Investment Cashback, Billionaire God [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 26: The Second Round of Competition

Chapter 26: The Second Round of Competition

The Yun Lie was temporarily painted with Giant Entertainment’s livery, and the staff emerging from inside all wore crisp, formal suits.

The moment Yun Lie appeared at the entrance of Ice Sail Gymnasium, dozens of cameras were simultaneously raised, with flashbulbs flickering incessantly like frantic fireflies.

“Please line up orderly to enter Yun Lie with your media credentials. Each media pass allows a maximum of four persons.”

Several photographers carrying cameras at the front exchanged puzzled glances, while reporters jostled each other to thrust microphones toward Mega-Entertainment staff.

But as several media outlets took the lead in presenting credentials and entered Yun Lie, those behind gradually abandoned interview attempts and began forming orderly queues.

As Yun Lie headed toward Central City on the Primary Star, the vehicle remained filled with incessant chattering from various media representatives throughout the journey.

“What exactly is Giant Entertainment planning? Why are they taking us to Central City? And how did they know media would be gathered at Ice Sail’s entrance, even sending Yun Lie specifically to pick us up… This is downright terrifying.”

“Wasn’t it supposed to be at Ice Sail Gymnasium? Yu You, is your information wrong again?”

“Is Mega-Entertainment planning to take us to the main urban area first for promotional materials, then return us to Ice Sail when the live broadcast begins?”

“I feel like we’re being played, but I have no proof.Yu You curled up in the corner of the cloud formation, put his index finger to his lips and made a stealthy shushing gesture.

His previous unauthorized filming at Star 45’s film base was indeed disgraceful, and now that he was aboard Mega-Entertainment’s Yun Lie, he feared being discovered by that muscular assistant and severely beaten.

Though confused about where Mega-Entertainment was transporting the media contingent, Yu You secretly activated his mobile terminal’s live broadcast camera, deliberately lowering both brightness and clarity settings.

With these parameters, even the most luxurious venue could be made to appear as shabby as an aging hotel.

He whispered toward the live broadcast camera: “Folks, Mega-Entertainment has rounded up all media personnel with cameras from Ice Sail’s entrance onto Yun Lie. No idea where they’re ultimately taking us.”

His provocative tone quickly resonated with viewers

They’ve gone mad! Is Mega-Entertainment afraid of repeat incidents like last year’s restroom explosion at Ice Sail, deliberately relocating all media beforehand only to bring them back after the event starts?

Sorry I just laughed myself unconscious and am picking myself off the floor… What mischief is Mega-Entertainment up to now?

They can’t even afford to rent a dump like Ice Sail anymore? Don’t tell me our idol got rejected by Ice Sail due to unpaid rents!

What’s with this video quality? So dark and blurry! Streamer, can’t you upgrade to a newer terminal?

The topic of Mega-Entertainment’s Group Broadcast competition had become pure traffic gold. Within mere minutes of launching his broadcast, Yu You’s viewer count rapidly surpassed 50,000, with comment sections erupting in heated arguments.

The usual forty-minute flight from secondary cities to Central City seemed prolonged today, as if confirming viewers’ suspicions. Yun Lie moved unusually slowly, only reaching Central City half an hour before the live broadcast’s scheduled start.

But when Yun Lie circled twice mid-air before finally landing at Federal Central Stadium’s entrance, every media professional’s face displayed profound astonishment and bewilderment.

Hadn’t Central Stadium just closed for maintenance two weeks ago?

Not only the media personnel present, but even the bullet comments in Yu You’s livestream were boiling over.

But Yu You had no time to respond to the comments, because he noticed everyone around him desperately rushing into the venue

The Star Federation Central Stadium had limited space with few seats per row, so securing a row further forward meant capturing clearer images.

Especially since Mega-Entertainment hadn’t publicly announced the venue yet, indicating this was an internal event exclusively for invited media. Their only competitors for prime spots were each other.

Everyone was panting heavily from the sprint. Just as these media professionals set up tripods, stabilizers, and other equipment in the inner field to begin livestreaming, the entire venue suddenly went dark.

As the undisputed flagship among five-star venues, the Star Federation Central Stadium offered not only standard rental fees but also countless additional exquisite and luxurious hardware facilities available for lease.

Ordinary concerts might utilize only one or two of these devices at most, but now, with all equipment running at full capacity, the effect was vividly displayed before hundreds of thousands of viewers and all the media personnel on site.

The retractable framework on the stadium’s ceiling first formed a massive lotus pattern. As the petals gradually peeled away one by one, the light filtering through the semi-transparent film slowly faded until the entire stadium was plunged into darkness.

Accompanied by ethereal ambient music from all directions, the walls around and above the stadium transformed into a scene of clear, colliding ice blocks.

Through the images projected on the large Light Brain screens, everyone present felt as if enveloped by a body of seawater, surrounded entirely by crystal-clear, pale blue shallow water.

The same mesmerizing and dreamlike scene was also displayed in Mega-Entertainment’s official livestream.

The Star Federation’s Holographic Technology was highly advanced. As one of the very few venues equipped with a full set of intelligent holographic devices, the Central Stadium allowed online viewers to experience a sensation akin to being there in person from their homes.

Simply by turning on their Light Brains, the stadium’s intelligent systems could connect to viewers’ smart home devices, causing indoor temperatures to drop slightly. Viewers felt as if they were truly sinking into icy water, separated only by a thin layer of foam.

With the sound of shattering ice, dozens of screens descended from above into the venue, each displaying a half-body profile photo of a different streamer.

The media professionals’ cameras were at a loss for where to focusone moment aimed at the floating walls, the next zooming in on the exquisitely shot official photos of these streamers.

Only then did Yu You snap out of the exaggerated special effects of the live event. Checking his terminal stream, he was shocked to find that only one or two thousand viewers remained in his livestream, with most bullet comments mercilessly criticizing him.

Yu You, you’ve really done a poor job raising me. Look at this blurry 1080P qualitywhat exactly are we supposed to see?

Did you take money from a rival company? The brightness and image quality are truly moving…

Can’t you learn from how other media are streaming on site? You really need to get your eyes checked.

Ahhhh, so how did Mega-Entertainment manage to rent the Central Stadium??? And on such a prime weekend slot?

Several top entertainment companies jointly bidding this year only secured six days in total. How can Mega-Entertainment hold an event here when it’s supposed to be closed? Isn’t anyone going to regulate this?

Well, well, well, Old Wang, you’re really playing favorites here. Going back on your wordyou’ve got quite the knack for it.

Is that curator planning to keep the venue closed to the public next year? So all those years of “closed for maintenance” were just bullshit? Why can it be rented to Mega-Entertainment but not other agencies? Is Director Fang the curator’s relative???

Stop arguing, everyone. The Central Stadium just released a statement saying there were originally unpublicized VIP dates this year, and Mega-Entertainment placed the highest bid among all participating companies.

Fun fact: No business would refuse money, especially this much money.

Damn, I really want to know how much Brother Fang paid to make that usually snobbish venue so obsequious. Is there no justice?

Wild guess: At least five times this year’s public bidding price.

Well, if he really paid that much then I’ve got nothing to say. I’d forget my principles too if I were the curator.

I’m absolutely drooling over this stage. How does Mega-Entertainment’s live stream today feel higher quality than actual concerts held at Central Stadium? I’ve never seen these descending screens and ripple walls before.

Probably because these equipment all require extra payments^^

The holographic projections are already this stunning – if I were there live I’d probably burst into tears. Why only invite media? I’m rolling around in bed with jealousy. Who stole my press pass?

When will the streamers come on stage? What are today’s voting rules?

Forget the streamers for now, can we all report this paparazzo’s live stream? He’s the same one who secretly filmed the set last time. So annoying…

Before more comments could refresh, Yu You angrily closed the live stream.

A crystalline clinking sound echoed from the stage center, followed by the sequential elevation of a hundred-meter-wide three-tiered platform.

An ice-blue beam of light seemed to grow from the very heart of the stage, tracing upward along a vine-like path while spiraling twice around the central axis before abruptly connecting with spotlights projected from midair.

Fang Zhuo appeared at the exact center of this light beam and announced:

“Thank you for your patience. Today’s Top 20 to Top 12 competition will adopt a blind voting system.”

“Each streamer will sequentially perform for six minutes, during which viewers may place additional bets at any time.”

“However, unlike previous rounds, official real-time rankings will not be displayed during this live stream. This means no one will know the specific ranking order while voting is ongoing.”

“At midnight tonight, Mega-Entertainment will release the final rankings along with detailed gift contribution records for public supervision.”

The comment section exploded into frenzied refreshing while all present media representatives froze in shock.

Though everyone knew the second round should involve blind voting, nobody anticipated these specific rules.

The Top 20 to Top 12 competition resembled an exam where all viewers were like people washing clothes in pitch darkness – only when the lights suddenly turned on would they discover how clean their clothes actually were.

Without knowing whether their favorite could securely make the top twelve, fans would inevitably push the advancement threshold to its absolute limit.

Unlike last round where top streamers’ fans stopped voting after securing placement, this time nobody could guarantee their candidate wouldn’t fall behind in the darkness.

Even while fully aware that Giant Entertainment was his employer’s competitor, Yu You couldn’t help but marvel at this profit-maximizing rule design.

Meanwhile, the media on site not only redirected their live broadcast telephoto lenses back to the center of the stage but also simultaneously released dozens of news articles, competing to feature the second round’s competition rules on their media account homepages to capture traffic.

After speaking, the exquisite beam of light gradually faded away just as it had appeared.

The entire venue had barely been plunged into darkness for two seconds when the lighting suddenly became bright and soft, instantly transforming the stage with an ornate traditional pavilion structure.

Tao Mi, dressed in an obviously expensive hand-embroidered traditional cheongsam, held an ancient flute adorned with gold and jade as she lifted her right leg in time with the music.

Her dance had just begun when various gift effectsrarely seen even on other platforms’ top streamerswere frantically unleashed without restraint.

The density of virtual gifts flowing through the screen had increased compared to the previous round. The extremely stunning stage presentation and accumulated competition traffic over the past days directly pushed related topics to the top of all StarNet platform trending lists within just ten minutes.

While the 300,000+ concurrent viewers in the live stream was already astonishing enough, the audience count in Mega-Entertainment’s official broadcast broke 500,000 shortly after startingnot to mention additional viewers gathered in media live streams from below the stage.

Aside from Star Federation government broadcasts, no major agency or famous actor’s live stream in recent years had generated as much buzz as Mega-Entertainment’s competition.

Moreover, Tao Mi’s fans’ potential didn’t disappoint Fang Zhuo. Her six-minute individual performance segment today directly generated the same revenue as her entire previous evening.

While large gifts over 10,000 credits normally appeared in an orderly manner backstage, today’s refresh rate was so fast it became nearly impossible to track clearly.

Mimi!! Believe that mom will definitely get you into the top twelveif we’re going to act in short dramas, we must play the lead roles!

The blind voting rules are so exciting! Even someone like me who never spends money in live streams couldn’t resist throwing in a few credits

+1, first time giving gifts as a pure stage performance fan

Has anyone summarized which contestants are at risk under these rules?

Though A Xuan and Lin Yu Huai appeared to be borderline yesterday, their fans actually have strong spending power. Only four or five among ranks 12-20 are likely to fall behind, and there will definitely be upsets against yesterday’s top streamers. These rules are genuinely thrillinglooking forward to a major upset!

Jing’s fans who haven’t joined the voting group can join now! This is when Jing needs us most!

I’m crying, how does every streamer get their own custom stage design? Mega-Entertainment, can you please spend more conservatively? I’m genuinely worried Brother Fang will go bankrupt

Any insiders able to reveal the current advancement threshold???

Meanwhile, on the user demographic map, a small bright dot located at Starry Galaxy Media’s company address blinked steadily.

Fang Zhuo opened his Light Brain and switched to the messaging interface.

Zhou Zongyun, who still had five or six contestants before his turn, finally received Director Fang’s message and dutifully forwarded the required information to Ruan Zihan:

President Ruan, apologies!! Mega-Entertainment seems to have discovered methey actually changed the competition venue last minute!

I’m currently secretly watching from their backstage screen. After the rule changes in the second round, all the smaller streamers’ fans have given up. The top twelve advancement line has seen a major upsetit’s only reached just over a million credits now

To accompany these words, Zhou Zongyun attached a photo of Mega-Entertainment employees staring intently at the screen with furrowed brows, capturing a corner of the backend display in the frame