However, before Little Kitten could sift through to find an appropriate game, the chat box at the bottom right corner flickered, and a notification sound chimed.
"I've seen this avatar before; it's from a pro player of the AS club last time."
"I know, I know, Atomic Signals club, the perennial runner-up from the previous 'Domination' pro league."
"'Domination,' can't a company just die first for once!"
"Open it, open it, let me see what sort of 'friendship' transactions UP has with these clubs."
…
Little Kitten's fans were mostly gamers, and their curiosity about the behind-the-scenes life of professional players was rather strong.
The moment this notification popped up, it immediately drew the attention of many fans.
Little Kitten was mentally prepared for any surprises that might appear in the livestream—it was all part of the norm.
But he wasn't a "face-cam streamer" or a virtual idol in costume, and there certainly weren't any 'friendship' transactions with the AS club.
Could it be a bombshell revelation?
No way, absolutely impossible.
He decisively clicked to open the chat window.
AS, Nai Feitian: "You there? Seen the promo? I've got a beta code for you, 300 Lingot currency included, no need to thank me."
Someone else's Little Kitten: "????"
AS, Nai Feitian: "I got word, there's this game in the annual gala that hasn't hit the shelves yet but has already clinched the Best Game Production of the Year award. The promo was out just five minutes ago, and it's a knockout."
AS, Nai Feitian: "'The Nether Gate' is the name, you can search it on the virtual gaming platform, it's rock solid... wait, are you streaming? I mean the game is hardcore solid, don't give your fans the wrong idea. I'm a decent person!"
AS, Nai Feitian: "So, do you want, want, want..."
Someone else's Little Kitten: "Type slower, my fans didn't get that."
AS, Nai Feitian: "Is it really that exaggerated? I'm already typing as slow as possible."
Someone else's Little Kitten: "To the average person, it is, and even for some professional players, it's too much. I heard Strange Power Chaos God reported you for disrupting the match."
AS, Nai Feitian: "Eh eh eh~ If I can't win the argument, I'll just unleash a Big Silence spell, but c'mon, that's not fair!"
Someone else's Little Kitten: "I think they have a point."
AS, Nai Feitian: "Cat Giant, we can't keep chatting if you're like this!!!"
Someone else's Little Kitten: "So, are you advertising that game? I just saw you post it on your Moments too."
AS, Nai Feitian: "Ah? No, I just heard from the takeout manager that the platform's about to release a monster-level new game, so I went to check it out. The promo was really well made, I have to admit. By the time I snapped back to reality, time had flown."
Someone else's Little Kitten: "Have you looked back at what you've typed?"
AS, Nai Feitian: "…"
(AS, Nai Feitian retracted a message. Guess what was retracted.)
"What's with that promo that's got you so pumped?" Little Kitten was a bit curious.
Professional eSports players have seen a lot, and for such praise from Nai Feitian, there must be something noteworthy about it.
He selectively ignored Nai Feitian's mention of the "takeout manager" and pondered whether it was worth the risk of losing money to check out the promo for the new game.
What? You ask why it's losing money?
I could have made a nice sum from advertising, and now I haven't, so isn't that losing money?
AS, Nai Feitian: "Anyway, about 'The Nether Gate's promo, are you going to watch it? It's truly spectacular, and although it's a fantasy theme, it feels as refreshing as chewing on some Excel gum, watching it for the third time now."
With that, he sent over a link directly.
Little Kitten's lips twitched as he addressed his audience, "See, this is the professional player you've all been dreaming about. Behind the scenes, he's still all about his deep-fried dough snacks."
Then he added another line, "So tell me, should I watch it or not?"
Beep beep~
AS, Nai Feitian: "So, are you gonna look, look, look..."
"I'm not watching! Psycho!"
This guy is such a chatterbox!
But Little Kitten didn't send a message, he just made a comment in the livestream.
He scratched his untrimmed hair, feeling somewhat irritable, and said to his fans, "Let me tell you, fantasy themes have no market, both domestically and internationally.
I'm just not interested in this kind of thing, I really don't want to play... unless they pay a lot!"
Then a few comments popped up in the live chat.
'What does the incompetence of the game manufacturers have to do with my dislike for fantasy adventure themes?'
'What if, I mean what if, that game takes off, wouldn't Little Kitten be slapped in the face?'
Little Kitten thought about it and wondered if he had sounded too absolute just now.
Then he saw a new message from Nai Feitian.
Perhaps feeling a bit too explosive and unfriendly toward one of the few good friends in his circle, he hesitated for a moment before opening the chat window.
He clicked on the trailer link.
Just going to watch it, just to appease Nai Feitian, otherwise he'll nag at the next offline meetup, boasting about hotpot and spicy crayfish which is a headache even to think about.
The mere thought of it is giving me a headache.
I'll just look at it, just a peek!
The webpage redirected.
A play window popped up.
Clicked on play.
Accompanied by the howling of a gale, the logo of "Portal to the Nether" slowly appeared and then got scattered by the wind.
Great winds arise.
With epic and grand music resounding, through the snow-flurried mountains, a figure wearing heavy armor and wielding a two-handed greatsword two meters long appeared,
He was riding a pure-blooded armored Griffin, with thick frost hanging on his body, and through the cracks of his helmet, one could glimpse a pair of deep eyes.
"My son."
"You grew up in Yibel."
"The food you eat comes from the soil of Ingelands."
"The water you drink is from the southeastern rivers."
"Your life is now inseparable from the Humans, from the children of Yibel."
"You are a citizen of Yibel, under the rule of Human."
As the deep male voice narrated with an increasingly melancholic undertone, the camera zoomed out to a long shot.
As the view widened, the bloody armor of the Griffin Knight revealed a backdrop of ruins and dismembered bodies.
Above that apocalyptic scenery were the mountain-like contorted masses of flesh.
"Kael!"
In that moment when the deep voice roared with the name,
The iron steed moved, as if awakening from a deep slumber, with blood-red magical power spreading from every joint of the armor, resembling a fiercely blazing blood sun.
The background music suddenly became more uplifting.
Inside the gaming pod, Little Kitten's body twitched as if his fur exploded.
Sss!
He gasped in a breath of cold air.
These lifelike, top-tier visual effects fit for a movie, this hair-raising music...
His expression started to get serious.