Lin Lan’s professional career has been smooth. In just five years, he clinched championships in domestic and international events, becoming the first player to achieve a Grand Slam. Summing it up in the words of outsiders: the number one in the country.
But if Lin Lan were to summarize it himself.
It would be: tiring.
Sleeping only four to five hours a day, revolving like a spinning top everywhere. Five years of a high-pressure professional career has worn away his passion for the game. So, when he secured the S tournament championship for the third time, with teammates shedding tears on the scene, what Lin Lan thought was: finally, I can get a good night’s sleep.
Descending from the award podium, numerous reporters swarmed him, thrusting microphones in his face, “Kiner, hello, I’m a reporter from XX…”
“Kiner, congratulations on the three consecutive championships…”
“May I ask, Kiner, about this victory, what are your current feelings and thoughts?”
Lin Lan’s eyes, damaged from professional gaming, couldn’t bear the bright light. The flashes from the reporters’ cameras stabbed at his temples, causing a throbbing pain. He frowned, blocking the light, his tone no longer patient, “Tired, want to sleep.”
He turned his head, and the microphones followed, “In the game, you solo killed the enemy mid-laner several times. Did your performance exceed expectations?”
“Expected.” He avoided the light, and reporters swarmed him like hornets, bombarding him with questions, “As the first domestic Grand Slam and three consecutive champion, do you have any plans for the future?”
“Does it concern you?”
In front of the camera, his narrowed cat eyes exuded indifference. The brim of his hat couldn’t hide his impatience. Viewers in front of the screen began to comment: [Kiner is still so rude, really can’t stand him.]
[Well, forget it, at least he got three consecutive championships, let’s not criticize him today…]
[Heh, what’s the big deal about winning the championship? Besides his skills, he’s nothing else!]
[Exactly, in terms of character, he can’t compare to our captain, Xiao. In today’s game, our Captain Xiao was also strong, right? He stole the spotlight.]
[But Captain Xiao is Kiner’s lapdog, isn’t he…]
On the camera, Xiao Shengjing was doing his best to shield him from reporters, while Lin Lan, wearing his hat, with drooping eyelids, left without caring about anyone.
A new round of contempt for Lin Lan started in the barrage.
[This idiot Lin Lan should just go out and get hit by a car!]
Suddenly, a row of red characters appeared on the barrage. As the camera of the reporters moved, a sharp and deafening sound tore through the sky, and everyone couldn’t see clearly how it happened.
They only saw the figure clad in black clothes and a hat being instantly thrown tens of meters by a large truck. Blood slowly flowed from his body. Xiao Shengjing rushed to his side like a madman. He lay motionless in a pool of blood. One moment he was commanding the scene on the battlefield, and the next moment, he lay on the cold stone slab.
The huge contrast shocked everyone.
The once overbearing Lin Lan.
Hit and killed by a car?
…
“Ding, ding.” The instrument sounded in his ears.
Lin Lan’s body became very light, and he could feel himself lying on a white hospital bed. Strangely, he didn’t feel the fear of death; instead, there was a sense of relief that he could finally rest.
In his five years of professional career, he had spun like a top every day, creating Key Performance Indicators for the capitalists with his life. The fast-paced life left him exhausted. He had originally planned to retire after winning the championship, but the unexpected came so quickly.
He heard the doctor speaking by the bedside, “We have done our best. The patient suffered damage to the brainstem, and the will to survive is very weak. It’s difficult to guarantee that he will wake up again…”
The club manager began to blabber on, modifying marketing plans. The big boss, only concerned with losses, asked, “How much will I lose?”
“I will come up with a loss prevention plan as soon as possible.”
Lin Lan couldn’t be bothered to listen to the capitalist’s ugly face. His consciousness gradually sank, and a white space appeared before his eyes. Mirrors surrounded him, each reflecting different scenes, like frames from a film.
He walked up to one of the mirrors and saw a young boy inside, curled up in a corner, with messy hair and a slender figure, looking quite young, perhaps around twelve or thirteen.
Lin Lan felt that he looked somewhat familiar, reaching out to touch. The mirror rippled like water, and the person in the mirror seemed to sense something, slowly raising his head to look at Lin Lan.
This look frightened Lin Lan.
The person in the mirror had the exact same face as him!
To be precise, it was his face when he was twelve or thirteen years old!
Messy hair covered his eyes, giving off a somewhat gloomy vibe. The exposed chin was pale and fragile. He looked sorrowfully at Lin Lan, curled up in weakness and self-loathing.
This person resembled him but was definitely not him.
Because Lin Lan would never show such an expression.
Lin Lan walked towards him, and the sorrowful eyes of the other seemed to convey a message to him. He slowly raised his hand to meet Lin Lan’s palm, fingertips facing each other. A white light flashed, instantly swallowing him…
The white light disappeared, and the senses returned. In front of Lin Lan was an old computer displaying a game screen. He held a mouse and keyboard in his hand, and someone behind him sarcastically remarked, “Lin Lan, can you even play? Didn’t you claim to be good at LOL? Look at how terrible you are playing.”
“You lost this solo game. You should call Xie Zilu daddy now. Haha, embarrassing…”
The person sitting across from him looked like a wealthy young master. He sneered, “Lin Lan, you should kneel and call me daddy.”
What’s going on? Is this a dream?
Why am I still playing LOL in a dream?
Lin Lan didn’t have time to think deeply. His professional habits instinctively made him dodge a fatal skill shot, controlling his champion to maneuver against the opponent.
Xie Zilu didn’t manage to kill him, snorting coldly, “Consider yourself lucky.”
The rules of the solo game were to win by taking first blood or the first tower. If Lin Lan dared to recall now, his tower would undoubtedly be destroyed. But if he didn’t recall, he only had a sliver of health left. Facing Xie Zilu, who still had more than half a health bar—a dead end no matter how you looked at it.
His classmates around started teasing him, “Lin Lan, you should change your last name to Xie.”
“Kneel in front of the whole class.”
“Haha, so embarrassing…”
Even the girl who had originally sided with him had a flushed face. “You loser, I won’t play with you anymore!” she said and ran away.
Lin Lan had no time to care about the surrounding situation. Years of professional habits made him quickly immerse himself in the game, observing the match.
The map was still in the early stages, estimated to be a version from just a couple of years ago. However, the basic settings were similar, and Lin Lan had played LOL very early, so he was familiar with these versions.
If he wanted to win this game, he only had one way.
He controlled Yasuo to slide into the middle of the minions, and everyone thought he was going to commit suicide, including Xie Zilu.
As long as Xie Zilu hit him with a Q, he could send him off from the mortal realm.
He raised his hand for a Q, but it missed.
No rush, another Q, and it surprisingly missed again.
Using a very unsmooth stride, Lin Lan moved between the minions, looking clumsy, but in reality, he dodged each Q from the opponent perfectly.
Xie Zilu was just a player in the Gold tier, and a champion with the difficulty of Yasuo was impossible for him to control. He clumsily dashed forward, and when he tried to land his E ability, Lin Lan’s Wind Wall was perfectly erected to block the damage. Xie Zilu hurriedly followed up with a Q, but it missed again!
Don’t panic! Lin Lan’s health was so low; as long as Xie Zilu landed two auto-attacks, he could kill him!
Xie Zilu forced himself to calm down, but the more he wanted to land those auto-attacks, the more he couldn’t touch him. His own health had dropped significantly during the struggle!
In a moment of panic, he flashed forward, trying to Q and kill him. Lin Lan raised his hand, and a Wind Wall appeared just in time to block his Q!
What kind of insane reaction speed was this?
Why can the Flash-Q be blocked!
In Lin Lan’s eyes, Xie Zilu’s maneuvers were both clumsy and predictable, every step falling within his expectations. Dodging a few Qs was too easy for him.
He dodged and then retaliated with an E-Q, blowing Xie Zilu away. Instead of rushing to engage him, Lin Lan calmly last-hit a minion, reached level 6, and instantly killed the opponent with his ultimate.
The watching classmates took in a sharp breath. They had no idea how Lin Lan pulled off such a feat. What kind of reaction speed was this?
The Wind Wall blocked the opponent’s Flash-Q, and he even retaliated by blowing the opponent into the air. What’s even more terrifying is that after blowing the opponent into the air, he had time to auto-attack a minion, reach level 6, and then slay the opponent!
This had completely exceeded everyone’s understanding. Such maneuvers could only be seen in professional competitions…
But Lin Lan was just a Bronze player!
The opposing Xie Zilu had a face that looked completely dumbfounded. When he stood up, his legs were weak. “No, impossible,” he muttered. He hadn’t been able to comprehend the combo his opponent used.
Among the crowd, there were questions. “Is Xie Zilu going to call Lin Lan dad?”
“It seems like it…”
In this father-son matchup, whoever lost had to kneel and call the other dad. Xie Zilu, relying on his Gold 5 ranking, bullied Lin Lan, who was just a novice Bronze player, forcing him into this unfair duel. He even used his best champion, Yasuo. Little did he expect that the result would be like this…
Xie Zilu stared stiffly at Lin Lan, his face turning pale all of a sudden. The eyes that were arrogant just a moment ago were now filled with disbelief, embarrassment, regret, humiliation, and unwillingness.
Was he really going to call Lin Lan dad?
How could he ever lift his head again…
An immature little brat, Lin Lan had no interest in being his dad. He stood up, patting the kid on the shoulder. “I don’t have a weird liking for adopting sons. Be less troublesome in the future. Don’t look down on others with your dog eyes. Remember, there are always people better than you. You’ve got a long way to go.”
After patting him, Lin Lan realized that he seemed even shorter than this little brat?
This dream is just too strange…
On the other side, Xie Zilu looked like a condemned prisoner who had been spared. While he gained another chance at life, his arrogance was shattered. Lin Lan spared him this time, but in the future, he would never be able to lift his head in front of him!
Xie Zilu’s gaze towards Lin Lan was a mix of shock and complexity. He obviously couldn’t accept such humiliation. In a fierce and resentful tone, something only an elementary school student would say, he uttered, “Lin Lan, don’t think I’ll be grateful. Just wait and see…”
Lin Lan didn’t pay any attention to his words. Casually, he remarked to those around him, “So childish. Only a toothless dog barks arrogantly. The ones that bite don’t make a sound.”
As Xie Zilu reached the door, his body stiffened. It was evident he heard Lin Lan’s words. He turned back, and the look in his eyes as he glanced at Lin Lan was filled with a chilling hatred.
Lin Lan had offended countless people in his life; he simply didn’t care. Brushing off the dust from his hands, the surroundings suddenly distorted.
Lin Lan, Lin Lan…
Wake up, don’t leave me behind…!
The world around him spun, and it felt like space and time were torn apart. His consciousness was pulled into a bright hospital room.
He heard Xiao Shengjing crying, warm tears dropping one by one on the back of his hand. “Lin Lan, don’t leave me, please wake up…”
Lin Lan couldn’t help but feel a bit emotional.
Having once been flamboyant and self-assured, Lin Lan found it surprising that the only one guarding him, in the end, was the silly dog captain whom he had rejected countless times. None of those youth training players who used to fawn over him showed up.
Damn, did he fall so low?
Lin Lan’s consciousness sank again, and he saw those piles of mirrors once more. The reflection inside the mirror looked about fourteen or fifteen years old, mouth agape as if saying: “Help me, help me…”
In the moment of palm-to-palm confrontation, the world spun, and white light flashed. In front of him was still that old internet cafe, but this time it was a five-man team.
Sitting across from him was still Xie Zilu, but he appeared much more mature than last time, even developing a jawline, mocking Lin Lan with a sneer, “Lin Lan, you’re just a waste. A waste should stay where it belongs and not come out to be a nuisance…”
A waste.
How many years had it been since he heard that word?
Since he embarked on this path, he has consistently represented the pinnacle of professional esports. No one dared to underestimate him in this circle…
Xie Zilu had successfully piqued Lin Lan’s interest. Regardless of whether this was a dream or not, he was determined to show this waste who the real waste was.
——————–
【Guide for Consumption】
1. The background game is League of Legends, but due to the author’s bad memory, the versions are not clearly distinguished, so the version settings inside are the author’s own assumptions, only for logical consistency.
2. An esports pure pleasure story, with a full-level expert crushing rookies.
3. It involves a parallel time and space setting, mixed with a hint of suspense.
4. The cover was purchased with authorized images, not commissioned character designs, solely for display purposes.
5. Updates at 6 PM; if there’s no update, an early notice will be given.
Translator’s corner:
You can refer here for Yasuo’s skills if you are not familiar.
![Classmate, Don’t Play with Your Phone While Walking [BL]](https://www.freenovels.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/同學，走路不要玩手機.png "Classmate, Don’t Play with Your Phone While Walking [BL]")
