Within a year, he wouldn't be able to become a starter on a domestic team. Su Zhe had come to understand that even with the system, he couldn't expect everything to go smoothly.
He'd thought that, with the system's help, all he had to do was work hard.
But now it seemed he also needed a detailed plan and had to take things one step at a time. Otherwise, charging ahead recklessly would only make him keep hitting walls and feeling disappointed.
Since he couldn't find an opportunity to go pro in China within a year, his only option was to try overseas.
And watching the CAC matches at noon, where all three CNCS teams lost, had also come as a major shock to him.
After watching the matches, he looked up the results of domestic teams over the past few years. He stopped being so fixated on going pro in China.
Whoever wanted to save CNCS could go ahead and try. Su Zhe felt that even if he had two more systems, he still couldn't save it. Instead, it would only become a shackle holding him back.
So he found a pen and paper and sorted out what he needed to do in the near future.
The first step was obviously to keep improving and find a way to reach the top of the Perfect World Platform ladder. That would let him complete two system missions at once and earn both the B-rank and A-rank rewards.
The second step was to switch over to Europe's Faceit platform.
He'd recently learned online that the way domestic and overseas players played on the ladder was very different.
European ladder players placed more emphasis on teamwork, whereas in China, it was all about aim.
So if he wanted to look for opportunities abroad, he first needed to get used to their style of play.
He figured Europe might be the best choice. There were lots of top teams, plenty of second- and third-tier teams, and naturally more opportunities.
The third step.
At that point, Su Zhe glanced at the college English textbook beside him.
The third step was to improve his English as quickly as possible while he couldn't play CSGO during class. He wasn't aiming for excellent grades; he just needed to handle simple everyday conversations.
As for the final step, he'd keep streaming and earn a bit of money. If a European team invited him to try out later, he could use it for travel expenses.
He couldn't bring himself to ask his parents for that money.
After writing down his plan, Su Zhe felt a little more at ease.
Now that he had a goal, all that was left was to work hard.
As for how things turned out in the end, it didn't matter. Even if he failed to complete the missions and the system ended its bond with him, at worst he'd simply return to his old life.
Maybe years from now, he'd suddenly remember how he'd once fought to become a pro player. That would be enough.
He closed the notebook filled with his plans and turned to call out, "Fat Brother, where's my 'Zai Wu' jersey?"
[Xiao Zhe's playing again all weekend? Is he planning to stream for ten-plus hours today?]
[He's seriously so hardworking. If I were this motivated at work, I'd make a fortune in overtime pay!]
[By the way, isn't Xiao Zhe already at 24 stars? Looking at the stats this game, if he wins, he'll reach Diamond S!]
[Not only is he hardworking, he's ranking up way too fast. At this rate, reaching Demon King S is only a matter of time.]
[Sigh, he's just too ambitious. Doesn't he know his own skill level? He hasn't even made it into youth training, and he's already thinking about joining Tianlu's main team.]
[Honestly, wouldn't Xiao Zhe be better than the current Tianlu players if they put him on the main team to build up some match experience?]
[So is he planning to focus on showmanship and streaming from now on?]
[.]
The Live Room was filled with all sorts of comments: admiration, envy, confusion, and mockery.
Su Zhe didn't have the energy to answer the viewers' questions right now. The score had reached 11–10.
They could've ended the match much earlier, but in the previous round, the opposing CTs had unexpectedly won a force-buy round, leaving Su Zhe's attacking side almost broke.
If they lost this full-buy round, the other team might make a comeback.
Su Zhe keyed his mic and gave a brief call: "Let's hit B this round. I'll take first entry. Just throw a Molotov to clear Banana Path and a flash behind Stone Slab."
"Sure, no problem," his teammates replied one after another.
That was just how the domestic ladder worked. If your stats were good enough, your teammates would listen when you used the mic to call the shots.
Once the countdown ended, Su Zhe pulled out his knife and sprinted forward. Near T Spawn, he took the Molotov from his pocket and threw it toward the Wooden Board, stopping the CTs from stepping out early to catch their timing and retake Banana Path.
A Molotov in the middle of Banana Path burst into flames at his feet. Su Zhe ignored it and kept pushing through the fire. When he reached Stone Slab, his teammates still hadn't thrown their flash.
He couldn't blame temporary ladder teammates for their coordination, but it was too late to back off now. The other side had heard him run through the fire and would know someone was close to Stone Slab.
If he fell back now, they'd either catch him out and kill him, or he'd have to figure out something on the second timing.
Eager to open up the round for his team, Su Zhe chose to pre-aim and swing out wide. As soon as he spotted the CT holding the Yellow Wall, he counter-strafed and fired.
"Rat-tat-tat!"
[Cape's Number One Breakthrough Player killed Liqun Superman with an AK-47]
The CT behind Sandbags saw his teammate die and immediately swung out to trade. But thanks to the advantage of seeing the closer target first, Su Zhe spotted the CT right away.
His reactions were lightning-fast. He adjusted his spray and transferred it onto the second opponent.
"Rat-tat-tat!"
[Cape's Number One Breakthrough Player headshot killed I Miss the Boss]
"Go straight into Bomb Site! There's at most one left! Throw a smoke at CT Spawn. I'll clear the angles."
Su Zhe glanced at his teammates' positions on the Minimap, then went hunting for opponents despite his low health.
It turned out the defending side had really stacked three players on B.
A CT on top of the first box had meant to throw a defensive smoke at B connector and wait for his teammates to rotate. He hadn't expected the Ts to push so quickly.
After getting two kills, Su Zhe hadn't slowed down at all. Seeing no one peek from Coffin, he pre-aimed the first box and swung out wide again.
"Rat-tat-tat!"
[Cape's Number One Breakthrough Player headshot killed Wondering What Niko Would Do]
Su Zhe was like a heavy truck, smashing straight through the CTs' three-man defense.
Facing a 2v5, the two remaining CTs tried to find somewhere to save their guns, but the Ts quickly grouped up and hunted them down.
"Damn! That push was so fast, I didn't even have time to react!" [Liqun Superman] complained. "Is this guy a bulldozer reincarnated or something?"
[I Miss the Boss] could only sigh. "That kid on the other team reacted way too fast. I tried to swing out and trade, and he just put a bullet in my head. Sigh—let's do better next round!"
After losing that crucial round, the CTs couldn't afford a full buy in the next one. This time, Su Zhe and his teammates gave them no chance at all.
With their weapon advantage, they pushed forward bit by bit, gradually eating away at the CTs' defense.
[Match Result: Victory] [Score: 13–10] [MVP: Cape's Number One Breakthrough Player] [KDA: 22-15-2] [Rating: 1.43] [Points: 3019→3035] [24 stars→25 stars] [ Ding! Congratulations, Host, on completing the mission. You have reached the Diamond S requirement on the Perfect World Platform and received a B-rank reward.]
Hearing the system's heavenly chime, Su Zhe stood up and said, "Fat Brother, Xiao Guang, keep the viewers company for a bit. I'm going to the bathroom."
Then he hurried into the bathroom and called up the system panel.
For the new book's release period, updates will be posted at noon and 5 p.m. If there's an extra chapter, it'll go up with the 5 p.m. update.
Before you continue