. Chen Xiaoyan was dumbfounded. After looking around, she found that the hallway was also quiet and empty.

Lowering her head, she found a letter by her foot.

'Still not showing yourself?'

Chen Xiaoyan was slightly disappointed. She picked up the letter and opened it slowly.

The writing on the letter was one she would never forget. It was Y's writing.

"First of all, a word of comfort. Don't falter. Your skills are great. Furthermore...don't lower your head. Your tiara will fall!"

"Next, let me gift you a second song. This song will put your skills on display. Don't let me down."

Just like last time, it was the lyrics with the sheet music.

The name of the song was Boundless Sea and Sky.

"Thank you, Y. I'll not let you down!"

Chen Xiaoyan read the song again and again as though trying to burn the words into her soul.

After the entire morning, the preliminaries ended. There were a total of 50 participants, but only fifteen passed the preliminaries. Other than Chen Xiaoyan, there were also other outstanding individuals. However, everyone's focus was not on that.

Hong Na and Chen Xiaoyan's conflict had finally finished brewing, attracting the attention of a wide range of audiences and the media.

At the backstage of China's Top Voice…

"Did Hong Na and Chen Xiaoyan have any old grudges? Or was that scripted?"

"We did not communicate before the competition, nor do we have any script like that."

"Then the two of them already had a grudge before this? This incident has blown off the lid. How do we settle this? Do we need to have peace talks between them?"

"We'll just wait and see. Because of them, China's Top Voice's ratings shot up along with its following! We can make use of this."

"However, this Chen Xiaoyan is quite something to dare go face to face with Hong Na like that. Her future path would be difficult!"

"Earlier Hong Na has come looking for us. She suggests that we disqualify Cheng Xiaoyan on the second round."

…

Outside the hall, it was already filled with many reporters. They had their mics in hand, waiting outside the door.

"Hong Na's come out!"

In an instant, all the reporters rushed up to her. The cameras immediately focused onto Hong Na with the sounds of shutters clicking away.

Hong Na wore a pair of rosy shades, unflinching at the attention, giving off an impression she was a diva.

"Miss Na, can you tell us why you picked on an upcoming rookie in the competition?"

Hong Na retorted, "Rookie? Hehe, I'm sorry. Rookies need to go through proper musical training. Where did Chen Xiaoyan come from? She's just an internet celebrity from the wilds! Not even a rookie!"

"Miss Na, what do you think of Chen Xiaoyan taking part in the next round of the competition?"

"If purely in terms of singing skills, she's trash! The only reason she's a hit is that she has a better meat sack!"

"Miss Na, some say that Chen Xiaoyan will be the next Music Queen after you. What are your thoughts?"

"Hehe, preposterous!"

"Miss Na, you've mentioned something about Y during the competition. Are you looking down on Y's lyrics?"

"That's right. Y's lyrics are childish! It's ungraceful and a long shot from being a classic. Personally, I think it's worthless!"

No matter which question, Hong Na answered them with confidence. Her tone was filled with malice and arrogance.

Sometime later, the horde of reporters stirred once again, accompanied by shouts of surprise. They all abandoned Hong Na and rushed over with their mics.

"Chen Xiaoyan, what do you think of Miss Na?"

"Chen Xiaoyabn, how confident are you for the next round?"

"Chen Xiaoyan, Miss Na mentioned that your skills are subpar. Do you have anything to say regarding that?

"Chen Xiaoyan, you've already sung Chaser of the Light. Can I know what song you will be preparing for the next round?"

The reporters were impatient, shooting question after question while their cameras were locked onto Chen Xiaoyan.

"I think words are pointless! The audience's eyes are clear. I believe that everyone has seen what happened. Right or wrong will be your own decision. Also, I've already prepared the song for this afternoon's competition. As for how my skills fare, I'll let you guys be the judge!"

Chen Xiaoyan was cleared of the helpless feeling she faced on stage. At that moment, she was filled with self-confidence. After delivering that message, she turned and left.

That message alone already contained her response to Hong Na, while at the same time showcased Chen Xiaoyan's confidence!

"As expected of Chen Xiaoyan. We'll look forward to your performance this afternoon."

"That's so cool! As a morning light1, I'll support you forever!"

"That's right. The audience's eyes are clear! How could we not know who's the one intentionally stirring up trouble on the stage?"

"This afternoon's song is selected? What song will it be? Ahhh, I'm so excited…"

Along with the media's prodding, Chen Xiaoyan and Hong Na's conflict grew even more severe.

One had transformed into stardom from an internet celebrity, while the other was an old Music Queen. Their conflict represented the conflict between two different generations.

All eyes were on them!

In the afternoon, China's Top Voice opens again.

The crowd was bigger than the morning crowd. A large portion was here for Chen Xiaoyan.

Meanwhile, in China's Top Voice's backstage…

"Director Zhou, we didn't expect things to grow to such a proportion. The program hasn't started and our viewer ratings are already at 1.2!"

"Damn! This is scary. A lot of steaming platforms started to stream our channel. This program is a hit!"

"The crowd outside is growing bigger. I'm curious as to where Chen Xiaoyan's popularity came from."

Right at that moment, a backstage crew named Little Li ran into the room.

"Director Zhou, big news!" His face was red, trying to catch his breath. He announced excitedly, "Director Zhou, Chen Xiaoyan plans to sing a new song this afternoon!"

"What?!"

The entire office exclaimed in surprise. Those originally seated also stood up immediately.

"New song? Are you sure?" Director asked for confirmation.

"That's right!" Little Li swallowed a mouthful of saliva. "We've confirmed that it's a new song. She just passed us the music, hoping that we can work out the tune for her as soon as possible. This song is new!"

"New song, new song!" Director Zhou's eyes grew brighter. "Is she planning to use her new song as a comeback? Hahaha, this is a good selling point! Wonderful, absolutely wonderful!"

"Director Zhou, do you think this song was written by Y?"

Someone mentioned it with a soft voice. At that moment, silence took over the room. Everyone's breathing turned ragged.

That was very likely to be true!

Hong Na not only looked down on Chen Xiaoyan, but she had also dissed Y in the process. Now that Chen Xiaoyan suddenly decided to sing a new song, there was a high likelihood that it was written by Y!

Big news! That was explosive news!

Director Zhou's face turned red with excitement. If that was true, then this would surely push China's Top Voice's viewer ratings to new heights!

"Now! Process the music immediately! We need to make sure this afternoon's competition runs smoothly! Get the livestream ready! As for Chen Xiaoyan singing a new song, keep it under wraps for now!"

…

—

晨光 (Morning Light) is a self given title by Chen Xiaoyan's fans as per chapter 163.