The Plan Comes Together!

Sun Xiang walked back to the Excellent Era player bench, raising his chin and flaring his nostrils at Liu Hao with a slight smile. Losing the solo match to Liu Hao earlier had been a blow to his pride, but this time, pulling off a triple kill made him feel like he had regained some of his dignity.

"It's just a triple kill. And it's only your first one this season. Look at how pleased you are," Liu Hao chuckled.

Sun Xiang was taken aback, recalling that Liu Hao had completed three triple kills this season. No other player had achieved that level, and Liu Hao had even missed seven matches.

Remembering this, Sun Xiang realised he might have been boasting in an area where Liu Hao excelled, making it nothing to be proud of.

Su Mucheng gently poked Liu Hao like a cute little panda. "Liu Hao, go remind Sun Xiang to control his hand speed," Su Mucheng said.

Curious, Liu Hao turned his head to look at Su Mucheng's bright eyes. "Why don't you remind him? Don't you also know about 301 Degrees' plan?"

"He drove Ye Qiu away. I don't want to talk to him," Su Mucheng said bluntly.

Liu Hao chuckled. "What a coincidence. I don't want to talk to him either."

"But you were just talking to him."

"Oh, well, I don't want to talk to him now."

"You!" Su Mucheng was furious, but a competition is a competition. Reminding Sun Xiang was still necessary.

She looked at the players behind Liu Hao. "Which one of you will go?"

But everyone shook their heads. Setting aside the fact that the prideful Sun Xiang might get angry, they were all Liu Hao's people, and without his order, who would dare act on their own?

Seeing this, Su Mucheng had no choice but to approach Sun Xiang and say, "Sun Xiang."

Hearing Su Mucheng's voice, Sun Xiang was delighted inside but pretended to be aloof as he turned back. "What is it?"

Sun Xiang actually liked Su Mucheng a lot. Boys around 18 or 19 often like girls slightly older than them, and Sun Xiang was hoping Su Mucheng would praise him.

"I wanted to remind you that you've fallen into a trap."

"What?" Sun Xiang didn't understand.

"301 Degrees lets you get a triple kill on purpose to provoke your hand speed. You've been pushing your hand speed for nearly 20 minutes. If you keep it up in the upcoming team match, it's likely your hand speed will spiral out of control. The consequences of that could be fatal!" Su Mucheng explained.

But Sun Xiang didn't accept Su Mucheng's good intentions. When he heard, "301 Degrees let you get a triple kill on purpose," he stopped listening to the rest.

Sun Xiang frowned, veins bulging on his forehead. While he had a good impression of Su Mucheng, that didn't mean he could tolerate her questioning the authenticity of his achievement. What did she mean by "let you get a triple kill"? Was she mocking him by suggesting he only won because the opponent went easy on him?

"My business is none of your concern!" Sun Xiang said coldly.

Su Mucheng was taken aback, clearly not expecting this response from Sun Xiang. She was instantly furious. "I was kindly reminding you, and you yell at me?"

"Hmph, mind your own business!" Sun Xiang turned away. His pride wouldn't let anyone question the worth of his triple kill.

Behind him, Liu Hao was already bursting with laughter. He had anticipated that Sun Xiang wouldn't easily believe the opponent had gone easy on him, so trying to persuade him would have been futile.

Su Mucheng sat back in her seat, sulking with her lips pouted. She glared at Liu Hao's mocking expression, feeling even more upset. "I try to help, and this is what I get? Liu Hao, you knew this would happen, didn't you?"

Liu Hao nodded.

"Then why didn't you warn me?" Su Mucheng said, frustrated. "I was trying to be nice, and I got yelled at by Sun Xiang."

Liu Hao chuckled. "The result would be the same whether you warned him or not. One Autumn Leaf will still die, Excellent Era will still win, and I'll still get MVP!"

"You..." Su Mucheng was stunned to see Liu Hao's sinister smile. She realised that Liu Hao must be plotting something.

"You're trying to set up Sun Xiang to fail?" Su Mucheng lowered her voice.

"No! Sun Xiang is sacrificing himself for the team. He's a hero! After the match, we can raise our glasses in a toast!"

"Aren't you afraid that before you get to toast, Sun Xiang will come after you with a sword? Sun Xiang doesn't have Ye Qiu's patience!" Su Mucheng warned. "And the boss won't forgive you either."

"Heh, I've already planned for that. Remember, you reminded Sun Xiang, but he didn't listen. So if he dies, he can't blame us! The boss won't be able to do anything to us either!" Liu Hao laughed.

Su Mucheng froze, suddenly feeling like a pawn on a chessboard, manipulated by someone else. She didn't like that feeling at all, realising that Liu Hao had even calculated her into his plan.

...

"Let's get back to the match. The team battle has begun, and both teams are clashing head-on!" Li Yibo announced.

"Judging by the formations, it seems both teams are using strategies centred around their respective captains," Pan Lin speculated.

Sun Xiang charged straight at Yang Cong, believing himself to be the leader of Excellent Era, and thus, his opponent could only be another leader.

But unexpectedly, Yang Cong used the high mobility of his assassin class to vanish the moment he clashed with One Autumn Leaf.

Liu Hao had been closely monitoring Yang Cong's movements and noticed that Scene Killer was heading straight for him. "Are they targeting me as the breakthrough point for Excellent Era?"

"Boss, I'll support you!" Shen Jian immediately moved to assist.

Liu Hao quickly stopped him. He couldn't wait to be tangled up with Yang Cong right now. Without Yang Cong, wouldn't he have to go help Sun Xiang?

"Shen Jian, just protect Dancing Rain. Scene Killer can't take me down!" Liu Hao commanded.

Seeing that Scene Killer wasn't facing him but instead going after Liu Hao, Sun Xiang snorted and turned to provide support, only to find a knight blocking his way.

Tide!

"Damn! It's you again!" Sun Xiang groaned, recalling the exhausting battle just a few minutes earlier, which almost made him want to vomit.

Sun Xiang wanted to bypass Tide to strike down Yang Cong's Scene Killer, but Xu Bin anticipated Sun Xiang's move and immediately used a Taunt, locking One Autumn Leaf's aggro.

Now, Sun Xiang couldn't escape even if he wanted to.

Liu Hao, seeing that Sun Xiang was caught up with Xu Bin, was delighted but still put on a concerned front. He asked, "Sun Xiang, can you beat Xu Bin? If not, I'll send Shen Jian to help you!"

This question was loaded. Liu Hao didn't ask if Sun Xiang needed support but instead used a taunting question, implying that Sun Xiang might not be able to handle Xu Bin.

This put Sun Xiang in a tough spot. Even if he needed support, he couldn't admit it now because that would mean admitting he couldn't beat Xu Bin!

"No need! I can handle it!" Sun Xiang gritted his teeth, though he secretly hoped Shen Jian would come and help.

"If you don't need support, then good luck!" Liu Hao smiled and then focused on his battle with Scene Killer.

"Xu Bin's Tide has entangled Sun Xiang's One Autumn Leaf. Xu Bin's crowd control abilities are among the best in Glory. Even the number one knight in Glory, Deng Fusheng, might not be better at it. It seems One Autumn Leaf won't be able to break free for quite some time."

"Okay, let's shift the focus back to the fight between Total Darkness and Scene Killer! Scene Killer has engaged Total Darkness, so it looks like 301 Degrees is targeting Total Darkness as their primary kill objective!" Li Yibo commented.

"Coach Li, Excellent Era's strategy revolves around One Autumn Leaf. Now that he's restrained, shouldn't Scene Killer target Dancing Rain instead? After all, Dancing Rain is One Autumn Leaf's best partner!"

Li Yibo's mouth twitched. He thought, how should I know why Scene Killer isn't going after Dancing Rain? But Li Yibo wasn't about to admit on camera that he didn't know. He pretended to be calm and explained, "In the five matches Liu Hao has played this season, he won MVP in four of them. After recovering from his injury and returning, 301 Degrees sees Liu Hao as a bigger threat than Dancing Rain, so Yang Cong targeted Total Darkness instead."

"I see, as expected of Coach Li," Pan Lin agreed with the explanation.

Luckily, Yang Cong couldn't hear the commentary. Otherwise, he'd be furious and shout, "Nonsense!"

In fact, Yang Cong was puzzled himself. He had intended to target Dancing Rain, but that martial artist Shen Jian had been guarding her closely, not leaving her side, like a loyal knight protecting a princess!

Shen Jian's combat stats this season weren't outstanding, but his defensive play was top-notch. Even if Yang Cong were confident in a one-on-one, Shen Jian would die in front of Dancing Rain!

---

Yang Cong's tactic was originally to limit Sun Xiang, assassinate Mucheng, and then let Sun Xiang's hand speed get out of control and become out of sync with his team, seizing the opportunity to take down Excellent Era.

But now, it was as if the small train had derailed. Shen Jian swore to protect Dancing Rain at all costs, preventing him from assassinating him and forcing him to shift his target to Total Darkness, causing a deviation in the execution of the tactic.

"Damn it! Your team leader is already restrained, and you, a martial artist, aren't going to provide support?!" Yang Cong shouted, his movements becoming even more fierce.

Scene Killer first used an aerial two-hit combo to dodge Liu Hao's Wave Sword, then a landing roll and Arc Slash, causing blood to splash from Total Darkness's neck.

Yang Cong was actually suppressing Total Darkness!

Su Mucheng glanced at Total Darkness's performance and immediately frowned, "Liu Hao, you're deliberately letting him off, right?"

"No, I'm doing my best, but I can't beat him. What can I do? Why don't you come and help?" Liu Hao feigned innocence.

Su Mucheng gritted her teeth in frustration. Liu Hao could predict even Han Wenqin's second-tier positioning, so how could he not predict a two-hit combo? And Scene Killer, who could even defeat Sun Xiang, was not someone he should lose to. Isn't this deliberately letting him win?

"I won't help you! If I come to help, One Autumn Leaf will die!" Su Mu Cheng said harshly.

"Tch." Liu Hao scoffed, knowing that Su Mucheng would never let Sun Xiang be easily trapped. But it didn't matter if Su Mu Cheng didn't provide support; after all, One Autumn Leaf was destined to be sacrificed for victory in this script.

"Give me healing!" Liu Hao said calmly.

"Okay, Hao Ge!" Zhang Jiaxing hurriedly used a minor healing spell to restore Total Darkness's health.

Yang Cong was infuriated to see his health restored, which he had worked so hard to deplete. He almost spilt blood in frustration.

"What the hell! What's Excellent Era doing? Isn't One Autumn Leaf supposed to be the core? Why is Shen Jian not only not supporting One Autumn Leaf but also not healing him?" Yang Cong felt helpless.

Killing Total Darkness was clearly out of the question, and instead, Liu Hao restricted him.

Liu Hao silently laughed. Not giving him all was actually part of his plan. What if he had tried his best, frightened Scene Killer, and changed his tactics? If he hadn't killed Sun Xiang and, with Dancing Rain's support, Sun Xiang had stolen his MVP, it would have been a severe problem.

While Total Darkness and Scene Killer are still in a stalemate, Sun Xiang is about to be driven mad by Xu Bin. Xu Bin, the ground king, was tormenting Sun Xiang with his Turtle Shell Knight, making Sun Xiang suffer greatly.

In addition, Sun Xiang had to endure the encirclement of the other two members of 301 Degrees.

Sun Xiang's anger was gradually rising due to Xu Bin's provocation, and his hand speed unconsciously soared. If it was just a triple hit before, now Sun Xiang was truly fighting one against three!

One Auumn Leaf's operations were getting faster and faster, and in the one-versus-three situation, he was actually not falling behind at all.

But Su Mucheng furrowed her brows as she watched. She quickly reminded, "Sun Xiang, watch your hand speed, be careful of losing control!"

"No need for you to worry; I can handle it!" Sun Xiang gritted his teeth and persisted.

Su Mucheng was even more enraged. Whether Sun Xiang increased his hand speed or not was actually irrelevant to her. What mattered was that One Autumn Leaf's operations were too fast, and their screen windmill was not well-coordinated. Now, due to Sun Xiang's excessively high hand speed, Su Mucheng could no longer coordinate with One Autumn Leaf to execute their screen windmill tactic.

Liu Hao glanced at Sun Xiang's rapidly moving left hand, so fast it was almost leaving an afterimage. He couldn't help but smile, having already accelerated for more than twenty minutes. Now, with even higher speed, losing control was just around the corner.

Yang Cong had just used a Heart-Piercing Stab, hitting the distracted and unguarded Total Darkness.

Yang Cong was taken aback. What's going on? This Heart-Piercing Stab shouldn't have hit. He had prepared a follow-up skill, so why did it hit?

Something was wrong. Could it be that Liu Hao had just been distracted? Yang Cong thought he had figured out the truth. "Damn it, getting beaten so badly and still daring to be distracted?"

Taking advantage of the Heart-Piercing Stab's stun, Yang Cong immediately followed up with a high-explosion combo.

Liu Hao didn't mind, as Zhang Jiaxing used a primary healing spell to restore health.

The situation was now bizarre. Yang Cong was actually suppressing the Demon King Liu Hao? Su Mu Cheng was only focusing on not firing? Why was Shen Jian staying by Dancing Rain's side and not supporting One Autumn Leaf?

What was Excellent Era doing?

Amidst the audience's doubts, the climax of the match finally arrived!

Because Sun Xiang's hand speed had soared too high, his left hand twitched slightly, causing a skill release error from One Autumn Leaf, and the Battle Spear missed.

Xu Bin saw this and rejoiced, "Sun Xiang's hand speed is out of control! Seize the opportunity and take him down!"

Seeing One Autumn Leaf's operation falter, Su Mucheng immediately realised that Sun Xiang's hand speed had gone out of control and rushed to support with the Flying Cannon, only to be intercepted by Xu Bin alone.

In terms of defence, Shen Jian was skilled, but Xu Bin was a top-level player! In just a momentary gap, 301 Degrees' swordsman Stellar Sword and Demon Sword Master Wen Ji Lu's combo took down One Autumn Leaf on the spot.

Sun Xiang stared blankly at his grey-white screen. He was so close to breaking through 301 Degrees' blockade. How did his left hand suddenly cramp at the last moment?

Seeing One Autumn Leaf fall, Liu Hao smiled slightly, "Now I'll take over the match. Follow my instructions, Shen Jian, get into position!"

Liu Hao marked a coordinate for Shen Jian at lightning speed.

"Understood!" Shen Jian replied excitedly and swiftly took the position.

Yang Cong, seeing One Autumn Leaf fall, hadn't had time to be pleased before Total Darkness, as if operated by someone else, executed a fierce slash that predicted his movement and sent him flying.

Scene Killer retreated, crashing into the nearby martial artist and continuing to advance. Yang Cong didn't know when Shen Jian had moved to that position. Seeing Shen Jian charging up for the Emperor's Fist, Yang Cong panicked and hurriedly tried to use a displacement skill, but the character did not respond.

Yang Cong then realised he had been tricked. Liu Hao hadn't been using his full strength earlier but had deliberately feigned weakness, causing him to exhaust his displacement skills during the suppression.

"It's over!"

"Focus fire!" Liu Hao ordered.

Instantly, Heat-Seeking Missiles, Emperor's Fist, and Extreme Realm Lightning Wave, three significant skills, were unleashed at Scene Killer.

Scene Killer fell!

(End of this chapter)