Sharpening The Knife Doesn’t Delay The Cutting of Vegetables With The Bow[eSports]: Chapter 72

72. Question

In the professional league of Destiny, the number of registered professional players is immense. Every year, countless newcomers enter the scene, and each season witnesses emerging dark horse teams contributing to a series of thrilling and intense matches. However, if we were to talk about the most stable positions and the teams with the highest appearance rates and highlights in top-level events, it would be the players in the box right now.

Chen Xingran’s victory over the Snake King, combined with his performance in the previous training matches, has allowed these professional players to witness Chen Xingran’s strength. Although he is still a newcomer, he has already penetrated this small circle and gained recognition from players like Song Dongyang and Li Haoyuan.

Due to excessive drinking the previous night, Yang Yunche’s head was still a bit fuzzy when he woke up the next day.

He walked out of the room, entered the hall, and greeted Fu Zhou, “Morning. Where’s Luo Baibai and the others?”

“Luo Baibai?” Fu Zhou looked upstairs with a malicious grin, “He was carried back by Li Haoyuan last night. He’s lying in bed like a broken kite, still vowing to have another 300 rounds with Li Haoyuan. This guy, if only his blade skills were as strong as his mouth.”

Yang Yunche imagined that scene and couldn’t help but smirk. He looked around but didn’t see Chen Xingran. He asked, “Where’s Xingran?”

“Oh, he’s practicing in the yard.”

“Practicing in the morning?”

“He got up early, went to the yard, and practiced several sets of boxing. The momentum was quite impressive. It seems he’s really recovering well.”

Fu Zhou put down the documents and sighed, “What if he trains to look like You Hongwei? Will he attract more female fans?”

Yang Yunche pictured Chen Xingran with a muscular physique similar to You Hongwei’s, couldn’t help but show a wry smile, and said, “…Let’s not go there; it’s a bit weird.”

“Indeed, the way he is now is quite good,” Fu Zhou nodded, “Although he looks thin and small, his strength is surprisingly great. He carried you back alone last night without needing our help.”

“???”

Yang Yunche looked puzzled, “Last night… he carried me back?”

“Yes.” Fu Zhou continued, “Like carrying a sack of flour, he just threw you over his shoulder and brought you back. You drank too much, clinging onto people and not letting go. Li Haoyuan and the others almost called the police, thinking you were acting like a hooligan on the street. Hahaha…”

“…”

Fu Zhou added, “He even carried you back to your room, changed your clothes for you. Well, it’s because Xingran has a good temper. If it were someone else, they would have just dumped you at the door; who cares about so much.”

“!!!”

Yang Yunche had no recollection of what Fu Zhou was talking about. He lowered his head and noticed that the clothes he wore yesterday had been replaced with his pajamas. As Fu Zhou vividly described the scene, Yang Yunche’s brain exploded, and a barely noticeable blush appeared on his face.

…Chen Xingran helped him change clothes. Doesn’t that mean… he was seen naked?

His mind turned into a mush, and various strange scenes flashed before his eyes. Before he could calm down, Chen Xingran walked in from outside.

The young man looked as if he had just finished exercising, with a light sweat on his face. His complexion had improved a lot, displaying a healthy rosy glow.

“Hey, finished training?”

Fu Zhou nudged the breakfast on the table, “Come and eat. Yunche, what are you dazed for? Drank too much?”

Yang Yunche’s gaze quickly retracted from Chen Xingran, “I’ll go freshen up.”

After saying that, without daring to look at Chen Xingran, he lowered his head slightly and quickly went upstairs.

“What’s he doing, acting all weird,” Fu Zhou looked at his hurriedly retreating figure in confusion.

Chen Xingran shrugged, “I’ll go upstairs for a shower.”

…

With Chen Xingran back in ZMD, the atmosphere in the base returned to its original state, and intense preparations for training resumed.

They thought that the Snake King, who was once dominating the scene, would stay quiet for a while after this battle. However, everyone was surprised by new developments in the situation that evening.

The video of Chen Xingran defeating the Snake King quickly spread across the internet. Chinese server players were full of confidence and enthusiastically clashed with Snake King fans on foreign servers. Snake King fans on the foreign servers were equally unwilling to yield, and a new round of verbal battles erupted between the two sides.

“Just winning one match, what’s there to brag about? Defeating Quiller once can make you boast for years. Haven’t you players on the Asian server won before?”

“Snake King’s strength ranking in the European server is just average; there are plenty of experts stronger than him in the European server.”

“Hehe, if Snake King can make the Asian server players lose their temper, imagine what would happen if Shawn went there. Wouldn’t he directly crush the Asian server?”

“My goodness, sending Shawn to the Asian server would be like college students playing with kindergarten kids. Give the Asian server some face, haha.”

Shawn Albert, recognized as the top knife fighter in the European server, held a position similar to Lu Mingyu in the Chinese server. Both were elevated to the status of godlike figures by players. The Fire team he led was the champion of the last Destiny Cup in the European region, not only having numerous fans in the European server but also enjoying considerable international fame.

Despite his solid achievements, European players selectively ignored them, shifting the battlefield to another direction. This further fueled the anger of the Chinese server players, who were already holding back their frustration.

“Unbelievable, is there really someone who can’t accept defeat like this?”

Chinese server players displayed astonishing combat power, and their sarcastic skills made it challenging for European server players to counter.

This was quite normal since players naturally had a sense of belonging to their respective servers. It was nearly impossible to make them acknowledge that their region’s players were not as good as those from other regions. Despite the fierce online arguments, it was mainly trash talk and didn’t affect the professional players’ mentality.

However, in the evening, whether it was due to a slip of the hand or some other reason, the Snake King accidentally liked a post on social media using his verified account, instantly igniting public opinion.

The post was an analysis detailing Chen Xingran’s battle with the Snake King.

[Analyzing from a gaming perspective, is there something wrong with this Asian server player? Take a look for yourselves.]

The post’s title was highly targeted, and its content was even more exaggerated. The European player analyzed Chen Xingran’s movements frame by frame in slow-motion, deliberately pausing when Chen Xingran smoothly switched from smashing the spear to thrusting it.

[It’s well-known that due to the existence of the motion correction system, Destiny’s movements are based on certain operational logic. The transformation of this Asian server player’s movement has completely subverted the trajectory of motion correction. Theoretically, this is something entirely impossible.

Two possibilities: either this player used some unknown techniques, or… you can figure it out yourselves. We can only say that the Snake King’s loss seems a bit unfair.]

Although the post didn’t explicitly state it, it almost plastered the words “Chen Xingran’s operation has issues” on the screen. The entire post was insinuating and filled with hidden meanings, making even Chinese server players feel inferior.

“What does this mean? Are they suggesting that this Asian server professional player is cheating?”

“Hehe, I knew there was a problem. How can a newcomer defeat the Snake King? Just use your brains, and you’ll know it’s not possible.”

“Is the Asian server so messed up? Doesn’t the professional league care about it?”

“Maybe they think it’s embarrassing for an outsider to come and beat the Asian server, so they’re turning a blind eye.”

“Feel sorry for the Snake King. A fair and square match, and he gets defeated by someone like this. It’s probably because of the contract; they can’t expose it directly.”

Although this post didn’t initially cause a big stir, after the Snake King liked it with his foreign account, the nature of the matter immediately changed.

Even though the Snake King quickly unliked the post, it had already been captured by vigilant netizens. The news spread like wildfire, and Chinese server players erupted in anger.

“F*ck, do you European players have no brains?”

“If you can’t win, just admit it. Why imply that others are cheating? Do you think professional leagues are just eating free meals?”

“Can you just randomly make these speculations? Don’t talk nonsense without evidence; this involves the professional career of a player. Keep quiet if you don’t have concrete proof.”

“Today, I’ve truly opened my eyes. Snake King fans are really blindly devoted, just a bunch of idiots who support him no matter what.”

“When the Snake King set up a challenge in the Chinese server before, weren’t you praising his strength? Now that the Snake King lost, why does he suddenly become a rookie in your mouths?”

“If you’re weak, you’re weak. Stand straight and take the beating. What’s the point of playing the rogue here?”

“Is Shawn really that great? If he has the guts, let him come to the Chinese server, and we’ll still beat him soundly.”

European server players were also unwilling to show weakness, and many of them turned on their microphones.

“Just because you say it’s okay, does that mean it’s really okay? The analysis in the video is so clear. If you have the ability, explain it to us.”

“As it was said, that operation is completely illogical. In theory, it’s impossible to achieve. Isn’t this cheating? Unless there is absolutely no motion correction, but just think about it with common sense, is that possible?”

“Even the Snake King liked it. Can’t that prove anything? Isn’t the situation obvious?”

“He liked it and then unliked it. I guess the club on the Asian server side pressured him. Well, crows all over the world are black. Professional players are also forced to do so.”

“I’m putting it here. That guy named Chen Xingran on the Asian server is a cheater. Your professional league tolerates cheating. It’s just a bunch of useless people who eat and do nothing.”

“I really give up!”

Before Luo Baibai’s good mood could last a day, he was angered by the comments of these European server players. “If you can’t beat him, just accuse Xingran of cheating? This Snake King really knows how to set the tone!”

Even the usually good-tempered Xiao Nan was a bit annoyed, saying, “In this situation, can we sue him for spreading rumors?”

Fu Zhou rubbed his temples and said, “It’s a bit difficult. The All Stars liked and then unliked it, and it can be easily explained as a slip of the hand. Even if we want to sue, it’s hard to win. We can only start from the public opinion…”

“These European Snake King fans are already crazy. They won’t listen at all.”

Luo Baibai frowned, “And with the Snake King pushing behind, their arrogance is even more rampant. Even if we explain, they won’t listen.”

They had also read that analysis post. The European players’ analysis was logical and well-edited, making it look quite convincing. It even made many domestic players hesitate after watching it.

After all, Chen Xingran had just joined the team and had not played in a formal professional match yet. He was only famous in the livestreaming circle. In the larger gaming environment, many people didn’t know much about him. If this time Snake King had targeted Yang Yunche, Lu Mingyu, and other players, they wouldn’t need to step forward. The domestic players could directly throw their records in the faces of the European players, extinguishing the questioning voices.

Moreover, Luo Baibai knew about Chen Xingran’s situation. With a 0% motion correction, saying it out loud would shock the world. The operations in the video were flawless.

“How is the situation with the All Stars?” Yang Yunche asked with a serious face.

“I’m currently in contact with them.”

Fu Zhou said, “The situation has already occurred. The Snake King used his own overseas account to like the post. I estimate that the All Stars side can’t do anything to him either. The best way to handle this is to put pressure on the All Stars club, make the Snake King come out, and explain and apologize in person.”

“Look at what the European server players are saying.” Luo Baibai said, “Even if the Snake King comes out to apologize, they probably think it’s the club’s behind-the-scenes manipulation, using the contract to make the Snake King yield.”

“It doesn’t matter what the European server players think. Our market is not over there.” Fu Zhou said, “There’s another option, which is for us to take action. Let Xingran come forward and hold a press conference, revealing the information that he has 0% motion correction. The rumor will break on its own.”

“That’s a good idea.”

Luo Baibai nodded, “What do you think, Ran Bao?”

This incident was originally a small matter, but under the Snake King’s manipulations, it had turned into a public relations storm for ZMD. If not handled properly, it would not only damage ZMD’s reputation but also be a devastating blow to Chen Xingran’s professional career. Carrying the reputation of exploiting bugs or even cheating, no matter where he went, he would be despised by players.

“Me?”

Chen Xingran raised his head. His expression didn’t change much. Faced with the overwhelming doubts, he still had that confident look, seemingly unaffected.

“In situations like this, talking won’t help.”

Chen Xingran faced the gazes of everyone and calmly spoke, “Since they don’t believe it, then we’ll keep playing until they believe it.”

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