Chapter 14

The countdown hit the final three seconds. Pan Shi, frustrated and disappointed, shot a sideways glance at Cloud and let out a heavy sigh. He sent a request to switch positions with Pei Yun Chang to help with the draft.

Unexpectedly, Pei Yun Chang rejected it and locked in the Flower God Bow instead.

This madman.

Bian Yan pursed his lips. Pei Yun Chang was definitely going to be targeted by the opposing team this match. If he were Lao Miao, even if he had to team up with Pei Yun Chang later, he would still focus on suppressing him now, just to dampen his spirit in front of Ji Feng.

After all, those two were the real teammates at the moment.

While Bian Yan was lost in thought, all ten players had already selected their heroes.

The main team wouldn’t allow the youth trainees to walk all over them, and the youth trainees wanted to see what kind of strength it took to sit in those seats.

So, all ten players, without prior agreement, chose their signature heroes based on team coordination.

This was going to be a good show.

The game began—

Pei Yun Chang, risking being targeted, picked the Flower God Bow to withstand the pressure and gain an advantage.

Although Cloud refused to cooperate during the switch, his professional skills were still top-notch. Once in the game, he set aside all grievances and focused on supporting Pei Yun Chang.

The marksmen and supports from both sides met on the development lane.

Ji Feng chose his signature hero, Silver Moon, wielding a Frost Longbow.

Back in the day, he climbed to the top ten of the ladder with his masterful Nuclear Explosion Flow Silver Moon, and was bought by WIN for a high price from an unknown small team.

The Flower God Bow set up a recall point first and started probing with basic attacks.

Silver Moon didn’t dodge, and both sides ignored the minion wave and started a fierce battle.

Pei Yun Chang brought Flash for survival, while Silver Moon had Frenzy, giving him a slight damage advantage.

The Flower God Bow couldn’t out-trade, so he used his skill to recall and clear the minions under the tower.

Meanwhile, Lao Miao had already gained an advantage in the mid lane, created a fake vision, and circled around to gank Pei Yun Chang.

Their own mid laner, Lan Mao, was completely unaware and foolishly signaled Pan Shi.

“Stone Bro, pull back, Lao Miao is coming.”

Lao Miao’s mage was no joke. Pan Shi didn’t dare delay and immediately retreated upon receiving the message, even at the cost of missing a minion’s last-hit gold.

“Hiss…”

Bian Yan immediately saw through Lao Miao’s intentions and couldn’t help but clench his fist, sweating for Pei Yun Chang.

The hero Pan Shi picked had the thickest health bar in Sacred Domain Clash, often performing medical miracles.

Logically, Lao Miao wouldn’t visit Pan Shi on the first wave but would prioritize suppressing the marksman.

Shen Chuan was watching from the side, and as soon as Bian Yan made a sound, he shot a warning glance, signaling him not to disturb the match.

Bian Yan had to quietly shut his mouth.

Pei Yun Chang, wearing headphones and with his back to Bian Yan, naturally didn’t hear his “reminder,” and cautiously cleared the wave near the tower.

“Come back, he’s here.”

Cloud suddenly spoke, and Pei Yun Chang immediately got his meaning and retreated.

But Lao Miao had been waiting for a long time and wasn’t going to let him escape so easily.

A ghostly figure leaped out of the bush, flashing under the tower and halving the Flower God Bow’s health bar.

Seeing this, Ji Feng ignored the minion wave and used his displacement to add more damage.

Lu Chang Kong, controlling a bear-like bulky support, arrived late, lamenting in his heart.

“Oh my, what a grudge, Lao Miao and Ji Feng are willing to tank tower damage just to kill Brother Pei.”

In the game, there were no brothers. Although Lu Chang Kong sympathized with Pei Yun Chang’s situation, he didn’t hold back and added a control skill.

It wasn’t until Lao Miao showed up in the bottom lane that Pan Shi realized he had been misled by his own mid laner.

But there was no time to assign blame. He rolled to clear the wave and ran to the top lane’s teleportation array.

“Did I allow you to go?”

Qian Chi wasn’t stupid and flashed to block Pan Shi, and the two started fighting in the top lane.

The moment Lao Miao appeared, Pei Yun Chang used Flash to create distance and fought back as best as he could.

Cloud didn’t play favorites, using all his strength to protect Pei Yun Chang, even acting as a human shield and getting killed by Silver Moon.

In the early game, everyone’s health was low, and they couldn’t withstand much tower damage.

Although Lao Miao wasn’t hit by the Flower God Bow, the tower damage was too painful, forcing him to take a step back.

Unexpectedly, the next second, the opposing Huang Mao jungler appeared to tank the tower damage for Lao Miao.

Lu Chang Kong found it amusing.

Brother Pei had such a presence that even the jungler came, getting ganked by four people in the early game.

Pei Yun Chang’s mouse was almost on fire, dodging countless skills under the tower with agile movements, but he couldn’t withstand the siege of so many people.

No matter how skilled he was, his health bar quickly hit rock bottom.

Bian Yan rubbed his fingers, watching Pei Yun Chang struggle under the tower, his gaze shifting across the screen.

Where was the jungler? With Self’s understanding, he should have arrived by now.

It wasn’t until he looked at Self’s computer that he saw the guy squatting in the river bush, seemingly waiting for a while.

He wanted to feast on the blood of the fallen.

Bian Yan was speechless.

This guy was waiting for the three opponents to kill Pei Yun Chang, then pass by the river with low health so he could ult and take them down, securing a triple kill.

To put it nicely, it was for the team, a conservative playstyle; to put it bluntly, Self, as the jungler, didn’t trust Pei Yun Chang’s skills and assumed he would die.

In Bian Yan’s view, if Self had supported in time, with Pei Yun Chang’s positioning and the tower damage, they could have killed at least two.

But he didn’t.

He preferred to risk a one-vs-three rather than support, using Pei Yun Chang’s death as the price for his triple kill.

A selfish playstyle with no sense of teamwork.

[Development Lane]

Under Lao Miao’s flying kick, Pei Yun Chang was controlled.

In the last moment before his health bar hit zero, Lao Miao deliberately stepped aside, giving the kill to Ji Feng.

Pei Yun Chang, against the encirclement of four enemies, held on for nearly 30 seconds, truly doing his best.

Bian Yan believed that if he were in the same situation, he wouldn’t have handled it better than Pei Yun Chang.

After the three opponents finished off Pei Yun Chang, they quickly replenished their health and passed by the river bush.

As a result, Self, who had been lying in ambush, caught them off guard and successfully secured a triple kill.

Cloud: “Nice.”

Self’s economy skyrocketed instantly.

Seeing the kill announcement, Pei Yun Chang naturally realized Self’s playstyle and his face turned dark.

But he didn’t complain, instead, after respawning, he returned to the lane alone, doing his best to find opportunities and increase the chances of winning.

He just wanted to win.

The situation in this match was dire.

Pei Yun Chang was targeted by three opponents, making it difficult to gain an advantage. Pan Shi couldn’t solo Qian Chi, completely limiting his ability to support.

As for the mid lane with Lan Mao, it was a disaster zone, getting crushed by Lao Miao with no chance to fight back.

Although the jungler Self was a starting player, his playstyle was too self-centered, always waiting for teammates to die before picking up the scraps, never participating in team fights.

This led to his economy leading the team, creating the illusion that he had many kills but couldn’t carry his teammates.

At ten minutes, a team fight broke out at the Dragon Pit.

Knowing he attracted hatred, Pei Yun Chang stood far away, looking for opportunities to deal damage.

Unexpectedly, Lao Miao passively rolled and flashed directly onto the Flower God Bow’s face.

Pan Shi reacted quickly, immediately adding control to restrict the opponent.

But the economic gap was evident, and they were forced to retreat continuously.

“Where’s the jungler?! Are you fucking blind!”

Pan Shi lost his temper, not caring about seniority, cursing with a flushed face.

Bian Yan glanced at his computer screen.

He was squatting in the bush behind the Dragon Pit again.

A hopeless case.

Pei Yun Chang used displacement to avoid damage, let out a light snort, and added, “Waiting to feast on the fallen.”

Cloud knew Self was in the wrong but didn’t join in, diligently taking damage for the carry.

Pei Yun Chang’s eyes were fixed on the screen, finally predicting Ji Feng’s movements, and with a determination to die, he flashed in to control three opponents.

The opponents didn’t expect Pei Yun Chang, an economically disadvantaged squishy marksman, to make such a move, and couldn’t dodge in time.

It could be said that Pei Yun Chang’s operation was maxed out.

The marksman’s control time was short, only a fleeting 0.5 seconds. If they couldn’t seize this opportunity, Pei Yun Chang’s effort would be in vain.

“Come on!”

Pei Yun Chang was anxious, shouting in anger.

Pan Shi was controlled, the support was low on health, and the mid laner was far away. Everyone knew who he was calling.

Bian Yan watched as Self’s right hand holding the mouse trembled, showing hesitation on his face, but ultimately, he didn’t move.

Pei Yun Chang’s health bar hit zero, and Cloud and the mid laner fell one after another.

The screen went black, and Pei Yun Chang slammed the mouse in anger, holding back his urge to curse.

The opponents, after the team fight, were also low on health, gathering to heal, providing Self with a perfect opportunity to clean up.

But Lao Miao, having partnered with him for so long and having been ambushed once, was cautious this time.

The moment Self appeared, Lao Miao aimed his ultimate, and Ji Feng immediately followed up with damage.

Self couldn’t take down anyone and was beaten to death by the five low-health opponents, watching them swagger back home to replenish.

This wave resulted in a five-for-zero exchange.

The already bad situation worsened, and the five opponents, taking advantage of their respawn time, pushed all the way and successfully destroyed the crystal.

Pei Yun Chang’s side lost.

Shen Chuan, having watched the entire match, naturally knew where the problem lay.

However, he couldn’t directly reprimand Self in front of the youth trainees, so he played the peacemaker.

“Everyone played well. I’m sure through this practice match, you’ll discover your own issues.” Shen Chuan gathered everyone, smiling kindly as he began summarizing.

“Lao Miao and Ji Feng’s coordination was indeed good, and winning was deserved. It’s okay for Xiao Pei’s side to lose. You were missing a starting player, and with more practice, you’ll definitely improve.”

Lu Chang Kong, worried about Pei Yun Chang and Pan Shi’s state, put on a fake smile to support Shen Chuan, encouraging most of the training room, and everyone kindly praised each other.

Most of the spectators on the other side didn’t know what happened, thinking it was just a simple practice match, and asked the starting team members for autographs. Lao Miao was surrounded by several people from the youth training camp.

Finally, Shen Chuan organized a handshake between the starting team and the youth trainees to foster friendship, marking the end of this practice match.

Both sides lined up—

Pan Shi politely shook hands with the others, especially Qian Chi, showing admiration for his gaming skills.

But when it came to Self, he didn’t hide his disdain, rolling his eyes and making sarcastic remarks.

Pei Yun Chang, with a black face throughout, even ignored Self’s outstretched hand, giving the starting team a big slap in the face.

The atmosphere turned awkward, and the scene became a bit cold.

Qin Yu Xuan, quick-witted, immediately took over, stepping between Pei Yun Chang and Self, ending the “handshake ceremony” with a few words, urging the youth trainees to continue training.

Self, having been disregarded by two youth trainees, wanted to lash out but was stopped by a distant glare from Shen Chuan, forcing him to hold back, his facial muscles twitching slightly.

Pei Yun Chang’s face was so dark it could drip water. After giving Self a deep look, he swiftly grabbed his jacket from the chair and turned to leave.

Pan Shi, for once, sided with Pei Yun Chang, glaring at Self with his nostrils, snorting coldly, and followed suit.

Just as Pei Yun Chang stepped out of the training room, Bian Yan suddenly spoke.

“Do you even know how to play?”

Everyone stopped what they were doing.

Bian Yan pointed at Self’s station, his face showing a hint of disgust, his voice cold as he asked again.

“Do you even know how to play?”