When Lin Cimian began streaming the next day, he had barely finished his daily quests before Unruly Subject came looking for him.
[Private Chat] Some Unruly Subject Is Always Trying to Harm This Emperor: Daily quests are boring. I’ll take you treasure hunting!
[Private Chat] Sleepless Tonight: Okay. Where are you? I’ll come find you.
Lin Cimian teleported to a mountaintop and stared dumbfounded at the huge crowd of players.
Wasn’t treasure hunting supposed to be a fairly secretive activity? Why were there so many people?
[Private Chat] Some Unruly Subject Is Always Trying to Harm This Emperor: A guild war just ended. Our server ranked first in total points and received a limited-time reward. Treasure caves are randomly distributed across these mountains. There aren’t that many, and the quality of the treasure varies wildly. What you get depends entirely on luck.
[Private Chat] Sleepless Tonight: Can each treasure cave only be searched once?
[Private Chat] Some Unruly Subject Is Always Trying to Harm This Emperor: Yes. Where’s your number-one patron? Weren’t you taking him along in the game?
[Private Chat] Sleepless Tonight: He isn’t online yet.
[Private Chat] Some Unruly Subject Is Always Trying to Harm This Emperor: What a shame. He missed something good.
[Private Chat] Sleepless Tonight: It’s okay. I can share some with him. Little fox holding flowers.jpg
Everyone wanted to find more treasure caves and had gathered early. The moment the event began, special effects from all kinds of pets and mounts covered the screen. Flying beasts were the most spectacular and also the most efficient for searching.
For a non-paying beginner like Lin Cimian, the only transportation available was his own two legs.
He had barely felt sorry for himself for one second when Brother Unruly Subject rode over on his Flame Lion, which could carry three people.
Lin Cimian was deeply moved. He wasted no time and immediately climbed onto the back.
The Flame Lion was not as fast as a flying beast, but it was still much quicker than walking. They ignored mountaintops where people were already searching and traveled far inward until they finally found an empty region.
[Private Chat] Some Unruly Subject Is Always Trying to Harm This Emperor: Let’s split up. You take the left, I’ll take the right.
[Private Chat] Sleepless Tonight: Okay. Good luck to both of us.
[Private Chat] Some Unruly Subject Is Always Trying to Harm This Emperor: Don’t worry. Before logging in, I bathed, changed clothes, burned incense, and purified my hands. Amitabha. May God bless me.
Lin Cimian: “…” Bro, your faith is a little mixed.
He laughed, turned, and flew toward the left mountain.
As expected of an official reward event, there were no wild beasts or traps around, so players did not have to waste time fighting. Very generous. The only challenge was that the treasure caves were hidden extremely well and required careful searching.
Lin Cimian stared closely at the screen and noticed a patch at the lower left where the color was slightly lighter. Curious, he walked over. The instant he touched it, the grass collapsed inward. A few seconds later it vanished completely, revealing a dark cave entrance.
!!! He had found a treasure cave that quickly?!
Lin Cimian immediately entered. Inside, he discovered a golden chest practically radiating the aura of “I am extremely rich.”
Lin Cimian silently prayed for two seconds, held his breath, and opened it. Pale light flickered softly, revealing the rough shapes of the contents—two jade pendants.
…Very familiar. He happened to be wearing one himself, and he shared a tremendous history with it.
The viewers froze for a few seconds, then burst out laughing without giving him any face whatsoever.
[Help, can this joke ever end?!]
[If I were that dungeon boss, I’d definitely get so angry in the middle of the night that I’d stand beside the streamer’s bed and keep poking him with spider legs!]
[Are the developers seriously not doing this on purpose? The comedic effect is way too perfect hahahahaha.]
[What is everyone talking about? These two pendants have pretty good stats. They’re upper-middle among the available rewards. What’s funny?]
[I recommend the person above take a trip through the forums. You’ll obtain your daily dose of happiness!]
With complicated feelings, Lin Cimian accepted the two jade pendants, turned around without the slightest attachment, and pretended he had never been there.
He understood the designers’ trick now. Treasure caves were disguised extremely well, differing only subtly from the surrounding environment. It was basically a spot-the-difference game.
Time passed. Just before the event forcibly closed, Lin Cimian found another treasure cave, but this one contained a dull gray iron chest and the treasure inside was mediocre.
Lin Cimian felt a little disappointed and stopped searching. He returned to the original meeting point to wait for Brother Unruly Subject.
Brother Unruly Subject came back just before time ran out. Although his game character remained the cool white-robed swordsman, his excitement was obvious.
[Private Chat] Some Unruly Subject Is Always Trying to Harm This Emperor: I found tons of good stuff. What about you?
[Private Chat] Sleepless Tonight: It was okay. The last thing I found was a sword that only adds five points to its stat!
[Private Chat] Some Unruly Subject Is Always Trying to Harm This Emperor: …
[Private Chat] Some Unruly Subject Is Always Trying to Harm This Emperor: Something is better than nothing. There should still be some treasure caves left. When you come tomorrow, maybe you’ll find better things.
Lin Cimian’s mood immediately improved from stormy to merely cloudy. Curious, he asked what Brother Unruly Subject had found.
Brother Unruly Subject was so proud his tail practically reached the sky. Holding nothing back, he displayed every treasure he had obtained.
[Private Chat] Some Unruly Subject Is Always Trying to Harm This Emperor: My luck was amazing! I found seven treasure caves in total and got one A-class gemstone that fits perfectly into my belt! I also got two B-class materials. I can’t use them right now, so I can give them to you if you need them! Hahahaha, tell me my luck is incredible. Looks like all that praying really worked!!
Lin Cimian: “…” This counted as incredible luck…?
He had found five treasure caves on a single mountain. He could not remember the total number, but it had definitely been more than twenty.
He had three A-class gemstones sitting in storage, plus others with even better stats.
As for B-class materials, he had so many duplicates that he planned to sell them in the shop.
Lin Cimian’s feelings became extremely complicated. He silently closed his mouth and did not dare mention the subject again. Unfortunately, Brother Unruly Subject was still immersed in joy and asked what he had found.
Too guilty to look at the comments, Lin Cimian let his fingers hover over the keyboard for several seconds before dryly sending one sentence.
[Private Chat] Sleepless Tonight: It was okay. My luck actually wasn’t quite as terrible as I expected.
[Private Chat] Some Unruly Subject Is Always Trying to Harm This Emperor: It’s fine. I’ll make up the luck you’re missing. These two B-class materials are yours!
Lin Cimian: (°ー°〃)!!
If he accepted them, guilt would probably keep him awake tonight. Even if he did fall asleep, his dreams would be filled with the thought: I really am a terrible person.
[Private Chat] Sleepless Tonight: No, no. I can’t use those two sets of materials. Keep them for forging your weapon.
[Private Chat] Some Unruly Subject Is Always Trying to Harm This Emperor: How could you not use them? Take them. Don’t be polite with me.
[Private Chat] Sleepless Tonight: I really don’t need them!
Please, I’m begging you, don’t give them to me!
Seeing Lin Cimian’s firm attitude, Brother Unruly Subject sighed inwardly and felt a little sorry for his poor brother. He secretly slipped into Lin Cimian’s livestream, preparing to send a few gifts.
Before dropping the gifts, he habitually glanced at the comments—and froze solid.
Five treasure caves on one mountain? Those weren’t treasure caves, that was a mole colony!!
[I kind of feel sorry for Unruly Subject. Whose luck is bad again? Hahahaha.]
[Streamer, you really should thank him. Every time Unruly Subject appears, the comedy level explodes. Dog-head.jpg]
[Mianmian is such a lucky koi. Let me rub some luck! Praying I pull what I want in a ten-pull!]
[Plus one. I hope I stop being the denominator every single time there’s a lucky draw. orz]
Brother Unruly Subject: “…”
He silently left the livestream. The screen reflected his miserable expression and vacant eyes.
Forget it. They were brothers. What was there to fuss about?
Brother Unruly Subject had an absurdly good mentality and quickly comforted himself. He never mentioned the matter again.
[Private Chat] Some Unruly Subject Is Always Trying to Harm This Emperor: Have you seen the official Weibo? The game masters cooked up another stunt.
[Private Chat] Sleepless Tonight: I’ll go look.
After browsing Weibo for a while, Lin Cimian roughly understood.
The dungeon name was plain yet direct, rigorous yet somehow ridiculous:
Black Bear Kidnaps a Bride.
It was a two-player dungeon. If the players were one man and one woman, the female player would be kidnapped while the male player searched for her. Apparently that route was slightly easier. The same applied to two female players.
But if both players were male, the route focused on exploration and combat and had a higher difficulty.
The developers’ gimmicks never disappointed. Discussion on the forums was extremely lively. Although the dungeon had not opened yet, various experts were already exchanging information.
Lin Cimian was full of interest and planned to team up with Good Day tomorrow. The two could explore and fight together, and with Lin Cimian there, things would be easier for Good Day.
Lin Cimian had grown up beside his grandparents, so his daily routine resembled theirs. It was nearly bedtime. He greeted the viewers and ended his stream amid a flood of pleas for him to stay.
The next morning, Lin Cimian continued cleaning. The kitchen and living room were almost finished and finally felt like a home. After walking around the apartment once, he suddenly remembered something, opened a shopping app, and ordered five identical T-shirts in one go.
The shirts were pure black without any design, made from soft, breathable fabric. Lin Cimian planned to use one as pajamas and rotate the others for daily wear.
After finishing, he rested on the sofa for a while, then went to the kitchen and cooked himself a bowl of minced-meat noodles.
Once full and satisfied, he patted his round stomach without any concern for appearances and lazily cleaned the dishes.
After tidying the kitchen, he grew sleepy. Looking listless, he carried a trash bag toward the door, planning to throw it away downstairs.
The moment he opened his door, he heard the scrape of another door moving across the floor from the opposite side.
The neighbor across the hall had come out at exactly the same time.
Lin Cimian instantly woke up. His movements stiffened. Standing awkwardly in place, he squeezed out a dry smile and tried to force himself to greet the neighbor.
Before opening his mouth, he suddenly remembered that he had once been an infamous celebrity and had forgotten to put on a mask before leaving home.
!!!!
Lin Cimian did not think. His body moved purely on instinct. He flexibly shrank back through his doorway and closed it as quietly as possible, pretending nothing had happened.
Standing by the door, heart pounding violently, he listened to the sounds outside. Only after confirming the neighbor had left did he relax.
He lowered his head and engaged in a staring contest with the trash bag. After several minutes of deadlock, he resigned himself to putting on a mask and cap, covering himself thoroughly before opening the door again.
Throwing away trash felt like committing a burglary. orz
Lin Cimian sighed inwardly. After taking out the garbage, he came home, removed all the unnecessary disguise, and dropped onto the bed under the force of gravity, rolling twice in relaxation.
Living alone really was more comfortable.
If he lived with the people who were technically his family, not only would he have to watch every movement and feel uncomfortable, there were also many servants in the villa. Wouldn’t that mean he could run into several strangers just leaving his room to pour a glass of water—and then have to force himself to greet them?!
Lin Cimian imagined the scene and sucked in a cold breath. His whole body turned boneless as he lazily wriggled beneath the blankets, too lazy even to raise a hand.
He had a fixed habit of taking afternoon naps. His lashes trembled twice before he fell deeply asleep.
After waking from his nap, Lin Cimian began streaming as usual.
Several fans came every day and interacted with him. Lin Cimian had become familiar with their IDs and was just about to greet them when the rapidly rising viewer count stunned him.
[Mianmian, good afternoon!]
[Here because I heard the name.]
[That’s right. You’re famous now.]
[When is that entertaining Unruly Subject guy coming online?]
[Does the streamer never use camera or voice?]
[So this is the streamer who interacted with the official Weibo? Not quite what I imagined.]
Lin Cimian vaguely guessed what had happened and immediately opened Weibo. Three hours after he replied from his new account, the usually aloof official account had greeted him and enthusiastically joined the meme.
The interaction was reposted to the forums, causing his stream’s popularity to make a qualitative leap.
Faced with such a huge surprise, Lin Cimian was a little overwhelmed. He stared blankly for several seconds before greeting everyone in the comments.
Sleepless Tonight: Hello, everyone. Next I’m going to play the Black Bear Kidnaps a Bride dungeon.
There were many comments. Some greeted Lin Cimian, others discussed the dungeon, but a portion were deliberately provocative.
[Shit, why is this streamer Joyous Union? Does the official account support online-romance scams now?!]
[Blind guess: another useless streamer who can only use a pinched voice to call people “big brother,” leech experience, and cling to strong players. Vomiting.jpg]
[What’s even worth playing about Joyous Union? It heals worse than Mount Potalaka. Other than a pretty character model, it’s useless!]
[I feel physically sick whenever I see Joyous Union.]
[Streamer, get on mic and call me big brother. I’ll send you a free gift!]
[Holy shit. He’s only streamed for a few days and his supporter rankings are already this insane. The streamer has some methods.]
[I heard this Joyous Union plays with his number-one patron every day. Tsk tsk. How far have you two gotten? Will it pass censorship? Dog-head.jpg]
This was not Lin Cimian’s first day streaming. His behavior had been visible to everyone. Some fans defended him, but most of the provocateurs did not care what the truth was. They only wanted the temporary pleasure of running their mouths.
The comments devolved into a fight. At that moment, a black-clothed swordsman appeared on the screen, with the number-one patron’s ID “Good Day” above his head.
He wore the cheapest outfit given by the system, used the exact same default face as countless other players, had no decent equipment, and possessed such a low level that he looked as though he had not even left the beginner village. The few accessories he wore had all been gifts from Lin Cimian. His entire body radiated: “I have no money.”
What kind of generous number-one patron was this? He looked more like an idle pretty boy being financially supported by someone else.
The viewers: “…”
You really know how to embarrass your number-one patron.
