Han Shihao shook his head. "I'm just a little tired from training, so I came out for a breather."
The man, M, nodded slightly, showing a look of agreement. "Yes, your training has been too intense recently. You should give yourself a break."
It was common knowledge that even in the Korean LCK, SSK was definitely a team that worked harder than other club teams.
And among them, as the core and soul of the team, Han Shihao worked even harder than his other teammates.
For twenty-four hours a day, apart from eating and sleeping, he devoted the rest of his time to various forms of training. Even after the club's official training schedule had ended, he would continue to train himself by playing solo in the Korean server's Kings of the League.
With the finals coming up, he even took the initiative to increase the intensity of his training.
It was a huge amount of training that no one else could withstand.
After giving such an evaluation, M changed the topic.
"Speaking of which, you don't have to work so hard.
"The intensity is a little excessive. The coaches and leaders of your club are worried about whether your body can take it.
"Especially at this time, you just need to rest and adjust your physical condition.
"As for the rest … it should be your opponents' turn to be nervous."
There was nothing wrong with what M said.
On one hand, when one's strength reached Han Shihao's level, there was no longer a need for a large amount of training to make further breakthroughs. This was because it was simply unrealistic. Standing at the top of the pyramid, it was naturally extremely difficult to make further progress. It was not something that could be achieved in a short period of time.
On the other hand …
Even if Han Shihao only maintained his current strength, there was almost no one in the professional esports circle who could rival him.
Only a few of the Yonkō (Four Kings) were qualified to be his opponents. Even the Seven Kings were no longer a match for him, who was now recognized as the leader of the Yonkō.
Receiving such undisguised praise from his most respected and admired senior, Han Shihao still did not show any joy on his face. He simply grunted and did not express anything else.
M raised his eyebrows slightly, smiled, and lowered his head to adjust the glasses on the bridge of his nose.
"So …"
"There's still something on your mind."
"What are you thinking about?" Without giving the junior in front of him a chance to answer or refute, M continued, "There are no problems within the team. Your own condition has always been good. The finals in a few days … naturally, it shouldn't bring you any pressure."
"Then —"
M looked at Han Shihao with a gentle gaze. His eyes under the lenses were shining with wisdom and penetrating light.
"It can only be because of someone else."
"Or … is it the upcoming finals that reminded you of someone?"
The night was as cool as water.
The atmosphere on the balcony suddenly became quiet with this sentence.
Han Shihao was silent, but his eyelids twitched slightly, which made M smile again. "You guessed it … Then let me guess again —"
"It's that kid from China, right?"
"The little guy who fought against you in all five finals of the S1 season."
"He's also … 'that person's' disciple."
His voice was still gentle and calm as he spoke.
But the moment he heard this sentence, Han Shihao, who was standing in front of M, lowered his head slightly, and a sharp light suddenly flashed in his eyes.
M saw the subtle changes in the junior's reaction and smiled again.
"You guessed it."
"That's true … After so many seasons, playing in the finals year after year, for you, perhaps only the first season was the most challenging."
There was nothing wrong with what he said.
Perhaps for the vast majority of professional teams and players, the S Series World Finals itself was the highest goal and arena they pursued. There was no need to mention the specific season, any season was equally intense.
But for Han Shihao, it was not the case.
From S1 until now.
Not counting the sixth season finals that was about to begin this year, he had participated in a total of five seasons.
Five seasons.
That was three championships.
For ordinary people, it was the dream of most professional esports players, even if they only hoped to win the highest honor once. But for him, he had received so many trophies that his hands almost went limp.
Especially in the past two years, SSK's momentum of dominating the esports circle became more and more unstoppable. Even the S Series League, which was widely recognized as the top Glory competition, was a piece of cake for SSK. Even strong teams like North America's Season or Europe's Legend couldn't pose enough of a threat to them.
And it was indeed like what M said at this moment.
Compared to the past few seasons …
On the contrary, it was only in the S1 finals that the final set of 'best-of-five' matches was the most frightening and hot-blooded battle of the pinnacle.
Han Shihao lowered his head in silence, but the flickering light in his eyes revealed his current mood.
He seemed to be reminiscing about the past.
M, who did not receive a response, raised his head and looked at the bright moon in the distant night sky. He felt a little emotional.
"It's a shame to say this, but F and I competed with those people from China for an entire generation."
"But we never had the slightest advantage."
"This is also what we feel most regretful about."
"But I didn't expect that the competition from the previous generation would continue into this one. You have helped us regain our face."
"Our juniors have defeated their juniors …"
He paused for a moment and looked at Han Shihao with an appreciative smile. "I really have to thank you for this."
Han Shihao bowed slightly, respectfully indicating that he did not dare accept the gift.
Then, Coach changed the topic. "That little guy, you've seen him before in MSI, right? You picked him to play on the bottom lane in the All-Star Interactive Exhibition Match. I watched that match too."
"Indeed, as expected of the disciples taught by those few. Even after returning from retirement for many years, he still has such a level of skill. It's amazing."
"But —"
M paused again, then looked at Han Shihao.
"There's still a big gap between us."
"Now you have reached the height that we, the older generation, have reached. More importantly, compared to us old guys who are destined to be unable to make any further progress, you are still moving forward."
"In front of you … is a road that almost no one has walked."
"Left and right, no companions and no opponents."
"So even the little guy who could compete with you in the past has been left behind by you. In this case, there is no need to look back. Just focus on moving forward."
"In this new era, your opponent … should only be yourself."
The gentle persuasion floated in the cool night wind.
The terrace was silent.
Han Shihao was silent. Finally, he raised his head. After listening for so long, this was the first time he took the initiative to look at M.
"Senior's teaching is correct."
"However, what I just thought of … was not that guy."
"Or rather —"
"It's not just that guy."
*****
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