Volume 1 Chapter 23 - Waiting For An Opportunity

What were the standards of average players from different rankings? He Yu had no clue. He had heard reporters question professional players during interviews on what rank they would achieve if they were to play in solo queue games. Usually, their answers would be casual, displaying an attitude that showed they thought it was clear that such matters were trivial. Only one player’s response stuck out in He Yu’s mind – Xu He Xiang from Team Shan Gui. Xu He Xiang’s role was support, and his answer to the reporters’ question was, “That depends on which players I suck up to.”

The answer was funny, but in fact, it was pertinent. Playing the support role was unique. Supports could raise the team’s standard, but they were not the deciding factor in the outcome of the game. The team’s offense was still dependent on the capabilities of players in high-damage roles. The majority believed that players with good situational awareness, game tempo, outstanding operational skills, and quick reaction times could easily reach the platinum rank in solo queue regardless of the role they played. However, such rank was only feasible if one was not playing in the support role.

The vast majority thought that qualified professional players must be ranked at least Platinum in solo queue. As for the number of stars accumulated at that rank, it held no correlation to skill. It was only a matter of how many hours dedicated to the game.

As long as their win rate was above fifty percent, they would consistently gain stars over time, up until there were no more opponents left to make a match.

This notion was something He Yu had found out from forums and repeatedly playing the game. Other than that, he was unfamiliar with the minute details of the game.

It felt as though it were only yesterday when he had experienced playing with Bronze ranked players. Unfortunately, hopeless amateurs were the only suiting description of these players.

The skill level of players dramatically increased in the Platinum and Diamond ranks. Yesterday, a player by the name of ‘Sixteen Night’ had appeared, a self-proclaimed Platinum ranked player. Compared to the hopeless Bronze amateurs, Sixteen Night had a broader understanding of the game and knew what to do in the game.

“Still alright?” He Yu asked.

“Play like you did yesterday, and everything will be fine,” Gao Ge commented.

“Okay, if there is a chance, let us play, and we’ll know,” He Yu replied.

“Might as well take action now rather than wait for them,” Gao Ge suggested.

“Why?” He Yu confusedly asked.

“I checked your timetable. You’re free in the afternoon, so you will be in charge of waiting for an opportunity,” Gao Ge instructed.

“Waiting for an opportunity?” He Yu still did not understand.

“It would be hard for opportunities to come by, you need to seek it,” Zhou Mo explained.

He Yu finally understood, “You mean I’m going to be dropping by the field to recruit players?”

“Yes, correct,” Gao Ge complimented.

“We can’t make it since we both have classes in the afternoon, so we’re going to trouble you with this,”Zhou Mo sheepishly added.

“No problem, leave it to me!” He Yu confidently assured them. “Don’t worry! Although my skills aren’t the best, I’m still able to determine a player’s skills.”

“Oh, you don’t need to go through that much trouble. Just checking their rank will do,” Zhou Mo advised.

Gao Ge burst into laughter as He Yu’s face flushed in embarrassment.

Zhou Mo was a good person. It was just that, in some circumstances, he was overly serious.

“Come, I’ll help you move the tables there.” Zhou Mo, being oblivious, carried on being the nice guy he always was.

“Okay.” He Yu could only take things as they were.

With just two members, the school did not bother to provide Leam Lang Qi with a designated space. Even during recruitment, the tables and chairs were borrowed from the School of Management. The trio moved the tables and chairs to the area beside the field. Most clubs and societies were already present, and the entire field was suffocatingly crowded. They had no choice but to go to the far end of the rows. In comparison to the rest of the area, it was eerily quiet and the booths were considerably more unattractive.

“This booth should work. We’ll hand over the rest to you,” Gao Ge said He Yu.

“I’ll try my best… ” After being embarrassed, and witnessing the condition and location of their booth now, He Yu was not nearly as confident as before.

“Just talk to anyone who looks over,” Zhou Mo reminded.

“Alright.” He Yu nodded.

“When you break for lunch, just leave everything here.”

“Why are you nagging so much? He’s smarter than you give him credit for.” Gao Ge started to become impatient, and she wished all the best to He Yu before leaving.

Zhou Mo left, too, and He Yu sat down, holding a sign saying ‘Team Lang Qi and kept a lookout for students that passed by showing interest.

The location of their booth was inconvenient. Students that came this far back were either uninterested or had already joined other clubs. Whenever He Yu saw students looking over, he would stand up and greet them, only to be ignored.

After some time, He Yu realized how difficult this was. The neighbouring booths shared the same fate, but most of the people running the booths were glued to their phones, none of them seriously recruiting new members. He Yu took a look at the pitiful booths that surrounded him. One without anyone attending to it had a sign that said ‘Shirt Ironing Club’. Befuddled, He Yu questioned what the purpose of such a club was.

In the booth beside He Yu, the student attending it had been playing a mobile game ever since his arrival. Their sign was ‘International Academic Programme’. Similarly to the Shirt Ironing Club, He Yu had no idea what they did.

Looking ahead, He Yu saw different signs. ‘Bread Skin Club’, ‘Nan Hu Chun Research Club’, ‘Mirror Rubik’s Cube Club’, and more. The booths were all unpopular and cast aside, something He Yu had also felt yesterday when he had to play with Bronze ranked teammates.

Student clubs were not new to He Yu, and he had joined some before, in high school. However, there was a noticeable difference between high school clubs and university clubs. The number of clubs in Dong Jiang University vastly outnumbered the number of high school clubs there were. The relaxed culture and freedom of students allowed students even to form clubs with dubious purposes.

He Yu felt that the game they were playing as well as their team were more universally well known. With renewed confidence, he, once again, took his position and greeted students who passed by. Whenever he felt discouraged, he would look at how even more pitiful and pathetic the surrounding booths were and regain his lost confidence.

“Hi, do you play King’s Glory? Team Lang Qi welcomes you to join.” Another student made eye contact with He Yu, and he immediately stood up to greet him. Only until he finished his greetings did he realize the identity of the student, and he was stunned. By then, the surrounding students had already burst into laughter.

“Did I hear him correctly?”

“I’m afraid no.”

“It’s surprising to hear someone ask the president of the King’s Glory club if he plays the game.”

“Yeah, and what’s worse is that he even invited Su Ge to join their team with so much enthusiasm.”

“Haha, what are your thoughts, Su Ge?”

The guy that He Yu had been trying to recruit was none other than the captain of the King’s Glory Club. The guy that students unanimously regarded as the best player on campus.