All-Round Mid Laner

Ye Shaoyang and Chi Shuo played from 7:40 to 9:40 in the morning. They used their double flight comp to win four games in a row.

Chi Shuo leaned back in his gaming chair and rubbed at his temples. He asked, "It's almost ten. Do you need to go back to stream?"

"If I stream every day, will that affect our training?" Ye Shaoyang asked.

"No, the team's training times are in the afternoons and evenings. Us playing ranked early in the morning is already considered extra practice." Chi Shuo dropped his hands from his temples and looked towards Ye Shaoyang. He warmly added, "You don't need to put too much pressure on yourself either. Just focus on training for two hours in the morning, then give yourself some time to relax."

Ye Shaoyang thought about it and decided Chi Shuo was making sense. Playing ranked with Chi Shuo on the international server was actually very draining. He had to focus his full attention on the games without relaxing for even a second. That was the only way he could keep up with Chi Shuo's tempo. If he kept up this sort of high-intensity training all day, his mind wouldn't be able to take it.

Even in training, there had to be a balance between work and rest.

With that thought in mind, Ye Shaoyang got up and prepared to return to his room.

Just as the two of them turned to step outside, they ran into a yawning Lin Feng who was on his way into the training room. Upon seeing that Ye Shaoyang and Chi Shuo had already turned on their computers, Coach Lin froze for a moment.

"Why are you two up to train this early?"

"We've been keeping a pretty regular work and sleep schedule lately," Ye Shaoyang said. "I get up at seven, and Captain Chi has been getting up early too. So we played a few rounds on the international server to practice a flight comp."

Lin Feng hurriedly approached the computers. "Come, come. Show me the replay."

Chi Shuo loaded up the recording of their games.

Lin Feng watched the games at 2x speed. He disregarded the other random teammates, only focusing on the teamwork Chi Shuo and Ye Shaoyang displayed when ganking others. After watching, he fell into thought with an expression of deep disbelief. A long moment passed before he finally mumbled, "You guys have only known each other for a few days. How are you so in sync?"

Ye Shaoyang joked, "Maybe we were born to be together?"

Chi Shuo was silent.

What are you saying? An alpha and an omega, born to be together?

Chi Shuo coughed lightly, embarrassedly averting his gaze.

Coach Lin was also momentarily stunned by these 'bold' words from Ye Shaoyang. He gave the two of them a suspicious look and found that Ye Shaoyang's eyes were completely open and honest, without the slightest bit of guilt or unease—it seemed Ye Shaoyang was a rather straightforward person. His 'be together' referred to being together in the game, on the battlefield. There was no other meaning.

Coach Lin gathered his thoughts and warned, "The flight comp is extremely difficult to play. It requires peak performance from the players. If you take this comp out in an official game, are you two confident you can destroy the enemy?"

The coach's question was clearly geared towards taking their team strategies into consideration.

Two people working together and five people working together were different matters. These two could use their flight comp to take down passersby in a random match, but when they faced off a team of five professional players who were all in sync with one another, they might not be able to suppress their opponents. And there was a very real possibility of them crashing into the ground.

Ye Shaoyang considered it for a moment, then said, "We probably won't have any trouble playing against ordinary teams, but this comp is too fragile. We would be worried about crowd control. If we run into a team with a control-oriented support, or a top laner or mid laner with crowd control skills, then we would have to consider our options."

Chi Shuo nodded his agreement. "Mm, we'll have to try it out with the team as a whole before we know whether or not we can bring it out in an official game. We can't completely break apart from Old Qin, Qu Jiang, and such."

Coach Lin was satisfied by that answer. "Okay, you guys practice first. When the second phase of training comes around, we can build around your flight comp and come up with a team comp. Also, you guys practice some other mid/jungle duos too. When the time comes for tournament games, we'll have more options."

The two players nodded at the same time. "Understood."

Chi Shuo paused for a moment, then said, "Shaoyang and I will be going back to our rooms, then. We'll come back at one in the afternoon."

Coach Lin watched the two of them leave, then turned back to the computer screen—he hadn't imagined that Ye Shaoyang would have cultivated such a deep tacit understanding with Chi Shuo just a few short days after joining the team.

It really was mystifying. Chi Shuo had known Fang Zhengqing for four years. They'd been friends since their rookie training camp days. But the two of them were completely out of sync when they played together. Their thoughts always went in totally opposite directions. Chi Shuo had also played with Qu Jiang for three years now. Although they did have a certain degree of tacit understanding between them, there were times when Qu Jiang couldn't keep up with Chi Shuo's rhythm.

But Ye Shaoyang could keep up. It was no wonder Chi Shuo had insisted on bringing Ye Shaoyang to Tianhuan. Sometimes, whether or not two players worked well together really did depend on a sort of fate. Maybe Ye Shaoyang really was the 'ideal teammate' Chi Shuo had spoken of?!

The more Coach Lin thought about it, the more excited he became—next season, Tianhuan's mid/jungle duo would return to the battlefield! He had really underestimated Ye Shaoyang. Rather than making him follow the normal procedures and practice new heroes individually, it would be better to have him pair up with Chi Shuo right away!

Shaoyang's talent for the game was a rare find. He was extremely quick about picking up new heroes. So, maybe his training plan could be accelerated as well? Coach Lin glanced at the training schedule on Ye Shaoyang's desk, then picked up a pen and started to change a few lines.

After returning to his room, Ye Shaoyang started streaming at exactly ten in the morning.

Quite a few viewers were waiting for him. Mu-jie immediately sent him an invitation to play ranked with her.

Ye Shaoyang joined her group and found that Xiao Wei-ge was there as well.

Xiao Wei very straightforwardly asked: [Xiao Bai, have you been really busy lately? I didn't see you stream last night.]

Ye Shaoyang answered: [Mm, I got a job recently.]

He didn't say exactly what kind of work he was doing now, and the viewers in his streaming room weren't actually pleased to hear the news—

[You're not actually a dedicated streamer?]

[Poor Xiao Bai needs to find a job to raise his cat. The gifts we send you aren't enough to support you and the kitty?]

[Hurry, everyone send more gifts!]

A bunch of viewer gifts popped up in the lower left corner.

Ye Shaoyang hurriedly put an end to that and said, "You guys don't need to send gifts. Streaming isn't my only job, that's true. But from now on, I'll still stream every morning from ten to twelve. I'll still come visit you guys at set times."

Mumu smiled slightly and wrote: [Then let's stick to our usual plan and queue together in the mornings.]

Ye Shaoyang: [Sounds good.]

Yao Mu was a streamer who slept early and woke early anyway. Her schedule lined up with Ye Shaoyang's. Xiao Wei was sometimes online in the mornings, and sometimes he wasn't. He worked and slept based on his mood. But as long as he was up in the mornings, he would get Mumu to play with him. After playing ranked together for so long, the three of them were starting to get to know one another better and better. They'd also added one another on WeChat.

After Ye Shaoyang ended his stream at noon, Mumu sent him a message on WeChat: [Xiao Bai, Whale Streaming hosts a ceremony every December for new streamers. All new streamers who debuted this year will be entered into a contest. Fans can vote, and whichever streamer comes in first will receive a lot of dedicated marketing from the platform. Are you going to participate?]

Streamers fighting for votes was something Ye Shaoyang had heard of in his past life. Coming in first in a contest like that was something a streamer could brag about. Therefore, lots of streamers also privately created a bunch of alt accounts to vote for themselves.

Ye Shaoyang smiled and answered: [I'll pass on getting in on the commotion.]

Mumu sent two surprised emojis. She asked: [Why? The streamers who debuted in the first half of the year, Brother Fish and Cutie Bear and the others, have already started to talk about this newcomers ceremony. You could easily crush them with your achievements. Isn't it a waste to not participate?]

Ye Shaoyang had never bothered comparing himself to those second-rate streamers. His goal wasn't to become a popular streamer. He was already a professional player signed to Team Tianhuan. Even if he did participate and win first place, people would argue that it was unfair once his true identity came out in the future. They would accuse Tianhuan of tipping the votes in his favor and helping him blow up in popularity.

Was there any need to go through that? Just to make a name for himself?

He would make a name for himself in the professional matches he played!

Ye Shaoyang wrote: [Thank you for your concern, Mu-jie. I just don't want to get mixed up in this. A contest between all new streamers must be very fierce. There'll be fans and anti-fans warring it out, trying to tip the votes, and so on. It's too tiring.]

Mumu looked at this message and thought deeply for a long while. New streamers cared about this annual popularity contest more than anything, but it seemed like Xiao Bai didn't care about it at all? Was he really above it all, or was there some other reason?

Thinking back to his comment about finding a job, Mumu felt a jolt of surprise. She joked: [You just said you found some work. A professional team didn't reach out to you, did they? You haven't gone off to become a pro player, have you?]

Ye Shaoyang responded with a smiley face and said: [Mu-jie guessed right. ^_^]

Ye Shaoyang added: [It's not appropriate for me to say exactly which team before the announcement is made. When we meet up at games in the future, where Mu-jie is the commentator, please be kind to me if I stupidly give away a kill.]

Mumu: [……]

He really was going to be a professional player! No wonder he didn't care about a new streamer popularity contest!

Yao Mu couldn't help but feel a little excited. She'd always felt like Xiao Bai was really strong in the game. Although she and Xiao Wei were first-class streamers, there were many times when their game sense couldn't match up to Xiao Bai's. That was one reason why she was so willing to play ranked with Xiao Bai.

And now, it seemed some professional team really had recognized this gem for what it was. They'd recruited Xiao Bai to the pro league.

Mumu wrote: [That's amazing! Don't you worry, I'm familiar with a lot of commentators and analysts. I'll get them all to blow some rainbow farts your way. You play well in your games, or else I'll be embarrassed to praise you.]

Ye Shaoyang: [I definitely will.]

Mumu: [Let's play ranked some more in the future when you have time. You go ahead and focus on training now. Good luck.]

Ye Shaoyang: [Byebye, Mu-jie~]

Ye Shaoyang closed the chat window. He believed Yao Mu wouldn't spill this gossip to just anyone. After all, she needed to maintain her reputation as a regular commentator of the official league as well. It wouldn't be good for her if she was perceived as a blabbermouth.

Besides, the story of Xiao Bai being signed to a pro team had probably been circulated throughout the professional league already.

It was just that no one knew he'd signed with Tianhuan.

At half past noon, Ye Shaoyang went down to the cafeteria for lunch. His teammates were all there. Qu Jiang took the initiative to carry his tray over and sit down next to Ye Shaoyang, curiously scooting closer and asking, "How are you doing with Captain Chi? Have you been winning or losing your ranked matches?"

"We're doing alright," Ye Shaoyang said. "We've been winning quite a lot. What about you guys?"

Qu Jiang sighed softly. "Ai, it was all losses for me and Little Xing last night."

Ye Shaoyang saw that Cheng Xing was sitting fairly far away. He also lowered his voice and quietly said, "Little Xing is too aggressive, isn't he?"

Qu Jiang gave him a look of surprise. "How did you know?"

Ye Shaoyang smiled. "I can tell. This kid has an impatient personality. The heat of the battle gets to his head too easily. If he wants to charge in and give his life away, I'd bet you wouldn't be able to stop him."

Qu Jiang bitterly nodded. "It's true. I can't hold him back. It's exhausting."

Ye Shaoyang said, "That's probably why the coaches asked you to play support to keep an eye on him, right? You're the steadiest player on Team Tianhuan. You're the only one who could keep things stable on the bottom lane, without letting Cheng Xing bring about a total collapse."

Qu Jiang was thrilled to be praised. He grinned merrily and said, "Really? I think so too. I'll keep a good eye on Cheng Xing and make sure he gives away fewer kills in the future."

Ye Shaoyang fell silent.

He was starting to see that Qu Jiang was maybe a bit naive. His temperament was really too good.

When he imagined joining Tianhuan, Ye Shaoyang had figured that the new mid laner and the former mid laner wouldn't be able to avoid butting heads. But Qu Jiang was very kindly accepting his switch from mid laner to support.

Ye Shaoyang felt like he could breathe a sigh of relief. He said, "Everyone will slowly learn to work together. Captain Chi and I are working on our tacit understanding as well. After a month, when our team comes together for training, our top, middle, and bottom lanes will have to sync up with one another too."

Qu Jiang nodded earnestly. "Mm, Captain Chi will unite us with his commands then. I'll also help you establish visibility around the middle lane."

The members of the second-string team were busy eating at a nearby table. They had their heads bowed, but occasionally glanced over out of the corners of their eyes. Originally, they'd thought Qu Jiang and Ye Shaoyang would be a bit awkward around each other. But these two were actually chatting happily and even whispering to each other?

Cheng Xing quietly said, "They're definitely dissing me. Otherwise my ears wouldn't be burning."

Xie Xiaotian said, "Did you give away too many kills? Maybe Qu-ge is complaining about you to Yang-ge."

Cheng Xing blushed to the tips of his ears. "I just play very passionately, that's all!"

Xie Xiaotian didn't hold back at all. "So passionately that you went 0-5?"

Cheng Xing was silent.

Last night, this marksman had gotten zero kills in exchange for being killed five times. He had promptly been singled out by the coach and led out for a one-on-one lecture.

After that, Cheng Xing really did settle down and behave. The coach told him to follow Qu Jiang's lead. If Qu Jiang didn't signal for them to attack, Cheng Xing wouldn't attack. Slowly, the two of them started to figure out a way to work together.

Ye Shaoyang and Chi Shuo's training plan soon changed as well. Coach Lin accelerated their progression plans.

After they got their flight comp down, the next duo the two of them were to practice was one that had appeared in professional games several years ago. After a while, the comp had basically been forgotten—it was the black/white wolf kings comp.

The mid laner, the White Wolf King, was a hero who could switch between a wolf shape and a human shape. In wolf form, this hero could summon four little white wolves to support him in battle. He was considered a summoner mage, with very high attack potential. However, his defense was very low, so he died easily. And he was very difficult to operate.

In human form, he had an AoE crowd control ult which could inflict the 'fear' status—but he had no attack skills.

The jungler, the Black Wolf, could also switch between a wolf form and a human form. This was the most agile assassin hero in the game. He possessed many movement skills, and he had huge potential for surprise attacks. When he shifted forms, he was sure to do explosive damage.

After the Black Wolf got a kill, his ult which allowed him to change shape would instantly come off cooldown. In wolf form, he could leap over walls. In human form, he could enter a 'hunting mode' and lock on to enemies from far away. This was a kill-focused jungler with a five-star difficulty rating.

When the black and white wolves were first added to the game in S3, they had been extremely popular for a while.

But everyone quickly realized that while this combo seemed very fierce, it was easy to self-destruct with them. Their victory rate was terrifyingly low!

They were too hard to play! Their players could practically pull out all their hair in frustration!

Once the White Wolf King summoned his little wolf cubs, players had to operate their mouse and keyboard at blinding speeds to control them all. As a result, in many cases, the wolf cubs wouldn't even be able to think about killing anyone—they would just run around like headless houseflies that the player couldn't control at all.

After taking a human shape, the White Wolf King would be an extremely handsome man with a white tail and a pair of white wolf ears. Unfortunately, in human form, he was basically just a useless block of wood. After unleashing his ult, he could only stand there and wait to die.

As for the Black Wolf… could 'handicapped' players even try to play this hero?

If players couldn't aim his jumps right, it would be entirely too easy to crash into a wall and die. In human form, it was easy to fall into the miserable trap of pouncing in for a bite, only to bite at nothing but air. Then there was the matter of getting a kill to refresh the Black Wolf's transformation skill. Even players themselves would get confused by all the switching back and forth.

So, the black/white wolf kings comp became known as a 'theoretically' powerful summoner mage plus ambush assassin comp. But it was very rare to see people actually play them in real games. They basically lived exclusively on popular forums, where they could be enjoyed by writers and artists—

A beautiful and elegant white wolf, and a cool and piercing black wolf. In human forms, both heroes had a furry pair of ears and a fluffy tail. They looked like a very suitable pair.

This was an extremely popular ship in the fandom.

Since it was easy for this comp to fail in games, they were rarely ever seen. When people did choose them, their teammates would instantly suffer a catastrophic mental collapse.

Coach Lin said, "In the Chinese division, there's only one player who can play the White Wolf King well."

Right away, Ye Shaoyang guessed, "Fang Zhengqing?"

Fang Zhengqing's signature hero was the Cobra King, which was also a summoner mage. He seemed to have a real penchant for summoner mages.

Coach Lin nodded. "You got it. But Fang Zhengqing typically won't pair up the White Wolf King with the Black Wolf as their jungler, because their team's jungler can't play such complex heroes. You and Chi Shuo both have extremely fast hand speeds and reaction speeds, and you have a certain degree of synchronicity. Maybe you can try out this wolf kings comp."

The black/white wolf kings duo, long since forgotten in professional games…

Maybe, in the hands of Chi Shuo and Ye Shaoyang, they would see the light of day once more.

Author's Notes:

The best thing about creating an original game is you aren't limited to existing details. You can use your brain and create all sorts of interesting heroes and comps~