CH 19

Every match in the LPP League was held in different cities and different venues. This time, it happened to be in N city, where Lin Xiao was located. This provided an opportunity for them to meet face-to-face.

Lin Xiao planned to go to the venue to spectate, however, due to Zone’s current explosive popularity, tickets for the League were extremely difficult to obtain. For the sake of getting a ticket by the deadline, he had exhausted all the means at his disposal. In the end, he had no choice but to participate in an auction on a certain online platform. After spending nearly his entire fortune, he was finally able to obtain a ticket.

As he looked at the ticket whose value exceeded its weight in gold, Lin Xiao did not know if he should laugh or cry.

If it were before, during every competitive season, large batches of tickets would be sent to him through special channels. He would have to give away 20-30 tickets to all of his friends and family. No one at that time would have thought that there would come a day when they would have to resort to getting on their knees and begging for a ticket. In his current state, he had practically traded his entire fortune for a ticket. Thus, when he returned home, he would likely have to spend a long time worrying about how he would fill his stomach.

A week passed very quickly. As it had been raining in N city for the past few days, although the sun was shining brightly, the usual slight layer of humidity enveloped the city. When the wind blew upon one’s body, it brought a cool and refreshing sensation.

Jiale eSports Stadium was not far from where Lin Xiao lived. He took his time to make his way over, but gradually found that the crowd up ahead was getting more and more congested. When he was about to arrive at his destination, he found that the traffic was so heavy that it was difficult for him to move forward even by an inch. It was almost as if his entire body had become frozen on the spot and was unable to move at all.

“Oh my my, this is kind of incredible.” The screams that resounded around the area sounded like an orchestral symphony. With eyes wide and mouth agape, Lin Xiao rubbed his ears and once again experienced the fierce passion of eSports fans.

This was not at all like the venue of an eSports competition. Rather, it was like a grand concert with tens of thousands of attendees!

At this time, there were still 2 hours before the start of the competition. However, because the outside area was too congested, the organizers had already started allowing spectators to enter based on their seating arrangements. The surroundings quickly became exceptionally noisy and bustling due to all the people present.

At the entrance, Lin Xiao spotted a stall selling merchandise. It was stocked with all kinds of props used by the fans to chase after their idols, from LED signs to character cosplay accessories. Because today’s competition featured the Black Rose team against the Nine Skies team, there were even giant posters of each team member. They were so huge that one could hide a person behind it almost completely.

Lin Xiao found them interesting. He squeezed his way to the front of the stall and casually browsed through its goods. Finally, he cheerfully pointed at the poster in front, which had Shen Changyu’s face printed on it, and said, “Boss, give me one of God Shen’s posters please, thanks.”

The boss brought out another poster on the side which had a full body picture and asked, “Are you Vice Captain Shen’s fan? Come, have a look at this. This poster is currently our best-selling item.”

Lin Xiai glanced at the cool and heroic pose displayed on the poster and waved him off. “I think I will still go with the one I chose just now. After all, his face is big, so I can have a better look at every detail of his face. It’s much more suited to my tastes than this B-side picture. I like this kind of God Shen the most.”

The boss choked back his words after hearing this. With a strange expression on his face, he shot a couple of bewildered looks at Lin Xiao, trying to size him up.

Satisfied, Lin Xiao received the poster which had been nicely rolled up and continued onwards to the competition hall. Along the way, he looked at his surroundings with an expression of great interest. He followed the crowd, showed his ticket, and entered the venue. After he found the seat number indicated on his ticket, he took out his phone from his pockets and sent out a text. “I’m here.”

Not long after, he received the other party’s reply. “En.”

It seemed like the pre-match preparation kept him pretty busy. Lin Xiao raised his eyebrows. After reading the reply, he placed his phone back into his pocket. Although the Nine Skies team was considered a second-rate team in the alliance, and the Black Rose team should not be too threatened by them by right, considering You Jing’s recent injury, as the vice captain, the pressure faced by Shen Changyu should still be great.

…

Backstage, in the Black Rose team’s waiting room.

Shen Changyu had just sent out his reply. He lifted his head and saw that everyone else was staring at him, and couldn’t help but ask, “What is it?”

Xu Yiming looked at the expressions of those around him, and finally couldn’t help but gossip, “Vice Captain Shen is actually looking at his phone while we are making the tactical arrangements. This is the first time in history! Recently, everyone has been thinking that you have been acting strange. Give us an honest explanation, have you got a girlfriend?”

“What are you blindly guessing?” Shen Changyu waspishly interrupted his conjectures. He felt the suspicious gazes from those surrounding him and unconsciously cleared his throat. “Don’t talk so much. Have you heard all that I said just now?”

Although Liu Zeshen was very curious about his vice captain’s private life, he straightened out his thoughts at this time and considered for a moment before asking, “Are you really allowing me to fight in the individual match?”

Shen Changyu nodded. “Our opponent, Zhao Kongming specializes in close combat. The best person to deal with him is you.”

With this said, Liu Zeshen’s lips curved up in an instant, and he pushed up the gold-framed spectacles on his nose. “I’m not sure about other people, but if I were to face Zhao Kongming, I would definitely make him choose to say GG1.”

“If you can’t even defeat an Assassin, then you don’t have to play as a Holy Knight ever again.” A voice sounded from outside, and the door opened at the same time. You Jing leisurely strolled into the waiting room, and his gaze calmly swept across the entire room. “Although Nine Skies has grown stronger this season, they still can’t be considered a first-rate team. In today’s match, we must wipe them all out in ten minutes. Understood, everyone?”

Although there were strong and weak teams among the eight teams within the LPP, they had all undergone rigorous selections to be qualified after all. To wipe out an entire team in ten minutes was a task that no team could have the confidence to achieve. However, when these words were spoken by this person, they were in such a matter-of-fact manner that they seemed to be a foregone conclusion.

“That’s a must, kill them all in ten minutes!” Xu Yiming was excited by these words, and immediately began to yell excitedly.

“The people from Nine Skies are still in the adjacent waiting room, you should be a bit more restrained.” Xu Yichen speechlessly blocked his mouth and glanced at the other person who was hesitating and unable to speak. He whispered, “But in this competition season, we should indeed let others taste the feeling of absolute defeat.”

Because they had previously been adjusting the team’s main lineup, the Black Rose team had not performed as well as they would have liked during the entire LPP League. Shen Changyu knew that his teammates had always been awaiting this moment with bated breath. Thus, he did not chastise them at this time, but rather looked towards You Jing and asked, “Regarding the sub-team matches as well as the team matches2, are you sure you can do it?”

You Jing pulled on the team uniform that was draped on his body and blandly asked, “What do you think?”

It was a question, and yet it contained an obvious answer.

Shen Changyu lightly furrowed his eyebrows and did not say anything else.

He was very clear on the fact that judging by the Black Rose team’s current overall points, for them to enter the top 4 of this season’s playoffs, they needed to nab as many points as they could when facing a second-rate team like Nine Skies. No matter what You Jing’s current condition was like, as the team’s captain and healer, he needed to step up during such times. There was no other choice.

It was unknown when it began, but the pillar that supported the whole team had slowly and silently changed to this man…Shen Changyu looked at how You Jing was sprawled across the sofa beside him, and his heart was full of emotions. He sized up his calm demeanour and secretly put aside his worries and concerns. It seemed that the results of the check-up 2 days prior showed that there shouldn’t be any major issues.

…

The venue of the LPP League was full of the passionate screams of the fans of both teams. Regardless if it was at the center of the hall or along its aisles, the place was completely filled with the cries of the fans. Everyone was immersed in the overwhelming passion that permeated the stadium’s atmosphere. Although the tension in the air was so thick that you could cut through it with a knife, the venue was as festive as a grand banquet.

“Hey, you’re blocking the way.”

Lin Xiao had used the poster to cover his face so that he could catch some shuteye and recover his spirits. He suddenly heard such chilly words and immediately lost the urge to sleep. His eyes opened as he glanced blearily at the person. When he got a clear look at the other person’s appearance, he immediately became thoroughly awake. 

They had twin ponytails, straight bangs, and a mini skirt. Yet, because the other person’s expression was so dark, when coupled with their deep and soft tone, it created an extremely odd sensation that made them difficult to approach.

Lin Xiao was struck dumb. Chen Anqi? What was she doing here?

The other person had waited for a long time without getting his response. Her earnest gaze swept across him, and her voice was so deep that it sounded like a curse. “This handsome guy, do you want to start something with me?”

Almost reflexively, the moment Lin Xiao heard these words, the leg that had previously been propped up against the aisle withdrew with a ‘whoosh’ sound.

He watched as the little lolita, who was so dull and gloomy that she was like a ghost doll, walked past him without sparing him a glance, and secretly wiped away his sweat. 

He originally thought that this young mistress had already completely retired. Who would have thought that, as a great senior in the alliance, she would actually still be so interested in the competition that she would buy tickets to spectate the matches? He had long known that she had always liked the feeling of invigoration that came with watching others be abused to death. Now, it seemed that she had still not kicked this positive (poor) emotional (distasteful) sentiment (habit)3!

It must be said that in the past, there were only a few people within the alliance that Lin Xiao did not dare to provoke or offend. Amongst them, Chen Anqi was definitely ranked within the top 3. It was not because of this female’s strength or capability, but because of the debuff that she herself brought about to others, excluding those in the alliance whom she was acquainted with.

The divine power she had, that seemed to have come from the gods, could be summarized simply into 3 words: a crow’s mouth4.

But when battling against her, out of everything present, the curses that originated from her far exceeded all of the skill damage received in battle when it came to inducing a heart attack. What was even more frightening was that the power of these curses was not limited to the 2D world. It was effective even in the 3D world. Lin Xiao was not the only veteran player who had had painful experiences of this. All of the players in the alliance at that time had dark expressions on their faces when they heard the words “gothic lolita”.

As he looked at Chen Anqi’s back silhouette, which was gradually growing further and further away, Lin Xiao couldn’t help but raise his fingers and start counting silently. If, during the time he was in the alliance, this young mistress had been 20 years old, then currently, she should be at least 25 years old, right? Yet, based on the side profile that he had caught sight of just now, she looked exactly the same as she did in the past, which was the appearance of a 14 year old…

Lin Xiao was frightened. “Fxxk…this is simply an old demon!”

In the time when he made this complaint, the bright lights of the hall suddenly grew dim. The surroundings briefly went silent, before exploding with even more fierce and passionate screams.

The match had finally begun.

________________

The author has something to say:

Regarding the meaning of Little Sister Chen Anqi’s name, it was completely taken from the opposite meaning of An Qier5, all of you will understand~~

The gothic lolita that Old Vinegar really loves has a supernatural aura and is worth possessing! ^_^~ Also, we are gearing up for a big match, are all of you ready!

________________

TL notes: Interesting new characters! Can’t wait to see how they are involved in the plot~ Also I sense more battle scenes coming up…save this translator please ;_;

For non-gamers, GG = good game. It is normally said at the end of a match, i.e. he is saying that Zhao Kongming will give up the fight immediately.

This may seem a little confusing, but basically in ‘sub-team matches’, the team will select a few players to compete, while in ‘team matches’ the whole team competes.

This…was a pain to translate. The words in brackets are a phrase in themselves, as are the ones not in brackets. The phrase not in brackets means having positive emotions, being romantic etc. The one in brackets means having a hobby that is in bad taste. I tried to follow the author’s style of writing while preserving the meaning…

Meaning to talk about something bad happening, only to jinx it and have it actually occur.

Angel