At half past four that afternoon, Xiao Yu opened his eyes, his face full of delight, and got ready for that day's livestream.
The gains from just one day yesterday had actually let him break through another level!
He was already at the second level of Qi Refining!
This was amazing!
According to the cultivation memories he had acquired, in this Dharma-Ending Age, an ordinary cultivator needed three to five years to make a single breakthrough, even at the Qi Refining Stage!
"Welcome to my stream, everyone. You're here early."
"Brother Xiao's here! A few of us came early especially to watch the show!"
"Hello, Master Xiao! I'm here to get in line early!"
"Master Xiao, we set up a Penguin Group. Would you like to join?"
"Sure."
[User Tang Xiaoxiao joined the livestream]
[User Lord Purple joined the livestream]
Xiao Yu had only just gone live when a string of notification sounds rang out.
In the blink of an eye, the viewer count passed 150.
They were all people from yesterday, along with a few new faces, probably friends and relatives the fans had invited.
It was a world apart from the start of yesterday's stream.
Zhao Yan: "Handsome Xiao, I'm here. Like we agreed yesterday, you're continuing my fortune reading today. As long as I'm satisfied, the top donor spot is mine from now on."
"All hail Her Majesty!"
"That's a boss lady for you! Straight to claiming the top donor spot!"
"Awesome! Master Xiao, everyone's waiting for you to announce the rules for fortune readings! Almost everyone from yesterday is here anyway, so why not get started?"
"All right, let's begin. Same rules as yesterday: if the reading's wrong, you don't pay. If it's right, just send me a Rocket."
"As for the order... I'll finish the readings for yesterday's viewers first, then start on today's. Everyone else, don't send Rockets yet. Wait until it's your turn. Today, I'm planning to use a raffle to choose who gets a reading."
Before he even finished speaking, people had already started sending gifts.
Lord Purple sent Super Rocket x1
Tang Xiaoxiao sent Rocket x1
Sihuinian sent Rocket x1
Sihuinian: "Master Xiao, I'm Zhang Ye and Liu Bo's roommate from yesterday. Go ahead and read for the others first, then help me when it's my turn. Consider this me getting in line!"
Three people sent gifts right off the bat!
That wave of gifts boosted the stream's popularity considerably, pushing it fairly high up the rankings and drawing the curiosity of a few passersby.
Unfortunately, it only brought in a dozen or so more viewers.
To many people, fortune-telling meant scams, and curiosity was the first step toward getting scammed. So plenty of them had no intention of entering the stream at all, eliminating any chance of being swindled out of their money.
"Miss Zhao, Miss Tang, let's start with you two. As it happens, the things you want readings about have a lot in common, so would you both join the video call together?"
"Something in common? A joint reading? Sure."
"All right, Master Xiao. You're in charge."
Zhao Yan and Tang Xiaoxiao appeared on screen.
"Hehe, we get to admire the beautiful CEO again. I'm so excited."
"Lord Purple, are you sure you don't want to start your own stream? I think you'd definitely get popular. You might even earn more than you do selling cosmetics!"
There weren't many viewers, but the chat was lively and incredibly active.
It was practically on par with those major entertainment streamers!
"Miss Zhao, yesterday you wanted to know how your first love would fall on hard times. Miss Tang, you wanted to change your future love life."
"Yes."
Zhao Yan: "That's right, handsome. Yesterday you said I'd get to see it with my own eyes. What exactly did you mean? Did you foresee him coming into our stream?"
"No, but you'll be able to see him very soon-and through Miss Tang's camera!"
"What... how is that possible? Xiaoxiao and I don't even live in the same city. Besides, how could she possibly know the man I'm talking about?"
"Please be patient... Miss Tang, I know there's a man you have a crush on, and I also know what's on your mind."
"So, head to private room 212 on the second floor of Dile Bar right now."
Tang Xiaoxiao: "But I'm still at work... Forget it, I don't care! I'm going right now!"
The camera shook as Tang Xiaoxiao slipped out of her office, caught a cab, and headed straight for the destination.
Zhao Yan frowned, staring intently at the screen.
A strange sense of foreboding washed over her in waves.
Her heart pounded.
Could it be...
The man Tang Xiaoxiao had a crush on...
Surely it couldn't be that much of a coincidence?
By then, the Livestream Viewers seemed to have sensed something too.
One after another, they posted unfinished comments like "Could it be..." "Don't tell me..." and "I think I've figured it out!"
Just then, a Livestream Viewer named Xiao Yu raised a question.
"Streamer, I don't get it. Were you reading fortunes just now, or predicting the future? Or is this all a script you've arranged? Did you hire a bunch of extras to put on a show and scam people?"
"You're new, so you don't get it. Just sit back and watch. This streamer is seriously incredible."
"Agreed with the comment above. If you're new and don't understand, keep your mouth shut instead of spouting crap! Master Xiao is the real deal!"
"A script, my ass! If you don't believe it, ask the master for a reading yourself later. You don't pay if he's wrong anyway, so what are you afraid of? If you're only here to watch, quit yapping and wait until it's over before you talk! I hate people like you. You haven't seen a thing and know absolutely nothing, but you're already talking shit."
Xiao Yu hadn't expected the others to idolize this streamer so much. He had only questioned him, yet they had torn him apart.
He checked the account's registration date. It was a new account created just yesterday!
A brand-new account already had diehard fans. That made him intensely curious.
Meanwhile.
Tang Xiaoxiao finally arrived outside room 212 at Dile Bar.
When she saw what was happening inside, her pupils suddenly contracted.
"Xiaoxiao, point the camera into the room. Let me see too!"
"Xiaoxiao, what's wrong?"
"Xiaoxiao!!"
After hearing Zhao Yan urge her repeatedly, the distraught Tang Xiaoxiao finally came to her senses and adjusted her phone's camera.
Then the chat erupted!
"Holy shit, is that guy a nightclub gigolo? Now I've seen everything!"
"A guy in his twenties doing that with a rich woman in her forties... in a place like this, too. What else could he be but a gigolo?"
"That outfit isn't just similar to what gigolos wear on TV-it's exactly the same! Anyway, 'gigolo' was the first word that came to my mind too!"
"Your Majesty, hurry and see if that guy is your player of a first love!"
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