After the Match (Third Update)

"Hello Duanmu, I'm Wei Ran, a reporter from Jinghai Morning News. What are your thoughts on these two matches?"

Duanmucheng's face was ashen.

"I have nothing to say..."

Duanmucheng paused for a moment, then said, "I can only say that we lost to their superior strategy. Jinghai University's tactics for this round were very well prepared. In terms of overall strength, I don't think Jinghai University is that much stronger than us..."

"But you lost both matches 0-2, and in each one you were completely Overwhelming Crush. What explanation do you have for that, Duanmu?"

Duanmucheng was seething with anger. How could this reporter say such a thing? He was definitely bringing up a sore spot...

However, this is typical of reporters, especially since the reporter in front of me is a local from Jinghai... It's understandable that they would ask such a harsh question.

"You just want to dig for materials, huh? I'll give you what you want..." Duanmucheng muttered to himself, but said aloud:

"If I could, I'd much rather have a real, hard-fought battle with Jinghai University in a True Kill Mode. That would be a fair and reasonable team fight, without all the underhanded tactics. But unfortunately, I'm graduating soon. I hope I can face Bai Xiaowen again in the league someday, as a true champion."

This also reflects Duanmucheng's inner self. Every Hero Class is proud, and subconsciously they will never think they are weaker than others.

This was actually said to Bai Xiaowen. In short, it can be summed up in two words:

I disagree!

Wei Ran thanked him excitedly and turned to squeeze towards Bai Xiaowen. The word "squeeze" is used because Bai Xiaowen was already surrounded by cameras and microphones; the National Championship garnered far more attention than the qualifying rounds. Not only media from the Jianghai Division, but also many media outlets from the Wannan University region had arrived in Jinghai early, making the effort to reach the competition area...

"Hello, Mr. Bai, I'm XXX from the Wuhu Daily. May I ask...?"

"I'm XX from Tongjiang News..."

"I am..."

Microphones were practically shoved into Bai Xiaowen's face, but thankfully, her Psychic Field acted as a barrier. Bai Xiaowen subtly activated her Psychic Field, maintaining a safe distance of several inches from the surrounding reporters...

Finally, Bai Xiaowen took the microphone from one of them. It was a beautiful woman as lively as a deer, and also an old acquaintance of Bai Xiaowen's, Wei Xiaoxiao.

"I'm very happy to have defeated Southern Anhui and advanced to the round of 16. This is not my achievement alone, but the result of everyone's hard work. Even the substitutes who didn't get to play contributed a lot to helping the starters train..."

Enjoying the envious glances from the other reporters, Wei Xiaoxiao flipped through the pages of her notebook, and another question arose:

"Bai, your dominance in this round of the competition was evident to all, and your MVP award was well-deserved. May I ask what your goals are for this CUAA National Tournament?"

"Target..."

Bai Xiaowen hesitated for a moment.

To be honest, the goal is definitely to win the championship. In any competition, competition comes first, friendship second. "Participation is more important" is just an excuse for the weak. If Bai Xiaowen doesn't win the championship in CUAA, it will be a complete failure for him.

However, will shouting the slogan of winning the championship now put too much psychological pressure on other team members, such as Han Xu, Feng Zi'ang, and Xiang Hui, causing them to underperform?

At that moment, Wei Ran finally squeezed in.

"Hello, Bai, this is Wei Ran from Jinghai Morning News. I just interviewed Duanmucheng, and he seemed quite dissatisfied with this round of the competition..."

Driven by journalistic instinct, Wei Ran embellished Duanmucheng's words, emphasizing the words "scheming and trickery," and concluded by asking, "Bai, do you have anything to say to Duanmucheng?"

Bai Xiaowen looked at the reporter with amusement and shook her head. "I'm sorry, I'm still thinking about Ms. Wei's question."

Wei Xiaoxiao's delicate face flushed slightly, and amidst the envious and jealous gazes of a group of reporters, she subtly puffed out her chest... well, still quite inconspicuous.

My goal is... the championship.

After a second of thought, Bai Xiaowen gave the answer that came from the depths of her heart.

The crowd looked on with surprise. Although Jinghai University's team performed very well, the CUAA National Championship brought together the top awakened talents of the younger generation. After entering the top 16, there were basically no weak teams! And the established powerhouses, Tsinghua University and Yanda University, were two insurmountable peaks.

These strong teams are strong not only because they have a Hero Class player leading them, but also because of their overall strength; all the players are exceptionally talented! The president of Yanda University once said that Yanda University's main team would be a strong team even in the B-League! Even their reserve team would have a place in the B-League.

This is not an exaggeration.

Bai Xiaowen needs to overcome these two major obstacles to win the championship.

"Isn't that setting your sights too high?" A voice suddenly broke in from the sidelines. "Bai, based on your performance, you're only at the top eight level. You'd be lucky to even make it to the top four..."

Bai Xiaowen looked up and saw a reporter who was thin and small. Perhaps due to his small stature, he couldn't squeeze through and ended up on the outer edge.

That's probably why the reporter deliberately used some subtly aggressive language, trying to get Bai Xiaowen's attention to him, such as asking which media outlet he was from, what his name was, and then explaining why he was confident of winning the championship. That way, he would get the material.

However, Bai Xiaowen only glanced at him before turning back to Wei Xiaoxiao and continuing to answer Wei Xiaoxiao questions.

The skinny reporter, feeling ignored, turned pale.

Wei Ran happened to recognize him and patted him on the shoulder with a smile, "Oh, it's you, Lao Yu... You've never changed your tune."

The skinny reporter's name is Yu Yiguang, and he's quite well-known in the journalism circle—famously unpopular, and most celebrities who know his name don't have a good impression of him. This guy will stop at nothing to stir up a topic.

Yu Yiguang was somewhat indignant after being ignored. "They've only won one round, and they're already acting like they own the place..."

"Well, there's nothing we can do about it, she's so popular right now," Wei Ran said with a good attitude, following behind Wei Xiaoxiao as if in line. He then turned to Yu Yiguang and said, "Old Yu, I don't think Bai Xiaowen will agree to your interview. I have a suggestion for you."

What trick?

"Look over there, are you? The victors are lining up at the door, while the losers are practically deserted... Go interview them, the scoops you'll find will be way more juicy than this. I came here after digging up some juicy stuff, and I can just ask Bai Xiaowen a question or two later and I'll be done..."

Yu Yiguang looked to the other side, where the five members of the Anhui University team were surrounded by a few cats and dogs, looking utterly miserable...