On the night they won the championship, Bai Xiaowen accepted an interview on behalf of the White Phoenix Team and announced that the team was disbanding.
Bai Xiaowen retired.
His four teammates also announced their retirements, one after another.
The news sent shock waves through the China Division. Even league fans around the world were stunned.
What happened to reaching the pinnacle the moment they debuted?
What happened to the beginnings of a dynasty?
Gone. All of it, gone!
#White Phoenix Team Disbands quickly shot to the top of the trending list.
Countless fans searched for a reason. Conspiracy theories and claims of a cover-up spread everywhere.
In fact, Bai Xiaowen had explained his reason for retiring clearly in the interview:
"Life is a journey of climbing one mountain after another. I love a challenge, and I hate standing still. Neither the Class-A League nor the Super Cup presents a challenge to me anymore."
Fans of the White Phoenix Team weren't the only ones pleading with them to stay. Fans across the China Division posted appeals too.
But Bai Xiaowen had made up his mind.
The major media outlets, meanwhile, heaped praise on the White Phoenix Team for "quitting while they were ahead."
Whether the major guilds had a hand in that was anyone's guess.
Still, the team's disbandment and Bai Xiaowen's retirement did let the major teams breathe a sigh of relief.
If the White Phoenix Team had stayed together and kept competing in the Super Cup and domestic league... they would have defended their titles. There was no doubt about it.
The most disheartening part was that Bai Xiaowen and his teammates were mostly only level eight. They still had plenty of room to grow.
For the other teams, White Phoenix's departure was the best possible outcome.
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