Chapter 1828 Facing Off

As if a sudden storm had arrived, Ye Xiu and Zhou Zekai were facing off.

The match between the former and current number one player was certainly a hot topic, but to be honest, even the media hadn't initially expected it to happen in a solo match.

Considering that Ye Xiu's first-round appearance was a standard practice, while Samsara consistently and predictably placed their Gun King core in the third or fourth position, the chances of the two meeting in the individual competition were slim. Even if Samsara wanted to break Ye Xiu's winning streak, they had another strong and reliable solo expert in their team: Sun Xiang. Sending Sun Xiang out in the first round, while Zhou Zekai continued to hold the third or fourth spot, seemed like a more likely arrangement for Samsara.

Sun Xiang and Ye Xiu also had their history, but the topic had already reached its peak in the final duel of the Challenger League last season. Ye Xiu, leading his self-assembled Happy team after leaving Excellent Era, defeated Excellent Era, delivering a resounding slap to Excellent Era and its successor, Sun Xiang.

The story was already satisfactory for the media. They weren't interested in rehashing the same old topic, but when they saw that the duel between the former and current number one player seemed unlikely, they reluctantly brought up the old story, talking about Sun Xiang's growth after joining Samsara and whether he had emerged from the shadow of the past.

But now, all the groundwork was useless, but the media didn't regret it at all.

Who wanted to see Sun Xiang's revenge against Ye Xiu compared to the duel between the former and current number one player!

Everyone was excited.

Even those who thought Samsara's arrangement was reckless couldn't help but look forward to the duel.

Who was stronger between the former and current players hailed as the strongest in Glory? A direct confrontation was undoubtedly the most convincing, even if drawing conclusions based on a single victory was hasty…

Why hadn't it started yet?

Both players had entered the player booths, but because the match time hadn't arrived yet, the referee hadn't announced the start, but the audience was already impatient.

"They actually let Zhou Zekai go directly!!" The pro players were also discussing this. They were also filled with anticipation and curiosity for this battle.

But today's referee seemed so clueless, knowing that everyone was eager for the duel, yet stubbornly adhering to the scheduled start time, making everyone wait until 8:30.

Match start!

The various sound effects and lights of the venue were activated at this moment, as usual, to stir up the audience's emotions.

But was it really needed?

The finals, and such a topical duel, was enough to ignite everyone's passion. Sound and light effects? At this moment, they were far less motivating than the audience's applause and screams.

Character loading.

Map loading.

What about the audience in front of the TV? At this moment, they were listening to the commentary of Pan Lin and Li Yibo, who were seemingly having a war of words. There were too many things to discuss about this match, and both were eagerly vying to speak, creating a continuous barrage of words.

"Map, Stone Bell Forest Cave."

The commentators were skilled enough to keep the content on track despite the fierce competition for speaking time. They didn't miss anything that needed to be introduced. At this moment, the map loaded, and the individual competition map selected by Samsara's home court was Stone Bell Forest Cave.

"Oh… this map…"

"The stalactites in the cave aren't as dense as in a forest, so even Gunner-type characters have room to maneuver in this map." Li Yibo hesitated slightly before choosing his words, but Pan Lin immediately took over.

"It shouldn't be said that they 'relatively' have room to maneuver. The spatial structure created by the stalactites in this map is very suitable for Gunner-type characters to play in. Ranged classes like Gunners don't necessarily perform best in flat, open spaces. Proper cover also helps enrich their playstyle," Li Yibo said quickly, getting it all out in one breath.

"As the team with Zhou Zekai, it seems that Samsara's map selection has a certain bias." Pan Lin said quickly.

"On Happy's side, Ye Xiu's unspecialized can attack from both range and close combat, but from a practical point of view, the threat of the unspecialized in close combat is much greater than their ranged attacks. Therefore, this map is less suitable for the unspecialized than it is for gunner-type characters who specialize in ranged attacks," Li Yibo said.

"In terms of map selection, Samsara has gained a certain advantage." Pan Lin said.

They had only just seen the map, and the loading bar hadn't even finished yet, but the two had already exchanged a flurry of words.

"Alright, loading complete, the match officially begins." Announcing the stage of the match was usually Pan Lin's job as the commentator. He was even more accurate in grabbing words in this regard. Li Yibo was also about to speak, but he was indeed behind Pan Lin.

Stone Bell Forest Cave is a cave scene, a completely enclosed space. The entire map is circular, with stalactites piled up or hanging down everywhere on the ground and ceiling. This is the only unique feature of this map.

And these stalactites, as Li Yibo analyzed, weren't very dense. For a well-trained and skilled gunner player, the space created by the stalactites allowed them to play very flexibly. It was a technical map, not a brute force one.

Zhou Zekai was hailed as the number one player in Glory, so his position in the Gunner class didn't need to be said. Plus, this was Samsara's home court map, so no one doubted his level in this map.

One Autumn Leaf's footsteps were light and quick. The TV broadcast gave a view from his perspective, allowing everyone to see his decisive movement.

What about Ye Xiu? He didn't seem as confident and decisive as Zhou Zekai. When Unspecialized took the first step, he seemed cautious, constantly turning his view to pay attention to the terrain he was passing. It was clear that he wasn't as familiar with this map as Zhou Zekai. In this case, it was common to choose a tactical maneuver to flank the opponent. Ye Xiu was no exception, but Unspecialized's detour was very large. It wasn't a flanking route to the side or behind. It looked more like he was staying far away from his opponent.

So, a minute passed. If both sides had gone straight to the center, the battle would have already broken out. But what about now? In this highly anticipated match, a minute had passed since the start, and the two hadn't even met yet. It was just that Ye Xiu's detour was too extreme.

"He's trying to figure out the map first…" Pan Lin said, watching Ye Xiu's Unspecialized simply circle around the edge of the map.

"Ye Xiu might not be familiar with this map, but he should have experienced similar structures or situations before! He needs to adapt, but it shouldn't take him this long. It seems he's being exceptionally cautious in this match," Li Yibo said.

"Of course he has to be cautious, his opponent is Zhou Zekai!" Pan Lin said.

Zhou Zekai!

Zhou Zekai!

Samsara's arena was also erupting with such organized and powerful shouts. Although the first minute of the match was uneventful, and extremely ordinary, the passion of these Zhou Zekai die-hard fans didn't diminish at all. The duel between the former and current number one player? This topic didn't exist for them. In their hearts, Zhou Zekai was already the strongest, undoubtedly the strongest. Their enthusiasm for this match was more about looking forward to a victory to completely dispel this topic.

One minute, and the topic was still there.

One and a half minutes…

Two minutes…

Three minutes…

The topic was still there, because these two hadn't fought yet, to the point that Pan Lin and Li Yibo, who were fighting for words, were running out of things to say.

Normally, solo maps weren't too big. In three minutes, they might have stumbled into each other's line of sight, but today, these two were like two parallel lines that would never intersect.

Playing passively, deliberately avoiding battle?

It didn't look like it!

Apart from the large detour that Ye Xiu had Unspecialized take at the start, it seemed that he was actively looking for his opponent, but the two characters just couldn't collide.

Could it really be such a coincidence?

Everyone was speechless, and the referee was also deeply hesitant. He couldn't see any foul play on the field. Forcing an intervention in the match in this situation would require considerable courage. Especially on the stage of the finals, his intervention could affect the final outcome.

He didn't want to make such an intervention. He felt that the two characters should collide soon, unless someone deliberately created the circumstances. As a result, three minutes passed.

Three minutes wasn't a long time. But in the Glory arena, especially in solo matches, three minutes of inactivity was enough to extinguish a lot of anticipation and enthusiasm. The quality of this match between the number one players in people's minds was declining rapidly, and the die-hard Zhou Zekai fans in the audience had stopped their organized and powerful shouts. They began to mock and ridicule. In their opinion, Zhou Zekai's attitude was impeccable, and Ye Xiu's large detour at the start was seen as avoidance. What duel between the former and current number one players? They thought it was extremely ridiculous. Those who agreed with this topic were blind.

"Too naive." But the pro players were not impressed by these fans' full-bodied taunts, especially the older veterans.

How could Ye Xiu avoid his opponent? Especially in the professional arena, avoidance wouldn't lead to any results. Did they think this was a video game, where he could avoid his opponent and escape, leaving the duel unfinished?

Victory and defeat were definitely going to be decided, and the two were definitely going to fight, but these three minutes were indeed strange.

"Do you believe it?" Everyone asked each other. What they were concerned about was whether these three minutes were a coincidence.

More than half of the answers were: no.

"Look at the bird's-eye view, pay attention to Ye Xiu's positioning." Zhang Xinjie said to everyone.

This perspective wasn't available in the holographic projection, but it was always shown on the large electronic screens on site. Before the advent of holographic projection, the large electronic screens provided live broadcasts, giving the audience an experience that they couldn't get from watching TV or online broadcasts at home, in addition to the lively atmosphere.

The comprehensive perspective was always a unique advantage that the large electronic screens on site had over TV or online broadcasts.

And at this moment, this bird's-eye view was revealing the secret of these three minutes of coincidence.