The Terrifying ECO Men!

The Terrifying ECO Men!

"Nice shooting, Little Sheep!"

The moment the pistol round ended, xiaosage was the first to praise him over voice chat.

"Little Sheep?" Jiang Yang echoed.

Xiaosage explained, "Doesn't your ID sound like 'sheep' when you read it?"

DD chimed in too. "Little Brother's Dual Pistols are seriously good. I only saw the kill feed lighting up in the top right—you took them all down."

They really had been caught off guard by that play. Jiang Yang's pistol skills were pretty awful compared to theirs, but this round he'd racked up four kills. It was an impressive performance.

"Ah, that was just standard stuff." Jiang Yang laughed, trying to liven up the mood. "You guys know what a nationally ranked Marco Polo looks like?"

Ma Xixi was commentating on the match nearby, and the audience also heard Jiang Yang's excited shout: "...a nationally ranked Marco Polo!"

The viewers in the livestream chat found it hard not to laugh at that.

[What the—Nong!]

[The kid's switched straight to Attack Speed Flow now?]

[I think I get it. Those Dual Pistols are basically a Hair Dryer in his hands, right? His cousin's popping off again!]

[Huh? Are pistol rounds ECO rounds now too?]

[The terrifying ECO man has appeared!]

The viewers watching the stream were all joking around. Seeing Helmet get off to such a good start, they were hoping the team could keep up the strong performance.

After the pistol round, at MO's suggestion, Jiang Yang traded guns with xiaosage.

Xiaosage gave him an A1, and Jiang Yang tossed him a Hair Dryer in return.

The main reason was so Jiang Yang could save up for a Big Sniper to use in the upcoming full-buy rounds.

After all their scrims over the past few days, Helmet's members had gotten a feel for Jiang Yang's sniping. They had plenty of confidence in his Big Sniper.

So no one complained, and the trade went through without a hitch.

Once the countdown ended, Jiang Yang headed to VIP to hold an angle.

Thanks to their decisive win in the pistol round, the attacking side had no money for this round and would most likely go pure ECO.

"Newhappy has no money. Apart from Jee, who bought an unarmored Desert Eagle, the others have all gathered at Terrorist Entrance. Looks like they plan to rush straight out from there and try to trade kills."

"They're setting up a Double Crossfire in Mid. Looks like they're planning to use it to send Flying Man out. Jiang Yang's holding an angle from VIP, xiaosage is watching Sewer, and now they're launching their Double Crossfire through Mid!"

Jiang Yang was holding Terrorist Entrance from VIP when suddenly someone came flying out. Almost on instinct, he flicked his aim over.

"Rat-tat-tat!"

[young killed Daniel with a headshot using M4A1]

The moment he got the kill, Jiang Yang realized the other team hadn't gone for a Half Buy. They were just looking to trade kills and guns.

He immediately strafed left to avoid getting caught in a crossfire and killed, then called out to his teammates over voice chat.

"Whoa! He just picked one off in the air, then got another—two kills! Xiaosage's follow-up shot is in, and DD's Flashbang has completely blinded everyone in Mid!"

"Jiang Yang switched to his pistol and finished off the last one at Mid! That's another four-kill round—his aim's on fire!"

"No problems at all. They secured the ECO round and avoided getting upset!" Ma Xixi clenched his fist.

This closed qualifier used a BO1 single-elimination format, which meant every round on Dust II was crucial.

Jiang Yang had now gotten off to a perfect 8/0 start. His aim was clearly in great shape.

Things should go more smoothly from here.

"They're already calling a timeout?"

Jiang Yang asked in surprise.

It was only the third round.

MO explained, "Maybe they think we've had too easy a start and want to cool us off."

That kind of move was pretty annoying, though. Without thinking, Jiang Yang rubbed his mouse across his Mousepad a few times.

MO looked over the team's guns and considered it. "Little Sheep, give your M4 to Little Lock—xiaosage—and buy an AWP for yourself."

"In this full-buy round, sticking with a submachine gun would put you at a serious disadvantage."

Even though these Old Timers had all retired, they'd kept the habits they'd developed as professional players. Their approach was still pretty sound.

Jiang Yang followed the instructions, then checked his position and suggested, "Then I'll head straight up to Above A2 Floor."

He was closest to Above A2 Floor and could use his position to catch an opening.

After the countdown ended, Jiang Yang went to A Bomb Site and used a simple Spinning Jump to hop quickly up to Above A2 Floor. He scoped in and held a tight angle.

"The Ts are moving quickly this round. They've rushed to take Mid, but the CTs' Big Sniper has also gone straight to Above A2 Floor."

"But the Ts playing default on Above A2 Floor are being very cautious. They're not actively testing the Front Point. Judging by the CTs' positioning, Newhappy looks ready to pinch B from B Short."

"Now the Ts are crossing Mid. Sudi at B Short just barely dodged the Flashbang. He swings back out—can he get one?"

"But he misses his shots and gets taken out!"

Seeing that Sudi had failed to get the kill, xiaosage at Arch quickly threw an Arch smoke to buy time.

Jiang Yang didn't rush. He kept holding Above A2 Floor with his Big Sniper, while DD covered A1 for him to stop anyone catching him from the side.

After thinking it over, Jiang Yang pushed forward with his Big Sniper, hoping to clear Above A2 Floor.

If there was no one up there, he could free up the A defense.

He advanced bit by bit, but the opponent on Above A2 Floor was scouting very cautiously. The moment Jiang Yang caught a glimpse of him, the guy retreated.

Jiang Yang flicked a shot at him, but missed.

"Be careful at B. It doesn't feel like they're going to hit A," Jiang Yang warned. "The guy on Above A2 Floor is playing way too far back!"

This wasn't a ranked match. You didn't see people making plays that stupid.

That guy looked more like he was watching for a flank.

Hearing Jiang Yang's read, DD immediately said, "I'll rotate back from CT Base, then. Hold them off at B."

But DD was a little too eager. The Ts were already pushing into B Short, and when he tried to cross, two of them focused him down.

[Jee+superGod killed DD with AK47]

Jiang Yang's read had been right, but that was the worst possible outcome.

"Now that Newhappy knows there's still an AWP at A, they're going straight for B."

"They're dry-peeking B Short and charging in, but Liu Ke holds them off! He gets one with a full spray, and JEE can't land the follow-up shot!"

"MO throws down smoke to protect himself and waits for a teammate to help!" Ma Xixi commentated quickly. "But Newhappy doesn't seem interested in forcing the B site anymore. They're rotating to A!"

"Jiang Yang's AWP is still on Above A2 Floor, and xiaosage has also sensed something's wrong and is rotating back through CT Base. This round has taken another unexpected turn!"

The opponents suddenly went quiet, so Jiang Yang didn't dare move around recklessly.

He turned into a fixture on Above A2 Floor, still holding his angle.

Xiaosage had reached CT Base. When he heard footsteps near Jump Platform, he immediately called out, "They're at Jump Platform! They really are hitting A!"

DD immediately warned him over voice chat. "Little Brother, don't rush out from Above A2 Floor. Wait for Lock to make the first move!"

But Jiang Yang didn't fully follow DD's advice. He got ready, and the moment he heard a Flashbang, he peeked Jump Platform with his AWP.

His pre-aim on this map was incredibly practiced.

The instant he swung out, a T's head appeared in his Crosshair at Jump Platform.

"—Bang!"

[young killed superGod with a headshot using AWP + Jee's Flashbang]

At the same time, xiaosage was holding ropz Position from CT Base and caught another T trying to clear the angle.

After getting the kill, xiaosage immediately peeked out and fired, hoping to get another.

But after spraying a whole magazine, he realized the T under Jump Platform was holding his angle too. They traded headshots, and xiaosage went down.

"Under Jump Platform is severely wounded!" Xiaosage yelled over voice chat.

Jiang Yang didn't rush. He scoped in with his Big Sniper and held Jump Platform, waiting for the enemy to peek and challenge him.

But the opponent had no intention of taking a duel with the Big Sniper and went straight onto the site.

MO had also returned to B Short. When he spotted a T trying to plant at B Short, he sprayed at him.

But sometimes the more rushed you were, the more likely you were to whiff.

He failed to kill the opponent with his spray, and the T managed to reposition.

"One at Jungle, one behind Long Box!" DD quickly called out to Jiang Yang over voice chat.

Taking advantage of his teammate drawing their attention with gunfire, Jiang Yang peeked out from Above A2 Floor.

At first, he'd been planning to take out the Bomb.

After all, there wasn't much time left.

But the instant he swung out, his attention was drawn to the T at Jungle.

Almost instinctively, he flicked his Crosshair away from Long Box and onto him.

"—Bang!"

[young+xiaosage killed Jee with AWP]

"Whoa! What was that shot?" Ma Xixi's eyes went wide.

From their perspective, Jiang Yang had peeked and scoped in at the same time, clearly looking for the Bomb Planter.

But he seemed to spot the enemy at Jungle as he scoped in, and flicked over to kill him.

Most viewers had only just caught sight of the T at Jungle when Jiang Yang's shot was already over.

"It's a 2v1!" Ma Xixi shouted tensely, fist clenched. "The last T thinks they won't peek from Above A2 Floor, so he's going to force the plant."

"The AWP on Above A2 Floor isn't rushing either. He's waiting inside for a chance to strike. They have the advantage in this 2v1, so letting the opponent plant is fine!"

After planting the Bomb, the last T hopped toward CT Base.

The Bomb was in a position that CT Base could watch. He was too low on health, so his only chance was to turn the clutch into a one-on-one gunfight.

Jiang Yang was excited too, but he didn't rush. He waited until MO reached Arch and threw him a Flashbang before finally peeking out to scout.

"He's probably retreated to CT Base. I'll hold the angle. MO, come over and defuse—we've got this round!" Jiang Yang sounded confident.

He held CT Base with his Big Sniper while MO used a molotov he'd picked up to clear the Phone Booth. That cleared the left side of CT Base, leaving Jiang Yang to watch only the right.

MO went onto the site to defuse. The last T at CT Base tried a Body Swing to scout, but Jiang Yang's bullet took him down.

"Hell yeah!"

"Way to come through, Little Brother!"

Voice chat filled with excited cheers.

The round had turned completely around. They'd lost players early, but MO and Jiang Yang had managed to bring it back.

Watching the clutch had left everyone on edge.

Ma Xixi let out a long breath on the livestream. "Jiang Yang really came through that round. He played Above A2 Floor so well!"

"That shot on the guy at Jungle was crucial. He'd been holding that angle, making it really hard for Helmet to retake. But Jiang Yang peeked out and flicked right onto him—that broke the stalemate!"

"My cousin's aim really is on point today. Is that eleven kills already?"

The viewers in the livestream chat had also noticed that, without them realizing it, Jiang Yang had reached a terrifying 11/0 after only three rounds. He was averaging nearly four kills per round. A remarkable performance.

[My cousin's really carrying!]

[He's playing way better than expected.]

[Are they really going to crush this pro team today?]

[Told you, Helmet is third in Asia. They've only lost to VG and Tyloo. Let's go!]

[Go, cousin! You've got this!]

The viewers in the livestream chat were talking excitedly as the match continued.

After finally saving up enough money for a full-buy round, they lost anyway, and Newhappy's economy took a hit.

But unexpectedly, they chose to force-buy and take the gunfight.

This time, Jiang Yang opened with a Big Sniper shot at Arch. He then took a bold angle while the Ts crossed, but their quick follow-up fire caught and killed him.

Jee had taken Jiang Yang's Big Sniper, and went on to make good use of it, finally earning Newhappy their first round against Helmet.

In the rounds that followed, Newhappy also started finding their rhythm and making plays.

They were a professional team, after all, with plenty of young players. Their overall aim was better than that of Helmet's Old Timers.

But it didn't last long, because Newhappy also realized their rookie was seriously good!

Once the rookie got his hands on a Big Sniper, it was easy for him to turn the tide.

Their sniper, JEE, had been getting thoroughly outplayed in the AWP matchup by that player named young.

By the end of the first half, the score stood at 10–5.

Yeah... Helmet had ten, and they had five.

There'll be another chapter tonight.