Chapter 10 A Complete Shutout

A score of 10-0, an absolute sweep. There couldn't have been a more miserable result.

Those who disliked Xingxin were secretly gloating in their hearts. Those who supported Xingxin were worried about the outcome. The more cynical were already impatiently starting to complain: secure survival in the league and then fight for the championship? Haha, we've already seen the first half!

In reality, it was extremely common for new teams entering the league to be swept by the champions. Last season's Yizhan, amid high expectations, was also sent packing with a big goose egg by Samsara.

Of course, the expectations placed on Yizhan couldn't compare to those on Xingxin. In the eyes of countless people, Xingxin was no longer a weak team. Their lineup of three All-Stars made people believe they were qualified to fight any team in the league. The fact that they were swept like any other new team was truly a surprise.

At the post-match press conference, reporters had already arrived and been whispering amongst themselves for a long time. This opening match originally wouldn't have garnered much attention, as it was usually a game with an extreme disparity in strength. But because it was Xingxin, everyone thought there would be something to see, but they didn't expect it to be the same one-sided ending as before.

Finally, Xingxin's players, guided by the staff, arrived at the press conference. According to league regulations, at least three players needed to attend the post-match press conference, whether together or in shifts. And now, four Xingxin players appeared: Ye Xiu, Su Mucheng, Fang Rui, and Baozi.

With three All-Stars present, the reporters were satisfied, but not content. Xingxin was a team full of topics in their eyes. They wished they could get every single Xingxin member to answer their questions. Where was Wei Chen, the former Blue Rain captain and grandfather-level player in his thirties? Where was the beautiful newcomer, Tang Rou? Where was Qiao Yifan, who came from a championship team and transferred to Xingxin? Where was the summoner kid who wasn't very skilled but dared to play the no.1 most difficult summoning style? And where was that famous scavenger in the Realm of Gods? And what about the important healer whose skill still had room for improvement and was under immense pressure? Get all of them up here! That would be truly satisfying!

But of course, that was out of the question right now.

As soon as the four appeared, the reporters carefully examined their expressions, wanting to see how such a crushing defeat had affected them. But they saw four composed faces. Even Baozi, the newcomer to the league, appeared calm and collected. Speaking of which, hadn't he only attended a small press conference during the final round of the Challenger League? How had he cultivated such a professional aura already?

In the blink of an eye, the four Xingxin members took their seats. The host announced the start of the press conference. Reporters raised their hands frantically, and Ye Xiu randomly pointed to one. The question from this person was, of course, the one everyone wanted answered.

"After being swept in the first match, what are your feelings right now?" the reporter asked.

"I'm very calm, but I think everyone else seems a little unsettled. Isn't this kind of result very common? What are you all panicking about?" Ye Xiu asked in return.

Panicking? We're not panicking, we're just excited because there's something to talk about, okay? The reporters grumbled inwardly, but the one who asked the question was stumped by the counter-question. Others could complain in their minds, but he couldn't very well say "We're so excited that you got swept," so he just stammered, "Ah?"

"Isn't it common for new teams in previous seasons to be swept by the champions? We Xingxin have always been low-key, so we're just like everyone else," Ye Xiu said.

"Uh... well... it seems that no new team has ever entered the league shouting that they want to compete for the championship. Is that... low-key?" Someone finally couldn't bear it any longer and stood up to complain.

"That's because you don't understand!" Ye Xiu said. "When Yizhan first entered the league, they originally wanted to compete for the championship too, but I advised them to be low-key! That's why they didn't say anything about competing for the championship later."

This answer was a small scoop, and the reporters at the scene quickly relayed this information to their colleagues at another press conference. As luck would have it, the other press conference was Yizhan's, which had just ended after their match, and the Yizhan team was sitting on the stage. The reporters who received this information became extremely eager, and the press conference, which was about to end with no more questions, suddenly had all the reporters raising their hands and stretching forward.

This sudden burst of excitement startled Lou Guan Ning, who was sitting on the stage. Had he said something wrong just now? Lou Guan Ning didn't dare to call on a reporter immediately and first conducted a self-examination. After repeatedly confirming that there was nothing wrong, he carefully pointed to a reporter in the front row.

The reporter was excited and spoke before he even stood up straight: "At the Xingxin team's press conference, Great God Ye Xiu revealed that Yizhan's original goal last season was also to compete for the championship, but he advised them not to... um... um..., is there such a thing?" This reporter hadn't even fully phrased the question.

Lou Guan Ning immediately broke out in a cold sweat. How did they get exposed? Competing for the championship was just a joke for Yizhan. If they really said it, wouldn't they become a laughingstock?

"Just kidding, it was all a joke," Lou Guan Ning said quickly.

"Is that so? So does Yizhan have a little bit of that ambition deep down when they say they're competing for the championship while securing their position in the league?" the reporter asked.

"Which professional player doesn't have that kind of ambition?" Lou Guan Ning recovered and began to speak eloquently. How could a small scoop stump him?

Meanwhile, at the Xingxin press conference, Ye Xiu was also holding forth: "Speaking of which, shouldn't the league's arrangement always be for another new team to challenge the champion team? Why did they suddenly arrange for us, the team that fought our way up from the Challenger League, to go up this time? This sudden adjustment really caught us off guard! We originally thought we were going to deal with that bunch of old fogeys from Tyranny!"

Old fogeys! Aren't you one yourself!!!

The reporters were frustrated! They really wanted to complain! But the problem was that they couldn't directly say what they wanted to complain about at this kind of press conference! For the first time, the reporters felt like they were a vulnerable group, watching Ye Xiu rambling on the stage with such ease. They really wanted to interrupt, but because the content of their interruption would definitely be inappropriate, they had to hold it in.

"Are you saying that the league's competition system led to Xingxin's unsatisfactory performance in this match?" They could only ask so solemnly.

"I didn't say that," Ye Xiu dodged.

"Then, how do you feel about your personal performance in this match?" a reporter asked.

In the match that had just ended, Ye Xiu first appeared in the individual competition, defending the third round and ultimately encountering Samsara's final general, Zhou Zekai, and losing. Then, in the team competition, Samsara's offensive was even more aggressive and fierce, and Xingxin couldn't hold on for too long. Looking at Ye Xiu's performance alone, both appearances were unremarkable, without any disgusting mistakes, but also without any amazing highlights.

"Well, I haven't played professional matches for too long, my hands are a little rusty," Ye Xiu replied.

This... what can you say! He really hasn't played in high-level leagues for too long, which definitely has an impact on his condition, but he seemed pretty fierce when he was playing against Excellent Era! Does this statement even hold up?

The reporters were puzzled, their eyes moved to Su Mucheng. Just as they were about to ask, Su Mucheng took the initiative to speak: "I also haven't played professional matches for too long, my hands are a little rusty."

Su Mucheng encountered Samsara's vice-captain, Jiang Botao, in the individual competition and lost narrowly.

Copy and paste! The reporters were furious. But the problem was that Su Mucheng did follow Excellent Era out of the league for a year, without high-level leagues, and the most stringent test in the end was against Xingxin. The statement... holds up, right?

So their eyes turned again.

"I haven't played Qigong Master for too long, my hands are a little rusty," Fang Rui said.

Okay, although the result was another pasted "rusty hands," at least this reason should be completely valid. He transferred in late July and started using a Qigong Master. It's only been a little over a month since then, and it's normal for him to be stiff in his first professional match. Fang Rui played in the second seat in the individual competition, but Samsara's Sun Xiang came out first, defeated Xingxin's first player, Tang Rou, and almost one-shot-two-killed Fang Rui as well. Although Fang Rui still won in the end, he lost not long after in the second round, practically leaving two people for Ye Xiu, and those two included Zhou Zekai.

"You can do it, look into my sincere eyes," Fang Rui said to Ye Xiu after leaving the stage, and was kicked away.

The reporters got three "rusty hands," and then looked at Xingxin's fourth player, Baozi, who played second in the individual competition and lost to Samsara's All-Star grappler, Lü Boyuan. Baozi also gave his opponent a few scares during the match. For a newcomer, it could be said that he lost honorably. He could be completely satisfied with his performance today.

However, after seeing everyone looking at him, Baozi immediately referred to the answers of the previous three and said, "I've never played a professional match before, my hands are a little rusty."

Damn it! What does that mean? Does it mean that if your hands weren't rusty, you would have taken down Lü Boyuan? The others either left the professional circle for too long, or changed their class, so they would have a "rusty hands" degradation. You're a pure newcomer, where did you get rusty hands from? Your hands were born rusty, have you ever warmed them up?

Complaint! But it was all in their stomachs, completely unspeakable. The reporters were suffering! Some people even left the stage clutching their waists, probably from choking on their own anger, right?

"What kind of future will Xingxin have this season? What do you guys think?" A reporter persisted in asking.

"On the basis of securing our position in the league, we'll strive for the championship," Ye Xiu said seriously.

"Strive for the championship," Su Mucheng said.

"Why else would we come?" Fang Rui said.

"What about securing our position in the league? Have we suddenly given up on it?" Baozi, seeing the two following the boss's train of thought and eating up the securing-position goal, was immediately dissatisfied.

"If we win the championship, do we still need to secure our position in the league?" Fang Rui educated Baozi.

"That makes sense!" Baozi exclaimed.

Really... they couldn't hold on any longer. The reporters collapsed. But they had at least interviewed two things. Being swept didn't hurt Xingxin's morale at all. Also, Fang Rui had really integrated well into Xingxin! At least in terms of temperament.