Chapter 340 – China VS USA (Best Wishes Before the Game)
The finals of the World Competition would be held at 10 a.m. on October 12th. There were three days left before the final battle.
The players of the national team rushed to the training room early the next morning. Once the door opened, Li Cangyu was sitting down and looking at the data while Ling Xuefeng turned on the projector and inserted the USB flash drive into the laptop he brought with him.
Once all the players arrived, Li Cangyu put down the data and swept over the people present. “The finals is three days away. How do you feel? Are you nervous?”
Cheng Wei excitedly raised his hands first,. “I’m a bit nervous but also excited!”
Tan Shitian smiled slightly and said, “You were really excited. You dreamt of playing the game last night and said a bunch of things like you want to abuse the American team.”
Cheng Wei’s face was red with embarrassment as he grabbed his head. “There was something like that?”
Tan Shitian nodded. “Yes.”
He also punched the pillow for a way, wanting to fight the US team in his dream.
“Don’t mention it Xiao Wei, I am also very excited. I dreamt that we won the championship last night.” Li Cangyu stated.
“No wonder why you’re in such a good mood today. It turned out to be a good dream.” Ling Xuefeng looked over at him. “I have a hunch that your dream will come true.”
“I think so too.” Li Cangyu smiled. “It wasn’t easy for us to kill all the way to the finals. In the last game, I hope that everyone can adjust their mentality, play well and play to our true standards. Don’t leave regrets in the World Competition.”
“I understand!” Everyone nodded to show their understanding.
The finals would have tremendous pressure, especially since this was the United States’ home. Putting aside the benefits of the location, any players with a poor psychological quality could easily make mistakes.
Li Cangyu was right. This competition didn’t require everyone to play in an extraordinary manner. It was enough to stabilize their mentality and play to their usual level.
***
The PPT made by Ling Xuefeng was still simple and clear. Li Cangyu opened the file and gave the overall introduction and tactical analysis.
“The captain of the US team, Noah is currently the number one black magician in the world. The vice-captain Winfrey is regarded as a goddess by the American netizens and is an excellent healer. There are also the blood kin summoner Jack Josh, the archer Thomas, the assassin Edmund and the swordsman Benjamin. Everyone one of them is world-class level.”
“In terms of lineup configuration, the US team is very comprehensive. They have several styles of play that they are good at, such as the assassination stream with Edmund as the core, the summoner stream with Jack as the core and the black magician play with Noah as the core. Their strength is equal to our national team.” Li Cangyu paused and said, “It isn’t easy to win against the US team. Everyone needs to prepare for a tough five games.”
It was a competition involving masters. The difference between winning and losing was one thought. Li Cangyu couldn’t guarantee that the Chinese team would win but at the very least, they should try their best in every game.
Moreover, the lineup when facing a very strong team was critical. The Chinese team had to carefully consider the deployment of personnel and be fully ready to play five games. If all the gods were sent in the beginning and couldn’t be sent in the next game, the other side could counterattack.
South Korea made this mistake in the semi-finals. Park Joonseo was too anxious and sent many star players in the opening in order to kill the Chinese team in one breath. The result was that the Chinese team sent stronger players in the later stages and killed the Korean team. Being too confident wasn’t a good thing and they should maintain a stable game.
Next, Li Cangyu chose several countermeasures for the various lineups of the US team, had the leaders choose fixed teammates and let everyone fight each other.
Everyone started to train carefully and none of them dared slack off.
Time passed extremely quickly. Three days later, the Chinese team had breakfast at the restaurant and met the US team. Like the last time he met the Korean team, Li Cangyu took the initiative to say to the US team’s vice-captain Winfrey. “I’m cheering for you.”
His English wasn’t very good but daily communication wasn’t a problem.
Winfrey heard this sentence and wasn’t very surprised. She replied, “I heard that you cheered on the Korean team before the game. The result was that the Korean team lost?”
Li Cangyu replied in a straightforward manner. “Yes, today the US team might also lose. It is because my cheering contains a very strong negative state. Under this state, you will make a mistake.”
Winfrey smiled. “Is this the mysterious Oriental force?”
Li Cangyu joked, “Yes, we call it poison milk. It is toxic milk powder and eating it will force people into a bad state.”
Winfrey questioned, “Poisonous milk powder?”
Li Cangyu demonstrated it with gestures. Winfrey obviously failed to understand what poisonous milk powder meant and looked at Li Cangyu with a puzzled expression.
Ling Xuefeng saw him and the big beauty of the US team talking and laughing and finally couldn’t help walking over to say hello to Winfrey. Then he placed an arm around Li Cangyu’s shoulder and dragged him away. “I grabbed you a plate of grilled fish. Go to eat it.”
Li Cangyu heard fish and immediately treated the beauty Winfrey as air. He turned to eat fish with Ling Xuefeng.
WInfrey was confused and after a moment of thinking, she smiled. “The captain of the Chinese team is really interesting.”
In the group stage and semi-finals, she just smiled and passed by when meeting the captains of other captains yet Li Cangyu could speak a few words to her. He might be an opponent but he didn’t seem very resistant to the American team. His expression was very relaxed when chatting, which showed he was actually very confident.
Only those who weren’t afraid of their opponents could talk to their opponents.
Li Cangyu could do this, showing that his mental strength was extremely strong.
Such a person wasn’t easy to deal with. It seemed they had to be more careful in today’s match. Winfrey looked thoughtfully at the backs of Ling Xuefeng and Li Cangyu and frowned slightly before turning to join her American teammates.
***
At 9 o’clock in the morning, the venue was already filled with spectators.
Since the game was held in the US and the US team had entered the finals, more than 80% of the audience were Americans. Everyone wore the uniform of the national team and many people raised the flags to cheer for their team.
From a distance, the venue was a sea of stars and stripes.
There were very few Chinese people on the scene. There were overseas Chinese holding the national flag to cheer and some diehard fans who specifically flew abroad to watch the match. In the ocean surrounded by American audiences, these forces seemed small and insignificant but they tried their best to support the national team.
On the way backstage, the Chinese team could see the situation at the venue. The proportion of the American audience was terrible. The US team would definitely get a cheer if they played well.
Li Cangyu looked back at everyone and patiently told them, “Today we are an away game. Everyone has seen it. The playing field isn’t very favourable to us. However, we don’t have to care about the reaction of the audience. Once the game starts, just keep an eye on the computer. Don’t be distracted or think too much.”
He spoke while walking backstage with his teammates. Unexpectedly, Liu Chuan the owner of the Dragon Song Club actually came backstage with other members of the team.
Gu Siming rushed over excitedly at the sight of Li Cangyu. “Cat God, are you ready?”
Li Cangyu hadn’t seen him for a long time and this little guy was still crazy. He smiled and patted Gu Siming on the shoulder. “I’m ready.”
Zhang Jueming laughed. “Haha, I believe in Cat God’s level. We will be waiting to celebrate you winning the championship!”
Li Xiaojiang stood behind them and didn’t dare to speak. Zhuo Hang took the initiative to go over and rub the head of the small snail. “This year, you cam as an audience member. Next year, you will be selected for the national team and personally participate in the World Competition.”
Li Xiaojiang’s eyes brightened but he still wasn’t very confident. “R-Really?”
Zhuo Hang’s eyes were firm. “Yes, I believe in you.”
This year, there were too many great gods in the national team. Uncle Zhang wasn’t allowed because of the age problem but Xiaojiang and Xiao Gu’s level wasn’t bad. It was because of the fierce competition that they failed to get tickets to the national team.
Zhuo Hang believed that in the next World Competition, the little madman and little snail would no longer be sitting in the audience but would be the best masters of the national team.
***
Liu Chuan ran backstage as a representative of the e-sports league to cheer for the national team. He also brought a large package of snacks for Li Cangyu. Li Cangyu touched his nose and wondered, “What is the meaning of sending snacks before the match?”
“This isn’t what I sent.” Liu Chuan smiled. “Someone commissioned me to bring it.”
Li Cangyu took a look. The big box contained a postcard with a few lines of clear small words. The writing was beautiful and pleasing. It should be a girl’s handwriting.
[Hello Cat God, this is from the fans of Canglan. We can’t go to the other side of the Earth to personally watch but we will be cheering for you.”
[I entrusted God Chuan to bring you a few packets of dried fish as a snack. I hope it will give you energy ：）]
[In seven years, I haven’t forgotten my first heart. No matter the outcome of today’s match, you will always be our pride.]
Li Cangyu had experienced countless lows in recent years. He never cried when losing many matches but his eyes now felt feverish. His didn’t have the most fans but they were the most intimate and moving. Perhaps it was because he had experienced too much wind and rain that the people who stayed in the end really understood him and were deeply loyal.
[In seven years, I haven’t forgotten my first heart.]
Today he finally stood on the highest stage of the world and he wouldn’t let down people’s expectations of him.
Li Cangyu put away the snacks box and smiled. “The match is about to begin. We should go to the bathroom quickly and then prepare to face the US team!”