Chapter 289: Bad to the Bone

“Xixi tells me that the fifty thousand yuan payment will be given out steadily over the course of the tournament. The prize money for your placing in the tournament will be awarded immediately upon the conclusion of the tournament! There shouldn’t be any delays in this regard,” Lin Dong explained.

Delays in awarding prize money were a common problem in tournaments, whether in gaming or elsewhere.

This delay could be the doing of the event organizers, or the patron agency behind a team.

Everyone in Team Skycrown had experienced this suffering before. Probably everyone in that line of work knew what it meant, to wait for days without end, wondering when you’d finally get your due.

The League of Legends Professional League (LPL) represented the premier official ‘League of Legends’ tournament within the nation. Tencent Holdings, as a magnificent gesture, would literally be handing out the prize money on the spot, as soon as the winners were decided!

With no agency to answer to, Team Skycrown didn’t have to worry about anyone else holding up the pipeline. That was to say, as long as they finished all their games, that would be a hundred thousand yuan in the bank!

Lin Dong had only found this out after they’d already qualified for the LPL.

All this while they’d only been thinking about training, trying to carry over their old methods from DOTA. They’d been aiming for the LPL purely to get some recognition locally.

At first, they’d moaned about how the pre-season tournament offered no reward money. Little did they know that making it into the LPL meant a guaranteed one hundred thousand yuan!

For a penniless pro gaming team like theirs, this was the best news ever!

Money, money, money. Team Skycrown’s biggest problem right now was money. If they didn’t find a source of revenue soon, they would starve.

Starting up a pro team with no capital was rough. No one understood this better than them.

For now, this guaranteed one hundred thousand yuan had renewed their faith in this career path. They could see a ray of hope!

Just getting into the LPL was worth one hundred thousand bucks. What if they did well in the tournament?

This was even before any talk of investment from sponsors, advertising royalties—LOL was a hot commodity on the internet right now, and a major factor in sales of computer peripherals!

This was the very definition of one game supporting the livelihoods of countless people, and forming the basis of an entire industry.

Yup. Da Luo, Zhou Yan, Lin Dong, Xiao Bei, and Wu Sen would just like to give their thanks to CCTV, Tencent, and the LPL!

Since it had been clearly stated that they’d be receiving regular payments once the tournament began, it took a huge load off their minds regarding living expenses and the like. All they had to do was endure these crappy conditions for another couple of months or so, and sharpen their skills to a gleaming edge!

If they were getting a hundred thousand yuan at the very least, then what if they placed fifth or sixth? Third, or fourth? What if they really made it into the top two?

Of course they’d want more!

They wanted to move out of this apartment which was costing them eight hundred a month. They wanted to have better computers than these ones with the buzzing motherboards. They wanted to upgrade their broadband so they could stream videos faster than this torturous speed that they had to put up with right now—no, if they had the money, they’d just go pick up some chicks! So much better than watching videos!

And no more instant noodles! It was such that they wanted to throw up at the very smell of it! They would have meat! They would have a feast!

***

When he finally bid farewell to the team, Luocheng didn’t take the train back home directly, but instead headed for Hangzhou, in Zhejiang Province.

(Translator’s Note: Beautiful parks and gardens here. Go in the summer. Great for honeymoon vacations. Mysteriously, all the girls there look like Reese Witherspoon.)

Ever since the LOL University League, Luocheng had been missing his beloved goddess of legs. Now that he was on break, he charged headlong towards where she was, hoping to slake his thirst a little.

They’d been calling each other every day, which only allowed Yang Qianqian to tease him mercilessly. He couldn’t restrain himself any longer—the moment he clapped eyes on her again, he’d be sure to get a few kisses off of her.

***

When he arrived in Hangzhou, Qianqian was already waiting for him. They’d agreed to go back by bullet train.

A cold winter wind blew through the area.

Disembarking and then moving to the waiting lobby, he saw a bright-eyed girl standing amid the rows of seats, dressed up like a white cottontail bunny.

Hands clasped behind her back, she was leaning forward slightly to read a notice that had been pasted upon a pillar. Her long, luscious legs were pressed together, the lithe outline of her body setting Luocheng’s heart afire!

What a treat! And, even better: If they stood together, side-by-side, they would look like the perfect couple!

He walked up to her and put his arms around her waist, then kissed her hungrily upon one cheek, a salacious leer blooming across his face.

“Ugh, you gave me a fright!” Dainty fists rained down upon him, pinching and poking, obviously embarrassed to be embraced like this in public.

“Got the tickets?” he asked.

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“Yup, let’s go back.” She wouldn’t let him keep his arms around her, but yet she took hold of his hand, and led him towards the checkpoint nearby.

Qianqian had hardly any luggage with her—just one suitcase—while Luocheng himself only had a large backpack on him.

“By the way, if you’re going home, then what about Team Skycrown?” Qianqian enquired.

They talked on the phone every day. Qianqian had heard a lot about the team, and she was also aware that her psycho boyfriend had gone so far as to tussle with none other than the illustrious Blood Eagle himself.

Not even Qianqian had suspected that Luocheng was actually that good. Thinking back to the feud between classrooms during their high-school days, Luocheng had been doing a remarkable job of maintaining a low profile. Who would have known that, when he unleashed his full power, he would immediately be counted among the best in the entire nation?

Many times, she’d asked him if he intended to return to playing professionally. He’d never answered her.

On the train, Qianqian looked out the window, and distant memories revisited her, unbidden.

“What if your father’s condition is much improved?” she suddenly wondered aloud.

“Who knows. I was genuinely worried at the outset, and I know they all want me back in the saddle. Yang Ying says I can apply to put my classes on hold, or even to only sit for the exams, and I’ll still get the degree scroll and testimonial just the same. I haven’t yet sorted out my own feelings on the matter, though.”

It was only in front of Qianqian that Luocheng could reveal honest thoughts like these.

His thoughts were all in a jumble.

In his dreams, he saw the despair in their eyes as they stood on the brink of defeat. He relived the helplessness of being confined to backstage.

He told Qianqian about these feelings he’d had.

“Actually, it’s not about whether or not you can do anything to help them—it’s about whether or not you yourself want to return to the arena. If your only motivation is the travails of your comrades, and a desire to help see them past their trials, I don’t see that as much of a reason to return. You’ll just leave again one day, and they’ll have to deal with the pain of parting once more.

“The only worthwhile reason is if you genuinely want to reclaim your former glory for yourself. If that becomes true, then you should return,” Qianqian decided.

“For myself…” Qianqian’s words struck a chord deep within him.

The problem was that even he wasn’t sure whether or not he truly wished to return to the competitive scene.

There were still embers glowing within his heart—but he feared that someone would come along and crush them underfoot.

Never mind. For now, Team Skycrown had five players, making up a full team. Even if he joined up with them, he’d mainly just be performing tactical analyses. They all played well—they just needed more time to practice and rehearse.

***

“Hey, is Luocheng back yet?” Wang Qin’s booming voice thundered from the phone. “Let’s go play some Ranked, man! I’m pretty imba now, let me tell you. Never mind Gold or Platinum, all fodder before my might. Don’t believe me? I’ll screenshot my profile to you right now.”

“I’m already on the train heading back. What are you getting so worked up for?” Luocheng asked.

“Damn it, I’ve been training hard in uni, you know? Listen here: We’ve got a genuine talent over here, best among the best. I help him pick up chicks, he trains me in LOL. Lin Xu and his chumps have been making noise again, demanding a showdown with our Class 8, and I’ve taken him up on it. Don’t worry, I can handle them all by myself!

“Oh yeah, what tier are you? I hear you and Qianqian are shacked up these days? Spending your days mooning over a girl, I bet you haven’t been training at all! Come on, let’s have a solo duel between us. Twenty bucks a pop, how’s that? Hahaha!”

Snuggled up in Luocheng’s arms, Qianqian heard what Wang Qin had said, and was shaking so much she could barely keep straight.

Challenging Yu Luocheng to a solo duel? Had Wang Qin learned nothing, even after all this time?

Qianqian was certain that Wang Qin had watched that viral video from half a month ago, about Blood Eagle vs. the mystery player. If he knew that the anonymous player who’d fought Blood Eagle to a standstill was none other than Luocheng himself, his jaw would definitely hit the floor!

This Wang Qin… all he knew was that Luocheng had put on a pretty good showing during the Coca-Cola Cup. If only he knew how Luocheng’s exploits in university would have all the LOL players in Lecheng wetting their pants with fright!

“Forget about a solo duel. I’ve had no time to play LOL in university. Qianqian keeps summoning me to Hangzhou.” Luocheng was nothing if not modest.

“I knew the two of you were… ah, to think that you were the one who stole away that fair damsel. Damn it, this won’t do! You’ve sullied our idol, and I’ve got to teach you a lesson! Solo duel, fifty bucks per round—no, a hundred!”

“One hundred per round?” Luocheng’s eyes lit up.

“That’s right, one hundred each round. Argh, just thinking about it pisses me off!”

“Ah… well then, you ought to have an outlet for all that pent-up stress. I guess I could give it a shot. I wouldn’t want to be rude.” Luocheng strove to effect a tone of great reluctance, as though expecting to be beaten badly, but resigning himself to it anyway, if only for the sake of their friendship.

Listening in beside him, Qianqian was giggling like a jubilant songbird.

This Luocheng… he was bad to the bone! She ought to beware of him!

Luocheng ended the call and, utterly bewitched by Qianqian’s boundless charms, took advantage of the deserted train car to pull her close and peck her several times!

Shrugging him off at last, Qianqian said, “I wonder, the day when you return to pro gaming, what sort of looks our old schoolmates will be wearing on their faces.”

Luocheng couldn’t guess how their old schoolmates would respond to that, but he felt he had a pretty good idea of how his family would take it.