The popular female streamer finally went online after being criticized for her poor gaming skills and lackluster promotion attitude.
When everyone thought she would most likely ignore the backlash and brush it off—after all, she’d already gotten the sponsorship money, and she could just avoid anything game-related in the future—her stream announcement read: Tonight’s theme—"Sacred Spirit World."
Gu Ran noticed the comments under her post had multiplied several times over.
No one expected her to dare stream "Sacred Spirit World" tonight. The comment section was in chaos.
Some of her loyal fans, the "Little Fishies," cheered her on warmly, while random haters emerged out of nowhere, calling her shameless and arrogant.
The "Gu Ran’s Fish Pond" fan group erupted when they saw she was still streaming "Sacred Spirit World" tonight, and wild speculations immediately flooded in.
[Do you think Ranran was hiding her true skills all along? Maybe she’s actually a gaming genius!]
[Exactly! That’s why she’s streaming "Sacred Spirit World" again tonight—to shut those haters up!]
[I think so too! I’m so excited!]
[Ahhh, gaming beauty queen, my heart can’t take it!]
Gu Ran: "…"
Why were her fans more confident in her than she was in herself? She hadn’t even started, yet they’d already scripted a grand underdog comeback for her.
Suddenly awkward.
…
At 7:30 PM, Gu Ran finished her makeup, checked herself in the mirror one last time, and sat down in front of her streaming camera.
As soon as the stream went live, viewers who had been waiting rushed in. Even though they were already familiar with the streamer’s appearance, the sight of "Cat Paw’s #1 Beauty" tonight still made them gasp.
The "Cat Paw’s #1 Beauty," who usually dared to stream bare-faced, had gone for a bold look tonight—smoky eyes paired with fiery red lips.
But unlike the sultry, seductive charm from her transformation videos—where a single glance could make countless admirers fall at her feet—today’s red lips were fierce and striking, her winged eyeliner sharp, exuding an untouchable, icy aura.
She sat there expressionlessly, embodying the aloof ice queen from countless fan edits.
Chat exploded:
[Holy crap, did she just go full villain mode??]
[AHHHH SHE’S SO DOMINANT TONIGHT! Ranran, step on me!]
[Show them your skills, Ranran! Crush those haters!]
[Damn, with makeup like that, she HAS to be a gaming pro!]
Gu Ran: "…"
Judging by the chat, her makeup tonight wasn’t a disaster.
Apparently, the drama trope of "if presence is lacking, makeup makes up for it" worked just as well in streaming.
Clearing her throat, Gu Ran maintained her poised, icy demeanor. "Before we officially start tonight’s stream, I have a few things to say."
"I’m sure you’ve all seen the recent controversy about me promoting 'Sacred Spirit World' and streaming my gameplay."
"So, first of all, I want to say—one, I wasn’t slacking off. I’ve been playing this game since the beta test, for a long time now."
A hater in chat:
[You’ve been playing since beta and still suck that bad? Who’d believe that?]
[Still making excuses, huh? What a disaster for the game company that hired you.]
Gu Ran saw those messages but seemed unfazed.
She lightly tapped the table, lips curling into a smirk—a move she’d picked up from Ji Shiyu during negotiations.
"Second, this is for some of you."
Her tone shifted. "So what if I’m bad? Does being bad mean I can’t play games? You soar freely in the elite zones, I happily grind in the beginner areas—isn’t gaming about having fun? Since when did it become a hierarchy?"
Haters who expected an apology for her poor skills: "?"
Gu Ran was on a roll now, voicing every casual gamer’s frustration: "Do bad players not deserve to enjoy games? Would the game company dare say they don’t welcome noobs? Most of their revenue comes from casual players buying gear and pets! Since when do promoters have to be pros? By that logic, should celebrities win Olympic gold before endorsing sportswear? I might suck, but I had fun playing this game—does that mean I can’t recommend it?"
"Let me be blunt—people who mock others for being bad at games are the ones who’ve completely missed the point of gaming!"
After finishing her rant, Gu Ran lifted her chin, mentally applauding herself.
She’d rarely clapped back at haters in her streams before, usually ignoring the occasional toxic comment. But tonight, her bold makeup was her armor for this first-time confrontation.
Deliberately avoiding the chat, she pulled out her phone, opened "Sacred Spirit World," and renamed her stream:
"Cat Paw’s #1 Beauty—Bad But Happy."
Gu Ran logged into her Level 13 account and cheerfully started whacking little "Dun Rats" in the beginner zone.
After defeating two, she finally hit Level 14. The system displayed her progress:
"Congratulations on leveling up! On this journey, you have defeated:
- Divine Kirin x0
- Heaven Earth Tortoise x0
- Fierce Eyed Tiger x0…"
Everyone scrolled through the endless zeros until they reached the final, staggering number:
"Dun Rats x4,328."
At the sight of "4,328 Dun Rats," the entire chat froze. First came a collective "?", then their expressions glitched into "Dumbfounded.jpg."
Four. Thousand. Dun Rats.
She’d leveled up by killing over four thousand Dun Rats!
This wasn’t laziness—this was sheer dedication!
And now, watching the glamorous, "villain-mode" streamer—who was supposed to unleash her hidden skills and stun the world—happily smacking Dun Rats with the game’s most expensive legendary sword, "Soul Reaper," before flashing a proud, noob-ish grin…
It was weirdly adorable.
Chat erupted:
[HAHAHAHA who said Ranran wasn’t trying? Let’s see them kill 4,328 Dun Rats!]
[Exactly! If she’s having fun, who cares if she’s bad? Casual players deserve to promote games too!]
[She really, REALLY loves killing Dun Rats, huh? 233333]
【True Gaming Prodigy】
【The fact that she’s killed over 4,000 Pocket Mice just goes to show—she may suck, but she’s addicted LOL】
【Thanks to Gu Ran for speaking for us noobs. From now on, you’re the ultimate noob legend!】
Gu Ran grinned at her level-14 character. Just one more level, and she’d hit 15, finally leaving the beginner zone and stepping into the real battlefield of the canyon.
She opened her inventory and equipped all the exclusive high-tier gear the game developers had gifted her. With the solemnity of someone about to graduate from newbie status, she declared, "This time, we’re not fighting Pocket Mice. With gear this good, we’re aiming higher."
Just as the audience wondered if their glamorous, top-equipped streamer was about to challenge the toughest boss in the beginner zone, she instead swung her dazzling Soul-Reaper Sword at the slightly more advanced—marginally more defensive—Lizards and Bamboo Beetles lurking near the Pocket Mice.
Three minutes later.
"Ahhhh!" Gu Ran wailed as she fled across the map, chased relentlessly by the Lizards and Bamboo Beetles.
"I died again wuuuuuuuu!"
The chat erupted in laughter.
【Too adorable! Too adorable!】
【Now I get why so many guys love carrying girls in games! Who wouldn’t want to carry a cutie like this, even if she’s terrible?】
【The chaotic force of gaming streams, I’m dying】
【Same thing happened last stream. Watching her play is pure entertainment】
【As a fellow noob who rarely games, thank you, Gu Ran! Your cosplay didn’t convince me last time, but this stream made me download Sacred Legends immediately. Let’s all go hunt Pocket Mice together!】
【Pocket Mice hunting squad +1】
……
Gu Ran played until the end of her stream. This session was a slight improvement—though she still didn’t hit level 15, she only died once in an hour. A monumental leap in skill!
After logging off, she was shocked to see her stream ranking had skyrocketed, landing in the top three of the gaming category’s popularity chart.
Soon after, Ding Ze messaged her:
【Sacred Legends reached out.】
【They loved tonight’s stream and want to renew your contract immediately.】
【You’ll stream once a week playing the game. The goal? To show that even the most hopeless noobs can find joy and springtime in their game.】
【If even Cat Paw’s #1 Beauty—aka the Ultimate Noob Legend—can have fun, who wouldn’t?】
Gu Ran: …Excuse me?
