Chapter 171: When in doubt, just dry peek! (1777)

Entering the first Full Buy Round, aside from NBK who was still using a Galil, everyone else had obtained Full Armor with an AK-47 or Full Armor with an SG553.

Even though they had started practicing very early, it was still not the case that everyone could adapt to the differences between the AK-47 and the SG553.

It is just like in League of Legends next door; some people cannot master a single champion even after a whole season—if you don't adapt, you just don't adapt.

Apex explained the instructions for this round: "We'll stick to the plan, Default formation in the Sewer, but Zywoo, from your spawn position, you can try to contest Mid for a shot."

Zywoo's spawn point was the closest to Mid, and since he had bought a Sniper Rifle this round, he could afford to be a bit bolder.

As for sticking to the Default formation, it was because there were some tactics they had already practiced before the match.

The first Full Buy Round was still in the probing phase, with everyone feeling out the opponent's habits, so they didn't call any overly complex tactics directly.

At 1:48, Xu Beifang entered the TV Room carrying his SG553, only to hear the sound of a Sniper Rifle firing from Mid.

【tabsen killed zywoo with an AWP】

"There's a Sniper Rifle in VIP, he had the fastest spawn," Zywoo explained the situation.

There was nothing wrong with him taking the first spawn to contest the point, but since tabsen also had the first spawn, he was at a disadvantage.

With Zywoo giving up the Entry Kill at the start, the subsequent Map Control became somewhat difficult to execute.

RPK threw a Flashbang to send Xu Beifang into the Sewer, confirming no one was pushing up.

Xu Beifang began to push forward, hugging the right wall, with his Crosshair placed on the right side of the Sewer, guarding against anyone peeking out.

"Can you throw a Smoke Grenade to cover VIP?" Xu Beifang asked.

With Zywoo dead in Mid, there was no one in the Sewer who could synchronize with him.

If they didn't smoke VIP, he would have to guard against as many as three firing positions looking to give him trouble.

"Sure, do you want it now?" Apex asked.

"Wait two more seconds; the opponents just threw an Arch Smoke, so it's not very meaningful to throw it now."

Apex nodded, counted two seconds in his heart, and then threw a VIP Smoke.

As the VIP Smoke bloomed, Xu Beifang continued to push forward while hugging the right wall.

Relying on an Arch Smoke, Xantares held the Sewer for a while, but seeing no one appear, he shifted his focus to B Small.

Waiting until the Arch Smoke dissipated, Xantares deliberately made a retreating sound, then had a teammate throw another Arch Smoke for him.

Xantares returned to the right side of the Arch, using the One-Way Smoke effect to watch the Sewer.

Although he wasn't as strong as NiKo when playing the Arch, he was still quite proficient.

Xu Beifang, inside the Sewer, did not have any lapses in checking angles; he prepared himself inside the Sewer before peeking out again.

Although the Arch One-Way Smoke was a one-way, because it was conventional, it often failed to achieve such good results.

After his eyes caught an indistinct object above the smoke, he immediately went into a Crouch Fire and sprayed.

【nice killed xantares with a headshot from an SG553】

What is the result of good Reaction combined with super-strong Positioning Ability?

The result was that from Xantares's perspective, Xu Beifang was like a ghost!

"Xantares was holding the Sewer directly while hugging the One-Way Smoke, but he didn't beat nice; he was instantly headshot by a peek, and the player count is even again!"

"After taking down the tough guy at the Arch, he immediately followed up with an inner Arch Smoke; now, as long as they add a VIP Smoke, the control of Mid is basically secured."

The veteran commentator said: "Just a single kill, and it made BIG lose control of the entire Mid."

He saw it very clearly; nice's experience was becoming more and more seasoned, or rather, this kill was aimed entirely at taking control of Mid.

Almost the moment he took down the tough guy, he pulled back, switched to his utility, strafed, and peeked again to throw the Arch Smoke.

The series of actions was too fluid; it was basically impossible for it to be a spur-of-the-moment decision.

However, he also noticed that BIG didn't seem to be sitting idly by.

"NBK, group up towards B Site; we're going to execute a B Small pinch on B, you throw a Supermarket Smoke and a White Car fire," Apex said, conducting the mid-round personnel rotation.

The Default in Mid was well-executed, but it also cost them a lot of time; now with only 40 seconds of attack time left, they had to hurry.

Following the tactical instructions, NBK switched to his knife and headed straight for the B2 Floor.

But just as he entered the TV Room, he saw a CT holding an AUG in front of him.

He was so startled that he quickly jumped back, but it was already too late.

【tizian killed nbk with a headshot from an AUG】

"They pushed up to the TV Room!!" NBK shouted a warning, "B Site might be undefended now!!"

With the B2 Floor having been fully cleared, in a 4v4 Clutch, the opponents couldn't be standing inside the Bomb Site, as it was basically meaningless.

Hearing this, Xu Beifang also entered B Site with his gun raised, and a quick check confirmed it—B Site was empty.

【This clutch is hard to play】

【3v4, but only one Flashbang in hand, feels like it's over】

【If Dou Dou throws this Flashbang well, there's still a chance】

【Let's see how Little Xu operates; he can still make plays in this clutch】

Although the bomb was planted, the situation on the field remained passive, and the viewers in the stream generally felt this clutch was very difficult.

For one, BIG had the numbers advantage, and their Retake timing was very early, giving them too much room to maneuver.

Secondly, BIG had plenty of utility in hand, which allowed them to expand well from the front.

But the few rounds where Vitality performed well earlier still gave them high expectations for this clutch.

After quickly clearing the Bomb Site, Xu Beifang entered the entrance on the right side of the Supermarket, waiting for the timing there.

"I still have a Flashbang, I can help you with a counter-flash," Apex said after planting the bomb, noticing the utility in his hand and proactively reminding Xu Beifang.

Xu Beifang took a look; Apex had planted a bomb that could be held from both the Supermarket and the Sofa, but after planting, he had returned to the Default position to hold the B2 Floor.

"No need to rush for now, but I'll probably need you to throw a Flashbang," Xu Beifang quickly communicated while he hadn't heard any footsteps yet. "If you can't throw the flash later, you must tell me."

apex said "Mm," and only the sound of everyone's breathing remained on the voice comms.

The C4 was ticking away inside the Bomb Site, urging all surviving members to enter the site and fight.

Xu Beifang keenly heard footsteps inside the Supermarket, adjusted his stance, and strafed directly backward.

gobb also clearly saw him wide-peek out; he quickly adjusted his crosshair, but the Terrorist within his field of view quickly crouched.

gobb adjusted his crosshair again, but by this time, the entire Spray rhythm was a tangled mess.

【nice used SG553 to get a Headshot kill on gobb】

"nice took the initiative to come out and find someone, picking one off first; the player count for both sides is now 3v3!"

"3v3, what can we say about this round? tabsen and nex have both silently crept into the Supermarket, and tabsen's sniper rifle is even holding down nice's position." Ma Xixi's tone was somewhat suppressed, but he was still waiting for a miracle to appear.

A Flashbang flew from the Bomb Site into the Supermarket Window.

tabsen saw the flash flying in out of the corner of his eye and instantly knew he was in trouble!

He hurriedly tried to turn his head to the left, but in his haste, it was far too late.

"Ding—"

Xu Beifang strafed out immediately after the flash popped, only to see two CTs clutching their eyes and fleeing.

"Tat-tat-tat..."

A burst of Spray Transfer; apex's flash was extremely effective, and he did not waste this opportunity.

"Great coordination!!" Ma Xixi shouted in the livestream, "A great flash paired with a great player, the timing on this play is fantastic!"

"nex and tabsen chose to push forward silently, while Vitality's strategy was to use their only Flashbang at the second timing to counter-clear and gain information on the Supermarket. The timing was just right, and nice's stable Gunplay killed both people inside the Supermarket."

After throwing the flash, apex was backstabbed by tizian, who had crept out from B2 Floor.

However, just as he secured the kill, rpk, who was holding B Small from the Sofa, immediately turned his crosshair and completed the Trade Kill.

"Beautiful!!!" Zywoo and nbk shouted excitedly on voice comms the moment the final kill was made.

This Clutch made them very nervous while watching from the spectator area; they wished they could buy a resurrection armor to return to the battlefield, but unfortunately, CS: GO has no resurrections.

They could only hope that their teammates would create a miracle on the field.

And then they watched their teammates' excellent choices and communication in this Clutch, steadily winning this 3v4.

Although apex was killed, it couldn't dampen his spirits.

He gave Xu Beifang an excited high-five: "Brother, how was my Flashbang? Was it awesome or what!"

Xu Beifang had nothing to say about that: "Absolutely a great flash, BIG is going to need to see an eye doctor."

"Haha!"

"This..."

xantares, who had been killed early, looked at this Clutch somewhat speechless.

"The timing from the other side was too good, no way around it," tabsen said. "That Flashbang was a pop-flash, there was no way to dodge it."

As the IGL for BIG, gobb also frowned. He recalled the situation where the opponent dry-peeked out just now; the continuous movement and adjustments made it hard for him to say anything.

In truth, this Clutch was already somewhat impossible to handle after he was picked off in the first wave.

During the London Major, BIG had faced off against nice once; the feeling from last time was that the opponent could always catch the timing.

But now, are they even this fierce in a head-on fight?

gobb felt that it was only the first map, and they had already run into a tough nut to crack.

His worry was entirely correct; Vitality's subsequent attacks were as swift and fierce as ever.

That 3v4 Clutch directly ignited the opponent's emotions.

Vitality's pressure on the offensive side was quite immense afterward, but they didn't play in a rush.

No one on Vitality performed exceptionally well today; instead, they were very balanced.

The opponent's Zywoo, nice, and rpk all maintained stats within about one kill of each other.

But this situation, conversely, made BIG very anxious.

Because they discovered that Vitality's weaknesses seemed to have been hidden away; the opponent didn't have any particularly weak links!

Their defense in the next few rounds was very difficult, and it wasn't until a three-kill from xantares on A Site that they successfully helped them get their first point, and the situation finally showed signs of slowly improving.

Round 10 of the first half.

Xu Beifang glanced at the "7:2" score above his head, feeling quite good.

The team had trained for so long; they had only just made a move, and BIG was already unable to hold them back.

They didn't even need to use the Quick Vip Smoke to coordinate with Xu Beifang's exclusive speed-up ultimate.

"Everyone played really well today!" The bald Coach excitedly bumped fists with the team members; he was also very satisfied to see this result.

He wasn't the type of coach who liked to slack off; since he had come to a new team and the team had upward potential, naturally, they should go all out to climb higher.

Now that the team was getting better bit by bit, he looked at the smiles on these children's faces and felt quite happy himself.

The opponent was struggling to start fighting back; apex had more or less figured out their defensive logic and began to set up targeted tactics.

He looked around at his teammates' spawn positions and noticed that Xu Beifang's position was closest to A1.

"Directly dry-peek A1 to speed up; I'll throw a Mid Crossing Smoke at the start to harass them, and the rest of you coordinate with nice, playing just like we did in training."

"Understood," the others replied.

The countdown ended, and Xu Beifang switched to his knife and rushed toward A1 without stopping.

"The opponent usually starts with a double-A setup; at the start, gobb will stand at CT Spawn, and then the Turkish beast will play a One-way Smoke at the Archway. Just watch out for CT Spawn when you go out," apex reminded him.

Xu Beifang rushed directly toward A1, and in the face of the A1 fire thrown by the opponent, he didn't care at all and strafed backward.

He had just taken the first tick of damage from the Incendiary Grenade, and with a "hiss," RPK's Smoke Grenade had already extinguished the fire.

gob b was standing at Long Box; originally, after throwing the A1 fire, he was prepared to throw a flash for his teammates at Mid-to-Long.

Hearing the sound of the A1 fire being extinguished, he hurriedly bounced a Flashbang behind him before peeking out to check the situation.

"Tat-tat-tat!"

gob b had just gained vision when he saw two people at A1 crouch simultaneously, and he instantly fell backward to the ground.

【nice used SG553 to kill gob b】

"A1 is pushing out directly!! A Site is being rushed!!" If gob b couldn't react to the opponent's intentions at this moment, his time as an In-Game Leader would have been for nothing.

Xantares, who was inside the Archway, had just extinguished the Archway fire when he realized the opponent's Mid play was a fake harassment.

He hurriedly moved to Retake A Site.

But after walking just a few steps forward, a Flashbang exploded with a 'bang,' leaving his vision Flash.

He hurriedly jumped back to retreat, but Xu Beifang had spotted him, and refusing to let up, he found an angle to pursue.

"nice took the first head at A Bomb Site, but Zywoo helped throw a flash, and he charged in directly to catch the 'tough guy'! Who is the real 'tough guy' today!"

"The 'tough guy' was taken down, but tabseN stepped on the fire to Trade Kill nice, but RPK completed the Trade Kill, and A Site has fallen instantly!"

"apEX didn't leave Mid; do you also want to become a top-tier Lurker? But the facts prove that you, apEX, don't have that talent; what kind of Lurker stands in the middle of the road holding an angle!"

"What's left for BIG is a 2v3 Clutch, but they chose to Save Weapon directly; the difficulty of this Retake is just too high."

A disadvantage in numbers, a lack of utility, and a lack of information were all reasons why BIG chose to Save Weapon in this 2v3 Clutch.

This wave of coordinated attacks on A Site drew endless praise from the viewers in the livestream.

Taking a look at the score above, they also suddenly realized—

Unknowingly, Vitality already had a huge 6-point lead over BIG!

Today's Vitality seems exceptionally outstanding on the offensive side!

……

Going home, going home! The internet cafe is about to smoke me into the smell of a cigarette.

(End of this chapter)