Rise

Two Games. Two losses. After the first game, Qi Ming truly believed that it was purely dumb luck that had done him in. And it was that reasoning that made this second loss sting that much more. Lin Feng hadn’t just beaten him. Lin Feng had taken his champion from the first game and shown him how it would’ve looked had he played it better. When Qi Ming played Fizz in the previous game, he failed to predict where Lin Feng’s Lux would Flash. In this game, where Lin Feng was playing Fizz, he accurately predicted which way Qi Ming’s Syndra would Flash and splashed down on her with Trickster. The exact same situation in both games, and Qi Ming had made the wrong decision twice.

“You know, if you’d flashed like I did last game, you would’ve lived too,” Lin Feng remarked.

Qi Ming alternated between anger and humiliation, but he had nothing to say. Everything Lin Feng said was right. He could’ve flashed forward, and he would’ve escaped with his life. But in that critical moment, his gut reaction was to flash away. How could he possibly have the time to think of anything else? This was the crux of the problem. When there was no time to react, when the moment was most crucial, most players acted on instinct or habit. Only someone truly extraordinary could stay calm in a crucial moment like that one and ignore their instinctive reaction! Although he was a Master, achieving this Zen mindset was extraordinarily difficult. From his point of view, even professional players couldn't necessarily pull this off consistently! So there should’ve been no reason for him to feel ashamed of himself. Except that this piddly high schooler had somehow pulled it off!

Lin Feng could do it. Easily. So why couldn’t I? Qi Ming couldn’t come to terms with his loss to Lin Feng, and a string of excuses, justifications and rationalizations ran through his mind. It was luck. No, lag! My keyboard wasn’t working… But all of those were worthless, he knew they were hollow. The reality of the situation was that the answer was simple. There’s no excuse! You were just bad! There was no excuse, no circumstance that had negatively influenced his gameplay. This absolute truth was what made his face flash between red and purple, between anger and embarrassment. Qi Ming shot up from his chair, toppling it over, and stomped out of the internet cafe. He didn’t even bother saying goodbye.

“Huh?” Lin Feng started after Qi Ming. “Where is he going?”

Zuo You burst out laughing. “Hahahaha! That was great! Oh my god! Let’s see him brag and try to show off in front of me at work again! Hahaha!” She wiped the tears from her eyes.

Lin Feng scratched his head. “I mean, he played pretty well.”

Zuo You rolled her eyes. “But not as good as you. Am I right?”

“Exactly!” Lin Feng balled his fist and struck a victory pose, a triumphant smile on his face.