Chapter 17: How About We Head to the Live Streaming Scene for Some Quick Gains?

“Hello, brothers! What’s it like to duo queue in the S rank segment against two professional NIP players and still claim victory? In this episode, let me take you into a first-person perspective to feel the atmosphere of the match…”

Xiao Yu breathed a sigh of relief as he saw his video garner over ten thousand likes in just one day. All the late-night work had paid off!

He opened the comment section and saw exactly what he expected.

“The genius kids these days are incredible—as long as there’s no cheating, they’re truly talented!”

“Wow! This top attacker from Haijiao has some serious skills! I’m gonna try breaking through on Haijiao myself now.”

“Hahaha! Even foreign pros have to play fair on the Perfect platform. That’s true CNCS spirit.”

“This guy’s impressive! His stats are even better than the two pros!”

“I actually checked the demo earlier. This breakthrough play is like a mad dog charging the bombsite without any sense of reason. That big pull—none of the pros could handle it.”

“Isn’t the top Haijiao attacker named Gui? His reactions in several rounds were just off the charts.”

“Judging by the comments above, the highest rank anyone here has is probably D.”

“...”

As expected, the video went viral, accumulating tens of thousands of likes and hundreds of thousands of views.

But Xiao Yu knew the kind of behavior his platform’s players were capable of, so many, including some content creators, downloaded the demo to analyze it thoroughly.

If they really found any hint of cheating, Xiao Yu could release another video and truly unlock the secret to massive traffic.

However, the outcome was disappointing. After repeatedly comparing the gameplay and voice communications, everything aligned perfectly with normal S-rank player behavior.

Xiao Yu chuckled over the income the video brought in, but soon a new worry surfaced—he had run out of fresh material.

There was only so much in the bowl; once it was finished, there was nothing left.

“I should have just written a CSGO novel. No need to find material—just make up the plot.”

He entertained the bold idea briefly before dismissing it. Who would read it if he didn’t have the writing skills?

He opened the materials he had collected before, hoping to spark some inspiration.

When he came across the latest clip of that NIP pro player, his eyes lingered a few seconds on the ID: “Top Haijiao Breakthrough Attacker.”

It wasn’t about MVP status; CSGO heavily depends on feel and form. One match could see an MVP dominating, the next could be a disaster.

What caught his attention was the uniqueness of the ID, compelling him to look closer.

Curious, he logged into the Perfect platform and searched for the ID.

He was stunned.

Last season, the player was only C+ rank, but this season, he had already reached S!

Xiao Yu quickly checked the recent match records—decent and steadily improving.

For example, on the very day he reached S, this “Top Haijiao Breakthrough Attacker” delivered a 0.49 rating in a match against the Wanquan Poets team.

According to the timeline, the data was positively correlated with time; even the worst recent ratings hovered around 0.9.

At this rate, hitting Gold S or Diamond S by next season was totally achievable.

He scrolled back through Su Zhe’s records to the season’s start at C+.

Suddenly, it clicked—this was the same young player Leon Kai had once publicly defended, insisting he wasn’t cheating.

The internet’s memory is short.

After Su Zhe climbed to A rank, he gradually faded into obscurity, and no one paid attention anymore.

If it weren’t for Leon Kai, who would care about a player hovering around A rank? Even if cheating occurred, few would notice.

Players gain notoriety for cheating only when they reach the highest platform segments and clash with well-known streamers.

Xiao Yu never expected this kid to have grown so much in just a month!

While moving from A to S in a month isn’t extraordinary, going from C+ to S in around 40 days—

And doing it by crushing pros to become MVP—

His creativity exploded instantly!

It was clear Leon Kai’s Douyin account management had been unsuccessful.

After Xiao Yu made videos focusing on “Top Haijiao Breakthrough Attacker” as the protagonist, the likes, views, and comments all surpassed Leon Kai’s total from twenty videos.

Not to mention, he shamelessly borrowed some stylistic elements from the neighboring Hualong Esports channel.

…

“Zhe! Did you pay someone to make videos about you?” Fatty and Xiao Guang stared at the video on their phones, equally shocked as the likes hit 40,000!

Especially Fatty, who had been a prodigy himself, reaching S rank in about a thousand hours.

Back then, when he bragged about his stats online, people dismissed him, claiming they reached S in just three to four hundred hours.

But Su Zhe had already clocked over 800 hours—why was the treatment so different?

Counting now, Douyin already had four videos about him.

Xiao Guang sighed: “You don’t get it… 500 hours stuck at C+, then suddenly jumping to S in just over a month—that contrast is huge.”

“And honestly, the video production quality is pretty impressive…”

At that moment, the phone’s speaker softly played the narration:

“The protagonist this episode is the MVP who crushed the NIP duo queue players. In just over a month of effort, he proved what it means to bloom late…”

“He didn’t accept mediocrity after 500 hours stuck at C+…”

“Through relentless effort, playing over ten intense ranked matches daily, his growth was visible to the naked eye…”

The comment section below brimmed with praise and encouragement.

“I thought this ID looked familiar from the last video—truly impressive!”

“I used to doubt him, now I wake up at night just to give myself a slap for it.”

“Wow, that talent is seriously strong! Those reflexes! That breakthrough! It gave me chills! Could he really make it pro?”

“@TYLOO Esports Club, come check if he’s pro material!”

“I’m also at C+ after 500 hours—is that a sign I’m a late bloomer too?”

“I think you’re more of an assembly line factory player…”

After watching the video, Fatty approached Su Zhe, placing a hand on his shoulder with sincere gravity.

“I’ve got a plan to make money—wanna hear it?”

Su Zhe, suspicious of this tall, bulky, second-dimension enthusiast, still asked curiously, “What is it?”

Fatty said, “I think you can start streaming now. These two videos are so hot, you’ll definitely rake in donations!”

Su Zhe brushed his hand away, “No way! I have zero experience streaming.”

Xiao Guang chimed in, “What’s so hard about it? Just say, ‘I’m going pro! I’m aiming for the Shanghai Major!’ Donations will flood in!”

“Then Fatty can wear an s1mple jersey and I’ll put on a Niko jersey to hype up your stream…”

Su Zhe cut the topic short, “I want to make a name for myself in pro play. How could I settle for being a small-time streamer here?”

…

The next day at noon.

Su Zhe looked at the newly bought webcam and asked Fatty, “When I stream later, should I just show my hands or include all three of us in the shot?”