Chapter 17: The Temptation of Food
Moli was a die-hard fan of Nick and had been following him on *Xingbo* for two years.
Recently, a new streamer had emerged on *Xingbo*, and their popularity was rising rapidly. Moli had heard about them but had never visited their stream.
The reason was that the fan group manager mentioned a few days ago that Nick was feeling quite down. He said he had disappointed everyone and hadn’t been able to present authentic gourmet food in the past two years. He thought he didn’t deserve the title of a food connoisseur.
Moli couldn’t bear to see her idol so downhearted and declared that she would never go to anyone else’s stream. They would always support Nick.
The rest of the fan group shared the same sentiment.
Especially today, when she entered Nick’s stream and found him to be as handsome and kind-hearted as ever.
Not only did he actively recommend the newcomer, but he also introduced a dish—*Gulan Star* cuisine: Braised Chicken Wings.
Moli managed to grab a portion but felt a bit disappointed.
Though the flavor was better than ordinary nutritional supplements, it wasn’t exactly pleasant. In fact, it had a faint resemblance to perfume, and not the good kind, but the cheap kind.
But this was Nick, the kind-hearted and handsome man—how could he possibly use cheap perfume to mimic the taste of food?
Especially since right after that, Nick’s popularity on *Xingnet* surged, with countless glowing praises. Moli felt a sense of pride.
*Gulan Star* cuisine rising, a high-appearance streamer, a grand feast—she was stirred with excitement.
At that moment, she stumbled upon a special post.
It was from another streamer she followed, Luke, who focused on educational content.
Unlike Nick, who had a more wild and independent identity, Luke was a legitimate researcher at the *Ancient Research Institute* and even the top disciple of the institute’s dean, giving him significant authority in the field.
And now, this authoritative figure had posted a thread questioning Nick?
**[Three Questions for *Xingbo* streamer Nick! Why are you engaging in fraud? Do you still have a conscience? Do you deserve the title of food connoisseur?]**
The shocking headline made Moli’s heart tighten inexplicably. She thought back to the taste she had experienced earlier, and the suspicions she had dismissed started to resurface.
Uneasily, she clicked into the post, and immediately, a series of images hit her like a wave.
She had watched Nick’s stream, and the braised chicken wings he presented looked especially tempting. But now, compared side by side with another dish, the difference was stark.
The other dish, covered in a rich sauce, lay quietly on the plate, with small white granules sprinkled on top. The image was striking.
Nick’s version only resembled the appearance but, upon closer inspection, the sauce wasn’t rich enough, too watery, and seemed like it had been artificially made. The color wasn’t as thick or inviting as the other dish.
Luke had marked the dish next to Nick’s creation as having been made by the new streamer.
Moli’s mind went blank. While Nick had praised the newcomer in his stream, the fan group privately claimed that Nick had done some unique innovation, making his dish more tempting and delicious—truly authentic *Gulan Star* cuisine.
She had believed it, but at this moment, she couldn’t say a word. When the two dishes were placed side by side, it was obvious which one was more genuine.
When she saw Luke’s statement that Nick had stepped on the back of the *#1 Knife in the Sect* to rise to fame and had even used cheap perfume to imitate food flavors, she felt her breath burning and was embarrassed on Nick’s behalf.
Luke didn’t hold back in mocking Nick’s current overwhelming popularity, suggesting that everyone knew what Nick was really up to, didn’t they?
With Luke’s post, the public, who had been excited by the earlier trending posts, were left confused: “?? What’s going on?”
Before Luke could conclude his post, Moli refreshed her feed at 5 o’clock and saw another new post.
When she saw the title, the words *red-haired, green-eyed* made her pause for a moment, instinctively drawn in, as Nick had red hair and green eyes.
Upon closer inspection, the title seemed oddly familiar.
Moli quickly searched through her browsing history and, sure enough, found a post from the previous day.
**[Oh my god! Who would have thought the new streamer who can create synthetic *Gulan Star* cuisine would look like this!!]**
Moli had seen the post late at night and had been shocked by the appearance of the new streamer, which had given her nightmares for most of the night.
But she wasn’t someone who judged by appearances, and by the time she woke up, she had forgotten about it.
Now, looking at this new post with a strikingly similar title, she had an ominous feeling that it was deliberately targeting the exposé from the day before.
Because this post was also in the exposé section.
**[Oh my god! Who would have thought the red-haired, green-eyed top streamer would be so evil!!]**
Many people, like Moli, clicked out of curiosity, thinking it might be another exposé about Nick. But the truth was far more explosive than expected.
The post was deliberately crafted, mirroring the style of the previous day’s exposé of the new streamer’s appearance, making the drama even more intense.
**[Original Post: I found out by chance. Initially, I thought the new streamer had already cleared things up, since they’re on the same platform, so I let it go. But it turns out the red-haired, green-eyed streamer has a whole scheme going on and isn’t stopping anytime soon. I couldn’t hold back from spilling the tea. As for who this streamer is, well, no need to name names, right?]
Accusation 1:
Yesterday, the exposé section had a post with three disfigured, ugly pictures clearly pointing at someone. Today, during [*#1 Knife in the Sect*]’s stream, they clarified that the pictures weren’t of them, but the background in the virtual images indeed belonged to [*#1 Knife in the Sect*]. So, @Nick’s assistant Jonah, where exactly did you get these so-called real images? [ID Comparison Image 1] [Historical Black Posts List Image 2]
Accusation 2:
After [*#1 Knife in the Sect*] made braised chicken wings yesterday, today, Nick produced a half-baked version, claiming it was *Gulan Star* synthetic cuisine. But to pass off fake food with cheap perfume mixed into the flavor and sell it—are you really treating your fans as nothing more than money machines or even risking their lives? [Chat Logs between Jonah and Solid Nutritional Supplement Distributor Image 1] [Chat Logs between Jonah and Cheap Perfume Mixed with Insecticide Agent for 1 Starcoin per Liter Distributor Image 2] [Plans between Jonah and Nick to Market Nick as the First *Gulan Star* Gourmet Image 3]
Accusation 3:
Pretending to support juniors while actually suppressing them. When a promising newcomer appears, you smear and sabotage them, leaving them no choice but to quit or delete their accounts. Is this how you take care of your juniors? [Chat Logs 1] [Chat Logs 2] [Chat Logs 3]**
If Luke’s post was just the prelude, this exposé was the killing blow, leaving Nick with no room for rebuttal.
The post provided everything—ID addresses, timestamps, historical records—accompanied by detailed images, leaving the *Xingnet* population dumbfounded. Who had ever seen such an overwhelming hit?
When compared with the three photos from the previous day’s appearance exposé, which had no solid evidence, this post was the real deal.
The hammer couldn’t have fallen harder.
What made it even more unbelievable was that Nick, self-proclaimed as a food connoisseur, not only suppressed his juniors out of jealousy, but he had also been fooling his fans and the viewers of his stream?
Especially accusation 2—it was essentially life-threatening.
Even if ordinary perfume wasn’t harmful, Nick had used the cheapest, even insecticide-derived, product meant for killing *Zerg*. It was cheap and available in large quantities, but it was **toxic**.
Sure, people in the interstellar era had special constitutions, but not even they could withstand prolonged exposure to these insecticide fumes without consequences.
This was a clear case of endangering lives.
Not only was Nick exploiting his fans financially, but he was also risking their lives.
As Moli finished reading, her entire body turned cold, trembling with anger. Staring at the evidence projected before her, her face turned ashen. She had suspected Nick might have used perfume, but she hadn’t imagined it was even worse than that.
To cut costs, he had actually… actually used insecticide?
Even if it had been diluted with a lot of water to reduce the toxicity, smelling it once or twice might not have caused immediate harm, but it was clear Nick intended to continue selling this scent long-term. This was a blatant threat to life.
Nick’s fan groups, numbering in the dozens, suddenly saw messages with links to a new rights protection group, followed by the sound of people leaving the groups, one after another, in a coordinated and solemn exodus.
Some of Nick’s fans had been following him for years, treating him like a god. But to Nick, they were nothing more than ants.
Loren, one of Nick’s major partners, received the news almost immediately after the exposé went live and promptly sent a termination letter and a demand for a hefty breach-of-contract penalty to Nick.
Nick, who had been in his studio with Jonah, dreaming of skyrocketing success, heard his wristband buzz. He thought it might be an opportunity from a partner, but when his assistant Jonah answered, his face turned pale, and his voice became sharp, “Impossible, how is this possible?!”
But no matter what explanation he tried to give, the other party hung up immediately.
That was only the first call. Soon, there was a second, then a third, all terminating contracts and demanding compensation. Jonah’s face turned as white as a sheet, and his legs buckled as he collapsed to the ground.
Nick, slow to catch on, walked over. When he saw the posts his assistant was tremblingly projecting, he was utterly stunned. It was over. He was finished.
Ning Yunyi had initially only intended to expose some information, but the chat logs he uncovered made his face darken.
If Nick were given a chance to make a comeback, who knew how many more people he might harm? Since that was the case, Ning Yunyi decided to destroy him completely.
Ning Yunyi didn’t concern himself with the aftermath of the posts. He descended from the upper floor and walked straight toward the cage.
The big cat lay curled up on the soft cushion inside the cage. The bandages on its large head had been removed, and the gaping wound had healed quickly, already scabbing over.
By tomorrow or the day after, the scab would likely fall off completely.
This was Ning Yunyi’s first time witnessing the remarkable healing abilities of a star beast.
The big cat had known Ning Yunyi was there the moment he appeared but had kept its eyes closed. It hadn’t expected to heal so quickly this time, and its episodes hadn’t recurred over the past two days.
It thought about the food that had indeed helped suppress its mental outbursts and couldn’t help feeling a glimmer of hope. Its mood improved, and its fluffy tail swayed behind it.
The next moment, the cat’s nose twitched as a sweet, fresh scent filled the air. The smell was so close that the cat immediately opened its eyes, and sure enough, Ning Yunyi was crouching in front of the cage, holding a bamboo basket in his arms.
Inside were unfamiliar items, but the cat had long grown numb to this world. It had seen too many things it didn’t recognize, so it remained calm.
Judging by the scent, these were likely what Ning Yunyi called fruits.
The aroma was particularly refreshing, with faint notes of sourness and sweetness, making the cat’s mouth water. The distinct fragrance, so different from the sweet and sour of dishes like sweet and sour fish or sweet and sour ribs, captivated the big cat completely.
Its large tail stopped swaying, and its beastly eyes fixated on Ning Yunyi, watching as the man crouched calmly in front of it.
Then, he picked up one of the fruits and popped it into his mouth.
His red lips chewed, and the cat’s keen hearing picked up the sound of the juice bursting inside his mouth. The sweet and sour flavor seemed to grow even stronger, and the big cat stared without blinking, forgetting to react.
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