Chapter 66: The Cross-Dressing Game Streamer is Actually… (18)
The opponent for the second match was an acquaintance—Yin Pei.
Emmmmmm…
How should I put this? It could be considered fate.
To prevent cheating and ensure fairness, communication was disabled within the Wind and Cloud Conference map. Naturally, they couldn’t exchange greetings, and Huo Xian couldn’t tell Yin Pei not to go easy on him.
However, facts proved he was overthinking it. As soon as the countdown ended, Yin Pei raised his weapon, keeping at max range, and hit him once, then again, and again…
Fighting a pure healer was the most boring spectacle. Since healers could heal themselves, you might unload a full combo of damage only for them to cast a ‘Big Heal’ and top themselves off. Consequently, many streamers currently broadcasting would simply switch rooms if they saw they were matched against a healer.
“Hmm… this healer dad is on my friend list, so I’ll give him five minutes,” Huo Xian said as his hands left the keyboard. He picked up Huo Yuan and started petting the cat.
【??????】 【So, idling on Brother Xian’s friend list comes with such good perks?】 【Brother Xian, when will you open up friend requests? Let us add you!】 【Jiang Shan Ru Gu: I’m taking that seriously.】 【Eh? The healer dad is actually watching the stream???】 【Jiang Shan Ru Gu rewarded the streamer with Deep Sea Giant Shark x1】 【Jiang Shan Ru Gu rewarded the streamer with Deep Sea Giant Shark x1】 【……】
“Thank you, Healer Dad, for the Giant Sharks, but I still won’t go easy on you,” Huo Xian said with a beaming smile while stroking the cat.
【Jiang Shan Ru Gu: You’ll be dead in five minutes.】
“With that tickle damage of yours?” Huo Xian looked at the damage numbers popping up on the screen. “One minute has passed and my health hasn’t even dropped by a fifth. The probability of you killing me is low.”
【Waiting for Brother Xian to give up his First Blood!】 【Go Healer Dad! Pop your burst! Go in bold!】 【Don’t let this man get too cocky, take the First Blood!】 【……】
Huo Xian said he would give him five minutes, and he really gave him five minutes. Yin Pei didn’t hold back either; within those five minutes, as soon as the global cooldown ended, he spammed skills. He even had to replenish his mana twice. So, when Huo Xian finally made a move with only a sliver of health left, Yin Pei had already prepped a ‘Big Heal’ to top himself off, planning to seize the opportunity to take Huo Xian’s head.
But!
Huo Xian didn’t give him the chance to “seize the opportunity.” Even though Yin Pei managed to heal himself, the moment his crowd-control immunity ended, he was completely locked down like a statue. Just like the Thousand Kill Hall assassin in the first round, he was chopped up like a vegetable.
Time taken: One minute and thirty seconds.
“Classmate Healer Dad, was that fun?” Huo Xian even made a sarcastic remark.
[Private Chat] [Jiang Shan Ru Gu]: Did you have to be that ruthless? [Private Chat] [Jiang Shan Ru Gu]: Careful or you won’t have any friends!
Huo Xian raised an eyebrow, his tone leisurely. “We experts are long accustomed to loneliness. Besides, I already have a partner, what do I need friends for?”
[Private Chat] [Jiang Shan Ru Gu]: (#Disdain) [Private Chat] [Jiang Shan Ru Gu]: (#Disdain) [Private Chat] [Jiang Shan Ru Gu]: (#Disdain)
“Not convinced? If you’re not convinced, go find a partner yourself,” Huo Xian said as he continued to queue for the conference map. “Though, with your skills… tsk, I won’t comment. As long as you know it in your heart.”
Jiang Shan Ru Gu aka Yin Pei: “……” Why is this person’s personality so annoying?
After that, Huo Xian didn’t pay much attention to the bullet screen. He began to focus on the arena. While other streamers took three to five minutes, or even seven to eight minutes per match—sometimes ten to twenty minutes if they met a tank, or half an hour for a healer—he averaged two minutes a round, including loading times.
“Accumulating points is faster than I imagined, but matchmaking has gotten slower after 35 points. One more game, then I’m stopping. I’ll continue tonight,” Huo Xian said, glancing at the estimated wait time.
The Wind and Cloud Conference matching mechanism was based on point tiers, but equal points didn’t necessarily mean equal skill.
Take Huo Xian, for example. His 39 points were earned with a solid 100% win rate.
If one were to use two words to describe his PK process, it would inevitably be “chopping vegetables.” Although most fans in the live stream knew Huo Xian had high technical skills, that knowledge was largely based on his solo dungeon runs and the few field fights he had streamed. Until today, seeing him dispose of one highly conscious player after another like chopping vegetables in two or three moves left them shocked. Shocked. And shocked again.
The fortieth match took a full five minutes to find.
[Huo Xian, it’s Zhao Xiyou!] Huo Yuan, sharp-eyed, spotted the opposing ID instantly.
The bullet screen livened up as well. Ever since the Spring Festival when Huo Xian and Zhao Xiyou connected via mic, they hadn’t interacted again. However, Zhao Xiyou would occasionally mention Huo Xian during his own streams. For instance, when looking for teammates on his friend list, he would mention Huo Xian if he saw him online. Then, the fans in his stream who also followed Huo Xian would praise Huo Xian as the main character, which would lead to them being flamed by Zhao Xiyou’s fans. Consequently, there was quite a bit of conflict between their fanbases, though there were also those obsessed with shipping the “CP” (Couple).
Just like now, many of Zhao Xiyou’s fans in the bullet screen were jokingly saying Huo Xian definitely had to go easy on Zhao Xiyou, or he’d lose a friend. Huo Xian’s fans, on the other hand, strongly demanded that Zhao Xiyou’s fans stop spamming about other streamers in this channel. A disagreement broke out instantly.
“Yuan Yuan, mute everyone,” Huo Xian said indifferently.
[Okay.] Huo Yuan responded and acted quickly.
The bullet screen was instantly cleared. Only gifts could express the currently irritable mood of the audience.
Huo Xian didn’t care about the audience’s mood. Going easy was out of the question. Not only would he not go easy, but he was also going to crush Zhao Xiyou. He hadn’t expected to meet him this soon, but things are unpredictable.
This map happened to be just a square arena. A PK between Sword Cultivators didn’t need a complex map; a head-on clash was the true show of skill. This way, they could truly see who was superior.
Before the countdown ended, Huo Xian received a message from Zhao Xiyou.
Zhao Xiyou – Have mercy, Roomie (#LaughCry)
Huo Xian – Why don’t you just surrender?
Zhao Xiyou – ……
Zhao Xiyou – That’s impossible. I’m coming!
Huo Xian didn’t reply again. Since Zhao Xiyou was so confident, why not destroy that confidence?
The original host’s wish list didn’t include making Zhao Xiyou pay a price or anything similar, but apologies, he, Huo Xian, was petty. Regardless of whether Zhao Xiyou acted out of malicious fun or unintentional negligence in the beginning, the irreversible harm suffered by the original host and his grandmother was inextricably linked to Zhao Xiyou. He had no right to judge Zhao Xiyou with private justice, but making Zhao Xiyou uncomfortable? He would do that gladly.
However, although Huo Xian was confident in his skills, he didn’t underestimate his enemy. Zhao Xiyou, after all, possessed the top-tier operational awareness of a pro player. Once a flaw was exposed, he would seize it. So, during the initial exchange, both sides mainly tested each other, constantly keeping an eye on their mana levels.
This match seemed to be a test of patience. Both sides were constantly positioning, using basic attacks. Sword Cultivators with the Return to Ruins skill simply didn’t fear crowd control.
Suddenly!
Both attacked at the same time. The timing was exactly when the Return to Ruins field disappeared, awaiting the recast. Return to Ruins had a 1-second cast time. High-level players could seize that one-second gap.
The audience in the live stream only saw a chaotic tangle of skill effects on the screen. Two figures moved and dodged attacks at a speed the naked eye struggled to catch. The audience unconsciously held their breath.
Half a minute later, the last sliver of the white-robed Sword Cultivator’s health was taken. He fell to the ground.
The black-robed Sword Cultivator stood holding his sword, looking down upon the world like a king.
In a university dorm room, Zhao Xiyou’s eyes widened. He looked at the grayed-out screen in disbelief, the fingers holding his mouse trembling slightly. It wasn’t that he couldn’t accept losing, but that he couldn’t accept losing so miserably.
By “losing miserably,” he meant his full health bar had been cleared, while his opponent stood beside his corpse with a nearly full health bar.
Yes, Huo Xian had slaughtered Zhao Xiyou with almost full health remaining.
Huo Yuan said: [Actually, you didn’t even need to lose that health during the probing phase at the start.]
Huo Xian scooped him up and rubbed him, narrowing his eyes meaningfully: [I had to give him a little hope that he could hit me.]
Huo Yuan: [A tiny bit of hope.]
[Yeah. I didn’t give him massive hope only to give him despair right after. Isn’t that very kind of me?] Huo Xian asked, stroking the cat’s fur and feeling good about himself.
Huo Yuan: [……] Suddenly, he understood a tiny bit how that system destroyed by Huo Xian felt. Cut Huo Xian open… and he’s truly black on the inside.
Huo Xian looked at the camera again and said indifferently, “Every streamer has their personal space. Not mentioning other streamers in a streamer’s channel is basic respect. If anyone incites conflict, I will mute and block them.”
The Xianyu platform had a function to block fans; once blocked, they could no longer enter the live stream.
“Again, please consciously observe bullet screen etiquette,” Huo Xian said slowly. “That’s it for the afternoon stream. I’ll stream for a while tonight to wait for other players to catch up in points.”
With that, he directly turned off the stream and the computer.
[Zhao Xiyou’s fans are definitely going to hate on you,] Huo Yuan said.
“No matter how much they hate, they can’t change the fact that Zhao Xiyou was miserably crushed by me.” Huo Xian took clothes out of the wardrobe. “Yuan Yuan, keep an eye on the leaderboard for me.”
[Ow, I’d watch it even if you didn’t ask.] Huo Yuan had to ensure Huo Xian secured the title of “Number One Immortal Lord.” Seeing Huo Xian change his shirt and then his pants, he asked in confusion: [Huo Xian, are you going out?]
“Thesis defense is in two days. I have to go to school. I’m buying a few clothes,” Huo Xian said.
Modern young people liked online shopping, and the original host didn’t buy things online often; his clothes were cheap styles bought from stalls in town. For Huo Xian, going out shopping was exercise for a shut-in. perhaps he had stayed in the laboratory too long in the last world and gone numb, so he didn’t want to stay indoors all the time. Thus, whenever he could, he would take Huo Yuan out for a stroll.
The weather was getting hot, and Huo Yuan wasn’t a kitten that could be stuffed into a pocket anymore. Huo Xian now had to bring a cat bag when taking him out.
Not long after leaving, Zhao Xiyou sent another message, wanting to arrange a sparring match. Huo Xian simply sent him a photo in response, implying: I’m out, can’t spar.
While shopping at the mall, he unexpectedly ran into Yin Pei. Yin Pei was stunned to see him and blurted out, “Aren’t you streaming?”
Huo Xian raised an eyebrow: “You’re a fan of mine too?”
Yin Pei then realized that Huo Xian didn’t know he was Jiang Shan Ru Gu. He nodded awkwardly: “Yeah, I’m your fan.” He used to never watch live streams and didn’t like playing games. He played Xianyu to get close to Huo Xian, but mistook Zhao Xiyou for Huo Xian. Later, he inadvertently learned that Huo Xian was also a game streamer, so he went to his channel to follow him. Unknowingly, he became a fan of his gameplay.
“Yin Pei, come help me look at these shoes,” a voice suddenly called out.
Huo Xian looked towards the voice and saw a young man standing not far away. The young man had curly brown hair tied into a small bun at the back of his head, chiseled features, and blue eyes. He was a handsome mixed-race man, speaking fluent Chinese without an accent.
“Can’t you look yourself?” Yin Pei nodded apologetically to Huo Xian, then turned to the mixed-race man with some exasperation.
The mixed-race man lifted his foot, displaying the colorful sneakers on his feet, and said seriously, “You have better taste than me.”
Yin Pei felt his eyes hurt just looking at those colors. Helplessly, he said, “Can’t you wear a normal color?”
“Is this color not normal?” the mixed-race man asked back.
Yin Pei: “If you think it’s normal, then buy it.”
“But you have good taste,” the mixed-race man said solemnly.
Yin Pei held his forehead, rolled his eyes tiredly, and noticing a decent pair of shoes on the rack out of the corner of his eye, walked over, grabbed them, and tossed them to him. “Here, this pair.”
“Black…” The mixed-race man looked a bit disdainful.
“If you don’t like it, leave it. I like it, I’ll buy it.” Yin Pei went to take them back.
“Who said I didn’t like it? I clearly like it very much.” The mixed-race man dodged. “You like white, buy a white pair. I’ll treat you.”
“Well, thank you very much then,” Yin Pei didn’t stand on ceremony with him and said to the sales clerk, “Trouble you for a size 41 in white.”
Hearing this, the mixed-race man smiled gently. “Why do you only grow tall but your feet don’t grow?” This earned him a kick from Yin Pei. He immediately let out an exaggerated “Ow” and hung onto Yin Pei. “After so many years, why do you still like stepping on my feet?”
Not far away, Huo Xian watched the interaction between the two. Undoubtedly, Yin Pei and the mixed-race man were very familiar with each other. Most importantly, the look in the mixed-race man’s eyes when he looked at Yin Pei was… well, it had quite a specific flavor.
“Aren’t you going to introduce us?” The mixed-race man suddenly changed the topic, looking straight at Huo Xian.
Yin Pei then remembered meeting Huo Xian. He didn’t notice the slight wariness in the mixed-race man’s eyes as he looked at Huo Xian. Just as he was about to introduce them, Huo Xian spoke first: “Huo Xian. Yin Pei and I are university classmates.”
A flash of strangeness passed through the mixed-race man’s eyes when he heard “university classmates,” but he quickly returned to naturalness. He smiled and extended his hand to Huo Xian: “Hello Huo Xian, I’m Yin Pei’s neighbor, Miao Junxi. We grew up together.”
Actually childhood sweethearts?
Huo Xian shook hands briefly with Miao Junxi, considering them acquainted. Huo Xian then bid farewell to Yin Pei: “Then I won’t disturb you two. I’m going to look around too.”
Yin Pei nodded, but just as Huo Xian was about to leave, he asked, “…Are you alone?”
“There’s also my family’s little ancestor.” Huo Xian turned the cat bag to show him.
Yin Pei met Huo Yuan’s gaze inside the cat bag and immediately felt amused. As a fan of “Yuan Yuan’s Boyfriend,” he naturally knew Huo Xian was a poop-scooper who particularly spoiled his little ancestor of a cat.
But, what he actually wanted to ask about was Huo Xian’s girlfriend…
As if guessing his thoughts, Huo Xian said, “My partner should be returning to the country in a while. By then, I won’t have to go shopping for clothes alone.” He looked at Yin Pei and Miao Junxi with a hint of envy in his eyes, which he quickly retracted. “By the way, thesis defense is in two days. Shall we grab a meal together? I’ll call Zhao Xiyou. You can bring your boyfriend along.”
Yin Pei originally wanted to ask “Aren’t you two already living together?”, but upon hearing the word “boyfriend,” his face instantly heated up. He hurriedly wanted to explain that he and Miao Junxi weren’t in that kind of relationship, but before he could speak, Miao Junxi agreed first: “Sure.”
Yin Pei: “???”
Huo Xian revealed a meaningful smile.
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