The match ended in applause. At the subsequent press conference, Samsara continued to be as composed in defeat as they had been when exchanging pleasantries with the Happy players after the match. They didn't lose their composure at all, displaying the spirit of a champion team in a very appropriate manner. Especially regarding the end of their undefeated home record, they expressed regret, but also said that it was a good thing to be able to put down some burdens.

As for Happy, the winning team, the reporters had a mountain of questions they wanted to ask. But to everyone's surprise, Fang Rui, the Happy player who had received the most attention in this match, didn't even appear at the press conference after the game.

This was a bit unreasonable.

It was understandable for players who performed poorly to be protected after the match and not attend the press conference. But for those who performed exceptionally well, it was a pleasure for both the reporters and the team to have them show off at the press conference. Fang Rui wasn't a newbie, so there was no need for this kind of protection.

Thinking about Happy's unusual behavior on the stage after the match, the reporters immediately realized something. After congratulating and praising Happy's victory, someone immediately asked, in a half-joking tone, why Fang Rui was hiding and not meeting people.

Afterward, they heard an answer that they had already suspected somewhat: Fang Rui had consumed a lot of energy and was quite tired.

However, it was Ye Xiu who gave this answer, which immediately made the reporters think.

No one had ever had any experience dealing with Ye Xiu before, but after this season, the media reporters were complaining incessantly, knowing that he was not someone to be trifled with. Was his answer true or false? Could it be a smokescreen for the upcoming final battle?

As soon as they thought of this, the reporters knew that whether it was true or false, the other side's diversionary tactics had already been released. Whether Fang Rui would play in the final battle or not, Samsara, you can guess!

Since they had such sinister intentions, they knew that they wouldn't be able to get any information about Fang Rui. After asking some probing questions, the other side was indeed being vague in every way, deliberately so. The reporters understood this and didn't dwell on the issue. Fang Rui was the most eye-catching player in this match, but the others also performed very well, so there were still a lot of questions to ask…

Although they didn't get to interview Fang Rui after the match, Fang Rui was the protagonist in the news releases published by major media outlets the next day. Electronic Sports Weekly even used the headline "Fang Rui! Transformation! Re-Deification!" on the front page, recognizing Fang Rui's god-like status.

Because of his career transition, because of his fluctuating performance, and because of his unique,猥琐 (weisuo - "wretched," "unrestrained," or "underhanded" depending on context) Qigong Master play style, Fang Rui, despite wielding the number one Qigong Master character, Hai Wu Liang, ultimately missed the All-Star lineup this season. From that day on, the debate about whether he would be obliterated in the transition never stopped. When he performed well, people would come out to cheer; when he performed poorly or just average, many people would come out to denounce him.

Electronic Sports Home was an authority in the circle, and of course, it had also reported on Fang Rui's transformation. However, with the professionalism of Electronic Sports Home, it naturally made a very thorough analysis and did not simply draw a conclusion based on the analysis. But today, based on his performance in this match, Electronic Sports Home so concisely and clearly recognized Fang Rui's transformation.

Fang Rui! Transformation! Re-Deification!

When Chen Guo was eating breakfast, she received today's issue of Electronic Sports Weekly. Her own team or players on the front page headline would always make her excited. She even carefully collected and organized a copy of the newspapers that Happy had been on the front page of this season as a souvenir, but looking at today's striking headline, Chen Guo couldn't be as excited as usual.

Because Fang Rui's condition really didn't seem to be very good. Although he greeted the audience and mocked Samsara after coming out of the competition booth that day, and boasted about it to his teammates, Fang Rui couldn't move anymore after returning to the preparation room. It was as if the energy he had mustered had suddenly been exhausted. He looked exhausted, and everyone could see it.

Fang Rui was very tired, so he didn't attend the press conference. Ye Xiu was telling the truth, although the reporters didn't believe it and would treat it as a smokescreen. But this time, even Happy was hit by this smokescreen. No one could say how Fang Rui's condition would recover in the final battle two days later. Although Fang Rui himself was putting on a brave face, everyone had already secretly prepared for the possibility that Fang Rui would not be able to play.

Without Fang Rui, the loss would undoubtedly be huge. No one expected this kind of situation to happen at this critical moment. Compared to those physical sports, situations where players are unable to play due to physical problems are relatively rare in Glory e-sports.

Chen Guo just looked at the newspaper headline, without looking at the specific content, and stared blankly in the restaurant with a glass of milk in her hand.

Two days later would be the final battle. Because Samsara's regular season ranking was higher than Happy's, the third deciding match would be held at Samsara's home venue. To show her determination, Chen Guo directly booked hotel rooms for Happy until the end of the third match from the beginning. Now, their wish had come true, the third deciding match was waiting for them, but because of Fang Rui, everyone's hearts were clouded with a shadow. Chen Guo didn't sleep well last night, and now that she looked at the newspaper, the shadow floated up again.

"So early?" Just as she was in a daze, she suddenly heard someone speak. She looked up and saw Ye Xiu holding breakfast, sitting across from her.

"Mm…" Chen Guo nodded.

Ye Xiu's gaze fell on the Electronic Sports Weekly spread out on her table.

"Fang Rui! Transformation! Re-Deification! Tsk, tsk, tsk…" Ye Xiu read the title, expressed his amazement, but made no comment.

"How is he?" Chen Guo asked.

"Probably still sleeping," Ye Xiu said.

"I mean, how will he be in the match two days from now?" Chen Guo said.

"Let's see what the situation is then!" Ye Xiu said.

Uncertain.

With the final battle imminent, Happy had this uncertainty. But Chen Guo knew that now was not the time to worry, and that there had to be some resolve.

"Then we should let everyone prepare in advance," Chen Guo said.

"That's easy to say," Ye Xiu smiled. "Fortunately, the last match is random. The lineup is usually not finalized until after the map is drawn, so everyone will be thoroughly prepared."

"But… no matter what the map is, have you thought about not letting Fang Rui play?" Chen Guo said.

Ye Xiu was silent.

Chen Guo was often choked by Ye Xiu into silence, and she often thought about when she would have the opportunity to leave this guy speechless. But now, when she found that Ye Xiu was really speechless, she didn't feel happy at all.

Chen Guo knew that she had hit the nail on the head.

No matter what random map it was, Happy wouldn't put Fang Rui on the bench. Although he wasn't Happy's absolute core, he could be said to be a member of the axis lineup. Moreover, with Fang Rui's style and ability, there was really no map that would hinder his performance.

Silence.

Chen Guo stopped asking questions and silently drank her milk, silently watching Ye Xiu quickly finish his breakfast.

"Who cares if he plays or not?" Ye Xiu said after wiping his mouth with a napkin. "Anyway, we will win."

Chen Guo smiled.

This was simply unreasonable! But after hearing Ye Xiu say this, she suddenly felt particularly at ease and at peace. Because in her impression, Ye Xiu had never failed to do what he said, not once.

"So, we're the champions?" Chen Guo said.

"Why else would we be here?" Ye Xiu looked at Chen Guo with a surprised expression, as if looking at an alien.

"I'll go see if that guy Fang Rui is up yet," Chen Guo said, getting up.

"Take the newspaper to him, let him perk up," Ye Xiu pointed to the newspaper on the table.

"What about you?" Chen Guo picked up the newspaper.

"I'm not full yet," Ye Xiu took the plate and looked around again.

Chen Guo left first, returned upstairs, and headed to Fang Rui's room. It was the finals, so everyone had their own room for the sake of convenience. As a result, when she got to Fang Rui's room, the door was open. When she looked inside, there were a lot of people, everyone from Happy was there…

What's going on?

Chen Guo was about to go in when she heard Fang Rui's voice shouting, "Do you think I'm dying?"