Steel Helmet: "The five of us are gonna tear them up!"

Steel Helmet: "The five of us are gonna tear them up!"

Their economy was in trouble, forcing Steel Helmet to make a choice.

"Should we force-buy or save?" Su Di asked.

MO took a breath. "Let's save. We can buy some cheap guns and have a little fun. Next round, Cousin can use the AWP, and we'll have full rifles and utility too. That'll give us a better chance to turn things around."

Jiang Yang checked his money and, after thinking it over, bought an unarmored AWP.

"Su Di, help me jump Mid in a bit. I'll try to get a shot off," Jiang Yang said.

There wasn't much of a plan for this round. They were just going to use their cheap guns and try to trade kills wherever they could.

MO hadn't set many expectations for them, either. He mostly wanted them to play freely.

Jiang Yang had spawned closer to the sandy area, so naturally, he planned to take a shot down Mid.

Danking had an AWP. Jiang Yang only had a Scout, but he still planned to give it a try.

As the countdown ended, Jiang Yang headed toward the sandy area.

Su Di waited until Jiang Yang was with him, then jumped across.

But the instant he leapt, the AWP cracked.

A flash of fire burst from Su Di's head. He hit the ground and settled in for a peaceful night's sleep.

Jiang Yang wasn't about to let Su Di's sacrifice go to waste. The moment Su Di jumped, Jiang Yang scoped in and peeked out, catching sight of Danking retreating behind cover.

He flicked his Scout toward him.

"Bang—"

[young killed Danking with a headshot using SG 008]

"The two snipers are dueling through Mid Doors, and their reactions are ridiculously fast!"

"But Cousin's side got the better end of that trade. They're broke this round, so trading kills is actually an advantage for them."

Wan Ji Qi continued breaking down the situation. "At the second timing, Cousin's side threw a B Tunnel smoke, then held Mid to Long for a while."

"Tyloo threw an Xbox smoke and planned to take Map Control slowly. Cousin's side fell back to A Platform at the second timing to hold an angle. Tyloo still seems to be setting up an A Main and A Short split. Now we'll see if the Scout on Platform can find a pick."

Jiang Yang stood on A Platform, holding a steady angle toward A Main with his Scout.

Xiaosage had been scouting earlier and hadn't seen anyone drop into Big Pit, so Jiang Yang held tight against the wall and waited for the opponents to make a move.

Then he saw a smoke land down in Big Pit.

Right after that, a terrorist suddenly jumped up by the A Main wall to scout.

The opponent showed so little of himself that Jiang Yang could only try to flick a shot.

"Bang—"

[young killed summer with a headshot using SG 008]

The moment the shot rang out, Wan Ji Qi, watching the livestream, stared in disbelief.

"Holy shit! He hit that? CY1 was using a Spinning Jump to peek and scout!"

The livestream chat was instantly flooded with question marks. Everyone was amazed by Jiang Yang's reaction speed.

An average player might not even have gotten a shot off before CY1 had gathered the information and jumped back.

But Jiang Yang had not only fired—he'd flicked a headshot onto his opponent. It was ridiculous.

Seeing Jiang Yang get another kill, MO's side got fired up too.

"Little Lock, DD, help Cousin hold A Short. Don't let them in. I'll push up to B2 floor and see what I can do."

MO had thought it through. The opening trade in Mid had brought them to a 4v4.

That meant the terrorists couldn't spread out as freely as usual.

And with Jiang Yang having taken someone down at A Main, the opponents would surely concentrate their forces if they still planned to hit A.

Pushing forward carried some risk, but they were at an economic disadvantage this round. Taking a risk to turn things around was perfectly normal!

Jiang Yang held his angle quietly from Platform, waiting for his teammates to feed him information.

"No one on B2 floor... B1's clear too!" MO shouted frantically over voice chat.

"They've crossed A Short!" MO called out after getting the information. "Little Lock, DD, don't rush. Bait them out and let me catch them!"

But plans didn't always survive contact with reality. The terrorists at A Short pushed out, but DD and xiaosage teamed up with their Desert Eagles and focused him down.

"The other two are both at A Main!" MO shouted. "Hold steady! We've got this round!"

But as soon as the words left his mouth, Tyloo launched a merciless dry peek on Jiang Yang's side. Baicai took him out.

"I tagged Baicai with my Scout. One shot and he's dead!" Jiang Yang had done all he could. Now it was up to his teammates.

One opponent was at full health, the other was wounded.

It was a 3v2 clutch. DD had an AK47, and MO had even gone to Terrorist Base's tunnel to pick up an AWP.

They had a great chance of turning this round around!

"They've thrown two CT smokes and are pushing in with a Flashbang! But xiaosage is tucked behind Box 2. He hears the footsteps, swings out, and lands a Desert Eagle headshot!"

"Baicai comes in to trade xiaosage, but DD at A Short trades him right back!"

Watching DD finish off Baicai with his spray control, Jiang Yang clenched his fist.

They had the advantage in the clutch, but anything could happen in a situation like that.

"Great job, guys!" Jiang Yang rallied his teammates over voice chat. "Stay focused, stay focused. Our economy's finally looking good!"

After winning the round, the score reached 13:14. They were just one round behind Tyloo!

And if they won three more rounds, Tyloo could go AFK and take a shower.

After thinking it over, MO didn't drop the AWP to Jiang Yang. Instead, he said, "Let's play a double-AWP setup. I'll hold B. They probably won't expect us to bring out two AWPs."

On Dust II, a CT side without a sniper was like the stash of chapters at Xiangzi's house—not just small, but nonexistent.

A double-AWP setup could also catch the other team off guard at a crucial moment.

MO wasn't a particularly good AWPer, but if he found a good angle on B, he could still do a lot of damage.

Jiang Yang bought an AWP of his own. After thinking it over, they decided not to focus on A Main. Instead, they set up a few players around A Short.

"Have someone hold me at A Short. I'll hold B Tunnel with my AWP and try to catch someone. SLOWLY often takes the default route through B1."

When the countdown ended, Su Di set up at A Short for Jiang Yang and xiaosage.

DD headed to A Main alone to see if he could take control.

If anyone from Tyloo tried to contest A Main, he'd turn tail and run at once.

Dust II was a little unusual. Spawn positions mattered a lot. If the terrorists didn't spawn near A Main, DD could easily take control of it with a single Molotov.

Jiang Yang and xiaosage made their way up A Short without a hitch, then set up a boost. Jiang Yang held the B1 floor crossing with his AWP.

As his "Mat Bro," Xiaosage covered the left side of the A Short passage for him.

(The Crosshair should be placed inside B1 floor.)

They took control of A Main without a problem, and the opponents didn't speed up toward B.

That meant the terrorists were probably operating around Mid and B2 floor.

Once Jiang Yang figured that out, he focused his attention.

"SLOWLY is coming out from B1 floor on default. Can he guess there's a boost at A Short?"

"SLOWLY checks his angle, but Cousin still gets the first kill with ease, taking him out in one shot."

After getting the kill, Jiang Yang immediately jumped down from xiaosage and pulled out a grenade, throwing it toward B1 floor.

"I'm leaving, Lock. You can hold A Short on your own."

He'd already fired from A Short. There wasn't much point in continuing to hold the same position.

After thinking it over, Jiang Yang went back to the A Main passage and swapped places with DD, who had used up most of his utility.

At the same time, the two-man B team launched a suppression push toward B Tunnel.

Su Di used a Molotov to burn the right side of B Tunnel, forcing Danking out of hiding.

Danking put out the fire and tried to escape, but MO's AWP caught him and took him down.

"Nice shot, Captain!" Jiang Yang praised him. "We're up 5v3!"

MO was thinking it through. Normally, Danking was Tyloo's main entry fragger.

That meant Tyloo had probably planned to hit B at the second timing.

But with Danking dead, Tyloo seemed to have started hesitating.

"Keep an eye on the sandy area. We're giving up Mid. Just hold the two sites!" MO instructed. "If they split B, trade as many kills as you can. The rest of you can retake."

Hearing MO's instructions, xiaosage at A Short quickly used utility to slow them down, then fell back to the A ramp and took a Body Swing.

They'd confirmed that Tyloo didn't have an AWP this round, so they had a lot more room to work with.

At the second timing, xiaosage heard a smoke land across A Short. He immediately pulled out a grenade and threw it toward A Short, then headed for the sniper position.

"The terrorists at A Short have taken a full grenade to the face! Tyloo is nearly out of utility, so they're going for a boost to send Flying Man out!"

"Can they catch someone off guard?"

Baicai was launched through the air, but Jiang Yang was at the tooth position on the left side of the blue car, already holding the crossing.

A terrorist suddenly appeared in his scope. He pulled the trigger without hesitation and got a kill.

Wow, the guy had practically walked right into his crosshairs.

But Jiang Yang had no time to marvel at it. He quickly pulled out a Flashbang and threw it toward Box 2 at the site.

As soon as the Flashbang popped, xiaosage swung out from the sniper position.

He sprayed down CY1 at the Ninja position, then took out Little Ghost beside the smoke.

"Great flash, Cousin!" Xiaosage shouted excitedly. "We work together so well, we're tearing them up!"

DD at A Main chimed in with a joke. "I'm the one doing all the tearing up, okay?"

After they won the round, the score reached 14:14.

MO had worked it out too. "Tyloo's broke this round. We just need to stay steady!"

"With these spawns, let's contest A Main like usual. Take A Main on this map and we're halfway to winning," MO said. "Make sure B is ready for a rush. Don't let them catch us off guard and charge in."

No one talked about anything else. As the score drew closer and closer, the tension in their hearts kept rising.

They were so close to their goal, and they were terrified something would go wrong at the crucial moment.

So everyone spoke with extra conviction, trying to give their teammates strength.

When the countdown ended, Jiang Yang followed DD toward A Main. His spawn was poor, so he only threw two Flashbangs.

DD used a Back Flash to reach A Main, but saw no sign that the opponents were contesting it. He immediately called out, "Nothing happening at A Main. Watch out for B!"

As soon as DD finished speaking, MO shouted over voice chat. "They forced up! I got Headshot Through Smoke! Hurry back and retake!"

Jiang Yang saw a kill notification appear in the top-right corner.

[Danking killed CaptainMO with a Headshot Through Smoke using an AK47]

"Danking caught a great timing. He got the information before the B Tunnel smoke popped and instantly took MO down!"

"Tyloo is speeding up toward B. Su Di is the only one defending it. Could Steel Helmet really fail to hold on at the crucial moment?" Wan Ji Qi hadn't expected such a bizarre turn in the middle of all this tension.

The three players at A rushed toward B, but it was a long way. They could only move as quickly as possible.

Then two kill notifications appeared in the top-right corner.

[Karsa killed Danking with an AK47 through smoke]

[Karsa killed CY1 with a headshot using an AK47]

[SLOWLY killed Karsa with a headshot using a Galil]

Su Di had forced a two-for-one trade, leaving them in a 3v3 clutch.

Jiang Yang was closest to B and reached a position with a view of B Door first.

He noticed a small detail. Maybe they'd been rushing in too quickly, but Tyloo had missed their B Door smoke, leaving a gap he could see through.

Jiang Yang immediately realized this was an opportunity. He stayed put, scoped in with his AWP, and held B Door.

After the kill, SLOWLY immediately tried to cross quickly and get the bomb down at the site.

He'd noticed the gap in the B Door smoke too, but he didn't have another smoke.

He figured the opponents wouldn't get there so quickly, so he pulled out his knife and jumped past the big box.

But the instant he crossed, he saw the AWP from CT Base holding him.

SLOWLY immediately realized something was wrong.

"—Bang!"

An AWP bullet punched through B Door and hit him square in the chest.

Already low on health, SLOWLY was taken out immediately.

[young+karsa killed SLOWLY through the wall with an AWP]

"Nice! Great shot, Cousin!" DD shouted excitedly over voice chat. "It's 3v2!"

The moment SLOWLY went down, Jiang Yang scoped in again, but the terrorists finally threw a smoke at B Door.

"They smoked it. Let's just go straight in," Jiang Yang suggested.

As he spoke, he switched to his pistol and sped up toward B Door.

Leading the way, he quickly checked Close Point at Niche by Mid Doors, but didn't see anyone.

DD behind him remained silent, following at a slow walk.

Hearing the footsteps move past one by one, Little Ghost slowly crept out from Mid Doors.

With SLOWLY sniped by young, Tyloo was struggling to handle a clutch they'd previously had under control.

Little Ghost, watching the Mid Doors, had no choice but to make the first move.

Listening to the opponents' footsteps fade, he called out their positions as he crept out from Mid Doors.

But just after he slipped out, he realized someone was still holding his position. Little Ghost hurriedly turned his gun toward them, but he couldn't win the fight.

[DD killed somebody with a headshot using an AK47]

"Great shot!" MO said fiercely over voice chat. "It's 3v1. The last one's at B Bomb Site. Wait for the smoke to clear, then rush him together!"

"Don't rush, don't rush!" Su Di quickly added.

The three players calmly held their guns at B Door, while Baicai, inside B, began to panic.

He tried a fake plant to bait the opponents into making a mistake and create a one-on-one fight.

But after the fake plant, he realized that none of them were coming out.

That made things even tougher, because the other side had definitely pushed right up to his face. If he planted the bomb now, there was no way to be sure they wouldn't push out together.

After thinking it over, he decided to get a kill first.

He silently jumped into Dog Hole, lined up his pre-aim, then peeked out first.

"Bang!"

But the instant he swung out, he saw that damned Big Sniper holding the angle!

Baicai didn't even get a shot off before he was taken out!

"Nice!!!"

"We're back in it!!!"

"Cousin, what a shot!!"

The voice chat erupted into a cacophony of screams. Jiang Yang had goosebumps all over. "Just one more point! Just one more point!!"

MO shouted, "We've got match point, beautiful work, brothers."

The pressure was plain in their voices.

After all, the score was so close that a single kill could change the course of the entire match.

Jiang Yang asked, "Captain, are you still using the AWP? I can afford one."

MO shook his head. "Not this round. They force-bought last round, so they've only got 3,100 this time. They'll have guns but no utility, or utility but no guns!"

"Let's focus on Map Control. Don't give them a chance!!"

The score had reached 15:14.

This point was crucial. It would either end the match or send it into overtime.

Jiang Yang took the Big Sniper straight to Mid Doors to defend.

But knowing the other side was broke this round, he wasn't as aggressive about using the AWP to hunt for someone in the passage. Instead, he held the crossing by the oil barrels in Mid.

Both sides' default setups were solid. On the second timing, Jiang Yang adjusted his pre-aim as well, watching out for the Ts on B1 floor.

He had just settled his AWP on the angle when a Flashbang suddenly streaked into view, and the screen went completely white.

Jiang Yang forced down his panic, counted the seconds, and fired a shot before running blind toward B Door.

When his vision returned, he saw a kill notification in the upper-right corner.

But the footsteps behind him were still close. Jiang Yang knew he couldn't keep running, so he spun around and scoped in.

He took the hits from the opposing Tec-9 and fired a shot from the AWP.

"Cousin caught one at Mid Doors while he was blind, but Baicai doesn't seem willing to let him go—he's chasing him down!"

"But now that his vision's back, Cousin fires again and takes Baicai out too!"

"The two Ts who tried to push through Mid have both been caught by the AWP. The bodyguards are coming in on the second timing as well. What's Tyloo going to do now?"

"Going A Short would be the sensible play, but they've chosen to hit A Main on the second timing. Can a Dry Peek really work? DD's AK47 sprays down two in one burst! Little Ghost forces a trade with his AK, but he's down to one HP!"

Wan Ji Qi sucked in a breath. "They can't be serious, can they? Tyloo are going to lose to Steel Helmet!"

"Is Little Ghost going to keep pushing A Main? He backs off to look for another opening, but Cousin's AWP has already pushed up from Mid. Still, the Big Sniper misses!"

"One more shot!"

[young+DD used AWP to kill somebody]

As the kill notification appeared in the upper-right corner, the score above them changed to 16:14.

At that moment, Steel Helmet's voice chat descended into total madness.

"Nice!!!!"

"Holy shit, we actually won!!"

"You guys are incredible!!"

"Cousin, I love you!! You were carrying so hard!!"

The Steel Helmet players let out all the excitement they'd been holding in.

The viewers watching the livestream were just as stunned.

I'm not feeling well, and the writing feels a bit dragged out. I'm going to get an IV; I'll come back later and revise it.