The Century Cup has officially begun.
Similar to the previous years’ Century Cup, the official live platform now featured a string of pinned live streams, all showcasing the main perspectives of the competing teams.
Among these, the name of Starry Sky Internet Café, within the logo of XXTV, undoubtedly stood out.
Due to their exceptional performance in the previous Century Cup, Bi Binghuo’s internet café chain had been thriving. Post the new year, they even inaugurated the first joint internet café, primarily centered around the Seven Silver Coins Guild, as a gesture of respect towards their collaborating partners.
As a qualified businessman, Bi Binghuo naturally wouldn’t miss the opportunity for continued collaboration. The contract benefits were upgraded once again. Starry Sky Internet Café swiftly secured the broadcasting rights for the Century Cup before any other keen platforms, causing envy and regret among competitors.
The major holographic platforms had their reasons for regret.
Before Nianhua Cup, nobody could have anticipated that the Seven Silver Coins would emerge as the current dark horse, with an unprecedented level of attention following their advancement into the Century Cup. As the day of the historic first live broadcast approached, responsible individuals were almost envious to the point of bleeding.
Naturally, netizens were less concerned about the thoughts of these businessmen. Their primary interest lay in the phrases used during previous interviews. With the embellishments from holographic media, the Seven Silver Coins had almost become contenders for the championship. This raised curiosity about how they would perform in the Century Cup, setting the anticipation levels at an all-time high.
Simply put, thanks to the influence of the Seven Silver Coins, the opening match of the tournament became the most anticipated since its inception. Everyone eagerly anticipated how their involvement would create a new dynamic. So much so that due to the excessive fervor in discussions before the match, the name of Seven Silver Coins directly soared to the top of the trending list on StarNet.
However, amidst such widespread anticipation, the results of the first match were finally unveiled — out of a total of 12 teams, Seven Silver Coins ranked 10th.
Tenth place was undeniably unflattering, particularly when compared to the two teams trailing behind. For a new team like Seven Silver Coins making their debut in the Century Cup, theoretically, they were on par with the established guilds. However, the issue lay in the extensive hype generated by holographic media before the official start of the tournament, excessively elevating the status of this new team.
There were sneers, there were those reveling in their misfortune, and naturally, there were concerns about their future development.
Among the discussions online, the majority questioned their actual strength, especially with regards to the content of Yu Weize’s previous posts being brought back into focus.
Back?
Back to the bottom?
Similar questions were pointedly raised by journalists during interviews.
One might have expected that having suffered such a defeat, Seven Silver Coins would at least exhibit some humility. However, unexpectedly, Jiang Shi simply smiled at the camera and remarked, “This is how competitions go, ups and downs are normal. Just stay calm.”
D*mn, that composure was truly remarkable!
The journalists had intended to dig deeper based on this response. Yet, they were caught off guard by this display of serene beauty and remained silent for a while before recomposing themselves. “But starting with a 10th place in the first match must have brought considerable pressure for the upcoming games. After all, the total points from the four matches will determine the final qualifiers. This kind of start has created quite a gap from the teams at the top.”
Jiang Shi: “Indeed, that’s true.”
Everyone had anticipated that Seven Silver Coins would argue back, but instead, they heard excessively modest words.
The disparity was astonishing, leaving everyone stunned.
Then Jiang Shi, still smiling warmly, earnestly added, “We will continue to work hard.”
As official as those words sounded, in the face of such genuine sincerity, no one could muster any rebuttal.
Finally, after a momentary pause, the journalist said, “…Keep it up.”
“Continuing to work hard” is a phrase that, no matter the occasion, undoubtedly comes across as clichéd. No one took the statement from Seven Silver Coins to heart. Instead, they continued to focus on the upcoming matches.
After the first round, the top four teams were Blood Roses, Rattlesnakes, Fire Power, and Black Tower guilds.
The previously ambiguous Crusader guild, entangled with Seven Silver Coins, secured the sixth position. Although not an outstanding achievement, they were at least in a safe zone based on their points. This was reasonably acceptable for the Crusaders, lacking their leader Yu Weize.
Soon, the second round commenced smoothly.
This time, Seven Silver Coins improved their ranking to seventh place for this match.
Their effort was noticeable, but considering their previous 10th place and current 7th, if they aimed to secure a spot in the next round, they needed to ensure at least a top-four finish in the remaining two matches.
Seven Silver Coins, a contender for the championship?
As the two matches concluded, what was initially a highly anticipated gimmick gradually turned into an ignored joke that no one cared about.
However, online, the Seven Silver Coins stocks continued to be bought at lower rates, while the participants from several professional guilds competing in the tournament remained vigilant.
From the perspective of the Rattlesnake guild, regardless of the healing or spatial domains, Seven Silver Coins hadn’t utilized any skills in both matches. It was evident from the interactions that the opponents were more focused on running formations rather than direct confrontation. This led them to suspect that some form of plotting was underway. As for the Blood Roses group, their view was simpler: solely based on the Reviving Miracle Worker’s understanding of Yu Weize, it was apparent that this man hadn’t exerted his full strength yet. It seemed more like he was indirectly cooperating with something.
The third match was about to begin, and at the entrance, the members of Blood Roses and Seven Silver Coins coincidentally bumped into each other.
Return to Spring’s Skillful Hands naturally draped his arm over Han Yuze’s shoulder, displaying a buddy-buddy appearance, and a smiling demeanor. “How should I put it, this match seems to have no retreat, right?”
Han Yuze glanced at him. “No retreat? Top four will do. I feel there’s quite a bit of room.”
Return to Spring’s Skillful Hands smiled without saying a word. “Not using your true skills all along. Aren’t you afraid of overplaying?”
“If I could have used them, I would have done so already. This is a new team. Facing your strong teams, there’ll naturally be some issues. We need time to adjust.” Han Yuze maintained a composed attitude, “We’re all experienced players. We should know that competitions are like this, ups and downs are normal. Just stay calm.”
Return to Spring’s Skillful Hands vaguely felt he had heard those last words somewhere before. Furrowing his brows in an attempt to remember, but before he could, Mad Stomp, who had already greeted at the registration desk, called out, “Old Chun, are you done? Come over here.”
“Coming.” Return to Spring’s Skillful Hands replied and patted Han Yuze’s shoulder. “See you on the field.”
“Hmm, see you on the field,” Han Yuze responded.
After Blood Roses finished their registration, the Seven Silver Coins’ group went to sign in.
At this stage of the competition, the majority of the qualifying spots had been almost secured. However, despite being on the verge of elimination, there wasn’t much visible nervousness among the participants. Instead, there was a hint of eagerness to give it a try.
Actually, Han Yuze wasn’t just bluffing the Reviving Miracle Worker earlier.
The first two matches weren’t really about strategies; they were about making internal adjustments within the team in the shortest possible time.
The Century Cup couldn’t be compared to secondary tournaments like Nianhua Cup. Any team casually pulled out here possessed enough strength to dominate. If they didn’t swiftly address the issues in the earlier matches, as the tournament progressed, there would be fewer opportunities for any mistakes.
As for the doubts and criticisms online, it could be said that they didn’t even warrant attention. After all, the most crucial aspect at this moment was that, through the two previous matches, they had ensured the entire team was adjusted to its optimal state.
After completing the registration, Jiang Shi beckoned to the group. “Let’s go, it’s time to get ready for the match.”
The Seven Silver Coins’ group was raring to go. “Coming, coming.”
From a certain perspective, perhaps today would mark their official debut.