Chapter 13: The Mysterious Eastern Gan La
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“Hey, want to queue for a doubles match?” k0nfig asked es3tag beside him.
es3tag shook his head. “You go ahead. I’m going to study FaZe’s demo a little longer.”
As he said this, es3tag could not help lamenting his team’s terrible luck. After finally getting the chance to compete in a CAC event, their very first opponent was FaZe.
If this had been FaZe a few months ago, he would not have been so troubled. Although FaZe had still been a world-class team during the late CSGO era, their poor form had made them vulnerable to practically anyone. Even an obscure third-tier team that few people had ever heard of might have had a chance to beat them.
But ever since the arrival of the CS2 era, this star-studded battleship had somehow refueled itself and continued roaring through one major event after another.
They had just lifted the trophy on the stage at IEM Sydney, only to win the TP World Championship immediately afterward.
Only three major events had been held since CS2 launched, and FaZe had claimed two of those championships by themselves. They had missed the remaining one simply because the schedule had been too packed for them to attend.
How was NIP supposed to stand against the number-one team in the world with their current strength?
k0nfig said with a laugh, “What good is it to sit there furrowing your brow? Why not play a match and relax? Let me tell you, the CN ladder is hilarious. Everyone just dry-peeks and lets their aim do the talking! It takes me right back to when I was playing professionally before 2018.”
“I think you just hate solo queuing because you can’t communicate through voice chat, so you’re trying to drag me in with you,” es3tag said, exposing his ulterior motive without mercy.
“I’m not kidding! It’s really fun! A little relaxation might even help us come up with a way to deal with FaZe,” k0nfig continued, tempting him.
Hearing this, es3tag stretched his arms, tossed aside the tactics notebook covered in densely packed words, and said, “Fine. I’ll queue with you for a couple of games. It’ll be good to clear my head.”
…
“Oh! Looks like we’re going to gain some points this round. The other team’s average rating is nearly two hundred lower than ours,” Fatty said with a grin as he looked at the successful matchmaking screen.
Su Zhe rotated his wrists. “Stay focused. Be careful—they might be streamers smurfing for fun again.”
Although both of them were already in the highest S tier on the Perfect World platform, not all S ranks were equal.
It was much like the Master and Grandmaster tiers in League of Legends. They looked identical on paper, but there was an obvious difference in actual skill.
If they really ran into a Demon King S or a Diamond S, they would still be treated like fish for the slaughter.
“How could our luck be that bad? Look at those two opponents using NIP logos as their avatars. They’re obviously bandwagoners. Neither of them looks anywhere near as good as my Mai Sakurajima.”
Indeed, Fatty was a veteran anime enthusiast. Though he stood six feet one and possessed a sturdy, muscular build, he also had a girlish heart. Even the design on his mouse pad featured Mai Sakurajima in black stockings…
The map they were matched into was Mirage, one of the old three, and Su Zhe and Fatty began the game on the attacking side.
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While waiting for the players to load, Su Zhe opened the scoreboard and said uncertainly, “Those two opponents look like the actual NIP players…”
“How could that be? I’ll look them up… Holy crap! They really are!” Fatty exclaimed in surprise after checking their professional certifications on the Perfect World platform. “Why don’t we restart the match…”
“No need! I want to try.”
Su Zhe’s voice was full of fighting spirit. Although he felt somewhat nervous after discovering that their opponents were professional players, he also wanted to see how large the gap between himself and professionals really was.
“Then let’s give it a shot… Consider this a warning. Be careful they don’t shatter your confidence,” Fatty said.
As someone who had reached the Gold S tier at a young age, Fatty had once dreamed of becoming a professional player too…
But after encountering a player from a domestic second-tier professional team on the ladder, he finally realized how laughable that dream had been.
A player who could not even stand out on the professional stage had treated them like bots, farming them effortlessly. Afterward, Fatty had followed the professional player’s ID to find his livestream.
He discovered that the man had not been taking the game seriously at all. He chatted with viewers while playing, laughing and joking as he casually secured the victory.
When he heard that Su Zhe wanted to become a professional player, Fatty’s first impulse had been to persuade him to abandon the idea as soon as possible. But after thinking it over, he ultimately said nothing.
People do not turn back from certain roads until they have crashed into a wall.
Before long, all ten players had successfully loaded into the server, and the pistol round officially began.
k0nfig wore a mischievous grin. “es3tag, let’s push straight through mid at the start and peek the T-side entrance. I’ll let you experience the mysterious Eastern dry peek.”
es3tag looked puzzled. “Isn’t that just a normal mid push? What’s so strange about it?”
k0nfig did not explain. “You’ll see.”
When the countdown ended, the two players immediately bought half armor and USPs, then went through Underpass and jumped up toward the VIP room before rushing to the T-side entrance.
es3tag looked completely relaxed. To him, a ladder game like this was merely for entertainment. Still, the habits ingrained in a professional player were difficult to change.
He hugged the wall near B Short, ready to dodge at any moment. But then he almost thought his eyes were deceiving him. The terrorists had not thrown a single flash toward mid. They simply swung out into the open without a care in the world.
And three of them swung out at once!
“Bang! Pfft!”
[The Cape’s Top Entry Fragger headshot es3tag with a P250]
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“WDF! What kind of play was that?”
After being killed, es3tag tried to look at his teammate’s screen, only to turn his head and see that k0nfig had also fallen in mid.
Seeing the puzzled look on es3tag’s face, k0nfig burst out laughing. “How did that feel?”
es3tag curled his lip. “Who plays like that? The terrorists came out without using a single piece of utility. They didn’t give us even a moment to react.”
k0nfig coughed twice and reined in his laughter. “I was exactly the same when I first played the ladder this morning. Those completely unreasonable dry peeks caught me off guard too. All right, now we get to enjoy the ultimate aim-training session!”
That was what he said, but he had no intention of losing. Professional players were not merely superior in game sense and map understanding. Their pinpoint crosshair placement and lightning-fast reactions were the true foundation of their ability to survive on the professional stage.
The second round began. Having lost the pistol round, each Counter-Terrorist had only around two thousand in funds. es3tag wasted no time buying full armor, a Desert Eagle, and a set of smoke and flash grenades.
When the countdown ended, he first went to the A site and threw an extended smoke from Arch. He then pushed through the smoke and held Sewer firmly with his Desert Eagle.
After waiting several seconds and realizing that the terrorists had no intention of going through Sewer, he skimmed the edge of the smoke, hoping to find an opportunity toward mid.
Someone was to the right of Sandbags! He had not been spotted! What a chance!
Seizing the opportunity, es3tag began moving his crosshair toward the terrorist’s head, preparing to land a lethal shot. But the previous moment, the terrorist had still been watching Short; the next, he had spun around instantly.
“Rat-a-tat-tat!”
[The Cape’s Top Entry Fragger headshot es3tag with an AK-47]
“What kind of monster is this?”
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