Chapter 89: Summoning Thunder?

Chen Fan patted his pocket. The hundred yuan he’d just earned didn’t feel much thicker, but at least his heart felt steadier.

But now he was out of magic—how was he supposed to conjure up a balloon-headed doll?

“In truth, I can’t do magic at all.” Chen Fan forced a smile at the camera.

The streamer’s face darkened at once, but still, surrounded by his enthusiastic viewers, he worked hard to keep up appearances.

“Is it that the money wasn’t enough? Or is this kid just pocketing the cash and refusing to perform?”

With the arrow on the string, the streamer refused to back down. He probed, “Buddy, all those thousands of viewers just saw you walking down the street, tossing invisible balloons and covering the whole road. Don’t tell me it was all fake.”

Chen Fan spread his hands, unable to voice his frustration. If he hadn’t spent so recklessly just now, would he be in such a tight spot?

“There’s no such thing as magic. It’s all just cheap tricks. If I really knew magic, wouldn’t I be able to change the weather? At the very least, I’d summon up a thunderstorm. Look, it’s still sunny—I swear, I don’t know magic. Let me off the hook.”

“Boom—crack!”

A dazzling golden light shot from Chen Fan’s palm. The previously clear, cloudless sky suddenly darkened, thunder and lightning rumbling overhead.

“Holy—he actually summoned thunder. That can’t be a coincidence, can it?” Chen Fan rubbed his eyes, hardly able to believe what he was seeing.

The streamer was equally stunned, as were the thousands of viewers watching the live broadcast. The chat exploded in a frenzy.

[Did you hear that thunder? It was loud as hell.]

[There was a flash in the master’s hand—I couldn’t see it clearly; it was too fast.]

[Maybe they’re playing a sound effect. Don’t try to fool me—I’m still in school.]

[I’m right here in Yuanyu. The sky was perfectly clear a moment ago, not a cloud in sight, and now it’s started to rain!]

[What a legend! Said he couldn’t do magic, and then he literally changed the weather.]

The barrage of comments sent the stream’s popularity soaring to the front page, drawing in a swarm of curious onlookers.

Watching the stunned streamer, Chen Fan tried to explain, “I really can’t do magic. That had to be a freak coincidence. You believe in science, don’t you?”

“Yeah, right. That flash from your hand was real enough—and anyway, if it brings in viewers, I’d believe you were the King of Heaven himself.” The streamer snapped out of his daze and quickly calculated how best to capitalize on the moment.

“Everyone, did you see that? A true master magician—just a wave of the hands, and the sky changes! This is the real deal, folks, the greatest act of the century!” He didn’t care if it was real or fake; what mattered was riding the wave of popularity as high as possible.

Chen Fan hurriedly protested, “I swear I’m not a magician! You must believe in science. This lightning was just a coincidence. If I really could change the weather, like you’re saying, I’d call down a bolt to strike a tree or something.”

He looked around but couldn’t spot a single tree on the pedestrian street. Resigned, he pointed at a fire hydrant. “If I really could do magic, that hydrant would be blasted apart by lightning right now.”

“Boom—crack!”

A spray erupted.

Standing under the fountain, Chen Fan let out a long sigh. There was no way to explain his way out of this. With a touch of flair, he slicked his wet bangs back into place, and before the streamer could react, he turned on his heel and bolted.

“This hydrant—what the hell…” Chen Fan grumbled as he ran, water streaming from his clothes.

The streamer was losing his mind, standing in the fountain and shouting, “Everyone, did you see that? The magician of the century! He commands the wind and rain—double-tap those 666s, send your gifts and comments!”

[Why are you still streaming? The magician’s long gone.]

[Is your phone waterproof? It’s getting soaked!]

[Not gonna lie, watching you choke on water is kind of fun.]

[Five bucks says this stream gets taken down in three minutes.]

Chen Fan didn’t look back, sprinting away until he leapt onto a bus. Only after the doors closed behind him did he catch his breath.

“I… I swear… That was the fastest I’ve ever run in my life.”

He’d wanted to wring the water from his clothes, but he was so thoroughly soaked it seemed pointless.

The cold air on the bus made him shiver uncontrollably. Curling up into a ball, Chen Fan muttered, “Elder, I don’t remember there being a Thor card in Werewolf. Tell me the truth—was this your doing?”

The Elder sounded exasperated, as if he’d been handed the blame out of nowhere. “Don’t look at me. The lightning in your hand, sure, you conjured that. But the lightning in the sky, and the bolt that blew up the hydrant—those were real.”

Chen Fan sighed, “What are the odds of something like this happening to me?”

The Elder replied, “Roughly the same as being hit five times in a row by Halley’s Comet.”

“Hmph? Doesn’t Halley’s Comet pass Earth only once every seventy-six years?” As a humanities major, Chen Fan at least had that much basic knowledge.

“Exactly. In other words, it’s impossible.” The Elder now sported sunglasses, a cigar, and a chunky gold chain, humming “The Next Episode.”

“What a joker you are, old man.” Chen Fan checked his phone again—thankfully, it still worked.

[Bro, you’re trending again—the Lightning Summoner!]

As soon as Chen Fan turned on his data, he saw Li Peijun had already discovered his latest feat.

[Lightning Summoner, my ass! It was just a coincidence. I have no idea how it happened—one second it was clear, the next, bam!]

[Dude, you’ve become a meme. There are mashups of you all over Bilibili.]

“What?”

Chen Fan was stunned. It hadn’t even been an hour, and already videos were circulating online? And he’d been turned into a meme?

He opened Bilibili—it didn’t even require searching. There, at the top of the homepage, was a video titled “Yuanyu Thunder God,” already with over a million views.

[You’re on all the major headlines, even trending. Brother Fan, you’re famous now!]

[Go to hell! Who wants this kind of fame? I’m drenched from that fountain, skulking around like a half-hidden Pipa player.]

Chen Fan could only watch as netizens across the country ran wild with his story. Gossip and rumors multiplied—some claimed he was a reclusive qigong master, others photoshopped him onto Thor movie posters, including the one where Loki clings to Thor with passionate devotion.

“Elder, what do I do? I’m on TV now.”

The Elder was laughing so hard he could barely breathe, offering no help at all. Exasperated, Chen Fan gave up and joined in the self-mockery, blending in with the online crowd.

“God said, ‘Let there be light.’ So He sent me to summon thunder.” Chen Fan squeezed onto the last subway train, making it back to his dorm before curfew.

“Bro, you’re back! Did you see the news about you online?” Xu Changhui rushed to greet the returning celebrity.

Chen Fan sniffled. “I used up all my data this month just reading the posts roasting me.”

Xu Changhui pointed at his computer screen. “Someone just remixed ‘My Skateboard Shoes’ with your story. Come check it out.”

Chen Fan stripped off his wet shirt and walked over. “Another new joke? What’s this one called?”

“‘My Thunder Technique.’”

Chen Fan: “. . .”