"This is ridiculous! Absolutely ridiculous! 84%!! Top ten on the CN Server, and only 6% lower than when he first hit Master?!"
"The contract! Give me the contract!"
Late that night, the Esports Circle had been turned completely upside down by Xu Cheng.
The clubs didn't understand what it meant to witness history. All they knew was that they'd encountered a true monster!
He'd reached the top ten on the CN Server with an 84% win rate. Compared to the 90% he'd had when he first reached Master, it had only dropped by 6%!
That was 24% higher than the 60% everyone had expected!
What kind of godlike record was that?
And now...
Xu Cheng had reached tenth place on the CN Server, facing one BOSS-level monster after another. He didn't even need to maintain that win rate anymore.
If he could hold around an 80% win rate all the way to the top, he'd set the most astonishing record in League of Legends ranked history—
In LOL's seven-year history, the highest win rate for a valid ranked climb to Challenger was 67%, while the record for reaching Challenger rank one was 65%.
Those records had been set a few years ago by two top professional players from North America duo-queueing.
If Xu Cheng reached the top with an 80% win rate, he'd surpass that record by a full 15%!
And he was doing it solo!
"Is this contract really enough? Data Monster may be a newcomer, but aren't we offering too little? His popularity's been so high lately..."
"Be honest. Isn't this the biggest signing bonus WE can offer a rookie?"
WE Club owner Pei Le looked helplessly at the manager. "Our club's broke! This really is the biggest contract in history. Any bigger... and I won't have any money left!"
"I heard the other clubs, especially IG, EDG, and RNG... are offering pretty hefty sums..."
"Don't be stupid! I told you, we have to win him over with passion... appeal to his sense of camaraderie... move him with our sincerity. Damn it, do you get it?"
Sensing the owner's displeasure, the manager wisely shut up, took his leave, and went to arrange contact with Xu Cheng.
Back in his office, he took out his phone, which had been buzzing nonstop for ages, and checked a group chat named [LPL's Wolong Fengchu].
It had already descended into chaos.
People were desperately asking for news and fishing for information about the "enemy's" contract terms.
Among them, the WE manager saw that Su Xiaoluo, an admin of [LPL's Wolong Fengchu], had actually posted a 400,000-yuan contract—the maximum salary for a rookie.
He made a grandiose declaration: [Everyone, save your breath. The principal has spoken in person. We have to sign Data Monster!]
"Damn idiot. Whether you sign him or not is one thing, but you just leaked the contract to the whole scene? You really are a Wolong!"
The WE manager cursed and hurried out of the office.
Late that night.
The sky was black as ink, with the occasional star dotting the darkness.
Xu Cheng left the Internet Cafe, letting the night breeze clear his head.
He took out his phone and, sure enough, found the small group chat in an uproar.
The strange thing was, he hadn't been kicked out!
In his private messages, Yu Shuang, the group owner, had sent more than ten messages.
Xu Cheng read them one by one—
[Seriously?]
[You've really let us down!]
[Sigh, you have to take responsibility!]
[? You're going to pretend you're dead and not say anything?]
[If you did it, then have the guts to admit it. Don't make me think less of you.]
[If you're not a woman, then who are you? You can't expect us to have spent all this time talking to a complete stranger without knowing who they are, can you?]
[...Fine. I'm blocking you.]
That was the last message.
Xu Cheng thought for a moment, then replied: [I was busy with something just now.]
The message went through without any notification.
She hadn't deleted him!
Sure enough, Yu Shuang replied instantly: [??? Are you going to explain yourself?]
[...]
[Fine. I'm not going to go back and forth with you. See for yourself.]
Yu Shuang sent Xu Cheng a picture.
It was a screenshot from Xiao Yu's Moments, with her status changed to—
[In the end, I had to carry it all alone.]
????
I have nothing to do with her! She's slandering me! He's slandering me!
Xu Cheng was about to reply, but after thinking it over, he realized there was no point in saying anything.
[Who are you, exactly?]
This time, Xu Cheng dropped the act. He briefly told Yu Shuang that he was a student and where he went to school. He even told her his name.
He just wanted to make it clear that they didn't need to worry—he wasn't some pervert who had deliberately wormed his way into their group. He'd simply joined by accident.
[All right...]
[I'll transfer the money to you.]
[No need. Don't send it to me. Send it to Xiao Yu instead. I'm logging off.]
Yu Shuang refused Xu Cheng's offer. She replied with just that one message, then went silent.
Xu Cheng put down his phone and sat in silence for a long while. When he looked up, he realized he was already home.
Only after stepping inside did he notice that the living room light was still on.
His heart sank.
All other thoughts vanished. He nervously steadied his breathing a few times, then carefully pushed open the door.
"You're back?"
His mother's gentle voice sounded. Xu Cheng called out guiltily, "Mom..."
"Mm."
"Why aren't you asleep yet? Where's Dad?"
"Your father wanted to wait for you, too, but the shop was so busy today, and he was exhausted, so I sent him to bed."
Mother Xu stood up. Xu Cheng noticed she was still wearing her apron. She went into the kitchen and brought out a meal for him. "You haven't eaten yet, have you?"
"Mom, today I actually..."
"It's okay, it's okay. Hurry and eat. I knew you hadn't eaten. You must be starving, right?"
Mother Xu interrupted him with a smile.
Xu Cheng really was starving. He lowered his head and wolfed down the food.
Mother Xu watched him quietly from the side, her eyes warm and smiling.
"I'm done."
A moment later, Xu Cheng set down his bowl.
"Then hurry back to bed. You must be exhausted. Get some good rest."
Xu Cheng walked to his bedroom door. After thinking for a long time, he turned around and said,
"I'm sorry... Mom. I actually went to the Internet Cafe today... I've been playing until now."
"Chengcheng."
Mother Xu's voice was gentle but serious. "Mom knows you're a sensible child. Studying is tiring, and your father and I don't blame you. But you can't stay up all night like this again, understand?"
"Go get some rest. It's okay."
As if afraid Xu Cheng might worry, she came over and gently stroked his head. "Go on. Mom's going to bed, too."
"...Okay."
Xu Cheng said nothing more, but for some reason, warmth welled up inside him.
The scolding and insults he'd imagined never came. His mother had worked hard all day, yet she'd stayed up late waiting for her son to come home—
Just so he could have a hot meal.
That was all.
"Tomorrow's the last day. Once I'm done playing, I should take a break, too."
Xu Cheng made up his mind.
His understanding parents and warm home made it impossible for him to keep indulging himself without restraint.
At least for a while, he needed to rest and focus on preparing for the provincial competition. He had to get a good result!
That night.
For some reason, Xu Cheng couldn't sleep.
He thought about a lot of things, his thoughts tangled and chaotic.
There were all the laughter and arguments from duo-queueing with Factory Director lately, as well as the sight of his parents working hard day and night.
He didn't know how long it took before he finally fell into a deep sleep.
The next afternoon, after school.
Xu Cheng walked into the Internet Cafe, but didn't go to a computer right away. Instead, he asked the attendant, "Can I get a refund for the money on my card? I probably won't be coming back for a long time..."
"Hm?"
The young woman at the front desk froze, then gave him a professional smile. "Sorry, but the rules say that stored value can't be refunded."
"Then... never mind."
"Wait, I see you here often, and your rank must be pretty high. There've been announcements about you for the past few days. Are you really not coming back?"
The receptionist looked at this handsome young guy with such a nice presence. To be honest, she was a little reluctant to see him go.
"Yeah, I'm not coming back."
Xu Cheng waved and went to a computer.
ED Club.
"How are preparations coming along?"
Abu turned to ask Factory Director.
"Tonight's the night we reap what we've sown."
Factory Director smiled faintly, leaving the rest unsaid.
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