Chapter 102: Can It Be Played Without Nerfing? [Real World]

After leaving the game world, Xu Nuo returned to the system space, where she found herself staring wide-eyed at 007.

“My punishment has been decided,” 007 said, his tone gloomy yet tinged with relief. “From now on, I probably won’t ever encounter you, dear host, again.”

“What exactly is your punishment?” Xu Nuo could only see her own messages.

“My past memory data will be sealed, and I’ll be assigned as a display NPC in a regular game,” 007 replied.

For 007, this was already a lenient punishment—sealing the data rather than erasing it meant there was hope for restoration one day. And being a display NPC wasn’t the same as being an ordinary non-player character; at least the treatment wouldn’t be too bad.

Xu Nuo, on the other hand, was penalized only with a minor deduction in her payment due to her character’s out-of-character behavior and the storyline diverging, as stipulated in the contract. Her stream ended early, which was essentially a paid vacation. All in all, she came out ahead.

“Little Seven, we’ve been partners for so long; even if there was no affection at first, feelings can grow over time. Shall I put in a word for you and get you a better position?” Xu Nuo offered.

Who wants any feelings with you? 007 felt they were simply fated to clash with Xu Nuo and quickly logged off to avoid any further conversation.

“You can’t even say goodbye,” Xu Nuo murmured as she slowly woke in her gaming capsule. Despite being bedridden for so many days, her body felt no discomfort.

Her phone immediately buzzed with a notification about a hefty sum being deposited into her account, followed by another olive branch from her sponsor.

“What game do they want me to promote now?” Xu Nuo checked the details—it was a newly released mobile game, not particularly challenging for her. It seemed her sponsor had an eye for talent—she’d just finished one collaboration and was already being invited to the next.

Having confirmed the arrangements, she happily accepted the new job.

She logged in and opened the streaming room she hadn’t visited for months. Instantly, the chat exploded across the screen.

“Sis, if you don’t show up soon, I’ll have to call the police! Where have you been all this time, disappearing without warning?”

Xu Nuo laughed and chatted casually with her viewers. “Sorry, everyone, I’ve been busy with a big project and couldn’t get in touch.”

“If you’re short on cash, just tell us! Stop taking those unstable gigs. If you walk by the river long enough, you’re bound to get your shoes wet.”

Xu Nuo put on a mock-serious tone. “What can I say? Sometimes life just isn’t up to me.”

With laughter and banter, the atmosphere returned to its usual warmth. Her followers were already used to Xu Nuo’s occasional disappearances. She had an assistant who always kept tabs on her and reassured everyone, so there was never any real worry.

She launched the newly downloaded game. The sponsor’s game was for mobile, but she was used to streaming from her computer, which made the controls a bit trickier.

The character models were all beautifully crafted—men and women, young and old, each with their own charm. For anyone who loved good looks, it was a feast for the eyes. Since visuals were a major selling point, Xu Nuo dutifully showcased the beauty of all the characters, earning waves of admiration from her viewers.

“Wait a minute…” Her hand paused on the keyboard.

Xu Nuo stared at one particular male character on the screen. That face was far too familiar—the names of two people sprang to mind.

“Lu?” she blurted out.

Or was it Gu Xingze?

It was as if the character was a perfect blend of both. Only then did Xu Nuo realize that, viewed alone, the two men didn’t seem particularly alike, but side by side, their features bore striking similarities.

On the high-definition screen, every detail was clear: the subtle rise and fall of the character’s chest with each breath, the veins standing out on the back of his hand, and above all, those deeply familiar eyes gazing out as if meeting her gaze across dimensions.

Xu Nuo’s heart felt suddenly hollow.

“Sis, are you into him too? They say the developers used some cutting-edge modeling technique for this one, even poaching a top modeler from a rival company. After years of research and countless books on aesthetics, they created this millennium heartthrob.”

Xu Nuo steadied herself, keeping her expression calm. “Yeah, he’s pretty handsome.” In truth, she’d seen this stunner up close in a fully immersive game—not that it was anything new to her, though she certainly approved of his looks.

The character’s popularity was obvious from the barrage of comments. Reportedly, many women who didn’t even play games had downloaded it just for him—he was quite the sensation.

Naturally, this character was also extremely expensive. The game developers knew exactly how to squeeze their players’ wallets.

Some people drew him with a single lucky pull.

Others spent a fortune and still didn’t get him.

Some, out of love, logged in every day for a month just to earn him, and would then continue signing in and grinding to collect his exclusive outfits and gear.

Xu Nuo, a top streamer with a million followers, frugally made only one purchase under the watchful eyes of her fans, reminding everyone to spend responsibly. Even if she didn’t get him, it didn’t matter—she leisurely popped open a can of cola.

She clicked confirm. When that familiar figure appeared on screen, most viewers didn’t realize what had happened.

The man on screen turned around, his gaze deep and somber. In the instant their eyes met, a flash of genuine emotion—joy—lit up his eyes, something no mere game model could possess.

“I finally found you.”

Even his voice and tone were uncannily alike, startling Xu Nuo so much she almost spilled her cola.

The viewers didn’t notice anything amiss, since this was the official entrance animation and voice line.

“Wow! That luck’s insane!”

“I’m absorbing all this luck! Let me have some!”

“Bless me too! I hope I get him in one pull, my kid’s already tried twenty times with no luck, please have mercy!”

“Congrats to our girl! One pull and she nails it—so lucky!”

While everyone else was celebrating, Xu Nuo was left feeling complicated. The viewers were overjoyed, but all she wanted was to slam her laptop shut and run away.

But she could only imagine doing that. As a professional, she couldn’t let emotions interfere with her work.

After showcasing the character, it was time to play a match. The enthusiastic audience unanimously demanded she use Gu Qianyan—even his name bore an uncanny resemblance.

Entering the loading screen, Xu Nuo shook her head, trying to banish her chaotic thoughts. She couldn’t help but think the developers were truly lazy; however beautiful the model was, it had clearly been pieced together from other designs. Wouldn’t players eventually notice? Even the voice acting was done by the same person—such a distinctive voice would be easy to recognize. The production team really didn’t care for subtlety.

While waiting for the game to load, the comment stream kept up its chatter. Because Gu Qianyan was so popular and few streamers were lucky enough to get him so quickly, her viewer count kept rising. The conversation revolved around this stunning character.

Inevitably, Xu Nuo spotted a few comments:

“Is his voice AI-generated? I can’t even tell—it sounds so natural.”

“Of course, it’s pure data, not like those virtual singers with a real voice behind them.”

“Amazing, my hubby really is one of a kind.”

Some fans noticed Xu Nuo’s odd behavior.

“Hey, why’s our girl so quiet today? She’s barely saying anything.”

Xu Nuo: “...” What could she say? She was at a loss for words.

When she entered a match, her teammates’ characters were all fairly common, making her Gu Qianyan stand out. A female player immediately declared she’d be sticking with him for the whole match. The opposing team boasted they would crush her—nowadays, anyone with Gu Qianyan was assumed to be a cash-flush whale.

The controls were tricky on a PC, and Xu Nuo was still getting used to the skills. The enemy team, bent on beating up the “whale,” targeted her relentlessly.

“Tsk, there’s even a fangirl guarding her?”

It was clear the enemy team wasn’t made up of ordinary players; even with the girl on Xu Nuo’s team doing her best to protect her, they were still at a disadvantage.

“That’s all you’ve got? We’ll keep you pinned in your base.”

“That’s your level? I could play better with my feet! Hey, healer, stop babysitting that noob—come play with us next round. If you just want Gu Qianyan for his looks, I’ll get him too.”

The healer girl immediately tore into them with a string of scathing insults. Xu Nuo was stunned; she hadn’t expected the sweet, gentle girl who’d just been talking to her to possess such a formidable trash-talking ability. If the game’s chat filters hadn’t limited her, Xu Nuo suspected she could have gone even further.

In this war of words, the enemy was no match and could only vent their frustration by continuing to target Xu Nuo.

But while all this went on, Xu Nuo wasn’t just spectating—she was quickly mastering the character’s skills.

The enemies took her for a clueless, well-funded noob and charged in, only to be met with overwhelming force.

A single sword swing from Xu Nuo wiped out half the health bars of all five opponents. Caught off guard by such devastating power, panic set in.

The healer girl on Xu Nuo’s team cheered ecstatically, opening her mic to provide commentary: “Skill 1-3-3-2 deals maximum damage, and skill 2’s silence is most effective here. After triggering the passive, cycle through cooldowns…”

Her commentary was sweet and crisp, and oddly familiar. Xu Nuo pushed aside her suspicions and unleashed another flawless combo, wiping out all five enemies.

Complete annihilation.

“Damn! That’s insane!!”

“No wonder she’s our girl!”

“That combo was amazing! I’ve never seen it pulled off before!”

“Timed it perfectly—passive, cooldowns, everything. Incredible!”

With such an impressive display, the viewers were thoroughly convinced, their resolve to obtain Gu Qianyan only strengthened.

The five opponents, stunned by their defeat, protested, “You must’ve switched to a ringer, right?”

“No one would believe otherwise!”

“And this character’s so overpowered—if they don’t nerf him, only whales will dominate. This game won’t last long.”

The healer girl continued her onslaught, but her taunts were always logical and well-informed, never resorting to mindless insults. She knew the game inside out and thoroughly shamed the other team.

From there, it was a one-sided rout. Gu Qianyan was a difficult character to master, but once you did, his damage was overwhelming—especially in a newly released mobile game where most players were still novices.