Sun Xiang's Submission!

"I didn't expect the tactic used by 'Total Darkness' to be one who feigned weakness!" Pan Lin exclaimed in surprise. "At first, I was puzzled as to why 'Total Darkness,' who was initially playing so aggressively and could stand toe-to-toe with 'Desert Dust,' suddenly became so passive against 'Scene Killer.' I originally thought it was because Liu Hao's hand injury hadn't fully healed, but it turns out it was a strategy to appear weak, catching the opponent off guard for a decisive blow!"

"Liu Hao's sudden outburst was something I didn't anticipate, but now that both team captains are dead, the outcome is still uncertain," Li Yibo commented.

...

"Excellent Era won," Ye Qiu said calmly.

"Won? Didn't the commentator Li Yibo just say the outcome was still uncertain?" Chen Guo asked, puzzled.

"The commentators can't declare the match over before it actually ends," Ye Qiu explained. "Now, the substitutes will come in. Excellent Era's substitute is He Ming, a spell damage-focused Elemental Mage. What strategy do you think Excellent Era will use next?"

"'Total Darkness,' Magic Swordsman, 'Dancing Rain,' Gunner, 'Emotionless Magic,' He Ming... Three ranged professions," Chen Guo murmured. Having watched professional Glory leagues for years, she understood some common strategies. Her eyes suddenly lit up. "It's the poke strategy!"

"Exactly! This strategy was developed by Liu Hao based on Excellent Era's lineup, centring around the Magic Swordsman for a poke-based strategy." Ye Qiu's eyes sparkled with excitement but then dimmed.

Liu Hao could have used the poke strategy to secure victory right from the start, but instead, he deliberately set up Sun Xiang to fail! Yes, Ye Qiu could see Liu Hao's deeper intent—to set up Sun Xiang for failure, allowing himself to seize the MVP.

Liu Hao, still as cunning as ever... but formidable! Whether as an opponent or a teammate, such a player requires extreme caution.

"No wonder he's my boyfriend; he's amazing!" Chen Guo said, her eyes sparkling as she gazed at the commanding presence of 'Total Darkness' on the field. His leadership and meticulous output made her wonder, "Why isn't Liu Hao the captain of Excellent Era?"

At this moment, the entire Xingxin Internet Café was captivated by the heroic figure of 'Total Darkness.' Liu Hao, at this moment, was like Zhou Yu, commanding the Battle of Red Cliffs and driving Cao Cao's forces into disarray.

"Liu Hao is still awesome. At first, I thought his era was over when Yang Cong suppressed him, but in the end, he held back for a big surprise. He deliberately appeared weak to catch the enemy off guard and then delivered a fatal blow!"

"Liu Hao is the MVP of this match. Although he's a Magic Swordsman, he executed an assassin's final blow!"

"Yang Cong must be crying his eyes out. He thought he had Liu Hao under control, but Liu Hao was just toying with him. Once Liu Hao got serious, Yang Cong was done for."

The Xingxin Internet Café was filled with joy.

Suddenly, a customer noticed Liu Hao and Su Mucheng sitting together on screen and couldn't help but remark, "Liu Hao and Su Mucheng look so compatible!"

"Compatible? How?"

"Yeah, how?"

Chen Guo and Ye Qiu exchanged glances.

Chen Guo rubbed her chin and whispered, "Liu Hao is my boyfriend, so I have a reason to disagree, but why did you object?"

Ye Qiu, embarrassed, scratched his face. "Wasn't I just backing you up? I happen to know that Excellent Era's vice-captain is in a relationship with you."

"Really?" Chen Guo was sceptical.

Ye Qiu nodded.

"I don't believe you!" Chen Guo grinned, showing her teeth. "Tell me, do you like Su Mucheng? It makes sense; she's so pretty, and she's great at the game. You two train under the same roof; how could you not have feelings for her?"

Ye Qiu chuckled and explained, "Boss, you're overthinking it. I just see Su Mucheng as a little sister."

Chen Guo stared into Ye Qiu's eyes, trying to detect any hint of deceit. But after a long look, she saw nothing. Ye Qiu's eyes were as calm as still water.

"It's the truth!" Chen Guo declared.

"Wow, the boss is a walking lie detector!" Ye Qiu feigned surprise.

"That's right!" Chen Guo said proudly, completely forgetting about the Liu Hao and Su Mucheng pairing.

...

"Congratulations to Excellent Era for winning the final team match with a 10:0 sweep over San Zero Yidu! And a special congratulations to Excellent Era's vice-captain Liu Hao, who, after a seven-match suspension, secured the MVP of the team match!"

The crowd erupted in applause.

Everyone wore smiles except for Sun Xiang, who had a cold expression on his face. It only dawned on him now that Liu Hao had set him up.

"Liu Hao!" Sun Xiang shouted, interrupting Liu Hao's celebration with his teammates.

Liu Hao turned to see Sun Xiang's gloomy face and pretended to be confused. "What's wrong? Who upset our Excellent Era captain?"

Sun Xiang wanted to say "you," but Liu Hao's condescending tone made it impossible for him to respond.

Clenching his fists and hesitating for a long time until his nails nearly dug into his flesh, Sun Xiang finally voiced the question in his heart: "Liu Hao, why did you deliberately set me up?"

"Set you up? Where? When?"

"Don't play dumb. Why didn't you send Shen Jian to support me?"

"I asked you from the start—if you couldn't handle it, I would send Shen Jian to support you, but you refused!"

Sun Xiang gritted his teeth, thinking to himself, "How could I possibly admit that I needed Shen Jian's support after you asked like that?"

"Then why didn't Su Mucheng support me? She's a Gunner; she could have used the screen cannon tactic to coordinate with me!"

Before Liu Hao could respond, Su Mucheng explained, "Your hand speed was too fast. The screen cannon couldn't keep up. If I had forced support, I might have disrupted your output rhythm and made you die even faster!"

Sun Xiang was stunned. Thinking back, it did seem like it was his fault. Su Mucheng had reminded him during the match, but he hadn't listened.

But Sun Xiang didn't want to give in just yet. Even if Liu Hao and Su Mucheng had valid reasons, he still felt he was set up!

"And what about you, Liu Hao? You could have supported me! Why didn't you?"

"Come on, are you blind? Didn't you see Yang Cong was suppressing me? Without Zhang Jiaxing's healing, I would have died."

"Nonsense! You were just deliberately holding back, not wanting to save me! You could have countered Yang Cong in an instant, but you let him suppress you for almost the entire match!"

Liu Hao shot Sun Xiang a cold glance. "You shouldn't say that. My hand injury hasn't fully healed, so my operations are unstable. The reason I was able to counter later was that I found my rhythm."

"You're lying! You don't have a hand injury!" Sun Xiang shouted angrily.

"You damn well know I don't have a hand injury!" Liu Hao's voice was even louder, and under his harsh scolding, Sun Xiang's legs trembled involuntarily.

"I was suspended for seven matches by Tao Xuan. Do you know why? Because you came to Excellent Era to replace Ye Qiu! So, to drive Ye Qiu away, Tao Xuan had to make Excellent Era lose matches!" Liu Hao revealed the truth that Sun Xiang had been unaware of. "So now you know why, even though I didn't have a hand injury, I was still suspended for seven matches? Because as long as I was in Excellent Era, Excellent Era wouldn't lose, Ye Qiu wouldn't leave, and you, you bastard, wouldn't be able to come to Excellent Era!"

Sun Xiang was stunned. He had no idea about this. The reason he joined Excellent Era was partly because of the god-level account card 'One Autumn Leaf' and partly because Excellent Era had a strong foundation and skilled players with championship potential. He had no idea that before he came, Excellent Era had to lose matches deliberately.

The Excellent Era was so complicated, with such a chaotic web of interpersonal relationships, that Sun Xiang felt like his head was spinning.

But now he understood. Excellent Era's seven consecutive losses were actually orchestrated by Excellent Era's owner, Tao Xuan. If Tao Xuan hadn't suspended Liu Hao, Excellent Era might have achieved a terrifying 11-match win streak, or rather, a 12-match win streak by now.

"So, be grateful, kid." Liu Hao gently patted Sun Xiang's shoulder. "You thought Excellent Era was a team full of light, but it's actually shrouded in darkness. The only light left is what I've created. You should be thankful that I'm shielding you from the darkness, not criticising what I've done!"

Sun Xiang gritted his teeth. At this moment, he no longer dared to shout at Liu Hao. Instead, he asked softly, with reluctance, "But why did you set me up? For the MVP? You could have let me live, and you'd still have gotten the MVP!"

Liu Hao chuckled, "Of course, I set you up to give Tao Xuan an explanation! One Autumn Leaf is still around, yet he's not the MVP? That would be such a slap in his face! After all, your arrival was entirely orchestrated by the wise and powerful boss of Excellent Era. If you perform poorly, it reflects badly on him too."

At that moment, Sun Xiang felt he understood everything. From the very beginning, he had been manipulated by Liu Hao. Not only was Liu Hao strong in his gameplay and had high awareness, but he was also cunning and calculative. Sun Xiang realised he had no way to defeat Liu Hao.

What was more crucial was that the reason he had previously mocked Excellent Era's seven consecutive losses was actually because of him.

"If I hadn't come to Excellent Era, they wouldn't have suffered seven consecutive losses, right?" Sun Xiang asked.

Liu Hao shook his head, "You're just one of the reasons. Even if you hadn't come, Tao Xuan would have found someone else. Ye Qiu being kicked out was inevitable; you were just the catalyst."

"I'm sorry!" Sun Xiang suddenly bowed in apology.

Liu Hao was stunned. Sun Xiang's move was completely unexpected. Wasn't Sun Xiang an arrogant and annoying brat? Apologising wasn't his usual style.

"I'm apologising to you, not to bow down, but because of Excellent Era's seven consecutive losses! I'm a professional player. I hate hypocrisy and match-fixing. The consecutive losses were my fault. I can't undo it, but I can make up for it! I'll give everything I have to lead Excellent Era to victory! Such a thing will never happen again!"

Liu Hao clapped his hands in appreciation, "Well said! But, kid, you need to understand that we live in a world full of hypocrisy. We hate hypocrites, but we all like to hear hypocritical words."

"What I said is the truth!"

"But sometimes what I say isn't the truth." Liu Hao chuckled, "I admit it; I'm a hypocrite who loves using tricks and schemes. I like to use everything at my disposal to achieve my goals."

Sun Xiang was shocked. Liu Hao admitted to his hypocrisy. But was this sincerity or just more hypocrisy? Sun Xiang felt he had discovered a paradox.

"I get it! I'll follow your lead from now on, but you can't set me up anymore! Let's compete fairly for the MVP!" Sun Xiang offered a truce.

"Please, you're still a kid." Liu Hao waved his hand dismissively and said in a mocking tone, "The world is inherently unfair, and so are Glory matches. Our situations are different. You're the rising star Tao Xuan has high hopes for, while I'm just a disposable tool once he's done with me. That itself is unfair!"

Sun Xiang fell silent. The thought of giving up the MVP made him unwilling.

Liu Hao noticed Sun Xiang's hesitation and laughed, "You're actually not so bad, just too arrogant. Compared to Qiu Fei, I prefer you."

Sun Xiang looked disgusted, "Even though I've never dated, I'm obvious that I'm straight!"

"Get lost!" Liu Hao laughed and cursed, "I meant that you're more suited to One Autumn Leaf than Qiu Fei!"

Hearing this, Su Mucheng was actually unhappy. Qiu Fei was the successor to One Autumn Leaf, which Ye Qiu had personally trained. How could Sun Xiang be more suited to One Autumn Leaf than Qiu Fei? But Su Mucheng wisely stayed silent.

Liu Hao was using his charisma to win over Sun Xiang. If he succeeded, Liu Hao would be the only voice in the Excellent Era's team channel.

Hearing Liu Hao's approval, Sun Xiang felt overjoyed and almost cheered out loud, but to maintain his cold and aloof image, he restrained himself from showing any happiness.

"Hmph, whether I'm suited for One Autumn Leaf isn't for you to judge!"

"Good luck. Your One Autumn Leaf may not surpass Ye Qiu's, but at least it might get close to him!" Liu Hao said with a smile.

"What do you mean?" Sun Xiang didn't understand.

"Silly, Ye Qiu is a three-time champion. Liu Hao means that if you listen to him, he'll lead you to become a three-time champion too!" Su Mucheng explained.

Liu Hao gave Su Mucheng an appreciative glance, realising that his goal to win over Sun Xiang had been seen through by Su Mucheng, who was now helping to push it along.

Noticing Liu Hao's gaze, Su Mucheng rolled her eyes, silently defending herself, "I'm not helping Liu Hao; I'm doing this for the harmony of Excellent Era and to win the match!"

...

Back at the Excellent Era club, Sun Xiang took the initiative to take the blame, claiming that he didn't listen to Liu Hao's reminder and lost his cool during the match, leading to his downfall.

When Tao Xuan heard this, although he still believed that Liu Hao had deliberately set up Sun Xiang, with Sun Xiang taking the blame himself, he couldn't say much more. His impulse to scold Liu Hao was forcibly suppressed.

There was nothing he could do. Sun Xiang was the future star of the Excellent Era, a cash cow like Su Mucheng. He was someone they couldn't afford to scold or hit, only pamper...

As for Liu Hao stealing Sun Xiang's MVP, the matter was left unresolved.

...

Two days later

"Brother Hao, could you do me a small favour?" Chen Yehui followed Liu Hao eagerly.

"What is it? I'm usually swamped, and I still have a date later."

"With whom? Chief Su?" Chen Yehui asked.

Liu Hao rolled his eyes. "Get lost. My girlfriend is Chen Guo. You've met her."

"Oh, right, right." Chen Yehui nodded rapidly.

"So, what's the matter? Tell me, and I'll help if I can." Liu Hao asked.

Chen Yehui quickly said, "It's actually quite simple. Recently, a player named Lord Grim has become very famous in Glory. I suspect he's Ye Qiu. Lord Grim has taken all the dungeon records, and our Excellent Dynasty's performance in the tenth server isn't good. Could you... break a dungeon record?"

(End of chapter)