As veteran players, Ling Feng and the others naturally didn't have to put in much effort.
"Damn, is that Chen Kai? Even such an amazing pro player came? This tournament's going to be worth watching."
"Holy crap, it really seems to be him. It's just that that emo hairstyle is a little... uh... hard to describe~"
Outside the venue, several young men who had rushed over from "thousands of miles away" chatted among themselves.
"Tch, what do you know? Kai God is the captain of the Tiandi Team, and he was ranked second in the very first PVP rankings. You bunch of losers really have no clue!"
"Exactly, exactly! Bleh~"
Several female fans who had come for Chen Kai immediately mocked them after hearing that. One of the girls even stuck out her tongue at them, leaving the two guys feeling rather stifled.
"What the hell? So what if he's second? My God Feng is still number one!"
"That's right. Ignore them, let's go in. I heard Duskfall is coming too. Let's get ready to watch the show!"
"Hehe, My God said on stream last night that he'd be here. We can pick on them again then~"
After saying that, the young man took out his newly bought iPhone 13 and opened the Dragon Fang TV streaming platform.
His ID was unmistakably "My God, Duskfall."
The winter sunlight was no longer scorching or blinding, but had become gentle instead. It fell on their faces with an especially soft glow.
Early in the morning, Ling Feng hurried over by taxi and happened to run into Zhao Ping and the others on the way.
"Let's make this clear first. If we don't win the championship this time... uh... then we don't win it."
"."
Zhao Ping sighed halfway through speaking, leaving Ling Feng and Yuwen speechless.
What a load of nonsense.
Wasn't that the same as saying nothing?
The competition hadn't even started, and he was already dejected? Where was his fighting spirit? How would they know if they didn't try?
"Hmph, we have a master. We'll definitely win~"
Su Xiaoxiao looked extremely confident, as if victory were already in the bag.
"Hey, aren't you overestimating me?"
"That's called trust!"
"Alright, participation is what matters. At least we tried our best and won't be left with regrets. Don't worry, I'll always be with you."
Standing beside them, Su Yun comforted them attentively like a kind older sister next door.
Those words were like a calming pill, settling into their hearts.
Ling Feng looked calm on the surface, but he was panicking inside.
Keep steady... I have to keep steady!
Opening Ceremony
When the time came, the host was replaced by a woman in her twenties, who began explaining the process.
Contestants first had to check in with the staff and receive their competition credentials.
Then they would wait in the rest area. When it was time for their match, the referee would announce their player number over the broadcast. They would then find a staff member, who would take them to their assigned station.
This was the usual process for offline tournaments. The finals had an opening ceremony, much like a track-and-field competition.
Tournament format: regional city qualifiers -> competition-zone eliminations -> offline regional semifinals -> finals.
Players from other places could directly choose the region they belonged to.
Zhao Ping usually kept an eye on SK tournaments, and with his absurdly strong social confidence, he wasn't nervous at all. He even wanted to recite a poem before the match to express his current passion and indignation.
When the tournament roster was displayed, the entire venue erupted in cheers again.
Professional players from teams like LD Tiandi, Qingjiu, Hall, and Mingren had all entered, catching many people by surprise.
After all, this Winter Tournament could only be considered an upper-mid-tier event. Even LD, one of the top five teams, had come to participate. This tournament was going to be exciting.
As one game ID after another drifted across the big screen, many of the nearly ten thousand people present had already started cheering.
"Ah! Kai God, I'm your fan!"
"I never thought I'd get to see my idol from this close one day! Ah, I'm going to die~"
"Hey, aren't you being too dramatic?"
In the audience, another girl beside her spoke up. Then she raised a light sign bearing Chen Kai's name and began shouting.
"Ah! Kai God is so handsome! Kai God, I want to have your babies!"
The girl holding the sign didn't care about her best friend's disdainful look.
And beyond that, cheers were breaking out from every corner of the venue.
"Sister Bao'er, good luck!! I'll always support you!!"
"Little Black! I choose you! If you lose, livestream yourself eating *!"
"Whoa, it's Sister Jin and Bearded Bro!"
"Yo, isn't that Big Beauty? Still as beautiful as ever after just a few days."
"Th-that is... Little Mei? And Blonde Girl?!"
One stirring cry after another rose and fell, leaving the young hostess unable to control the crowd. She could only keep shouting for the audience to quiet down.
"Wait... holy shit?! Is that Xiluo Fengxue ID really the master himself?"
"Seriously?? Where, where? Let me see! Hurry up!"
In the audience, a young man shook his companion by the arm, looking even more excited than him.
"It's real. If you don't believe me, look at the roster up there."
"Damn, Duskfall is already known as the number one player in SK. He's ranked first on the national leaderboard."
"Yeah. Looks like Duskfall wants to lead a team into the pro scene. His individual skill may be at the top, but who knows how good his teammates are? If he has to carry four people by himself, I'd say it's still pretty risky."
"Ah, whatever. I'm supporting the master anyway!"
Once those two discovered it, more people naturally noticed as well, and the discussion immediately grew louder.
"Is that Xiluo Fengxue ID for real? Didn't they say Duskfall had already retired?"
"Heh, don't you know? I recently heard through the community that the master has been streaming on Dragon Fang TV. I definitely have to follow him later!"
With that, Ling Feng had no idea that his popularity had risen another wave, to the point that even pro players had noticed him.
Besides, the early rounds were all offline matches shown to the audience on the big screen. Otherwise, Ling Feng might not have been able to keep it together.
What the hell was all this?
Wasn't watching from home on a phone enough? Why did they have to come in person?
Most of the people who came today were diehard fans. The semifinal and final on the last day would have the biggest crowds, and then the players would appear in person and split into two sides for a PK.
And now, every esports player standing on the stage was shining brightly.
A few relatively famous pro players only needed to give a brief introduction of their teams to trigger waves of discussion and cheers.
Ling Feng had been jointly chosen as the captain by the others, so he had no choice but to go onstage.
Yuwen was clearly the tactical core of the team. Wasn't it a little strange to make him, a main player, the captain?
Fortunately, Ling Feng controlled his emotions well.
"Wow, who's that handsome little guy? Why haven't I seen him before?"
"Is he a streamer? Or a rookie pro?"
"So handsome. I really want to take this little cabbage home~"
A girl in the audience said shyly, and several other girls seemed to feel the same way.
"Pah, pah, pah! Pervert! He looks like he's still just a high school student. What are you even thinking?"
"Can't I take him back to my dorm and raise him first?"
"."
"How about we make a bet? One dollar says he's just another cannon fodder."
"Damn, can you be any more shameless?"
"Sure. How about ten dollars?"
"Fuck!"
On the other side, several boys also complained about it.
Esports Legend
In life, everyone had moments when their heart pounded wildly and they felt incredibly nervous.
Generally speaking, the first time someone gave a speech onstage, they would definitely feel uneasy and tense.
But because Ling Feng had been called out several times during school assemblies and made to go onstage to read self-criticisms, he didn't feel much now.
What he cared about most was the excitement and joy on Su Xiaoxiao, Zhao Ping, and the others' faces below the stage. Since he didn't know whether he would have another chance to stand on an esports stage in the future, he had to seize the final victory!
"Hello, everyone. We're just newcomers here for the tournament, and although we don't have much experience, please forgive me for saying this: everyone here is... uh... a big shot!"
Ling Feng's words left many people present completely baffled. What was this kid talking about?
Though it was only a bland procedural segment, it still had to be done.
Chen Kai stood onstage striking a very flashy pose. He had originally looked down on these people, and after hearing Ling Feng say he was a newcomer, Chen Kai paid him even less attention.
The other contestants seemed much the same. Most of them had come for fame and didn't care about the tens of thousands in prize money.
Once they had fame, they would have far more opportunities. Many platforms would invite them for endorsements, streams, commercial promotions, and the like. Wouldn't money come rolling in then? Why would they care about this little amount?
Though all this had already strayed from the true meaning of competition, it was also the most genuine side of human nature.
Looking back on the passion and hot-blooded days in internet cafés, enjoying the fun of esports—wasn't that everyone's original dream?
After Ling Feng finished speaking, just as the female referee was about to invite the next person to continue, she finally noticed that strangely familiar ID.
"Then... thank you to Captain Xiluo Fengxue for your speech."
The moment the female referee finished speaking in a daze, the entire venue fell silent with a whoosh.
For a moment, the audience below stared at Ling Feng in disbelief, as if they were looking at some legendary figure.
And this truly was an esports legend within the SK community. Ling Feng didn't know that his feat of crushing the PVP rankings in the past because he had no money to buy equipment had once stirred up enormous waves in the community.
He had thrown the SK professional league into confusion, unknowingly beating pro players senseless in the Peak 1v1 Ranked Ladder, while Ling Feng himself remained completely unaware afterward.
Those pro players who had been crushed suspected he was cheating and reported him together, only for all the data to show that everything was normal. It was fucking absurd.
Yet no one had expected that behind all of it was simply a teenager without money to spend on the game, who had set his sights on the ranking rewards.
It was utterly ridiculous!!
If any pro player had known that day would come, they would have found Ling Feng and begged to spend money on him until he was fully geared!
Then that humiliating disgrace of the S1 season would never have happened!
"Xiluo Fengxue? Could that handsome little guy be Duskfall? Oh my god! Ah, I'm going to die~"
"Hey, enough already!" "I just didn't expect Duskfall, who had steamrolled SK and become a legend, to be so young."
"He's adorable, isn't he? Duskfall is so handsome. Just looking at him gives people the feeling that he's the protagonist of a novel~"
Before you continue