Chapter 20 All-Silver Equipment

Little Cold Hands's full set of silver equipment, the new ideas for equipment creation, and the material donations from fans during the Spring Festival event, the series of surprises kept Happy busy digesting them. However, they didn't have much time to bask in the joy, as the twentieth round of the professional league was about to kick off in two days.

This time it was Happy's home game, so they didn't have to travel long distances. However, the opponent they were facing could be said to be the most difficult in the entire league.

Team Samsara, after experiencing nineteen rounds of competition in half a season, once again stood before Team Happy.

Nineteen rounds ago, in the first round of the competition, the championship team gave the newly promoted team a warning. However, nineteen rounds later, in the second half of the season, people looked at Happy differently. No one regarded Happy as a grassroots team anymore. This was a team on par with Blue Rain, Tiny Herb, and Tyranny, all in the 130-point range. And Samsara was no longer invincible. They had just lost to Hundred Blossoms in the nineteenth round of the league before the new year. In the competitive world, the word "impossible" simply didn't exist.

In the last encounter between the two teams, Happy lost 0-10 to Samsara, a complete defeat. This time, the media would undoubtedly label it as a revenge match, and the fans were eagerly waiting for Happy to succeed.

While everyone was focused on this match, the reporters from various media outlets were still closely watching the transfer market. With only three days left until the winter transfer window closed, teams were only making minor adjustments. Was no team planning a major overhaul this winter? That shouldn't be the case!

Teams like Wind Howl and Misty Rain had already proven to be somewhat unsuccessful in the first half of the season. If they didn't make some significant adjustments this winter, even the fans might lose confidence in supporting them, right? Especially Team Wind Howl, which had made such a grand show of trying to acquire Zhang Xinjie from Team Tyranny, but the deal fell apart after the asking price reached 20 million. Why?

The media was waiting for these teams to make big moves, but instead of seeing those moves, they heard rumors that Team 301 seemed to have designs on Tian Sen from Team Royal Wind and their exorcist, Sweeping Monk Incense. It was said that they had already inquired about the price with Royal Wind.

Team 301 currently had 98 points, ranking tenth on the leaderboard, while Team Royal Wind was in a much worse state, with only 82 points, ranking thirteenth, even behind the new team Miracle.

Royal Wind's points were dismal, and the market for this season was also dismal. The sponsor who had been supporting Sweeping Monk Incense for a long time had also lost patience with Royal Wind and had leaked information that they would no longer cooperate with the team after this season.

Royal Wind, a team that was once a powerhouse, having fought against Excellent Era for the championship in the first season, had now declined to a state that was truly saddening. If it weren't for Excellent Era's god-like speed of self-destruction, Royal Wind would probably be the best example of a team in the league that was not as good as it used to be.

So, in this desolate situation, even a perennial supporting team like 301 was eyeing their core player and the former top-tier god-level character, Sweeping Monk Incense.

Team 301 revealed their ambition. After their long-time captain, Yang Cong, stepped down from the core position, they instead adopted a stance of wanting to make a big splash.

Royal Wind's performance had been declining year after year, and their financial situation was also very poor. Their core player, Tian Sen, was also quite suppressed. Team 301's move at this time seemed to have pinpointed their weakness.

What if Tian Sen and Sweeping Monk Incense really went to 301?

Some people couldn't help but imagine it. This would inevitably become the new core of 301, coupled with Captain Yang Cong, who had stepped aside but could still shine, and the newly signed, mysterious player Bai Shu. Reporters had a feeling that this wasn't a simple person, but after trying hard to find out, the only thing that could be confirmed was that this person was not a member of 301's training camp. Speaking of which, this person's registered age of 22 in the league, if he were a member of the training camp, his late blooming would be a bit too much, right?

Not a member of the training camp, not a member of any team, how did 301 find such a person? Since he directly took over 301's existing knight character as soon as he arrived, reporters couldn't explore this person's past character. There was no choice but to wait for 301 to reveal it voluntarily. At this time, 301 first didn't reveal Bai Shu's identity and then had designs on Royal Wind's Tian Sen and Sweeping Monk Incense...

The biggest move in the winter transfer window came from this 301 team, which had been a playoff runner-up for many years. This was something that no one had expected beforehand.

But unfortunately, this big drama couldn't continue. Tian Sen, in his personal capacity, resolutely expressed his determination to stay with Royal Wind.

"Sweeping Monk Incense belongs to Royal Wind, and its legacy must not be cut off in my hands!" This was a resounding statement released by Tian Sen through the media. Thus, 301's acquisition plan came to an end. In this circle, there was never a shortage of people with ideals. And the championship was just a common ideal that everyone had. In addition to that, every player had their own goals and something they could never give up. Tian Sen refused to abandon his team for his personal prospects and later stated that he was willing to lower his salary to reduce the team's financial pressure.

Tian Sen's actions were praised by all sides. The glory of professional players wasn't only reflected on the field. Tian Sen's personality had completely surpassed the god-level character he used at this moment.

The little bit of transfer drama that had finally appeared came to an end. The major media outlets finally failed to get what they were expecting. After dutifully reporting some of the situations and predictions for the second half of the regular season, the twentieth round of the competition was finally about to begin.

The arrival of the championship team caused the Xiaoshan Gymnasium to reach another climax in the market. On the day of the competition, countless Glory players who failed to purchase tickets to the venue wandered outside the Xiaoshan Gymnasium in regret, hoping for a stroke of luck to encounter a returned ticket or something.

At around six o'clock, Team Samsara's bus drove into the Xiaoshan Gymnasium. Surrounded by a large group of fans and media, the players entered the venue under the protection of the on-site security. A championship team never lacked attention, no matter where they went.

What about the players of Team Happy? At about six-thirty, they came out from behind the Happy Internet Cafe, crossed the road, and arrived... Among the group of people, some were even eating the fruit after their meal while walking. They arrived at the venue in this extremely inconspicuous way.

Of course, the two teams entered their respective preparation rooms and then organized their feelings for the match for the last time, reviewing the tactical arrangements for this match, and making the final adjustments before the match.

After that, at 7:40 p.m., the two teams began to enter the arena. For a popular match with good prospects, there was no need to do anything fancy with the entrance ceremony. The enthusiasm of the audience was ignited the moment the players from both sides walked out of the player tunnel. Team Samsara showed the terrifying power of a championship team. The stands area specifically allocated to the away team's fans was filled to capacity, instantly igniting extremely loud shouts, chanting the names of their team and players. Team Samsara's flag fluttered in the sky above the Xiaoshan Gymnasium. In the first half of the season, this flag had only been brought down once, at Hundred Blossom's Hundred Flower Gymnasium. This time, facing Team Happy, whom they had defeated 10-0 in their last encounter, the flag fluttered aggressively.

Player introductions, handshakes, ordinary beginnings. After that, the players from both sides returned to their competition seats, waiting for the final arrival of the match.

In the television broadcast, the host Pan Lin and the guest Li Yibo had turned the program into a guessing game.

"Team Happy, will they still have Ye Xiu play in the first round of the individual competition? We know that the league has played nineteen rounds so far, and Ye Xiu's winning streak in the individual competition is eighteen rounds, precisely because he didn't play in the individual competition in the first round against Samsara. So, this time against Samsara, how will Happy arrange it? Director Li, if Ye Xiu doesn't play in the individual competition this round, will his winning streak be considered over?" Pan Lin asked.

"This, according to the current statistical methods of the league, it will be considered over. The so-called winning streak means winning continuously. If you don't play in this match, the continuity is broken. If you continue to play and win, we can say it's a complete victory, but we can't call it a winning streak," Li Yibo said.

"Then, Director Li, do you think Ye Xiu will continue his winning streak or achieve a complete victory?" Pan Lin said.

"I think Ye Xiu shouldn't avoid it. His winning streak is already a guarantee of Happy's morale. Avoiding the battle would be a bit damaging," Li Yibo said.

"Then, what about Samsara? Will they send Zhou Zekai or Sun Xiang to end Ye Xiu's winning streak?" Pan Lin started guessing again.

"That probably depends on the individual wishes of the Samsara players. This... Zhou Zekai probably won't, but Sun Xiang might take the initiative to request a battle," Li Yibo didn't dare to say it too confidently.

"Haha, then let's wait and see!" The two's guessing game finally came to a temporary end.

"Okay, the match is about to begin." Pan Lin saw the referee go to the players' benches of the two teams to signal the players to enter the arena.

"Let's see who Happy will send out!" Pan Lin shouted, and the camera immediately turned to the Happy players' bench.

"Ye Xiu, it's Ye Xiu!!!" Pan Lin shouted loudly.

At the Happy team's bench, Ye Xiu stood up, waved to the shouting spectators, and strode towards the competition seat.

"Then, what about Samsara!" Pan Lin continued to shout, and the camera frantically switched.

On Samsara's side, the player who would play in the first round had also stood up.

"It's... Jiang Botao..." Pan Lin said after glancing at Li Yibo. This time, Happy didn't come up to slap them in the face. Instead, Samsara gently gave them a tap. Zhou Zekai? Sun Xiang? Neither of them. Samsara sent their vice-captain, the Spellblade player Jiang Botao.

"It seems that Samsara doesn't want to disrupt their rhythm by overemphasizing Ye Xiu's winning streak. Jiang Botao has also been arranged to play in the first round in previous Samsara matches. It seems that Samsara doesn't care too much about this topic that we are focusing on. Let's see how Jiang Botao will play," Li Yibo lightly glossed over this arrangement.