"Gamblers? What is this statement? ”

Hearing Guan Liang's words, even Xie Yuting, who has always been calm, couldn't help frowning, the gambler's statement always gives people a very subtle sense of incongruity. Flash Dance

"Isn't that what the pros are all about? Gambling on the most important years of his youth, devoting himself to training day and night, in the end, only a few people standing at the top of the pyramid can win the championship and be remembered by the world, and the others will only slowly disappear into the long river of time. ”

Guan Liang's face showed a completely different expression when he said this, but Yu Xi saw that this expression was not unfamiliar, in fact, when he first recruited Guan Liang to join the team and was rejected, the expression on Guan Liang's face was what it is now.

"It's true, but we've been trying to avoid it so that our club's pros can have some protection when they retire."

Xie Yuting knows very well that this situation is indeed common in the field of e-sports, not only in the field of e-sports, in fact, this situation also occurs in many unpopular Olympic sports, and it is not uncommon for Olympic champions in some sports to do menial jobs with injuries after retirement.

"But the fact is that the esports system in the whole world has not developed to the point where this situation can be avoided, and even in the Korean esports circle, where esports is the most professional, except for the first and second tier players, their trainees still live a dark life.

And in our country, it is even more so, in the past SCWAR3CS these veteran sports players, all rely on some meager funds to eat and live in the Internet café every day to train, in this situation can still win the championship is admirable, but those who failed to win the championship should go where?

Although the profession of esports professional player is an enviable profession for some young enthusiasts, they can play their favorite games every day, can get a good salary and bonuses, and can accept the support of esports fans across the country after winning the championship.

However, all of this is based on the fact that this player won the championship, and without the championship it is nothing...... You need to train for 12 or 3 hours a day, and in order to adapt to the time of the game, the diet is completely unregulated, so that your physical condition will become very bad, and you have to bear a lot of pressure, which is the reality of esports professionals, a gambler who bets his youth on esports. ”

Guan Liang gushed for such a long time, it was obvious that he knew no less about the current situation of e-sports professional players than Xie Yuting, who had been working in the e-sports professional team, and his words made Yu Xi next to him fall into contemplation.

"What you're saying is an irreversible fact, but that's why we, the managers of the professional teams, are working tirelessly to create a professional system that doesn't allow our club to collapse due to the sudden withdrawal of sponsors, leaving our players displaced."

Unconsciously, the conversation between the two has turned into a discussion on the current situation of domestic e-sports, and Yu Xi on the side is quietly listening to this topic, and he who wanted to become a professional e-sports player before can't help but feel a little stunned after learning about this cruel reality.

"It seems that our topic is completely beyond my plan, but to be honest, it is very gratifying to be able to talk to you about so many domestic e-sports, at least I can know that it is not only us e-sports practitioners who are paying attention to the development of domestic e-sports in China."

When the time came to almost six o'clock unconsciously, Xie Yuting finally found that she had completely deviated from the track of the plan, but as an e-sports practitioner, she did not have any unhappiness on her face at this time, Guan Liang's words were not a negation of domestic e-sports, on the contrary, it was precisely because of his worries about domestic e-sports that he had these thoughts.

"Alright, it's not too early, let me end today's conversation with one last question...... If you were given the opportunity, would you be willing to devote yourself to the esports industry and become a professional player? ”

Xie Yuting asked this question at the end of the day to the two graduating college students in front of her, in fact, their current strength has been affirmed by the free team coaching staff, and the most important thing is naturally whether they want to become a professional player. Flash Dance

"Although I have heard so much about the cruel situation in the professional esports world today, I really want to do my best to become a professional player, and I want to stand on the championship podium in person no matter what......

Yu Xi said with a firm look in his eyes, although he has always been regarded by others as a genius with excellent learning, but for him, the real dream is to devote himself to e-sports and become a professional player to win the championship, even if he now knows that his path is not easy, but he still insists on his original intention.

"Well, have we met at any game site before?"

After Yu Xi answered this question, Xie Yuting seemed to remember some things from the past.

"It was at an offline tournament before, when I was just a player who was new to League of Legends games."

"Oooooooo......oo

Xie Yuting remembered the situation at that time, Yu Xi, who was just in contact with the League of Legends, was very envious of the players of the professional team at the scene, and now he has narrowed the distance with these players.

"I didn't expect your level to have reached this level in just this period of time, and sure enough, as our club coach said, you are both very talented players."

"It's not so much talent as hard work......"

Yu Xi knows better than anyone that he has been able to reach his current level in such a short period of time by insisting on training without relenting, and his daily training intensity is comparable to that of a professional player, and it is natural for him to achieve this achievement now, Yu Xi himself has never thought that he is such a talented guy, especially in front of Guan Liang.

After Yu Xi answered, Guan Liang did not answer this question positively, but Yu Xi knew that Guan Liang's current thoughts were still very entangled, although he did not resist becoming a professional player as before, but he still seemed to have some mustard in his heart.

"Okay, that's the end of today's exchange, I wish you all the best in the national league."

After saying some polite words, Xie Yuting said goodbye to Guan Liang and Yu Xi and left. It was already the end of December after the end of the school auditions, and at this point in time, except for the group of guys in the senior year, who were unexpectedly idle, the younger students in other grades were nervously preparing for the final exams.

"You should review well during this time, anyway, we don't have anything to practice together in the near future, and the exam went well."

On the phone, Guan Liang told Ye Ziqing that there are no official competitions in this period, just to give the team members a good time to relax.

After hanging up Ye Ziqing's phone, Guan Liang found that Yu Xi had sent more than ten messages to him on QQ, Guan Liang hurriedly opened it and found that all of them were the words 'are in'......

"Is there a problem with your computer or a problem with your brain? Do you need to ask so many times? ”

"It's urgent, I'm on the phone again, you come out quickly and I'll tell you in person."

"Okay, okay, see you at the old place."

Although he didn't know what was going on, judging from Yu Xi's reaction, it didn't seem to be a trivial matter, and Guan Liang quickly put on a down jacket and walked out of the dormitory.

There is no sign of snow in December this year, but the damp and cold air is enough to wrap many people in the school in thick clothes, and people like Guan Liang keep a hot water bottle close to hand while playing games to keep their hands from stiffening.

After passing through the noisy Gate 4 of the Southern Institute of Technology, Guan Liang rushed to the Internet café, where Yu Xi sat there early and waited for him.

"What's so flustered?"

As soon as Guan Liang met, he asked Yu Xi, who has always been calm, rarely sent more than a dozen messages in a row in such a panic.

"I got a message that a professional player is retiring."

"Retirement? Is it a well-known player, but what does it have to do with you looking for me in such a panic? ”

Guan Liang asked Yu Xi puzzled, as far as he knew, although Yu Xi had always wanted to become a professional player, he didn't seem to be a fanatical fan of any player, and he shouldn't react so much because of which professional player retired.

"Of course it matters, because this guy will meet us in the college league when he retires......"

While speaking, Yu Xi opened a website for Guan Liang on the computer, and on it was an introduction to the personal details of a professional player.

"I'll see...... Ye Shu, 19 years old, an ADC player of the League of Legends professional club Destiny (Density), an ADC hero who is good at radical style, came into contact with League of Legends half a year after he was admitted to college after the college entrance examination, and then achieved a good result in the high segment of the American service, and resolutely chose to go through the suspension procedures after accepting the invitation of the domestic team. ”

From this introduction, Guan Liang roughly judged the situation of this player, and I heard the news that the Destiny Club was going to start reorganizing, so it is estimated that this professional player chose to retire and return to college because of this.

"Although his performance in the professional game is not top-notch, he is also a second-tier ADC player in China, and as far as I know, he has been invited to join the representative team of their school, such a professional mid-level ADC can bring a qualitative effect to an amateur team......"

Yu Xi knows very well that although Ye Shu's strength is not at the top, being able to occupy a place in the fate of the old club shows that his level is not too bad, and the gap between professional and amateur is enough for this professional player to cover the sky in the national college league that will start soon.

"That's really troublesome, which school is this guy from? How strong was their school's representative team before? ”

"Tsinghua University, SMTH team."

"Tsinghua? What are you talking about...... Tsinghua Is that Tsinghua? ”

Hearing Yu Xi's answer, Guan Liang couldn't help but be stunned for a moment, and then confirmed it to Yu Xi again.

"Which other Tsinghua can it be, and you should know SMTH, right?"

"Well, I've heard of it before, but to be honest, I just thought that guy was going to a random college when I saw him take a leave of absence."

SMTH is an amateur team established by Tsinghua University in the campus community since the days of StarCraft, and this amateur team has performed well in many amateur competitions, and has since expanded to include various sports of esports in many aspects.

"I've studied this team before, and their support is very powerful, and his ID is probably something you've seen."

Yu Xi opened his document to collect information about his opponent, and there was news about this SMTH team in it.

"Judging from this aspect, their two strongest points were jungler and support? But this time, Ye Shu really joined them in the end......"

Thinking of this, Guan Liang couldn't help but gasp, with the support of a quasi-professional level and a former professional ADC player, such a combination of the lower lane is extremely competitive even in the secondary professional league, let alone in an amateur competition like the college league.

"If we really fight them, I'm afraid our bottom lane combination will be blown to the ground......"

Yu Xi smiled bitterly, he knew very well that with the current lower lane composed of Brother Tiger and Bai Su, there was no way to fight against SMTH's professional-level lower lane combination, although through the previous special training, they were able to rely on some routines to temporarily gain the upper hand, but this kind of tricky method could not work at all in the face of the huge strength difference.

"Then that's the only way to use that?"

"Well, and it must be on the premise that we haven't used that tactic before, otherwise it is impossible for them not to be wary of our tactic with their strength."

"It's a shame that we have to keep that tactic hidden until we run into them...... I thought it would be easier if I had that. ”

Although Guan Liang said that he was very worried, the expression on his face was inexplicably excited, which is the reason why Meng Zhe and Xiao Zhong thought that he was likely to become a terrible professional player when they saw Guan Liang for the first time, this guy's desire to fight against a strong team is too terrifying.

"In short, before that, we must find a way to improve the overall strength of the team, after all, this tactic of dragon girl top-laner with carnivorous jungler invasion of the jungle area will not be able to work like it is now in three months."

"Yes, whether it's the change of the version or the tactical research of each major team, it is estimated that we will soon see this set of tactics for invading the wild area."

"Having said all this, let's come to the double row, if the two of us can't play an advantage in the game, it will be troublesome, don't waste your practice after the holiday."

"Got it, got it."

"Hey, get up!"

On the last day of 2011, early in the morning, Guan Liang received a call from Yu Xi as always.

"Why is it two minutes earlier than usual today?"

Guan Liang complained to Yu Xi dissatisfiedly that even a minute of sleep time every morning was extremely precious to him, and Guan Liang had always hated Yu Xi's inhumane exploitation of sleep time.

"Isn't it just two minutes...... Take you to individual places today. ”

"Somewhere else? Didn't you say that you would insist on training every morning, do you want me to accompany you to climb the Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum to see the father of the nation? ”

Guan Liang dragged his half-asleep body and climbed out of bed, and talked to Yu Xi on the phone while taking out a towel and toothbrush.

"Of course training is going to be trained, but there happens to be a small event today......

"Okay, okay, you'll wait for me outside our community later."

Yu Xi's tone sounded a little chattering, and Guan Liang didn't bother to ask anything, so he hung up the phone and immediately started this morning's washing work......

"You're so slow......"

Yu Xi, who was standing at the gate of the community waiting for Guan Liang, complained to Guan Liang as soon as they met.

"In this winter, I can't go to get hot water to brush my teeth and wash my face! Directly with tap water, my teeth are frozen stupid, believe it or not. ”

"Okay, okay, let's go to Xinjiekou today."

Yu Xi said and walked in the direction of Gate 3 of Southern Institute of Technology, near Gate 3 is Xiamafang Station of Nanjing Metro Line 2, through which most of the students of Southern Institute of Technology will travel.

"Xinjiekou? What are you doing over there in the morning......"

As the center of Nanjing, Xinjiekou is also the intersection of Metro Line 1 and 2, and is the earliest CBD area in Nanjing, where there are a large number of shopping malls, restaurants and cinemas, and it is also the area with the largest flow of people in Nanjing.

"I received the news that there is an event there today, and you will know the details when you go."

Yu Xi still didn't reveal the details of the matter to Guan Liang, but just walked ahead vigorously urging Guan Liang to speed up.

"Then let's go for a trip, it's the last day and it's still so tossed......"

After more than half an hour of travel, Guan Liang and Yu Xi finally rushed to Xinjiekou from the school, although it was still early in the morning, but at this point in time, many office workers were already busy rushing to the company, and the subway station was naturally overcrowded.

"Wow, there are so many people......"

Guan Liang was wearing a thick down jacket when he went out, and at this time, the warm and humid air in the subway and the congested crowd completely turned the subway station into a big steamer, and Guan Liang even wanted to take off his coat directly in the subway to take a breath.

"This way, let's go out from Gate 18."

Under Yu Xi's leadership, Guan Liang followed him all the way to the outside of the subway station, and after turning a corner, a huge signboard appeared in front of Guan Liang.

"Phoenix Internet Cafe, Nanjing Main Store."

Guan Liang glanced at Yu Xi puzzled, why did he have to go all the way to the Internet café in Xinjiekou to surf the Internet.

"Come on, come on, look at this."

Yu Xi pulled Guan Liang aside, only to see a huge poster posted at the door of the Internet café, which seemed to have a detailed rules for activities related to the League of Legends.

"Desperate Arena? Why is the name of this event so strange......"

Guan Liang looked carefully at the poster, and wrote in detail about today's event.

First of all, the start time of the event is nine o'clock this morning, as long as it is a League of Legends player, you can sign up at any time, the form of the game is 1V1 in the middle lane, the rule is one blood, one tower and one hundred knives, and it is forbidden to fight the jungle and go to other roads to eat soldiers.

After signing up, everyone will be given a number, and then they will take turns to go up to the computer in the center of the stage to fight against each other, and the loser will go straight down the stage, while the winner can stay on the court and wait for the next challenger, and once he can win ten consecutive games, he will receive a prize money.

"Ten games in a row...... These are really tough conditions. ”

Seeing this rule, Guan Liang couldn't help but sweat, winning ten games in a row is difficult to do unless you have an absolute advantage in strength, after all, your next opponent will know the habits and weaknesses exposed in your previous games, and the requirements for concentration in continuous combat are also very difficult.

"Isn't that a matter of course, otherwise there wouldn't be such a high prize."

On the poster, players who complete this challenge will receive a prize of 5,000 yuan, which is not as attractive as the prize money of the professional champion, but it is indeed quite tempting for this kind of entertainment competition.

"Did you bring me here to participate in this?"

"Isn't that a matter of course, as far as I know, many masters will come here today to participate in the ......"

Yu Xi smiled slightly, this 5,000 yuan bonus is enough to attract all the masters of the League of Legends in Nanjing, after all, this challenge has no cost, and it is not impossible to come and try how many catties and taels you have.

"Are you saying that the guys we might meet in the collegiate league will be here too?"

Nanjing has the largest number of universities in the Jiangsu division of the National University League, so it's no surprise that teams are extremely competitive here, and it's not surprising to play against opponents you might meet in three months' time.

"Obviously, so it's our best chance to find out."

"But at the same time, our strength will be exposed, right?"

"Do you still think that the two of us will not be focused on research, at this time, the usual heroes in our ranked matches must have been recorded by others in a small book."

As Yu Xi said, the teams of other colleges and universities are not stupid, and for a team like Guan Liang and them with unbalanced personal ability, they will naturally focus on the performance of players in strong positions, after all, as long as they find a way to suppress them, it is equivalent to winning half of the game.

"Alright then, let me see how deep the water is for this event......"

Guan Liang and Yu Xi looked at each other and smiled, and pushed open the door of the Internet café together and entered inside, at this time, there were already more than a dozen players at the front desk who were already registering for today's event.

"The one in purple clothes is Hehai's midlaner, the glasses next to him are the ADC of their team, and the few people sitting together over there are the representative teams of the southeast."

When Yu Xi pointed out to Guan Liang the opponents they might meet in three months, those people also noticed Guan Liang and Yu Xi who walked into the Internet café, and they also had different expressions on their faces......