Translated by 🎏 Edited by apricot, @babyybluebear, teo

– With a conviction like that, could he really take a championship?

The players went on stage, and Echo became the most eye-catching figure in the stadium.

There were few females in esports despite Glory not having any gender restrictions. Regardless of sex, anyone could become a professional player as long as they had the skill.

There had been female pro players in previous years, most notably a talented youth in the European league who ascended to godlike status for her plays in the middle lane, wiping the floor with players all around the globe. Unfortunately, the club became beguiled by the endorsement dollars that their female pro player could rake in and accepted a frenzy of commercials. This shift in focus had a direct impact on their competitive results.

After all… Being noob was still the original sin of pro gaming and that resulted in their downfall.

Female players were rare and female coaches even more so.

Echo was also someone who didn’t pander to other people’s expectations. Although the esports committee did not dictate a dress code for coaches, most coaches suited up – some even sported a tie. Even someone as showy as FTW’s Queen Chen only went as far as to roll up his sleeves, revealing the black cord of the amulet around his wrist.

On the flip side, Echo had a revolving wardrobe of expensive figure-hugging dresses that she paired with even more stylish jewellery, and never wore the same outfit twice.

There was a considerable number of female fans who kept up with Glory. Just look at the fans who shipped the players together, cheered for their husbandos, and kept up with the latest outside of the competition. Those fans cast covetous eyes at Echo’s outfit.

This wasn’t just because of how good it looked but because of the price tag.

After all, as EVE’s partner, Echo could definitely afford it!

The first game used the Free Battle mode, which meant the pick-and-ban phase was swift. The draft had been decided long in advance so all the coaches had to do was to walk across the stadium onto the stage in order to lock in their selection.

After submitting their line-up, the coaches would shake hands and then walk off the stage.

The clicking sounds became deafening the moment that Chen Feng and Echo shook hands. This wasn’t just the people in the stadium snapping a picture but also everyone online who was taking screenshots of the livestream.

It was a feast for the eyes.

A handsome man and a beautiful woman; the attractiveness index of tonight’s tournament resembled the set of a movie shoot.

Whether it was the players or the coaches, all of them were unfairly good-looking!

What was with Glory! What happened to the stereotype of esports players being fat otakus!

Once the coaches left the stage, the line-ups for both teams were unveiled.

While it wasn’t completely unexpected, it still came as a pleasant surprise.

Once again FTW whipped out the Soul Warlock comp, and EVE also employed the tyrannical Immortal Warlock comp.

Mage-type heroes were once scorned as the most embarrassing class of the league, but they suddenly saw a glorious revival, becoming many players’ top pick.

The incredible Soul Warlock!

The amazing Immortal Warlock!

Fight, fight, fight!

It didn’t need to be said that the fresh idea Wei Xiao had conceived yesterday wasn’t put into play today.

Chen Feng wouldn’t permit it, and the team needed more training with the line-up. EVE was not IN. If they used EVE to practise, Xie He would deliver upon each of them the gift of self-destruction. Perish all thoughts of the championship stage; they’d get blown to Mars first.

Therefore, FTW still went with the Soul Warlock comp today. Brother Cai clenched his fists and heaved in a deep breath. “I can do it; I can. I am a support player; laozi is an awesome support!”

Wei Xiao couldn’t reach him, otherwise he’d definitely swat the back of the other’s head in order to wake him up.

EVE wasn’t taken aback by the line-up. On the contrary, they were prepared for it.

FTW’s Soul Warlock comp was extremely tricky to counter; it would have been insane not to have researched it after so long.

EVE had absolutely no intention of underestimating FTW, a team who had even defeated L&P. FTW was a dominant force this year.

The crowd was stoked. They wanted to see FTW’s Soul Warlock and EVE’s Immortal Warlock in action, but more than that, they wanted to see the two powerhouses fight to death against each other.

Little Ning had grown up and had since learned how to get his head in the game. “Half a year ago, I wouldn’t even have dreamt that I could be facing off against God He with an Immortal Warlock.”

Little Ning was all revved to go. “I want to screw God Xie to tears!”

Wei Xiao: “Ambitious. If you manage it, I’ll treat you to a dye job.”

Little Ning stuttered, “Wh-What colour dye?”

Wei Xiao: “Red, naturally! Watermelon red!”

Little Ning, who saw this coming from a mile away, blanched. “No thanks, I’m good…”

Wei Xiao arched an eyebrow at him. “No?”

Little Ning twitched. “I do want to win, and I do want to dye my hair, but Brother Xiao doesn’t need to spend money on me…”

How could Wei Xiao fail to understand his words? “You don’t like red?”

Little Ning: “Um…”

Wei Xiao: “What’s so bad about red? It’s so tasty… Ahem, I mean, it’s so joyous…”

Little Ning mumbled, “But it’s not as if I’m getting married…” Why red QAQ?!

Wei Xiao paused.

Little Ning made a tough call; this was truly a huge sacrifice for Brother Xiao. “What about this? When you tie the knot, I’ll definitely dye my hair red.”

Brother Cai, overhearing their conversation, nearly choked to death on his saliva.

Wei Xiao was delighted. “You swear?”

Ning Zhehan, confident that Brother Xiao had yet to gain any momentum with his girlfriend, was pretty sure that marriage wouldn’t be on the horizon for the next lifetime at least. He declared, “Swear to god.”

Wei Xiao’s eyes darted to the side. His words were solemn. “Everyone heard him.”

Yue Wenle: “.…..”

Bai Caicai: “…………”

Lu Feng: “Mm.”

Brother Cai nearly slid under the table. What was that hum supposed to mean, captain, tell me.

FTW’s god of wealth was scared witless due to his intimate knowledge of the current affairs.

Despite all the blather, they had actually only just entered the game.

By now, any tiny smidgeons of nervousness had dissipated into nothing.

When the heroes were airdropped into the canyon, Wei Xiao quipped, “Charge, for Brother Ning’s red hair.”

Little Ning was no longer that wimpy kid from the past and even shot back a reply. “Charge! For Brother Xiao’s nuptials!”

Brother Cai’s hand flinched. He had to remind them. “Glory’s Mic Explosion King…”

Forget it. If reminders helped, FTW’s internal voice chat wouldn’t generate millions of traffic and advertising dollars.

Little Ning, who was on a power trip, was being taught manners by God Xie at the moment.

In the Immortal Warlock’s lane, Little Ning was crying out miserably over and over again as he was suppressed by Xie He.

What was most disgraceful about the situation was not a matter of superior talent, farm, or even being unashamed to double-team the other side.

It was the fact that they clearly had the same class, talent, level, and starter items, and yet all he could do was take a beating.

“Ow, ow.” Ning Zhehan added his own narration. “God Xie, don’t you want to get the minions!”

Then he lowered his voice to mimic Xie He. “Minions? When I force you back, all the minions will be mine.”

In a fluster, Ning Zhehan managed to strike down one minion before continuing to shriek out, “No, I can’t do this, I can’t hold on.”

Wei Xiao: “What happened to screwing him to tears?”

Ning Zhehan: “I’m being screwed to tears already QAQ.”

Brother Cai: “…………”

How did the saying go; he who stays near vermillion gets stained red, and he who stays near Xiao gets corrupted – please give me back the Little Ning who was as pure and cute as a blank slate!

Although Ning Zhehan was busy screaming bloody murder, from the audience’s point of view, he was performing rather well.

“Silvery has improved by leaps and bounds. He can actually hold up for so long against God Xie’s Immortal Warlock.”

“The Best Newcomer is terrifying… At the rate he’s going, he’ll be a mage god in no time.”

“What is even more terrifying is Little Ning’s versatility. He can play assassin mages and fortress mages pretty decently.”

“It’s more than just decent. His Immortal Warlock astounds the stadium each time it comes out, don’t you think?”

The commentators were also lavishing Ning Zhehan with praise. And in the commentary booth today was RR’s Moonlit.

Even a chatterbox like Brother Big Mouth was feeling a bit stifled by the brooder beside him.

There were clearly three people in the booth, but why did it seem like there were only two!

Right. There was also an iceberg sitting between them. Party-pooper.

The event organisers must have lost their marbles. Just because Moonlit was the star mage king in the national esports scene didn’t mean that they should have put him in the commentary booth. Was RR’s Captain Money not an enticing option as well?

Whenever Brother Big Mouth encountered Captain Money, their witty five-hour banter would even give him a huge bonus!

But today, well, he had to single-handedly carry the conversation. When he took great pains to include Moonlit, all Moonlit gave him was a single syllable: “Yes.”

Would it kill you to say a few more words!

Despite the untold suffering unfolding in the commentary booth, the live stream was buzzing with activity.

Money rolled in with special rocket effects, and he went on a spending spree.

Fans made fun of him. “Did Captain Mo get more pocket change to blow?” This had practically become a meme.

Mo Hui: “For a brother team, laozi is here to throw my income away.” What pocket money, it was his income!

A deluge of gifts flooded through and the live stream heated up – say it with me: FTW must win!

Someone with sharp eyes noted, “Huh, and here I thought that Captain Mo was spamming gifts for Moon-moon.”

Mo Hui: “Sure I am. For every word Moon-moon utters, I will issue a red envelope that you can try your luck for.”

A red envelope was a thousand yuan and anyone could snatch it. While it wasn’t a huge sum, there would be one for every word uttered so the chat became frenzied!

After that…

Begging Moon Daddy to open your mouth of gold and say a few more words!

Mo Hui was immensely proud: My family’s Little Moon is the best, working hard to help manage the finances!

In the canyon, one team was squarely crushing the other.

The one being crushed was naturally FTW. Soul Warlocks tended to flounder before reaching level 6. Not because Wei Xiao was unable to play support but because Brother Cai’s jungling was seriously not up to par.

But this couldn’t be blamed on Caicai. Any support in his position would also struggle to play jungler especially on a stage like the semifinals.

If it was that easy, then clubs wouldn’t be so desperate for jungler kings.

When the Soul Warlock hit level 6 and could use Spirit Attachment, the momentum would turn around.

The viewers didn’t panic, but only felt that it was dragging out a bit. They wanted to see FTW’s team comp take shape more quickly.

EVE wouldn’t give FTW the chance, though. Knowing the latter’s shortcoming, EVE would definitely seize as much ground as they could before that turning point.

Little Ning barely managed to stay afloat under the relentless pressure that Xie He was putting on him. Unfortunately, it was impossible to stall him forever.

Seeing that the minions had almost invaded the tower but that the Immortal Warlock was nowhere in sight, Little Ning instinctively called out, “Watch out in the jungle.”

Although ample warning was given, Brother Cai was a little put out. “The Red Buff is still at half-health!”

They had expended a significant amount of effort to collect the blue buff and thus believed that they could smoothly clear the first wave of jungle monsters. Unexpectedly, Xie He made an unconventional play, choosing to invade and take the red buff instead of the blue buff.

It was a daring move as the opponent could easily collapse on him in that area.

Wei Xiao glanced around the terrain.

Brother Cai gritted his teeth. “Jungle or go for the kill?”

Little Ning came over from behind. “I’ll come by to help.”

Wei Xiao’s browline flew up. “Something’s wrong.”

Too late. Little Ning had already taken the bait.

Xie He was an infamous daredevil in the industry. However, this didn’t stem from a propensity for recklessness but rather his bold strategies.

How could he be unaware that it was easier to be collapsed on in the terrain where the red buff was as opposed to where the blue buff was? Why would he ignore that when it was simple logic that even an ordinary player could grasp?

He would never underestimate his enemy. The current FTW made it clear how unwise that would be, so he set a trap and staked out a spot.

Inexperienced, Little Ning had confidently rotated to the team, not expecting that he was the one that Xie He was camping for.

The granny-grey haired boy who had misread the mid laner confrontation walked right into the trap.

One click and Miller – EVE’s support – had Ning Zhehan restrained. The ability Connecting Clouds flew out from the bushes, and the Immortal Warlock descended delicately but with deadly intent.

It was the talent with the gentlest appearance, an offensive combo wrapped in celestial light, yet only ever delivered pain, agony, and suffering.

Little Ning was unable to even cry out now. Xie He was flattening him; his health bar plummeted rapidly.

Brother Cai wanted to go over and give him support, but Wei Xiao put a stop to that. “Secure the red buff!”

Little Ning was a lost cause. Rather than exchanging blows, the time was better spent reaching level 6.

Brother Cai had slightly weaker game sense in this regard, but he still fell in line and obeyed Wei Xiao’s command, body moving faster than his mind could think.

He concentrated all his abilities on the Red Buff and left just a sliver of health. Wei Xiao finished it off with Soul Blade, advancing to level 4.

Simultaneously, Xie He got First Blood with Ning Zhehan’s life.

Beneath the stage, Echo’s eyes were focused, and her slender fingers which were curled together tapped rhythmically.

The easy triple kill they had been aiming for had been foiled by the surprising vigilance of the cubs in FTW.

On the other side, Chen Feng subtly sighed in relief. It wasn’t an issue if they gave away first blood. It wasn’t even a problem if the mid laner died once. As long as they didn’t let the opposition counter jungle, there was hope once the Soul Warlock attained level 6.

Just as that thought flashed through his mind, he saw Xie He leading his team’s support and jungler straight towards FTW’s jungle.

Avoiding confrontation?

Slaying the enemy mid laner was just the beginning. God Xie was going to decimate the whole field!

@babyybluebear: …don’t mind me, just picking up broken pieces of little ning…rest in pieces.