Chapter 754: Saving up for tickets by eating two packs of instant noodles a day

Lingshi Road, EDG base.

More than two hours earlier, the EDG members who had accomplished the feat of coming from two down to three up had already returned to base after the match, and were watching VG's Bo5 in their own training room……

"We can only hope WE will overturn VG — that's just a wish, guys." Meiko clasped his hands behind his head, leaned back in the gaming chair, and sighed.

Mouse gave a wry smile: "Bo5 turned into Bo3 — awesome. In a few days it'll be our turn, guys, you're probably… uh… hehehe…"

Mouse hadn't finished speaking when A Bu shot him a glare, and he swallowed the rest of his words.

But Changzhang spoke without restraint, meeting A Bu's resentful gaze: "I'm scared to death — I bet we'll be Bo3 too, guys. Let's get some good sleep while we still haven't been scarred psychologically."

Ai Luoli teacher was reminded by Changzhang's words of some "good" memories of being crushed by someone, her heart tightened, but the face‑conscious Ai Luoli didn't want anyone to know he'd wimped out, so he over‑compensated with a few loud hahas: "Or else after the match you'll just have nightmares for a month straight, hahaha — you throw off the blankets and crawl out with a jiojio."

The training room instantly filled with laughter and cheer, a scene of pure merriment.

That's the high‑EQ way of putting it — called optimism.

Don't ask about the low‑EQ version.

A Bu sighed, looking at this bunch of old‑timer kids who seemed to have turned into "dead pigs unafraid of boiling water." He felt both angry and helpless, with a tinge of regret. He stared at the screen where someone was being interviewed, his eyes flashing with a desire to devour them.

Damn, how can someone be this fierce……

Thinking of that, A Bu felt a faint ache again — once he'd had a once‑in‑a‑lifetime tryout opportunity placed before him, and he hadn't cherished it.

Back then, A Bu merely saw the opening line of the other's email — "Hello, I'm a wild‑area player at King rank in the national server" — and tossed it straight into the trash.

Nowadays, A Bu regrets it deeply.

If EDG could actually sign him, they might even win back‑to‑back titles — at least one crown would be a sure thing. Even a trash team like G2 can take off, so a stronger EDG would surely have no trouble. Yet all of this, born from a snap decision, has become a dream that constantly haunts A Bu. There's no telling whether it's a sweet dream or a nightmare; he's dreamed of lifting the trophy alongside someone, and the glory and sweetness of that moment linger after he wakes. But he also often jerks awake from sudden twists in the dream; in those unknown midnight hours, A Bu sits up in bed, drenched in cold sweat, panting like an old dog.

Nothing in the world is more painful than this.

If heaven were willing to give A Bu a chance to choose again, he would without hesitation reply to that email: "Ido! Comeonbaby!" If he could add a custom clause to the contract, he'd ask for ten thousand years.

But there's no regret medicine in the world.

Moreover, A Bu isn't the only one whose guts have turned green with regret.

……

On site, the post‑match interview was underway.

Yu Shuang: "Regarding the final to be held at Beijing's Wukesong, what do you have to say, Jiao Shen?"

At first, when Yu Shuang hosted Liang Yan's post‑match interview, she always politely called him "Fire player." Later she thought that calling him "Jiao Shen" might subtly bring her closer to this legendary player, so she quietly switched the form of address. It was useless, though — to this day Yu Shuang still hasn't managed to add Liang Yan on WeChat, after all Liang Yan doesn't even have the surname Cao.

Liang Yan didn't much like the perfume on Yu Shuang's body; he rubbed his nose and, out of the blue, recalled the faint ginger scent he'd smelled that night in Rio. Human memory of smell is often tightly bound to a vivid scene, and for Liang Yan this scent is fused with the image of a girl throwing herself into his arms — whenever he recalls it, he gets a 3‑D experience……

"emmm……"

Liang Yan raised the mic, thought a moment, then lifted his head and faced the camera with a smile that clearly meant something:

"I hope that when the time comes, Changzhang will keep his eyes on his own F6 and stay out of my jungle, causing no trouble."

In the EDG base, Changzhang jerked upright at a sound and let out a string of nasty curses.

The crowd burst into laughter.

Yu Shuang also covered her mouth and giggled a few times, glanced at her cue card, then said: "Second question: if VG manages to beat EDG in the finals, you'd be a true Grand Slam champion — would you have even higher hopes for that?"

"Not really much expectation," Liang Yan replied without hesitation.

Yu Shuang widened her eyes slightly: "Ah?"

"Maybe many people can't understand, but to me all the honors in this field are just sitting there waiting to be picked up. Think of it like going home to grab something — would you find that surprising?"

Yu Shuang's eyes went wide as she stared blankly at Liang Yan, a sudden flutter rising in her chest.

With a boom, the whole venue boiled over like a pot of water on high heat.

Backstage, the VG members let out a yell and started screaming like ghosts.

What's a show‑off, huh?

This guy is practically a textbook‑level show‑off!

……

A 3‑0 win over WE, locking up an S7 spot, plus Liang Yan's post‑match remarks sparked an unusually heated discussion online after the match.

Less than half an hour after the match ended, a post on the anti‑ba forum had already garnered over ten thousand replies.

Title: 【VG all in explosive form — is the S7 championship already a lock?】

First floor: 【I don't know if it's secure or not, anyway WE got smashed so hard they didn't even recognize their own mom — a Bo5 added up to less than an hour and a half, I'm like a helpless turtle】

Second floor: 【Don't milk it, the G2 and LCK crews aren't pushovers】

Third floor: 【Anyone's knees gone soft again? Even if you don't recall how Faker got crushed in last year's semifinals, you should at least remember this year's Mid‑Season Invitational and the Intercontinental Tournament. Are we just cloud‑watching spectators who don't watch the games? VG's current state is invisible to anyone. G2? Losing Jiao Shen is like the West losing Jerusalem — and Jiao Shen is the one who trained him, so if Jiao Shen doesn't hold back, it's basically a father beating his son, right? LCK? KT has been utterly crushed, SSG's postseason showing is nothing but rotten fish and shrimp — hard to say if they'd even make it to the table. SKT this year swapped their top laner for the nerve‑blade Huni and their jungler for Xiao Huasheng, which would only make them easier to beat. Speaking of which, if Xiao Huasheng ever sees Jiao Shen, he'd probably drop to his knees and call him dad before the fight even starts. Only LZ could barely manage a clash with VG, but this team lacks big‑match experience, so they'd likely just flop a huge load. Anyway, I've said my piece — feel free to chime in: if VG doesn't win the championship this year, I'll perform a hand‑stand diarrhea for you all!】

Third‑floor comment section:

【666！】

【Brother, awesome!】

【I also think VG looks solid, I don't know why some people keep failing to get up】

【From now on, we'll save up ticket money by eating two packs of instant noodles a day — brothers, when the time comes let's meet at the Bird's Nest to witness it together!】

【VG, let's go, damn it!】

【Chime in】

【Chime in +1】

【Chime in +10086】