Chapter 598: CNB Guidance Match

Luonaerduo estimated that he had already communicated with the people at the CNB base; by the time the plane landed, a bus was already waiting outside, and after boarding it they headed straight for the CNB base.

The boss's arrival made the entire CNB base instantly lively as if it were Christmas (though I don't know if they have Christmas holidays here), and then, surrounded by a large crowd, Luonaerduo personally accompanied the VG group throughout their tour of the CNB base.

In addition, two local esports media photographers followed behind the crowd, filming.

While everyone toured, a CNB division manager introduced the overall situation of CNB to the VG group, other divisions were only briefly mentioned in a sentence or two, with the most detail given about the CNB Alliance Division, and this manager naturally was the manager of the Alliance Division.

By this point, Luonaerduo's true intention had basically come to light.

After finishing the tour, the two esports media photographers finished filming and left, while the VG group went together with Luonaerduo and that CNB Alliance Division manager to the lounge.

The lounge was quite spacious, though it looked like it had previously been a meeting room that was temporarily converted for the VG group's visit, with several brand‑new large sofas placed, a few potted plants added, and even a flagpole on each side of the screen, one red and one green.

Next, everyone chatted for a while, then finally got down to business.

Initiated by the CNB Alliance Division manager, the VG group was asked to give their impression of CNB—mainly concerning the Alliance Division.

Luonaerduo also chimed in:

"Our performance in this spring season hasn't been great; we really want to hear the opinion of a top‑tier club like yours."

The other side spoke casually, but after finishing they wore an expectant expression.

Moreover, the person whose gaze they were fixed on was Liang Yan.

Liang Yan did not answer right away.

Having just toured for about ten minutes, Liang Yan had a preliminary understanding of CNB's situation; needless to say, the environment was better than VG's base conditions, emphasizing spaciousness.

Besides the environment, through the division manager's introduction, everyone in VG came to know the personnel composition of the CNB Alliance Division team and some details about their past season's results.

But if one were to ask Liang Yan for his impression of that team… frankly, there are too many flaws, and Liang Yan momentarily didn't know where to start.

However, seeing the other side's expectant look, Liang Yan felt it would be wrong to brush them off casually, especially since they had specifically invited him and his entourage, indicating they had concrete expectations.

"I think…"

Liang Yan thought for a moment, made up his mind, lowered his head to check the phone time, then looked at Luonaerduo and spoke constructively:

"It's still early; how about we two teams play a few practice matches?"

That division manager immediately lit up.

The idea of a practice match had actually been discussed by the CNB side; the manager had been planning to bring it up later at a suitable opportunity, but he hadn't expected VG to bring it up themselves—of course that was perfect!

However, the boss was sitting right there, so the division manager didn't dare to make a big decision on his own; he merely stared at Luonaerduo with eyes shining.

Then Luonaerduo broke into a grin: "That's really great!"

As for the VG side, under Luonaerduo's intentional or unintentional influence, Liang Yan had implicitly become VG's representative, while Gao Jun seemed more like a mere accompaniment, Zhu Xiaolong even more so—he looked like a little follower substitute, not even as good as Gangzi.

—Gangzi's English is poor, but at least his voice is loud, so his presence is still quite strong.

Liang Yan's proposal received everyone's approval.

The CNB side immediately got ready.

The VG people remained here chatting with Luonaerduo, mainly Liang Yan and Gao Jun speaking, with Easyhoon occasionally chiming in a couple of sentences; aside from these three, the others, due to the language barrier, really couldn't say much.

After a short rest, not long later that division manager returned, announcing that the venue and equipment were ready and they could begin.

Then everyone stood up, went to the CNB training room, briefly met the CNB team members, who were all chattering, each saying they were fans of a certain VG member.

But the matter of signing and taking photos can wait; after a brief commotion, everyone sat down and powered on.

Luonaerduo didn't leave; he even pulled over a chair to watch.

When Liang Yan turned around, he discovered that the big guy was actually sitting right behind him, tall and sturdy with both hands propped on his knees, looking full of interest.

Gao Jun, seeing the liveliness over here, also pulled over a chair to join Luonaerduo.

Immediately afterward, the CNB Alliance Division manager and the coach also came over.

What a sight—suddenly the scene became quite grand: four people, one on the left and one on the right seated, the other two standing in the middle, eight eyes all fixed on Liang Yan's screen…

For Liang Yan, there wasn't actually any pressure; it just felt rather abrupt.

This is someone else's "home"; Liang Yan couldn't very well refuse to let them look, and he didn't mind being watched, after all they just wanted to seek guidance, not to steal techniques.

The question is, even if Liang Yan were willing to teach seriously, could the other side actually learn anything?

Anyway, the VG‑CNB exchange practice match thus got underway.

But only when they were about to start the pick‑and‑ban phase did Liang Yan realize just how unreliable this CNB team was from top to bottom…

When setting up the match, the opposing coach first said, "Why don't we spice things up and use Custom Mode?"

Meaning they'd play a matchmaking‑style game with no bans, both sides blindly picking heroes at random, and they could even choose the same hero.

Upon hearing this, the VG members felt something was off, exchanging bewildered glances.

Fu Lan Duo's gaze at Liang Yan clearly said: "Hey bro, do they even realize this is a guidance match? Are they treating us like casual playmates? Do they have any sense of cherishing this opportunity?"

Faced with the CNB coach's suggestion, Zhu Xiaolong just:

"Uh———"

He still had to keep an awkward yet polite smile, which was really hard for him.

Then Luonaerduo, from the side, clapped once with a "pa" and laughed loudly, saying, "Haha, good! This is fun!"

Alright, let's play then!

Thus, the first game, Custom Mode.

Upon arriving in Shengbaoluo at a little past one in the afternoon, they reached the CNB base a little after one, toured for ten‑odd minutes, and it was nearing two o'clock.

Around two o'clock they began the practice match against CNB, playing until past four, during which they also spent over half an hour reviewing three replays.

Including the first Custom Mode game, a total of six matches were played, and CNB didn't win a single one—not even lasting fifteen minutes.

At this point, the practice match had stopped.

Both sides had realized that there was no need to continue the practice match.