The Savior of Excellent Era
Liu Hao pulled out the leather gaming chair and sat down, taking his account card from the drawer.
"Total Darkness"—this account card hadn't appeared in the audience's view for seven weeks. Liu Hao missed seven matches, but instead of being forgotten, his fans' calls for him reached an unprecedented height.
But this also led some players to forget his operational prowess. At least, Sun Xiang thought Liu Hao was not worth fearing.
"Liu Hao, I hope you'll honour your bet!" Sun Xiang said confidently.
Liu Hao chuckled indifferently, "Of course, I'll honour it!"
But some people, even if they wanted to honour a bet, might not be able to…
The match began, and the map chosen was the most straightforward arena.
Everyone was curious about this battle and gathered to watch. Interestingly, all the team members ran over to Liu Hao's side, leaving Sun Xiang with no one.
The crowd gathering around made Liu Hao feel a bit hot, "Shen Jian, project this solo match onto the big screen; it'll be easier to watch."
Shen Jian obediently projected the match onto the electronic screen at the front of the training room.
Sun Xiang glanced over and sneered, "What? Do you want everyone to clearly see how I crush you?"
Liu Hao rolled his eyes and ignored Sun Xiang's trash talk, finding it harmless from this little brat, "No problem recording it, right?"
"Of course not!" Sun Xiang replied.
Liu Hao grinned, waiting for that exact response.
…
The match started, and Sun Xiang, controlling "One Autumn Leaf," launched the first attack.
Sun Xiang's previous profession was Berserker, but that didn't mean he was only skilled at Berserkers. He was the Rookie King of the seventh season, and besides being good at Berserkers, his Battle Mage was also exceptional. This was the confidence behind his replacing Ye Qiu and taking over One Autumn Leaf.
"Liu Hao, I'll beat you into submission!" Sun Xiang said viciously.
Liu Hao calmly replied, "Go ahead and try!"
"Total Darkness" casually swung his sword, and the Wave Sword slashed out. One Autumn Leaf instinctively dodged but got hit right on target.
Sun Xiang froze for a moment—Liu Hao had predicted his movements?
It wasn't surprising that Sun Xiang was shocked. He had never truly faced Liu Hao before. In the previous match between Excellent Era and Coquering Clouds, Liu Hao deliberately avoided facing Sun Xiang and instead let Su Mucheng carry on. Without firsthand experience, Sun Xiang had no real sense of Liu Hao's strength, which was why he wasn't afraid of him at all.
Liu Hao was smart, choosing not to engage in close combat with Sun Xiang but instead relying on the mid-range skills of his Demon Swordsman and his prediction ability to chip away from a distance.
Although the close combat of the Dark Arts Flow was intense, it wasn't entirely on par with assault classes like the Battle Mage. Moreover, Sun Xiang's operational skills were not weak, and Liu Hao wouldn't allow himself to lose stupidly.
The Wave Sword slashed out repeatedly, each time hitting One Autumn Leaf. Sun Xiang gradually grew more frustrated—Liu Hao's predictions were too accurate! He wanted to use "Tyrant's Destruction" to force a close-range battle but suddenly remembered that Liu Hao still had a Swirl Bullet Counter that could block it. If Liu Hao managed to block his "Tyrant's Destruction," it would be nearly impossible to defeat him without significant skill.
Liu Hao steadily kept his distance, operating calmly, like leisurely walking through a traffic-jammed street, with cars passing by but none able to hit him.
Without understanding Liu Hao's prediction abilities, Sun Xiang suffered a significant loss, losing 30% of his health before even touching "Total Darkness."
"Damn it!" Sun Xiang cursed, his frustration bottled up with no outlet.
"Surrender. If you can't dodge my skills, you can't win. Besides, I still have a guard skill—oh no, it's the Swirl Bullet Counter!" Liu Hao said with a smile.
Translated, that meant: "You can't beat me!"
Sun Xiang's face turned red with anger, "Don't get cocky! Once your skills are on cooldown, it'll be your death!"
"You really don't cry until you see the coffin, huh?" Liu Hao said as he slashed out his final Wave Sword, once again hitting One Autumn Leaf.
Seeing his chance, Sun Xiang quickly closed the distance and thrust his spear, only to have it blocked by "Total Darkness."
One Autumn Leaf followed up with a spin and executed a "Sky Strike"—a problematic manoeuvre involving a backhand Sky Strike.
Even Liu Hao was momentarily surprised, not because the move was familiar but because it was so unfamiliar.
When Ye Qiu was captain of the Excellent Era, Liu Hao duelled with him many times but had never seen Ye Qiu use such flashy but impractical moves.
That's right, Sun Xiang's backhand Sky Strike was flashy but impractical. A regular Sky Strike would have sufficed and would've been a few milliseconds faster.
Liu Hao easily dodged the backhand Sky Strike and used the brief moment Sun Xiang wasted to slash One Autumn Leaf into the air with a Drawn Sword.
"Not bad!" Liu Hao didn't follow up on the airborne One Autumn Leaf with an attack but instead clapped as if in praise, "Just for that backhand Sky Strike alone, if I were Tao Xuan, I'd choose you too!"
"What do you mean?" Sun Xiang was getting angry. Liu Hao was clearly belittling him. Why didn't he follow up with an attack when he had him airborne?
"What do I mean? I'm praising your commercial value!" Liu Hao laughed, "Do you know why Ye Qiu was kicked out? Because he had no commercial value. Players now pursue more visually appealing styles, but Ye Qiu's style had no distinctive features, making it extremely old-fashioned."
Sun Xiang didn't understand what Liu Hao meant. Was he saying his style looked good?
"Sky Strike, Backhand Sky Strike, and V-Sky Strike all deal the same damage, but in the audience's eyes, the latter two look cooler and are more difficult to execute, making the players who perform them seem stronger," Liu Hao said, "Even though your backhand Sky Strike was flashy but impractical, that's exactly what the audience wants to see."
"What are you trying to say?"
"What I'm saying is, we're actually the same kind of people, both pursuing more visually appealing styles and commercial value. So, Ye Qiu had no commercial value, and it was only right that he got kicked out." Liu Hao's face suddenly turned cold, "But don't get it twisted—it wasn't you who kicked out Ye Qiu; it was Ye Qiu who kicked himself out! Comparing yourself to Ye Qiu? You're not even close!"
Liu Hao's taunt struck Sun Xiang like thunder, paralysing him with shock. The trash talk rendered Sun Xiang's mind blank.
Liu Hao no longer held back, his hand speed surging to 550 actions per minute. The terrifying offensive overwhelmed Sun Xiang's One Autumn Leaf, and three minutes later, One Autumn Leaf was defeated.
At the moment the match ended, the room erupted in exclamations and applause. This wasn't a solo match; it was a one-sided massacre.
Sun Xiang clenched his teeth. He was unconvinced. He didn't understand Liu Hao's playstyle and lost without any counter-strategy. In his heart, he refused to accept it, but he had already said he would honour the bet...
"I lost." Sun Xiang clenched his fists so tightly that his nails nearly pierced his skin, and his eyes were bloodshot.
"Of course, you lost. Even if we played again, you'd still lose. Even if you used your Berserker, you'd still lose." Liu Hao mocked without mercy, "So? Ready to go tell Tao Xuan you're resigning?"
Sun Xiang stayed silent for a moment, then nodded reluctantly, "I'll honour my bet and tell the boss to let you be the captain, but I still don't believe I'd lose to you in another match!"
Liu Hao smiled and waved, "Let's hope you keep your word then!"
Sun Xiang stood up and walked alone toward Tao Xuan's office.
…
"Hao-ge, congratulations! You finally became the captain of Excellent Era!" Wang Ze was the first to flatter him.
Shen Jian and He Ming weren't far behind. Zhang Jiaxing and Guo Yang quickly followed suit with their congratulations. Only Su Mucheng snorted coldly, her face full of disdain.
In her mind, there was only one captain of the Excellent Era—Ye Qiu. Sun Xiang wasn't worthy, and this scoundrel Liu Hao was even less so.
Liu Hao didn't mind and raised his hand to stop the others from celebrating further, "I can't be the captain of Excellent Era."
Everyone was stunned, "Boss? Why not? Didn't Sun Xiang go to tell the boss? Or are you unwilling?"
Liu Hao shook his head with a smile, "Of course, I'm willing to be the captain of Excellent Era, but being the captain isn't just about whether the team members want it or not."
Liu Hao crossed his legs and looked up at the ceiling, "Even if Sun Xiang offered to give up the captaincy, Tao Xuan wouldn't agree. This isn't child's play. One Autumn Leaf is the foundation of Excellent Era, and in the future, Excellent Era will focus on promoting Sun Xiang. So, the captain of Excellent Era must be the one who controls One Autumn Leaf, which means the captain must be Sun Xiang."
He Ming suddenly understood, "But if that's the case, why did you bet with Sun Xiang in the first place? You knew he couldn't fulfil the bet."
Liu Hao chuckled and explained, "Of course, I did it on purpose. Having Sun Xiang go to Tao Xuan and resign as captain was my way of sending Tao Xuan a message…"
"I wanted to tell Tao Xuan that the person he chose couldn't beat me!" Liu Hao said word by word, "And since Sun Xiang couldn't fulfil the bet, he'll feel indebted to me. That's a favour he'll owe, and he'll have to repay it someday!"
Here's the translation of the text into English:
---
"'Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant!' Shen Jian and others couldn't help but applaud in admiration.
Su Mucheng, however, frowned, thinking to herself that Liu Hao was being far too insidious. In comparison, Sun Xiang seemed like a harmless little lamb, trembling under the knives of Tao Xuan and Liu Hao.
…
The door to Tao Xuan's office was knocked on.
'Come in.' Seeing who it was, Tao Xuan immediately put on a kindly smile despite his heavy expression. 'Ah, it's Sun Xiang. Do you need something?'
Sun Xiang nodded, his expression grave as he said, 'Boss, I want… to resign from the position of captain of Excellent Era.'
Tao Xuan was stunned, and then his face darkened. 'What happened?'
Sun Xiang recounted the recent incident where he lost a bet, word for word.
Tao Xuan remained silent, his expression terrifyingly grim. Being a man of a dishonest nature, he naturally understood from Sun Xiang's words that this was Liu Hao's way of challenging him.
However, changing the captain of the Excellent Era was out of the question, and Sun Xiang's resignation would not be accepted.
Sun Xiang was the key player that Excellent Era intended to promote, and he was also the current operator of One Autumn Leaf. He couldn't just be a minor team member in Excellent Era; even the position of vice-captain would be beneath him. Sun Xiang could only be the captain!
'Sun Xiang…' Tao Xuan forced a smile. 'Being the captain of Excellent Era isn't something you can just quit because you don't want to do it. Excellent Era needs you to lead the team and help us make it to the playoffs and win the championship.'
'But I lost the bet; I can't go back on my word!' Sun Xiang retorted stubbornly.
Tao Xuan waved his hand and smiled. 'That doesn't count as going back on your word. At most, it was just a friendly exchange between team members. Don't worry, I'll explain it to Liu Hao.'
Sun Xiang wasn't satisfied with this answer, but since the boss had spoken, he couldn't force his resignation and had no choice but to leave.
'Liu Hao, I'll owe you one this time,' Sun Xiang muttered through gritted teeth. In the end, he sighed. From now on, he would no longer be able to act arrogantly in front of Liu Hao.
…
Tao Xuan's face was dark as he took out his phone and sent Liu Hao a message: 'If you target Sun Xiang or go against Excellent Era's development strategy again, I won't hesitate to suspend you for another season!'
…
Ding!
Liu Hao glanced at his phone and chuckled before putting it away.
'Speaking of which, the next match is against 301 Degrees, isn't it?' Liu Hao mused. 'This will be Sun Xiang's debut. Sun Xiang managed a one-on-three, but unfortunately, he lost control of his hand speed at the end, causing a flaw in the team's coordination that allowed 301 Degrees to win.'
Liu Hao pondered over the possibilities in this match.
…
In no time, on Friday night, we arrived.
At the Xingxin Internet Cafe, Ye Qiu woke up, went downstairs, and saw that the big electronic screen in the hall was broadcasting the eSports channel. The match hadn't started yet, but the hall was already crowded with customers.
'Which match is being broadcasted, Boss?' Ye Qiu asked.
Chen Guo replied excitedly, 'Of course, it's an Excellent Era! This match is going to be really exciting. Not only is it Liu Hao's return after recovering from his hand injury, but it's also Sun Xiang's first match after taking over One Autumn Leaf from the retired Ye Qiu!'
Ye Qiu nodded in understanding. Chen Guo was a fan of Excellent Era and also Liu Hao's girlfriend, so it made sense that she would be showing this match.
'Who are they playing against?' Ye Qiu asked again.
'301 Degrees,' Chen Guo answered. 'Excellent Era is sure to win.'
Ye Qiu smiled. Even he couldn't guarantee Excellent Era's victory until the very last moment of the match.
301 Degrees was actually quite strong. They were an established team in the Glory Professional Alliance, consistently ranked in the upper-middle tier with stable performance. Moreover, the captain of 301 Degrees, Yang Cong, was hailed as Glory's number one assassin. He was known for his double-sword style, which had cut through countless opponents. He was a formidable adversary.
After the players appeared and the opening remarks were made, the match officially began.
…
In the first solo match, 301 Degrees sent out their player, Gao Jie, whose character was called Stellar Sword.
The audience didn't react much, but when Liu Hao appeared, the cheers were nearly loud enough to lift the roof.
Since Liu Hao's injury and subsequent hiatus, Excellent Era's winning streak had been broken, followed by a crushing seven-match losing streak. Ye Qiu had suddenly retired due to age and declining form.
If there were anyone who could be considered the saviour of the Excellent Era today, it definitely wouldn't be the newly recruited Sun Xiang, but rather the returning Liu Hao!
(End of Chapter)"