Chapter 234

Chapter 234
Lily's POV
"Ah, I lost to the great mist, and I accept my defeat wholeheartedly!" Cameron said in the all-channel chat, her tone full of admiration.
I smiled slightly. "Thanks for playing. Next challenger, please."
Viewers in the livestream were sending gifts frantically. In just this short time, I'd received nearly 200,000 in donations, but it was far from enough to cover the company's deficit.
"A good start, but still far from the goal."
Comments were scrolling rapidly as fans expressed their excitement.
[Mist is just too amazing!] [Those moves were so smooth and flawless!] [Our livestream donation record is definitely getting broken today!]
The second challenger also claimed to be my fan but was easily defeated by me. The audience began praising my exceptional skills, with some even begging to become my disciples.
[Will mist take apprentices? I'm willing to pay tuition!] [Why isn't such a skilled player going professional?]
Some esports teams caught wind of the stream and offered me positions with prices as high as 100 million, but I ignored them and simply said, "Next one."
"I had no idea you were this skilled at gaming," William said quietly.
I smiled slightly. "I'm good at many more things than you can imagine."
As the compliments increased, some viewers became bitter: "There are plenty of people with nice voices who are good at games. You don't know that the ones I know with nice voices who play well usually don't look good. It's because they're too insecure in real life, so they seek validation online."
This immediately resonated with others: "Yeah, the person I know is like that too. Their voice sounds great, but they're fat and ugly, like a dead pig." Many people began making malicious assumptions about my appearance.
"Typical keyboard warriors, judging someone's appearance without ever seeing them," I thought with amusement, not bothered by these comments.
Basil, having seen my true appearance, naturally didn't want to hear these insults: "I've met the streamer in person, and they're very attractive. I'm absolutely in love." As a result, he was called a "simp," which made his face turn red with anger.
"Ignore them," I told Basil. "Those people aren't worth getting upset over."
I didn't have the energy to maintain order in the chat, and besides, these arguments were actually causing the viewer count to grow rapidly.
My follower count was also skyrocketing. By the end of tonight's stream, it would likely exceed 100 million.
Many viewers were clamoring for me to show my face, with the chat filled with requests.
[I'll send a rocket if mist shows their face!]
I smiled. "If the donations reach 300 million, I'll show my face on stream."
With that statement, the chat exploded.
[Isn't this just an excuse to avoid showing your face?] [I'll contribute a rocket, everyone follow suit!]
Most people thought this was an impossible condition I'd deliberately set, since how could an ordinary internet celebrity receive 300 million in donations?
I neither confirmed nor denied, continuing with the challenge.
"They won't reach that number anyway, so I don't need to worry about exposing my identity," I thought, focusing on the game.
Match after match, my record remained perfect. The stream's popularity continued to climb, and donations kept increasing, but they were still far from the 300 million threshold I'd set.
Caleb was the final boss. He was already quite popular, with tens of millions of followers.
Our public matchup immediately attracted even more attention, and the viewer count finally broke 10 million.
"The main event is finally here!" Comments flooded the screen with excitement. "Caleb vs. mist, definitely this year's most spectacular showdown!"
Caleb chose his signature champion Vayne, while I deliberately selected Aphelios, a character countered by his champion.
This meant that if our skill levels were equal, I would undoubtedly lose.
"Lily, what if you lose?" Caleb, seeing my choice, visibly relaxed.
I smiled confidently, my tone lazy yet assured: "I won't lose."
As the match began, I did fall behind initially. The disadvantage of being countered was very apparent.
Caleb forced me to low health several times, and the stream viewers held their breath in suspense.
[Is mist going to fail this time?] [Picking a countered champion, isn't that just asking for trouble?]
However, with my skilled use of Aphelios, I quickly turned the tide.
Defeating Caleb, who had consistently topped the leaderboards, essentially meant I was "unbeatable in the world." The stream instantly erupted, with everyone shocked by this outcome.
Almost simultaneously, viewers noticed that the donation amount had actually exceeded 300 million!
I stared at the rising numbers in shock, never expecting it to reach this level.
"This is trouble—I did promise to show my face."
No one had ever thought donation amounts could break into the "hundred millions," making me the first, and there was more than one top donor!
Most importantly, one of them had the name: James!
And he had contributed the most gifts.
Realizing the situation was precarious, but having made a promise, I had no choice but to follow through.
I turned on the camera, revealing my face with its exquisite makeup.
"Since everyone has been so supportive, I must keep my word," I smiled at the camera. "I'm glad to finally meet you all face to face."
My appearance stunned everyone, and the chat immediately erupted into a strange scene.
[Isn't this my Nightingale?] [What do you mean your Nightingale? This is my esports goddess Lily!] [Shut up, all of you, this is my Rarity!] [Nonsense, this is the CEO of Azure, you fake fans!] [The long-lost granddaughter of the Spencer family! Don't you all read the news?]
Looking at the arguments flowing through the chat, I felt a throbbing headache. "As expected, all my different identities have been recognized."
"Alright, everyone, stop arguing," I had just managed to calm the viewers when the stream was suddenly shut down. The screen displayed: [Your stream has been reported and has been banned.]
I frowned. Could James have done this?
Immediately after, I received a message from Nicholas: "Lily, I know you're streaming, and that you're at Caleb's club. You..."
I frowned and blocked him.
"Nicholas did this, didn't he?" William came over and held my hand. "Don't worry, he can't stop you."
I nodded, a flash of determination in my eyes. "If he wants to play hardball, I won't be polite either."
I decided to counterattack, immediately posting a short video: "I'm sorry everyone. Due to some previous issues, the Spencer family has been forcing me to get engaged to someone and even suppressing my company. I had no choice but to stream, but unfortunately... the stream has been shut down."
Although I didn't explicitly state the reason for the stream being banned, these words were enough to explain everything.
The viewers who had just been cut off were waiting for my explanation, and now the comments section completely exploded, with people condemning Nicholas for forcing me into marriage and suppressing my business.
The short video spread rapidly across major platforms, triggering a massive public opinion storm.
My fan base was too diverse, covering nearly every field from music and gaming to business.
Countless fans flooded the Spencer Group's social media with harsh criticism, threatening to boycott the Spencer family's products.
Because my fans were spread across various industries, the Spencer family's business began to decline sharply.

James's POV
Nicholas smashed a flowerpot in anger, shouting, "Go, bring Lily back to me!"
I stopped Nicholas.
"Nicholas, you know Lily's personality—she's like a spring. The more you press, the harder she bounces back. The power of public opinion is strong. Let me handle this; I have my methods."
I smiled while looking at my phone. Having just spent over 200 million on gifts for Lily, I didn't mind at all.
Lily would eventually be my woman. Spending money on my own woman, no matter how much, doesn't hurt.
Her life—I've bought it.