Tap! Tap!.... Tap!.... Tap!
This was the sound of Jin Lin's finger tapping on the tabletop while patiently waiting for his desktop to load. It was a high-quality desktop but it had undoubtedly become outdated making it slower than the current desktops on the market. He had made a little fortune live streaming so he could clearly afford to buy the latest version but this desktop was the last gift his brother bought for him.
He clearly remembered that day when his elder brother sent over the gift via courier. There was a card attached to it saying:
Happy Tuesday Xiao Lin
There is plenty of ways to make money and if gaming is your thing then Gege supports you.
Jin Chen.
This gift brought a sweet smile on Jin Lin's face but Mama Jin wore an ugly expression like she had eaten horse shit. She would have thrown the gift out in the rain but when she saw how expensive it was after looking at it, she restrained herself.
Instead, she called Jin Chen and hauled various insults like why 'throw money down the drain' and 'this useless brat doesn't deserve it'. Jin Lin naturally ignored her and continued enjoying his new gift. Like this, he endured snorts and cold gazes coming from his mother for an entire month accompanied by the silent treatment.
But for Jin Lin, this was a template of heaven so he thoroughly enjoyed what would become his favourite month. Jin Lin was brought back from his thoughts by the ringing sound of his cellphone. His brows furrowed when he saw the contact name. He hadn't spoken to his father for two months so what did the man need from him now?
Thinking Hua Ji was looking for money again, he answered the phone asking, "How much?" in a cold icy tone.
Resounding nervous laughter was heard from the other side of the call followed by a calm croaky voice. "You truly won't save me any face, right?"
"If it's not for that then why else would you call me?" asked Jin Lin while inputting his password on the desktop.
Hua Ji heaved a deep sigh then said, "It's your mother she has been trying to get a hold of you.... now, now don't be rash and cut the call. It's important."
It seemed Hua Ji knew his son all too well because Jin Lin's fingers were hovering above the red button. Ever since his mother took him to court to sever their filial relationship by spinning tall tales that he lacked filial piety, Jin Lin hadn't spoken to her.
Two years went by and she began to look for him saying that the company Equino wouldn't let her see Jin Chen. She and a group of families picketed outside the company's headquarters demanding they see their family members they signed off to Equino.
Unfortunately for them, none of them had carefully reviewed the contracts they signed otherwise they would have noticed something was very wrong with it. It's just like when someone signs up for cryonics. The likelihood of their family being allowed to see the person's body afterwards is relatively slim.
Such big organizations have tons of secrets that they don't want the world to see. Instead of picketing outside of Equino, Jin Lin decided on a more feasible approach to see his brother again and that is to be on the forefront when the game capsule version was released.
"She severed our relationship so what's the point? Don't call me again if this is what you want to talk about," he replied with his tone below freezing point.
Hua Ji knew this would happen but that woman wouldn't let him have a day of peace unless he did as she said. He had already been blacklisted three times by Jin Lin because of this but that woman just wouldn't give up. He was about to smooth this over but the indifferent beeping sound followed indicating the termination of the call.
Jin Lin immediately blacklisted his father's number with no hesitation. He had no time to entertain his mother's minion. When she ruthlessly severed their relationship he was kicked out of the house and told to move in with his father by the courts. He complied packing away all his belongings in twenty-four hours but he didn't stay with his father.
The man's living conditions were horrible and there was a serious risk that he would come back from school one day and find all his belongings sold or stolen.
He decided to do the unthinkable and rent a place using his savings thus the beginning of his live-streaming career.
The sound of heroic music from the game homepage brought him back to earth. He pursed his lips while clicking something on his game settings. He picked his phone once more and messaged Fen Hao on WeChat before starting the live stream.
As soon as the interface appeared on his monitor notifications were sent all over the world to all his fans. A blinding barrage of messages flooded the screen with enthusiastic hardcore fans of GodLin. The viewership number exponentially rose but Jin Lin's focus wasn't on that.
He muted the barrage while checking out his in-game character which was a warrior dressed in green armour carrying a sabre half his size. The character rotated on a platform with the specs displayed on the left side of the screen. His character dabbled in a cocktail of physical and mental-based capabilities well deserved for his god-level rank in his server.
Gods of Equino in itself seemed like a common gaming trope at first glance giving off the impression that it was nothing special among MMORPG games.
But on second look, one would realise it was unique bringing in a refreshing new perspective. Besides it's high resolution and unparalleled audio technology, the graphics and world set-up was breathtaking.
The game was comprised of six major cities and a continent with innumerable resources that could be exchanged for in-game currency. These six cities were under the directive of six guilds who occasionally fought over territories. The greater your territory the better your resources, the better your resources the greater your power.
There were also mighty beasts scattered all over the continent with an incomparable value from their tough hides to their claws or fangs. These creatures were extremely valuable in Gods of Equino which meant there were opportunities to join hunting parties and share the profits.
One needed to take up tasks or mine for resources if not for leveling up then it was for the money because without money your character wouldn't be able to survive in Equino. There was a high probability that your character would die if not fed which required money.
When the game was released some people tested this hypothesis and their game characters died resulting in them losing money they used to buy their characters. Things like shelter and health were also vital to strengthen the game character which received a lot of disapproving comments when it was launched.