Chapter 129: A Vast Disparity in Strength

Aside from Pan Ziwen, Chen Ke also warned Zhang Qiyang to be cautious of Lu Kai and Sophie.

Both of these entertainers, who started as athletes, were highly ambitious. They certainly would not be satisfied with the current roles the industry had assigned them. Having entered this circle, they inevitably wanted to achieve greater fame. Lu Kai, in particular, had been expected to reach even greater heights on the track; he carried the heavy hopes of his countrymen, but his career was cut short by injury, leaving him deeply frustrated. Had he remained uninjured and continued to post strong results, his popularity would have far exceeded what it was now. But once injured, he lost everything, including major advertising endorsement contracts. Since he was not the type to settle for a stable job within the system, he ventured into the entertainment industry.

Anyone with a discerning eye could see that Lu Kai intended to reclaim in the entertainment world the popularity he had lost on the track. Although he personally was not the type to stir up trouble or act with bravado, the agency he signed with had a poor reputation. To promote their artists, the company would stop at nothing, willing to sensationalize any kind of news. With the rare opportunity for Lu Kai and Sophie to appear on a show with a super-hot topic like Zhang Qiyang, there was no guarantee their agency wouldn't play dirty, grasping at shadows to manufacture controversy. In reality, there was often no genuine friction between artists; the scandals were merely cooked up by their behind-the-scenes management teams.

Given Lu Kai's relatively dignified character, it was unlikely he would proactively try to pick a fight with Zhang Qiyang. However, in a show with such high-intensity competition, friction was inevitable during games. Chen Ke’s greatest worry was that any minor incident might be seized upon by Lu Kai and Sophie’s agency to be blown completely out of proportion. That was the thing she hated most.

Zhang Qiyang, however, didn't dwell on it too much. The ecosystem of this industry was just like that; any trivial matter would be magnified a hundredfold for the sake of hype. These things were impossible to guard against completely. Since he had chosen to work in this circle, he had to get used to it. If others wanted to stir up trouble, let them; he would simply focus on doing his part. As for those who proactively tried to pick a fight with him, he would certainly make sure they ended up looking even more embarrassed.

Beyond Pan Ziwen, Lu Kai, and Sophie, Chen Ke was not concerned about the other four hosts on the show doing anything to Zhang Qiyang. Wang Dawei and Xu Xian were both artists under Eastern Entertainment, so there was no need to worry. Lu Cheng’s reputation in the industry was impeccable, and as the "king of outdoor variety" for Magic City Satellite TV, he had no reason to use Zhang Qiyang for headlines. In fact, an artist like Zhang Qiyang, mired in negative news, was someone Lu Cheng would rather avoid; he certainly wouldn't go out of his way to cross paths with him.

The same applied to the "Big Demon King" Feng Sheng. Despite his rugged appearance, this burly man was unexpectedly calm and never sought to stir up trouble. As an independent artist, he made his living on his own merit; he had no management team inciting him to play dirty, nor did he ever engage in messy hype, making him one of the most well-regarded artists in the industry. As for the guest team for this final recording, they were all artists from Eastern Entertainment, and they certainly wouldn't dare to provoke trouble, so Chen Ke had no concerns there.

However, the quality of the guests for this final recording was far worse than anticipated. Originally, Eastern Entertainment, adhering to the principle of keeping resources within their own house, had intended to push a group of their popular artists to promote one another on the final episode of "Infinite Challenge." The artists would boost the show, and the show would boost the artists, creating a virtuous cycle. Who would have thought that the ratings for "Infinite Challenge" would be so dismal and its influence so nearly vanished? Currently, no one was discussing the show online, and those who were, were only criticizing how bad it was.

The team of popular young idols who had originally signed on for the final recording all began to back out. On top of that, the show brought in Zhang Qiyang to fill the gap; the appearance of such a polarizing "negative figure" caused those idol teams—who were extremely protective of their public image—to retreat even further. After Chen Ke finalized the deal for Zhang Qiyang last week, the three popular young idols who were originally scheduled to participate all withdrew, refusing to get involved in the mess. If not for her good relationship with the head of the variety department, Chen Ke would have pulled Li Xuan’s booking as well.

The status of the variety department within the Eastern Entertainment Group was far inferior to the film and television department. When the popular idol teams focused on film and television decided not to give the variety department any face, there was nothing the department could do but seethe with anger—after all, they were the ones who had ruined the show. Since the popular stars refused to come, the department had no choice but to find three mediocre variety personalities at the last minute to fill the numbers. This left the guest team looking significantly less star-studded. Fortunately, Li Xuan and Zhang Qiyang were there to hold down the fort. There was one other big name in the guest team: Luo Zhikang, the top host of Eastern Entertainment’s variety department. Since he was a home-grown host, he certainly wouldn't cancel his appearance and was committed to giving his all for the recording.

However, this 43-year-old host, who carried an air of a scholar, usually hosted talk shows and rarely participated in outdoor variety. He was a man with a sharp tongue but abysmal athletic ability. His demeanor was much like that of Cai Kangyong in another world, though he preferred women. When "Infinite Challenge" had originally invited Luo Zhikang, it was specifically to spar with Wang Dawei. Both of them were "athletic black holes" who relied on their wit, and they could effectively cancel each other out.

The other guest who hadn't cancelled, 22-year-old Zhao Lijing, was a new budding actress being groomed by Eastern Entertainment. She was still struggling to climb the ladder, and her popularity was still quite average. Zhao Lijing certainly wouldn't miss the chance to gain exposure on such a show. For her, no matter how poor the ratings of "Infinite Challenge" were, it was still better than having no show at all. Therefore, she cherished this opportunity and wanted to put on a good performance.

The mentality of the three variety personalities who were brought in as last-minute reinforcements—"White-haired Old Man" Bai Xinhong (32), "Shorty" Peng Liang (26), and "Fai Jai" (25), who claimed to be the best at magic in the variety circle—was completely different. They were well aware that "Infinite Challenge" was already over. They had come solely as a favor to earn some goodwill, intending to just go through the motions. They certainly weren't going to risk their lives playing games for a show that was about to be cancelled. Even if they had wanted to try, the "Infinite Team," led by Lu Cheng and Feng Sheng, would have scared them half to death before the competition even began.

Truth be told, excluding Zhang Qiyang, the strength of the guest team was far inferior to that of the host team. If the three athletic young idols who had originally signed on had come, and if the action star Xu Hu hadn't broken his leg, then the challenge team might have stood a chance against the host team. Now, with the guest team turned into a ragtag group of stragglers, they looked completely outmatched. Fortunately, the guest team had Zhang Qiyang, whose unique status was enough to provoke the competitive spirit of some of the Infinite Team members.

Facing a super-rich second generation like Zhang Qiyang—who was perceived as having no real talent and relying entirely on his father’s connections to thrive in the industry—which struggling, hard-working star wouldn't feel resentful? It was unclear how others felt, but the "Asian Flying Man" Lu Kai, incited by his team, felt deeply unbalanced. In today’s competition, whenever he went up against Zhang Qiyang, he would show absolutely no mercy. He wanted to crush this pampered, wealthy young master on the field and show him what it meant to be a true man forged in sweat!