Chapter 1123: Brawler and Thief
Translator: Nomyummi Editor: Nomyummi
Cheng Siyan, Esports Home's reporter in City N, was the team reporter for Team Wind Howl in the Glory scene.
After seeing the comment "my love has been exhausted," Cheng Siyan felt even more shocked. She immediately checked several pages of comments and saw many puzzled reactions from fans. However, Fang Rui didn't further explain his comment.
If his comment was related to Glory, could he be planning on retiring?
Cheng Siyan jumped up in fright at this conjecture.
Fang Rui had joined the Alliance in season five. Many outstanding players had appeared that year, but because it happened to be after the influx of players from the Golden Generation in season four, season five seemed weak in comparison.
Among the pros that had been chosen for All Stars, apart from Fang Rui, there was one half to Void's famed Ghostblade duo, Wu Yuce, and the current number one Glory player, Zhou Zekai.
These three had become famous during their early years too. They, along with the Golden Generation, were at the height of their careers. No matter what had happened with Fang Rui, he shouldn't be having any thoughts of retiring, no?
Cheng Siyan shook his head ferociously, getting rid of such a crazy thought.
My love has been exhausted. If this comment wasn't directed towards Glory, could it be towards his team? Or his personal life?
Glory's pro players were all at the prime of their youths. Encountering love troubles wasn't anything too unexpected. Cheng Siyan was familiar with Team Wind Howl, though. She had never heard of Fang Rui setting foot into a relationship. After getting rid of this thought, the only other possibility was the team.
Fang Rui no longer loved his team?
Was this… a sign of his departure?
Cheng Siyan was surprised.
As Wind Howl's team reporter, she knew more about the changes happening in the team than anyone else. Tang Hao's addition to the team and Zhao Yuzhe's rise gave the team vitality and drive. However, as a professional, she could also see that Fang Rui's position had been weakened because of the changes to the team's strategies as a result of those two's playstyles. She had pointed this out in an article and had hoped for Wind Howl to make adjustments. But Wind Howl had started the season explosively and also collapsed explosively. This issue hadn't been properly taken care of.
In the new season, Wind Howl had signed on new players. People paying attention to this issue were waiting to see what changes Wind Howl would make to their style next season. They most likely hadn't thought that the resolution to this problem would actually be to let go of Fang Rui.
If Fang Rui truly was unable to assimilate into the team, he could only accept this decision. But the problem was that as Wind Howl's team reporter, Cheng Siyan hadn't seen Wind Howl try to do this though. All she saw was Tang Hao and Zhao Yuzhe showing off their playstyles without restraint, while Fang Rui worked tirelessly to chase after them.
He failed to catch up, so he was being let go?
If that was the case, Cheng Siyan could completely sympathize with Fang Rui's "my love has been exhausted."
Transfers were undoubtedly the highlights of the summer for reporters. A transfer for an All Star like Fang Rui was a highlight among highlights, so as soon as she realized this possibility, she definitely wasn't going to stay idle. But basing her news off of a few words on Weibo wasn't reliable. She needed to find more data.
Cheng Siyan tried sending Fang Rui a text but didn't get a response. After hesitating a bit, she took out her phone and gave a call. However, Fang Rui had turned his phone off.
She couldn't get in touch with the person directly involved. Since relying on a few Weibo words to contact Wind Howl for an official response would be somewhat excessive, Cheng Siyan continued to read the replies on Fang Rui's Weibo and pondered over what she should do.
Suddenly, she realized that Fang Rui's Weibo had been posted after the Ghost Parade Easter Egg event. This shouldn't be a coincidence. Perhaps something had happened during the course of this event that had affected him to the extent that he would post "my love has been exhausted." If she could understand what had happened in this event, maybe she would be able to get some clues?
Who to ask?
Cheng Siyan looked at her friends list on QQ. She was friends with practically everyone on Team Wind Howl, but asking someone on Wind Howl might end up being a situation where the person on the spot is baffled, while the spectator sees more clearly. What about the other teams? Cheng Siyan thought to herself. Chu Yunxiu? Su Mucheng?
Female pro players were in the minority, and it wasn't too different for Glory news reporters either. As rare species, she had a pretty good relationship with these two Gods. These two just happened to participate in the Easter Egg event too. Cheng Siyan immediately messaged them.
Chu Yunxiu seemed to be offline already though. As for Su Mucheng, she replied back promptly and explained what had happened in the Easter Egg event.
Because of their good relationship with each other, whenever Cheng Siyan asked a question for more details, Su Mucheng didn't decline. When she heard about the direct confrontation between Happy and Wind Howl, Cheng Siyan became excited. This time, she had indeed asked the right person.
Cheng Siyan didn't want to miss any of the details of this battle. Su Mucheng also knew that Cheng Siyan was Wind Howl's team reporter, so she wasn't surprised. After Tang Hao's Demon Subduer was killed in the skirmish, they quickly retreated and then hid as they watched Misty Rain and Royal Style trap Wind Howl. The conflict between Zhao Yuzhe and Fang Rui had taken place after Demon Subduer died, after Happy had already retreated. As a result, Su Mucheng didn't know about it. But Su Mucheng still remembered Zhao Yuzhe charging at them solo during their retreat as well as Fang Rui's Doubtful Demon being the only remaining member left, so Su Mucheng obviously talked about those.
Cheng Siyan hadn't directly heard what she had wanted to hear, but she was familiar with Team Wind Howl. The series of events, from Zhao Yuzhe pursuing Happy alone to Wind Howl stopping their pursuit to Fang Rui being the only survivor from the encirclement by Misty Rain and Royal Style, gave her a lot of clues.
She was certain that something had happened between Fang Rui and Zhao Yuzhe.
Because she understood Wind Howl's players. If she had to comment on Zhao Yuzhe, to put it nicely, he showed a lot of initiative; to put it negatively, he was short sighted. In that situation, he would choose to pursue the enemy, but Fang Rui, who was the master at playing dirty, would definitely err on the side of caution. Fang Rui also had a better understanding of Ye Xiu's skill. In that situation, he definitely wouldn't chase after the enemy rashly.
Their captain, Tang Hao, wasn't there. Even though Fang Rui was Wind Howl's vice-captain, the number two, because of his difference in idealogy, Zhao Yuzhe, who aligned with Tang Hao's playstyle, didn't recognize Fang Rui's methods at all. Zhao Yuzhe disagreed with most of Fang Rui's orders and did as he pleased. Thus, it would be hard to avoid a conflict. And in this conflict, Tang Hao would most definitely favor Zhao Yuzhe. After all, their ideologies were similar. The long-time veteran Fang Rui was almost like an alien to them.
Cheng Siyan let out a deep sigh.
She understood what Fang Rui meant by "my love has been exhausted."
Fang Rui had probably been trying to establish a connection with Tang Hao and Zhao Yuzhe the entire time, but he was never able to get a response. It was just like that phrase: I treat you well, but you treat me with indifference.
He hadn't only attempted it once or twice. Fang Rui was unable to synergize with Tang Hao or Zhao Yuzhe over the entire last season. Even after their defeat in the playoffs, Tang Hao and Zhao Yuzhe still refused to make any changes.
Maybe this was a form of perseverance, a form of confidence in their playstyles. However, Fang Rui had been hurt because of their persistence. Discouraged and downhearted, besides leaving, what other choice did he have?
Club Wind Howl didn't seem to have any opinion on this matter. They remained indifferent. But in reality, in the clubs, the captain had authority on these issues. Tang Hao's position on this problem was equivalent to the club's positoin. Unfortunately, this was the outcome for Fang Rui. Tang Hao insisted on his intrinsic playstyle and didn't try to fit it with Fang Rui's playing dirty. Only Fang Rui tried his hardest to fit in with the team. However, the results were poor. His value could not be utilized optimally.
"The weather… really has changed.." Cheng Siyan murmured to herself. Brawler and Thief. Demon Subduer and Doubtful Demon. After Fang Rui entered the team, Wind Howl had established this duo nicknamed the Criminal Partners, which had received quite a lot of attention. Even though they failed to make it into the finals, Wind Howl frequently made it to the playoffs. Their strength was not that of a bottom team.
But now, it was all over. Lin Jingyan had left. Fang Rui was about to leave. The Thief class didn't seem to appeal to Tang Hao's tastes. Wind Howl probably wouldn't introduce a new Thief player. Brawler and Thief, the Criminal Partners, were going to fade away wordlessly just like this?
Cheng Siyan also didn't know. She didn't have first-hand knowledge from the people directly involved, but she was already saddened. Even though she knew that this choice would be favorable for Team Wind Howl's growth, the invested fans wouldn't react to this resolution rationally. The Criminal Partners were the symbol of Team Wind Howl's core. And now, this partnership would be breaking off. It was as if Hundred Blossoms no longer had Blood and Blossoms, or Void no longer had their dual Ghostblades, or Blue Rain no longer their Sword and Curse. It would always feel strange.
"Why did it turn out like this?" Cheng Siyan didn't make any more inquiries about what else happened in Ghost Lair. She was already too lazy to write about this content. She believed that there would be many others who would write about that. Right now, she was only concerned about Team Wind Howl. She was already preparing to personally pay a visit and ask tomorrow morning.
Who would have thought that the next morning, before Cheng Siyan could even leave the door, she received a phone call about the huge news. Cheng Siyan was stunned. She thought that Fang Rui leaving the team had happened overnight, but it turned out that it was news of Team Seaside's Zhao Yang retiring.