Chapter 55

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Shao Han discovered that Yao Sen truly kept to his word.

When he and Yao Sen went to see Group C-I’s match the next day, Yao Sen would start up all sorts of trouble every time the image on the giant LED screen cut to Cobra.

He scratched Shao Han’s palm one second and squeezed Shao Han’s waist the next, making Shao Han occasionally flush with anger; he couldn’t pay attention to the match at all.

As a result, when the match ended and Cobra placed second in Group C-I, Shao Han had no recollection of what he’d actually watched.

The players in Group C-II’s were evenly matched in terms of strength, and there were no particular teams that stood out, so there wasn’t much to see. After the Group C matches ended, Shao Han and Yao Senjoined Wang Yuxi and the rest for lunch.

The group filed into a Chinese beef hotpot restaurant and ate while discussing the Group C match. After the beef was thoroughly cooked, Wang Yuxi first filled Shao Han and Yao Sen’s bowls with several large slices of meat.

Wang Yuxi: “Go on, you two eat more. Beef is great for building up yang in your kidney.[1]”

Next to Yao Sen, Shao Han blushed, and he peered at the beef in his bowl, conflicted on whether to eat or not. Yao Sen shot Wang Yuxi a profound, deterring gaze to get him to stop teasing Shao Han.

The restaurant allowed you to mix your own sauces. When Wang Yuxi smelled Shao Han’s especially fragrant sauce, he overestimated himself by insisting on dipping his beef into Shao Han’s sauce, only to have his tongue burned by the spiciness.

Wang Yuxi gulped down several cups of water. He’d been having some acne trouble these days, so he knew better than to eat more. He examined Shao Han’s skin, which was so flawless that no staff would ever come up to him if he entered a Watson’s joint, and sighed deeply, mentally bemoaning heaven’s unjust.

However, the moment he thought that Shao Han’s sex life was more nourished than most, he immediately felt more balanced.

Suddenly, Yao Sen coldly said, “Lao-Wang, give me one good reason why you keep staring at Shao Han. If you can’t convince me, you’re over.”

Shao Han ducked his head in embarrassment.

Wang Yuxi: “…Can’t I admire Shao Han’s flawless complexion?!”

“Oh, so you were admiring him, huh.”

The group mutely bowed their heads and tucked into their meal. They didn’t have Wang Yuxi’s courage to face Yao Sen’s public display of affection. Shao Han tugged at Yao Sen’s sleeve and lightly coughed, saying, “Hurry up and eat, your food’s getting cold.”

Group D’s match, the final match, was held that afternoon. Team Odin was placed in group D-II, which meant that the last match of the qualifiers would almost certainly be the most anticipated.

The group headed straight to the stadium upon finishing their meal, and as predicted, the arena, which hadn’t been totally filled in previous matches, was now completely packed to the brim. The members of Odin’s official fanclub were all sitting in a group, each fan with a Team Odin logo stickered to their face.

When Team Odin entered the premises, the entire stadium erupted in thunderous cheers. Upon seeing how enthusiastic his fans were, their captain, Ethan, ever his cheerful and animated self, immediately raised a hand and threw a flying kiss at the crowd.

Wang Yuxi sighed, “No matter how many Odin matches I’ve watched, I can’t associate that godly world-class unblinking sniper with this baby-faced guy who looks like a university student.”

Yao Sen: “Actually, you’re exactly the same.”

“…” Wang Yuxi wasn’t sure whether that was praise or sarcasm.

Group D-II’s match started not long after, and it basically went as they expected. There was no need for a strong team like Odin to hide their strength in the qualifiers, and there were no teams in Group D-II who could match Odin’s strength either. Less than twenty minutes after the match began, Team Odin’s points were ahead in leaps and bounds, leaving the second place team in the dust and making it virtually impossible for the other teams to catch up.

The game was over in less than half an hour due to Team Odin’s aggressive assault. After throwing his iconic flying kiss at the crowd, Ethan and his teammates left the stage to wait for the final Group D standings to be announced, the outcome of which was completely predictable.

All thirty-two teams that would advance to the next leg of the competition were announced, and with Team Odin’s overall score topping all four groups, their first-place finish was well-deserved. Team Lincoln came in second, Titans fifth, while Noah’s Ark and Cobra came in thirteenth and eleventh respectively.

Before the second leg of the competition, the players who advanced were given a day to rest, with the organisers putting them up in a hotel near the stadium.

After checking the final standings, Yao Sen’s group chatted amongst themselves while heading to the stadium’s exit.

Wang Yuxi, still reminiscing about the Group D match, couldn’t help but let out another sigh. “Odin is way too amazing. Yao Sen, let Ethan be my male god for three seconds.”

As they discussed Odin’s performance, they suddenly heard a flurry of energetic footsteps behind them; a figure clad in a navy blue team uniform was currently chasing after them, an ecstatic “Hey!” escaping his lips.

The group looked over their shoulders and instantly froze, their faces displaying a range of expressions.

The navy blue team uniform was Odin’s trademark; Ethan, with his teammates standing behind him, greeted them with a smile. Eyes gleaming, he looked straight at Yao Sen and enthusiastically shouted, “Yao!”

Yao Sen faintly realised that Ethan was calling out his last name, but inwardly, he was astonished.

With a head of natural, golden-brown curls and dimples on his cheeks that gave him a slightly boyish appearance, Ethan greeted everyone he saw with enthusiasm—Wang Yuxi was right, it was difficult to imagine that this was the ace who’d reigned champion for a number of years in a row.

Right then, Ethan was looking Yao Sen up and down while smiling from ear to ear. His light brown eyes were overflowing with curiosity and excitement, and he spoke to Yao Sen in English, “We finally meet! You’re the captain of the Titans! I’ve wanted to meet you for a long time, and I’ve heard that you’re very strong!”

Ethan spoke English fluently, with a strong German accent resulting from his extensive use of the language.

Yao Sen, as the team’s resident academician, had no problem communicating in English, and he greeted Ethan calmly and politely.

Ethan: “My Chinese fans told me that when you translate my name to Chinese, it has the same ‘Sen’ in pinyin as your name! Haha, what a coincidence!”

The rest of the Titans watched on as their captain suddenly began chatting with the world champion, and they could only look at each other as they didn’t really understand the conversation. Odin’s members were all waiting behind their captain with faces full of ease, as if they were already used to Ethan’s friendliness.

The two ‘God Sens’ chatted happily. Ethan once again expressed that he couldn’t wait for them to meet in the arena, his enthusiasm endless.

Ethan cast his glance behind Yao Sen and said, “Are these guys your team members? Whoa! Everyone in your team is all so tall!”

Yao Sen assumed that Ethan had overlooked Wang Yuxi’s height. “Thank you for the compliment,” he responded with a smile. “The one in the middle isn’t a member of our team though, he’s my boyfriend. He’s a player from Noah’s Ark.”

Ethan curiously peeked at Shao Han, who was standing in the middle of the group, before returning his gaze to Yao Sen. In the end, he laughed sunnily, and his tone carried a hint of teasing as he said, “Come to Europe to get married in the future! When you do, don’t forget to come to Switzerland!”

“Haha, all right.”

The two chatted for a spell, when suddenly, Ethan’s eyes zeroed in on a team that had just emerged from a nearby corridor. He immediately informed Yao Sen that he had plans and bid him farewell, wishing happiness for him and his boyfriend as he turned to leave, then sprinting up to and pouncing on a man’s shoulders from behind, laughing and exclaiming, “Kevin! Let’s go eat!”

The one who had made an appearance was Team Lincoln’s Kevin. He and Ethan were seemingly close, and they departed shoulder-to-shoulder. The rest of Odin greeted the Titans members, then went off to follow their captain.

“Why did Ethan look at me just now?” Shao Han asked Yao Sen suspiciously as he stared after Odin’s retreating backs.

Yao Sen chuckled. “It’s nothing. He thought you were good-looking.”

Rendered speechless, Shao Han stared at him mutely.

The announcement of the teams who will advance to the second stage sparked heated discussions in the esports community. The mentioned teams and their rankings came as no surprise to anyone, but there were also several emerging dark horses in the second stage who had only made their debut in this year’s competition.

Esports enthusiasts had keen noses, and within hours of the ranking being released, the internet was flooded with rankings analysis and second stage predictions. Aside from the well-known powerhouses, many people also had their eyes on the newcomers.

With Northern Lights as their English name and Jiguang as their Chinese name, this team that had only been established in the beginning of the previous year had landed themselves in the thirtieth spot. Despite the fact that they were at the bottom of the standings, considering their team’s youth, the number of NL fans rose sharply overnight, and they received a lot of attention.

The night following the end of the qualifiers, the Titans watched the official match replays at their hotel.

Wang Yuxi called Bai Yue. “It’s such a shame that you aren’t here. You’ll never guess that Odin’s Ethan went out of his way to find Yao Sen this afternoon. If it weren’t for the sake of my image in front of our international friends, I definitely would’ve jumped him and asked for his autograph.”

Bai Yue: “Give me a break, what image?”

Wang Yuxi: “When will you be discharged from the hospital?”

“Tomorrow morning. My flight is the morning after,” Bai Yue replied. “Wait for you Daddy Yue to come back.”

With the start of the Swiss-system compet just around the corner, the sense of urgency in everyone’s hearts grew increasingly heavier. Two hundred teams from all over the world had been filtered into the thirty-two teams in the second stage; their strengths naturally shouldn’t be overlooked. Setting aside teams like Odin and Lincoln, even emerging, dark horse teams like NL were bound to have their strong points.

Wang Yuxi: “You’ve gotta quit pulling your punches right from the start, Yao Sen. If we wind up facing Noah’s Ark, you can’t get all soft-hearted. I’m seriously worried that when the time comes, and Shao ge starts acting cute in the arena, your shot will go wide and miss our solar system entirely.”

“Don’t worry, I won’t pull my punches,” said Yao Sen. “Just try not to let them lose by too much.”

Wang Yuxi: “….Does Shao ge know about this?”

The results of the draw for the first round of the second stage would be directly sent to the coaches in charge of each team by the WCAD organisers the following day.

That morning, the Titans sat around in wait for the announcement of the draw. Wang Yuxi couldn’t stop unlocking and locking his phone, so nervous that he chanted,“Don’t draw the twin American and European demons, don’t draw the twin American and European demons.”

Yao Sen: “Could you stop muttering?”

Wang Yuxi: “Fuck off, I’m so damn nervous. My heart is beating.”

Yao Sen: “Your heart has always been beating.”

Just as he finished speaking, everyone’s phones simultaneously ding-ed from an incoming notification—Coach Gou had finally sent them the second bracket.

Wang Yuxi swiftly unlocked his phone and combed through the bracket for Titans’s name. The moment he saw their opponent for the first round, he slapped the table and exclaimed, “Holy shit! Cobra!”

☆ ☆ ☆

[1] In TCM, more yang in your kidney is purported to… boost male sex drive

Thank you to Somebody for the kofis! Happy Chinese New Year everyone ❤

Chapter 54 | TOC | Chapter 56

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