Chapter 24 – Exploding Blood Chrysanthemum
The tentacle was cool to the touch, and in that instant, the lines of the other’s palm connected with his own.
Shao Zhan’s thin lips parted slightly, but he merely smiled with restraint. Hundreds of questions and greetings melted into a single phrase — “Long time no see” — disappearing between their lips and teeth.
Amid the captains’ varied greetings, the venue doors were pulled open again, and several teams who didn’t appear to be on friendly terms entered side by side.
The experienced host did his best to maintain control. After all, with the already colorfully eccentric LAP team paving the way, nothing that followed could seem too strange.
The segment on stage was forced to pause as a few familiar captains came over to greet Shao Zhan.
It was clear that the Silver Emperor Club had invested heavily this time. After several major teams in Jiangling officially withdrew from the competition, they had gone so far as to pay a hefty sum to invite a star team from a neighboring province.
It seemed the long-dormant Silver Emperor team was finally ready to make a high-profile return to the spotlight.
Amid the unavoidable social exchanges, Shao Zhan stole a glance at Yang Sa.
Taller than he remembered, Yang Sa stood there at a slight angle, surrounded by his oddly dressed teammates, the corner of his mouth curled with faint mockery.
After the drawing of lots concluded, Shao Zhan led the Xinghai team to their seats to wait for their turn. While LAP and the neighboring province’s Violent team — drawn to compete in the first match — headed to the war room to adjust their equipment, another wave of commotion erupted outside the venue.
“What’s going on now?” Qin Chuan clutched his startled heart. “This is just a small event. Do they have to make it so dramatic?”
“What is happening?” Jiang Ranan stretched his neck toward the entrance, his whole face contorted with curiosity.
Zhuang Bai beside him was equally intrigued, while Tangyuan next to them remained seated like a wise sage, his expression unreadable.
After waiting a while with no one paying attention to him, he leaned in and said, “You should ask me! Come on, ask me!”
“You know something?” Jiang Ranan raised an eyebrow in disdain.
Qin Chuan and Zhuang Bai exchanged a knowing glance and ignored him, letting Tangyuan stew in his own curiosity.
Not long after, Mu Chen, Zhou Heng, and a few other team captains entered with their respective teams and took their seats.
Tangyuan had already rushed down to hug Bull. If not for his captain’s glare, he would’ve broken into a dance on the spot — maybe even Burning My Calories.
“I thought you weren’t coming?” Shao Zhan nodded at the defiant Zhou Heng in greeting.
“Not participating in the competition doesn’t mean I can’t be a spectator,” Zhou Heng said as he sat down casually, his expression calm, showing no trace of regret over losing his qualification due to a livestream incident.
“A truly formidable opponent,” murmured Mu Chen, the captain of Team Weiguang, admiringly. “Your mentality really rivals that of my former captain.”
“Your Weiguang team isn’t bad either,” Zhou Heng replied playfully. Having both lost their qualification to compete, they shared an unspoken understanding.
Their purpose for being here was to observe LAP’s performance firsthand. While they had suffered losses at LAP’s hands to varying degrees, what mattered more than losing matches was learning from a strong opponent.
LAP’s fierce and unrestrained style of play was certainly dazzling. However, it was the kind of strategy that shone in scrims or in turning points of crucial matches—not necessarily suited for structured professional play. Still, that didn’t stop them from admiring the proud and spirited youth leading the team. Though none of them intended to recruit him anymore, watching the excitement unfold was still worth it.
“LAP and Xinghai haven’t faced off yet, have they?” Mu Chen asked knowingly.
Before Shao Zhan could reply, Zhou Heng laughed out loud.
“Two sly old foxes,” Shao Zhan cursed with a smirk. The teams that had lost their entry qualifications but still brought their squads to the audience seats—nine out of ten of them were here just to watch Xinghai.
If Xinghai won, there would be groans of disappointment. But if they were unlucky enough to lose… these people would probably be dancing around a bonfire with the Xinghai players.
“You all really want to see Xinghai lose that badly?” Shao Zhan asked the two heartless ones.
“Of course not,” said Heartless No. 1, shaking his head vigorously. “We don’t want to see Xinghai lose.”
“Swear to heaven,” said Heartless No. 2, holding up three fingers in mock sincerity. “We just want to see you lose.”
The two of them held hands and declared, “Let’s lose together. It’d be too sad to leave you standing out like a crane among chickens.”
“I’m a phoenix,” Shao Zhan retorted. “I’ve got nothing to talk about with barnyard chickens like you.”
His gaze shifted to the big screen. The first match had just begun.
Violent, or Storm, was an old and once-dominant team, once a fearsome force in the league. Xinghai used to view them as a strategic rival.
Unfortunately, in recent years, the club had changed hands and experienced heavy roster turnover. Only the captain, Zhang Feng, remained. Though individually strong, his teammates lacked synergy, and the team now performed at barely 70% of their former peak.
Midway through the match, Violent held the upper hand.
Whether in the crowd or among the observing players, the majority had no love for the arrogant LAP team. Many had heard through the grapevine that the player everyone had been looking forward to seeing was benched because of this weird, chaotic bunch of misfits.
Even the off-stage players couldn’t help but grumble, quietly cheering when LAP lost ground.
Only three team captains collectively lowered their heads — and began listing dishes in unison.
“I didn’t eat breakfast,” muttered Mu Chen, Weiguang captain, sounding a bit anxious. Among the active captains, he was the oldest and had already started down the road of health-conscious living.
“Pfft, who in this line of work eats breakfast?” scoffed the defiant Zhou Heng.
“I-I ate,” piped up Tangyuan, raising his pudgy hand. But after getting a glare from his own captain, he quietly turned back and pretended to focus on the match.
Shao Zhan pointed out the obvious without mercy: “Why are you two squatting in Xinghai’s seating area?”
With their captains missing, the other two teams seemed to be flourishing—full of youthful energy and vitality.
“Whether it’s out of affection or friendship, we genuinely hope Xinghai wins this match,” Mu Chen said with solemn sincerity.
“We’re brother teams. We share glory and disgrace alike,” Zhou Heng nodded fervently. “You’re the pride of our entire village.”
Shao Zhan smiled and told the two of them to scram. In the world of esports, anyone who’d been around long enough was an old rascal—thick-skinned enough to plaster a wall.
Both of them had lost to LAP before—ten percent of the reason they came was to see Yang Sa get crushed, and the other ninety percent was to see Shao Zhan get crushed by Yang Sa.
Either way, no matter how things turned out, they wouldn’t be disappointed—they were here purely for the drama.
As Shao Zhan silently lamented how quickly people changed, he recalled how, just a couple of years ago, those boys still carried the aura of youthful innocence. Now, in the blink of an eye, they’d turned into infuriating old beasts. His regret was written all over his face as he gave each of his old friends a solid punch on the shoulder and issued an eviction notice: “You done chatting? If so, get lost.”
The two battle-hardened veterans weren’t fazed at all. They simply bumped their heads together and resumed the conversation they’d been having—
“I’m thinking about having Xiaolongkan hot pot tonight. Bon bon chicken sounds good too.”
“Let’s get some spicy rabbit heads, some chili chicken, and Sichuan-style duck blood and tripe stew too…”
“Whoa, your taste is way too intense. Aren’t you afraid your chrysanthemum is going to explode?”
“What’s there to be afraid of? It’s not like I’ve got hemorrhoids.”