Gasps rolled from the audience like a wave and slammed against the soundproof booths in which the players from Team Shanghai and Guangzhou Tech sat. Murmurs and whispers that grew increasingly loud followed. Guangzhou Tech held the absolute advantage in this first teamfight of the game. Their Champions had more health, and they had more Champions. Yet rather than retreat, Zeng Rui flashed in. And he brought Annie with him.

Yu Ping from Team Beijing narrowed his eyes. I see. Thresh… Zeng Rui, he’s decent.

Goalie from Team Guangzhou felt a jolt shoot through his body. His chest flexed and he moved back in his chair. Then he stopped and shook his head. He moved back forward and relaxed. That ain’t a bad play. Compared to all the other thrash I’ve seen, these two ain’t half bad.

Up until then, there was a calm focus inside Guangzhou Tech’s soundproof booth. Their Midlaner was telling them which Champion from Team Shanghai to focus on and counting down the important crowd control skill timers. Even when Zeng Rui flashed forward, their first reaction was to focus on him. Then they saw Annie. And panic followed. She came flying at them, tightly holding onto her little teddy bear Tibbers.

Guangzhou Tech’s Jungler saw the Annie first. He shouted over the team’s voice chat, “Annie! ANNIE!”

“Janna, ult! ULT!” Guangzhou Tech’s Midlaner screamed.

Lin Feng’s Annie landed right next to Zeng Rui’s Thresh in the middle of the bot lane. In front of him, gathered tightly together, were Twisted Fate, Caitlyn and Janna. Lin Feng grinned and mumbled, “Summon Tibbers!” He pressed the R key, which caused Annie to toss her teddy bear up into the air. The spark of life within the teddy bear blazed to life! It rapidly grew into a several meters tall bear with flames wreathing its body! More importantly, the vortex that’d been swirling around Annie disappeared. It was the visual effect from her passive skill which signified that her next spell would land a stun. This spell.

Tibbers fell down to the ground. Its feet smashed into the hard packed earth! A shockwave swept out and stunned Twisted Fate, Caitlyn and Janna! From behind Tibbers, Annie gathered the magical essence around her and focused it in a cone in front of her. Then she lit it up. Incinerate! Fire blazed out in front of her and burned away at the health bars of the three enemy Champions!

《You have slain an enemy!》

Twisted Fate had lost his lane and was behind in both items and levels. He didn’t have nearly enough health or magic defense to survive the fiery claws from Tibbers or the inferno Annie unleashed. His health bar was the first to run empty. Next to him, Caitlyn wasn’t faring much better. Her health bar was practically empty. Tibbers turned its focus to her, its large claw swiping away at her health! And from behind Tibbers, Annie was playing with fire again. She conjured the fire into a ball and hurled it at Caitlyn–Disintegrate!

《Double kill!》

The stun effect on Janna finally wore off. She cast Monsoon. A magical storm brewed to life around her! It knocked back Thresh and Annie while its soothing nature healed Guangzhou Tech’s Gragas and herself!

There was too much happening too quickly. Guangzhou Tech had lost all oversight of the fight. The last order from their team captain was to attack Zeng Rui’s Thresh, so that was what Gragas did. He Body Slammed into the Thresh and then threw his Explosive Casket on top of him! But while the voice announcer congratulated Guangzhou Tech with the kill on Zeng Rui’s Thresh, there wasn’t anything to celebrate. That was because the Explosive Casket had not only killed Zeng Rui, but it had also knocked Annie back towards Janna.

Lin Feng grinned and said, “Thanks, Gragas! Could’ve never gotten this kill without you!” His fingers were already gliding over his keyboard. He had his Annie fire auto attacks, which were just smaller Disintegrates, and combined that with Disintegrate. It didn’t take more than a couple of seconds to finish Janna off.

《Triple kill!》

There was only Gragas left from Guangzhou Tech, and he’d used his movement abilities. Zhang Hao also knew this, so he activated Cataclysm! His Jarvan IV leaped up above Gragas and then came down with such force that he terraformed the earth into an arena! The two Champions were locked inside together. Lin Feng’s Annie and Tang Bingyao’s Lucian arrived right outside of the arena and attacked Gragas from there. Lucian with light bullets and Annie with fire. It was this fire that eventually dealt the killing blow.

《Quadra kill!》

“Oh my god…”
“Yeah…”
“How, what, no, huh, damn!”
“They just… Yeah, they just…”
“Team Shanghai kicked some ass! They kicked some ass!”
“Yeah they did! YEAH!”
“Woooooo!”
“WOOOOOO!

The players from Guangzhou Tech stared at their screens in horror. They’d lost the teamfight, resoundingly. Four deaths and one kill. And that kill was on Team Shanghai’s Support, the least valuable target. Four players turned their heads to look at their team captain, waiting for his guidance. But their team captain didn’t have the answer either. He said through gritted teeth, “Focus mid! Kill Annie!”

On the other side of the stage, inside Team Shanghai’s soundproof booth, Zeng Rui came to a similar idea. He pinged on the outer tower in the mid lane and said over the team’s voice chat, “Rotate mid. We’re going to push!”

The death timers 10 minutes into the game weren’t all that long, but they were long enough for Team Shanghai to rotate from the bot lane to the mid lane and take the outer tower. Then they kept pushing until they arrived at the inner tower. That was where the players from Guangzhou Tech were waiting. They stood underneath their tower and fired skillshots at Team Shanghai.

Right above the inner tower was a wall of trees and behind that was the Jungle. An Xin’s Lee Sin ran back and forth there, patiently waiting for an opportunity. It didn’t take long until Guangzhou Tech’s Rengar made an error. He walked a bit too close to the wall. An Xin’s Lee Sin fired a Sonic Wave! It struck Rengar and revealed him to Lee Sin! This unlocked Resonating Strike! Lee Sin dashed at Rengar! He followed up by placing a ward behind Rengar and hopping towards it with Safeguard!

An Xin’s Lee Sin arrived right in front of Twisted Fate. She activated Dragon’s Rage! Lee Sin lifted his foot off the ground and prepared to attack Twisted Fate with a roundhouse kick! Right then, a mottled flash of light carried Lee Sin to the other side of Twisted Fate. The roundhouse kick struck Twisted Fate and sent him flying! He slammed into Rengar, knocking him up, and then kept flying further!

Lin Feng’s Annie was waiting at the spot where Guangzhou Tech’s Twisted Fate would land. A vortex swirled around her. When Twisted Fate was still immobile but in range, she activated her full damage combo! Summon Tibbers! Incinerate! Disintegrate! Fire enveloped Twisted Fate and killed him.

《You have slain an enemy!》

Zhang Hao’s Jarvan dashed at Rengar with his flag-toss combo just before the earlier knock up could wear off. All the while, Tang Bingyao’s Lucian fired light bullets at Rengar. He suddenly lifted both his guns and aimed at Rengar. A Piercing Light fired from then, shearing away at Rengar’s health bar! He followed up with a double shot.

《You have slain an enemy!》

“Take the inner tower,” Zeng Rui ordered over the team’s voice chat.

In the player seating area, Chu Fang grinned and said to Su Xue, “That’s a win.”

“Yeah!” Su Xue exclaimed, clenching her fists in excitement. The sound of the crowd cheering behind her sent goosebumps down her spine. That was such a nice play! I wish I could’ve casted this game!

✹

Lin Feng’s Annie was so fed, so far ahead of all other Champions, that it became impossible for Guangzhou Tech to fight back. Following his lead, Team Shanghai destroyed towers all across the map and breached Guangzhou Tech’s base by the 15th minute. There were still five minutes before Guangzhou Tech could surrender, but it never came to that. Team Shanghai finished the game in only 18 minutes.

There was a short break between the games. This gave Guangzhou Tech some much needed time to calm down and think of a new tactic to deal with Team Shanghai. When the two teams got back into Champion Select for the second game, Guangzhou Tech did what everyone expected them to do. They banned Annie and two more Midlaners they’d seen Lin Feng play. What they didn’t know was that Lin Feng’s Champion pool was deeper than the Mariana Trench. He picked Ryze and was as happy as ever.

Lin Feng looked at his teammates and said over the team’s voice chat, “The game is starting! Let’s finish it faster than the first one!”

“Yeah!” Zhang Hao replied, clenching his fist.

At Level 2, An Xin’s Sejuani ganked the mid lane and helped Lin Feng’s Ryze secure first blood on Guangzhou Tech’s Ahri.
At Level 6, Lin Feng’s Ryze caught Guangzhou Tech’s Ahri off guard and picked up a solo kill.
At 10 minutes, Team Shanghai was pulling ahead in all three lanes and were 4,000 gold ahead.
At 15 minutes, The gold difference had increased to 6,000 and Team Shanghai had taken down two towers and killed the Dragon.
At 23 minutes, Team Shanghai destroyed Guangzhou Tech’s Nexus and moved on to the next round in the Winter Collegiate Cup!

Su Xue stared at the large LCD screen, her mouth hanging open. Oh my god! This is the most one-sided stomp ever! It would’ve been so easy to cast this! I wouldn’t even have to know anything about the opponents! All these casters did was talk about how good Lin Feng is! I can do that! Then I don’t have to worry about the fact that my game knowledge is really subpar. I know next to nothing about match-ups, tactics, strategy… She chewed on her lips. I don’t want to say somethign stupid. They’ll start calling me Prophet Stone version 2 or something stupid like that! Stupid fans will find something to bitch about! Why do I have to… She shook her head and took a deep breath. I can do this! I want to do this! I just… I don’t want to suck. I want to be good at it! And with Lin Feng playing, I can be good at it! He’ll carry me through the things I’m bad at!

Chu Fang nodded at Su Xue and asked, “What do you think?”

Su Xue looked at Chu Fang and mumbled, “Huh, wha–” She shook her head, the question finally registering, and replied, “Oh! I think they played really well! I would really like to cast Lin Feng’s games! It’s so easy to make predictions. I just have to say that Lin Feng will win! He always does!”

Chu Fang smiled and said, “Yeah, looks like he does.”

A new wave of cheers slammed into Chu Fang and Su Xue. They looked up at the stage and realized why. Team Shanghai had walked out of the soundproof booths and thanked the audience for their support. They then turned to the players from Guangzhou Tech and shook their hands in a sign of good sportsmanship. And finally, they walked down the stairs and joined Chu Fang and Su Xue.

Lin Feng grinned and said, “The plan worked perfectly! Did you see it, Su Xue? I carried them just like we planned!”

Zeng Rui massaged his temples and took a long, deep breath. He said, “Yes. We executed that well. I don’t think the other teams got much, if any, information out of us.”

✹

Zhang Hongyi, Support for Team Beijing, sat with his teammates in the player seating area. He looked over his shoulder at the stands behind him, glaring. He heard all the shouts of support for Team Shanghai, and the fervent discussions about how lucky Team Shanghai was to have such talented players. He ground his teeth in frustration and muttered, “Fucking Zeng Rui! That fucking…”

Yu Ping glanced at his teammate and shook his head. Zhang Hongyi shouldn’t get so angry. That Zeng Rui… He played good. But that doesn’t change much. We’re better.

A short distance away from Team Beijing were Team Guangzhou’s seats. Seo sat there, ignoring the chatter from his teammates and glaring at Tang Bingyao and An Xin. He refused to blink, staring at them. And when they finally looked over in his direction, he smiled and placed his finger to his throat. Then he drew a line.

Tang Bingyao frowned and tugged at An Xin’s sleeve. She whispered, “BunBun…”

“Oh, I saw,” An Xin replied. She shrugged and added, “He really is a piece of work.” She then put a hand on Tang Bingyao’s shoulder and smiled. “Just ignore him. He isn’t worth our time or worry.”

Lin Feng didn’t hear the chat between Tang Bingyao and An Xin, because something had caught his eyes. He looked at the players from Team Beijing. More specifically, at Zhang Hongyi. Why is he looking so mad? Is he looking at me? What did I do!? Wait, no… He isn’t looking at me! He’s looking at… He turned his head to follow Zhang Hongyi’s glaring stare. … Zeng Rui?

“Yo! ZengZeng!” Lin Feng said. He pointed with his head at Zhang Hongyi and asked, “I think that guy is looking at you!”

Zeng Rui shrugged and calmly replied, “It’s nothing. Just the look of a sore loser.”

✹

The players from Team Shanghai relaxed back in their chairs and unwinded from the pressure of their first match in the main tournament of the Winter Collegiate Cup. But Zeng Rui didn’t allow them too much rest. He pointed out several things in the next game and then warned them they all had to pay attention for the game that came after. That was one of the most important matches for them to pay attention to, because Team Guangzhou was playing.

When it was time for Team Guangzhou to go up on stage, the audience went wild. They were in Guangzhou and Team Guangzhou were the winners of the South China Regionals. With their two Korean imports, many people said they were one of the main contenders for the Championship title. More importantly, this was their homeground. Their family, their friends, everyone they knew was in the stadium to cheer them on. They were one of the few teams with a sixth player.

The large LCD screen above the soundproof booths blazed to life. It started playing highlights from Team Guangzhou’s earlier rounds while the players were getting settled. The casters were analyzing the match up from a skybox in the stadium. And Zeng Rui was pointing out small things he’d noticed in Team Guangzhou’s play that happened to pop up on the large LCD screen.

Team Guangzhou and JiangXi University moved into Champion Select. They went through the ban phase, picked the Champions they wanted to play, and finally loaded onto the Rift. That was when it became clear that it really didn’t matter which Champions eight of the ten players had chosen. This game was the Goalie and Seo show.

Seo went with Sivir in the first game. He played against Lucian, which was a decent match up for him. Lucian relied a lot on his skills and Sivir had a skillblock spell. This was an advantage he abused perfectly. Lucian from Jiangxi University never got into the game. In fact, he spent more time on the fountain than on the Rift. Yet that wasn’t the most shocking development of the game. That feat was reserved for the mid lane, where Goalie’s Ahri wiped the floor with Jiangxi University’s Zed.

The first game lasted 22 minutes. It was a stomp. The Team Guangzhou fans were up on their feet cheering, while everyone else sat in their seats in shock. A few of them mumbled and muttered their surprise at how much better Team Guangzhou looked than they had in the video footage from the Regionals. Some replied that this was perhaps a fluke, that the second game would be more even.

The second game wasn’t ‘more’ even. It was another 22 minute stomp. The only difference was the Champions on the Rift. Just like in the first game, Seo and Goalie carried the game. Seo proved to everyone that Tristana wasn’t just a late game Champion, especially when she got a few kills early on, and Goalie showed that his LeBlanc was one of the best in the entire world. The audience didn’t know how to reply. Some were up on their feet cheering, others were sitting in their chairs reeling in shock.

Sun Lei was the substitute Midlaner from Team Beijing. He was usually confident in his own skill, and he hadn’t yet lost a single match up in the entire Winter Collegiate Cup. But after watching Goalie play, he was trembling in his seat. He shook his head repeatedly and muttered, “W-what was that? That Goalie, he… He… He’s insane!”

Yu Ping the Midlaner from Team Beijing slowly nodded. He narrowed his eyes and took a long, deep breath. Sun Lei is right. That was an impressive performance. I don’t care how good that Lin Feng from Team Shanghai is, there’s no way he’s better than Goalie. Goalie is my biggest opponent this tournament!

The reactions of shock that didn’t just sound from the stands but also from the player seating area also extended to Team Shanghai. Zhang Hao was muttering about how it was impossible to beat this team, while Zeng Rui said they just had to come up with a good plan. An Xin agreed with this assessment and Tang Bingyao nodded along to it all, occasionally glancing at Seo. Lin Feng was the only one who didn’t look concerned. He wore his usual happy-go-lucky grin and exclaimed, “That was a great game! I can’t believe Goalie plays LeBlanc as well! And he really wasn’t bad on her!” He scratched the back of his head and added, “Just a shame he isn’t a bit better. That could’ve been a fun game for me…”

The host of the tournament walked up on stage. He looked out at the stands. At the more comfortable, more luxurious section on the field below the stage and at the simpler seats up in the actual stands. He smiled and brought a microphone to his lips. He then started talking, his voice booming from the speakers installed all throughout the venue. “Ladies and gentlemen! Boys and girls! League fans from all ages and genders! We’ve gathered here today for the second day of the first round of the Winter Collegiate Cup! The two teams here behind me have fought for months to secure this spot! They’re excited to play! We’re excited to watch them! So let’s give them a warm welcome! Team Shanghai! Wooo! And Guangzhou Institute of Technology! Woooo!”

The crowd welcomed the two teams and spurred them on to play their best through a cacophony of cheers and clapping! They then all focused their attention on the large LCD screen. It showed Team Shanghai on the left side as the Blue team, and Guangzhou Tech on the right as the Red team.The crowd welcomed the two teams and spurred them on to play their best through a cacophony of cheers and clapping! They then all focused their attention on the large LCD screen. It showed Team Shanghai on the left side as the Blue team, and Guangzhou Tech on the right as the Red team. The first bans were coming through. Team Shanghai chose to take Irelia out and Guangzhou Tech replied by banning LeBlanc. And their second ban took out Fizz.

Lin Feng sat inside the soundproof booth, looking at the League client on his monitor. “Huh!” Lin Feng remarked. He scratched the back of his head and added, “Are they focusing me?”

Zeng Rui glanced at Lin Feng and said over the team’s voice chat. “Then they wasted those two bans.” He turned back to look at his monitor and chuckled. If they knew they’re playing Maple, they wouldn’t waste these bans on Midlaners. Maple was known for his endless champion pool! You can’t ban him out. He’s Maple! Fucking Maple! The thundering dumbass– He shook his head and glanced at Lin Feng again. He scrunched his nose. There’s that look again. He almost looks happy! His favourite Champions are out but he’s just getting more and more fired up. I guess that’s good for us.

The ban phase concluded and the pick phase began. Team Shanghai got the first choice since they were the Blue team. They picked Lee Sin for An Xin. Guangzhou Tech got the next two picks. They chose Jungle Rengar and Top Gragas. It was Team Shanghai’s turn again. They selected their Toplaner and ad-carry, respectively Jarvan IV and Lucian. Then Guangzhou Tech locked in their next two Champions. Caitlyn for the ad-carry and Twisted Fate for the Midlaner.

Lin Feng rubbed his chin and grinned. He pointed at his screen and said over the team’s voice chat, “TF? That’s so funny! He couldn’t have picked a worse Champion!”

“What Champion are you playing?” Tang Bingyao asked, tilting her head.

Lin Feng clenched his fist and pumped it up into the air. He replied, “Annie!”

Zeng Rui nodded and chimed in, “Since our goal is to win on skill, Annie is a good choice. Like we talked about last night.” He then hovered his mouse over Thresh. I’ll pick Thresh. He goes on Annie. He gets fed. He carries the game. And I’ll support him. I’ll help him do that. He glanced over the rim of his monitor at the crowd in the Tianhe Stadium. People can watch this game all they want. All they’ll learn is that the thundering dumbass is a better Midlaner. We won’t reveal any tactics!

✹

《Welcome to Summoner’s Rift!》

The 10 Champions spawned on the Rift. They bought their starting items and ran down the lanes to their respective outer towers. Then they waited. It would take until the second minute before the first minion wave arrived. Those minions spawned from the Blue and the Red nexus and marched down the lanes, fearless.

When the first minion wave arrived in the mid lane, Lin Feng had his Annie tag along with them. She hopped to the middle of and conjured a spark. It blew to life into a small flame that flew at a minion and burned them. She then waited half a second, just long enough for Twisted Fate to arrive in the lane, before casting Disintegrate! Another spark ignited in her hands. But this time, she grew the flame before hurling it at Twisted Fate! The ball of fire slammed into him and dealt magic damage!

Annie had the superior range compared to Twisted Fate. Lin Feng abused this perfectly. He focused on last-hitting minions with his auto attacks, and every time Disintegrate came off cooldown, he hurled a ball of fire at Twisted Fate! All the while, Twisted Fate tried to get in last hits without getting constantly harassed. But he couldn’t do both. Lin Feng didn’t let him. His health dropped lower and lower, until it dropped below half. He was forced to back away a bit and give up on some last hits.

An Xin had started in the bottom side Jungle. At 2:40 minutes into the game, her Lee Sin slew the Red Brambleback and claimed its Red Buff. This buff bolstered her damage and added a slow effect to her auto attacks. Junglers usually would go to the top side Jungle and kill the Blue Sentinel next. But An Xin headed straight for the mid lane. She arrived in the river brush right below the lane a couple of seconds later and looked at the lane–

“One second!” Lin Feng exclaimed over the team’s voice chat. “I’ll set you up!”

An Xin replied, “Okay.” She then watched Lin Feng’s Annie walk toward the top side of the lane. Guangzhou Tech’s Twisted Fate responded by moving down to the bottom side of the lane, keeping distance from Annie. Lin Feng then last hit a minion. Annie reached Level 2 and learned Molten Shield! A shield of fire appeared around her, as did a swirling vortex. Annie’s passive skill was activated. Her next skill would also stun!

“Now!” Lin Feng shouted. He then slammed down on his keyboard. A veil of light fell over Annie. She traveled a short distance and appeared right in front of Twisted Fate, her hands already moving to conjure a ball of fire. Disintegrate! The spell slammed into Twisted Fate and stunned him!

A discordant wave of sound flew into the lane from the river brush! This was Lee Sin’s Sonic Wave! It struck Twisted Fate, unlocking the second part of this skill, Resonating Strike! Lee Sin dashed at Twisted Fate and then slammed down his fist on the ground with Tempest! A shockwave erupted outwards, a foreign energy entering Twisted Fate’s body. Lee Sin then clenched his fist to trigger Cripple! The foreign energy exploded and slowed Twisted Fate!

Guangzhou Tech’s Midlaner grimaced and cursed, “FuckFuckFUCK!” He slammed down on his keyboard, hitting every key that had a skill connected to it. Just the feeling of his fingers touching the keys made him feel like the stun would break faster. It, of course, didn’t. His Twisted Fate hemorrhaged health. The unquenchable flames from Ignite were now also burning on his body. “FuckFuckFUCK!” The stun finally broke. He flashed away. Lee Sin flashed after him and hit him with an auto attack. Another tick from Ignite. “FUCK!”

《First Blood!》

“OH MY GOOOOOOD! WOOOOOOO!”
“WIN FENG! WIN FENG! WIN FENG!”
“He made that look so easy!”
“That gank was just perfect!”
“WOOOOOOO!”

Guangzhou Tech’s Midlaner slumped back in his gaming chair, staring at the dull grey monitor in front of him. What the fuck is this? How…? He shook his head and took a deep breath. This isn’t right. It’s all wrong! How did he… FUCK! We should’ve paid more attention! We should’ve realised when he beat AyDeeCee… FuckFuckFUCK! He gritted his teeth. This is going to be impossible. This matchup was already stacked against Twisted Fate. But now… now I can’t even farm! I’m falling behind at Level 1! Something needs to change… He took another deep breath and then said over the team’s voice chat, “I need help.”

✹

At 4 minutes, Guangzhou Tech’s Rengar finished with his starting Jungle path. He arrived at the top lane, where Zhang Hao’s Jarvan IV was pushing back Guangzhou Tech’s Gragas. Rengar didn’t have a lot of ganking potential before Level 6, but he still ran into the lane through the river and charged at Zhang Hao’s Jarvan IV. It was a 2 versus 1. Everything about it was in Guangzhou Tech’s favour. And Zhang Hao realised this. He didn’t stick around to fight. He flashed away, making it impossible for the two from Guangzhou Tech to catch up to him, and waited underneath his outer tower for Rengar to go away.

Meanwhile in the bot lane. An Xin and Zeng Rui were finding each other perfectly. They moved like one, switching between securing last hits and getting in some poke damage. This led to the Botlaners from Guangzhou Tech hiding underneath their outer tower. And still Tang Bingyao and Zeng Rui were pushing.

An Xin spotted this and made her way down to the bot lane. She ran into the river and then ventured inside Guangzhou Tech’s bottom side Jungle. She said over the team’s voice chat, “Get ready. When I’m in the tri brush behind their outer tower, we’re going in.”

“I’ll go in,” Zeng Rui replied. He looked at his minimap, double checking that Guangzhou Tech’s Rengar wasn’t anywhere near. Still hovering in the top lane. Good. He then looked at the Red minions. A new wave had arrived a couple seconds earlier and Tang Bingyao was killing it quickly. There were only two caster minions left alive. When those two die… He waited for Tang Bingyao to land the last two auto attacks, glanced at his minimap to confirm An Xin was in position, and then he flashed.

A mottled flash of light wrapped around Zeng Rui’s Thresh and carried him to right underneath Red team’s outer tower. Guangzhou Tech’s Janna and Caitlyn stood too closely together. Flay! Zeng Rui’s Thresh whipped his chain and sickle backwards, lifting Janna and Caitlyn off the ground and knocking them back! Caitlyn was right on top of him. He aimed at her and threw the point blank range Death Sentence. The chains wrapped around her.

Guangzhou Tech’s ad-carry gritted his teeth. He moved his mouse, clicking frantically, and pressed down on the D key repeatedly. Flash already! The crowd control from Thresh kept him locked down for a brief moment. It allowed the Lucian the time to dash forward and fire a double shot, then following up with a Piercing Light and another double shot! And it allowed the Lee Sin to dash at him with Sonic Wave into Resonating Strike.

The crowd control from Zeng Rui’s Thresh wore off from Guangzhou Tech’s Caitlyn. She still had a bit of health remaining. Enough to try and escape. She flashed away and ran towards her inner tower! But Tang Bingyao’s Lucian flashed after her. Light bullets flew through the air and pierced her. They drained her health. And she finally collapsed to the ground.

《You have been slain!》

The three Champions from Team Shanghai were between the outer and inner tower. Blue minions were attacking the Red outer tower, underneath which Janna was floating around. Zeng Rui made the call to go in. Thresh, Lee Sin and Lucian dove the tower for a second time to kill Janna. Energy shots fired from the tower. At these early levels, the damage was high. Janna protected herself with a shield. She tried to drag it out, to get a kill back. But Zeng Rui and An Xin juggled tower aggro and Tang Bingyao’s Lucian claimed the killing blow.

《Double kill!》

“Oh shit! Again!?”
“WOOOOOOOO!”
“Haha! This is nuts! Guangzhou Tech lost mid and bot within 5 minutes!”
“Oh boy, time to surrender!”
“DON’T GIVE UP! KEEP PLAYING!”

✹

Lin Feng grinned at his monitor and mumbled, “Walkin’ right into it, walkin’ right into it!” He clicked on his mouse and lightly tapped the keys on his keyboard. “Just one more and you’re walkin’ right into it!”

At 6:30 minutes, Lin Feng’s Annie hit Level 6. And she stood right in front of Guangzhou Tech’s Twisted Fate. And a hazy vortex swirled around her. Annie threw her teddy bear up into the air and yelled, “TIBBERS!”

Fire ignited within the teddy bear! It pumped through its plush veins and burned in its eyes! The small teddy bear grew into a massive monster in midair! Then gravity started doing its work. Tibbers slammed into the ground, right on top of Twisted Fate, and stunned him! He followed up by swiping at Twisted Fate with its massive claws! All the while, Annie cycled through her skills. Sparks of fire from her auto attacks hit Twisted Fate! Fireballs from Incinerate slammed into him! The unquenchable flames from Ignite burned away at his health bar!

Guangzhou Tech’s Midlaner panic-flashed. A veil of light carried his Twisted Fate back towards his outer tower. But he failed to see that Lin Feng’s Annie was already halfway there, or that the burn damage from Ignite would kill him, or that Tibbers had higher movement speed and could both tank the tower and catch back up to him. It was a wasted Flash. Annie was the first to catch up. Disintegrate was back off cooldown. She conjured the ball of fire and flung it at Twisted Fate.

《You have slain an enemy!》

Guangzhou Tech’s Rengar ran into the mid lane from the topside river. He hurled a Bola at Annie to root her, but Lin Feng saw it coming thanks to the ward that revealed Rengar’s gank early. He stepped to the side and then clicked on the lantern that Zeng Rui, who’d just arrived himself, threw at him. He then said over the team’s voice chat, “Let’s take the Dragon!”

“One step ahead of you,” An Xin replied, giggling. Her Lee Sin was already in the Dragon pit and engaged the Dragon while Lin Feng and Zeng Rui moved down the river to join her. Down in the bot lane, Tang Bingyao killed the last minion of the wave before also joining them.

There wasn’t anything Guangzhou Tech could do to stop Team Shanghai. Twisted Fate was dead, so he couldn’t give vision on the Dragon pit with his ultimate. More importantly, the Botlaners and Rengar were split up. It was very easy for Team Shanghai to jump on Rengar and nuke him before turning around to kill the Botlaners if Guangzhou Tech tried to engage. So they had to give up on the Dragon. They had to stay in their lanes, farm minions, and grit their teeth when the game announcer’s voice rang across the Rift.

《The Blue team has slain the dragon!》

Stunned gasps sounded throughout the stands, followed by a low murmur. Most people had seen highlights from Team Shanghai. But watching a couple of highlights wasn’t the same as seeing a team actually play. Most people in the audience whispered about how they were expecting an even game, how they wanted to see a good fight. But they all agreed this wasn’t a good fight. This was a stomp by Team Shanghai.

From the first minute of the game, Team Shanghai took the lead. They got the almost solo kill early on in the mid lane, something that simply shouldn’t happen at this level of play. It went from bad to worse for Guangzhou Tech when their gank in the top lane failed, only for Team Shanghai’s gank in the bot lane to succeed. They’d fallen far behind within five minutes. And now, only 7 minutes into the game, their Midlaner gave away a real solo kill. On the back of it, Team Shanghai secured the Dragon, its buff only further widening the gap.

Team Beijing watched the game from the player seating area at the front of the venue. Zhang Hongyi who was the team’s Support looked through the glass panels of the soundproof booth at Zeng Rui and snarled. This Janna is useless! Guangzhou Tech is shit! How can they give everything away so easily? This is ridiculous! He shook his head and mumbled, “This is a shit game. Guangzhou Tech doesn’t belong at the Winter Collegiate Cup.”

Yu Ping, Midlaner for Team Beijing, glanced at Zhang Hongyi and then back at the large LCD screen. He narrowed his eyes. Zhang Hongyi is right. This isn’t even a game. Annie got so far ahead early on that it’d take skill to lose! There’s nothing I’m going to learn from this game! That Midlaner won’t be pushed to try. Shit, this is annoying. Just show me if you’re going to be good or not! I hope their next round opponents are better.

✹

At 9 minutes, Lin Feng’s Annie pushed the minion wave into Red team’s outer tower. He then retreated and walked down through his Jungle to the bot lane. He announced his arrival over the team’s voice chat. “Get ready, I’m almost there!” He briefly paused before adding, “Right! I nearly forgot! TF is coming too I think! But don’t worry, we’ve got this! Just back off– OhOhOh! Wait! Not like that! ZengZeng! You have to be ready to throw me a lantern!”

Zeng Rui’s eyelids twitched and gritted his teeth. Shit! I’m not stupid! He shouted, “Shut up! I know! Seriously, who shot calls like that!?” He shook his head when he suddenly noticed a red light descend from the sky. It slammed down onto the ground and whirled in a circle. Teleport! Teleport! He ordered, “Zhang Hao, you also come! The Gragas is Teleporting in!”

Zhang Hao nodded and replied over the team’s voice chat, “Got it–”

“Tang Tang, you back!” Zeng Rui continued. He then narrowed his eyes. The all-seeing eye from Twisted Fate was already hanging in the air. He could teleport down to the bot lane any second. The cards spread on the ground. A gate opened. Zeng Rui activated Death Sentence! His Thresh wound up his sickle and chain before throwing them! They sliced through the air and struck Twisted Fate right as he stepped through the gate!

“Holy hot damn! What a hook! That was amazing!”
“Shit shit! Look! Twisted Fate had a gold card! Thresh stopped him from using the gold card on Lucian!”
“Wow! How did he do that! He reacted so quickly!”
“Damn impressive! That’s some high level skill right there!”
“This is gonna be a full on team fight! GO GUANGZHOU TECH! YOU’VE GOT THIS!”
“GO GO GUANGZHOU TECH! TURN THIS BACK AROUND!”

Tang Bingyao pressed down on the D button to activate Flash. A mottled flash of light wrapped Lucian up and carried him towards her outer tower. She then flicked her mouse around and held it over Twisted Fate before activating Lucian’s ultimate–The Culling! Lucian raised both his guns and started squeezing the trigger. Again. And again. And again. Light bullets spew out from the guns and pierced Twisted Fate, draining his health bar!

The two Toplaners arrived in the bot lane. Guangzhou Tech’s Gragas Body Slammed into Zeng Rui’s Thresh and knocked him up! And Zhang Hao dashed at Twisted Fate with his flag-toss combo! Which missed. The root from Death Sentence wore off just in time for Guangzhou Tech’s Twisted Fate to Flash away from the flag-toss combo! The gold card still hovered above his head. He took it from the air and threw it at Jarvan IV, and stunned him!

Guangzhou Tech’s Janna cast Eye of the Storm on Caitlyn, granting her a shield and bonus attack damage. She then called forth a Howling Gale and sent it flying towards Jarvan IV! Before the stun from Twisted Fate’s Gold Card wore off, Jarvan IV was knocked in the air. All the while, Caitlyn used her long range to fire auto attacks at Jarvan IV!

Zeng Rui’s Thresh was below half health and Zhang Hao’s Jarvan IV was as well. Four players from Guangzhou Tech were attacking them, while Tang Bingyao had to cancel her ultimate and wasn’t doing any damage. It was very hard to reposition with The Culling, making it useless after Twisted Fate flashed away. It looked like Team Shanghai was going to lose the fight and Zeng Rui started to analyse potential ways to escape, when Lin Feng’s voice sounded in his ears. “Lantern! Lantern! Lantern me in!”

It was the voice of the thundering dumbass. The voice that had brought Zeng Rui so many headaches, so many sleepless nights. But right now it sounded like salvation. A smile appeared on his face. He threw the lantern behind him with Dark Passage, waited briefly for Lin Feng to click on it and dash to his side, and then flashed forward. He arrived right between Twisted Fate and Caitlyn, and he carried Lin Feng’s Annie there with him.

Su Xue glanced at Lin Feng and watched his reaction. Hehe! It’s so much fun to tease this stupid kid! Of course I want to cast Team Shanghai’s! Those are the easiest games! I know how half your team plays and the rest I’ve also seen before! It’d be perfect if I got to cast your game! I really don’t want to cast some random team though… She giggled for a brief moment before recovering her pout. Keep the act up! Make him believe you! I’m casting in the Round of 16. Team Shanghai just has to get there and then, with a tiny bit of luck, I’ll get to cast their game! Hehehe!

Lin Feng grinned and said, “Don’t worry! You’ll do great! I believe in you! You’re the best caster!”

Su Xue breathed in deeply, then exhaled loudly through her mouth. She said, “Sure… I guess, maybe… Let’s just take it one bit at a time, I guess…” She shook her head. All I need is to get to cast Team Shanghai and this’ll be fun! But I still don’t know all the Champion skill names… I’ll need to do some research before the game and find out about the players on both teams, AndAndAnd… The list of things she would have to do before casting her first game became longer the more she thought about it. Her heart started pounding in her ribcage. Do I really want to…? Yeah! Come on, Su Xue! This is a chance most streamers can only dream about! Stop being so pessimistic! Best case scenario you get to cast Team Shanghai! Worst case, you gotta cast some random team, and you will make that fun!

Zhang Hao watched Lin Feng and Su Xue and said to no one in particular, “We’ll have to win our first round first…”

Everyone turned to look at Zhang Hao. Zeng Rui nodded and replied, “Correct. Our opponent is the 3rd placed team from the South China Regionals, the Guangzhou Institute of Technology.”

“We’ll stomp them!” Lin Feng exclaimed.

Zeng Rui nodded and continued, “That’ll be our goal, yes. We want to end this series as quickly as possible so as to give as little information away as possible.”

An Xin smiled and said, “That’s simple enough. All we have to do is stay focused and give it our all! But we can’t give away our tactics. So we’ll have to give it our all on the weakest of our strongest tactics!”

Lin Feng scrunched his eyebrows and said, “That doesn’t sound easy at all!”

“Idiot,” An Xin said. She turned her head to look at Lin Feng and explained, “For you that means that you pick a Champion and that you stomp your lane with that Champion.”

“Nice!” Lin Feng exclaimed. He patted himself on the chest and continued, “That’s something I can do! No problem! Just tell me the Champion and I’ll win my lane asap!”

Zeng Rui watched the exchange between Lin Feng and An Xin quietly. Personal skill is unimportant. Anyone can see that in every game. We’re not going to play worse… Typical the thundering dumbass thinks we would though… He shook his head and chuckled. He then breathed deeply and closed his eyes. We want to use as little tactics and strategy as possible. The more we can rely on individual skill in these first rounds, the more information we can hold back and keep hidden. Then when we face an actual strong opponent in the later rounds, they won’t know what to expect. He sighed loudly. Then again, we’ve got Maple on our team. He’s known for stomping the opponent. If we can get him to focus and really tryhard on this series, we won’t have to give away any tactics. That’d be perfect!

✹

Su Xue joined Team Shanghai for dinner at a restaurant Lin Feng had selected. They enjoyed a small feast, after which they went to an internet cafe for another scrimmage with Zhejiang University. The two teams sat opposite each other, with Su Xue watching the game on spectator mode. To practice her casting, she’d told them.

The scrimmage went well for Team Shanghai. They played seven games against Zhejiang University and won five of them. By the end, the players from Zhejiang University were speechless. They just stared at their screens, at the 21 minute loss, and shook their heads.

Zhejiang University’s Support finally muttered, “Did, did you guys get even better…?”

Sun Ruinian scratched the back of his head and said, “If you guys play like this tomorrow, then Guangzhou Tech is going to be in for a bad, bad time…”

Lin Feng grinned and shouted, “That’s what I keep saying! We’re going to 2-0 stomp them!”

Su Xue ruffled Lin Feng’s hair and said, “Always with the bragging!”

“I don’t!” Lin Feng exclaimed. He then grinned and added, “But it doesn’t feel right when I don’t.”

✹

It was the second day of the main tournament. There were another nine matches on the schedule today. Team Shanghai was the second team to play in the afternoon. A lot of people were looking forward to it. So much so that the interest for the first game that afternoon dwindled and disappeared completely when it became obvious that it wasn’t going to be a spectacular match. A murmur swept across the stands and the player seating area.

“Team Shanghai is up next. The second high school team! I wonder how good they really are…”

“They’re the only high school team who didn’t win their Regionals. But then again, East China is the most competitive region. You can’t really expect them to win that.”

“Didn’t you see the footage? They never even tried in the finals against Fudan University! Neither side did, really. It was such a dumb series!”

“But they beat Zhejiang University with AyDeeCee, right?”

“That’s the word on the street, yeah. They won 3-2 is what I’ve been told.”

“Not just that. Team Shanghai’s Midlaner beat AyDeeCee. For real! I watched the replay! It really happened! I’ll bet all my money on it if anyone here wants to!”

“Damn… All these high school kids. Freaks! All of them!”

There were two subjects in the League of Legends community that drew in every fan’s attention. The first was pro player gossip. Many people said they hated gossip, but no one could resist the urge to read more about it and talk more about it. The other was female League of Legends players. It wasn’t strange to come across them in solo queue. Some guys even played specifically to meet girls in solo queue. And when they didn’t find them, they’d get upset and take to social media to complain to their friends and anyone who’d listen that there are no girls playing League of Legends. But where there were quite some female players in solo queue, very few decided to play competitively. An Xin and Tang Bingyao were two exceptions. So when the fans spotted the two girls walking up on stage together with the rest from Team Shanghai, a second wave of murmurs swept across the stands.

“Daaaamn! Look at them! They’re so hot!”

“Sick! You never see girls up on stage! I really wanna see them play!”

“Wow! Shit dude! I totally thought you guys were pranking me! Two girls! Pinch me!”

“Do they stream? Anyone know if they stream? Can I watch them somewhere?”

“All you horny idiots forget the most important thing! Are they any good?”

“OF COURSE THEY ARE! IDIOT! THEY BEAT ZHEJIANG!”

“Right, right. Still. You just don’t see girls. Can’t help but wonder if they’re really all that good…”

“Remember Team Mermaid? The all-girl team? Everyone was saying how good they were, until they actually watched them play. They were hot, definitely. But fuck me did they suck at the game!”

“Oh shit! I totally forgot about Team Mermaid! What happened to those girls? I wanna watch them again!”

“But not to play, right…? Because they were awful. Absolutely dreadful!”

✹

Team Guangzhou’s Jungler nodded at Team Shanghai entering the soundproof booth and said to Seo, “Hey, dude. Ain’t that the girl you fancy? I think I might fancy her too. You still fancy her? Or can I have a go at her?”

The interpreter quickly translated the message to Korean. But Seo wasn’t listening. He was staring at Tang Bingyao and An Xin through narrowed eyes. You fucking bitches! All I did was flirt a bit and then the two of you… Especially the stupid one there… He gritted his teeth in anger. They’d humiliated him! And they’d turned his fun pastime into a constant reminder of that humiliation!

“Yo, Seo, anyone home there?” Team Guangzhou’s Jungler asked, waving his hands in front of Seo.

Seo shook his head and mumbled, “Go fancy that bitch.” His eyes never left An Xin and Tang Bingyao. They’d hurt his pride. All he felt right now was anger fueled by humiliation. I’ll teach you two bitches a lesson you won’t forget! I’m one of the best ad-carries in Korea! You two should respect me! BITCHES! He slammed his fist down on the armrest and shouted, “FUCK!”

✹

Team Beijing sat some distance away from Team Guangzhou in the player seating area. Their attention wasn’t on Tang Bingyao. It was on Zeng Rui. Team Beijing’s Toplaner grinned and asked Zhang Hongyi, “Hey bud, which one is their team captain? You know, your favourite Zeng-guy.”

Zhang Hongyi narrowed his eyes. He pointed at Zeng Rui and replied, “Him. Third from the back.”

Fan Yuan was the manager for Team Beijing and the vice president of the Beijing Esports Association. He ignored the friendly banter going on between a few members from the team and instead turned to look at the two Midlaners. He said, “Sun Lei, Yu Ping, you two pay careful attention to Team Shanghai’s Midlaner. We can’t underestimate him after he beat Shi Hang. Maybe it was a fluke, maybe it wasn’t. Just make sure you two are prepared to play against him.”

Sun Lei rolled his shoulders and smiled. I’m a B+ Midlaner on a bad day. There are so few Midlaners better than me in this entire tournament. Sure that Lin Feng looked good on the footage we watched, but I’m still just the substitute! Yu Ping is way better than me! There’s no way Lin Feng can beat Yu Ping! He nodded and replied, “Mr. Fan. Please stop worrying so much. You’ll go grey and bald! I’m confident I can play against this Lin Feng. And even if I can’t, Yu Ping will stomp him.”

Fan Yuan frowned and said, “I told you to pay attention. Stop tooting your horn. How many times do I need to repeat myself? Know your own skill and, very importantly, know your opponent. Watch him. Dissect him. Make sure that when you play him, there’s nothing he can do that’ll surprise you.” He shook his head and sighed before adding, “He beat AyDeeCee. Respect that fact. He is good! So please, entertain me. Watch him. Dissect him. And make sure that if we do end up going against them, you beat him.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Sun Lei replied, annoyed.

Fan Yuan turned his head to look at a different section of the player seating area. Chu Fang, Chu Fang, Chu Fang… My old rival! I specifically requested to be put in charge of this team because I heard you were in charge of Team Shanghai. We’ll have another fun game on our hands. You versus me. Me crushing you! Proxy style! I’ll show you that your Shanghai branche is terrible! Beijing, that’s what it’s all about!

Fan Yuan shook his head and turned back to look at his team. He said, “They came in second in East China and their Midlaner beat AyDeeCee. We cannot afford to be careless.” He then nodded at Yu Ping and continued, “I believe in your skills. But I don’t just want you to beat Lin Feng, I want you to crush him! This isn’t about winning a game in minute 50, this is about stomping them and winning within 20 minutes! I trust you can do that.”

Yu Ping nodded and replied, “I understand.” He then looked up at the stage. The two teams were sitting in the soundproof booth and the large LCD screen above showed Champion Select. He stared through the glass panels of the soundproof booth at the person sitting behind the middle computer. So you’re Lin Feng. And you defeated AyDeeCee, huh? Here I was worrying about Goalie not being enough of a challenge for me! I really hope you can give me a challenge! Please, please make me try. Make it interesting.

Seo scrunched his eyebrows. Why is she stepping away from me…? Oh! He shook his head and grinned. How stupid! I keep forgetting they don’t learn Korean in school here! Such a hassle, but… She’s cute enough! He raised his hands up apologetically and said in broken Chinese, “I am Seo. Ad-carry Challenger from Korea now in Guangzhou. You are pretty. Very cute. I like your looks.”

Tang Bingyao raised her eyebrows in surprise. He’s a Korean Challenger…? Guangzhou? Her eyes turned round and she covered her mouth with her hand. He’s the new ad-carry for Team Guangzhou! They got a new Korean import! Mhm! We finally got another girl playing in this tournament! This is great! She giggled and replied, “Thank you.”

Seo felt his heart jump in joy when Tang Bingyao started giggling. Knew she’d like me! Tell them you’re a Korean Challenger and you’re in their panties! Now to seal the deal! Add her to my list! He ‘casually’ leaned against the wall and smiled what he believed to be his most charming smile. He said, “Friends? You, me, coffee?”

Friends? Coffee? Tang Bingyao stopped giggling and looked at Seo again. I don’t like coffee… She shrugged and said, “No thanks. Bye.” She then walked past Seo and back towards the stands.

Seo stared at the air in front of him, stunned. No? Did she just say no? Did she turn me down? He narrowed his eyes and turned his head to follow her. No one turns me down! I’m far too goodlooking for that! All girls love me! Oh! He chuckled. She’s just playing hard to get. Almost forgot about that play because the girls here are so easy! Alright, Seo, she doesn’t want to look too eager to jump into bed with you. You just gotta push her in that direction. Just play along and make her think it’s her choice. Takes a bit more skill, but she’s pretty cute. Yeah, I’ll take the extra effort for her! He rushed after Tang Bingyao and stopped her. He then said, “Is okay. Where you want to go? No coffee? Maybe PC Cafe? Play League? I carry you to Challenger!”

Tang Bingyao looked at Seo, annoyed. Her stomach churned and she lightly shook her head. I said no… Why is he still bothering me? She bit on her lips and said, “No, thanks. Leave me alone, please.” She then tried to push past him.

“어디가? 내 친절한 초대를 너무 차갑게 거절하는데? 이 버릇없는 년,” Seo said as he grabbed Tang Bingyao by the shoulder. He narrowed his eyes and continued in broken Chinese, “Don’t be rude. I’m kind.”

“Let go!” Tang Bingyao exclaimed. She tried to pull free, but Seo only tightened his grip on her shoulder. Tears jumped in her eyes. She shouted, “Ao! You’re hurting me! Let go of me!” She tried to shake herself free, her eyes darting across the hall searching for someone who could help her. Why is he doing this? Just leave me alone! I don’t wanna! Go away! Piss off! Please, someone! Some– “BunBun!”

A minute earlier, An Xin had got up from her seat in the player seating area and excused herself to go to the restroom. She’d walked past the crowd into the backstage area, following Chu Fang’s directions. When she got into a corridor, she saw two people standing close together. Uch, get a roo– Her eyes went wide when she heard Tang Bingyao’s voice, and even wider when she saw the girl was Tang Bingyao. Tang Tang! TANG TANG! She raced across the corridor and pushed Seo from behind and shouted, “Get away from Tang Tang, you creep!”

The push wasn’t hard, but Seo hadn’t expected it. He let go of Tang Bingyao and stumbled a few steps before refinding his footing. He turned around to look at An Xin and said in Korean, “What the fuck! You bitch!”

An Xin ignored Seo, her complete focus on Tang Bingyao. She put her hand on Tang Bingyao’s shoulder and asked, “Are you okay?”

Tang Bingyao sucked back the tears, though a few still escaped and rolled down her cheeks. She nodded and mumbled, “Mhm, thanks.”

“Good,” An Xin said with a warm smile. She then turned around to look at Seo. Her lips remained the same but all kindness disappeared from her eyes. They narrowed, furious. She said in perfect Korean, “You disgusting pig! What do you think you were doing!?”

Seo recovered from his initial burst of shock and got a good look at An Xin. He nodded, satisfied. She’s cute too. And she speaks Korean! That makes this so much easier! Alright, game face on! He smirked and said, “I really didn’t do anything. I was just having a friendly chat with your friend here.”

“A friendly chat?” An Xin asked. She glanced over her shoulder at Tang Bingyao who was trembling on her knees and then looked back at Seo. She said, “Does she look like she was having a fun chat? Does she? I’ll tell you what it looks like to me. It looks like you were trying to assault my friend. Now I’m sure the organizers wouldn’t like to learn about this. Don’t you think? They might even feel the need to send you back home. But my friend is already upset and I don’t want to make her think about this more than necessary. So here’s the deal. You piss the fuck off and never even look at her again!”

Seo paled, his eyes round and wide. He stared at An Xin in shock. This was the first time someone called him out like this. It was the first time since arriving in Guangzhou that a woman didn’t respond to his advances. His stomach was in turmoil and he didn’t know what to do. He moved his lips around and shook his head a bit, and finally he mumbled, “Sorry.” He then turned around and strode away, muttering, “Stupid bitches! Who the fuck do they think they are! Better hope I don’t see them in the tournament! I’ll fucking stomp them!”

“HMM? Did you say something? Come back, say that to my face!” An Xin yelled after Seo. He looked back over his shoulder at her, scared. He then sped up and pushed open the first door he found. The women’s restroom. But he didn’t care or notice. He rushed inside and stopped. Fucking crazy bitches! What the fuck was wrong with that one! Holy shit, her eyes! Fuck her! I’ll show her!

An Xin turned back to look at Tang Bingyao and smiled. She said, “It’s okay, Tang Tang. He’s gone.”

Tang Bingyao slowly raised her head and looked up at An Xin. Her eyes were red and swollen, and her mascara was murky after she wiped it all around her eyes. She tried to smile but also to stop crying. She finally mumbled, “Thank you, Bunbun. Thank you! I… I didn’t know you speak Korean.”

An Xin hugged Tang Bingyao and whispered, “Just a few words. I picked it up while travelling with Lin Feng four years ago.”

“Mhm,” Tang Bingyao replied, nodding.

“Are you okay, Tang Tang?” An Xin asked, worried. “Did he hurt you anywhere? If he did anything to you, we’re going right to the tournament officials.”

Tang Bingyao shook her head and replied, “I’m okay. It was just really scary. He was suddenly there and there was no one else and then and then, and then…” Tears appeared in her eyes again. She hiccuped and the crying followed. She said between the tears, “And then he grabbed me and I thought, I thought…”

An Xin hugged Tang Bingyao tightly and whispered, “It’s okay Tang Tang. He’s gone. I’ve got you. I’m here for you.” She then glanced over her shoulder at the end of the corridor and narrowed her eyes. What an asshole! Team Guangzhou, huh? When there’s one rotten apple, there’s probably more… She mumbled, “I’ll show those assholes!”

“BunBun, please, don’t!” Tang Bingyao said weakly. She shook her head and added, “I don’t want to cause any problems…”

“No,” An Xin replied. She looked at Tang Bingyao and continued, “He assaulted you. Don’t ever speak up for him. He doesn’t deserve it.”

Tang Bingyao’s lips quivered. She mumbled, “I-I… I just don’t want to cause any trouble…” She briefly pressed her lips together and then added, “Thank you for helping me, BunBun. I don’t know what I would’ve done without you.”

An Xin chuckled and said, “You don’t have to thank me. We’re friends! I wasn’t going to let some creep bother you! We’re here for each other!” She briefly paused, her expression dropping, before adding, “But Tang Tang… Let’s not tell Lin Feng what happened. If he finds out…” she shook her head. “… he will make a big scene out of it.”

Tang Bingyao wiped her eyes dry and nodded. I just want to forget this! No one has to know! She shook her head and weakly said, “Let’s just pretend this never happened…”

An Xin put her hands on Tang Bingyao’s shoulders and looked her friend in the eyes. She slowly said, “We’re not going to pretend this didn’t happen. It happened. We just won’t tell Lin Feng. We’ll use a different route to make that asshole pay for what he did to you!” A smile creeped on her face, though it didn’t quite reach her eyes. She continued, “He’s the ad-carry for Team Guangzhou, right?” Tang Bingyao nodded and An Xin went on, “So we’ll show him how worthless he is on the Rift. The way he treated you? He probably doesn’t think much about girls. Let’s make sure to camp the everloving shit out of that guy! We’ll make him go 0-10 and then laugh at him in all chat. We’ll make him regret this so hard!”

There was a fire behind An Xin’s words. Tang Bingyao found herself nodding and clenching her fists. She nodded and said, “Mhm! Sounds good! We’ll stomp him!”

✹

Seo stayed in the restroom for nearly 15 minutes, grumbling and kicking against the toilet stalls. When he finally calmed down a bit, he splashed some water in his face and looked in the mirror at his reflection. You’re fucking hot! Those girls don’t know what they’re missing out on! They could’ve had the best threesome in their lives! He nodded at himself and then left the restroom. He walked down the corridor, his expression dropping again. Fucking bitches! Stupid fucking bitches!

When Seo arrived back at the seats for Team Guangzhou in the player seating area, he was kicking imaginary pebbles and glaring at everyone. The coach noticed it and asked, “Seo, what’s wrong? Did something happen?”

Seo let himself fall down on his chair and waved the coach away. He said, “It’s nothing.” He then looked at the stage and gritted his teeth. Those fucking bitches! I can get any girl I want! What do they think makes them so special? I’ve had far prettier girls! Stupid bitches! And that second one in particular! How dare she challenge me!? I’ll fucking show her! When I meet her on that stage… He grinned. When I meet those two on that stage? I’m going to make them regret that! I was just flirting! What is wrong with those bitches!?

✹

Lin Feng waved at An Xin and Tang Bingyao when they walked back to their seats and shouted, “You two took forever! What kept you?”

An Xin smiled and replied, “There was a line at the restroom. Think some girl clogged the toilet…”

“Mhm!” Tang Bingyao added, nodding.

“You guys missed the ending of the game,” Zeng Rui complained.

Lin Feng grinned and interjected, “It was a boring game! You guys didn’t miss anything!”

Zeng Rui glared at Lin Feng but then shook his head. Not worth the effort. Won’t argue with him. No arguing with the thundering dumbass! Don’t do it! He breathed in deeply and said, “Let’s go back to the hotel. The games are over and the exit will be crowded soon.”

“Hotel…?” Lin Feng looked at Zeng Rui, confused. He then shook his head and said, “No way! It’s time for dinner! I’m starving!”

Zeng Rui glanced at Lin Feng and replied, “We’re going back to the hotel because your roommate is there. Remember how we–”

“Right! Right! I almost forgot!” Lin Feng interrupted, laughing. He nodded at Zeng Rui and said, “ZengZeng, you’re the best! Man, I really wonder how Su Xue’s meeting went! Maybe she’s already working for HuyaTV!”

✹

Team Shanghai and Su Xue arrived back at the hotel at almost the same time. They ran into each other in the lobby. Lin Feng ran up to Su Xue and was about to greet her when he noticed that she didn’t look excited. He scrunched his eyebrows. Does she look anxious? She’s fidgeting with her fingers… she only does that when she’s stressing again! He said, “Hey… Uh, what’s wrong? Did the meeting not go well?”

“Hmm? Oh, hey Lin Feng,” Su Xue replied. She looked at Lin Feng and the others from Team Shanghai behind him before adding, “It went okay I guess.”

Lin Feng looked at Su Xue, puzzled. He asked, “Just okay? What does that mean?”

Su Xue rolled her eyes and explained, “The talk was fine. Basically I just have to sign the contract now.”

An Xin smiled and said, “That’s great! You’re going to become a really big streamer now! Congratulations!”

Tang Bingyao nodded and chimed in, “Mhm! Congratulations!”

Su Xue nodded absentmindedly. It went great. I got everything I wanted and I can stay in Shanghai with Lin Feng and Zuo You and my other friends. I’ll just stay here for a few weeks to receive some onsite training from professionals. Which is also really good! She chuckled and said, “Thanks. It’s good, all good I guess. Just. Just. Huhh! The HuyaTV executive told me he’d gotten me a great opportunity to cast some games in this ‘super big’ tournament.”

“A caster?” Lin Feng asked. His eyes lit up and he continued, “That’s amazing! You’re going to cast real professional games then! That’d be so cool!”

Su Xue sighed and explained, “That’s what I’m worried about. What if they make me do a professional game? I’m no caster! I sometimes dabble a bit with it on stream for fun. But I’m no caster! I don’t know nearly enough about professional play– Or even about the Champions! I’ll just end up making a fool out of myself! Everyone will see me make a fool out of myself! Then they’ll come to my stream to laugh at the fool…”

An Xin smiled and comforted, “Your stream casting is really good! I bet you the HuyaTV executive saw that and knew you were perfect for a casting gig!”

Tang Bingyao looked at Su Xue curiously and asked, “Do you know what games you will be casting?”

Su Xue shook her head and replied, “No, they haven’t told me yet. They said they’d have more information about that tomorrow night. All I know is that it’ll be in the Winter Collegiate Cup–”

“WHAT!?” Lin Feng exclaimed. He tugged on Su Xue’s arm and asked, “Really? Really!?”

It wasn’t just Lin Feng, everyone from Team Shanghai perked up from this bit of information. They stared at Su Xue and were about to start asking questions, when Chu Fang said, “Right. The Guangzhou Esports Association has a partnership contract with HuyaTV. That also extends to us actually. It’s how we got the Shanghai 16 School Tournament to play on HuyaTV’s frontpage.”

Lin Feng grinned. He struck his victory pose and shouted, “That’s awesome! Just imagine how cool it would be if you get to cast our games! You can tell them all how good I am! And how you know that I’m really good!”

Su Xue shook her head and muttered, “Who would want to do that…?”

The North China region from which Team Beijing came didn’t have as many top grade teams like East China had. But they did have U-Tech Beijing, current Champions of the Collegiate Cup. Team Beijing had played against U-Tech Beijing in the grand finals for the region and won in a thrilling best of five series that went all the way to the fifth game! And even in that series, Team Beijing used their substitutes in the top and mid lane. No one had ever seen just how good this team was with their main roster.

Zeng Rui sighed and said to his teammates, “That’s the advantage of a strong roster. Even their ‘weaker’ team can win everything.”

Tang Bingyao nodded and agreed, “Mhm, they look really strong.”

“Don’t forget there was nothing at stake in those grand finals,” An Xin interjected. She looked at Zeng Rui, Tang Bingyao and Zhang Hao who all wore dejected expressions. They’re just a strong opponent! Don’t look so down just because we lost our finals! She forced a smile on her lips and continued, “U-Tech Beijing didn’t really try either. Just like how it went in our finals, with Lin Feng and Tang Tang both being sick. Those series weren’t important. Right now. These series. They are important. So let’s not worry about what happened in the finals and focus on this game!”

Lin Feng grinned and said, “Look! I’m wearing a coat! I won’t get sick again!”

His teammates shook their heads and were about to focus back on the game when Chu Fang spoke up. He looked at them and said, “Zeng Rui is right about one thing. Pay careful attention to this match. Team Beijing might be our biggest opponent in the entire tournament.”

✹

The players from Nanjing University sat behind their computers, staring at the screens with tense expressions. Their coach had reminded them before the game that they were competing in the Winter Collegiate Cup, and that everyone was waiting for a university team to finally show just that by beating one of these high school teams. He’d shown them footage from Team Beijing and explained to them with which tactics they could be that team.

The team captain looked across the stage at the other soundproof booth. Why are they still playing with their substitutes? Do they really think so little of us? He chewed on his lips, his stomach in turmoil. We’ve watched them play and we’ve identified weaknesses. But we’ve also been assuming that they’d field their strongest line up! That’s wrong. Those tactics are worthless now. We need to adapt. He sighed and said over the team’s voice chat, “So they don’t think much of us, huh?”

“Fuckers!” the Toplaner cursed. He glared across the stage at Team Beijing’s soundproof booth and continued, “Fuckers won’t even take us seriously! We came in 11th in the previous Collegiate Cup! We’re one of the strongest teams!”

“Exactly right!” the team captain said. He looked at his team members, one at a time, and continued, “We’re one of the best teams in this tournament. And those guys …” he pointed across the stage. “… they’re not taking us seriously. We’re going to make them pay for that!”

“Sounds good, cap,” the Support replied. He focused on his screen and asked, “What tactic are we going with?”

The team captain took a deep breath. I don’t know… Hmm… Honestly… He nodded and said, “Let’s just go with our original plan. Okay early game team that grows stronger and stronger the later we go.”

Nanjing University picked their Champions, as did Team Beijing. They loaded onto the Rift and bought their starting items. The 10 Champions walked down the lanes and waited for the minion waves to spawn, neither side looking to invade. And then it all went so fast. Team Beijing made plays in every lane. They forced Nanjing University to make mistakes and capitalized on them every single time. Team Beijing won every lane, and then they won the game. There was no suspense to it.

Nanjing University’s team captain looked over the edge of his monitor at the massive stadium and at the crowd jumping and cheering. He shook his head, dejected. They should be cheering for us right now. We should’ve won this one! If only… He sighed. They’re so much better than we expected. He looked at his teammates, each of them visibly sharing the same emotions he felt, and said, “Come on, guys. We can’t give up! Let’s go with strong laners in this game. Beat them in lane and do to them what they did to us! We’re going to force that third game!”

The Toplaner nodded and said, “Fuck yeah! We’ll show them!”

Both teams knew how they wanted to play the second game. They flew through Champion Select and it wasn’t long before 10 new Champions spawned on Summoner’s Rift. Nanjing University went with the early game composition and Team Beijing was doing the same. Fast and aggressive. Both sides went at it. There was combat from the first to the last minute of the game. A game that lasted 17 minutes. It was a complete stomp.

The players from Nanjing University slumped back in their gaming chairs. The red ‘Defeat’ message floated on their monitor. They’d lost to Team Beijing 0-2. They were out of the Winter Collegiate Cup. After only two short games in which they failed to show half of what they were capable of, they could fly back home and start preparing for the next edition.

Nanjing University’s team captain grimaced and said, “Better luck next time…” He then sighed and shook his head. What fucking monsters! Where did the Beijing Esports Organization find these kids!?

✹

Sun Ruinian sat with his teammates from Zhejiang University in the player seating area. The game between Team Beijing and Nanjing University had just come to an end. There was one more match on the first day of the main tournament, but he didn’t care about that. He was just staring at the screen, shocked. Stunned. How… How are they this good? This isn’t even their main roster! They’re playing with substitutes! I don’t even know if we can confidently beat this team! How are we… He gritted his teeth and shook his head. I’m not letting Shi Hang down! If we have to play against them, we’re going to win! I just have to come up with a tactic for it!

“What’s up with all these damned high school teams!” Zhejiang’s Support exclaimed. He threw his hands up and continued, “I thought Team Shanghai had enough freaks! But it looks like Beijing found even bigger freaks! Where do they find these kids? Why are none of them in university yet!?”

Zhejiang’s Toplaner glanced at his Support and then mumbled, “Can we even beat those guys from Team Beijing…?”

“Of course we can!” Sun Ruinian said. He looked at his teammates and narrowed his eyes. He continued, “We aren’t some weak team, guys. Just because we lost a few times doesn’t mean we’re suddenly shit! These are some strong teams, yes. But we’re fucking strong too! Can we beat them? You bet we can! We’re going to practice our damndest and win this whole tournament! We’ll prove to Shi Hang and everyone else that we belong on this stage!”

The speech had the desired effect. Sun Ruinian smiled when he saw the expression from his teammates lift. He then turned back to look at the large LCD screen. And frowned. Can we beat them? If Shi Hang was here, we could, I’m sure of that. But without him? With this team…? He sighed and shook his head. We’ll have to give it our all. And we’ll probably need to get lucky as well.

✹

Lin Feng nodded and said, “They’re actually not half bad! That Thresh Support-guy was pretty decent even! I’d score his hooks at about half as good as mine!”

An Xin glanced at Lin Feng and shook her head. Always bragging… She then smiled and noted, “Their Support was pretty solid on his Tresh. His Nami in the first game was strong too.”

Zeng Rui massaged his temples and interjected, “Zhang Hongyi.” He looked at the others and continued, “That’s his name. The Support, I mean. Zhang Hongyi. He’s a senior student at Beijing Chaoyang High School #4. A Master on the Ionia server, though he’s closer to a Challenger than a Master. His grade is about B+ to A- and he specializes in aggressive Supports.”

Lin Feng’s eyes went wide and he said, “Wooow! It’s so cool how much you remember! Did you read about him once too? Do you do this for everyone we play against? Hey! Do you also know what every opponent’s favourite food is?”

Zeng Rui clenched his fists until the white showed on his knuckles and explained, “There’s some history between me and Zhang Hongyi. It’s complicated. Too much to go into right now.”

Lin Feng scrunched his eyebrows. History? Complicated? Too much to go into? His eyes lit up and he exclaimed, “I wanna know! The last game is boring anyway! Just tell me! Tell me!”

Zeng Rui shook his head.

There was a short moment of silence. Lin Feng stared at Zeng Rui waiting for a response. More and more impatient. He was about to say something, when Tang Bingyao stood up and asked, “Uhm, where’s the restroom?”

Chu Fang pointed at the backstage area and said, “Down there and then in the corridor to the left. There are signs, you won’t miss it.” He briefly paused before adding, “Be careful. The match is about to end and it’ll be busy. We’ll wait here for you.”

✹

The players from Team Guangzhou were also present at the Tianhe Stadium on the first day of the main tournament. They were sitting on their spots in the player seating area, watching the last game of the day. The three Chinese players weren’t paying much attention, though. They were still talking about the previous game in which Team Beijing showed an overwhelming performance.

Team Guangzhou’s Support said, “Team Beijing is looking really strong… Can’t believe that was with their second roster too!”

“Yeah!” Team Guangzhou’s Jungler exclaimed. He shook his head and continued, “I really wonder how strong they are when they’ve got their best Top- and Midlaner playing!”

Team Guangzhou’s Toplaner shrugged and said, “What if it’s all just a trick? You know, that they’ve been playing with their main roster this whole time and that the two who’ve been sitting out are the real substitutes?”

Team Guangzhou’s Support chuckled and replied, “You do make a strong point. I don’t believe they’re so cocky that they won’t field their strongest team in the main tournament! Even by our standards that’s way out there!”

Team Guangzhou’s coach relaxed back in his chair and smiled. Good kids. They’re just the right amount of arrogant! This is such a strong team! I might not play League, but I know sports. I’ve worked in sports all my life! We’ve got the best team and we’ve got the best players! He glanced at Goalie and Seo and grinned. Especially with those two. Koreans are just better than Chinese players right now. I don’t know if it’s the environment in which they grow up or what, but they’re better. Our team is better. He nodded at the three Chinese players and said, “You guys are right. Team Beijing does look strong. They might very well turn out to be our strongest competition in this entire tournament! But even if they are, what’s there to worry about? I don’t believe for a second they’ve got a stronger team than ours.”

“Exactly,” Team Guangzhou’s Toplaner replied.

Team Guangzhou’s coach turned to Goalie and asked, “What do you think? About Team Beijing I mean.”

Goalie looked at his interpreter, listening to the translation. He then grinned, his sickly pale skin looking like it was about to crack, and replied, “A bunch of trash. I can wreck their Midlaner with one finger on the keyboard!”

Team Guangzhou’s coach chuckled and then turned to look at Seo and asked, “What about you, Seo? Think you’ll have any problems down in bot?”

Seo moved his hand through his blonde dyed hair while listening to the interpreter. He then replied in Korean, “These guys have never seen a good ad-carry in their lives.” He stood up from his seat and added, “Waste of my time to think about these teams. I’mma take a piss.” He then walked away, shaking his head. Why do I have to play against all these shitty players? I don’t care about beating some scrubs at League! Fuck that shit! The only reason I even accepted this offer is because of all the Chinese hotties! There are so many of them and they spread their legs right away when I mention I’m a Korean Challenger! Hehe! The guys back at home are going to be so jealous when I show them who I all did!

✹

Tang Bingyao stood in front of the sink and stared at her reflection in the mirror. Team Beijing is really good. Really, really good! And because they made sure the footage of their games wasn’t uploaded, we didn’t know they were this good until now! This is so unfair! They’re basically cheating! But Chu Fang said it was some server error… She bit on her lips. Mnh-mnh! I’m not going to give up!

Tang Bingyao sighed loudly and muttered, “Why do they have to be so good?” She shook her head as she walked out of the restroom. Their Support was just on another level! He looked like Zeng Rui but then more aggressive, more like me! Mhm! Maybe… She shook her head. Zeng Rui is the better Support. And I’m the better ad-carry! We’ll win the bot lane! And with Lin Feng in the mid lane, we’ll win that too. MHM! We’re going to beat them! She smiled and looked around her. The long concrete corridors of the Tianhe Stadium felt cold to her. She shrugged and looked at the far end of the hall where she saw someone walking in her direction. She squinted her eyes a bit and then chuckled. He looks like a girl! Is he a trap? Look at his hair! Why did he dye it like that? He’s like… like one of those magazine models! I really don’t get what girls see in those guys! That hair just looks so stupid! I like the unkempt, just out of bed, dark hair way more! Kind of like… Lin Feng. She smiled.

On the other end of the corridor, Seo walked towards Tang Bingyao. He grinned and mumbled, “They’re so easy! It’s like they’ve never seen anyone with any kind of talent befo–” He stopped himself and looked across the hall. Is that…? He squinted his eyes, and then they opened wide. It’s her! It’s that cutie from yesterday! She’s the one from Team Shanghai! SWEET! It’s like it’s meant to be! God’s put us together here! He glanced up and nodded. Thanks! He then looked back at Tang Bingyao. Really looked. She’s so hot! The way that t-shirt shows her tits, hehe! The Blitz raising his hands to hold ‘em tits up, hehe!

Seo licked his lip and flicked his hair back. Game time! He ran up to Tang Bingyao and winked at her. He then leaned towards her and said, “귀염둥이, 안녕? 난 팀 광저의 한국인 ADC 서야. 심심한데 오빠랑 뽀뽀나 할까?”

Tang Bingyao took a step back and frowned in disgust. I-is he trying to smell me? She looked at Seo, shook her head and mumbled, “Leave me alone, creep.”

It was the next morning that the Winter Collegiate Cup: The Main Tournament officially started! Lin Feng couldn’t contain his excitement. He was up before the sun came up and sped down to the dining hall to wolf down a massive breakfast. By the time he finished his morning routine, the rest of the team and Su Xue also came down to the dining hall. Team Shanghai wasn’t playing on the first day, but Zeng Rui made it a point that they had to watch every game. And the first series started at 7 A.M.

When Team Shanghai arrived at the Tianhe Stadium, there was already a long line of fans looking to buy tickets and watch the games. Chu Fang led Team Shanghai past the crowd and into a side entrance. They walked through the backstage area and then walked out onto the grass field. The multicoloured lights were flashing around the stadium and the first two teams had taken their places in the soundproof booths. Chu Fang pointed to a specific corner right in front of the stage and said, “That’s the player seating area right there.”

“Uh-huh, uh-huh,” Lin Feng replied, though he wasn’t looking at where Chu Fang was pointing. His eyes were locked on the largest LCD screen he’d ever seen. It was showing the Champion Select for Game 1 of the match between Wuhan University and Harbin Institute of Technology. His mouth fell open and he mumbled, “Wow… It’s so big!”

An Xin nodded and said, “The Guangzhou Esports Association really went all out. Chu Fang wasn’t kidding!”

“Come,” Zeng Rui interrupted. He led the team members to their seats and then continued, “Pay attention to the games. Watch for what happens. Either one of them could be our opponent in the next round or the round after. We’re going to be prepared for that.”

Zhang Hao and Tang Bingyao nodded and focused their complete attention on the large LCD screen.

The first game between Wuhan University and Harbin Institute of Technology was incredibly even. Neither team pulled ahead in the laning phase and neither team managed to get a favourable engage for a teamfight in the mid game. It wasn’t until the very late game, nearly 50 minutes in, that Wuhan University found the opening they’d been looking for. They pounced on it, scored the ace, and closed out the game.

The oversized speakers on both sides of the stage boomed with a victory song as the audience leaped to their feet and celebrated the first game in the main tournament. This lasted for a good few minutes until the two teams went into Champion Select for the second game.

“Who do you think will win this one?” Zhang Hao asked.

Zeng Rui glanced at the notepad he was scribbling on and replied, “Wuhan.”

Su Xue nodded and said, “Yeah! Their ad-carry looked really strong in that first game! He was the one who spotted that opening there at the end!”

Zeng Rui looked up from his notepad at Su Xue and explained, “Wuhan’s a B grade team. Their starplayer is indeed their ad-carry. He’s a famous Challenger on the Ionia server. During the previous edition of the Collegiate Cup, the analysts ranked him at B+. But from the looks of it, he’s at the very edge to the A- grade now.”

An Xin smiled and said, “That’s to be expected. We’re all always trying to get better.”

Tang Bingyao nodded and mumbled, “Mhm, yeah.” She then focused her attention on the large LCD screen. I need to watch him! I’m also almost A grade. Or I am already… It’s close! Maybe I can see something in his game that can help me!

The second game got underway. It was completely different from the first. Wuhan University had shaken off the nerves that kept them back in the first game and were now playing at a level befitting their status. All three lanes won, with the bot lane pushing towards the inner tower at only 9 minutes in. When the game reached the 20th minute, Wuhan University was destroying Harbin Institute of Technology’s base. It only took a few more minutes to close it out.

“As expected,” Zeng Rui said.

　✹

There were still more people entering the stadium when the second match of the main tournament started. This series was between Zhejiang University and China University of Political Science and Law. Two greats in the university scene. Both had made it very far in the previous edition of the tournament and the audience knew exactly who they were.

“Zhejiang! Zhejiang! Zhejiang!”
“China Pol is gonna win this one!”
“Without AyDeeCee, Zhejiang is really making it hard on themselves!”
“They’re both B+ grade! It’s gonna be a good one!”
“I’ma sit at the edge of my seat for this one. Woooooo!”

On the left side was China Pol. Five players sat behind the computers in the soundproof booth, steady gazes on their screens. They’d worked hard over the past six months to make up for getting knocked out in the previous edition of the Collegiate Cup by Fudan University. The team captain looked at his teammates and said, “We’re not letting these damn teams from East China walk all over us! It’s time for payback! This is what we’ve been working so hard for! Let’s show them how much we’ve improved!”

The Midlaner grinned and added, “Without AyDeeCee they ain’t shit!”

Across the stage in the other soundproof booth, the players from Zhejiang University sat up straight in their gaming chairs. Ready. Focused. Relaxed. Sun Ruinian looked at them and said, “Last night’s practice was great. Now let’s show Shi Hang how good we really are. These guys we’re up against? They won’t stop us. We’ll use them to show everyone we belong at this stage!”

“Heck yeah!” the Toplaner replied.

The first game got underway. It was a terrible start for Zhejiang University. China Pol invaded Zhejiang University’s Jungle and picked up three kills, losing no one. On the back of those three kills, they won the laning phase in the mid and bot lane. That gave them enough of an advantage to push them into a relatively easy mid game. They pushed their weight around and finally after 32 minutes they closed it out. Zhejiang University’s nexus exploded, the fans in the crowd cheered, and China Pol was up 1-0 in this best of three series.

Sun Ruinian exhaled through his mouth and closed his eyes. This is just one game. We lost a bit of focus at the start there. Just nerves. These are just nerves. He took another deep breath and then opened his eyes again. He looked at his teammates and smiled. “Alright,” he started. “That wasn’t great. But now that we’ve had a game to get rid of the nerves, we can finally start playing.” He briefly paused before adding, “We need to win this, guys.”

The other players from Zhejiang University all nodded. They gripped their mice a little tighter and flexed their keyboard hand. Then it was time for Game 2. It was a bit different from the first game. Zhejiang University looked like a different team, and it all started with Sun Ruinian. Rather than playing a strong but calm game, he went on the aggressive. He knew he was the better player and he showed it. His Lucian dashed around the lane, dodging skillshots and pulling the triggers on his two pistols. Light bullets lit the lane up and China Pol’s Botlaners died multiple times.

Zhejiang University won all three lanes in the second game. They pushed this advantage into the mid game, winning team fight after team fight and claiming the Dragon and Baron Nashor. It was with the Baron Buff that they also pushed to finish the game. A purple aura increased their stats and also the stats of their nearby minions. China Pol tried to defend, but ended up getting aced. Zhejiang University claimed the second game of the series.

“WOOOOOOOOOO!”
“SUN RUINIAN, SUN RUINIAN, HE’S BRIGHTER THAN THE SUN!”
“GOD DIGGITY DAMN!”

In only the second series of the day it went to an all deciding Game 3. The players from Zhejiang University and China Pol hyped themselves up and got into Champion Select. Both sides went with an early game composition that relied heavily on winning their lanes. Zhejiang University was the one who won those lanes. From there, it wasn’t really a game anymore. They needed some time to destroy the towers and win the game, all the while China Pol desperately tried to defend, but they’d basically secured their victory in the laning phase. Led by Sun Ruinian, Zhejiang University didn’t make any mistakes. After a thrilling series, they moved on to the next round by knocking out China University of Political Science and Law 2 to 1.

Tang Bingyao stared intently at the large LCD screen and mumbled, “So good… Sun Ruinian played so good!”

Zeng Rui looked at Tang Bingyao and said, “That second and third game? Yeah, he played out of his mind good.”

An Xin smiled and chimed in, “He’s almost as good as you are, Tang Tang!”

Tang Bingyao felt her cheeks heat up. She shook her head and replied, “Mnh-mnh. He’s better. The way he played that last teamfight in the second game? When he got that quadra with his Tristana? I don’t think I could’ve done that. He played really strong. If I’m about A-, then he is at least A.” She moved her head back and forth before adding, “Maybe even A+.”

Lin Feng ruffled his hair, grinning, and said, “You guys are right! That wasn’t bad at all! Shi Hang has done well teaching Sun Ruinian!”

✹

There were a few more matches in the morning, but none of them were especially interesting for Team Shanghai. The only one Zeng Rui had them pay specific attention to was when Shenyang Institute of Technology came up to play. They were the runners up in the previous edition and showed everyone why. They crushed their opponents and moved on to the next round after only 40 minutes of gameplay.

Zhang Hao stared at the large LCD screen and mumbled, “They’re even better than Zhejiang…”

“Exactly,” Zeng Rui replied. He looked at everyone and said, “I hope we all understand that we need to pay close attention to this team.”

Lin Feng shrugged and said, “I don’t know. It kind of feels like we’re watching one of those soap dramas, you know? We’re the main characters watching all these side characters come and go!”

“Idiot,” An Xin said, shaking her head.

It was in this fashion that the morning drew to a close. Team Shanghai left the stadium and took a cab to a restaurant. They had a quick lunch, after which Zeng Rui made them hurry back to the Tianhe Stadium for the afternoon matches. Su Xue didn’t tag along for these games, though. She waved Team Shanghai off and said, “I’ve got my meeting with HuyaTV! Enjoy the games!”

“Thanks!” An Xin said. She smiled and added, “Goodluck with your interview!”

Lin Feng struck his victory pose and shouted, “You’re going to stomp the interview!”

Su Xue looked at Lin Feng, incredulous. Then she chuckled and replied, “Thanks! See you guys later!” She watched the players from Team Shanghai get in their cab and waved them off. She then hailed a cab for herself and went to the HuyaTV headquarters.

The HuyaTV headquarters were located in the center of Guangzhou. Su Xue stood in front of the large building and looked up at the massive glass panels. She mumbled, “Wow! So impressive…” She chewed on her lips and took a deep breath, then she walked through the revolving door and into the building. When she saw the interior, her eyes went round in surprise. This all looks so clean and professional! I love it! And they want me to work here! She smiled and nodded at herself.

After receiving a visitor tag from the receptionist, Su Xue walked around the entrance hallway and looked at the other people there. Many of them were men in expensive suits. But there was also a group of young women dressed in short skirts and low cut shirts. She watched them, chewing on her lips, and felt her heart slamming against her ribcage. Harder. Faster. They look like streamers… I think… That’s… Shit I forgot her name but I’ve definitely seen her on the frontpage before! Shit! Her stomach twisted into a knot. They’re all dressed the same! Is Huya going to ask me to also wear those kinds of clothes? I really don’t want to…–

“Excuse me, Miss Su,” a man said to Su Xue. He waited for her to turn around and then continued, “If you could follow me please.”

Su Xue nodded and followed behind him. They took the elevator up to one of the top floors and walked through several long hallways before stopping in front of a room. The man opened the door and pointed inside. He said, “Miss Su, please take a seat. Zong Yao will be with you shortly.”

“Okay, thanks,” Su Xue replied. She walked inside and sat down at the small wooden table. There were only two chairs and she chose the one that let her see the door. She waited for a few minutes when a man in his 30s walked inside. She recognized him as Zong Yao, the HuyaTV admin she’d been in contact with. He sat down across from her, smiled at her and said, “We’ve talked a few times over QQ already. It’s good to finally meet you in person, Miss Su. I’ve already given you a rough gist of the situation. Have you had time to think about the offer?”

Su Xue chewed on the inside of her cheek, caught off guard by how to the point Zong Yao was. He sounded far more chilled on the QQ chat? And he only gave me a rough idea. Am I supposed to reply to that? Or did he forget that he didn’t tell me more…? I’ll just… “Uhm…” She briefly hesitated but then said, “I’ve thought about it a lot, yeah. I think I have a decent idea of what you’re asking me, but I’d like to know a few more details before making my decision.”

Zong Yao smiled and replied, “There’s nothing to worry about, Miss Su. We aren’t trying to cheat you here. Our goal is to grow together! You’ll get the full package! We will help you with everything! And I’m not just talking about promoting your HuyaTV channel here. We’d like to see you expand into different markets as well!” He briefly paused, smiling a little brighter, before he continued, “You’ve already had a go at making video’s correct? So we want to help you out with that! What we will do is basically to help you with promoting the videos and adding in advertisements. You’ll also be interested to know that we’ve partnered up with several gaming companies recently. That means early access to new video games, guest appearances on popular programs, you name it! Better yet, we can even get you casting positions in official League of Legends tournaments! Just think about how many people will see your face! And in the description of these streams, there’ll be links to your channel. Everyone will find you!”

Su Xue’s mouth fell open a bit. A lot of what Zong Yao told her she already expected, but hearing him say it was still a shock to her. She wanted to say something, but Zong Yao raised his finger and interrupted, “Now for the important part.” He briefly paused and made sure he had Su Xue’s full attention. Then he continued, “When you grow big enough, we’ll organize fan meetings for you! We’ll open a webshop for you and help you create your own merchandise! After, of course, helping you create your brand! You’ll sell tens of thousands of ‘Su Xue’ T-shirts!”

Su Xue lightly shook her head. It’s too much! I don’t get it! They’re giving me so much! What are they getting out of it? And why me? I’m not even that big! There are other streamers far bigger than me! Why me…? She took a deep breath and asked, “This all sounds really tempting, but I’m just… Can I ask why you chose me?”

Zong Yao smiled and replied, “Because of your endless potential of course! You’ve grown from nothing to tens of thousands of concurrent viewers in only a few months! You know how many streamers manage that?” He made a zero with his fingers and continued, “None. Just you. And it still looks like you’re growing quickly! Sure there are other streamers out there who have more viewers right now. But in a few months from now? In a year from now? We can see you blow them away with far greater numbers! You should know, your audience retention rate is one of the highest on all of HuyaTV! And the same is true for your conversion rate for followers and subscribers!”

The sudden burst of compliments caught Su Xue off guard. Her face heated up and she slumped back in her chair a bit. She looked down at the table and smiled. I’m really doing good! I knew my stats were okay, but he’s saying they’re some of the best! That’s like, like so much more than just okay!

Zong Yao gave half a minute for the information to settle and then asked, “Do you know why this is?”

Su Xue looked up at Zong Yao and mumbled, “Why this is…?” She looked back down at the table and bit on her tongue. What is this for a question? How am I supposed to answer? Whatever I say, I’m going to sound like a narcissistic bitch! ‘Because I’m so good’ or ‘because no one is as much fun as me’…

Zong Yao didn’t wait for an answer. He continued, “It’s because you’re genuine. A lot of streamers sit behind their camera and play a role that is specifically aimed at making money. You’re not like that. You’re yourself, even if that means you don’t make that quick buck. And people connect with that. They connect with you. They form a kind of kinship that runs far deeper than the artificial relationships a lot of streamers build up with their fanbase. That’s why your retention and conversion numbers are so high. Because consciously or unconsciously, people can tell the difference.”

Su Xue waved her hands and said, “No, no! I’m not better than other streamers! They’re also doing good! I was just trying to build a community that I’d want to be a part of myself, and, and…–”

Zong Yao winked at Su Xue and interrupted, “Miss Su, I see so much potential in you. Will you please consider my offer?”

✹

It was already late in the afternoon when the host of the Winter Collegiate Cup announced the eighth game of the day. Team Beijing, the first high school team to play in the main tournament, was facing off against Nanjing University. When the audience heard this, they sat up a bit straighter in their seats. The announcement that three high school teams were competing in this university event had initially led to a lot of resistance from both fans and the university teams. But after all three high school teams qualified for the main tournament, most people became excited to watch them play.

“Didn’t Team Beijing scrim against the best teams from North China and beat all of them?”
“Not just the scrims. They won the North China Regionals!”
“Damn high schoolers… Those kids are on steroids or something!”
“No kidding. It’s like they’re all A grade teams!”

The discussions in the audience suddenly came to a stop. Everyone had done a bit of research on the three high school teams. They knew the players. And they could now all see that Team Beijing was not playing with their strongest line up! They were playing with the same team that had helped them win the North China Regionals! A murmur went through the crowd.

“Are they for real? What the hell! This is the main tournament!”
“Holy shit! It’s the same line up as the regionals! They’re playing with their subs!”
“Two subs, right? Damn! They’re so cocky!”
“I don’t think their real Toplaner and Midlaner have played a single game this entire tournament!”
“Do they really think they’re that much better than Nanjing?”
“Maybe this is their best line up and they’re just saying those two are their subs…?”

Zeng Rui looked over his shoulder at the stands rising up behind him. He listened to the discussion, knitting his brows. He finally turned back around and mumbled, “They’re not being cocky. More like, they know exactly how good they are and how good their opponents are. They know they won’t need their best players for this series.”

Chu Fang turned his head to look at Lin Feng and said, “You just ate more than two families eat in a week! How are you not tired? Let that after dinner… after lunch dip settle in and go nap!”

Tang Bingyao covered her mouth and yawned. She rubbed her eyes, tired, and said, “Yeah, after lunch dip. I’m tired. I think I’m going to nap. See you guys tonight…” She smiled a bit and then walked away to the elevator, yawning again. I couldn’t sleep at all last night! I shouldn’t have been so nervous… It was just flying! There wasn’t anything special about it. But… She yawned again. It was my first time.

Su Xue blinked and shook her head. Why are yawns always so infectious!? She covered her mouth and yawned, then said, “Looks like I’m also ripe for a nap. See you guys!” She then ran after Tang Bingyao and shouted, “Tang Tang! Hold the elevator for me!”

“For me too!” Zhang Hao exclaimed. He quickly nodded at Chu Fang and said, “I didn’t get much sleep last night. I’ll also take a nap!”

Lin Feng watched everyone leave, frowning, and complained, “You guys suck! All of you! Do I have to go out by myself now?”

“No, I’m good. I’ll tag along,” An Xin interjected.

The usual grin reappeared. Lin Feng struck his victory pose and shouted, “Awesome! Come! Let’s go find a place to eat!”

“But we just ate…” An Xin muttered, speechless.

“I’m still hungry!” Lin Feng exclaimed. He then grabbed An Xin by the arm and pulled her with him, babbling, “Come come! Don’t you hear my stomach growling? I’m super hungry! I’m almost starving!”

“But we just ate…” An Xin muttered again.

Chu Fang watched the two leave, relieved. Thought for a second there that I’d have to tag along with him. We can’t have Lin Feng go out by himself. Knowing him, he’ll get himself into trouble and that can’t happen! Everything from here on out has to go perfect! Especially with him. We need him to beat Beijing and Guangzhou. The rest doesn’t matter, just that he beats those two teams! And then preferably wins the tournament. He smiled and shouted after Lin Feng and An Xin, “You kids have fun! Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do!”

✹

Lin Feng dragged An Xin through the streets of Guangzhou. Several familiar sights jogged his memory and he started to find his way around. Then he stopped. He looked around at skyscrapers all around them and exclaimed, “Wow! BunBun! Guangzhou has changed so much! That big building over there? I don’t remember it! And over there! Wasn’t that building a different colour? It all looks so different! And there are so many people! Where did all these people come from!?”

An Xin smiled and replied, “You idiot. Of course it’s even bigger and more beautiful! It’s been four whole years! You know how long that is?”

Lin Feng paused to look at An Xin. Four years… It has been long. With the guys, with Fatty… He suddenly grinned and said, “So I was on the phone with Fatty the other day and we were talking about the best small restaurants in Guangzhou. We based it on the reviews and the places we’ve been to. But that’s not enough! We need to taste every place to confirm our choices! So how about we go to every restaurant on the list and try out their food!?”

“I’m not getting fat for you,” An Xin blurted. She shook her head and added, “You’re already calling me BunBun…–”

“Because you looked like a bun!” Lin Feng interrupted. He threw his hands up in the air and complained, “Why won’t you eat with me? You’re not fat anymore! I wanna go eat! Why did you even come along if you didn’t want to go eat with me!?”

An Xin shook her head and smiled. She looked at Lin Feng and said, “To sightsee. I want to walk through the city with you! Maybe visit a museum! Play a game at the arcade! I just want to have fun and explore the city!”

The grin disappeared from Lin Feng’s face. He stared at An Xin, stunned. “No,” He said, slowly shaking his head. “No… I don’t like sightseeing! If that’s what you want to do, then just let me go back to the hotel! I’ll try out their restaurant and see if it needs to get added to our list!”

“Nope, you’re not going back,” An Xin replied. She grabbed Lin Feng by the arm and started walking again, saying, “You dragged me here, so we’re going. I’ll drag you the rest of the way if I have to!”

“The rest of the way where?” Lin Feng asked.

An Xin shrugged and said, “You’ll see.”

Lin Feng grumbled quiet complaints for the next 10 minutes as An Xin led him through the streets of Guangzhou until they arrived in the commercial district. The already crowded streets became even busier. Shop owners were selling their wares and pedestrians would randomly stop in the middle of the road to look at something for sale behind a window. Lin Feng’s eyes opened wide. He screamed, “No! NO! I don’t wanna! NO! Let me go! BunBun! Let me go! I wanna go back!”

“Not happening,” An Xin replied, smiling. She stopped in front of a perfume boutique and smelled the different fragrances coming out from the store. She winked at Lin Feng and suggested, “Let’s go in here! I wanna see what they have!”

“You can go in. I’m going back!” Lin Feng shouted, pouting.

An Xin grinned and pulled Lin Feng inside. She winked at the people watching them and then whispered to Lin Feng, “They’re all watching you, wondering what a pretty girl like me is doing next to a cryboy like you. You want them to think that about you?”

“I DON’T CARE!” Lin Feng exclaimed. He huffed and said, “I just wanna go back to the hotel!”

Every complaint Lin Feng threw at An Xin made her smile grow bigger. She pestered him for the next half an hour, going from one shop to the next, each progressively worse for Lin Feng. She finally stopped in front of a Victoria’s Secret and said, “Shall we go in—”

“NO! NO! NO!” Lin Feng screamed. He pulled his arm free with actual force and shook his head. He looked around in search of an escape. WhereWhere, anywhere! I need to— His eyes lit up. He pointed at a claw machine outside a small store and said, “There! I wanna go to that shop! Please? Can we not go in…” he grimaced and pointed at the Victoria’s Secret. “… here?”

An Xin looked at Lin Feng, still smiling. Guess I teased him enough. She nodded and said, “Sure. Let’s go to the… claw machine. Why do you even like a claw machine anyway? Aren’t you a bit old for that?”

Lin Feng shook his head and pointed at a sign above the machine. He said, “Don’t you see that sign? It’s a League of Legends claw machine!” He then ran towards it and pushed his face against the glass. They’re plushies! There is Ashe! And Ahri! That’s LeBlanc! He turned to look at An Xin and shouted, “They’re League of Legends plushies! I was right! It really is League of Legends! They look amazing too!”

An Xin caught up to Lin Feng and looked through the glass at the plushies. She said, “The Ashe one is really cute.”

Lin Feng pulled up his sleeve and said, “I’ll get it for you!”

Each attempt cost ¥2. Lin Feng threw the money in and grabbed the joystick. He then moved it, trying his best to aim, before sending the claw down to grab the prize! The claw moved down and wrapped around the Ashe plush. It started pulling her up. Lin Feng leaned closer to the glass and whispered, “Come on, come on!” And then the Ashe slipped from the claw’s grasp and fell back down. “Aw, come on!” Lin Feng exclaimed.

Lin Feng felt around in his pockets and took out some more money. He threw it into the machine and exclaimed, “Again!” He grabbed the joystick and aimed for the Ashe. The claw went down. It was a monumental miss. Lin Feng groaned and complained, “So close! I thought I had it!” He turned to look at BunBun and said, “I don’t have any more cash on me. Do you have…”

“You suck at this, you know?” An Xin replied, smiling. She then took out her wallet and gave Lin Feng some money. He grabbed the cash from her and threw it into the machine to buy four more attempts. And he failed four more times. The only consolation was that on a particularly poor attempt, he grabbed a different plushy. It was a Garen. He took it from the machine and gave it to An Xin, saying, “Here.”

An Xin examined the plushy from every angle before complaining, “This is Garen… I wanted Ashe.”

Lin Feng pursed his lips and kicked against an imaginary rock. He mumbled, “I’ll come back for that Ashe plushy! Trust me! Just take the Garen for now! But we’re going to come back here and I’mma bring all my money to get you that Ashe!”

An Xin looked at Lin Feng and smiled. Why is he so nice today… She hugged the Garen and said, “With your goldfish memory and our full schedule, I doubt you’ll remember it. Guess I’ll have to learn to like this Garen.” She then winked at Lin Feng and suggested, “Wanna get a pastry? I still got my card.”

“Yes!” Lin Feng exclaimed. He grinned and added, “You always come so well prepared! I don’t know what I’d do without you!”

✹

It was almost 6 P.M. when Lin Feng and An Xin returned to the hotel. They took the elevator up to the 23rd floor and walked over to their rooms that were opposite each other. Lin Feng swiped his keycard to unlock the door and pushed it open. A wave of noise slammed into him. He furrowed his brows and looked into the room. Chu Fang was sitting at a table with the team and Su Xue, talking about something. Lin Feng asked, “What are you guys doing here?”

Chu Fang looked up and said, “Good. You’re back. I was about to call you.”

An Xin looked over her shoulder into Lin Feng’s hotel room. She raised an eyebrow and asked, “What’s going on here?”

Zeng Rui looked up from his phone and said, “The Guangzhou Esports Association posted the brackets for the first round of the tournament online.”

“We got super lucky!” Zhang Hao exclaimed. He turned his phone to show Lin Feng and An Xin and continued, “We got matched up against Guangzhou Tech Institute! The game is in two days!”

“Guangzhou Tech?” An Xin asked. She tilted her head and looked up at the ceiling for a brief moment before asking, “They’re the third place team from South China, correct?”

Zeng Rui nodded and explained, “Correct. They’re a B grade team. They’re a weak team. We shouldn’t have any trouble beating them.”

“So we’ve already practically qualified for the next round?” Lin Feng asked.

Zeng Rui looked up at Lin Feng and frowned. He then slowly shook his head and replied, “We haven’t. Until we’ve beaten them, we aren’t in the next round. And just because we’re better on paper doesn’t mean we’ll show that ingame. We have to come prepared.” He briefly paused before adding, “Beyond that, we also need to pay attention to the other teams.”

Chu Fang lifted his hand and said, “Someone couldn’t count, so there might be a few more teams than there should be. After the first round, we move on to an in-between round before going to the Round of 16. The half of 36 is 18 and we need 16 teams. So four teams will be drawn at random from the winners in the first round. Then when we’ve got 16 teams, the real thing starts.”

Lin Feng waved his hand and replied, “Who cares? We’ll just win both series and move on to the Round of 16. Easy enough!”

Zeng Rui closed his eyes and massaged his temples. You, you, you thundering dumbass! It’s not all that easy! We can get matched up against the winners from last year in that ‘in-between’ round if we’re unlucky! Our tournament could be over then and there! Stop taking everything so damn, so damn… He took a deep breath, trying to calm his raging emotions. Don’t let him get to you. Don’t let him get to you. He took another deep breath and said, “Something else entirely. I got contacted by Sun Ruinian. He’s asking if we want to scrim tonight.”

Chu Fang chimed in, “Zhejiang University was a lot less fortunate with their draw. They’re up against the China University of Political Science and Law. Those guys nearly knocked out Fudan University last year! It was a super close 5-game series! And the bad news doesn’t end there for Zhejiang. They also have very little time to prepare. They’re playing in the second group tomorrow!”

“A scrim, huh?” Lin Feng mumbled, rubbing his chin. He then clapped his hands and said, “Sure, why not! But I’mma count this as doing Shi Hang a favour!”

Zeng Rui snorted and said, “I’ve already agreed. We need a strong scrim partner to practice. Zhejiang is a great team for that.”

Su Xue looked up from her phone at Lin Feng and An Xin. She scrunched her nose. Why is BunBun hugging that Garen? Wait, where did she get it? It looks great! I want one! She pointed at the Garen plushy and asked, “That looks so cute, BunBun! Where did you get it?”

An Xin smiled and said, “Lin Feng got it for me from a claw machine.–”

“After the scrim I’m going back there and getting the Ashe!” Lin Feng interrupted.

Zeng Rui looked up at Lin Feng and said, “That’s right. After the scrim. Until then I want you focused!”

✹

Team Shanghai and Zhejiang University met up at an internet cafe at 7 P.M. The players from both teams nodded and looked at each other but didn’t really say anything. That all changed when Lin Feng grinned and stepped forward. He grabbed Sun Ruinian’s hand, shook it and said, “Long time no see!”

“Whu?” Sun Ruinian blurted. He looked down at his hand in surprise. What just… He shook his head and pulled his hand back. He then turned to look at Chu Fang and bowed. He said, “Thanks for agreeing to this scrim request on such short notice.”

An Xin smiled and replied, “It’s fine. You guys are a strong team. This scrim will be great practice for us too!”

“Hey! Where’s Shi Hang?” Lin Feng interrupted.

Sun Ruinian looked back at Lin Feng and explained, “He joined a team that competes in the LPL, so he won’t be playing for us anymore. But we’ve got a strong team, even without him! We won’t be easy to beat!”

The players behind Sun Ruinian all nodded. They stared down their lane opponents, fires of determination blazing in their eyes.

“We’re going to make it all the way to the end!”
“We’ve got this, for the cap!”
“Tomorrow, we’ll show everyone why we deserve to be here!”
“For Shi Hang!”

Chu Fang looked at the players from Zhejiang University and smiled. Looks like they took their loss against Team Shanghai pretty well. Shi Hang sounded worried the other day that these guys might sulk and give up, but they’re not looking like that at all! Guess he was worried about nothing. These guys look like they’re here to win! It’s great to see them with so much confidence! This will be great for the East China region!

“Let’s play already!” Lin Feng suddenly shouted. He looked at everyone and continued, “Why aren’t we playing yet? What are we just standing around here for? Let’s play!”

✹

Team Shanghai and Zhejiang University played a total of six games. All of them were close, with minimal differences deciding the outcome of the match. Yet it wasn’t anything like their series in the quarterfinals of the East China Regionals. The players from Zhejiang University were ready. Prepared even. They played to the best of their ability and really pushed Team Shanghai to fight for all they were worth. As for Team Shanghai, Tang Bingyao had practically breached the A- grade, An Xin wasn’t experiencing any flare ups and hadn’t for the last couple of weeks, and Lin Feng was better than everyone else.

The mid lane difference resulted in the series ending in four wins for Team Shanghai and two for Zhejiang University. Both teams learned a ton. Zhang Hao was initially losing hard in the top lane. But with the help from An Xin, it became pretty even between the two of them and Zhejiang’s Jungler and Toplaner. Down in the bot lane was another very even battle that went back and forth between the games and during the games. The only lane that wasn’t all too exciting was the mid lane. Lin Feng was far better than Zuo Cheng. Something that was of incredible value to Zuo Cheng.

When they were all done, Lin Feng clenched his fist and raised it up to his head. He said, “You guys were great! If you play like that tomorrow, you’re gonna make it to the next round easily! Maybe you’ll even make it all the way to the Finals if you keep playing like that!” He briefly paused before adding, “Just remember that we’ll knock you out in the Finals and claim the Championship Trophy!”

Chu Fang led the members from Team Shanghai and Su Xue through the streets of Guangzhou to the Tianhe Stadium. Buildings rose up into the clouds around them, blocking the view ahead, until they walked past the last block. A massive sporting complex covering several blocks appeared before them. There were multiple buildings and a beautiful walkway leading towards the central structure. This was the stadium. It had more than 50,000 seats and hosted a large variety of games, from track and field to football to League of Legends.

Chu Fang pointed at the Tianhe Stadium and said, “See that there? That’s the Tianhe Stadium! We hosted the Asian Games there a few years ago! It’s really quite impressive from the Guangzhou Esports Association that they managed to rent this location. And it looks nothing like it normally does either! They retrofitted the entire inside to create the best esports experience! I’ve seen some photos and it’s quite frankly amazing what they did with the place!”

The group crossed the street and entered the Tianhe Sports Center. A long walkway led to the stadium. Lin Feng ran across the pavement, dangerously close to the pond in the middle of the walkway. He looked at a star-shaped building to his left and then at the stadium itself. He exclaimed, “This place is huge! This is so cool! We’re really gonna play there?”

Chu Fang nodded and replied, “You are.”

“This is so big!” Zhang Hao exclaimed. He shook his head, incredulous, and added, “It’s far bigger than the place we played Fudan University in! You can’t even compare the two!”

Zeng Rui looked past his teammates at the massive structure and smiled. This is the stage! I’m really going to play there! How many people can it hold? It has to be in the tens of thousands! Tingles pricked in his neck. He looked at Chu Fang and said, “The Guangzhou Esports Association really went all out here. This is crazy!”

“They did,” Chu Fang agreed. He went on, “They’ve been working on this for over a month now to create the best esports environment imaginable! From what I heard, they went well beyond their budget for this!”

An Xin mumbled, “Really impressive.”

The group reached the end of the walkway and entered the stadium. After going through several long hallways, they walked onto the field. Stands rose up all around them. More were placed where originally there was grass. And in the middle of the stadium stood a raised platform with a stage and two soundproof booths. Bright, multicoloured spotlights illuminated all of this, bringing the entire scene to live.

Lin Feng grinned and laughed. He shouted, “This is so awesome!” He then ran up on stage and looked through the polished glass screens into the soundproof booths. There were five of the highest quality gaming chairs placed behind the desk on which were five top of the line gaming computers, streamlined ergonomic mice and brand new mechanical keyboards.

“Wow!” Zhang Hao exclaimed. He shook his head and continued, “This isn’t just fancy, this is insane! I bet that gaming chair costs more than my entire gaming setup at home!”

Tang Bingyao hadn’t said a word the entire way. She just stared at everything around her, stunned by the riches of it all. This is all so expensive! All for the tournament I’m playing in! I’m going to play on that computer! Mhm! I’m good! Really good! They spent so much money for me to play on that computer! She smiled and mumbled, “So much money…”

“Right?” Lin Feng exclaimed, grinning. He clenched his fist and pumped it up into the air, shouting, “So much money! This is the perfect practice field! Imagine how good we’d be if we could always practice here! We’d be the best team in the entire world!”

Zeng Rui nodded and said, “It is far better than what we have at the NetCow Cafe. Yes. Alright, we’ve seen it. Let’s go and sign up.” He turned to look at Chu Fang and asked, “Where do we go for that?”

Chu Fang smiled and replied, “Follow me.”

✹

The registration period for the Winter Collegiate Cup was drawing to a close. Most teams had already come in the day before when registration opened. When Team Shanghai arrived backstage, there were only six teams with their managers remaining. Chu Fang took the IDs from Team Shanghai’s members and walked up to the desk to sign them in. The team members themselves stayed back and watched the backstage area.

Lin Feng nodded at the other teams and said, “Looks like they’re about to leave.”

An Xin followed Lin Feng’s gaze and nodded. She smiled and said, “They got here before us. We might be the last team to register! Hmm, I don’t see any of the famous teams here…”

Zeng Rui nodded and said, “Yeah, most teams signed up yesterday I’m guessing.” He then looked at Lin Feng and continued, “The ones at the door are Wuhan University. Those that just left are from Southwest China University of Politics and Law. And that group right over there, they’re Guizhou Tech Institute.”

Tang Bingyao looked at Zeng Rui, surprised. She mumbled, “Wow! You recognized all of them?”

Lin Feng chimed in, “Yeah! How did you do that?”

“The official website has pictures of the teams and players competing. I memorized them,” Zeng Rui replied.

“You memorized them? Why?” Su Xue asked in shock. She shook her head, incredulous, and mumbled, “He has some crazy photographic memory or he’s just nuts like…” She pushed her lips together and smiled.

Zhang Hao patted his chest and declared, “That’s the captain for you! He has the best memory out of everyone I know! He remembers everything! When we prepare for a game, he would always know everything about our opponents! Their favourite Champions, weaknesses, the whole works!”

Chu Fang returned to the team with their IDs just in time to hear Zhang Hao. He handed the IDs back and grinned. Yep! Zeng Rui is a monster when it comes to preparation. That’s why we’ve had our eye on him. Well, that and the fact he’s a very talented Support.

Lin Feng covered his mouth with his hand and gasped in surprise. He then exclaimed, “That’s awesome! So you only have to read a textbook once and then you get a perfect score on your exams!?”

Zhang Hao nodded and replied, “Yep! He always gets the top grades!”

Lin Feng exhaled loudly through his mouth and said, “I wish I had a superpower like that! I spent so much time on my homework… Just imagine how much more time I’d have for League if I only had to read the textbook once!” He turned to look at Zeng Rui and said, “I know! ZengZeng, how about you take my exams for me!? And also do my homework! I’ll repay you by carrying you even harder ingame!”

Zeng Rui rolled his eyes back and replied, “Piss off. Do your own homework.”

✹

Not everyone had a photographic memory like Zeng Rui. But it didn’t take one to recognize Team Shanghai. The other teams at the venue spotted them from a mile away. Team Shanghai didn’t just have the youngest members, but they were also the only team with female players on their roster.

“Those girls there, the three of them, that must be Team Shanghai, right?”
“Must be. They’re the ones with girls on the team.”
“But I thought they only had two? Why are there three? Is there another team with girls on the roster?”
“Don’t think so… Maybe it’s their coach or something?”
“Could very well be. Damn, I still can’t wrap my head around the fact they actually beat Zhejiang. And with AyDeeCee playing no less! Did you guys see that series?”
“Hot damn I did! That was such an assclencher! Had me sweating from Game 3 to the end!”
“Insane how good all these high school teams are… If you’d asked me a few weeks ago if just one of them would make it through, I would’ve called you crazy! Yet all three of them qualified and won basically everything they could win!”

It was hard to miss everyone staring at them. Tang Bingyao turned her head away from them and mumbled, “They’re all looking…”

Chu Fang smiled and said, “Of course they are! Three high school teams compete for the first time in a university tournament and all three make it all the way to the main tournament! It’d be strange if they weren’t curious about you guys.”

Lin Feng struck his victory pose and said, “Look at them! They look so scared! I bet you they’re terrified of the possibility of having to face us! They know we’re far too good!”

“Shut up,” Zeng Rui interrupted. “I don’t want to hear your bragging.”

✹

The players from Team Guangzhou were in a separate room backstage. It had tinted glass windows, allowing them to look out but stopping others from looking in. All five of the players, their two coaches and the interpreter were there. They’d just finished a meeting and were now looking at the last few teams registering for the tournament. When one of the coaches recognized Lin Feng, he pointed and said, “See that kid over there? He’s Team Shanghai’s Midlaner. He’s the one that beat AyDeeCee.”

“Him? Seriously?”
“He defeated AyDeeCee? How?”
“Look at him jumping around! He looks like a fucking idiot!”
“You can’t judge a book by its cover, but oh boy…”
“We can’t underestimate him too much, guys. He still beat AyDeeCee, though that might’ve been because AyDeeCee was out of form or something. I really don’t get how he did it…”

Goalie didn’t listen to his interpreter trying to keep up with what the Chinese teammates were talking about. He rolled his shoulder back and frowned. Why do they care if this kid beat some former pro? Any Korean Master could’ve done the same! This isn’t anything impressive. Other than Hermes, the Chinese don’t have any Midlaner worth my time. It’s just… He shook his head, regretful. It would’ve been nice to test my skills against an old legend. AyDeeCee was once a strong Midlaner. Too bad he decided to return to the LPL. Then again, he lost to this high school kid. He ain’t worth that much anymore. Probably just a waste of my time. He smiled, mockingly, as he turned his attention to Lin Feng. I’ll just have to stomp on you a bit and prove to everyone that this AyDeeCee oldie is nothing special anymore!

Seo was the new Korean import for Team Guangzhou. He played in the ad-carry position. He pointed through the window at Tang Bingyao and asked, “Who’s that girl with the ponytail?”

The interpreter looked at Seo and replied in Korean, “She’s the ad-carry for Team Shanghai. You’ll be playing her, Seo.”

Oh? Seo’s lips curved up. He licked his finger and flicked his blond dyed hair. She’d be a nice addition to my ‘done’-list! He grinned and traced his hand down his chest and to his stomach, feeling the grooves of his abs. All the girls love my body! She’ll fall for me easily! He winked at Goalie and said, “I call dibs on her!”

✹

Team Shanghai left the Tianhe Stadium and followed Lin Feng’s nose to the restaurant he’d mentioned earlier. They had their fill, agreeing that the food in Guangzhou did in fact taste different than what they usually had in Shanghai. And they all voiced their pleasant surprise at how good everything tasted. When everyone had had their fill, they paid the bill and returned to their hotel. Chu Fang informed them that the Guangzhou Esports Association would send them an email later to announce the brackets for the tournament. Beyond that, there wasn’t anything to do until the tournament started.

Chu Fang nodded at everyone and said, “You guys had to get up really early this morning to make it to the airport on time. If you’re tired, this is your chance to take a nap. Make sure you’re all well rested before the tournament starts! The brackets should be available when you wake up again.”

Zeng Rui nodded and replied, “That’s a good idea. Let’s gather back here before dinner. I’ll go see if there’s an internet cafe nearby we can use to practice tonight.”

Lin Feng looked at Chu Fang, confused. He scratched the back of his head and mumbled, “But I’m not tired. I’m not tired at all!”

The barista walked over with the coffee and tea. Su Xue watched the motions of the woman, distracted. HuyaTV has their headquarters in Guangzhou, they’ll make me move there if I take this deal. But I kind of really like my life here in Shanghai! I stream a ton, but I also go outside! Maybe not as much as I should, but still! I go outside! I have friends I meet up with and hang out with! All of that would disappear. I’d be in a place where I don’t know anyone… again. When did I come to Shanghai? A year ago? No, can’t be. Has to be less, right? She bit on her lips and lightly shook her head. It took me months just to get settled! I jumped through jobs and barely made any friends until later! If I move to Guangzhou, I’d have to do that all over again! And this time, I’ll have a job that requires my full time and then some attention! How am I even supposed to meet anyone like that? But the offer, it’s so good! I can’t just turn that down…

Zuo You winked at the barista and said, “Thanks.” She nodded at Su Xue and added, “From her too.”

The barista smiled and walked away. Su Xue didn’t notice it. She was stuck in her own mind. Her lips moved soundlessly. What do I do? I should accept the deal, right? It’s too good to say no to! Ol’ Black was really jealous about it too! But…—

“Hey, girl,” Zuo You said. She looked at Su Xue and continued, “What do you want? And I don’t want you to think about this. What’s the first thing that comes to mind. What do you want?”

Su Xue bit on her lips and shook her head. She mumbled, “My stomach churns when I think about what I want… I love my life here! With you, with Lin Feng, with everyone! I don’t wanna leave that behind, but I also don’t want to turn this deal down! I… I don’t know.”

Zuo You leaned on the table and said, “Remember when you told me you’d started streaming? When I told you you were trying something that was most likely going to fail because there were so many others… I’m rambling, but you get the point, right? You knew what you wanted! To become the biggest, most famous streamer! Now you have that opportunity! This is a real opportunity to become the biggest streamer out there, Su Xue! Isn’t this deal exactly what you’ve been working towards for the past six months?”

Su Xue’s mind went blank. Every distracting thought was gone and she just stared at her friend. She’s right. This is what I have been working towards! Then, why am I hesitating? What’s there to hesitate… She bit on her lips and watched the steam rising from her teacup. I don’t like change and it’s all so sudden. Maybe that’s why I’m worrying so much about this! Maybe I just need to push myself through this. It is a great deal! I’ll have every chance to become the biggest streamer on Huya!—

“HeyHey! This really isn’t all that difficult!” Zuo You exclaimed. She sipped from her coffee cup and continued, “This is an exclusive contract with HuyaTV! Do you know how few people in the world get this kind of offer? You and two others! In the entire world! You and two others! What’s there to hesitate or think about? Shanghai isn’t that great! And it’s not like we’ll stop being best friends! I’ll fly over all the time! And with your streaming thing, you’re not poor anymore either!” She suddenly stopped herself and mumbled, “Wait…” She tilted her head and looked Su Xue in the eyes before continuing, “Don’t tell me… Is it because of him? Are you really hesitating because of him? I know he’s on your stream a lot, but it’s your stream! You’re the streamer! Those viewers are there for you, not him!”

“You stupid! No! NO!” Su Xue yelped, shaking her head. She grabbed a small spoon and swirled her tea and whispered, “Maybe…”

“No. No. No!” Zuo You said, her eyes growing progressively wider. “Don’t tell me you fell for him! Please don’t tell me you fell in love with him! He’s still a kid!”

Su Xue scrunched her eyebrows, surprised. Whu? Love him? “No!” She yelped. She shook her head and continued, “No! That’s not it at all! It’s more like…” She turned her head to look out of the window and explained, “You know when the landlady came to my door and told me I’d have to live with him? Well, I was really upset back then. I liked my life as it was. But I didn’t have any money and had lost my job, so I needed some help. The landlady knew that, so she helped me out.

“Lin Feng barged into my room that first night. I think he wasn’t even in the apartment for 10 minutes when he showed that he has no personal boundaries. And I was really mad with him. But he was also so, so pure and innocent? He just wanted to have fun. And I think it was infectious. He brought something to my life and to the stream I was lacking before. He taught me how to, how to just have fun! You’re right, it is my stream. The viewers come for me. But I could’ve never gotten to this point if it wasn’t for him. And my viewers always ask when he’s coming on again. He is a big part of my stream.

“But it’s not even just that. Yeah he’s a big part of my stream, but I can get over that. My viewers will get over it if he doesn’t appear anymore. They’ll understand. I might lose a few of them, but most will stay. I’ll still have one of the biggest streams out there.” She sighed loudly and continued, “But he’s not just a co-streamer, and he’s not just my roommate. He’s, he is… He is my friend, my little brother, the person I wake up early for every day just to make sure he gets to school on time. The kid who forgets his keys. The guy who loves and appreciates my food more than anyone else in this world! I’m not in love with him. I’m not! Not in the way you’re thinking, anyway. But I do love him, like a little brother. He’s my family, and I don’t want to leave him behind… I, I think I want to stay with him.”

Zuo You laughed awkwardly. Don’t love him, but you do… Great work, XueXue! She looked at her friend lovingly and said, “You can’t make your decisions based on other people. Think about yourself here, XueXue. What you want for yourself. Regardless of everything and anyone else. It doesn’t matter if you accept or decline the offer. But make that decision because you want to take it or turn it down, not because you worry about someone else.”

Su Xue nodded and smiled. She said, “Thanks.” She then breathed in deeply and looked at the passing traffic outside the coffee place. What do I want… What do I want? I just don’t know. Stay I guess? Or go? Maybe… “Uch!” she exclaimed. She then shook her head and concluded, “I don’t know! I just don’t…”

✹

It was almost 7 P.M. Su Xue had finished preparing dinner half an hour ago and was now sitting at the table, impatient. Where is that little shit? Did he stay out to eat again!? He better not…– She turned her head to look at the hallway, listening to a key turn in the lock. Finally! She waited for the door to open and then shouted, “You’re late! Take your shoes off, wash your hands, and get in here! The food is getting cold!”

“Coming, coming!” Lin Feng shouted from the hallway. He stamped on his heel to take one shoe off and repeated the process for the other one. He then ran to the kitchen and sprinkled some water on his hands before rushing into the dining room. Smells so good! Su Xue is the best cook! He sat down at the table and looked at all the food Su Xue had prepared, grinning. “So good!” he said while filling his bowl with some red braised pork and stir fried beef. Then he dug in.

Su Xue watched Lin Feng devour the food and chuckled. I’d have to miss this… She grimaced and asked, “Lin Feng?”

“Mhmm?” Lin Feng replied with a full mouth. He looked at her and opened his mouth to say something, when she cut in and said, “Don’t talk with a full mouth!” He nodded and swallowed the food down, then asked, “Yeah? What’s up?”

Su Xue chewed on her lips until she asked, “If you had an opportunity presented to you. Something that could change your life and help you achieve everything you’d ever dreamt of. But by accepting it, you’d also have to give up on a lot of things you really don’t want to give up on. What would you do?”

“What would I do?” Lin Feng asked, scratching the back of his head. He then shrugged and answered, “Accept it of course!”

“But you’d have to give up on things. A price to pay…” Su Xue argued.

Lin Feng shook his head decisively and explained, “There’s always a price to pay. But it’s your dream! You don’t give up on your dream because things become a bit difficult! You think it was easy for me back in Season 1 to make it to Worlds? We didn’t have any money! There were no sponsors! We ate the cheapest food and stayed in the cheapest hostels! And if we lost a tournament, we didn’t have money even for that! But we didn’t give up on our dream of reaching Worlds! We sucked it up and kept working for it!” He grinned and added, “So what if you gotta give up on a few things? You’re getting the chance to reach your goal and make your dream reality! That’s worth everything!”

Su Xue scrunched her eyebrows, surprised. What’s gotten into him? Since when does he actually sound mature…? Who is this person and what did they do with the real Li– She shook her head and grimaced. Stop this, Su Xue! Stop making jokes to think about something else! He’s right. Zuo You is right. They’re all right! I’ve got this amazing opportunity to achieve my dream! I’ve always talked about wanting to become the biggest streamer! Zuo You and Lin Feng have spent so much time helping me get there, and now I have the chance to actually get there! She chuckled. I’m really stupid! Really, really stupid! This was never a question. I have to take this. She breathed in deeply, trying to stop her heart from slamming into her ribcage, and then breathed out. She looked at Lin Feng and said, “Thanks, I needed that. Also, I’m coming with you to Guangzhou.”

“You are?” Lin Feng asked in surprise. He then grinned and shouted, “Awesome! Are you coming just to cheer me on? That’s so nice of you! I knew you were the best! We’re gonna win the whole tournament! You’ll get to cheer me on in every round and then watch me lift the trophy!–”

“No, you idiot!” Su Xue interrupted. She glared at him and explained, “I’ve got a meeting there with HuyaTV about my future with the platform. I might become one of their faces!”

✹

Team Shanghai met up at Pudong Airport at 7 A.M. on January 12th 2016. It was the day they were going to fly to Guangzhou for the main tournament of the Winter Collegiate Cup. There were two extra people with them. The first was Chu Fang, who was the vice president of the Shanghai Esports Organization. He was the team’s manager officially and would accompany them on the trip. The second person was Su Xue who had a meeting with the executives from HuyaTV.

Lin Feng pointed at Su Xue and shouted, “I brought Su Xue with me! She’s gonna come and cheer us on all the way to the Finals!”

“I’m not,” Su Xue replied. She glared at Lin Feng and continued, “I told you, I have stuff to do in Guangzhou! But if I’ve got time, I might come and watch you guys play some.”

“See?” Lin Feng exclaimed. He patted his chest and continued, “Told you she was gonna come and cheer us on!”

Tang Bingyao nodded and said, “Mhm! Nice to have you join us!” She looked at Su Xue and smiled. When I grow up, I wanna be like her! She’s so pretty and she plays League for a living! And she makes so much money playing League too! She’s got tens of thousands of people tuning in every time she goes live! If I could get that many viewers, life would be so much easier!

An Xin smiled and said, “The more the merrier. Good to have you with us!”

The group went through the motions at the airport. Dropping off their bags, going through security, getting to the gate early and waiting to board the plane. They eventually sat down in their seats and felt that brief moment of weightlessness as the airplane took off.

The plane landed at Guangzhou Airport a good two hours later. Team Shanghai got their luggage and took a cab to the 4-star hotel they’d be staying at. Chu Fang had chosen this particular hotel because of how close it was to the Tianhe Stadium, the venue for the Winter Collegiate Cup. They checked in and went to their two person rooms. Zeng Rui and Zhang Hao took one room, An Xin and Tang Bingyao another and Lin Feng and Chu Fang the last one. As for Su Xue, she got her own room.

Team Shanghai met back up in the lobby downstairs after dropping their bags off at their rooms. Lin Feng looked around, grinning, and said, “Let’s go eat! I’m really hungry! Fatty told me about this really great restaurant that’s right near here! It’s got Canton style special dishes! I really want to go try it out! Who’s with me?”

An Xin smacked Lin Feng on the back of his head and said, “No. We’re going to register at the tournament venue first.”

Zeng Rui nodded and added, “I want to check out the venue’s facilities. It’s good for us to familiarize ourselves with the place before playing there. It helps take the edge off.”

Zhang Hao put his hand up and asked, “We might also see our potential opponents, right? The other teams will also have to check in! Maybe some are there when we go!”

Su Xue focused on the game. Her Jinx respawned in the fountain with a score of 0/5/1. I really need to do something! I’m like one of those hot tub streamers I hate so much! The other lanes are doing okay! We can still win this. All I need to do is focus! Really focus! She gritted her teeth and narrowed her eyes, and then she caught a glance of her second monitor. The message was still up there. Damnit! She turned her second monitor off and focused on the game in front of her.

「Think guys, think! Why else would xuexue be so distracted these days!」
「it’s cause she’s fallen in love!」　　「but dude, we all know xuexue. She never leaves the house! all she does is stream all day every day! It’s not like she ever goes outside to meet guys!」

「i mean… she is isnt getting any younger… aren’t most women her age married and raising children???? and like, she isnt ugly? i dunno… seems like theyred be plenty dudes looking to knock her up and tie her down for life」

「mhm! Mhm! Yeah! No one wants to be single forever!」

「forreal? You guys actually think she found a boyfriend or something!?」

「who do you guys think the boyfriend is? Like you guys said earlier, she’s pretty much at home every day. There aren’t that many guys in her life, right? 」

「hahahah, maybe it’s that barista at her local coffee shop, or maybe the guy who bags her groceries at the supermarket! Oohh, maybe she likes them older! Like the silver fox types. Old, widowed, and hot as hell! Who know? She could’ve met one downtown and soothed his lonely heart!」

「nonono! You’ve got it all wrong. Xuexue has been ordering delivery a lot lately! My money’s on the delivery boy!」

「my moneys still on lil bro… and the bed there in the back of her cam is THE BED!!!!」

「what!? No way! IIIIIILLLLLLLLLLLL」

「IS THAT EVEN LEGAL!? YOU CRADLE SNATCHER! 」

「ayaiyaiyai…. So this is what you kids call brother sister love these days…?」

「Got us some Alabama love story developing right here!!!!!」

Jinx fired a rocket at the Red Nexus! The energy within exploded up into the air! It morphed into a Victory emblem for Su Xue’s team. She clenched her fist and mumble-shouted, “Yes!” She then turned her second monitor back on and read through the stream chat she’d missed. W-what!? Every next line that popped up was worse than the previous one. W-what are they thinking!? She shook her head and yelped, “Shut up you idiots! I’m not dating Lin Feng! Oh my god! I look away for one second and you guys go off making these crazy accusations! I’m not dating Lin Feng nor am I dating the delivery boy! I’m not dating anyone!”

「hahahahhaha sure you keep saying that. we defitivenely believe you!」

「Lawl. Then explain why you suck this hard! Thought you wanted to show us quality gameplay…」

「We’re just worried about you, Su Xue. You’re our love and our life!」

「ya distracted as fuk! TELL US WHY!!!!!」

「GAWDDDDDD YOU SUUUUUUCK! wat lucky boi who get you harharharharhahra」

「were just a lil worried about our favourite streamer! Don’t blame us!」

Su Xue read through the chat and shook her head, smiling. Idiots. They say all these obscene and stupid things, but then they also say all these nice things! They genuinely care about me! And they’re right. I’ve been really out of it ever since that whole Huya thing. I should tell them… She pursed her lips and then said, “You guys don’t have to worry, I’m fine, really! I’ve just been thinking about my future as a streamer recently. How do I say it? Something big came up, and I’m not sure if I want to go for it or not. That’s why I’ve been so out of it. I’m just thinking about what I should do…”

「what!? Your future!? YOU LEAVING US!?!??!?!」

「something big!? Is that the thing you were talking about las time!? with the whole huya big news thing?」

「Tell us the details if you can! If it’s important, the more people you talk to, the better!」

「Will this affect us???????」

「Something big as in switching platforms? I heard a lot of streamers have been leaving Huya lately… Are they treating you badly or something?」

「don’t worry, xue xue! If you’re planning to leave, just let us know! We’ll follow you over! You don’t have to worry about losing popularity! No matter where you’re streaming, we’ll still give you our full support!」

「yep yep! Don’t panic! We’ll support any decision you make!」

「We’re here for you, not for the platform!!!!」

「we’re with you forever!」

「Never Gonna Give You Up!」

「Never Gonna Let You Down!」

Su Xue smiled brighter and brighter. You idiots! I’m not going to leave Huya! But I love you all! You’re like family to me! I’m so happy that all of you are here to watch me! All my work over the past few months has paid off so much! She breathed in deeply and then said, “Thanks, guys. I mean it, thanks! Without all of you, I could’ve never gotten this far! Don’t worry, whatever I decide, it’s what I believe is best for all of us. And when I do decide, you guys will be the first to know!”

「What ya guys think? We give her a pass for sucking donkey ass today?」

「Yupyupyupyup! ~~~~~~ no mass unfollow today!」

「LOVE YOU SU XUE! NEVER CHANGE!」

「were waiting for the good news!!!!! let us know when you know asap plsplsplsplsplspsl!!!」

✹

It was Wednesday afternoon. Lin Feng was still in class when Su Xue left the apartment to meet up with Zuo You at a small coffee shop downtown. There were a few businessmen having lunch and a barista hovering around them, smiling. Su Xue pushed the door to the establishment open, causing everyone inside to turn their attention to her. Some only briefly, while other glances lingered. Su Xue nodded at the barista and then looked to a table next to the window. She’s got a new badass red hairstyle! She smiled and waved.

“Hi! You’re finally here!” Zuo You exclaimed. She waited for Su Xue to walk over and then said, “Lookin’ good! All the guys over there are checking you out! Want one or want me to beat them up?”

Su Xue’s face went red. She quickly sat down across from Zuo You and whisper-shouted, “Don’t do that! You know I hate it when you do that!”

Zuo You shrugged and said, “Just saying you look really hot in that midi skirt. They were all staring at your ass for a reason. How high do those boots go anyway? All the way up to your knees? Ah, whatever, they look good.” She briefly hesitated but then added, “And expensive. Guess the streaming business is really good for your wallet…” She shook her head and smiled. Then she nodded at Su Xue and added, “I’m really liking your new hairstyle too! Shoulder length really works for you! It really makes your face pop! You’re looking so much better and also more confident than a few months ago! It’s like you stopped trying to hide!”

Su Xue bit on her lips and then mumbled, “Thank you.” She glanced around the coffee shop. Smooth jazz music played in the background, the businessmen were passing around some documents and the barista was walking over towards them.

“Can I get you two anything?” the barista asked.

“Coffee. Black please,” Zuo You said, smiling.

Su Xue turned to look at the barista and asked, “Could I have some tea? Thanks.” She then looked back at Zuo You, waiting for the barista to leave, and then said, “Still don’t look as good as you… Did you dye your hair a new shade of red? And that white blouse with that super short skirt and those stilettos just looks so good on you! I don’t like how it looks on most people… I even tried it myself! But it looked terrible! And then I see you wearing it and it looks so good! I’m always super jealous when I see that!”

“Aww, I’m sure it doesn’t look terrible on you!” Zuo You replied. She then asked, “So what was so urgent that we had to meet right away? I cancelled a date for you!”

Su Xue shook her head and giggled. She said, “You have a new date every day! Anyway, yeah, so the other day this admin from HuyaTV messaged me. I told you about it, remember?” She briefly waited for Zuo You to nod and then continued, “Well, he first told me how impressed he was with how quickly I grew my channel and that Huya is very happy to have me on their platform. Then he went on to say that he wanted to ‘strengthen our relationship’. He wouldn’t say exactly what it meant in detail, but the big picture is that HuyaTV is looking for three female streamers to represent their platform. I’d be one of them. He promised me my own recording studio, more promotions for my material and more opportunities to expand.”

Zuo You’s eyes grew wider with every promise Su Xue mentioned. When Su Xue finished, she yelped, “Oh my god! Su Xue! That’s amazing!”

Su Xue slowly nodded and said, “Yeah, I think so too. It’s just that I would have to move to Guangzhou for—”

“What!? You’re moving to Guangzhou!?” Zuo You exclaimed.

“If I accept the offer, yeah,” Su Xue replied.

Zuo You looked at her friend. You made it! I didn’t believe in you, but the kid was right! You’d make it big! And look at you now, they’re offering you everything you could ever want! What is there to think about!? She licked her lips and said, “This is good news! Why are you sounding so unhappy…?”

Su Xue grimaced and replied, “It is a really good offer. And I heard from Ol’ Black–he’s got some friends high up at Huya–that this is a big initiative by HuyaTV to compete against the newer up and coming streaming platforms. Apparently there are some others with girls stealing all the business. So Huya is spending a ton on this. They really need this to succeed, so they’re going all out.”

Zuo You knitted her brows. She doesn’t look all that happy… She moved her lips around for a bit and finally said, “This is a really big deal for you! But don’t let money decide. They’ll probably make you stay in Guangzhou. Are you okay with leaving everything you’ve built up here behind? I know most of your stuff is online, but you’ve also got your friends here. And Guangzhou is far away. Too far to meet up for some coffee…”

Su Xue bit on her lips. She slowly nodded and said, “Yeah. That’s the thing. You, Lin Feng… My other friends… My whole life is here in Shanghai. But you’re probably right. I also think they’re gonna ask me to stay in Guangzhou. I’m almost sure of it! I’m just not sure if that’s what I want. It’s like… The deal is too good to turn down on one side, but on the other I don’t really want to leave my friends behind…”