Yu Zhaohan and Shi Du returned to the lounge. The loser’s match had just ended, and another Korean team ended its season ahead of schedule.

So far, most of the teams that have been eliminated were teams from the Eastern Division. Therefore, it was generally believed that the overall strength of the Eastern Division this year was not as good as the Western Division. If R.H loses to Lawman again today, this statement will be further confirmed. At that time, not only would the Chinese team be embarrassed, but the entire East Asian region would have to bow down to the European and American teams.

Ten minutes remained before the players were due to take the stage. The big screen in the venue had just finished playing promotional videos for both teams and now, it was time for the pre-game trash-talk videos.

The one who was exchanging trash-talk with Shi Du was Lawman’s short-gun, Umbra. The twenty-year-old American boy leaned back in his chair with the typical American-style teasing tone.

Umbra was well-known for his sharp tongue in the Western Division. While Timeless could be sarcastic when talking to people he didn’t like, his manner of speech was a far cry from Umbra, who had a penchant for personal attacks, making fun of people’s looks and beliefs.

In one instance this season, Umbra had teased his South Korean teammates’ English accents in a post-match interview, which upset a bunch of South Korean fans. On another occasion during a live stream, he taunted a female gamer he encountered, earning him numerous blocks from female fans. Just last week, after winning against Beijing IPL, he claimed that IPL played clumsily and suggested they should lose some weight to be more agile.

If another person behaved as offensively as he did, they would’ve been reprimanded long ago. But Umbra was the top short-gun in the West, and Lawman, a team that valued individual skill above all else, was determined to protect their star player at all costs, making Umbra even more fearless.

Facing a handsome guy like Timeless who can unify the aesthetics of the East and the West, Umbra couldn’t use his appearance to attack, which meant his ability to damage had been halved. So he chose to target Timeless’ physique.

Umbra: “I haven’t paid much attention to R.H.’s players. I think they’re all pretty skinny. Is it because you guys can’t get enough to eat at the base? May God help your stamina to last a few more games.”

Shi Du: “Your eyesight doesn’t need to be good; what’s important is not to be blind— later on, please put a photo of our little support here.”

Jiang Di’s professional portrait appeared on the big screen, showing off his muscular and massive build that looked as big as two Umbras.

Umbra: “Yeah, it’s been a year since we last met Timeless. “Yeah, it’s been a year, Timeless. We met in the finals last year; do you remember? I lifted the championship trophy right in front of you.”

Timeless: “I don’t remember. Were you even in the finals last year? My apologies, which hero were you using?”

Umbra: “…”

Umbra: I heard from my Chinese teammate that Chinese teams like to go up the mountain to pray before matches like they’re quite superstitious. Is it because your skills aren’t up to par, so you have to rely on superstition? Honestly, I’m a little afraid of your routines.”

Timeless: “Oh, I’m also good at fortune-telling. Let me calculate for you—Hmm? Are you retiring this year?”

Umbra: “I’m not retiring!”

Timeless: “Well then, it proves that superstitions aren’t reliable. So, what are you afraid of?”

Cheese was enraged by Umbra’s comments and wished he could jump into the screen to join the banter. “Timeless, why don’t you mention his receding hairline? He looks like a complete idiot and is trying to copy someone who’s already bald!”

Yu Zhaohan said: “There’s no need to lower our standards for a counterattack.”

“But our Timeless don’t really have much of a standard to begin with!”

Yu Zhaohan: …It seems so.

“You will be fined for physical attacks.” Shi Du sighed quietly, “I just bought a house, so I have to save some money.”

Cheese declared boldly, “Next time, you can curse, and I’ll cover the fines for you!”

Yu Zhaohan said, “Sit down; it’s not your turn.”

Cheese returned to his seat, “Okay.”

Old Tan was worried about Shi Du: “Umbra is Lawman’s big treasure. As long as he doesn’t decline in performance, he can still play for two to three more years. Aren’t you afraid that you’ll be proven wrong if you claim he’ll retire?”

Shi Du shrugged: “As long as Umbra underperforms, he’ll be bitten back by his previous trash talk. At that time, not even Lawman will save him.”

Old Tan couldn’t help but ask, “Are you that confident you can beat Lawman?”

Shi Du still said the same thing: “Admit defeat halfway.”

The staff informed them it was time to go onstage. Yu Zhaohan looked around, his eyes passing over each of his teammates, then turned around and walked at the front: “Follow me.”

As the eight starters took the stage, the photos and basic information of each player appeared on the big screen.

Lawman?

Tank: Gunner[USA]

Short-Gun: Umbra[USA]

Long-Gun: Tide[China]

Support: Paradox[Korea]

R.H?

Tank: Stone[China]

Short-Gun: Timeless[China]

Long-Gun: Shine[China]

Support: Cheese[China]

As soon as the starting list came out, it was equivalent to R.H revealing an important piece of information to everyone. R.H only brought Jiang into the starting lineup when playing a fast-paced style. Starting Cheese now signaled their intent to adopt a more strategic and coordinated approach.

The live broadcast featured two American commentators, while the domestic streaming platform had its own commentators. The commentators started analyzing the reason behind R.H’s commitment to playing the utility strategy.

Commentator A: “In the previous IPL, they played the utility strategy against Lawman and ended up losing 4-1. The only game they won wasn’t due to the energy playstyle but rather due to exceptional individual performances from Bi An.”

Commentator B: “Many players think that playing utility is a trap in the current meta, where they win one game and lose the next. Let me clarify here, the trap isn’t the strategy itself; it’s that IPL didn’t fully exploit the advantages of the utility style. I believe R.H can redeem the utility strategy today.”

Commentator A: “In reality, R.H doesn’t necessarily have to play utility against Lawman. Even in a point-to-point matchup, R.H doesn’t need to fear Lawman…”

Yu Zhaohan sat down in his seat and looked towards the other side of the stage.

The four opponents were exactly the same as last year, the familiar American commentators, and the cheering Western faces in the audience all seemed to be the same group as last year.

Shi Du expressed his thoughts on the voice channel: “This setup looks just like last season.”

Yu Zhaohan thought of Wings sitting next to him last year; now, he’s become a father.

“The people around us have changed,” he said.

Cheese added, “And the boss behind us has changed!”

Shi Du looked at the screen and curled up the corners of his mouth: “So the result will be different.”

The first map was a relatively closed indoor map, not suitable for long-range weapons, which put pressure on the assassins on both sides.

As the match began, the eight players spawned on opposite ends of the symmetrical map. Yu Zhaohan abandoned the long-gun and equipped the Virus, playing a dual short-gun playstyle with Timeless.

Yu Zhaohan said: “Timeless is attacking the back row, I’ll go find Tide…”

Before he could finish his sentence, Cheese screamed, “Holy ****!”

[Lawman.Tide killed R.H.Cheese]

Tide, Lawman’s archer, took cover behind an obstacle and headshot Cheese.

Stone said anxiously, “I raised my shield; why didn’t you stand behind it?”

Cheese replied, “I was behind your shield, but Tide flanked and shot!”

Losing the support so early in the match could easily shatter their morale. When the support goes down, they cut their supply lines. Against most teams, there might still be a chance, but against a top-tier team, it was nearly impossible to win a team fight in a 4v3 situation.

Shi Du asked, “Should we retreat?”

Yu Zhaohan replied, “Stone, retreat. Timeless and I will look for an opportunity to steal damage.”

A utility lineup might lose one team fight but must secure the crucial team fight. The primary goal of Double C was to accumulate energy and build their ultimate abilities to ensure that these “crucial team fights” occurred as soon as possible.

Lawman won the first team fight, securing target point A without much difficulty. R.H stayed outside the target point, primarily focusing on dealing with damage and building energy. When Lawman’s capture progress reached 30%, R.H’s double C had already built up their ultimates.

Yu Zhaohan’s ultimate had the power to silence enemies within a certain range, preventing them from using any skills. Coupled with Timeless’s ultimate’s burst damage, it created the most fundamental ultimate combo.

Lawman’s commander was the Tank, Gunner. Calculating the enemy’s energy levels was a basic skill for a commander.

Gunner: “Shine should have around 80% energy right now. In ten seconds, disperse the formation. We can’t afford to let him silence all four of us.”

Tide said solemnly, “It’s more than that.”

Gunner: “What?”

Tide: “His energy is more than 80%, spread out! Spread out now!”

Gunner retorted defensively, “There can only be one commander in the team, Tide!”

Tide shouted, “support, come with me!”

Paradox, who typically followed his two American teammates without question, didn’t dare to listen to Tide now.

Paradox: “Even Umbra wouldn’t have his Virus ultimate ready this quickly. You’re overthinking this, Tide.”

Tide cursed softly in his native language and jumped out of the target point alone, far away from his three teammates.

Just as he landed in a safe position, the invisible Yu Zhaohan appeared at the target point and unleashed his ultimate move [Group Invasion]. All three Lawman players had their skills disabled!

Paradox was confused: “Shine is a long-gun player, how can he be so terrifying with short-gun weapons?”

Tide gritted his teeth and said, “Because he is Shine, the former top free agent.”

Shi Du ducked into the target point from the side while doing his ultimate move. His Dragon Sword was drawn and aimed at Umbra, another Assassin.

Umbra couldn’t use any abilities and could only desperately retreat, “Heal me, and I can counter-kill!”

Paradox weakly stated, “I’ve run out of…”

[R.H. Shine killed Lawman Paradox]

[R.H. Timeless killed Lawman Umbra]

[R.H. Timeless killed Lawman Gunner]

Tide knew that he could not hold target point A alone, so he retreated decisively. However, R.H’s double C, who had just wiped out Lawman, caught up with him. Yu Zhaohan didn’t even shoot him; he ended Tide with a punch.

[R.H.Shine killed Lawman.Tide]

Lawman got wiped out, and R.H occupied the target point A.

Umbra large piece “F.u.c.k.”

Gunner sternly told Umbra to shut up: “Tide, have you ever seen Shine play with a shotgun?”

Tide held his breath: “Yes, I really recommend that you increase your estimate of Shine’s charging speed by 20%.”

Gunner clicked his fingers in the last few seconds while waiting for resurrection: “Shine… very impressive.”

After Yu Zhaohan and Timeless had used their ultimate moves, their energy meters were back at zero. In the next team fight, they would rely on Cheese and Stone’s ultimates to fight. However, just before the team fight started, Umbra executed a beautiful sniper shot, locating Cheese’s position and successfully solo-killing him.

Cheese: “Ah, it’s me again! I’m going to cry…”

Yu Zhaohan: “Retreat.”

R.H had to give up the target point first and continue to wait for the crucial team battle to come. However, this time Lawman was clearly cautious. The support, Paradox, didn’t use his ultimate ability, which granted a team-wide defense boost and concealed himself in a hidden corner. After his teammates were silenced by Virus, he promptly used his ultimate.

Shi Du drew his sword and slashed at an opponent for a long time but couldn’t secure a kill, saying, “Paradox used his ultimate well.”

Yu Zhaohan’s heart sank.

Lawman took over R.H’s crucial team battle, and R.H fell into an operational disadvantage.

The first map concluded with Lawman leading 1-0, a great disappointment for the two domestic commentators.

Commentator B: “What a pity! R.H. initially played their utility composition very well, but their support was heavily targeted, and later on, the energy cycle was obviously disrupted.”

Commentator A: “Once there is a mistake in the operation lineup, it will turn into operation catastrophe, affecting not only one team fight but several that follow. I strongly suggest that R.H. consider what Lawman is doing, forget about utility, and just engage them head-on with their marksmanship!”

During halftime, the players couldn’t leave the stage, but the coaches could join the team’s voice chat.

Cheese was feeling rather miserable due to being targeted, “With Lawman’s focus fire efficiency, I won’t survive if no one protects me.”

Timeless replied, “If I protect you, our damage to the back row won’t be sufficient.”

Although the Virus is positioned at the C position, it is a tool player at the C position. Even Yu Zhaohan couldn’t produce significant damage with Virus. It was primarily Timeless who handled the main output position.

If he could step into the game, Lu Youshan would unhesitatingly use his body to shield Cheese from bullets: “It’s okay; on the next map, we’ll outsmart them! Shine, you know what I mean!”

Yu Zhaohan: “Hmm, change players.”

R.H. Jiang replaced R.H. Cheese.

In the second round, the losing side picked the map. Following their plan, R.H. selected the new map [Sunset Boulevard] and began some fancy maneuvers

Lawman must have practiced the new map, but they don’t have a genius coach like Lu Youshan. Lu Youshan studied the new map thoroughly, and the four R.H.s lived up to his expectations and made full use of the terrain.

For example, the bulky tank descended from an unexpected corner, hammering down on all four enemies.

And the supposedly fragile support was unexpectedly at the forefront of the team, baiting two enemies into pursuing him. They chased, and Jiang Di escaped.

Jiang Di fled to the middle of the road, and they followed him. Then, they were hit and killed by an oncoming car.

For another example, Yu Zhaohan’s Busy Cowboy hid at Lawman’s resurrection point. When Paradox and Tide had just resurrected and were unprepared, a flash bomb knocked them out and scored a double kill.

This round ended joyfully, with the entertainment factor at its peak, bringing the score to 1:1.

In the third round, Lawman deliberately chose a map suitable for the operation composition, and R.H. did play utility. However, due to a mistake, the operation strategy failed, bringing the score to 2:1.

Lawman’s joy didn’t last long; in the next round, they were tied by R.H.

It seemed like R.H. and Lawman had an agreement; one side wins a round if it’s their chosen map, and loses if it’s the opponent’s. After five rounds, Lawman led 3:2, reaching match point ahead.

Stone nervously wiped his sweaty palms, “Captain, coach, are we still playing operation?”

Lu Youshan, who was breathless due to his anxiety, accepted the oxygen inhaler handed over by Old Tan, took a deep breath, and said: “Theoretically speaking, operations are the best solution to Lawman!”

Shi Duo remained noncommittal, “You’ve all said it’s theoretical. Regardless of the composition, the most important thing is the result.”

“Pick a map that belongs to me,” Yu Zhaohan slowly spoke, “Protect me, and I’ll lead you to victory.”

Shi Du laughed: “Thank you, Captain.”

In the sixth game, R.H chose an outdoor map with a wide field of view and suitable for long guns.

Seeing Shine and Tide take out the Black Swan at the same time, the scene suddenly erupted into an overwhelming scream.

The commentator was also very excited: “It’s coming, it’s finally here! The showdown between the sniper kings of the East and West divisions!”

“Come on, bring me my quick-acting heart-saving pills!”

The director also thoughtfully provided a comparison of the data between the two when using Black Swan. It can be seen from the comparative data that Shine and Tide have almost the same hit rate and headshot rate, ranking first in their respective divisions.

The dual sniper confrontation that all the viewers were most looking forward to, the showdown between the two gods, was finally about to happen.

[Game countdown: 5, 4, 3…]

Tide took several deep breaths, walked out of the resurrection point with a sniper rifle, and separated from its teammates as usual.

He knew Yu Zhaohan, and Yu Zhaohan would definitely find a hidden location to set up a sniper rifle. A head-on battle broke out, but it had nothing to do with him. His job was to keep an eye on Shine.

Three headshots were fired one after another.

[R.H.Shine killed Lawman.Paradox]

[R.H.Shine killed Lawman.Umbra]

[R.H.Shine killed Lawman.Gunner]

Triple kill, Yu Zhaohan scored three kills.

Gunner’s angry voice almost pierced through the headphones: “Damn it, Shine didn’t hide at all!”

Yu Zhaohan was out in the open, he set up a sniper scope behind his teammates’ shields and shot after shot, completely smashing Lawman’s back row.

Except for the tank’s kill with an assist, the other two squishy targets were all solo kills by Yu Zhaohan.

After the three Lawman players resurrected, Tide finally found an opportunity, aimed at Yu Zhaohan, and just as he was about to shoot—

[R.H. Shine killed Lawman Tide]

The audience and commentators went completely crazy about Shine.

“Tide could clearly penetrate in the Western region; how come he’s struggling against Shine in this matchup?”

“Your captain is always your captain — damn, is this bloodline suppression?”

Gunner shouted, “Tide, don’t go against Shine. Aim at someone else!”

Tide’s lips trembled, “No, if I don’t deal with Shine, he’ll kill me first and then go after others…”

Gunner in hysteria: “Then switch heroes! Don’t engage him in a sniper duel! Completely block Shine, no matter the cost!”

Umbra: “Damn, that’s easy for you to say. Timeless and Jiang are protecting him!”

Paradox: “But isn’t Jiang a violent support? Why is he protecting others?!”

Tide was forced to switch to an archer. Although the archer’s damage was not as high as the Black Swan, it had advantages in terms of mechanics. However, Yu Zhaohan had already practiced his Black Swan to the point where he could ignore mechanics.

Jiang Di saw Tide change heroes again and exclaimed, “He changed… to Virus?”

Shi Du: “To force Tide to choose an assassin to counter, the captain is amazing.”

Stone: “What does that mean? Why did Tide choose Virus?”

Yu Zhaohan replied, “Because Lawman has to play the operation themselves.”

Tide’s virus is far inferior to his spear hero. It charges very slowly. After one round, it’s hard to get a big move. He activated stealth and looked for opportunities to release his ultimate move behind the R.H formation.

Yu Zhaohan keenly sensed everything, saying, “Tide should be stealthing near us. Let’s see if we can force him out.”

After saying that, he casually fired a shot at the approximate height of Virus’s head in the air.

Ding— Tide was instantly killed with his ultimate.

Even Shi Du was astonished this time, “How did you manage that shot?”

Yu Zhaohan smiled faintly, “Luck.”

But the audience didn’t think it was luck; this was godlike!

Even in the European home court, Shine’s name still resounded throughout the arena.

“Shine, Shine, Shine —”

“I live for Shine!”

“Marry me, Shine!”

Yu Zhaohan relied on a sniper rifle and the protection of his teammates to bring the score to 3:3.

R.H became the only team this season to push Lawman to the brink. A team proficient in quick focused attacks, solely bringing out their despised operation system just to counter Shine, was enough to make them the subject of mockery both online and offline for at least a year.

The seventh round, the deciding round. Lawman would rather not use a sniper themselves than give Yu Zhaohan a chance to use one. They chose another narrow map for this decisive battle — the Biotech Lab.

Cheese replaced Jiang Di

The most distinctive feature of this map was a massive blender in the lab, with green poison bubbling. Once someone fell in, it was certain death.

When pre-selecting the lineup, Lu Youshan struggled: “Theoretically, this map must be better using Virus, but…”

Yu Zhaohan interrupted him, “I’m playing Virus.”

Stone wiped the sweat with his arm: “Captain, we lost all the operations maps.”

Cheese also had no confidence: “Could this be some kind of curse?”

Yu Zhaohan said, “No.”

Shi Du was silent for two seconds and said, “I don’t really believe in the hero Virus. The error tolerance rate is too low.”

This was the most inappropriate time for the morale to be unstable.

Yu Zhaohan said coldly, “Timeless—”

“But I believe in you,” Shi Du said, “Cheese, Stone, do you believe in the captain?”

Cheese and Stone almost shouted hoarsely, “We believe!”

The visibility in the Biotech Lab was quite limited. Lawman also replaced Tide, and their substitute short-gun players came in to play dual short guns—a ninja and a gladiator, both heroes heavily reliant on skill combos. Silenced by the Virus, they could only use normal attacks and were practically unkillable.

R.H took target point A in one go, and Yu Zhaohan’s Virus dominated the entire field.

When attacking point B, Umbra used a personal Star Ball, got a triple kill with his ultimate, and occupied point B.

After the triple kill, Umbra taunted on the screen: [You should have run]

The confrontation in this match came to the decisive point—the last point on the seventh map. By now, the match had lasted for a full three hours, testing the players’ focus and stamina.

In a crucial team fight, Shi Du, in a 1v2 situation, made an extreme trade, killing Umbra solo. Gunner, led by the support, took down Cheese and Stone amidst the chaos. Only Yu Zhaohan’s invisible Virus survived.

Lawman’s capture progress on point C had reached a very dangerous level:

87%, 88%, 89%…

At this moment, Paradox used the resurrection skill to revive Umbra.

At this moment, Yu Zhaohan felt like he could hear his own heartbeat.

What to do.

He was the only one left, and Lawman had all four members. He had only one utility, a high-impact but non-damaging ultimate. Without the support of a healer, how could he face a 1v4 situation?

What to do, were they going to lose to Lawman again?

All the trash talk his boyfriend said before the match, if they lost, would his face be swollen from getting slapped, and would he never be arrogant again in the future?

Oh no, he seemed on the verge of tears, his eyes were heating, and he couldn’t hold it together anymore… If he really cried, wouldn’t everyone laugh at him?

No, he didn’t want to lose. He couldn’t lose.

He had to hold on, not with Black Swan but with the hero, Virus.

He had to hold on until Shi Du resurrected.

Suddenly, Yu Zhaohan said, “I’ll go for it.”

Stone was startled: “Captain?”

Yu Zhaohan’s voice was trembling, but he still held the mouse calmly, “Shi Du, if I kill the enemy tank and support, can you handle the remaining two C positions? You’ll be 1v2, with no one to help you.”

Yu Zhaohan rarely called Shi Du by his name during a match.

Shi Du understood what Yu Zhaohan meant in an instant. He said firmly and without any hesitation: “I can.”

Capture progress: 92%, 93%…

Yu Zhaohan voluntarily revealed himself next to the mixer. Gunner and Paradox, the closest to him, rushed toward him like hungry wolves.

Gunner played a hero who could jump in the air, and Paradox flew him. As they passed over the mixer, Yu Zhaohan jumped, releasing his silence ultimate—this was also Yu Zhaohan’s last move, and he had no way to jump back.

The silenced Gunner and Paradox fell from mid-air, plopping into the mixer. Soon after, Shine fell as well.

[R.H.Shine killed Lawman.Paradox]

[R.H.Shine killed Lawman.Gunner]

[R.H.Shine killed R.H.Shine]

Cheese finally understood and shouted: “Captain…”

Shi Du resurrected.

Yu Zhaohan saw him preparing to take out the female assassin and said, “Change the hero.”

Shi Du: “Huh?”

Yu Zhaohan: “You have been following me for so long, you should learn a little bit.”

The four-man Lawman was instantly reduced by half of their combat power. Fortunately, Shine also died. The death times of R.H four people showed gaps, they died one by one, and naturally, they came back one by one. Only one person can come back at a time. Lawman has both C’s, so there was no reason they would lose in a 2v1.

Gunner said, “Timeless will definitely use the fastest-moving female assassin to come back. Keep an eye on the flanks!”

Capture progress: 95%, 96%…

Umbra wondered, “Where’s Timeless?”

Ding, ding…

The elegant and beautiful sniper appeared silently behind Lawman’s double C and fired four shots, only two of which were headshots.

This headshot rate, so out of tune, clearly wasn’t R.H.Shine.

The ID above Black Swan’s health bar clearly displayed: R.H. Timeless.

Gunner yelled: “Timeless changed snipers! Damn it!”

Lawman never expected Shi Du to bring out a sniper on this kind of map, and they didn’t even go to guard against the possible positions a sniper might appear—this was the first time in Timeless’s professional career that he used a sniper in an official match.

Lawman was wiped out again, and Shi Du’s Black Swan stepped on high heels and reached the target point alone.

Shi Du said helplessly: “The hit rate is a bit low.”

“Indeed,” Yu Zhaohan smiled, “but it’s enough.”

Target point C was captured by R.H. capture progress: 98%, 99%, 100%—

[Victory]

The next moment the sound of victory sounded, Yu Zhaohan took off his headphones, and amid the screams, he took the initiative to hug his teammate and his boyfriend.

—His boyfriend, who had hit only two out of four shots.