Inside RNG's Backstage Lounge.
Xiao Hu and the others only felt a little overheated, initially thinking the air conditioning had been set too high.
But when they looked closely.
Oh my.
Where had this glowing, heat-radiating Little Fatty Boy come from?
Why are you here? You should be heading to Tokyo—that's where you belong.
"Malle gobi! You little bastard!" Uzi roared, his face red and burning.
His earlier Weibo post supporting Snake Esports had now become a boomerang. The bullet he fired had ultimately circled around and struck him right in the forehead.
EDG-Easy:
@UziQaQ, great World's Number One ADC, Brother Zihao!
Private Marseille! EDG didn't lose to Snake Esports today. I'm truly sorry for disappointing you.
Only a few minutes after the Weibo post was sent out, countless meme lovers and Imperial fans flooded into the comments section, causing an uproar.
Hahaha! What a talent, bro. When it comes to sarcasm, I'm willing to call you the strongest!
666666, I laughed so hard I sprayed the food out of my mouth.
I'm truly sorry for disappointing Uzi. I'm so jealous of your talent!
Ever since I learned how to use the internet, I've felt like the past twenty-plus years of my life were a waste.
I'm Jian Zihao. I'm going red.
Warning! Warning!
Nice! You've earned the approval of us EDG fans. From now on, I'm your die-hard fan.
Ran Chu!! Why the fuck are you being so sarcastic?
Played too much Onmyoji, have you? You're a master of yin and yang even in real life?
If you love yin and yang so much, why don't you become a Taoist priest? I bought a watch last year, Ran Chu.
I can't take this anymore. Ran Chu, what are you showing off for? Has any Trash Bag manufacturer asked you to endorse them? Nothing can hold more than you.
Back at EDG, Chu Ran saw that comment and immediately replied beneath it.
"Nope~ Maybe when AD Calcium Milk asks Brother Zihao to endorse them, a Trash Bag manufacturer will ask me to endorse them. Let's look forward to it together~"
As soon as that reply was posted, Meiko and the others, who had been watching his Weibo activity, burst out laughing.
"I'm seriously impressed by you, Brother Ran. Why don't you write a book?"
"Sure. Call it On Easy! Though it'd be too rough to even use as toilet paper."
Chu Ran grinned, and his reply only poured fuel onto the already blazing comment section.
Ahahahaha, I can't do this anymore. I'm seriously losing it. Do you know how hard I had to hold it in at the library?
Why not Telunsu?
I'm dying. Not every AD is Uzi, and not every AD is especially good at losing!
How bold! Divine punishment! He must receive divine punishment!
666666, maybe this is what genius looks like!
Seeing Chu Ran's reply, the Imperial fans were furious and began attacking him even more harshly, even riling up other Imperial fans as well.
Feeling his Red Temperature Value rise, Chu Ran secretly reveled in it.
Yes~
That's it.
Come on, harder. This feels amazing!
After RNG's match against Team WE ended, Chu Ran and the others went out for a feast at a fairly nicely decorated Hunan restaurant.
"Brother Ran, more and more people are insulting you on Weibo. You've made the trending list."
Meiko was amazed by Chu Ran's mentality. His Private Messages had exploded, yet he could completely ignore all those red notification dots.
There was actually a man in this world who saw red dots and didn't clear them.
This man was simply terrifying.
"Little Ran, be careful when you go out in the future. Don't walk alone at night."
"Heard that people on the LCK side throw paint around. I wonder if we have that in the LPL."
"Ah xiba, after Rox failed to win the championship last year, people even rushed into the club," Nofe said in a deep voice.
In an instant, Abu and the others started chattering and laughing about it. Chu Ran merely raised an eyebrow. "Enough talk. Let's order first."
"Little Ran, you're the hero today. You order."
As Abu handed the menu to Chu Ran, his expression was somewhat complicated, as though it carried a subtle reminder and warning.
"Sure, leave it to me."
"This one. This one, and this one."
Seeing that the dishes Chu Ran had picked were fairly cheap, Abu let out a breath of relief. But then his pupils suddenly shrank.
"Forget everything I just ordered. Bring us everything else. That comes to exactly 500 per person. Today, all expenses will be paid by our management!"
Red Temperature Value +124 Red Temperature Value +264
Hiss—!
Abu's face reddened. He wanted nothing more than to lock Chu Ran in a water dungeon, but seeing Ming Kai and the others egging him on, he could only endure it.
Fuck!
What a sin!
Who the hell had recruited Chu Ran to EDG?
You really don't know the price of rice and firewood until you run a household, huh?
You said 500 per person, and you actually intended to eat that much?
But when he remembered that he had recruited Chu Ran himself, Abu could only sigh.
There was no helping it. Since he had brought him in himself, he could only suffer through it himself. Today's meal expenses had seriously exceeded the budget. If they ate like this every day, EDG's people alone would rack up hundreds of thousands in food costs every month.
After eating and drinking their fill, Abu held the 4,396-yuan receipt with his heart bleeding and his head spinning. Looking at Chu Ran walking out front with a toothpick in his mouth, Abu wanted to hammer him to death.
The main thing was that, despite such a lavish meal, Abu had barely eaten anything. He had spent the whole time drinking.
That little bastard Chu Ran had said that managers and coaches had to drink, but alcohol affected players' condition, so the players should drink beverages.
Nofe had initially refused firmly, but then Chu Ran had said, "Coach Nofe, I'm not trying to say anything, but this is the LPL, China. Even Hawking would have to stand up and take a few drinks."
So Chu Ran and the others drank beverages while he and Nofe drank alcohol, constantly getting toasted. They now needed staff members to support them just to see the road clearly.
At that moment, Chu Ran and the others were taking a walk to digest their meal while chatting nonsense.
Professional Players sat around every day, so they still had to find opportunities to move around a little.
Watching the young couples coming and going on the street, Meiko sighed a few times. "Kai Ge, when you go out on dates with your girlfriend, is it like this too? You don't even avoid people when you kiss?"
"You little brat, what nonsense are you talking about? Looks like you want a taste of my Muay Thai too." Ming Kai gave Tian Ye a knock on the head, his expression stern. "You're still young. Don't be thinking about dating. It won't be too late after you get some results."
"Oh." Tian Ye nodded. Chu Ran immediately cut in, "Don't listen to Kai Ge's bullshit. Kai Ge doesn't have any results either. He just escaped being a single dog himself and wants to turn you into one too. Kai Ge obviously can't stand loneliness. He wants you spending every day with your four-fingered lady."
"Shouldn't it be five fingers?" Tian Ye asked in confusion.
"Because five fingers won't do."
Pfft—Tian Ye instantly burst out laughing, while Ming Kai had already turned completely red.
Red Temperature Value +77
Hiss—!
Hearing what Chu Ran had just said, Ming Kai immediately got heated. Sure, he had no real results at Worlds, but he had dominated the LPL, okay?
"Fuck, what I have is called love!"
"I love your twisted-ass love."
"Come on, don't run if you've got the guts."
Watching Chu Ran and Ming Kai chase each other around, Deft and Pawn both laughed.
"This year is kind of interesting, don't you think, Hekui?"
"Do you think we have a chance to contend for the championship this year?" Deft's eyes flickered. He wanted a championship too badly.
"Maybe." Pawn looked at Scout, who was chatting with Ailuo Li up ahead, and fell silent.
After fooling around for a while, Chu Ran and the others returned to EDG Club.
Along the way, Chu Ran was chased down and taught a lesson by Ming Kai, who also warned him not to date.
"Don't worry, I'm not interested in women."
"Warn Tian Ye instead. I think his puberty is getting restless. And stay away from me too—I'm not interested in men. If you dare climb into my bed tonight, I'll kill you."
A moment later, Chu Ran had an arm around Tian Ye's neck and flashed a grin at the young woman operating the front desk, making her rather embarrassed.
"Tian Ye, let me tell you, dating is nothing special. You have to come up with all kinds of tricks, buy her gifts, worship her like she's your father. Once she agrees and you get together, you don't take a single cent of her money, while the money you earn gets split seventy-thirty."
"Isn't it my money that I earn? Why do I only get seventy percent?" Tian Ye froze.
"The seventy percent belongs to her! You'll have to watch your girlfriend's expression just to get thirty percent."
"Whose expression?" Tian Ye was horrified. "I work hard to earn money, I only get thirty percent, and I still have to watch her expression? Wouldn't that make me a beggar on my knees?"
Chu Ran spread his hands helplessly. "If you want to date, then you really will be a beggar on your knees."
"What if I don't want to?" Tian Ye gritted his teeth. Chu Ran's words had already somewhat shattered his yearning for beautiful love.
"Then don't date. If you date, you kneel."
Tian Ye shuddered and jolted, hurriedly muttering, "Forget it. I'd better focus on playing my games. Hmph~ Women only affect how fast I click my mouse!"
Seeing this, Ming Kai immediately gave Chu Ran a thumbs up.
"Good lord, why do I feel like you've dated a lot despite being so young?"
Chu Ran touched his beautiful hair, sadness appearing in his eyes. "Who can a wounded heart still love~"
Pfft~
Hearing Chu Ran's words, many of the young women working operations at the club burst out laughing.
Where had Abu dug up such a living treasure?
After a brief rest, they reviewed today's matches. Once the review ended, it was time for ranked games and scrims. Professional Players like them had to maintain their form every day.
After that, Chu Ran checked his Red Temperature Value.
It had to be said, after mocking Uzi in the livestream interview and on Weibo, his Red Temperature Value had increased by more than fifty thousand points.
"Deep Blue, help me!"
Chu Ran called out in his heart, then added points to both his mechanical skill and Awareness Acuity.
Mechanical Skill: 80→82. Awareness Acuity: 70→72.
"Very good, I've gotten a little stronger again." Chu Ran nodded, then used his final ten thousand Red Temperature Value to draw a trait.
Next second, countless words flashed before his eyes, then suddenly stopped. A line of text appeared before him.
Elegance Never Goes Out of Style: As the most elegant person, your Camille proficiency has risen to the pinnacle level. Take a sip of wine before the match, and when using this champion, all your abilities increase by 20%. Description: Sip 1982 red wine and enjoy the life of an elegant aristocrat.
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