Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
It was already December 15th when Ye Shaoyang and Chi Shuo returned to the club after discussing the livestream contract.
The World Competition had reached the knockout stage of the quarterfinals.
Jing Zhe's team would face Korea's ATB team on the 16th. This team was the champion of the Korean division and had not lost a single match in the group stage of the World League. They had won all their matches and were the most promising team to become the champion.
Ice Soul would face North America's FLD team on the 17th. FLD was the defending champion of last year's World League and was the strongest team in the North American division.
The prospects of both teams were not very optimistic.
When the domestic fans saw the schedule, they felt as if a dark cloud was hanging over their heads. Some fans did not even dare to watch the livestream for fear that their favorite team would lose to a foreign team.
The host city of this World League was Paris. There was a seven-hour time difference between China and Paris.
December 16th, 19: 00 PM Paris time, 2: 00 AM China time.
The match between Jing Zhe and ATB officially began. Coach Lin organized the team members to watch it on the big screen in the conference room.
Qin Yizhu generously shared his snacks. Walnuts, peanuts, melon seeds, and all kinds of biscuits and chips filled the table. Ye Shaoyang also carried the white cat over. Everyone stroked the cat while watching the match.
The World League used a BO5 system for the quarter-finals.
In the first two rounds, both teams were tied.
In the third round, ATB won with a new lineup. In the fourth round, Jing Zhe steadily turned the situation around.
In the crucial deciding game, Jing Zhe had a certain advantage in the beginning. Fang Zhengqing wandered to the bottom lane and cooperated with Xie Yuan to kill ATB's archer. However, in the middle of the game, ATB started to avoid battles and snowballed. The economy of the two teams was not pulled apart.
In a crucial team battle, ATB's jungler found an opportunity to circle behind and kill Jing Zhe's archer, Xie Yuan, and took the opportunity to take down the bottom lane's high ground.
Jing Zhe defended the high ground for five minutes, but the disadvantage of his troops was too great. Although Fang Zhengqing and Xie Yuan worked together to repel ATB's attacks three times, in the end, Jing Zhe had no choice but to lose the match due to the opponent's dragon buff.
Looking at the scene of the crystal shattering, the conference room fell into a short silence.
A moment later, Coach Lin sighed and muttered, "The Korean team's operation is really amazing. It's a pity that Jing Zhe lost this match. He had a small advantage in the early stages, but it's a pity that he couldn't end the match quickly. "
Chi Shuo said, "The Korean team is very good at operations and snowballing. Even if we kill them a few times in the early stages, their economy will catch up quickly."
This team was somewhat similar to the Korean team that Ye Shaoyang had encountered in his previous life. They clearly had more kills than the other side and had killed the other side several times. But for some reason, the Korean team's economy was stable. Every time they played against the Korean team, they would feel that it was especially strenuous. They would feel a sense of exhaustion from the bottom of their hearts.
In the later stages, it would be very difficult to beat the Korean team. The resilience of their professional players was very scary.
In the previous match, Jing Zhe actually played very well, and it was a pity that he lost in the end. However, there was no other way. The teams from the other regions in the World Championship were also very strong, and sometimes a game depended on luck.
Ye Shaoyang sighed in his heart and looked at Coach Lin. "Only the Ice Soul team is left in the Chinese region. Do they have a high chance of winning the championship?"
Coach Lin smiled bitterly and shook his head. "I don't think so."
Cheng Xing asked softly, "Isn't the Ice Soul team very strong in team battles?"
Coach Lin said, "A five-man team is very strong, but what if the opponent doesn't let you team up and destroys you in the early stages?"
Chi Shuo also said, "The Ice Soul team can at most reach the top four. It will be very difficult to go any further."
Ye Shaoyang looked at the competition schedule. "If the Ice Soul team defeats the North American team FLD in the quarterfinals, they will meet the team that eliminated Jing Zhe, ATB team, in the next round of the semifinals, right?"
Lin Feng nodded and said, "ATB is an abbreviation from Atomic Bomb. This team also plays with a combination of midlaners and junglers. The midlaner Pu Yuanxi is the top midlaner in the Korean region. The jungler Cui He's style is similar to Chi Shuo's. They are very strong when it comes to favorable situations, but they can also operate calmly when it comes to unfavorable situations. They are a very well-rounded team."
Ye Shaoyang remembered these two names. Pu Yuanxi and Cui He, the strongest midlaner combination in the Korean region. If Tianheng entered the World Championship, this team with a similar style would become one of the most difficult to defeat.
On the morning of December 17th, the news of Jing Zhe's defeat spread to China.
Many of Jing Zhe's die-hard fans stayed up all night to watch the competition. Their eyes were red from crying, and they went to the official Weibo to encourage the players to continue next season. There were also some anti-fans who went to the official Weibo to curse.
The club's official Weibo also praised the players for their hard work and encouraged them to continue working hard next season.
Everyone in the Chinese region focused their attention on the Ice Soul team. One could imagine the pressure on Chen Qianhua.
On the evening of the 17th.
Chen Qianhua was having dinner with his teammates when his phone suddenly vibrated. He received several messages —
Xu Zhuo: "Little Chen, you can do it. No matter if you win or lose, you will be our best support! "
Chi Shuo: "Relax and play. Don't put too much pressure on yourself."
Fang Zhengqing: "It's been a long time since we got together. Let's have dinner together after the competition."
Xie Yuan: "Captain Fang is too lazy to scan the QR code. Why don't we let Captain Chi pay the bill?"
Xu Zhuo: "Indeed, we should let Chi Shuo pay the bill. There's an Omega in Tianheng. Chi Shuo should treat us to a meal to celebrate! "
Chi Shuo: "??"
Fang Zhengqing: "Agree."
Xie Yuan: "Agree + 1."
Chen Qianhua's lips curled into a smile as he typed: "Agree + 2."
These messages came from a private group called Star City Rookie Concentration Camp. There were only five people in the group, and this group was created five years ago. At that time, they were all rookies.
The five of them met when they were in their teens. They were all young trainees who learned about the game from their coach. Occasionally, they would form a team of five to play ranked games. Then, they would play out the tragedy of "Chi Shuo and Fang Zhengqing never working together. The top laner, Xu Zhuo, was all alone. The bottom laner, Chen Qianhua, and Xie Yuan, one died and the other lost."
After the game, they would complain to each other.
Chi Shuo and Fang Zhengqing had completely different understandings of the game, and it was difficult for them to convince each other.
In the end, they signed with different teams, and this group was never disbanded.
The pure friendship from their youth had lasted until now. Among the five of them, four of them had become team captains. No matter how fierce the game was, they were still friends after the game.
Chi Shuo: "Are you guys going home during the New Year holiday?"
Xie Yuan: "Of course we're going home for the New Year. Otherwise, my dad will break my legs ~"
Chen Qianhua: "I'll probably go back to my hometown too."
Fang Zhengqing: "+ 1."
Chi Shuo: "Okay, I'll treat you guys to a meal. We'll arrange the time and place."
Chi Shuo's hometown was in Star City, and the other four were less than five hours away from Star City by car.
Star City was the largest youth training base in the south of China. Many young people from the surrounding cities who wanted to play esports would go there for testing and training. The five of them would have a small gathering every year. This time, it was Chi Shuo's turn to treat them.
Chi Shuo closed the chat window and went to the conference room to watch the game.
The game between Soul Ice and FLD was extremely intense. From the first game onwards, every game would drag on for more than 40 minutes. A few consecutive bladder games not only tested the players' mental fortitude, but also their physical fitness.
What surprised the foreign reporters was that Soul Ice, a team without any star players, actually resisted the multiple attacks of the North American champion team, FLD, and turned the tables in the crucial team battle of the deciding game!
Soul Ice advanced to the top four!
The Chinese netizens' hearts finally settled back into their stomachs.
Soul Ice was almost disbanded last season. This season, they were able to fight their way into the Chinese finals and even enter the international competition as the first place in the Chinese region. This was already their best result in history.
Many people left comments on Soul Ice's Weibo: "Whether they can win the award or not, Soul Ice is very outstanding this season!" "It's not easy for a team that almost disbanded last year to make it this far. Salute Captain Chen!"
It was already unexpected that Soul Ice could enter the international competition.
On December 20th, Soul Ice met the first seed of the Korean region, ATB, in the semifinals and was eliminated by 31. The Chinese netizens were already mentally prepared. Not many people scolded them. Most of them had an encouraging attitude. After all, it was really not easy for this team to go from the verge of disbanding to the international competition.
Jing Zhe was scolded more miserably.
They were the runner-up in the international competition last year and only made it to the top eight this year.
However, Fang Zhengqing was a lazy person. He could not even be bothered to go on Weibo, let alone reply to the anti-fans' comments.
His Weibo was already overgrown with weeds.
The S10 international competition officially ended on December 25th. The final champion was Team ATB from the Korean region. Since the Korean region had won the world championship, it meant that the Korean region would have three places to qualify for the international competition next season.
The Chinese region's results this year were dismal. Jing Zhe was fifth and Soul Ice was fourth. There were no trophies. To the netizens who supported the Chinese eSports competition, this was undoubtedly a heavy blow.
There were also many negative comments on the Internet —
The professional players of the Chinese region were indeed only good at home. They were all cowards when they went to the international competition!
You guys should just obediently beat each other in China. Don't go to the international competition and embarrass your father.
Fang Zhengqing's fans were still criticizing Jing Zhe's loss. If it wasn't for his mistake in directing the team, would he have lost?
How does it feel to be beaten by a bunch of rookies?
Watching you guys compete is really funny. Why don't you watch the bronze game instead?
ATB's Park God is the best. Fang Zhengqing, Zhou Zhou, they can all stand aside!
Ye Shaoyang looked at the comments and couldn't help but think of his previous life, when he lost the international competition finals and was scolded by anti-fans. Every comment in the comments section was heart-wrenching. It was very similar to the scolding on the Internet.
Sure enough, there was no shortage of keyboard warriors in any world.
Ye Shaoyang put down his phone and carried Little White to the balcony.
Last night, there was a heavy snowfall in the capital. This was the first snow of the winter this year. When he woke up in the morning, the snow was falling outside the window. The surrounding buildings were already covered in a thick layer of snow.
There were not many pedestrians on the roads in the suburbs. The snowy scenery was not damaged at all.
The whole world was wrapped in silver, pure and flawless.
Ye Shaoyang looked at the vast expanse of whiteness outside and quickly calmed down.
This season, the Chinese team's results were not satisfactory. The situation next season was not optimistic either. He really wanted to win the world championship. As for whether he could win it or not, it depended on luck. The competition was ever-changing. Even the strongest team could fail … He could only say that he would do his best and not have any regrets.
Ye Shaoyang smiled and patted the head of the cat in his arms.
Little White looked curiously at the falling snow outside the window. It even stupidly stretched out its paws to catch it. In the end, it didn't catch anything. It persevered and continued to catch the air …
When Chi Shuo went out, he saw this scene.
Ye Shaoyang was holding the cat and looking at the snow by the window. There was a relaxed and pleasant smile on his face.
His side profile was particularly good-looking. The handsome boy was holding the cute cat, just like a fixed frame of a poster.
Chi Shuo couldn't take his eyes off him for a while.
Ye Shaoyang heard footsteps. He turned around and said with a smile, "Good morning, Captain Chi."
Chi Shuo coughed softly. "You're up so early?"
Ye Shaoyang said, "I was bored and browsed Weibo for a while. I saw people scolding the Chinese team's professional players as rookies. They also said that the Gods, who are usually highly sought after in China, become cowards as soon as they leave the country."
Chi Shuo was speechless.
Most players would be angry when they saw such comments. Cheng Xing was so angry last night that his eyes turned red. He almost scolded them back. Ye Shaoyang did not seem to mind at all.
Chi Shuo said, "If one day, our Tianheng team loses, you might be scolded too."
Ye Shaoyang said calmly, "It doesn't matter. Even if they scold me, I won't lose anything. I know in my heart that I didn't do anything wrong. It's enough that I have a clear conscience. There's no need to look at those anti-fans. "
He had a clear conscience.
Chi Shuo had been embroiled in controversy for the past few years. Every time he finished a competition, there would always be people who said that he was at the peak of his career, that he was going downhill and only knew how to live off his past achievements. They said that he was not as good as Tianheng's previous captain, Ming Sheng. They said that he was causing Tianheng's results to deteriorate …
But he had already done everything he could.
He had a clear conscience.
"You have a point. There's no need to look at them." Chi Shuo smiled and walked to Ye Shaoyang's side. He looked out the window. "S9 is completely over. In the past few seasons, the Chinese team has also experienced such low points where they didn't win any medals. But I believe that S10 will be different. "
Ye Shaoyang smiled and nodded. "Yes, S10 is a new beginning."
Chi Shuo looked at the person beside him. His gaze could not help but soften. "This year, it's the new year on the 7th of January. I heard that the Alliance has requested that all the teams take a holiday from the 6th to the 13th. Are you going back to Star City for the new year?"
Ye Shaoyang was stunned for a moment.
The original owner's parents had already passed away. He did not have many relatives or friends in this world. The only ones he was still in contact with were his cousins Qin Yue and Qin Rui. Other than his home in Star City, he had nowhere else to go.
Ye Shaoyang lowered his head and patted Little White's head. "Okay, then I'll go back too."
Chi Shuo said, "I'll book the tickets for you. Let's go back together?"
Ye Shaoyang nodded. "Okay."
: … > …
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