Chapter 61

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After the matchup was announced, Coach Gou spoke a few words to the Titans, “Go all out and do your best to win, but don’t let it get to you if you don’t win.”

Wang Yuxi had already been shaking Bai Yue’s shoulders for ten minutes and repeatedly exclaiming “Holy shit!” for a while now. Bai Yue himself inwardly tensed up when he saw that their next opponent was Odin, and Wang Yuxi’s never-ending cries right next to his ear only added to his anxiety. As a result, he tore away from those groping hands, exclaiming angrily, “Stop that! You’re just making it worse!”

“Shit man! It’s Odin!” Wang Yuxi howled. “It’s really Odin!”

Right then, Yao Sen opened the door and walked out of his room, followed by Shao Han. Shao Han, who now had to go back to his team for pre-game strategic analysis, looked at Yao Sen and said, “Goodluck.”

Yao Sen gave a nod. “See you tonight, baby,” he said, smiling.

After seeing Shao Han off, Yao Sen peered into the living room, only to be met with blank stares. “What are you guys looking at me for?” he asked.

“……It’s nothing. Just checking to see if you’ll no longer be attending morning court from now on, Your Majesty,” said Wang Yuxi. “Question! Odin is up next, what are your thoughts?”

“What can I think? I’ll be playing how we should be playing,” Yao Sen said offhandedly. “We’ll run into them sooner or later anyway, and it’s not like it’ll be just this one chance.”

Wang Yuxi held a hand to his chest. “It’s only the second round… Ah… My fragile heart.”

The news of “Titans vs Odin” immediately shook the esports community, with fans at home both nervous and excited, their words of support for the Titans filling every corner of the internet, and international esports media hyping the upcoming match to unimaginable heights.

The crowned kings were one of the world’s strongest teams, having set several competition records and won numerous league championships; the other team was an emerging force from Asia, with similarly high level players, a dark horse with undeniably the greatest potential challenging them for the throne. All eyes were focused on both sides.

Odin’s captain, Ethan, tweeted not long after: “WHOA! I’M SO HAPPY!! 爻森 is an interesting guy!!”

On the way to the arena, Yao Sen was still recalling everything he’d ever analysed about Odin in previous training sessions. There was a palpable fear of losing; if they were to defeat such a powerful team, they needed to rely on strategy and tactics—it was pointless to rely on petty tricks in the face of absolute strength.

Although he gave off an unruffled impression, in reality, his nerves and excitement were no less than those of anyone else.

Odin was strong. As were Titans. Yao Sen was genuinely excited to find out who was best suited to rule the field. Was it time to usher in a new era, where Odin and Lincoln had previously ruled over the field for so long?

At 8 p.m., round two of the group stage commenced.

This was a night where Titans truly got to appreciate the power of fans. The fans of both teams were a force to be reckoned with, Odin’s fans with their numbers, and Titans’s fans with their noise.

When the two teams shook hands, Ethan gave Yao Sen an unceremonious hug, jumping up and down with genuine enthusiasm.

As the players took their seats, Wang Yuxi gulped; despite being nervous, his psyche as a first-class player was not so weak. Slapping the table, he switched on his Trashtalking Wang Mode and menacingly bellowed, “Right! Let’s show them all what Chinese Kung Fu is all about!”

Bai Yue: “Cut it out, you. Get a hold of yourself. Make sure you don’t give away the first kill.”

Wang Yuxi: “You’re supposed to protect me! Not jinx me!”

During the opening, their group was assigned to the relatively straightforward Map D. Yao Sen knew from a cursory glance at the terrain map that this random map was suited for a slow and steady build-up of strength in the early game, culminating in its mid-to-late game.

Up against an opponent like Odin, winning would be out of the question if they were to split and face them one-on-one, so Yao Sen commanded the team to advance as a group.

The buildings on this map were evenly distributed, with low-rise buildings and few covers, leaving you vulnerable to snipers if you stayed exposed for too long. The four Titans quickly arrived at a two-story building; as there were still five minutes until the first wave of airdrops and the weapons scattered inside the building were nothing special, they were left with no choice but to go on the defensive.

The four held down the building for the time being and didn’t act rashly.

Most teams, according to conventional wisdom, would not launch an attack before the first airdrop because the weapons were subpar and had low-level offence. Attempting to capitalise on it could result in significant losses.

However, because their opponent was the godly Odin, Yao Sen was sceptical.

At this point, Yao Sen became aware of a faint, muffled sound coming from the distance. The other three, seeming to have heard as well, immediately sported looks of astonishment.

Any professional team would quickly recognise this muffled sound as the engine of a one-man motorcycle, a randomly placed in-game vehicle. As the engine sound grew closer, it became clear that someone was heading their way.

“What kind of fucking hardass dares to get on a motorcycle?” Wang Yuxi exclaimed in horror.

A one-man motorcycle was regarded as one of the most dangerous vehicles in the game due to its extreme instability and loud noise. Even though players could shoot while driving, motorcycles had a very shaky perspective and it was easy to lose control of them. A single hit could easily explode the vehicle and completely destroy it, which was a risk that the vast majority of players would not take.

The moving grey motorcycle was soon in their sights, but they weren’t in possession of any long-range sniper rifles, and the enemy wasn’t yet within shooting distance.

The sniper rifle with the longest range on the team was in Song Mingzhe’s hands. As usual, he kept one finger on the aiming button to make it easier to snipe at any time. “Boss, your command?” he asked, keeping a close eye on the motorcycle that was slowly approaching sniping range.

Yao Sen frowned for a moment and said, “Shoot him down.”

Song Mingzhe usually took less than a second to shoot someone, and he rarely missed as long as the target was within his sniping range. Propping the barrel of his gun against the window, he took aim at the target——

In the clearing of the building, there was a small, shorter structure with a metal plate sloping down from its roof. These structures were typically designed to make it easier for players to climb onto the roof for cover or observation.

Through his scope, Song Mingzhe discovered that the motorcycle was speeding towards the structure and accelerating violently. He was stunned and immediately realised what his opponent’s intentions were.

The motorcycle sped up the metal plate and onto the small structure’s roof. Yao Sen and the others were holed up in a two-story building; the motorcycle didn’t slow down, and with this increased momentum, the driver flipped straight over and jumped off as the motorcycle crashed through the glass window on the second floor head-on.

Song Mingzhe’s reflexes kicked in, and he quickly drew his gun and rolled to the side. In these circumstances, he couldn’t re-open fire because the potential motorcycle explosion would only make the suicide attack worse for them.

The motorcycle exploded when it shattered the glass and crashed into the room, sending large flames billowing outwards. Song Mingzhe howled at the others to move out, and the other three retreated immediately. Despite their swift retreat, the motorcycle explosion was as powerful as several grenades, injuring three of the Titans’s four players. With the lack of airdrops, they currently had no first aid kits on hand, and their injuries slowed them significantly.

Bai Yue’s HP had been reduced by half. After evacuating the building, they soon encountered Odin, who had been lying in wait for them outside. At this point, the airdrops had just descended, so Yao Sen instructed them to avoid one-on-one confrontations and focus on finding first aid kits.

Odin was hot on their heels, not allowing them to catch their breath or regain their HP. With Yao Sen taking the lead and Wang Yuxi bringing up the rear, they struggled to keep moving forward. Ten minutes later, Bai Yue was shot down by a sniper hiding on the roof, but Yao Sen also killed one of their opponents in return.

Team Odin’s firepower remained intense throughout the match. They were a team of powerful assaults who preferred a blitzkrieg to deny their opponents the opportunity to recover.

With only a third of his HP remaining, Wang Yuxi temporarily took cover by a wall to try to regain a little HP, yet all of a sudden, he caught sight of an enemy at his three o’clock with his back turned towards him.

There was no better opportunity presented than an enemy with their back towards you at the height of the battle. Without stopping to think, Wang Yuxi jumped out and aimed his gun, only to hear Yao Sen’s cry, as the latter escaped the fray.

“Keep your head down!” Yao Sen shouted. “No. 3 is behind you!”

Odin’s No. 3 had been waiting for the instant Wang Yuxi would emerge from his hiding place. Bullets thundered out of No. 3’s weapon with deadly accuracy, and after Wang Yuxi’s helmet was destroyed, it only took one more shot to kill him.

This one shot put Wang Yuxi out of the game. He clutched at his head in dismay. “They were plotting against me!”

After twenty seven minutes, the Titans were down to just Yao Sen and Song Mingzhe, whose HP was running low. Not long after encountering heavy fire, Song Mingzhe died, unable to withstand the siege.

No matter how well Yao Sen played, it was difficult to escape unscathed. After gunning down the opposing No. 4’s head, he was hit with a stun grenade which caused his vision to go blank. A splatter of blood flashed across his screen the next second, and his HP dropped to zero.

Odin won with two more heads than Titans in the first match, which ended half an hour after it began.

In the second match, Titans were dropped in a relatively advantageous location. It was easily guarded, difficult to attack, and convenient for sniping, and they managed to triumph by one more headcount than Odin. Their luck ran out in the third match, however, as the Odin’s offence was nothing short of a masterpiece, and Titans were stuck on defence, unable to make any breakthroughs, eventually losing another game.

Odin now led the game 2-1. During the halftime break, Titans fans cheered them on loudly, with some fans shouting their throats hoarse, but they still tried their hardest to show their support.

The commentators were equally emotional as the image on the big screen alternated between the two teams, capturing the most subtle expressions of both teams’ players.

*

When Shao Han exited the arena with the rest of his team, it was in a somewhat dejected mood. Noah had lost to Australia because, despite the players’ best efforts, there was simply a significant disparity in strength.

He spotted Yao Sen standing off to the side, appearing as if he’d been waiting for him for quite some time. As Shao Han made his way towards him, Yao Sen gave him a small smile.

It was the same smile as usual, but Shao Han sensed a slight difference, and as his heart thumped in his chest, he raised his eyes at the big screen on the main arena and, just as expected—Titans had lost.

Titans had lost 1-3 to Odin in four games and now fell to the losing bracket alongside teams that had the same one-win, one-loss record.

Yao Sen stroked Shao Han’s head, knowing Shao Han was worried about him. Naturally, he’d already seen Noah’s Ark’s loss too. “Baby, it’s all right. Let’s do our best in our next matches. We’ve still got a chance.”

The news of Titans’s second-round defeat inevitably dampened Chinese esports fans’ spirits for a while, but it was quickly followed by an outpouring of supportive messages and comments on the internet.

At the conclusion of the fourth match, the host’s voice announcing Odin’s victory sounded like a resounding alarm that jolted the Titans’ players, but winning and losing was commonplace. Besides, they were only getting started; they needed to pull themselves together as soon as possible and work harder in the subsequent rounds.

Wang Yuxi also came over, convinced that he was acting bold when, in fact, his height difference with Yao Sen caused him to struggle when hooking an arm around Yao Sen’s shoulders. “Real men should drink the strongest wines, and fuck up the strongest teams!” he exclaimed. “I was afraid that Odin would be too boring to play against, okay?! Plus, it’s only one loss! There’s still a chance to fuck ‘em up, isn’t here, Cap’n Yao?!”

Yao Sen nudged him with a shoulder. “Yeah, okay, you’re a real man.”

Wang Yuxi then turned to smile at Shao Han, “Is this what they mean when they say that a family lives and dies together? Shao ge, better luck on your next match!”

Shao Han was initially still dispirited, but the moment he heard Wang Yuxi speak, he became amused instead. Yao Sen gave a thumbs up to Wang Yuxi behind his back before making off with Shao Han in his arms.

Aside from the Titans’ defeat, there was one other notable event in this round: NL’s victory.

NL were up against a team that should have been stronger in every way, and just when everyone assumed that NL would be eliminated in this round, they won their match in five games with a score of 3-2.

NL once again demonstrated jaw-dropping class and explosiveness.

However, the buzz surrounding NL was caused not only by their victory, but also by a famous Chinese former professional player speaking out on the internet, name-dropping NL and directly starting a trending topic—

“NL is copying Titans”

☆ ☆ ☆

Thank you to Somebody for the kofi!

Chapter 60 | TOC | Chapter 62

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