Virtual Idol in the Beast World: Five Clans Fight Over Me

After seeing the notification in her comment section, Gu Ning opened her account’s backend.

In the comments and private messages, many Beastmen were reminding her to get officially verified so she could enable higher-value tips.

Gu Ning’s account was still level one. The maximum single tip was only one hundred Beast Coins, with a total cap of two hundred thousand.

Amidst the private messages from various animal-themed avatars, an official message marked with a paw print was automatically pinned to the top.

Gu Ning opened the message, feeling a little nervous.

Thankfully, it was also just a reminder to get verified.

’I almost thought the platform had discovered my identity. In that case, I would’ve had to delete my account and run.’

Gu Ning remembered receiving an official private message on her "Kaidi" mutt account after posting her first video. But that one had a cold, formal tone, curtly listing some guidelines about not letting video content incite flame wars between clans, offline fights, or discrimination. It felt like an automated, mass-sent message.

This message, however, was much gentler. It seemed like the wording had been carefully crafted. It was also especially long, clearly outlining the rules for posting videos and even thoughtfully including tips for using post-production tools. It was as if they wanted to hold her hand through the whole process.

She clicked out and took a look. Sure enough, there was another official private message below it. Clicking on it, she saw it was identical to the one her Kaidi mutt account had received—the one automatically sent by the system.

Gu Ning clicked back to the specially edited official message and quickly read through the long list of rules and reminders. The most important one for her was about account verification and leveling up.

Account verification was equivalent to real-name identification. Only after her account was verified could it be upgraded.

Leveling up an account on the platform wasn’t based on tips, but on the likes and affection from Beastmen.

The system would recommend videos to groups with similar tastes based on the like ratio, reducing recommendations to Beastmen who downvoted.

It was similar to how content promotion worked on the human internet.

Only by accumulating enough "Affection Value" could an account level up and unlock a higher tip ceiling.

However, even if an account reached the highest level, there was still a tip limit per video. Only by posting a new video could a new tipping milestone be unlocked.

Also, if a video got too many downvotes, the Affection Value would decrease, and the account level could even drop.

These rules were designed to incentivize Beastmen to produce more and better videos, just like unlocking levels in a game.

Seeing these rules, Gu Ning’s limbs went limp. She felt like she could die.

The tip ceiling wasn’t the issue. A max-level account could get a tip limit in the tens of millions for a single video; she would just have to film more videos.

The hard part was the identity verification.

How could Gu Ning possibly dare to get verified?

If those Beastmen found out the person in the video was a Mixed Breed, which they despised, they would come through the internet and beat her to death!

Gu Ning ran her hands through her hair in frustration.

’I knew it,’ she thought. ’Making money was never going to be this easy.’

Without verification, the account couldn’t level up.

Without leveling up, she couldn’t get higher tips.

She had received a total of two hundred thousand in tips so far. After the platform’s 50/50 split, her earnings from this video were only one hundred thousand.

Gu Ning grabbed her backpack, looked at the two thirty-thousand-coin guns inside, and slapped her forehead.

’Bad move. I shouldn’t have impulsively bought such expensive guns.’

’Maybe I should find Barto later and return the guns. He’d probably take them back, right? At worst, I’ll just have to pay a bit of a cancellation fee.’

Gu Ning lay on the sofa, sighing as she stared at the mottled ceiling.

Cook gently rested his head on her stomach, his clear, bright black eyes watching her without blinking.

Seeing Cook like this, Gu Ning felt her motivation return.

After lying there for a while, she reopened the video and started scrolling through the comments again.

A lot of Beastmen had "pressed paw" to like her video, but there were some downvotes too. Compared to the number of likes, however, they were negligible.

As long as she got verified, her Affection Value would be enough to raise her account to level two immediately.

Gu Ning randomly opened a few more private messages. There were a great many from the Dog Clan and the Wolf Clan. Most expressed their admiration, their words excited but polite. Some even apologized after their messages, afraid they might have offended her.

This made Gu Ning’s opinion of Beastmen improve ever so slightly. At least they weren’t running their mouths just because they were behind a screen.

Still, you couldn’t judge a beastman by their appearance. She didn’t let her guard down because of it.

Gu Ning spent a long time scrolling through comments and messages, trying to understand the Beastmen’s attitude toward Beast Females.

The more she read, the more awestruck she became by the status of a Beast Female.

Given the Beastmen’s fanatical adoration for Beast Females, if they ever found out she was an impostor, they would really tear her to shreds.

KNOCK KNOCK...

Just then, there was a knock at the door.

Gu Ning, who had been engrossed in the comments, jumped at the sound.

Cook quickly limped to the door, dragging his leg, and let out a low growl at whoever was outside.

"Stop barking, it’s me." Barto’s hushed voice came from outside.

Cook’s fierce expression instantly softened, his eyes becoming clear again.

Gu Ning poked her head out and asked, "Cook, who is it?"

A happy look appeared on Cook’s face. "Bar... Bar..."

Gu Ning asked, "Barto?"

She checked the time. ’That’s strange. It’s not the delivery time we agreed on yet.’

Not thinking much of it, Gu Ning hopped off the sofa, quickly put on her outdoor gear, and jogged to the door, opening it a crack.

Behind Barto was a small wagon, piled high with the goods he was delivering to her.

"What took you so long to open the door?"

Seeing that they had finally opened up, Barto pushed his way inside without another word.

Gu Ning and Cook backed away behind the door. As soon as Barto had pulled the wagon inside, they immediately shut the door.

"Bar..." Cook excitedly circled his fox friend. Seeing all the things he’d brought, Cook gave him a huge hug.

Barto, nearly suffocated by the hug, kicked him hard and ducked his body down to slip out of the embrace.

"Don’t touch me! Are you looking for trouble?" Barto poked Cook’s forehead with a sharp claw.

He said to Gu Ning, who was standing to the side, "Has this guy’s IQ regressed again? If you get some money, buy him some Pure Crystal Stones. It might make him a little smarter."

Seeing that he was angry, Gu Ning waved her hand dismissively at him and pulled Cook aside.

Barto huffily went to untie the ropes securing the goods and began taking them out of the wagon one by one.

Gu Ning and Cook also stepped forward to help move things.

"Get lost," Barto said, shoving Cook away when he came closer.

Gu Ning saw he was in a foul mood. ’Who pissed him off?’

’Did a Mixed Breed steal his stall, or did some Beastman haggle so much he didn’t make a profit?’

Gu Ning figured it was the latter.

Few Mixed Breeds could steal anything from his stall, but haggling with Barto was like asking for his life.

Seeing that he was still fuming, Gu Ning decided not to provoke him. She pulled Cook aside and made him sit still.

Cook was very obedient. He sat properly on all fours like a little dog, his tail wagging behind him as he watched them unload the goods.

Gu Ning had bought a lot of furniture and books.

A bookshelf, a desk, some relatively new chairs, potted plants, decorations, and new Beastman clothes.

For the clothes, she had specifically requested lightweight, bright, and comfortable ones—basically, summer styles.

They would be easier to alter that way.

Besides those things, she had also ordered a lot of pretty blankets.

"It’s about to get cold, so I brought you some thick clothes. You won’t be able to wear these for more than a few days."

Barto tossed a thick bundle of clothes to Gu Ning.

Gu Ning opened it and saw they were new clothes. Judging by the material, they weren’t cheap.

Seeing all this, she thought to herself, ’Barto definitely made a good profit on those thirty thousand.’

’Never mind the second-hand furniture; these clothes alone are worth several thousand Beast Coins.’

After unloading everything, Barto clapped his hands and said, "I didn’t even make that much off you. If I didn’t have my sources, those clothes would’ve cost you at least three thousand Beast Coins."

As he spoke, Barto started wandering around their house.

"Why have you collected so much junk and put it in the house?"

Barto saw the miscellaneous parts piled up in the living room. He casually picked up a few pieces to look at them. "Junk. It’s all junk. I’ll drag this stuff to the scrapyard for you. Don’t let it pile up in here; it’s making the place feel cramped."

Hearing this, Gu Ning went to pick out the things she thought were still usable and set them aside.

Barto threw everything she picked into the wagon. "It’s all junk. Why are you keeping it?"

Gu Ning didn’t listen and picked the items out again.

Barto tried to snatch them back, but Cook bared his teeth at him.

"You little..." Seeing how protective Cook was of Gu Ning, Barto had no choice but to let her be.

After sorting through the items for a moment, Barto suddenly said to the two of them, "I need to come and live with you guys for a while."