Chapter Thirteen: Gifts of Cunning and Madness
A barrage of curses filled the air, interspersed with the army of Meteor fans clamoring for the Meteor opening line, a crowd of spectators eager for chaos, and even some recounting the brief history of this livestream. If nothing else, the speed at which the chat messages scrolled was truly astonishing.
At this moment, Huang Yunshuo could hardly spare a glance at the barrage of messages; he simply pulled three miniature healing sprays, each worth twenty health, out of his backpack and placed them on the trade interface.
“What am I seeing? Mini healing sprays with twenty health?”
“This idiot streamer is actually so rich—those are nine bronze coins! You’d have to kill three baby chicks for that, and even then, you might not get the coins to drop.”
“Damn, I suddenly remembered the terror of being dominated by baby chicks.”
“SkyNet is garbage—when the opening animation had the NPC alliance bloodily slaughtered by the boss, I knew something was off. Are they just not letting us survive?”
“Is he going to trade the sprays away, not use them himself?”
“Is he giving them away? Damn, idiot, I love you! Give me a bottle and you’re my dad!”
The direction of the barrage shifted in a way that was almost magical. One moment, all sorts of chatter and insults; the next, everyone was discussing Reforged Era, debating baby chicks and healing sprays, and those with a bit of wit—or shamelessness—were already starting to flatter Huang Yunshuo.
With a mysterious smile, Huang Yunshuo said, “You idiots are showing some intelligence. That’s right, I’m not just showing you these three mini healing sprays—I’m going to give them away, right here in front of eight thousand idiots in the stream.”
“Give them to me!”
“Give me one, my ID has acres of braised fields.”
“Streamer, I love you!”
...
Huang Yunshuo snarled, “I’ll ask again: Meteor fans, will you give me one?”
“No, get out.”
“Get lost.”
“An idiot like you doesn’t deserve a Meteor.”
Some viewers started cursing, getting riled up just thinking about Huang Yunshuo’s actions. How could such an idiot streamer deserve a Meteor? If he doesn’t have one, reporting him would suffice.
“Get out, get out, get out.”
“Leave, you don’t get a Meteor. If you ask again, you’ll be reported.”
“Leave, idiot streamer.”
...
Huang Yunshuo clutched his chest. Damn, why were these viewers so unkind to the streamer?
Other streamers’ chats were harmonious—when gifts were announced, a flood of presents followed.
He said he wanted a Meteor, and the barrage responded with “get out.” It was disheartening, enough to make him want to cry.
“You think I can’t handle you idiots? Idiots are idiots—trying to mess with me?”
With a cold snort, Huang Yunshuo cleared his throat: “I’m about to count down from ten. When I reach zero, I’ll take a screenshot. The three who send Meteors, I’ll mail you the sprays live. If you idiots dare, don’t send any!”
“Send your damn Meteor? Get out.”
“Anyone who sends him one is bastard-born.”
“Three bronze coins to buy us off, huh. Heh.”
“Laughable. Do you really think we’re country bumpkins? Only you can kill baby chicks, only you have bronze coins?”
Huang Yunshuo squinted, starting the countdown.
Ten.
Idiot sent the streamer Meteor x1.
“Haha, Idiot, you really are an idiot, you know? One simple trick and you give up your gift!”
Huang Yunshuo had expected the viewers wouldn’t resist the temptation—a twenty-health spray worth three bronze coins was enough to give any ordinary player a significant edge in Reforged Era’s current brutal climate.
With twenty health as a lifeline, you could survive another hit at a crucial moment, opening up endless possibilities.
Anything sold at the new village’s general store was bound to be useful.
Idiot: “Damn it, I gave it, so what’s it to you? Idiot streamer, idiot streamer, idiot streamer, idiot streamer, idiot streamer (capped by character limit).”
“Idiot, you really are an idiot. With intelligence like yours, did you even graduate middle school?”
Some in the barrage started cursing.
“Nine!”
Huang Yunshuo called out.
Flyingxx sent the streamer Meteor x1.
xx092 sent the streamer Meteor x1.
9xxxx sent the streamer Meteor x1.
When he reached nine, three viewers sent Meteors at once.
“Eight!”
xxx sent the streamer Meteor x2.
xx...
The viewers, as if coordinated, surged forward, sending Meteors in droves. The curses and sarcasm in the barrage dwindled, overwhelmed by the gift effects.
“Seven!”
“Six!”
“One!”
“I’m taking the screenshot now.”
Seeing the screen flooded with gift effects, Huang Yunshuo’s grin stretched wide. His wild, arrogant laughter echoed not only throughout the stream, but across the entire viewing platform.
Jin Xiong and his group: “...”
“Sister Piaoxue, is it really okay for him to stream like this? Won’t someone come punch him?” Song Na wiped the cold sweat from her forehead and asked Ye Piaoxue.
Ye Piaoxue shrugged: “I’d actually hope someone tries—then we can steal their boat!”
Chu Jun, whose build was average but whose muscles were solid, laughed bitterly: “I always knew Old Huang was a bit of a closet show-off, but I never expected him to flaunt so openly—he’s downright infuriating, both annoying and deserving of a beating.”
Even after Huang Yunshuo announced he’d taken the screenshot, the viewers kept sending Meteors at an even greater pace. Many seemed to be frantically tapping, with new gift effects popping up showing Meteor x14, Meteor x23, and so on. With the entire screen awash in gift effects, Huang Yunshuo was truly reveling in the moment.
“Screenshot’s done. Idiots, won’t you stop? Anyone still sending Meteors in their past life was an idiot too.”
Huang Yunshuo shouted, and the gifts finally slowed, then stopped altogether.
“Alright, these are the three.”
With a beaming smile, Huang Yunshuo began to recite:
“Idiot sent the streamer Meteor x44.”
“Poetry and Song Butterfly sent the streamer Meteor x155.”
“I Send Gifts, I’m a Dog sent the streamer Meteor x1.”
“You three are all idiots, do you know that?” Huang Yunshuo called out, “Idiot, weren’t you just saying you wouldn’t send one and would leave? Yet you sent forty-four in a row!”
“Poetry and Song Butterfly, I even muted you—are you addicted to sending gifts? You tapped one hundred fifty-five times, I’m truly impressed.”
“The most idiotic of all is this I Send Gifts, I’m a Dog—no style at all, hurry up and change your name, idiot.”
Disappointed sighs filled the barrage, and soon a new round of curses began.
“Idiot, do you have the guts to keep your word? Take back the healing sprays—after all, you’re shameless enough for anything.”
“Exactly, if you have guts, don’t give them the sprays, drink them yourself.”
“This idiot’s brain must be full of crap. Damn, you’re the one who cursed the most, and you sent forty-four Meteors? Are you a pig?”
“Sis probably slipped—he muted you, and you still sent gifts?”
...
“You idiots are getting out of hand. Do I need your advice for what I do? I’m mailing them now.”
With a grunt, Huang Yunshuo typed in Idiot’s name.
With a wave, over a million search results appeared—Huang Yunshuo almost spat blood.
“See that? See that, you idiots? Damn, all of you act normal, but look—a hundred thousand people with this damn name. How do you explain that?”
Huang Yunshuo swore, and the viewers below were left speechless.