Chapter 3: Trial Invitation

A week had passed since the ranked matches at the internet café. Using breaks between classes, Luo Yuchen had finally climbed from Gold III all the way to Diamond I.

During this time, he figured out where all those friend requests in his inbox had come from.

Luo Yuchen truly hadn’t expected it — that match was just an ordinary Gold‑rank game, yet one of his teammates turned out to be a streamer, and not just any streamer, but the manager of Team TYG.

Speaking of TYG, one has to mention the state of the Sacred Alliance professional league in Zhongzhou.

Sacred Alliance was the most popular game in Zhongzhou, and its professional league was the most influential esports competition in the region.

At present, there were more than a hundred teams of varying sizes across Zhongzhou. Of those, only about twenty could qualify for the regional professional league — proof of how fierce the competition was.

TYG wasn’t considered a powerhouse, but its strength couldn’t be underestimated. It was a regular participant in the regional league. Its best results were runner‑up in the Zhongzhou Summer Split and a Top 4 finish at the S‑Series World Finals. Though they hadn’t reached the very top, they were far from being an unknown team.

Luo Yuchen opened his private messages and found one from Xiao You — it was a trial invitation.

This season, TYG was in a tough spot. Their ADC Ning Luo had retired, and the substitute was a rookie whose synergy with support player Zhi Xia was mediocre.

Mid‑laner “God U” had injured his hand in a car accident and already transitioned into a coaching role. Meanwhile, substitute Shao Bei was suspended for fighting and banned from the entire Spring Split.

At present, only the top‑laner and jungler were performing normally, but the two of them alone couldn’t carry a whole team.

Should he go to TYG? Luo Yuchen rubbed his fingers. The trial invitation was likely sent because of Figo.

Thanks to his climb, in just one short week Figo had gone from a “sewer hero” to a must‑ban or must‑pick in high‑level matches.

While Luo Yuchen was considering whether to accept TYG’s trial, the team was also discussing him.

“From Gold III to Diamond I in seven days? That’s not all that impressive,” said rookie ADC Geng Xiaolei in the TYG meeting room.

Xiao You stayed silent, turning his head to look at captain Yu Chengfeng.

Yu Chengfeng was reviewing Luo Yuchen’s match history.

Under the ID “Time Traveler,” the record was filled with green — a string of victories that spoke for the player’s strength.

“He’s a student,” Yu Chengfeng said after looking through all the games. “Judging by the times he queues, most likely a university student.”

Xiao You relaxed a little. “If he’s a student, climbing ten ranks in a week is actually very efficient.”

Yu Chengfeng nodded. “He’s been on a winning streak, his hidden MMR is high, and he’s even skipped divisions.”

“But most of his matches are on Figo,” rookie ADC Geng Xiaolei wasn’t impressed. “His champion pool is too shallow. He’s probably just a one‑trick.”

Support Zhi Xia also voiced concern: “And if he’s a university student, isn’t that a bit old for esports?”

“Not necessarily. If he’s a freshman, he’s only eighteen or nineteen. But if he’s a senior…” Xiao You’s mood sank again. At twenty‑three or twenty‑four, it really would be too late to start a pro career.

“He shouldn’t be a senior,” Yu Chengfeng said firmly. As a college dropout himself, he added, “Senior year doesn’t have such a packed schedule.”

The jungler Xu Minyu, who had been silent until now, spoke up: “Are we sure he’ll even come to the trial?”

Xiao You sighed. “He hasn’t replied yet.”

“Keep an eye on him,” Yu Chengfeng said. “His hand speed is very fast — worth paying attention to.”

Geng Xiaolei frowned. “Captain, how do you know his hand speed is fast?”

“Figo has a very high skill ceiling. To deal damage with her, you have to link abilities and normal attacks quickly, especially when using the QA burst combo.” A voice came from outside the meeting room as Shao Bei pushed the door open.

“These past few days I’ve been studying Figo’s playstyle. Her combos sound simple, but executing them isn’t easy.”

“To unleash high burst damage, you have to do it like ‘Time Traveler’ — throw out all skills and normal attacks within three seconds.”

“To be honest, in the entire Alliance, there aren’t many people who can pull that off. She’s a champion that demands both brains and hand speed.”

After hearing Shao Bei, Xiao You said: “I’ll do my best to get him to come for the trial.”

“If the trial succeeds, we’ve found a treasure. Even if it fails, we only lose a bit of time and travel expenses — it’s worth it.” Shao Bei spoke as he sat down beside Yu Chengfeng. “Captain Yu, thank you for helping me.”

“You really should thank Captain Yu,” Xu Minyu said irritably. “Do you know how much effort he put in to get the other side to agree to an out‑of‑court settlement? For a piece of trash like you, you almost threw away your whole life. Was it worth it?”

Xiao You added: “You hit way too hard. Luckily no one died.”

“I was impulsive,” Shao Bei admitted, looking ashamed. “Captain Yu, how much money did you spend on this? I…”

“Let’s not talk about money for now. Just be more careful in the future. During this six‑month suspension, you’ll work as You Hua’s assistant. Don’t slack off on training.”

You Hua was TYH’s former mid‑laner, Uiiu. Uiiu: His in‑game ID.

“I know,” Shao Bei nodded, then asked, “Where’s Brother You now?”

Xiao You replied: “He’s still in the hospital, but he’ll be back the day after tomorrow.”

Geng Xiaolei pulled the topic back to the mid‑lane issue. “There are less than three weeks before the Spring Split begins. We can’t seriously put all our chips on ‘Time Traveler,’ can we?”

Yu Chengfeng asked Xiao You: “What did the other teams you contacted say?”

“UG won’t release their player. YID has already reached a swap agreement with FAG.” Xiao You sighed. “As for the remaining two teams, K4 asked for an outrageous price, and another team gave us a truly absurd condition.”

“Which team? What condition?” Zhi Xia asked.

Xiao You’s tone grew heavy: “BEG. They said they’d trade their mid‑laner only if we gave them Captain Yu.”

“BEG?” Xu Minyu’s brows furrowed. “Isn’t that the team Cheng Ming is on? That brat did it on purpose, didn’t he? Has he no conscience left?” He slammed the meeting table hard. “Damn it!”

Xiao You gave a bitter smile.

“If you hadn’t brought him into the team’s youth training camp, that kid would probably still be digging coal somewhere! And now this?!” Xu Minyu’s face was dark as charcoal. “Biting the hand that fed him!”

“Don’t bring him up again.” Yu Chengfeng shot Xu Minyu a glance, then said to Xiao You: “Try negotiating with the other teams. Don’t reject K4 just yet. As for the youth training…”

Because of Yu Chengfeng’s influence, TYG’s youth camp had always produced plenty of top‑lane prospects. But when it came to mid‑laners capable of reaching the S‑Series, they were still lacking.

“Keep an eye on the youth camp too,” Yu Chengfeng finished.

Seeing everyone troubled over the mid‑lane issue, Shao Bei felt unusually regretful. He stared at the match video of “Time Traveler” on the computer screen and quietly made a decision.

Luo Yuchen, meanwhile, had no idea he was being targeted. After reaching Diamond I, he planned to take a break and think carefully about his future.

Now he was wondering: should he join an existing team, or create one of his own?

Money wasn’t a problem — ever since crossing into this world, he had plenty. But having money didn’t mean he could instantly build a strong team.

In this world, Sacred Alliance had even greater influence, and there were far more teams.

For a new team to break into the regional league, they first have to climb step by step through the secondary leagues. That means facing off against more than eighty teams.

Eighty teams! What kind of concept is that? Luo Yuchen suddenly felt a bit of sympathy for little radish head Lin Simo. According to the “black‑fan author’s” version, ten years later Lin Simo would have to lead his team through this grind, climbing one tier at a time.

After all, with a novel of over five million words, having lots of matches was “normal”… yeah, right!

Luo Yuchen once again felt relieved that he wasn’t the protagonist — otherwise he really would go crazy!

Better to just join an existing team. He made up his mind. But… should he join TYG?

Luo Yuchen understood clearly: although right now he only had one trial invitation, if he kept playing ranked, more invitations would come.

After all, other clubs weren’t stupid.

TYG was one option, but not the only option.

As he thought about this, his fingers tapped unconsciously on the keyboard — until he noticed his in‑game private messages flashing again and again.

In recent days he had disabled friend requests and set keyword filters on private messages. So whoever could still reach him now… who could it be?

Luo Yuchen moved his mouse and clicked open the private message window, finding two letters inside.

One was from TYG, though the signature had changed from YYOU to SB.

The other was from LSTV — an invitation for him to become a streamer.

LSTV? Luo Yuchen picked up his phone and dialed the number left in the private message.