Chapter 77: Triumph in Love and on the Field

The fans’ frenzy stemmed from the couple’s mark that Lin Xi and Lu Yuxiu had established in the game; beside both their usernames was a level-three pink heart, the symbol for lovers in-game, directly exposing their romantic relationship.

Lin Xi, who had just been analyzing the opposing team’s picks and pondering counter-strategies with a serious expression, was suddenly stunned by the glaring heart icon. This was disastrous—she’d let her guard down.

They had revealed their relationship, both directly and indirectly.

“Wow, wow!” Even her teammates couldn’t help teasing her.

The audience craned their necks to stare up at the giant screen as if they might bore a hole through it, their cheers deafening. Lin Xi felt her face burning, and even through her headset, the roar from below thundered in her ears.

Thankfully, the game had now begun, and the familiar digital voice rang out: “Welcome to Honor of Kings!”

Yang Xier raised her microphone and called out to the crowd, “Everyone, calm down! Let’s focus on the match first! The game has officially begun!”

“I can’t calm down at all! God Xiu’s long road of chasing his beloved has finally ended! He’s no longer eternally single!”

“Who’s coming with me to the film studio to hang up banners in celebration?!”

The fans wept and cheered in a flurry of excitement; their wishes had really come true.

“All troops, advance!”

The on-stage game kicked off in earnest. On the big screen, all ten players began controlling their heroes, fighting for the first wave of minions.

In the audience and among the online viewers, fans were still reeling from the surprise, lost in a cloud of disbelief and joy. It was as if the gods themselves had descended! Years later, this day would surely be remembered with longing and excitement.

On the battlefield, Lin Xi maneuvered her hero, “Little Qiao,” to the middle lane, contesting the first wave with Ke Liang’s “Shangguan Wan’er” from the opposing team. The first mid-lane wave was crucial and typically assisted, so Fan Mingxuan followed her with “Taiyi Zhenren,” waddling behind “Little Qiao.”

It was the first time either of them had played a match live before such an audience; their palms sweated so much they could barely grip their phones.

“Steady, steady! I’ll help you get the wave!” Fan Mingxuan reassured Lin Xi.

But on the other side, Ke Liang’s “Shangguan Wan’er” simply hid under her turret, tossing out skills without contesting the wave. Ke Liang was infamous in the e-sports world as a lane tyrant, suffocating opponents with relentless pressure and denying gold.

Yang Xier commented, “How unusual! Ke Liang has completely changed his usual aggressive style—so gentle now. Clearly, facing a goddess brings out a different side!”

Shu Yunyi, unfamiliar with some aspects of the game and unaware that supports should help mid-lane, simply followed the instructions of her captain, Kele, and tailed the marksman, Ge Xingwen, from the start. She’d deliberately avoided following jungle Lu Yuxiu to sidestep any accusations from “Empress” CP fans.

But viewers didn’t understand her reasoning. Choosing Yao as her hero had already drawn criticism, and now, by not helping, she quickly became a target online:

“What’s up with this Shu Yunyi? Does she even know how to play? Sticking to our Xingwen and not helping Ke Ke at all?”

“Speechless. Such a green tea! Is she here to seduce our Xingwen? Clinging to him with Yao every step of the way.”

“Knew she’d cause trouble. Stop dragging Yao’s name through the mud! If you’re kept by a sponsor, just stay quiet—don’t mess with our Xingwen just because he doesn’t talk much.”

The barrage of comments ripped Shu Yunyi to shreds, though fortunately she couldn’t see them and her mood remained unaffected.

The third wave was about to arrive. Lin Xi, still stationed mid, dared not roam for fear of getting caught by the enemy jungler.

Six minutes in, both teams played with extreme caution, only trading skills and retreating to their turrets; no one had secured first blood yet.

Sticking close to her own jungle, Lin Xi moved toward the marksman’s lane to offer support when she suddenly heard Fan Mingxuan wail through the headset: “Oh no, oh no, I’m done for!”

Sure enough, a moment later, the game announced, “First blood!”

Taiyi Zhenren had been slain by the enemy jungler Lan—first blood had been drawn!

“No way, God Xiu’s showing no mercy at all—so ruthless!” Fan Hao Xuan instantly put on a face worthy of tragedy.

Even burning his ultimate revive, Taiyi couldn’t escape Lan’s tower dive.

“Hahaha,” Yang Xier and the audience laughed mercilessly. “Looks like our God Xiu is a powerhouse in the King’s Canyon as well!”

Only now did Lin Xi realize—the opposing jungler was Xiu. That meant she no longer needed to cower in fear of being ambushed.

So, with newfound boldness, she piloted Little Qiao straight down the river toward the marksman’s lane to assist.

By chance, halfway there, she ran into Lu Yuxiu head-on. Startled by the appearance of a red line, she froze, but before she could flee, Lu Yuxiu’s Lan leisurely passed by her without a second glance.

The barrage exploded: “Ahhh, they ran into each other!”

“God Xiu actually didn’t attack Xi Xi! Ultimate wife-doting behavior!”

“This is the boyfriend role model! Take notes, gentlemen—beating your girlfriend doesn’t make you look strong. This is the right way!”

“You can see Lan just bypassed Little Qiao and went straight for Taiyi Zhenren, securing another kill. God Xiu truly has double standards—poor Mingxuan,” Yang Xier teased from the commentary booth.

Fan Mingxuan even wailed over the public chat: “Not fair! Favoritism!”

Jiang Jing’an burst out laughing, “Mingxuan, stop asking for trouble!”

Lin Xi barely caught a glimpse of Lan before he vanished into the crowd.

For the next ten minutes, Little Qiao didn’t die once; instead, Lin Xi claimed three kills—two from assisting on the marksman lane with Yao, and one from taking down Ke Liang’s “Shangguan Wan’er” mid.

A grin spread across Lin Xi’s face the whole match; she’d never played Honor of Kings this smoothly in her life! Not a single death, and kills just fell into her lap!

“No way, our Xi Xi is everyone’s darling wherever she goes! Even the typically stoic Ke Liang let her take a kill—so sweet!”

“So jealous of Lin Xi! I want to be her!”

“I can’t believe it, Shu Yunyi is sleepwalking the whole match. Can't even shield properly with Yao, just dragging Xingwen down! And we’re supposed to save her?”

“It’s a celebrity show match—just enjoy the spectacle, don’t get so worked up!”

“Unbelievable! God Xiu, as jungler, never once targeted Xi Xi! Top-tier wife protection!”

Twenty minutes into the game.

“Now we see all the blue team members gathering near the dragon pit—are they preparing to take the dragon?” Yang Xier narrated. “The red team’s Jing is lying in wait in the bush—Jiang Da’s game sense is spot-on!”

Lin Xi was still in the mid-lane bush adjusting her gear, clueless about the current situation, when suddenly the enemy team’s five avatars vanished from the minimap.

“Watch out, they’re going for the dragon!” Da Li’s calm voice came through the headset.

Jiang Jing’an added, “In my bush—watch my position.”

Lin Xi carefully maneuvered, following Taiyi Zhenren toward the dragon pit, nerves tingling with the tension in the air.

“Both teams are converging around the dragon pit. Who will claim the dragon? Let’s wait and see—the battle is about to erupt...” Yang Xier’s words were cut off as the in-game brawl broke out!

On the blue team, the marksman “Gongsun Li” (Ge Xingwen) initiated the dragon, emboldened by having “Yao” riding atop his hero.

Seeing Gongsun Li make the first move, the red team’s jungler, Jing, leapt from the bush to attack the marksman, with their own marksman, Bai Er, and top laner following up for damage.

The other side didn’t back down—Lu Yuxiu’s Lan found Bai Er’s marksman and dove in, obliterating him with a single combo. Support Fan Mingxuan didn’t even have time to trigger his ultimate revive.

Red team instantly lost their main damage dealer, but Jing wasn’t far behind, managing a one-for-one by severely injuring the enemy Yao and trading kills with Gongsun Li.

By the time Lin Xi arrived, both sides had lost two key players—their junglers and marksmen were down.

“Beautiful play!” Yang Xier exclaimed, the big screen replaying the chaotic skirmish in slow motion.

“Both sides played this fight with incredible finesse—junglers waited for the perfect moment, and their movement was so precise!” she marveled. “Right now, the red team has the upper hand—let’s see if they can seize the opportunity!”

But the team fight wasn’t over. The dragon was down to half health, and the blue team’s three remaining players were all low—Yao had two health bars left, Shangguan Wan’er half, only the warrior Kai still had substantial HP.

At that moment, Da Li’s voice came through the headset, barely containing his excitement: “Mingxuan, I’ll go in and sacrifice myself. I can take out Kai and Yao. Block for Xi Jie and take Shangguan’s damage so she can secure the kills!”

As the oldest on LDF, Da Li exuded maturity and patience, always analyzing the situation and willing to sacrifice for the team.

“Got it!” The two quickly hashed out their strategy, and Lin Xi followed behind Fan Mingxuan, the three charging forward.

Da Li’s Lü Bu lunged ahead, landing a decisive blow that caught Yunyi’s Yao off-guard, instantly taking her out.

Lü Bu then turned on Kai, the two warriors clashing head-on.

As predicted, Shangguan Wan’er aimed for Lin Xi’s Little Qiao, opening with her combo and ultimate.

But Taiyi Zhenren wouldn’t allow it—standing within his ultimate’s range, he shared the magic damage with Little Qiao, narrowly saving her from being instantly killed.

Lü Bu seized the chance, jumping in as Wan’er landed, flashing and using his first skill to finish her off—Ke Liang fell.

Now, only Kele’s “Kai” remained on the blue team.

But the three on the red side were in rough shape—Lü Bu and Little Qiao barely clinging to life, Taiyi at half health.

“Kai has flash! Mingxuan!” Da Li suddenly cried in the headset.

Kai flashed straight onto Little Qiao and Taiyi, slicing them both down with a single blow. Luckily, Da Li’s warning allowed Fan Mingxuan to trigger his ultimate in time, reviving them on the spot.

Meanwhile, Kai turned and finished off Lü Bu—Da Li was down.

As Little Qiao and Taiyi emerged from invulnerability, Kai swung his blade once more. This time, Fan Mingxuan’s Taiyi stepped in front of Lin Xi’s Little Qiao, shielding her from the physical damage.

He shouted in-game, “Xi Jie, hit him!”

With adrenaline surging, Lin Xi unleashed a perfect combo—skills two, three, and one—Kai and Taiyi both fell.

“You have slain an enemy.”

“Ace—team wipe!”

A string of game audio cues echoed as the battlefield fell silent.

Only Little Qiao remained standing at the center, surrounded by a field of “corpses.”