Chapter 69: A Singer Who Surpassed the Original

“Thump thump! Thump thump!”
The song ended, but Su Chen’s heart was still pounding violently.
That song had just spilled out all the experiences of his previous life.
A thrill impossible to surpass!
After a brief silence around the stage, an eruption of cheering followed.
“Wonderful!”
“Amazing! Sing another one!”
“Another one!”
…
Requests for another song rang out loudly from the audience below.
But Su Chen didn’t linger.
He simply waved his hand and walked off the stage.
Though it felt a little unsatisfying, singing any more would lose its meaning.
“Who do you think this guy is? Could he be some singer?”
“I think so! Otherwise, how could he be so good? Honestly, I think he sounds even better than the original!”
“Better than the original? I think he’s still a bit short!”
…
The audience chattered on below.
Most of them were laypeople, unfamiliar with music.
So their opinions were entirely subjective, based on personal feeling.
But professional singers saw things differently.
At a bar window closest to the stage on the second floor,
A man in his thirties stared intently at Su Chen, who was stepping down.
Muttering to himself:
“Who on earth is he?”
“To perform this song live with a quality that rivals the studio version—he must be some master!”
“I was thinking of going up to show off. Thank goodness I didn’t—otherwise I’d have made a fool of myself!”
“No, this won’t do, better slip away!”
“Otherwise, it’ll be awkward if we run into each other later!”
With that, he turned around without hesitation, tossed his wolf-head mask into a nearby trash bin,
And strode downstairs.
Su Chen had just reached the back of the stage when a figure rushed toward him.
He couldn’t dodge, and was met with a soft embrace!
The girl seemed to realize it was inappropriate and quickly let go,
Her face flushed as she said,
“You…
That was incredible!”
Su Chen smiled, took off his mask, and returned it to the collection point behind the stage.
“I’m leaving!”
He didn’t want to stay here any longer.
The girl hurried after him when she heard that.
“Hey… wait up!”

The person calling after Su Chen was the staff member from the registration booth earlier.
“There’ll be prizes in a bit!”
“You sang… well, I think you stand a good chance of winning!”
He didn’t sound entirely certain,
But anyone could tell he was hinting that Su Chen should wait for the first prize.
Su Chen smiled and waved his hand.
“No need, I was just having some fun!”
He said this, disregarding the staff’s surprised look, and walked toward the street behind the stage.
“Hey!”
The girl called out to him from behind.
Su Chen turned around.
“My name is Dai Anxin. I don’t know yours yet.”
“My name is Su Chen!”
He didn’t hide it, since this girl had helped him quite a bit just now.
Hearing Su Chen say his name, Dai Anxin felt a surge of joy.
“Can I add your WeChat?”
Afraid Su Chen might misunderstand, she quickly added,
“That place in your photo—I think I know where it is!”
“But I need to confirm!”
“I can’t go there tonight, I’m a bit scared!”
“I’ll take you there tomorrow!”
Su Chen looked at her in surprise—she really found it?
“It’s been so long, my memory is a bit hazy.”
“But I just remembered.”
“That place—I don’t go there often!”
“So, tomorrow!”
Su Chen nodded slightly as she explained.
“No problem!”
He took out his phone, scanned Dai Anxin’s card, and added her as a friend!
In fact, even if she had no news about that house, he would have agreed.
It was just adding a friend, nothing major.
Besides, this girl was quite nice—not the sort of person you’d worry about.
Returning to the hotel, Su Chen took a quick shower and lay on the bed, scrolling through his phone.
Ding!
You have a new message!
Su Chen opened it—
It was from Qu An’an!
“Teacher Su, where are you now?”
“In the capital, why?”
Su Chen replied, and after a while, Qu An’an sent another message.
“Oh, nothing.”
And then nothing more.
Su Chen found it odd; this girl was usually shy and rarely messaged him.

What was going on today?
What he didn’t know was that, in a residential building in River City,
Qu An’an was watching a video from the masquerade concert recorded by an audience member on Weibo,
Covering her mouth in disbelief.
“Brother Su Chen, you’re making waves again!”
Tang Jiayi sent a message, and Su Chen rolled his eyes.
“What waves? Speak properly!”
“Hehe! /Link, see for yourself!”
Su Chen opened the webpage and saw a clip of himself singing “Boundless Seas and Skies” recorded by the audience.
Though it wasn’t complete, it captured the main parts.
Below the video, the comment count was over two thousand.
“I dare say, this is the best cover of ‘Boundless Seas and Skies’ I’ve ever heard.”
“Masters among the people! Who would expect such a talent on a small stage?”
“In my opinion, the skills of this Monkey King have surpassed the original singer!”
“Surpassed the original? Not really! I still prefer the original—his voice is purer and more resonant!”
…
The comments section was filled with debate.
Soon, someone who seemed to be a professional pointed out the key issue.
“You’re all comparing the singer in the video with the original version of ‘Boundless Seas and Skies,’ but you’re missing something crucial:
This video is a live performance, with street-level sound equipment, while the original was recorded and polished with professional gear.
To perform live under these conditions, and sound nearly as good as the studio version—think about it!
I can only say—this is a master, a master like none I’ve ever seen!”
A single comment awakened everyone!
That night, on the microblog platform, a post shot to the trending list:
“Who is the singer who surpassed the original ‘Boundless Seas and Skies’?”
Of course, Su Chen paid no attention to any of this.
What puzzled him was how Tang Jiayi had figured out he was the singer in the video.
“How did you know it was me?”
“Hehe! I’d recognize you even if you turned to ashes!”
Su Chen was speechless, about to ask further, when Tang Jiayi’s message arrived:
“There’s actually another clue—you were wearing the bracelet I gave you on your wrist!”
Su Chen glanced at his left wrist—and suddenly understood!
Tang Jiayi had given him a bracelet, which he always wore.
When the video was shot, the camera zoomed in briefly.
Though the image was blurry, Tang Jiayi still caught it.
But…
Su Chen’s hand froze as he held his phone.
Could it be—Qu An’an noticed it too?