CHAPTER 121: CHAPTER 118 PHASE 1 RESULTS

Deep City

At a computer company, tech enthusiast Li Ke was casually browsing the web after working overtime.

Suddenly, he noticed a recommended video on Penguin’s homepage.

The cover image featured two girls wearing pastel pink Japanese-style school uniforms.

Their visuals were breathtaking, bright as the autumn sun, with incredible figures—especially those long legs, enough to make anyone drool.

As a self-confessed techie, his hobbies mostly revolved around anime and scoping out stunning girls online.

So, naturally, he clicked on the video out of curiosity.

"Natural Idol? 101 girls competing for 11 debut spots to form Huaxia’s top girl group."

Li Ke scoffed when he read this: "Huaxia’s top girl group? They probably aren’t even good enough to shine the shoes of the weakest K-pop groups!"

He’d seen performances by Huaxia girl groups before and always felt they were the "bottom of the barrel."

No looks, no talent, not even seductive performances—they couldn’t even be sultry without seeming awkward and overstated.

Just as he was about to close the webpage in disdain, he glanced once more at the two beauties.

Something about their looks tugged at his heartstrings, and he found himself irresistibly clicking on the video.

Bus

A commuter casually scrolling through Douyin came across a recommended video. Curious, they tapped on it and were greeted by two stunningly attractive girls holding hands at an airport capture.

"Natural Idol, Youth with You, unwavering in adversity—watch 101 girls craft Huaxia’s ultimate girl group." The commuter, out of habit, watched the video.

University Dormitory

Lounging in the dorm with nothing to do and bored of gaming, Zhou Nian received a video link from a friend.

"Dude, check out this show—a real-life version of ’Battle Royale.’ 101 girls, 11 survivors debut."

Already a fan of such concepts, Zhou Nian immediately clicked the link: "Whoa, not bad! Who are these two girls?"

"Ye Yuwei and Lv Fangxin. Never heard of them—must be newbies."

On a specific Super Topic on Weibo.

Plenty of idol-loving girls were buzzing over the news.

"Idol Heaven has premiered. They say it’s like a live-action ’Empresses in the Palace.’"

"The visuals on these girls are insane! Doesn’t feel like a Huaxia girl group."

"I’m already on standby to watch. There hasn’t been anything interesting in variety shows lately."

"Apparently, there are members from Galaxy, Sun, and Milky Way in it too."

In another Weibo Super Topic group.

"Sisters, Idol Heaven’s first episode is out. Should we go show some support?"

"Of course! Word is, Penguin recruited 101 girls from the GL crowd this time."

"Wait, really? What is Penguin doing, throwing 101 GL girls into a confined building to fight for debut spots... I can’t even imagine!"

"Come on now, you think that kind of show would even get approval to air?"

"Heh, rumor has it Galaxy’s participating—don’t you know what kind of group Galaxy is?"

"And one of the two girls from the promo? That’s Ye Yuwei, a famous GL fangirl favorite."

Galaxy idol fan groups on Penguin Chat

"Idol Heaven has premiered, guys—it’s time to roast that ’Promiscuous Ye’ like no tomorrow!"

"Let’s not go overboard with Ye Yuwei. After all, what happens in Galaxy should stay in Galaxy—no need to air all this dirty laundry."

"No way! We need to make her so-called ’pure and innocent’ façade crumble in front of everyone!"

"I think we should play it safe. With the team leader also on the show, what will people think of her if Ye Yuwei messes up?"

"Honestly, if the team leader weren’t there, I wouldn’t even bother watching. My guess is we River fans are the only ones propping up the viewership."

Shenghai

At the show’s recording center, Yang Xiaoyue was sipping coffee with Sun Mian.

Everyone knew she was just pretending to stay calm.

The first episode had already been live for three hours, and she was awaiting the viewer feedback data.

This initial data was critical in determining the marketing budget moving forward.

Most shows don’t achieve high ratings on their first airing. Instead, they rely on word-of-mouth from the first couple of episodes to blow up.

For now, the first two episodes were all about gauging audience feedback and completion rates.

For instance, if only ten people watch the premiere but over seven of them finish at least 75%, the show has potential for success.

That would justify investing more marketing funds to attract a wider audience.

"Director Yang, the data is here." Someone approached her with a folder in hand.

Yang Xiaoyue looked up and, seeing the joy on the other person’s face, felt half her anxiety ease.

"Xiaoyue, what’s the verdict?" Sun Miao asked nervously, sensing the significance of the moment. Other staff members who overheard also looked tense.

"Actual unique IP addresses: 157,425. Completion rate: 97%."

Silence took over the room for a brief moment before erupting into cheers loud enough to shake the rafters.

These were astonishing numbers.

When platforms boast millions or even billions of views for a show, it’s usually fluff.

Actual unique IP address data provides the most accurate measurement.

These numbers were remarkable—no show in the past decade had achieved such a result domestically.

Based on typical trends, Episode 2 could see at least a 20-fold increase in unique IPs, equating to over three million viewers.

This show was showing all signs of becoming a massive hit.

"Tonight, dinner’s on me!" Yang Xiaoyue beamed with a triumphant smile.

"Congrats, Xiaoyue. All that hard work finally paid off," Sun Mian said, grinning.

"It’s a team effort. You’ve worked just as hard," Yang Xiaoyue replied gratefully, silently applauding her earlier decision to bring Sun Mian on as the head writer.

Just then, a staff member entered the room. "Director Yang, Mr. Wan wants to see you."

"Alright, I’ll head over now."

Yang Xiaoyue knew the company wanted to strategize the next steps.

Meanwhile, within the camp, it was a mix of joy and sorrow among the girls.

The few phones left unchecked after the last inspection allowed the girls to glimpse how they were portrayed in the show.

Many girls who got barely any screentime locked themselves in the bathroom to cry.

Meanwhile, those who received good edits were grinning ear to ear, especially those praised in the live-comment section.

The chubby Gao Ziyi sat motionless on the bed, replaying the barrage of comments she’d seen over and over in her head.

"Wow! Gao Ziyi is so adorable and hilarious. How come I never noticed her before?"

"Is Gao Ziyi the funniest person alive?!"

"So cute, kawaii Gao-chan!"

Checking her Weibo, she was astonished to see her followers had surged by over 50,000. The comments were full of love and admiration.

She felt like she was dreaming. Back when she performed at smaller venues, she barely had two or three fans. Now over 50,000 people were paying attention to her.

Meanwhile, her teammates Jiang Mengqi and Han Qiuhua were visibly disappointed, especially Jiang Mengqi. She used to consistently rank third in their small theater group, but now Gao Ziyi had left her in the dust.

Her own followers grew by only about 2,000, many of whom had followed her simply to ask about Gao Ziyi.

Han Qiuhua had only gained about a few dozen new followers—a minor consolation.

Such stark popularity gaps were a common sight within the camp.

In Milky Way Girl, Meng Meixuan and Wu Zixuan’s follower counts shot up by nearly 100,000 each, causing their comment sections to overflow.

From the Fashion Girl Group, Yang Ni gained almost 100,000 followers, while Wang Miaomiao and Yu Xiaohong saw increases of over 30,000.

Yu Xiaohong, however, was dealing with family emergencies and would miss the first stage performance.

In Dreamy Soar, Guo Xia gained over 50,000 followers, while Meimei and Wei Xin grew by over 10,000 each.

As for the already-popular Duan Yuxin, her follower count exploded, growing by over 120,000.

In Bright Moon Girl Group, Lai Ruoxuan also saw an impressive increase of over 20,000 followers.