Chapter 35: This Era of Obsession with Appearance Is Simply Insane

The clock hit seven minutes, and the dragon spawned.

The pressure was now on Peanut. If he didn't head to the bottom side of the jungle soon, the dragon would be soloed by Mlxg.

Down in the bottom lane, the laning phase remained steady. Ruler was Ruler, after all; his laning prowess was formidable, and his fundamentals were exceptionally solid. His creep score was nearly perfectly in sync with the game time. However, Lu Zi'ang’s fundamentals were clearly even more refined, giving him a slight lead in CS. Most importantly, while Lu Zi'ang was focused and serious, his entire demeanor remained remarkably relaxed; he didn't seem to feel the slightest bit of pressure.

In the livestream, in addition to the gameplay, there were two smaller camera feeds: one focused on his face, the other on his hands. Viewers could watch his expressions and his precise mechanical inputs in real time.

"Popularity rating just broke 75 million. Damn, at this rate, are we going to hit 100 million tonight?!"

"Incredible. 'Falcon' is the fastest-rising new streamer I've ever seen. In just one week, he’s already nearing 3 million followers."

"Even though he’s facing three world champions, Falcon isn't nervous at all. You can't beat that mentality."

"Is this streamer for real? He’s so handsome. Since when did the male streamers on Shark Platform start rivaling my idol’s looks?"

"???"

"Yeah, he’s way more handsome than my idol. I’m in love. I think I’m about to lick my screen."

"??? What is this? Ladies, type '1'." A moderator launched a poll in the chat, and soon, a sea of "11111" flooded the screen.

"What’s going on? Can someone explain why there are so many girls in the gaming section all of a sudden?"

"It must be Shark’s official team pulling strings. They’re redirecting traffic to Zi'ang from other sections."

"Holy crap! This trending keyword is insane, right? 'The Ceiling of Esports Aesthetics'? This topic is actually outperforming the IG championship win—that’s just absurd."

"Shark is going to ruin Falcon’s reputation at this rate. Forget 'Esports Aesthetics,' they might as well just call him the ceiling of the entire entertainment industry."

At that moment, a set of trending keywords had briefly appeared on all major platforms. The "Esports Aesthetics" gimmick was common enough, but tonight was different. Because of IG’s championship win, the top three spots on the trending list were occupied by topics related to IG and the LPL; seeing this new tag at number one felt a bit out of place.

Yet, the effect was astonishing. Once the term hit the top spot, it instantly funneled a massive wave of traffic into Lu Zi'ang’s stream. The popularity count climbed at a visible rate: 76 million, 77 million, 80 million, 82 million...

Soon, the popularity surpassed 82 million. At the same time, Lu Zi'ang’s follower count exceeded 3 million. Furthermore, his official Weibo account—which EDG had set up for him only about half an hour ago—had already gained 70,000 followers in that short span.

Back at Shark’s headquarters, in the data center, Xu Lei watched the platform's traffic surging. The proportion of new female users had reached a staggering 78%. He couldn't help but smile.

"A stroke of marketing genius. This traffic redirection is brilliant! Our platform has always lacked female users. If Lu Zi'ang can retain these viewers, that 3 million marketing budget was a steal!"

Xu Lei’s grin widened. Before he started pushing this narrative, he never expected such a bountiful result.

Over at EDG, Abu looked at the growth of Lu Zi'ang’s Weibo followers, struggling to wrap his head around it. He’d only posted one promotional photo—how did he get 70,000 followers from that?

"It looks like EDG is about to produce another phenomenal esports star."

"Koro’s fan base back in the day was massive, and even Clearlove’s 'Piglet Girls' have a significant presence in the scene. Now, it’s just a matter of how Zi'ang handles this terrifying wave of traffic..."

Abu couldn't help but shake his head, thinking to himself, "This era of judging by appearances is just too crazy. Good thing I don't need looks; after all, I rely on my talent to make a living."