Chapter 6 – Line-Up
After waiting for nearly half an hour, they finally got their late-night snacks. The companion approached with a plate of grilled skewers and noticed the guy still looking at his phone. They asked, “Hasn’t it ended yet?”
“It’s already the sixth round. Clear’s Marco Polo[mfn]
[/mfn] is truly amazing, absolutely awesome!” The guy held up his phone to show him. On the screen was a replay of a peak moment, a seven-minute clip of Marco Polo teaming up with Guiguzi[mfn]
[/mfn] to stun and kill three enemies.
The companion nodded and casually praised, “Perhaps only Stars in the opposing jungle can suppress him.”
While talking, they pulled their clueless classmate by the sleeve and led him to find a seat.
The guy pondered and said seriously, “I have a wild thought, hahaha. What if Stars joined the same team as Clear? Would that guarantee four championships in a year?”
“Yeah, yeah.”
The surrounding area was packed with people, and among them, there was only one guy in a red shirt sitting at a table. The companion’s eyes lit up, and they quickly pulled him over.
“Hello, can we sit here?”
“Sure.”
The guy in the red shirt looked up and smiled at them.
The guy and the companion: ???
“Stars!” & “Stars?!”
Recognizing him, Lin Xingling smiled and replied, “Hey, kids, are you out for late-night snacks too?”
He has always been very friendly, treating his fans like younger siblings.
“Hehe~”
The two of them shyly sat down across from Lin Xingling, and the companion awkwardly placed the plate on the table.
The guy put down his backpack and rummaged inside for a while before pulling out a notebook and a pen. “Stars, I’m your fan. Can you give me an autograph?”
“Of course I can.”
Lin Xingling took the pen and notebook, intending to sign his own ID, but he was momentarily distracted when he heard the voice of the commentator analyzing Cheng Che’s gameplay from the guy’s phone. Without paying attention, he accidentally wrote “Clear” on the paper.
He crossed it out, turned the page, and rewrote it.
After glancing at the notebook, the guy asked in confusion, “Stars, do you know Clear too?”
“Yeah.”
Clear is the future’s top marksman. How could Lin Xingling himself not know about him?
People in the esports industry don’t need to know more than you, right? The companion nudged the guy’s arm, gesturing for him to say less.
But the guy couldn’t grasp what they wanted to express. He continued to do his own thing and said whatever came to his mind, “Of course! Did Stars watch tonight’s Eastern Finals? It was Clear’s debut. Initially, TG was down 0-3, but then Clear came on. Now they’ve reached the sixth round and are about to tie the score.”
Chirping away like a little sparrow.
Clear… Clear… Listening to the young fan’s words, Lin Xingling suddenly felt a revelation:
If he could be reborn, why couldn’t he buy the number one marksman and have him play for his own team?
With this thought in mind, he nodded, indicating to the guy that he was paying attention.
“Mmm…” The guy pursed his lips, suddenly unsure of how to tell him, “Stars, do you want to see? He’s using Marco Polo in this round.”
“Tsk…”
The companion sighed and rubbed their forehead in frustration.
Lin Xingling smiled and said, “Sure.”
So, at 9:23 PM Beijing time, the three of them sat together at a bustling barbecue stall, watching the KPL Eastern Finals of Arena of Valor.
They watched as Clear showed off to the entire audience.
“Your team has reclaimed the crucial kill.”
Cheng Che controlled Marco Polo, making a grand entrance to steal the Dark Slayer, but he was also taken down by the enemy jungler.
Commentator A: “That was worth it. They secured the Dark Slayer and even traded for Shen Mengxi. Clear did his best, but he couldn’t escape.”
Commentator B: “Marco Polo has ended his sinful life.”
Commentator A: “TG lost half of their firepower without the marksman. DW can take the initiative and try to attack.”
[“Sky’s Wrath: 550 gold received”]
[“We want Dragon, but life is more important”]
[“Wow, my husband played so fiercely, love him, love him~”]
[“Seriously, you people always call others Clear or husband, isn’t it awkward for Clear? Right, Clear’s husband?”]
Cheng Che decisively commanded his teammates to retreat:
“Don’t retreat too far. Lava, go left. You Peng, go right. Split up and prepare to surround them later.”
Lava: “Got it.”
You Peng: “Understood, understood.”
Lian Rong frowned, “Pocket strategy? Tsk…”
After being carried away in two rounds, even the most stubborn person had lost their temper by now.
Win first, then talk.
The opposing team, DW, tried to chase but couldn’t catch up. Seeing that their blue buff had respawned, they decided to retreat to their jungle to secure resources.
Did the fish on the chopping board still think it could escape? Cheng Che’s mouth curved into a determined smile.
“Engage!”
The four members of DW took a few steps back and realized that TG’s side lanes and jungle had already flanked them from both sides.
TG’s Guiguzi used the Flash from the Wolf Emblem to pull DW’s marksman and support, while Mage Wang Zhaojun[mfn]
[/mfn] used her ultimate, and the top laner followed up with crowd control. The jungler burst down DW’s jungler in an instant.
TG turned the tables, and DW had nowhere to run.
“Double Kill!“
With the support’s help, Lian Rong and Lava each secured a double kill.
When Clear respawned as Marco Polo, his teammates had already pushed to the enemy’s high ground, ready to launch a direct assault. He felt a bit happy and cast his stun skill in the fountain, which was captured by the director and displayed on the big screen.
Marco Polo (spinning): (/^▽^)/
The two commentators were momentarily stunned but burst into laughter simultaneously.
Commentator A: “(The camera doesn’t show the high ground push, focusing on the fountain) The director is mischievous, haha!”
Commentator B: “Marco Polo is so happy that he’s spinning, hahaha.”
[“Hahaha Clear”]
[“My husband is so cute, aww”]
[“I really don’t understand how such a cute boy ended up on this path. Where is morality? Where is dignity? Where is WeChat? Where is the address?”]
[“Clear: Does my cuteness have anything to do with beating you until you call me daddy?”]
“Victory!“
TG won the sixth game, tying the match point.
Without a doubt, Clear was the MVP of this game, as expected.
Carrying the team for three consecutive games, the respected figures in the commentator booth highly praised TG’s substitute marksman.
“Clear!!! Clear!!!”
“TG, go for it! Clear, you must win!!!”
Hearing fans in the audience shouting their IDs along with the team name, Cheng Che showed no expression as he followed Lian Rong off the stage.
To be honest, he didn’t want to have any connection with the TG team.
Win the game, sever the ties—that was his plan.
Back in the rest area, they saw T Coach excitedly babbling. He couldn’t articulate complete sentences, just gripping Cheng Che’s hand and repeatedly saying a word: “Protect the carry, play the Protect the Carry strategy!”
Though called the Protect the Carry strategy, it was essentially a four-protect-one tactic.
They entrusted the main damage dealer position to a hero with a long development period but high late-game damage, while the other four heroes supported and helped the main damage dealer farm until they gained an advantage. Then, they utilized the economic advantage to team fight and push towers.
Using the Protect the Carry strategy in a peak matchup meant placing complete trust in the person playing the core position.
Lava paused, unable to believe it, and asked cautiously, “Are we really taking such a big risk? If he gets burst down, we won’t have a chance to turn the game around!”
You Peng patted his shoulder, furrowed his brow, signaling him to be quiet.
They had witnessed firsthand how beautifully Clear played as the marksman in those three games. They had no right to question anything.
“Eh…” Lian Rong took a deep breath and asked the coach, “If you think the Protect the Carry strategy is risky… how about we play Qiao Li? Clear goes mid, and we use the Qiao Li strategy to synchronize with Qi Xi for the entire game…”
He didn’t finish his sentence because he saw Cheng Che gently shaking his head.
Mid-laners were often considerate and understanding.
The Qiao Li combination was indeed the top choice for the peak matchup, but Cheng Che didn’t want to use it. He was afraid that if T Coach heard Lian Rong’s suggestion, he would change his mind and let everyone pick Qia Lli, so he made Lian Rong stop talking.
Little did they know that T Coach’s determination to use the Protect the Carry strategy was firm. “We’ll stick with the Protect the Carry strategy. Trust me, I already have a plan and strategy in mind to make DW lose completely.”
“Okay.” The coach’s words were earnest, and Cheng Che couldn’t refuse his little
brother on this side.
The remaining four looked at each other, and after about ten seconds, they nodded together.
A family, in perfect harmony.
“Come, come, sit down. Listen to me, we’ll use this…”
…
PM22:00
Eastern Finals Showdown
Both team’s hero lineups, summoner skills, and player lists have been submitted. The blue team, TG, and the red team, DW, were revealed by two commentators.
Commentator A: “TG’s top laner, Liu Bang[mfn]
[/mfn].”
Commentator B: “DW’s top laner, Guan Yu[mfn]
[/mfn].”
T Coach, sitting in the team seat, smiled slightly upon hearing Guan Yu’s name for the top lane.
Guan Yu counters Da Qiao’s[mfn]
[/mfn] second skill, the recall circle… As expected, the opponents are picking Da Qiao to pair with their team.
Unfortunately, this time we have Clear, and we’ll go with the farming strategy.
Commentator A: “TG’s jungle position, Lan Ling Wang.”
The whole audience erupted.
“Lan Ling Wang again? Is Lava addicted to playing for others?”
“Playing for others is better than getting slapped in the face…”
“That’s true, hahaha. I bet Clear will pick Gongsun Li and carry us to victory.”
“Clear, my precious, hurry up and play! See you in the grand finals on July 4th!”
Commentator B paused for a moment, then reacted as if he realized something and continued announcing, “DW’s jungle position, Pei Qin Hu[mfn]
[/mfn].”
The mid-laners for both teams, one is Zhang Liang[mfn]
[/mfn], the other is Bu Zhi Huo Wu[mfn]
[/mfn].
When it came to announcing the marksman, Commentator A said TG’s marksman is Jia Luo[mfn]
[/mfn], and everyone thought he made a mistake.
It wasn’t until they announced that TG’s support position is Mingshi Yin[mfn]
[/mfn] that everything became clear.
DW’s marksman-support combination is Qiao Li, which everyone could guess.
But TG’s lineup is obviously the farming strategy, nurturing Jia Luo’s development and revolving the team fights around him.
The five members of DW shared a knowing smile: The objective of this match is crystal clear.
Author’s note:
【Mini Theater】
Lin Xingling: You play the game, I sit on the side of the road watching the game. Is there anything more coincidental than this? I don’t care if you want to join our team as a marksman!
Cheng Che: ?
Author: After the peak matchup, Cheng Che is going to meet his old partner~
Cheng Che: ??
Author: Pretending to be someone else, getting slapped in the face, wandering the streets…
Lin Xingling: Wait for me, I’ll come pick you up with AD Calcium Milk.
Cheng Che: ****