Mysterious Eastern Dry Peeks

"Hey, want to queue for a two-stack on Ladder?" K0nfig asked es3tag beside him.

Es3tag shook his head. "You go ahead. I'll study Faze's Demo a little longer."

As he said that, es3tag could not help sighing at his team's rotten luck. They had finally gotten to participate in CAC, only for their first opponent to be Faze.

If it had been Faze from a few months ago, he would not have been this worried. Faze at the end of CSGO had still been a world-class team, but when they were out of form, anyone could take them apart for a bit. Even some obscure third-tier team had a chance of beating them.

But ever since the arrival of CS2, this Galactic Battleship had somehow refilled its tank and kept roaring through every major event.

They had just lifted the trophy at IEM Sydney, then immediately won the TP World Championship.

Only three major events had been held since CS2 launched, and Faze alone had taken two titles. They had missed the remaining one only because the schedule had been too packed for them to attend.

How could NIP's current strength possibly contend with the best team in the world?

K0nfig smiled. "What's the use of just sitting there frowning? Why not play some Ladder matches and relax? I'm telling you, CN Ladder is seriously interesting. It's all dry peeks, all about raw aim! It's bringing back memories of when I played professionally before 2018."

"I think you just want to drag me along because solo queue is miserable when you can't communicate by voice," Es3tag said mercilessly, exposing his little scheme.

"I'm not lying! It's really fun! Maybe relaxing a little will help us come up with a way to deal with Faze," K0nfig continued tempting him.

Hearing that, es3tag stretched his arms, tossed aside the tactical notebook packed with dense writing, and said, "Fine. I'll queue a couple with you. Might as well clear my head."

"Oh! Looks like we're gaining points this match. Their average rating is nearly 200 lower than ours," Fat Brother said with a smile as he looked at the successful match screen.

Su Zhe rolled his wrists. "Stay focused. Be careful they aren't some streamer smurfing again."

Although the two of them were already in the highest S Division on the Perfect World Platform, there were still differences within S.

It was like Masters and Grandmasters in League of Legends. They looked identical in rank, but there was a visibly huge gap in actual skill.

If the two of them ran into Demon King S or Diamond S players, they would still get farmed like fish.

"How could our luck be that bad? Look at those two on the other side using the NIP logo as their avatars. They're obviously just bandwagon players. They're nowhere near as pretty as my Sakurajima Mai."

Yes, Fat Brother was still a veteran anime fan. Despite standing six-foot-one with a burly build, he had the heart of a young girl. Even his mousepad was printed with Sakurajima Mai in black stockings...

The map was Mirage, one of the classic three, with Su Zhe and Fat Brother starting on the Attacking Side.

While waiting for the players to load in, Su Zhe opened the TAB panel and said uncertainly, "Those two on the other side seem to actually be NIP players..."

"How is that possible? Let me look them up... Holy shit! It really is them!" Fat Brother stared at their Pro Certification on the Perfect World Platform and said in surprise, "Should we restart...?"

"No! I want to give it a try!"

Su Zhe's tone was full of fighting spirit. He was a little nervous after learning that their opponents were Professional Players, but he also wanted to see how large the gap between himself and pro players really was.

"Then let's try... But let me warn you first—be careful not to get your confidence shattered..." Fat Brother said.

As someone who had reached Gold S long ago, he had once dreamed of going pro too...

But after he had once encountered a player from a domestic second-tier professional team on Ladder, he realized just how laughable that dream had been.

A player who could not make a name for himself on the Professional Arena had treated them like bots to be farmed.

Afterward, he had followed that pro player's ID to his Live Room.

There, he discovered that the guy had not even been playing seriously. He had chatted with the Bullet Screen in his Live Room while casually winning the match amid laughter and conversation.

When he heard that Su Zhe wanted to go pro, his First Time reaction had been to make him give up on that idea as soon as possible. But after thinking it over, he had not said it aloud.

Some roads had to be walked into a wall before people would turn back.

Soon, all ten players had loaded into the server, and the Pistol Round officially began.

With a mischievous grin, k0nfig said, "Es3tag, let's Push Forward through Mid and T Spawn right away. I'll show you what mysterious Eastern dry peeks are from the start."

Es3tag looked confused. "Isn't that just a normal Mid push? What's so strange about it?"

K0nfig did not explain. "You'll see soon enough."

Once the Countdown ended, the two bought Half Armor and USPs, then went through Dog Hole, jumped into VIP, and rushed toward T Spawn.

Es3tag looked relaxed. To him, this kind of Ladder match was just for entertainment, but the habits ingrained in a Professional Player were hard to change.

He hugged the wall at B Side Path, ready to dodge at any moment, but then he almost thought his eyes were playing tricks on him. The terrorists had not thrown a single Flashbang into Mid. They simply swung out in broad daylight.

And three of them swung out at once!

Bang! Splat!

[Cape's Number One Breakthrough Player used a P250 to headshot and kill es3tag]

"WDF! What kind of play was that?"

After getting killed, es3tag wanted to look at his teammate's screen. But when he turned around, he saw that k0nfig had also fallen in Mid.

K0nfig burst out laughing at the confused expression on es3tag's face. "So, how did that feel?"

Es3tag curled his lip. "Who plays like that?! They came out without using any utility at all. They didn't give anyone time to react."

K0nfig cleared his throat twice and restrained his smile. "I was exactly like you when I played Ladder for the first time this morning. Those completely unreasonable dry peeks caught me totally off guard. All right, now it's time to enjoy the ultimate aim-training session!"

Though he said that, he had no intention of losing. Professional Players did not just possess top-tier Game Sense and map knowledge; their supreme Positioning and Reaction were what truly allowed them to stand on the Professional Arena.

In the second round, the CTs who had lost the Pistol Round had only around 2,000 in economy each. Without hesitation, es3tag bought Full Armor, a Desert Eagle, Smoke Flash, and grenades.

After the Countdown ended, he first went to the A bomb site and threw a Smoke Flash toward Connector. Then he pushed through the smoke at Connector and held Underpass tightly with his Desert Eagle.

After waiting several seconds and finding that the terrorists had no intention of taking Underpass, he edged along the smoke, looking for an opening in Mid.

Someone on the right side of Sandbags! He hasn't seen me! Perfect chance!

Seizing the opportunity, es3tag began moving his crosshair toward the terrorist's head, preparing a lethal shot. But while the terrorist had been watching Side Path one moment, he instantly turned around the next!

Rat-a-tat-tat!

[Cape's Number One Breakthrough Player used an AK-47 to headshot and kill es3tag]

"What kind of monster is that?!"

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