DSF Chapter 12

After finishing the bandage, Han Mo didn’t rush to pick up his gun, but there was indeed no one around.

Yan Yibing frowned, feeling as if he had the illusion of taking Han Mo out for a ride in the wild.

Soon, they entered the Lion City area. Yan Yibing rode the motorcycle to a high point, crouched on a sloping hill, and scoped for enemies with a 4x scope.

At this distance, the 4x scope was a bit inadequate.

But Yan Yibing was still confident. As long as someone exposed themselves, he wouldn’t miss the shots.

After finding a good position, just as he was about to speak, Han Mo had already directly charged into the residential area.

Yan Yibing pursed his lips, holding back the words he was about to say.

Not far away, gunshots erupted.

Han Mo went to engage in a firefight with someone, grabbing supplies, completely leaving his back to Yan Yibing.

Sure enough, on the opposite hill, a gun flashed, and a shot was fired beside Han Mo.

But he only made a slight movement, showing no intention of seeking cover.

The opponent had a silenced gun, and in this position, with this equipment, it was almost foolproof.

However, the silenced gun didn’t fire a second time.

【Zero-ICE eliminated NNC-dafeng with a ScaL-L assault rifle】

Yan Yibing let out a sigh of relief, closing his eyes tightly.

Although the 4x scope could barely be used, it was still a bit straining on the eyes.

But fortunately, the silenced gun had been silenced for good.

Two minutes later, Han Mo ran up the slope and threw a Kar98k and an 8x scope beside Yan Yibing.

Yan Yibing raised an eyebrow, unable to resist asking, “Aren’t you using it?”

In free-sniping matches, he had already acknowledged Han Mo’s sniper skills. The Kar98k would still be effective in Han Mo’s hands.

“You use it.” Han Mo’s voice was low and deep.

He watched Yan Yibing equip it before running down again.

Yan Yibing couldn’t figure out Han Mo’s intentions, nor did he want to dwell on it.

In the backstage area, even Sun Tianjiao, who was the worst at playing PUBG, couldn’t help but sigh.

“So many years have passed, and they still have such great tacit understanding. I’m truly amazed.”

Xu Rui also murmured, “To be able to support Han Mo to this extent, it can only be the captain. Han Mo has no worries with Yan Yibing by his side.”

Cheng Bin’s eyes sparkled, looking like a little fangirl. “Bing Shen is still so handsome. He countered the Kar98k just now. If it wasn’t for Bing Shen on the hill just now, Han Mo would have died.”

Members from familiar teams often moved back and forth between rooms, so the Zero team’s lounge wasn’t exclusive to Zero members.

Coincidentally, Yu Yan was there.

Seeing this, Yu Yan gleefully commented, “Fortunately, these two are not on the same team, saving us a lot of trouble at CNG.”

His companion, Lu Jianghe, also couldn’t help but mutter, “Who made such a wise decision back then? Han Mo should have been kicked out of Zero. Otherwise, these two would have caused chaos.”

Among the many players in the room, it was taken as a joke, only Lei Ming’s face turned extremely bad, and without saying a word, he pulled open the door and walked out.

When the door closed, it emitted a not-so-gentle muffled sound.

Zero’s players stopped talking, glancing at each other.

Yu Yan and Lu Jianghe smirked but remained silent. After all, this was Zero’s internal matter, and they, as outsiders, shouldn’t interfere.

Sun Tianjiao laughed it off, “Ignore him. Xu Rui, Fu Haifeng, you two get ready. Don’t mess up when you go up later.”

In this duo match, Yan Yibing and Han Mo indisputably claimed the chicken dinner.

Looking at the first-place ranking screen, Yan Yibing was momentarily stunned.

He had imagined this scene countless times before, but as time passed, he stopped thinking about it.

Unfortunately, this wasn’t the stage of a world championship.

This was just an entertainment exhibition match, soon to be forgotten, and perhaps no one would even upload the video to Bilibili.¹

This duo match held no significance.

Yan Yibing took off his headphones, stood up, and subconsciously looked in Han Mo’s direction.

He found that Han Mo was also staring at the screen in a daze.

The aura from where he was emanated a vibe of not wanting to be disturbed, forming an untouchable circle.

Yan Yibing averted his gaze, rubbed his wrist, and left the preparation room amid the crowd.

Fans of both teams started waving banners, screaming, and boasting.

“Bing Shen is awesome! Brilliant sniping, another godly scene!”

“Han Mo, my husband! Ahhh, too handsome, this old wife is swooning again!”

“Yan Yibing, you’re amazing!”

“Han Mo, marry me today!”

“Yan Yibing, forever our god!”

“Han Mo, the rising star!”

When the fans of the two teams saw each other, a hint of awkwardness flashed in their expressions.

It wasn’t clear who made the first sarcastic remark.

“Damn, I have to admit, these two cooperate really well. If they hadn’t fallen out back then, they might have dominated the esports scene.”

The cheers gradually quieted down.

Yan Yibing returned to the lounge, and Sun Tianjiao pulled him aside, whispering a few words with a serious expression.

Yan Yibing lowered his brows, his expression turning colder. “Where is he?”

Sun Tianjiao replied, “He went out. I didn’t feel like looking for him. Let him cool off by himself. It’s okay; he’ll probably be back soon.”

Yan Yibing nodded and walked over to Yu Yan. He said helplessly, “Sorry for the embarrassment.”

Yu Yan lazily curved his lips. “You don’t need to be so polite with your Dad.”

Yan Yibing rolled his eyes. “Get lost.”

The exhibition match concluded smoothly, with the fans maintaining overall harmony. The league made a fortune from ticket sales and immediately issued cruise travel vouchers to all players, valid for the rest of the year.
In the evening, several teams gathered at KTV, singing and enjoying themselves until dawn. However, no one from Zero participated.

Yan Yibing returned to the base with the team, hands in his pockets. He raised his eyes, showing impatience, “Where’s Lei Ming?”

No one knew where Lei Ming had gone.

He hadn’t appeared since leaving the lounge and didn’t return with the team.

Yan Yibing sneered, “How pathetic.”

Sun Tianjiao came over, massaging Yan Yibing’s shoulders.

“You’ve had a tiring day. Rest early. I’ll let Auntie know, and when Lei Ming comes back, I’ll have him come find you.”

After shooing away the others, Sun Tianjiao’s expression turned serious.

He sighed, hesitated, and said, “Zuzong, what do you think of Lei Ming’s current state?”

Sun Tianjiao didn’t want to be too explicit.

Lei Ming had been with the team for two years, but there hadn’t been significant improvement.

He managed not to drag down the second team, but he definitely had no chance of making it to the first team.

Although he had moments of outstanding performance, it didn’t meet the coach’s expectations and couldn’t replace the soon-to-retire Yan Yibing or Fu Haifeng.

If he had a good mentality like Cheng Bin, staying in the second team would be fine.

But in reality, his ambition exceeded his skill.

Yan Yibing fell silent for a moment and said slowly, “I’ll talk to him again.”

He didn’t want to give up on Lei Ming. Ambition in a player was a good thing, as long as it didn’t cross his bottom line. Yan Yibing was willing to give Lei Ming several more chances.

Sun Tianjiao nodded.

He didn’t necessarily want Lei Ming to leave. The team had no one to fill the void, and acquiring a new player would be troublesome and costly.

Sun Tianjiao glanced at Yan Yibing and earnestly said, “Zuzong, in my opinion, you don’t need to rush into retirement. Your form hasn’t declined at all. You’re smoother than many players in their prime. I think you can play for another two or three years.”

Yan Yibing smiled, “Are you planning to let me retire in this industry?”

Sun Tianjiao said, “If you can play, why not stay? No rule says older players can’t compete in esports.”

Yan Yibing sighed, “It will only get worse. I watched Han Mo’s livestream once, and from a viewer’s position, he heard things I didn’t.”

Sun Tianjiao frowned, “I might be a noob, but watching a live broadcast and playing it is different. Don’t overestimate him. Besides, in today’s duo match, didn’t he give you the four-time scope? It shows he trusts your sniping skills.”

Yan Yibing’s eyelashes trembled, looking at Sun Tianjiao, he lazily said, “As long as you’re happy.”

Sun Tianjiao shrugged, “Otherwise, for what reason? Sister complex?”

Yan Yibing’s face darkened, cursing, “Get lost.”

Lei Ming didn’t return to the base until after midnight.

The lights in the base hall were off, leaving only emergency lights on. The corridors were empty, and the cooling fans in the database room hummed.

He staggered upstairs, his steps as though treading on cotton, and his calves trembling.

Having consumed a fair amount of alcohol, he was somewhat intoxicated, his head throbbing, and his consciousness swaying.

Professional players often work through the night, with little time for rest.

As soon as Lei Ming returned to the base, members of the second team noticed.

Someone quietly informed Lei Ming, “Bing Shen said to come back and find him.”

Lei Ming’s consciousness cleared for a moment.

He struggled to lift his eyelids, swaying unsteadily towards Yan Yibing’s room.

It was a familiar location, a familiar doorplate.

But the last time he came here, he was full of confidence, thinking he could defeat Han Mo and smoothly join the first team.

Lei Ming, knowing he couldn’t avoid it, so he took a deep breath and knocked on Yan Yibing’s door.

Soon, the door opened.

As soon as Yan Yibing opened the door, he caught a whiff of a strong smell of alcohol.

He drank too, as did all esports players, but not to the point of being this drunk. Alcohol could affect the wrists, even if the impact was very subtle. In a competition, that subtle difference could be the gap between victory and defeat.

Lei Ming took a breath, swayed for a moment, and called out softly, “Captain.”

Yan Yibing smiled, “What’s wrong? Feeling wronged?”

Lei Ming’s pupils contracted for a moment, then his eyelids drooped, and he remained silent.

Yan Yibing continued, “Today, in front of the CNG team, who are you showing off your face to?”

Lei Ming, like a lifeless statue, showed no reaction to Yan Yibing’s words.

Yan Yibing became increasingly disappointed. “Isn’t it because you lost to Han Mo yourself? Who are you resenting? You let yourself down.”

At the mention of Han Mo’s name, Lei Ming suddenly became angry.

He lifted his eyes, tightly clenched his fists, and roared, “Yes! I’m not as good as Han Mo. So, are you regretting it? If you hadn’t interfered with his gambling case back then, he used an alias, and went to a dark website outside the mirrors, no matter how you search, you won’t find anything on Zero. If you had let him stay, Zero would have reached its peak! ”

Yan Yibing’s face instantly darkened.

“He made a mistake, and I kicked him out. You using crude means to stay in Zero, I didn’t think there was a problem. It’s not Han Mo hindering your progress; it’s you yourself. Ever since you did that thing, you can’t escape from Han Mo’s shadow. The better he does in Prince, the more you feel like a complete failure.”

Lei Ming’s pupils dilated, stunned for a few seconds, and then he suddenly burst into exaggerated laughter. “Haha, so you knew all along. You knew I reported it, yet you pretended to be magnanimous and generous. You must be delighted to see me foolishly sacrificing for the team, competing with Han Mo. Aren’t you thrilled?”

He was flushed from the alcohol, veins popping out, yelling fiercely, and his vision went black for a moment.

Yan Yibing was thoroughly disappointed.

Closing his lips, he fell silent for a few seconds, sighed, and said, “Just leave.”

Lei Ming was stunned, tears unexpectedly rolling down his cheeks.

He wiped his eyes with his sleeve, sniffed, and said, “Let me tell you, don’t try to blame everything on me. I knew about his gambling, but I didn’t know why he was gambling. It was you who drove him away from Zero, and he hated you the most!”

After yelling, Lei Ming sat on the ground, tears streaming down his face.

“I didn’t… do it on purpose. I really didn’t know why he… needed money.”

“Why is this happening to me!”

“I drove him away, and I’m still the same as before…”

While yelling, he hammered the floor with his fists like a madman, causing a dull sound as his hands hit the ground.

In a base with no impermeable walls, Lei Ming’s cries were so loud that members of the base stuck their heads out, listening to the commotion upstairs.

In the dimly lit corridor, invisible bullets shot from hidden places, exploding in people’s chests.

Yan Yibing felt that his long-healed wounds were once again bleeding profusely.

As Lei Ming dredged up old grievances, Yan Yibing realized that in this place, nerves were so tightly wound that even the slightest disturbance caused unbearable pain.

He lowered his eyes, looking at Lei Ming, prostrated on the ground, unsure if he felt pity for Lei Ming or himself.

A long time passed, and Lei Ming cried until he had no strength left, so he lay on the ground, gasping for breath.

His round head swayed, glasses hanging crookedly on his nose.

He probably didn’t know what he shouted, but it was undoubtedly his innermost thoughts.

Lei Ming wasn’t a completely bad person; he was constantly enduring the torment of cowardice and baseness.

Yan Yibing raised his eyes, stepped over Lei Ming’s body, and walked into the darkness.

The corridor was cooler than the rooms, with a faint night breeze in the air.

He stood at the top of the stairs and called down, “None of you are asleep, right? Come up, let’s have a meeting.”

There was a clattering commotion downstairs.

Soon, all the team members hastily put on their pants, got dressed, and hurriedly ran upstairs, standing in a line.

Lei Ming was dragged into the meeting room by someone.

The lights turned on, blinding him, and Yan Yibing, in his pajamas, stood in the center of the meeting room.

He leaned against the door, the almond-shaped eyes coldly looking toward the window, and said in a low voice, “You’ve all been wanting to know why Han Mo and I fell out. Today, I’ll tell you.”

Song Tang called out softly, “Captain!”

Yan Yibing waved his hand, “You’re all my team members. You have the right to know. I didn’t say it before because I didn’t know how to judge the right and wrong of this matter. In fact, even now, I don’t know how to judge it. You can just listen casually.”

The second-team players didn’t dare to make a sound, quietly listening.

Cheng Bin widened his eyes, hoping to get answers from Yan Yibing.

But in his heart, he firmly believed that Yan Yibing couldn’t be wrong.

Yan Yibing slowly said, “Two years ago, on the eve of Mid-Autumn Festival, Sun Tianjiao said he wanted to sign a contract with Han Mo on the day of the Mid-Autumn Festival for good luck. We privately agreed that if Han Mo signed, he would be the first entry fragger for the first team, and even I would have to cooperate with him in matches. We envisioned many tactics, very…very advanced and demanding tactics. I did see potential in Han Mo. I, too, became famous at a young age, arrogant and proud, never really admiring any player. But Han Mo was different; he was born for esports.”

“But before signing, we received an anonymous report stating that Han Mo was involved in gambling on foreign websites, a serious violation of the club’s rules. Since someone reported it, we had to investigate. In fact, there was no need for an investigation; that person had already sent pictures and videos as evidence, and it was irrefutable.”

Yan Yibing finished speaking, and Lei Ming’s limp body trembled violently.

“I went to ask Han Mo, and he admitted it. He used a fake ID, registered an account on the dark web, and through gambling matches, made a profit of two hundred thousand. He said it didn’t involve the team, but I couldn’t turn a blind eye. Without consulting the manager and coach, I kicked him out.”

Lei Ming’s body twitched again, and his eyes once dried up, began to overflow with tears.

“Han Mo didn’t want to leave, even kneeling in front of everyone. I hardened my heart, thinking it was a matter of principle and unforgivable. I didn’t agree.” Yan Yibing paused for a few seconds, his voice becoming somewhat hoarse. “But I didn’t know, on that day, his mother was outside, seeing Han Mo kneeling and begging me.”

At that time, Han Mo’s eyes were bloodshot, holding onto Yan Yibing’s trouser leg, his voice trembling, difficult and fragile, asking him, “Didn’t we agree to wait until I come of age?”

In the end, he didn’t wait until he came of age.

Song Tang stood up, struggling expression, gritting his teeth, “Captain, don’t say anymore, it was just an accident.”

Yan Yibing lowered his eyes, expressionless.

“Later, his mother came to the team once behind his back, wanting to see me. I didn’t meet her. She thought that if Han Mo returned the two hundred thousand, I would let him come back. But at that time, I only felt that he had his parents act as mediators, which lacked integrity. For someone who could resort to any means for a mere two hundred thousand, Zero couldn’t trust him.”

Cheng Bin couldn’t help but interject, “Bing Shen, you’re not wrong. I know Han Shen is an extraordinary talent, but if he really did something like that, he deserves it!”

Yan Yibing ignored him and continued, “I grew up in a well-off family, spoiled by my parents. I didn’t know what two hundred thousand meant to an ordinary family. I didn’t even know that the salary for youth training players was only fifteen hundred per month.”

Even if it was only fifteen hundred, Han Mo never asked for anything.

“Later, I heard that Han Mo’s mother had been sick for a long time and didn’t have money for treatment. Han Mo participated in gambling matches to fund her treatment, but in the end, his mother still passed away, not wanting to burden him.”

“I actually knew that if I consulted the manager and coach, they would suppress this matter and never let Han Mo go. I knew that Han Mo wouldn’t betray me or the team for money. I don’t regret or regret kicking him out for not knowing the reasons. If I knew the reasons, I would have helped him once and let him go.”

His mother said he should apologize to Han Mo for some immature reactions back then.

Yan Yibing was tough in his words but internally conflicted.

Adhering to principles was right, but he seemed to have no confidence in reprimanding Han Mo.

Life was more important than anything, transcending all principles and truths. If he had to choose between saving his family and violating regulations, he would think rules were just a piece of crap.

Thank you for reading!