Chapter 1 Winning Start

Away from home, Xingxin took the first victory with Ye Xiu, leading 1-0. But for those who cared about Xingxin, such a good start couldn't excite them. Xingxin had been following this rhythm for a while: a good start, and then losing bit by bit, especially in the team competition, where they had only managed to snag a point from Hundred Blossoms.

What would happen today?

Xingxin wasn't yet a force to be reckoned with, and supporters were rare when playing away games. But B City was where Xingxin fought the Challenger League and defeated Excellent Era. Tian Qi and his guild brothers were all residents of this city. Last time during the Challenger League, they had organized a small group to cheer them on. Now that the Xingxin guild was booming, Tian Qi and the others were also key members. With the guild's team playing a match, how could they not organize guild players to come and support them?

The seating arrangement in the professional league wasn't as casual as in the Challenger League. Special seats were reserved for away teams, grouped together to prevent conflicts with the home team's fans. Tian Qi and the other Xingxin supporters were in the away team's seating area. A large number of them had come, and after Xingxin secured the first victory, they cheered loudly. In a venue where the home fans weren't particularly vocal, they were quite eye-catching.

The second player in the individual competition entered the arena in this atmosphere.

Xingxin, Qiao Yifan, character Ghostblade Inch of Ash.

Yizhan, Zou Yunhai, character Elemental Mage Front Sea Apart.

Yizhan's characters were the ones the brothers had initially played in the online game. Now that they had entered the professional circle, their equipment had been completely renewed. Thanks to Lou Guan Ning's efforts, they had acquired some good stuff one after another. In this respect, Yizhan's equipment was actually not bad, because they concentrated their resources! They poured good stuff onto their five main characters, while neglecting the other players' characters. This unconventional concentration of resources naturally made the characters stronger, but the disparity between the main and non-main characters was exaggerated.

Xingxin and Yizhan were often together in the game before and were quite familiar with each other. After Qiao Yifan and Zou Yunhai entered the game, they chatted a few words in the channel, and then started fighting. A few minutes later, Qiao Yifan won. His performance remained steady, and although he didn't have an overwhelming advantage, he steadily controlled the situation throughout the match. Zou Yunhai looked a little unhappy when he came down, obviously annoyed by the suffocating duel.

Friendship first, competition second?

These words were often just lip service. Once on the field, who didn't want to win? It was common for emotions to arise when a match didn't go smoothly. Even teammates sometimes had arguments during practice, let alone in a formal match where winning and losing were more important.

Of course, Zou Yunhai was just frustrated and far from wanting to argue with Xingxin. But after losing two consecutive matches at home, Yizhan's atmosphere gradually lost the ease it had at the beginning. Thinking that because the two teams had a good relationship, the match would end harmoniously was simply too naive.

On Xingxin's side, the third to play was Su Mucheng.

On Yizhan's side, Lou Guan Ning had originally called the player who was about to appear over to give him a few instructions, but when he saw that it was this All-Star, he simply said nothing, patted the player on the shoulder, and sent him up.

Lou Guan Ning recognized that there was a gap between himself and an All-Star player. He felt that winning depended entirely on personal opportunity and performance. Anyway, he couldn't point out any key turning points.

The player Yizhan sent out this round was called Li Weiyi, who was just a last resort to make up the numbers in Yizhan. The individual competition needed six players to complete. Lou Guan Ning and the other four, among whom Zhong Yeli was a priest and definitely couldn't play, and the remaining four, had to have two more players.

They hadn't thought about recruiting any famous players for these spots. They would never give up their five positions. Who would want to come if a famous player came to make up the numbers?

In the end, Lou Guan Ning didn't know where he found the person. He had some strength, but whether he was strong was debatable. As a result, Su Mucheng easily won the third match, and Xingxin led 3-0, winning all the individual matches. Facing Li Weiyi, who walked back, Lou Guan Ning couldn't say anything. It was a bit much to ask a substitute to defeat an All-Star player.

Yizhan's team was run in an extremely abnormal way. They weren't incapable of changing it, but they didn't want to. Their original intention was to give themselves a chance and platform to play professional games. They hadn't had enough after only playing for a year, and they weren't thinking of giving this opportunity to other professional players.

After the individual competition, there was a short break, and both teams could make estimates and preparations for the upcoming team arena competition. After the three players in the individual competition had finished, it was basically clear who would play in the team arena.

However, the order of appearance had to be determined before the competition and couldn't be changed temporarily. The league had considered allowing adjustments to be made during the competition based on the situation, but in the end, they hoped that the players would focus on the competition and not waste too much effort on such off-field maneuvering.

Because they had a good relationship, the two teams couldn't help but chat during the break. The league didn't prohibit the players from explaining things to each other in principle, but the referees kept a close eye on them whenever there was contact, to prevent the players from making any communication that violated the ethics of the competition. Xingxin's match had a bet, and now they were facing friends, so rumors were flying everywhere. The league staff were watching the exchanges between the two teams very closely.

However, at this time, it wasn't Xingxin, who had a bet, who took the initiative to chat, but Yizhan, who had just lost all the individual matches. Lou Guan Ning, with a mournful face, walked around Xingxin's side and finally said to Ye Xiu, "God, you're too ruthless. You're accumulating strength and then using us as a knife!"

"Haha." Ye Xiu smiled. "It's undeniable that we have the most comprehensive understanding of you."

Lou Guan Ning was speechless. What he feared most was Ye Xiu's candor, that kind of righteousness that made it impossible to blame him for anything. He was right!

"But speaking of which, it's not a good thing for you to be like this in the long run!" Ye Xiu said. "Even if your skills are constantly improving, your team is always just the few of you, lacking change, and you'll soon be seen through by others."

"I think...it's okay..." Lou Guan Ning said.

"That's because no team thinks you're a threat, right?" Ye Xiu said.

"God..." Lou Guan Ning cried, can't you be so honest? Speaking of which, Lou Guan Ning was quite satisfied with Yizhan's performance so far this season. No matter who the opponent was, they could always fight for a few points. In the fourth round, they even won 7-3 at home against Royal Wind.

That was Royal Wind! Although they were no longer a regular in the playoffs, they were still a seasoned team with an All-Star. Defeating them greatly boosted the confidence of Yizhan's members. Everyone felt that after a year of league experience, they were more mature and powerful. But in God's eyes, they were still "an opponent that other teams didn't bother to study specifically"?

This couldn't be said to be underestimating the opponent. There were 19 teams in the league, and everyone had limited time, so they had to choose what was important. Trying to grab everything could easily end up with nothing. And Yizhan was undoubtedly the least important of them, which Lou Guan Ning couldn't deny, so God's words made him burst into tears again.

"You're going to play in the team arena, right? Go and prepare. Let you see how bad it can be to be seen through by your opponent," Ye Xiu said.

How bad was it to be seen through by your opponent?

Lou Guan Ning and the others knew when the match finally ended.

Against Hundred Blossoms, they could get 2 points. Against Blue Rain, they could also get 1 point. They won 7 points against Royal Wind, and they could also win 6 points against He Wu, who had defeated Xingxin. Yizhan had a better grasp of their home advantage this season. The two times they snatched a large number of points were both at home.

But this time, at home, facing Xingxin, Yizhan finally got 0 points.

10-0!

Yizhan was completely defeated, swept by Xingxin, the team that hadn't won a single match for several rounds.

Xingxin didn't show any mercy, and Yizhan's attitude was also very correct. In the team arena, Tang Rou defeated one person, but then lost to Wen Kebei, Yizhan's second player, who was also a Battle Mage, like her.

One versus three? Four rounds had passed, and Tang Rou hadn't even managed to do a one versus two like she did in Hundred Blossoms.

Yizhan's chance had also been lost. Next, there was only the match against Tiny Herb. Play one versus three against Tiny Herb?

Ruan Cheng smiled.

At the post-match press conference, he grabbed a good spot. He believed that although Xingxin had won this match, their mood probably wouldn't be too good. In the long run, if Tang Rou failed to complete the one-versus-three challenge and left the team, it would be a huge loss for them, both in terms of strength and the attention they received. This beautiful girl actually had some supporters now. Ruan Cheng had been criticized a lot for his various attacks on her.

"Didn't Tang Rou come? It's a pity. She must be under a lot of pressure now, right?" Seeing that Tang Rou wasn't among the people from Xingxin attending the press conference, Ruan Cheng didn't even say polite words like congratulating them on their victory. He directly brought up the bet he had been pushing all along.

"The team has always been full of confidence in Tang Rou," Ye Xiu said calmly.

"There's still one round left. No one can speak too soon. Let's wait and see!" Ruan Cheng said, not speaking too soon, but the confident look on his face was really annoying. It would be more real and natural to just show the schadenfreude in his heart!

"Little Tang is too naive! I said, you only said what would happen if she didn't do it. But what if she did? Shouldn't you also express something?" Fang Rui of Xingxin said to Ruan Cheng.

"I will send her my heartfelt blessings, really," Ruan Cheng said, putting on a sincere look. He wouldn't be provoked like this!

"Get me a basin!" Fang Rui shouted. "I'm going to throw up!"