Chapter 26 Losing Your Way

The corridor leading out of the stadium wasn't too dark, at least having some lights on. Qiao Yifan walked silently outwards, taking a few turns, and then was shocked to discover that he was lost.

Qiao Yifan didn't know whether to laugh or cry. How unfamiliar was he with this formal competition venue! Alone, he couldn't even find the exit.

To be utterly defeated in the match, realizing that his professional career might end here, Qiao Yifan had endured it all. But at this moment, unable to find a way out, he could no longer hold back the bitterness in his heart, and tears streamed down his face. Qiao Yifan raised his arm and wiped away the tears again and again, shaking them off.

The heartache, in turn, spurred his stubbornness. He refused to believe he couldn't even find an exit. Wiping away his tears, Qiao Yifan didn't even bother to identify the direction, just blindly walking forward.

"You're too reckless."

Suddenly, a voice sounded in the dim corridor. Qiao Yifan stopped and was startled. Then he shook his head. It was just a corridor; what was so strange about hearing someone's voice?

Thinking this, Qiao Yifan started to walk on, but then he heard the voice say, "I'm talking to you! Keep walking!"

Qiao Yifan was stunned. Was this actually talking to him? He stopped, turned around, and saw a shadow stretched long in the corridor. A person stood there, but it was too dark to see their face clearly.

"You... are you talking to me?" Qiao Yifan was still unsure.

"Yes!" The person walked closer, continuing, "I understand what you're thinking. You wanted to use this stage to show everyone your talent in using a Zhen Gui (Phantom Demon) , but your choice of opponent was too exaggerated, right? You actually chose Li Xuan? What were you thinking?"

The voice echoed in the corridor. As more words were spoken, Qiao Yifan suddenly felt that both the voice and tone were somewhat familiar, but after the person walked closer and he could see their face clearly, he realized he didn't recognize them. Qiao Yifan was still confused when the other person finished speaking, and Qiao Yifan replied somewhat at a loss, "I wanted to use a Zhen Gui, so..."

"If you wanted to seek guidance, to pay your respects to a senior, then choosing Li Xuan would be right, of course. But since you wanted to show off your Zhen Gui skills, then the last person you should have chosen was Li Xuan."

Qiao Yifan was slightly taken aback. During the match, he had vaguely felt that there was something he hadn't considered thoroughly enough. Hearing this, he suddenly realized something.

"No one in the entire Glory circle is more familiar with Zhen Gui than Li Xuan. You actually wanted to display your Zhen Gui techniques under his nose? Of course, you'd be completely suppressed. It's like showing off your axe in front of Lu Ban (showing off one's skill before an expert); how could you possibly display even ten percent of your skill?"

Qiao Yifan understood, completely understood.

He thought with the mindset of every rookie in the Rookie Challenge, choosing Li Xuan, a master of Zhen Gui of the same class. But he forgot that his purpose in participating in the Rookie Challenge was completely different from everyone else's. He wanted to show off Zhen Gui, but he chose an opponent who was most familiar with Zhen Gui. It was like setting the biggest obstacle for himself.

"Moreover..." the other person continued, "the awareness and skills of a Zhen Gui are most valuable in a team. In a singles match like the Rookie Challenge, team awareness and skills are difficult to demonstrate. Plus, you have so little experience, having practiced for less than a month, and you still wanted to challenge Li Xuan? I'm speechless..."

"Ye Qiu, God!" At this point, Qiao Yifan finally knew who the person in front of him was. There weren't many people who knew that he practiced Zhen Gui and also knew his identity. He had been in a daze, only hearing the voice as familiar, and for a moment he couldn't remember anything. Now, hearing this person knew so much, and listening to the voice again, he finally called out the person's identity.

"Yeah, it's me." Ye Xiu nodded. He basically didn't appear in public, so the only people who recognized him were players who had reached a certain level in the circle. Someone like Qiao Yifan, who hadn't even played in a formal match, although he had entered the professional circle, hadn't seen Ye Xiu's real face.

"Don't question your talent," Ye Xiu said. "But don't think that you can immediately impress someone and get recruited into a team. There are many people with potential, but to be valued by a professional team, you need to have some substance. In terms of Zhen Gui, you're still far from it. But you're still young, you have time to continue to hone your skills and wait for opportunities. Just one month, and you want to challenge the number one Zhen Gui? Glory isn't as simple as you think."

These words made Qiao Yifan's face flush red.

In the past, he always felt that he was not good enough, but after being encouraged by the God, he suddenly had confidence in himself again. He felt that since God Ye Qiu could see his potential, there would always be others who could see it, and all he needed was such an opportunity, a stage.

That's why he participated in this Rookie Challenge.

Choosing Li Xuan as his opponent was an extremely inconsiderate decision, and he understood this now, but he wouldn't dwell on it too much.

Because this choice didn't make him miss anything. Even if he had chosen other opponents, could he really have shown enough talent to impress a professional team with less than a month of Zhen Gui practice?

Ye Xiu made him understand this, making him understand that his ideas were too impetuous.

Qiao Yifan quickly agreed with this idea. He never thought of himself as a genius like Gao Yingjie, and the God had never given him such an evaluation.

Recalling the beginning, the God only told him that Assassin couldn't bring out his potential, and that Zhen Gui was more suitable for him, nothing more.

He still needed to continue honing his skills, honing until the day he truly shone.

Qiao Yifan wiped away the last tear from the corner of his eye, and the despair in his heart suddenly disappeared. Because this time, he truly saw himself clearly, and he finally completely corrected his position.

Opportunity? Stage?

It was too early to think about these things now. Opportunity is for those who are prepared, and what about him? At this time, he was simply not ready. He was in such a hurry to think about and seize some opportunities that looked good, and the result could only be a bloody nose.

But from this moment on, Qiao Yifan decided not to think so much. He just needed to focus on honing his skills. Would there still be a team to accept him after the season ended? This biggest worry was finally resolved.

What was the point of worrying about whether a team would accept him? He should improve his own skills first to have these opportunities. Even if he was abandoned after this season, it didn't matter. He was still young, he could continue to practice, continue to wait, and at worst, he would start all over again, becoming a rookie again.

The corridor was still dim, but Qiao Yifan's heart was suddenly filled with light.

"Thank you, senior," Qiao Yifan said to Ye Xiu with gratitude.

"Keep going!" Ye Xiu nodded, turning to leave.

"Then what about you, senior?" Qiao Yifan suddenly asked loudly, "Why did you choose to retire so early?"

The people of Tiny Herb were the ones in the professional circle who had the most contact with Ye Xiu after his retirement. Every week, the gambling matches ended with them losing miserably. Of course, there was the class advantage of the unspecialized, but everyone was at a professional level, so the probability of not even winning a single match was a bit too much. In addition to the class advantage, the technical level of the opponent himself also had to be considered.

With such a technical level, yet choosing to retire, there was already some discussion on Tiny Herb's side. Qiao Yifan completely got rid of his knot and asked Ye Xiu loudly.

Ye Xiu turned around, smiling again, "I'm also looking for opportunities!"

Qiao Yifan was stunned, "Will you come back again?"

"Of course, although I'm a bit old, I haven't thought about giving up yet!" Ye Xiu said, turning around and waving to Qiao Yifan before gradually disappearing into the dim corridor.

Qiao Yifan stood alone for a while, then stepped away. After this enlightenment in his heart, which way to go seemed to become clear. The corridor was still the same corridor, but after a few steps, he quickly turned out. However, the direction he turned was not leaving, but returning to the stadium, back to that dazzling stage.

In the arena, a new round of challenge matches was already underway. Because the Rookie Challenge used rented characters, you generally couldn't tell who the players were from the IDs. However, the IDs above the heads of the characters of the two players in this round were not the unfamiliar temporary characters.

Deli Luo, Tang San Da.

These two were undoubtedly current professional characters in the Alliance. The Rookie Challenge had rules that you don't need to use your own account to prevent the veterans from having too much of an advantage. However, if the rookie requested it, they could naturally use their own account.

This challenge match was clearly a request from the rookie.

Tang Hao, a second-year player from Hundred Blossoms, was an unknown character in his first rookie year, but after one summer, it was as if he had suddenly opened his mind. This season, he rose strongly and became the absolute core figure of the Hundred Blossoms team after Captain Zhang Jiale's sudden retirement.

The only regret was that the Brawler character Deli Luo that he used was not worthy of his brilliant God-level performance this season.

As a second-year player, Tang Hao still qualified for the Rookie Challenge. However, most players like him, who already had a chance to charge for God status, even as rookies, didn't bother to participate in the Rookie Challenge again. But Tang Hao chose to sign up this time, and the opponent he chose was Lin Jingyan, a player of the same class, and he even proposed to directly use a current account.

The challenged veteran had no right to refuse, so Lin Jingyan had to bring his character, Tang San Da, known as the number one Brawler in Glory, to the stage.

Tang Hao's purpose in this match was clearly not to pay tribute, let alone ask for guidance. In the current Glory circle, he had a high voice, but many people believed that Lin Jingyan, who was also a Brawler player, was still sharp. This challenge match had the real meaning of a challenge. Tang Hao seemed to want to use the facts to convince everyone.

Because when he stated his reasons for the challenge during the entrance, Tang Hao only said four words: "The Lower Overthrowing the Upper."