The Masked Knight's mistake surprised the audience.
Although many on the judging panel hadn't voted for him, most had high hopes. Fortunately, there was still a revival round, giving the Masked Knight a chance to stay on the stage.
"It's a real shame, I was really rooting for the Masked Knight."
"The song choice was excellent, and his performance was great. If not for that mistake, he would have won."
"Indeed, this Masked Knight is very good at picking songs. He gave me the impression of peeling back layers of a veil. I thought he would go very far."
"Perhaps he wasn't feeling well. A single mistake is normal. Even a singing god makes mistakes. I hope he does his best in the revival round."
"I have to say, Balloon Queen has great luck. She survived the first revival round and then her opponent made a mistake in the second round. This is a lucky contestant!"
"Haha, luck is also a form of strength, and Balloon Queen's rock singing is quite good."
Indeed, over the two rounds, Balloon Queen had a degree of luck, especially this round. Her opponent's song choice and performance were better than hers, and just as she was about to lose, he made a huge mistake, allowing her to advance to the winners' group again.
However, good luck is also a part of strength. There is no absolute fairness in the world.
"Please, both of you, return backstage to rest. Next, we will enter this week's winners' group competition. Will Dark Rabbit retain the title of King of Singers, or will another singer ascend to the throne? Please stay tuned!"
After the host finished speaking, the Masked Knight and Balloon Queen prepared to leave the stage.
At this moment, Mo Yan suddenly said, "Wait a moment!"
Both of them stopped.
"Does Teacher Mo Yan have something to say?" the host asked with a smile.
The other three judges also looked at him.
"I want to say something to the Masked Knight," Mo Yan said, looking at the Masked Knight.
"Teacher Mo Yan, please speak." The Masked Knight was stunned for a moment, then nodded.
"Even though you made a mistake, don't be discouraged. With your ability, you can go a long way on this stage. I have high hopes for you. Do your best in your next song." His tone was affirmative, like an elder comforting a junior, and his eyes were gentle.
The Masked Knight waited for a full five seconds before finally nodding at him. "I will. Thank you."
After speaking, he walked towards the backstage.
His hand, which held the microphone, tightened imperceptibly. Upon closer inspection, it was trembling slightly.
"Teacher Mo Yan is so warm!"
"The strength shown by the Masked Knight is indeed worthy of his encouragement."
"I hope he can stabilize in the elimination round. I also think the Masked Knight can go further."
The audience felt the warmth in Mo Yan's words.
Although it was strange why he would say such things to encourage the Masked Knight.
However, those who supported the Masked Knight were very happy.
With Teacher Mo Yan's encouragement, the Masked Knight should go all out in the elimination round.
At this moment.
Backstage, Li Yuan coldly snorted.
"He completely ignored me, but he's so amiable to this Masked Knight."
Thinking back to how Mo Yan hadn't even looked at him when he was giving his critique, Li Yuan felt extremely indignant. Moreover, due to his status, he couldn't do anything and had to endure it silently.
...
The second round of competition began.
The first to take the stage was the singer known as Red Dragon.
This time, he sang a hit song by the music master Fang Lingyu, "Ling Luo Meng."
This song was the theme song for a TV drama and was also a traditional Chinese-style song.
Moreover, the original singer of this song was the top singer Chen Zhe, known as the King of Falsetto.
His transition between chest voice and falsetto could be described as textbook. In this regard, he was among the top singers.
And this Red Dragon, when singing this song, was not far from the original singer.
His transitions between chest voice and falsetto were very smooth, and he used various techniques skillfully.
Like the previous song, it was evident that Red Dragon was a technically skilled singer, which generally meant he was an old hand in the Chinese music scene.
"Not bad, his vocal skills are very impressive!"
The happiest, of course, was Yin Na, who praised Red Dragon without reservation.
"Indeed, very good," even Liu Huan nodded with a smile.
"Although he's still quite a bit behind me, he's top-notch among singers," Han Qi joked.
Mo Yan couldn't help but tease, "If he were as good as Teacher Han Qi, he should be sitting in our position."
Indeed, Han Qi, being the pinnacle of vocal technique in the Chinese music scene, if he were truly that good, he would have already become a national-level singing god and wouldn't be competing on this stage.
And this Red Dragon, although not as good as Han Qi, was considered top-tier among singers. The techniques he used showed the marks of years of refinement.
"He must be from one of the four major entertainment companies."
Although it was impossible to determine who it was, this person was definitely one of the top existences from the four major entertainment companies.
Once this range was narrowed down, when he reached his limit, he would surely reveal himself, because every singer had their own characteristics. If they couldn't be seen now, it was because they hadn't reached their limits yet.
...
Next up was Balloon Queen.
This time, she was still performing rock.
It seemed like she only knew this style of singing, or perhaps she was hiding her strength.
"If she only knows rock, she'll likely reach her end in the next episode."
"Looking at it this way, this week's King of Singers should be between Red Dragon and Dark Rabbit."
"Forget Dark Rabbit. If it's another one of those vocal range shifting performances, he won't be able to beat Red Dragon."
"Then, this week's King of Singers should be Red Dragon."
"Red Dragon indeed has the strength to win the King of Singers. The vocal skills he has shown so far are top-tier among singers, and in a competition like this, they wouldn't reveal their trump card right away. So, Red Dragon should still have hidden cards."
"I'm really looking forward to Red Dragon revealing his identity. He should be a well-known singer."
Balloon Queen didn't have any outstanding performance this time, perhaps because she saw how impressive Red Dragon was and lost the desire to compete for the King of Singers.
After singing a song, the audience's response wasn't very strong.
However, she wasn't too disappointed.
From nearly being eliminated in the first episode to advancing to the winners' group in the second round due to her opponent's mistake, she felt she was already very lucky.
Therefore, when competing for the King of Singers, she didn't use her trump cards.
She originally thought she would only last two episodes, but unexpectedly, she got to stay for another episode. She decided to save her trump cards for the next episode, and perhaps with good luck, she might last another episode.
Backstage.
After listening to Balloon Queen's performance, Red Dragon breathed a sigh of relief.
"Since that's the case, I'll take the King of Singers for the second episode."
With that said, he leaned back on the sofa, his eyes behind the mask slowly closing.
As for Dark Rabbit, who was next, he didn't think that kind of vocal range shifting gimmick could defeat his performance based on pure skill.
He was quite confident about this.
"Next, please welcome Dark Rabbit to the stage to perform!"
As the host's voice sounded, Dark Rabbit walked onto the stage, holding the microphone.