How much is a new follower worth? For a Chinese content creator known only by his surname, Sun, gaining a larger audience meant taking his challenges further and further.
The 35-year-old streamed to around 15.000 followers on DouYu, a popular Chinese platform. His routine was as simple as it was dangerous: he spun a roulette wheel and had to consume whatever it landed on in front of the camera.
The possibilities included centipedes, geckos, mealworms, eggs, vinegar, beer, and baijiu, a potent Chinese liquor. According to reports at the time, the goal was to attract attention and increase his popularity on the platform.
In July 2019, he carried out what would become his final broadcast. During the challenge, he consumed live animals and large quantities of alcohol. Afterward, everything fell silent.
His girlfriend went to his apartment in Hefei and found him lifeless. When the police arrived, there was another unsettling detail: the items used during the challenge were still on the table, and the camera was still running.
Authorities ruled out the involvement of third parties, and the videos were eventually removed from DouYu. In the initial reports, however, the exact cause of his death was still under investigation, so it cannot be said for certain which of the substances or animals he consumed led to his death.
His story eventually became one of the darkest faces of the pursuit of internet popularity: a man willing to consume increasingly dangerous things while thousands of people watched from behind a screen.