Chapter 80

       

The Gods War pro league had a lot of sponsors. As a result, the Chinese division was able to construct a sporting venue in four major cities across the country—one each in the north, east, south, and west. This made it more convenient for fans to watch a game near their home, and it made it easier for sponsors to create ads as well.

Tianhuan's first game against NTG was set to take place in Glacier City, the sprawling capital of a large province.

The coaches, team coordinators, and players arrived two days in advance so that they could acclimatize to the environment in Glacier City.

This was an icy city where the average temperature was eight degrees lower than the temperature in the nation's capital. In January, it was still winter there. The whole city was wrapped up in silvery ice and snow. Ice sculptures stood on every street. Cheng Xing, who was visiting Glacier City for the first time, spent the whole trip from the airport to the hotel with his cell phone out, taking pictures of the snowy landscape.

That week, four matches were scheduled to take place at the arena in Glacier City.

The league asked all eight teams participating in those matches to stay in the same hotel, which was an official partner of the league. That made it easier to keep an eye on everything.

The hotel was very nice. Each team was allocated a certain number of two-person rooms. Alphas and omegas couldn't live together, so the lead coordinator Tang Can very thoughtfully organized a single room for Ye Shaoyang, so that he could stay by himself.

Ye Shaoyang was also visiting this city for the first time, and the designs of the buildings were quite unique. However, he didn't have any interest in going out for a random wander through the streets. He stayed put and went to sleep like a good boy, concentrating on preparing for the game on the 24th.

On January 24th, Glacier City experienced a huge snowstorm. The temperature plummeted to negative twenty degrees.

All of Tianhuan's players put on a thick down coat over their usual team uniforms. When they reached the venue, the stands were already filled with quite a lot of people. Although the seats weren't full, like they would be for playoffs games, more than fifty percent of the seats were occupied—which exceeded Ye Shaoyang's expectations.

"It's so cold, and this is just a regular season match between teams from Group B. I didn't think there'd be so many people in the audience?" Ye Shaoyang said to the coach while taking off his down jacket, since the stadium was heated inside.

Coach Lin smiled and said, "There are lots of spectators who aren't fans of a specific team. They purely enjoy watching esports. There are lots of loud trolls online, but in reality, the fans who silently come to watch games and support the league are the majority."

Ye Shaoyang nodded. "That's true."

He hung up his down jacket in the closet in the players' lounge, then turned back to Coach Lin with a smile. "Coach, don't pay any attention to those online comments that are dissing you. I actually know that you've drawn all the pressure to yourself. This way, there won't be too many people insulting me. They're all firing away at the coaches."

Coach Lin turned back to look at Ye Shaoyang, meeting a pair of bright eyes.

He seemed to understand everything.

With their decision, the coaching team was indeed all but asking for people to target them. That also had the subtle effect of drawing fire away from the players. Because Ye Shaoyang and Cheng Xing were newbies, their first loss in Group S would have immediately drawn a huge wave of vitriol from netizens.

That would have been especially true for Ye Shaoyang, who'd replaced Qu Jiang as their mid laner.

When Tianhuan lost, many people would say—

[What right does an omega have to replace Qu Jiang?]

[He isn't as good as Qu Jiang. Did he get that position through some indecent way?]

When those topics came up, Shaoyang's status as an omega would become the biggest point of discussion. Some people would certainly speculate that he'd used some dishonorable methods to replace Qu Jiang.

Lin Feng didn't want any cracks to appear within Team Tianhuan, and he also didn't want Ye Shaoyang to bear the heavy burden of public opinion. As their coach, he could at least let Ye Shaoyang and Cheng Xing experience a slightly smoother debut.

Lin Feng patted Ye Shaoyang on the shoulder and said, "It's nothing. You just play well. I believe in you."

Ye Shaoyang earnestly said, "Don't worry. I'll play my best."

Although he wouldn't have been afraid even if they were facing off against Group S teams already, he knew the coach wanted him to have a smooth debut and win a few games in a row to strengthen his confidence… so how could he disappoint the coach now?

Everyone gathered in the players' lounge. Only half an hour remained until the start of the match. Cheng Xing anxiously headed back out to use the restroom. Ye Shaoyang, on the other hand, sat calmly next to Chi Shuo.

Chi Shuo turned to look at him. He quietly asked, "It's your first real game. Not nervous?"

Ye Shaoyang said, "I'm okay. I don't feel much."

Chi Shuo was silent.

You really are bold.

A moment later, the screens in the room lit up with the images of the two commentators for that game.

The one named Mo Ran began, "Friends in the audience, welcome to the regular season of Gods War S10! We're coming to you today with a first-round match from Glacier City's Esports Center!"

The one named Xiao Yu said, "The teams playing in today's match are Tianhuan and NTG from Group B. The players of both teams have already finished making their preparations. Let's give them a warm round of applause and welcome our two teams' starting players to the stage!"

Applause sounded out from the stands. NTG's starting lineup and team promo photo showed up on the big screens, and the five NTG players took the stage first. Staff members from the venue pushed open the doors to Tianhuan's lounge, gesturing for Tianhuan's players to prepare to take the stage.

Bullet comments swiftly flew across the screen of the livestream.

[Will Tianhuan's omega player make an appearance? They wouldn't send out their second-string team during the regular season, right?!]

[If Tianhuan sends out their second-string now, I'll fucking end the coaching team!]

[I'm just here to see how Tianhuan is going to lose.]

[They should be sending the starting lineup out today. They wouldn't mess around during the regular season, would they?]

[Is the little omega gege the new support? Is he coming out in this match?]

At that moment, NTG's players were already seated in their soundproofed room on stage. They were busy setting up their equipment.

When they saw that Tianhuan had taken the stage with their new omega player, Ye Shaoyang, the captain of Team NTG couldn't help but laugh as he said, "The coaches guessed right. Tianhuan really did send out their starting lineup today. That omega should be the support. Although omega supports are pretty rare, you guys don't need to hold back."

"Tianhuan has two new players on their starting lineup today. Looks like we have a chance of winning!" NTG's coach excitedly exclaimed. He grinned as he said, "Target Chi Shuo. We'll be all set after we destroy their chances in the jungle."

As soon as those words were spoken, everyone saw Tianhuan's five players line up on the big stage, standing shoulder-to-shoulder. They bowed to the audience, while taking the following order—

Qin Yizhu. Chi Shuo. Ye Shaoyang. Cheng Xing. Qu Jiang.

The smile on the face of NTG's coach suddenly went rigid. "This lineup… are they in the wrong positions?"

The captain was also a bit dubious. "They had the omega in the center for their promo shots too. That could be justified as an aesthetic thing, to make the photo look nice. But there's no need for them to let him have that center spot in an official game, is there?"

However, Tianhuan's players didn't change the order in which they stood.

They entered the soundproofed room upon which Tianhuan's emblem was displayed. Then they sat down in the same order in front of their computers. They plugged in their peripherals and put on their headsets, then started to adjust all their equipment.

The spectators finally realized something wasn't quite right.

Netizens on the streaming platform filled up the screen with question marks.

[What's going on??!]

[That little omega gege is still front and center! Is he standing in the wrong place or is he standing in the wrong place?]

[Holy shit, even in the soundproofed room, he's sitting in the very center! He's the fucking mid laner!]

[There's a set order for player seating in tournament games, it's impossible for the support to sit in the middle! So he really is the mid laner?!]

At Team Beimu's HQ—

Beimu wasn't scheduled to play that day, so Zhao Xin'an was watching the livestream in a conference room. He spat out an entire mouthful of tea.

"Holy shit? I seriously couldn't have imagined Tianhuan's crooked thinking here!"

Zhao Xinping furrowed her brow. "Ye Shaoyang is the mid laner? So Cheng Xing is the marksman, and Qu Jiang had switched over to support?"

Beimu's coach was struggling to keep his jaw from dropping to the floor. "Cheng Xing was previously learning how to play jungler from Chi Shuo, then he suddenly switched and became a marksman… and now Qu Jiang has switched from mid laner to support? And their new omega, who's never been seen before, is their new starting mid laner?!"

Everyone was silent.

Who could possibly have guessed at this turn of events?

Did this mean that in Tianhuan's starting lineup for this season, three of their five players were essentially newbies?

Beimu's coach thoughtfully mused, "No wonder Coach Lin was willing to bear the pressure of those hateful trending tags in exchange for not charging into Group S. If it were me, with three of our five players being new to their positions, I wouldn't have dared face off against the teams in Group S right away either. Losing five games in a row and being eliminated straight away would probably make the players suffer a complete breakdown."

Zhao Xin'an was the type of person who could never keep a secret. He instantly sent a message into the top players' group chat—

[Reporter Zhao]: Fuck, fuck, fuck! Tianhuan's new omega is actually a mid laner!

[Reporter Zhao]: Qu Jiang is playing support now. He's letting the new guy be mid laner?

[Zhouzhou]: Is that so? I'll go take a peek.

[I'm Very Square]: I just opened the livestream. Ye Shaoyang really is the mid laner.

Meanwhile, on the big screens at the venue, every player's official promo photo was displayed along with each player's introduction.

Tianhuan's mid laner was being introduced now.

The commentator Mo Ran excitedly announced, "This player has ignited quite a lot of controversy. This is the newbie omega player that Team Tianhuan signed for a whopping five million yuan. Everyone had guessed, would he be their new support? But today, Tianhuan's starting lineup has surprised us all—he's actually sitting in the middle position!"

The commentator Xiao Yu said, "Let's welcome Team Tianhuan's new mid laner, Ye Shaoyang—Tianhuan-Lieyang!"

While the pre-game introductions were made, cameras which sat in front of the players would display close-ups of their faces on the big screens. Ye Shaoyang saw that the camera in front of him was recording, so he smiled faintly and gave the lens a little wave.

And so, the screens at the venue and the livestream of the game displayed an image of his face, along with that merry smile and wave.

[My heart is moved~! This little omega gege is so handsome!]

[Okay, I'll let Tianhuan's coaches live for now. Maybe Tianhuan has been hiding some sort of secret weapon?]

[This starting lineup alone is completely baffling. What is the coaching team playing at? They've got so much new blood here?]

[What right does this newbie have to take Qu Jiang's position as mid laner! What right does a new player have to replace an old one!]

[Hehe, today's Tianhuan will continue to disappoint.]

There were netizens praising this reveal, as well as netizens complaining about this reveal. White bullet comments densely packed the screen of the livestream.

While Ye Shaoyang was calm and collected, Cheng Xing flashed a rather rigid and tense smile to the camera in front of him.

He was Chi Shuo's apprentice, after all, so his name was at least somewhat well-known. But everyone knew that he had been Chi Shuo's jungler apprentice. The fact that he was playing marksman all of a sudden made quite a lot of fans feel some doubt.

When the final introduction of Qu Jiang as their support was made, some people unsurprisingly started to spin their own stories.

[He had to make way for a newbie… I feel bad for my Qu-ge.]

[Qu Jiang has played mid laner for three years. Even if he didn't have many huge achievements, he put in a lot of hard work. And now the coaches are forcing him to give his spot to a newbie? Does the coaching team even have a heart?]

[This new mid laner must have some serious connections. There just might be some inside story to that five million yuan signing fee.]

Offstage, Xie Xiaotian was using his cell phone to watch the livestream. When he saw all those keyboard warriors sounding off, he couldn't help but fume, "The only thing these people know how to do is talk nonsense. My Yang-ge didn't get this spot through connections, he earned it with his strength!"

Yan Bin said, "Don't be mad. Yang-ge is a newbie, and he's already replaced Qu-ge as our starting mid laner. It's normal for people to be suspicious."

He paused for a moment, then added, "Relax. They'll experience some faceslapping very soon."

The game began.

In the first round, Tianhuan was randomly assigned to play as the blue team. They had the first ban.

In the group stage of the regular season, matches weren't played with a cumulative picks and bans structure. The heroes that were used previously could be used again, which meant the regulations for these matches were fairly relaxed.

Coach Lin stood behind the players. He held a record of his notes in his hands and said into his headset, "Ban the Radiant Shield first."

This support was very strong when it came to initiating fights. With the Radiant Shield banned, the pressure on the bottom lane would lighten by a lot.

Qin Yizhu, sitting in the leftmost seat, followed the coach's orders and banned that hero.

The opposing NTG unsurprisingly banned the hero that Chi Shuo had first made a name for himself with—the Bloodstained Assassin.

"Continue to ban supports, go with Doomhammer next," Coach Lin said.

NTG continued to target Chi Shuo's jungler cores with their second ban. They sealed away the Stealthy Rogue.

The commentator Mo Ran said, "Both sides have concluded the first phase of their picks and bans. NTG targeted two junglers with their bans, and Tianhuan has banned two supports. Now let's see which hero Tianhuan will prioritize and grab first."

Lin Feng said, "Take the Black Dragon Knight for the top lane."

NTG followed up by selecting the bottom lane duo of the Forest Envoy and the Divine Archer.

"Next, take the Frost Goddess and the Yuki-onna."

Seeing that, NTG chose the Illusionist as their mid laner.

The commentator Xiao Yu said, "Both sides have locked in a mid laner. Using the Illusionist to deal with the Frost Goddess is a pretty good decision on NTG's part. The Illusionist is a very good counter to the Frost Goddess."

The commentator Mo Ran said, "What's unexpected is that Tianhuan didn't choose a jungler in this first round of picks. That means that NTG can continue to target jungler heroes in the next phase. All of Chi Shuo's jungler cores will be banned!"

The second phase of the picks and bans proceeded as expected. Team NTG wasn't at all shy about banning off the rest of the jungler cores that Chi Shuo could play. The next heroes to make it onto the ban list were the King of Fighters, who became very powerful after leveling up, and the Nimble Fox, which had a slew of movement skills.

Tianhuan started to ban top laners, alleviating some pressure from Qin Yizhu's lane.

For this one game, NTG had banned four junglers in a row!

Chi Shuo practically had no more junglers to choose from.

Tianhuan's fourth and fifth picks came up. They took the Brawler as their fourth pick. This jungler was extremely vulnerable in early-game. Most of the time, players could only use this hero as a support jungler. When their fifth pick came up, the commentator Xiao Yu wondered, "What will Tianhuan choose as their support?"

And then… Tianhuan locked in the Abyssal Lord as their fifth pick.

The livestream filled up with question marks.

[Two mages? Are you kidding me?]

[What's going on here?]

[Tianhuan really is out to disappoint us all this season!]

The two commentators exchanged a baffled look.

"The Abyssal Lord is an assassin mage, so… what is the Frost Goddess doing here?"

"Qu Jiang is very good at playing the Frost Goddess. Is the Frost Goddess a support in this game, or is she a mid laner? Although we rarely see the Frost Goddess played as a support, she's capable of serving as a crowd control hero."

"So Tianhuan is playing a mid lane core comp with the Abyssal Lord?!"

Coach Lin's twisted plans immediately left NTG feeling completely lost and dumbstruck. They'd chosen the Illusionist to counter the Frost Goddess, but now the Frost Goddess was going down to play support on the bottom lane, and the Abyssal Lord was going to appear in the middle lane?

The two teams swiftly switched their heroes into the proper positions.

On Tianhuan's side, the Abyssal Lord that was chosen last… was moved into the third position. This hero was assigned to Tianhuan-Lieyang.

The camera turned to Ye Shaoyang, who sat in the middle of their formation. He still wore a smile on his face, looking very relaxed.

The viewers were speechless.

An omega mid laner on the starting lineup, playing the Abyssal Lord in his very first game.

His courage was remarkable!