Chapter 96 1/2

As Broken Water gained more attention, discussions about their tactics, which were unbeatable yet heavily relied on teamwork, continued.”

Anyone could see that as the level of competition increased, the teamwork issues at Broken Water became more apparent.

There was no way around it; everyone knew that Broken Water’s current attacker was just a temporary solution.

Most of the hatred was then directed towards Bai Xiangyuan.

Bai Xiangyuan had the idea of “Dragon King’s Return” at that time.

But who would have thought that most esports fans were not thinking, “Let’s bring back Bai Xiangyuan for victory,” but rather, “If Broken Water loses the match, it must be Bai Xiangyuan’s fault; let’s curse him!”

Bai Xiangyuan:…

His ego couldn’t handle being criticized by others.

The more Broken Water acted like they didn’t want him back, the more Bai Xiangyuan couldn’t resist paying attention to everything happening in the Broken Water club.

Top-notch one-on-one equipment, a well-trained environment, a high base salary, generous bonuses, and Sheng Dong as a supporter

Everyone knew that Sheng Quan was wealthy and generous, especially when it came to spending money on people or things she liked. What’s even rarer is her willingness to give opportunities to those she values.

Recently, Bai Xiangyuan saw entertainment gossip, saying that during the trend of “Sheng Quan’s Call,” Sheng Quan herself would sometimes check these videos. If she found someone suitable, she would ask her entertainment company, Starshine Entertainment, to extend an olive branch to the content creator.

One pair of sisters who specialized in making funny videos played along with this trend. After Sheng Quan noticed and liked their content, Starshine Entertainment quickly contacted them, giving them a chance for an audition.

Although the audition results were not out yet, just the opportunity itself had already made many D-list actors or internet celebrities envious. Especially since the sisters, with Starshine’s permission, released a few videos that caught the attention of a large number of online users.

“Our [Sheng Quan’s Call] video was actually liked by Sheng Quan herself.”

“Shocking! After the chairman of Starshine Entertainment liked our video, we were invited for an audition!”

“At the audition, such a large venue. Heard that this movie is expected to be Starshine’s main project for the next six months. Looking forward to it!”

Maybe they would succeed in the audition and soar to new heights, but the probability was high that they would fail.

However, they were clearly prepared and seized this opportunity. With just those three videos, they attracted a considerable amount of online attention, suddenly becoming somewhat famous bloggers.

And all of this was because of Sheng Quan.

How could Bai Xiangyuan not yearn for this? Not to mention, ever since those three videos by the sisters became popular, he saw them gaining more and more fans. Every blogger on the internet wishes they could replace them.

Even knowing that, given Tan Chen’s temperament, he would never let Bai Xiangyuan return to Broken Water, currently, Broken Water is not under Tan Chen’s control.

The true owner was Sheng Quan and Sheng Dong.

Broken Water’s tactics required long-term training and coordination to avoid mistakes. Even if the substitute attacker was powerful, without over a year of coordinated practice, they couldn’t unleash their full potential.

Bai Xiangyuan was convinced that after he left, Broken Water would decline. That’s why he left without restraint, without any scruples, because a fallen team posed no threat to him.

And now, he was also convinced that if Sheng Quan wanted victory, she would definitely bring him back.

After all, she spent a large sum to buy the club. How could she not want victory?

Sheng Dong: Is there a possibility that I want victory but don’t want you back?

When Tan Chen’s name appeared on the official website, Bai Xiangyuan was not just surprised; he almost couldn’t believe it and wished he could dive into the computer. Those esports fans who knew Tan Chen were also shocked.

Wasn’t Tan Chen the coach of Broken Water?

And didn’t he retire because of serious injuries? Could he still play?

They even suspected there was a name mix-up, checking the nicknames.

Attacker: Tan Chen.

It really was Tan Chen.

Curious netizens who didn’t know about Tan Chen’s injuries searched for information.

Those who knew about Tan Chen’s injuries expressed their shock and doubts on various platforms.

After Bai Xiangyuan regained his composure, he almost immediately rushed to the forum. He thought he would see a crowd of people rejecting and expressing dissatisfaction with Tan Chen. After all, not chasing after someone with known injuries wasn’t a secret.

And in the esports environment, players being scolded was normal.

Bai Xiangyuan knew that despite Tan Chen always appearing calm and indifferent, every time he was scolded or under pressure, Tan Chen would smoke one cigarette after another in private.

If everyone resisted and rejected Tan Chen, would he know it was difficult and give up?

But Bai Xiangyuan was disappointed.

The forum was indeed lively, but no one was cursing.

[Not chasing, retired for several years, right? He retired because of injuries back then. Can he play now? ]

Though not chasing was formidable back then, esports players thrive on youth. But this arrangement should be a last resort! ]

In the past, on the internet, these esports fans spoke in a more “refined” manner, employing various traditional Chinese expressions.

But at this moment, they surprisingly weren’t angry or cursing. Even those who were questioned paid special attention to their tone. Some even expressed enthusiastic support.

[Ah, ah, ah, ah, not chasing!] My youth! ]

[Exactly! The coach must understand the team’s tactics better than anyone else! Why didn’t I think of having the coach play for Broken Water before? ]

I just want to know if Tan Chen really has injuries. If he does, has he already been treated? ]

Believe me, Sheng Dong, how could she arrange for someone with injuries who can’t play to be an attacker? [He must be already healed.]

Bai Xiangyuan:… Impossible. How can esports fans be so friendly in such a situation?

In reality, not only he couldn’t believe it, but even Tan Chen, the person involved, was incredibly surprised.

He was well aware of his situation. An old player, retired due to injuries, hadn’t played or been on stage for several years. It was almost as if all the unfavorable factors for an esports player were concentrated on him.

Tan Chen could sense, even with his eyes closed, how resistant the fans, who had rekindled their hopes, would be towards him. Even during his peak, there were still anti-fans chasing after him.

When Sheng Quan returned, she found Tan Chen browsing the internet.

Having just come from the film set, the difficulty of the film shoot wasn’t significant, and there were no problems with the investment. The only issue was the tight schedule.

A film could be shot in less than a month at the fastest, but for a big production, that would be impossible.

Fortunately, this project had been in preparation for a long time. All the props, locations, and, most importantly, the main cast, were already arranged. Now they only needed to complete the auditions for the remaining roles before quickly starting the shoot.

With Yu Xiangwan overseeing things, Sheng Quan was assured. Still, she flew back to check and make sure everything was in order before returning to the team.

It wasn’t because, as the boss, she had to accompany the team for the match. Sheng Dong purely wanted to witness a global competition for the first time. With such a lively atmosphere, she wouldn’t miss it.

Seeing this scene, Sheng Dong smiled and said, “You don’t ban Chen Mo and the others from going online, but you have no such prohibition for yourself.”

“You’re back.”

“Banning them is because I know they can’t handle the insults.”

“Why did you start running recently?” Shi Zhang asked him, slightly breathless.

“Yeah,” Song Fuzhi replied as he ran, his voice a bit unsteady. “The sports meet is approaching, and I signed up for the long-distance race, so I need to practice.”

“Even the teacher is participating?” Shi Zhang was somewhat surprised, smiling. “Is there any reward for winning?”

Song Fuzhi said, “It can add points to our class total.”

“If we can get the overall first place, the competitive kids in our class will be thrilled.”

Shi Zhang used his towel to wipe the sweat from Song Fuzhi’s neck. “Mr. Song is really good.”

“If I were a student in Mr. Song’s class, I would feel very lucky.”

Song Fuzhi snorted, “I bet they wish I’d disappear every day.”

Shi Zhang smiled. “They’ll know how good Mr. Song is in the future.”

Running together with Shi Zhang, the speed of the two gradually slowed down without them noticing.

With the evening breeze, watching the sunset, and chatting while jogging, it was so leisurely that it didn’t feel like exercise at all.

The nightly jog became one of Song Fuzhi’s most enjoyable moments.

Relaxed and immersed, having someone accompany him felt quite nice.

On this day, Song Fuzhi had nightly self-study, so he wouldn’t be able to go home until around eleven at night. Shi Zhang would have to have dinner on his own and cancel the nightly jogging activity.

Unable to run in the evening, the exercise still needed to be continued.

There was a park next to the school that was beautiful and secluded. Song Fuzhi changed into his workout clothes, put on his headphones, grabbed his water bottle, and leisurely headed towards the park.

Unbeknownst to Song Fuzhi, as he left the office, another group of people had already arrived at the park in advance.

“This place is not bad.” Fan Tong placed the Bluetooth speaker on the small square and looked around. “Spacious, flat, not many tourists, and the square dance aunts haven’t appeared yet.”

“It’s fine; it’s fine.”

White Xiaoqing, the entertainment committee member, was a tall girl and the number one fan of K-pop in the class.

“Except it’s a bit inconvenient without mirrors.”

Someone sighed, “Ah, I don’t know who locked the dance studio! The responsible teacher can’t be found. Otherwise, I wouldn’t want to leave the school gate.”

“It’s okay, I’ll set up my phone here to record a video. We can review it later.”

White Xiaoqing raised her hand and made a gathering gesture: “Alright, attention, everyone—Korean dance trend zone!”

Several girls who wore their school uniforms as oversized outfits lined up on the left and coolly raised their hands, indicating that they were ready.

“Second-dimensional otaku dance zone!”

Several students, led by Fan Tong and Yao Xinxin, stood on the right. Their school uniforms were tied around their waists, and they only lacked a baseball bat in their hands.

Fan Tong swung her hair, thinking she looked cool. “Ki-Ma-Xiu—”

Yao Xinxin covered her eyes, embarrassed.

“Dominant Hanfu dance zone!”

The boys and girls on this side were obviously more reserved. Their posture was upright, and their positions were neat. “We didn’t wear costumes today, so it won’t have the desired effect. Let’s just practice the movements and positions. We’ll add makeup for atmosphere later.”

White Xiaoqing raised her voice and said, “Let’s run through the original plan first. Follow the sequence and then refine the moves and positions.”

Because the three factions in the class couldn’t agree, with the joint mediation of the class monitor and the student union president, everyone unanimously agreed to create a chaotic and evil mix, emphasizing unity in diversity.

There was no choice, as their class composition was too complex.

The idea was actually not bad; thinking about it, the final performance effect would be explosive, so they were quite excited.

Song Fuzhi entered through the front gate of the park, found the starting point of the walking path, did some warm-up exercises, put on his headphones, and started jogging.