Chapter 114: Apotheosis?

Although the singing competition had ended nearly a week ago, the online discussion surrounding it remained incredibly high.

On the night the competition concluded, five topics related to Luo Quan trended on Twitter. The one with the highest click-through rate was:

"God-tier performance, the true version of 'Unravel'!"

The video of Luo Quan singing on stage went viral across major Japanese websites, with many exclaiming: "After decades, the Japanese music scene has finally produced another singer whose skill and talent have reached the pinnacle!"

To say nothing else, this live vocal performance alone was enough to stun the world.

On TikTok, many influencer singers tried to ride the wave of popularity by covering this version of "Unravel," but few could manage it without cracking their voices. Moreover, most lowered the key, and both their pitch and vocal quality were miles behind Luo Quan's.

Fans excitedly asserted online: "No one can cover this song!"

Not long after the massive frenzy in Japan, waves began to stir in China as well.

"Luo Quan's god-tier performance, shocking the entire audience!"

This brief headline hung prominently on the Weibo trending list.

Even though she no longer had an account on Weibo, her presence could still be seen on the trending list from time to time.

As usual, the comments in the discussion section were severely polarized; those who liked her were amazed by Luo Quan's divine vocal skills, while those who disliked her felt it was just a madwoman screaming blindly.

And so, the flame war began again.

The same video had a completely different reception on Bilibili.

The bullet comments and reviews were dominated by awe and admiration. Previously, they only knew Luo Quan's vocals were very stable, with her live performances matching the studio recordings.

Now they realized that her vocals could possess such terrifying tension and expressiveness, and this style was entirely unique—not a second singer like her could be found in either China or Japan.

Furthermore, as the plot of the first season of *Tokyo Ghoul* approached its finale, the anime's reputation shifted from a "potential trash anime" to a "quasi-god-tier anime," missing only a final explosive climax.

Compared to a month ago, the love Bilibili's "two-dimensional" fans had for this anime had done a 180-degree turn. A significant number of anime content creators made videos specifically to recommend it to fans, and its rating on Bilibili soared to 9.3, with 5 million followers and a total of 240 million views!

With such a popular anime, its opening theme naturally garnered fans' love, especially since the lyrics fit the plot so perfectly, as if tailored specifically for it.

Many singers on Bilibili had released cover videos of this song, and their view counts were quite high.

However, after Luo Quan's "original version" video was released, although Bilibili users revered it as a god-tier opening, not a single content creator attempted to cover it.

The singer with the most fans on Bilibili was a female creator named Leng Niao. Previously, her tender version of "Unravel" had gained over two million views, and fans praised her for singing it with a flavor different from the original by Luo Quan.

After the new version came out, Leng Niao's fans flooded her comments, asking her to release a cover version as well.

Leng Niao didn't release a new video for two days, likely because she really wanted to fulfill her fans' request, but two days later, she only posted a status update on Bilibili:

"Fans, I'm sorry. Goddess Luo's version of 'Unravel' is simply too difficult. The pitch instantly spans two octaves from the verse to the chorus, jumping directly from a contralto to a high mezzo-soprano. On top of that, it requires a massive amount of breathy vocals, and the switching between chest and head voice is so frequent. I tried ten times; I cracked five times and choked five times."

"I even specifically took this song to consult my senior sister. She said this song isn't something an ordinary person can sing. In all of China, there are probably fewer than five singers of Goddess Luo's age who have this level of skill."

"So, I'm very sorry, I can't cover this song. Let's just listen to the original."

Once this status update appeared, Leng Niao's fans were stunned:

"Leng Niao is a fourth-year student at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music's Vocal Department and the best singing creator on Bilibili. Can she really not even sing it through once?"

"Fewer than five in all of China? Isn't that too exaggerated?"

"Whoever says that must have never heard this song. Once you listen to it, you'll know if it's an exaggeration."

"This is the most explosive live performance I've ever seen. For her age, Luo Quan really has no rivals in vocal skill."

"Am I the only one who thinks this is the true opening for *Tokyo Ghoul*?"

"Haha, same as the person above, I truly feel the same way."

"Yesterday, Luo Quan posted on Twitter explaining that this version was the one she originally wanted to sing when she wrote the song, but she realized she couldn't sing it at the time, so she sang a low-key, slowed-down version, calling it the 'tender version.' (Dog head)"

"The song was released in mid-August. Has Luo Quan's vocal skill improved this much in just three months? Her talent is too monstrous!"

"The song was released in August, but how do you know Luo Quan wrote it in August? Maybe it was a work from her middle school days?"

"That makes sense, but regardless of the situation, Luo Quan's talent can be described as terrifying."

……………………

Just as Bilibili users were still passionately discussing the song, the day for the finale of *Tokyo Ghoul* Season 1 arrived.

In the twelfth episode, the protagonist of *Tokyo Ghoul*, Kaneki, was captured by the villain and subjected to unimaginable torture.

And in this torture, he finally met the senior sister hidden within his own body—the heroine who died in the first episode after her organs were transplanted into the protagonist.

Under the senior sister's persuasion, the protagonist finally accepted the fact that he had become a ghoul, accepting this identity that was completely opposed to humanity.

The protagonist's hair turned white instantly, and he completed his "blackening."

At this very moment, Luo Quan's "original version" of "Unravel" began to play softly, pushing the plot of the entire season to its climax.

The intense fight scene combined with the explosive opening theme made every fan following the show exclaim how satisfying it was.

In the end, the "blackened" protagonist's combat power skyrocketed. He easily defeated the villain who had tortured him, then tortured the villain in the same way he had been tortured, and asked that math question that would go down in anime history:

"What is 1000 minus 7?"

Amidst the villain's painful and fearful answer, the first season of *Tokyo Ghoul* concluded.

Generally speaking, out of bullet-comment etiquette, everyone would post "congratulations on the finale" at the end of an anime series.

But the feeling this episode gave everyone was truly shocking. From the visuals, dubbing, and voice actors to the background music, it basically reached the pinnacle of all anime series in recent years.

As for the plot, after eleven episodes of foreshadowing, it ushered in a hearty explosion. The protagonist, who had been stifled for an entire season, finally turned the tables, and the fans following the show couldn't have been more satisfied.

"An absolute god-tier anime!"

This was the most liked comment in the discussion section, and it also spoke everyone's heart.

Thanks to the finale of *Tokyo Ghoul* Season 1, Luo Quan trended again. This time, whether on Weibo, Zhihu, or Bilibili, the reviews were highly consistent—all voices of praise.

It is believed that before long, this anime, which has received such high praise and popularity, will become a phenomenal work of 2016.

Although there was only a month and a half left in 2016.

And at this time, Luo Quan had already begun preparing for her midterm exams.

There was only one month left in the first half of the semester. There were three exam subjects: Japanese speaking and Japanese writing combined into one, German language history, and Asian language history.

Although she had been busy with the Philharmonic Society almost every day this semester, participating in various activities, she hadn't missed a single class. Although she hadn't studied as thoroughly as other top students, with the help of her extraordinary "memory (cheat)" system, she had still memorized all the knowledge points needed for the exam.

Passing was definitely not a problem, and if she was lucky, she might even get a high score.

After the midterm exams, there would be a short holiday of more than half a month. The school wouldn't assign any holiday homework during this period; Japanese schools were very relaxed in this regard.

The burden on Chinese students is notoriously heavy worldwide, especially in the third year of high school. Even the bottom-tier laborers in developing countries rarely wake up at 6:30 AM and work until 10:30 PM before resting, often having to work overtime until past midnight every few days.

What's even more terrifying is that apart from national statutory holidays, there are no weekends at all. Even the "996" work system, which is severely criticized by society, isn't this outrageous. The hardship of Chinese students is evident.

By comparison, Japanese middle and high school students aren't as miserable. Classes start at 8:00 AM and end at 3:00 or 4:00 PM. Homework can basically be finished at school. After school, girls can go shopping, and boys can play ball. Their extracurricular time is quite abundant.

For the Japanese, their student days are beautiful and relaxing memories, while for Chinese students, the deepest memory is probably the stacks of test papers and exercise books as tall as the students themselves, and the physical education teacher who falls ill time and time again in the mouths of Chinese and math teachers.

In the eyes of the students, it is a medical miracle that a Chinese physical education teacher can show up to class in one piece.

Luo Quan was lucky. She dropped out of school early in her previous life and didn't suffer much from the Chinese exam-oriented education. Coming to Japan to attend high school at the age when she should have been the most miserable in this life, she could be called a lucky person.

Luo Quan was originally worrying about how to spend the half-month holiday after the exams when her mother called from Tasmania: "Hey, my dear daughter."

"Mom, what's up?"

It seemed like nearly three months had passed since their last call. With it taking so long to call, Luo Quan suspected her mother had almost forgotten she had a daughter.

"Forgetting home because of happiness" was probably the best way to describe her mother.

"Are you going to have a holiday in a month?"

"Yeah, the midterm exams are in a month. After the exams, there's a short holiday of more than half a month."

"So, do you have any plans for this long holiday?"

Luo Quan shook her head: "No, I'll probably just stay at home."

Luo Ni said happily: "Then how about you come and reunite with Dad and Mom?" ===== CHAPTER 115 =====