At that moment, Lu Yingheng was meticulously organizing the shelves while arguing with his system in his head.
"System, release yesterday's events as a story update. Call it an interlude after the main story."
The system's little girl looked at Lu Yingheng with disdain. "You really aren't a good person! Look what you've done to that poor girl!"
Lu Yingheng shrugged. "I never said I was a good person. All I need to do is get stronger."
"All right, system. After you release yesterday's events as a story update, I want to see how the players react."
As soon as he finished speaking, a huge screen appeared before Lu Yingheng. On it was the story of Zenless Zone Zero.
A smile curled at the corner of Lu Yingheng's mouth. "All right, let's see how the players react."
In the livestream:
Xia Linxi was excitedly clicking away at the television that started Zenless Zone Zero.
"Hurry up and let me in! I heard the developers added an interlude yesterday, with a new story about my husband!"
In the comments:
[Streamer, a word of warning: if your brain isn't up to it, don't watch. The new story's a bit of a brain-bender.]
Xia Linxi happened to see that comment. "A brain-bender? What do you think this is, a mystery drama? Why not give me a scheme within a scheme within a scheme while you're at it?"
[Streamer, are you a prophet?]
Xia Linxi looked at the new comment, and a question mark slowly appeared over her head: ???
Could it really be a mystery drama?
Her curiosity thoroughly piqued, Xia Linxi skipped even her daily activities and hurriedly started the interlude story with the protagonist.
On screen, Belle led Lu Yingheng around in hiding. In the end, she had to put a coat over his head before she could get him to the clothing store.
"Holy crap, even the developers have basically confirmed he's the pinnacle of good looks." Xia Linxi's eyes were practically turning into hearts.
In particular, Lu Yingheng's dazed look after losing his memory, paired with his calm appearance, made for an adorably contrasting combination.
That was also the effect Lu Yingheng had deliberately acted out. A frail man like that was most likely to draw pity from female players.
As for male players, once he regained his memories, he could return to his cold, powerful self and attract male fans just the same.
[Streamer, do you know how shocked I was when I watched this scene? The moment my husband Yingheng stepped outside, he attracted the attention of the entire street.]
[I really don't understand what you female players are thinking. How does a weak man like that attract brain-dead fans like you?]
[The person above is obviously a male fan, huh? Different strokes for different folks. If you don't like him, leave us alone...]
Seeing an argument brewing in her comments, Xia Linxi hurried to rein it in.
"All right, all right, darlings, stop arguing. My husband Yingheng is a little dazed after losing his memory, but he'll probably get a bit colder once he gets it back."
The story continued. When Lu Yingheng came out of the fitting room in his new clothes, Xia Linxi's eyes lit up, and she had already begun composing a magnificent epic of poe[deleted]try in her head.
"Holy crap! Zenless Zone Zero!!! I want this skin! Put this skin in the shop! This trendy outfit is way too cool!"
Xia Linxi had already closed her eyes, and for some reason, she was humming and whimpering.
[Ahhh, streamer, let my husband Yingheng go in that head of yours! Let me have a turn!]
[666, Lu Yingheng has it rough in the streamer's head, you know that?]
[The streamer's already showing off how repressed she is. Female streamers like her are the most repressed of all...]
[Streamer, did you forget? Your husband isn't even playable yet!]
Xia Linxi finally opened her eyes and immediately spotted that comment.
"Oh, right, I think I forgot! My husband Yingheng is so handsome, so why can't I pull for him yet?"
[What if he's just a story NPC?]
[You think an NPC would have a model this handsome?]
Xia Linxi wasn't worried at all. "Oh, what's there to be afraid of? It's a gacha game, after all. The later a character comes out, the stronger they're bound to be!"
"My husband Yingheng has such a mysterious background. He'll definitely be the main featured character of a future version!"
[Any leakers here? I want to know what his skills are ahead of time...]
Xia Linxi continued watching the story. When Lu Yingheng dazedly started lifting his shirt, autoplay was on, so the image vanished after only an instant.
Xia Linxi: ???
Xia Linxi was dumbfounded, staring blankly as the story continued to scroll along, soon reaching the video store.
"You've got to be kidding me! My abs picture! My f＊p material for tonight! I hate you, autoplay!"
[Hehe, I had autoplay on when I played through that part too. I deliberately didn't warn the streamer.]
[Good thing I played it manually. I took a screenshot right away...]
Xia Linxi pressed her hands together. "Could the great ones in the stream please send me that picture privately? That shot was just too hot!"
[All four of his lower abs were exposed... Truly worthy of a 16+ rating.]
[Your Uncle Zenless Zone Zero, the authority when it comes to 16+.]
When Xia Linxi came to her senses again, she was annoyed to realize she'd missed another part of the story.
"Ahhh... How did we suddenly get to the video store? Autoplay, you've really done me dirty!"
[Streamer, nothing much happened in that part. The protagonist just secretly photographed Lu Yingheng, then ran away embarrassed.]
Xia Linxi breathed a sigh of relief when she saw the comment and immersed herself in the story again.
But the more she listened, the more confused she became. The mayor's phone call was such a shock that it left her stunned.
[Hahaha, I knew the streamer would be completely baffled after watching the new story.]
[I told you it was a brain-bender, but the streamer wouldn't believe me.]
After finishing the story, Xia Linxi's head was spinning.
"Huh? So my husband Yingheng faked his death as part of a ploy to lure out the bad guys? He's so strong, so why didn't he just go and kill them himself?"
[Honestly, I'm pretty confused too. Forget the streamer-even a lot of gaming streamers who specialize in reviewing stories were startled by that twist.]
[The main story should reveal the reason later, right? There must be something stopping Lu Yingheng from solving the problem directly with force, or he needs a reason before he can use force.]
Xia Linxi sighed. "Those damn developers really know how to keep people hanging! What the hell is the point of updating so little?"
"Forget it, forget it. The story's over, so I'll go do some quests. I'm going to start saving resources for my husband Yingheng right now!"
Lu Yingheng waved his hand and dismissed the screen in front of him. "System, how many Emotion Points did that twist earn?"
[Ding! Emotion Points gained: 300 million]
The system's little girl was a little puzzled. "Host, why aren't you exchanging them for the bloodline now? You have enough Emotion Points to exchange for 10% already, don't you?"
Lu Yingheng moved to another spot to organize the videotapes. "There's no rush. I'll exchange for the rest of the bloodlines all at once later, then harvest another wave of Emotion Points."