SITS CH39

Chapter 39: Pulverized Completely

His teammates understood exactly what Shen Man meant. Zhao Rui rubbed his face vigorously, trying to hide his damp eyes with his hands. Xu Xiaochong gritted his teeth in sheer frustration, blaming himself for reacting too slowly earlier and failing to use his body weight to crush those bastards to death. Liu Shishi ground his molars: “What is there to fear? It’s already come to this, let’s fucking destroy them!”

“Smash them to pieces!” Zhao Rui slammed the desk hard.

Xu Zhouye remained silent. For this game, he locked in a Hero rarely seen in competitive play: The Hanged Man.

This was the decider match under threat of a reverse sweep. Typically, players drafted safe, stable Heroes without taking extreme stylistic risks.

Yet Xu Zhouye chose, without the slightest hesitation, a Hero that relied entirely on individual touch and mechanical execution.

After weighing the options, the coach agreed to Xu Zhouye’s pick; he had immense faith in him.

Naturally so. Sitting in this chair, who lacked confidence?

“I’m playing this. If we lose, I’ll take full blame.” Competing for all this time, it was the first time Xu Zhouye had expressed such stubborn personal will. Skilled as he was, he had almost always adhered to the coach’s strategic blueprint. Even when playing Carry Jungler systems, it was done with the coach’s blessing. Only this time did he adamantly demand to shoulder the consequences of his own choice.

The coach glanced at Shen Man, let out a sigh, and said, “Alright, go ahead.”

He saw Shen Man’s physical condition clearly. For this game, their only winning bet was Xu Zhouye.

Shen Man said, “Lock in Blood Shark for me.”

Zhao Rui was startled: “Are you sure?” This Hero was undeniably the strongest early-game Marksman bar none, but it demanded relentlessly intense mechanical positioning.

Shen Man said flatly, “Of course I’m sure.”

Over on the other side, GC saw Shen Man’s pick as well.

The captain who had deliberately provoked Shen Man in the restroom sneered: “How hilarious. In that state, he still dares to play Blood Shark?”

“Captain, did you bump into him in the restroom?” their Support asked.

The captain gave a cold nod.

His teammates knew their captain’s personality inside out. One look was enough to tell he had stirred up trouble on purpose again. When it came to breaking an opponent’s mental game, their captain held unmatched notoriety. The Support offered a sycophantic smile like a humble bootlicker: “Looks like that SLOW got triggered and is forcing this pick just to prove himself.”

“These pampered prodigies have never faced this kind of heat,” the captain scoffed. “Playing for so long, I bet he’s never heard a harsh word in his life. Others might not dare say it, but I will: SLOW is nothing special.”

Both the casters and the audience could tell that ACE’s form was in dire straits, particularly the bot lane, whose performance had plummeted in the two lost games.

Seeing Shen Man lock in Blood Shark, everyone began to worry.

“While Blood Shark is still viable in this patch,” Caster 1 noted, “is this pick a little too volatile?”

“FEST locked in The Hanged Man,” Caster 2 focused on the jungle pick instead. “It does synergize with Blood Shark, but this draft demands a rapid early-game finish. If it drags into late game…”

Both casters fell silent, clearly skeptical of ACE’s team composition.

“GC deliberately drafted a late-game scaling roster. It looks like they are dead set on stalling,” Caster 1 remarked. “…Let us see who prevails.”

The game began.

To match Shen Man, Zhao Rui picked his signature hook-based hard engage Support. It was a match made in heaven with Blood Shark, yet Zhao Rui remained deeply anxious about Shen Man’s physical state.

However, his worries proved completely unnecessary.

Sweeping away his sluggish slump from the previous two games, Shen Man played with savage ferocity. Bolstered by Blood Shark’s explosive early-game burst, their seamless coordination sent the enemy bot duo packing back to their fountain at level one.

Blood Shark was an extraordinary Hero. He possessed an oppressive early-game mechanic: every time he caught a returning spinning blade, his passive Blood Blade buff was sustained for one second. Shen Man piloted this mechanic to absolute perfection, catching every single blade without a miss. In that level-one trade, his Blood Blade buff never dropped for a single second, beating the enemy bot lane down to critical health until they could only cower under their tower.

Shen Man’s form was back!

And he wasn’t the only one; Xu Zhouye’s form was blazing as well.

Xu Zhouye’s Hanged Man ganked bot lane at level three. Before GC could react, a long, slender noose whipped out from the brush, snaring the Marksman’s fragile neck with pinpoint brutality. As the blood-stained rope dug into soft flesh and crimson splattered, Zhao Rui chained his crowd control flawlessly, clamping the Marksman in place with his hook. Shen Man followed up with a crisp basic attack, smoothly securing First Blood.

Blood Shark was the most terrifying snowballing Marksman in the game. Once he pocketed a few early kills, the match would inevitably conclude in the most brutal, bloody fashion.

GC clearly hadn’t realized this yet. By the time they did, Shen Man’s Blood Shark had already completed two full core items.

“Come, Zhao Rui,” Shen Man said. “Dive the tower.”

Zhao Rui acknowledged with a hum, throwing out a Q that snared the enemy Marksman dead to rights.

It was merely a fleeting one-second stun, yet the Marksman watched his health bar vaporize into thin air.

With sixteen hundred health, Shen Man’s single basic attack landed a critical strike that shaved off half his health bar; had the second blade critically struck as well, he would have owed Shen Man two hundred health.

Deleted in two swift hits, the enemy Marksman was thoroughly bewildered. He glanced up at the game clock in the upper-right corner: fifteen minutes. The match had barely run for fifteen minutes.

Fifteen minutes in, and he was two-shot to death.

How on earth was he supposed to play?

Was this Shen Man’s true power? Realizing this, cold sweat broke out across the Marksman’s forehead. He wanted to call for jungle backup, only to discover his Jungler couldn’t even protect himself.

Xu Zhouye’s Hanged Man was pure nightmare fuel.

The viability of this Hero rested entirely on the accuracy of his Q skillshot. In Xu Zhouye’s hands, that skillshot behaved like a point-and-click ability, virtually never missing.

With bot lane crushed under tower and unable to assist, GC’s jungle turned into ACE’s private territory. Ever since The Hanged Man reached level six, GC’s Jungler had barely farmed a single complete jungle camp.

Meanwhile, GC’s captain, their Mid Laner, was ganked twice by Xu Zhouye, sending his lane into complete ruin.

At eighteen minutes, GC’s tier-two bot tower fell.

Retreating step by step, GC was forced to retreat to their high ground.

“The high ground is tough to crack. Let’s take the Serpent King,” Shen Man called.

“Can’t take it,” Xu Zhouye said.

“Why can’t we?” Shen Man asked, puzzled.

“It hasn’t spawned yet,” Xu Zhouye replied.

Shen Man: “…”

Right, he had forgotten that the first Serpent only spawned at twenty minutes, and they were barely at the eighteen-minute mark.

“Then wait a bit,” Shen Man said. “Clean out their entire jungle.”

“What do you mean their jungle? It’s clearly our jungle,” Xu Zhouye sneered coldly. “As if they deserve to touch it.”

GC had been beaten into complete silence, the voice comms chillingly quiet.

Their captain spat out a stream of foul profanities, cursing the Support to hurry out and place vision. Shivering with fear, the Support didn’t dare disobey. Yet the moment he stepped tentatively toward the brush, a life-claiming noose shot from the fog of war, tightening around his neck. Following the rope came twin blades drenched in fresh blood, slicing through the air with a savage screech. One strike, then another, the razor-sharp blades cleaving his body into pieces.

Suffocating, despair-inducing dominance.

The ID ACE.slow flashed across the screen countless times. Seeing that name was like watching the Grim Reaper’s summon, evoking a terror and cowardice he had never felt before.

The captain began raging over the comms again with the same tired insults, but the harder he cursed, the more guilty and intimidated the rest of the team felt.

Wasn’t Shen Man injured? How could someone hurt that badly execute mechanics of this caliber? Could they truly beat someone like this?

In that moment, GC’s players lost every ounce of fighting spirit, reduced to cowards scattering in panic.

At twenty minutes, ACE marched onto the high ground empowered by the Serpent King buff.

Like an avalanche tumbling down a mountain, GC crumpled like a battered punching bag, utterly devoid of counterplay.

The moment Shen Man completed his third item, the outcome of the match was sealed. The twin blades in his hands acted like the Grim Reaper’s scythe, harvesting the fragile lives of his enemies like ripe wheat.

Xu Zhouye’s Hanged Man followed closely at his side, the rope twirling in his grasp serving as an executioner’s death warrant: opponents were crippled before they even saw his face.

It was a one-sided slaughter born of an overwhelming skill disparity.

Looking at the 16-0 kill score on screen, the casters struggled to find words to salvage GC’s dignity, laughing dryly and remarking that earlier claims of ACE being out of form were utter nonsense; no team looked sharper than ACE right now.

[Too fierce, absolutely too fierce! SLOW is an absolute monster!]

[Feels like the whole squad is holding in a grudge. Who pissed them off?]

[GC got completely dismantled! Pushing high ground at twenty minutes flat!]

[Wait, why aren’t they hitting the Nexus? Yo, are they fountain-camping?!]

Fountain-camping meant ignoring the objective to repeatedly slaughter newly respawned players. While not against the official rules, doing so in professional tournaments was widely criticized as unsportsmanlike.

The casters hadn’t expected this scene either, remarking in surprise: “What is going on with ACE today? They look like they came out seeking personal blood vengeance.”

Caster 2 said, “Mm… perhaps being their first time at Worlds, they’re just overly excited?”

Both tried their best to smooth it over, but the stream viewers weren’t buying it:

[This is terrible sportsmanship. Fountain-camping for almost five minutes without ending, what is ACE doing?]

[A bit excessive honestly. One wave is fine, but this is the third time now.]

[GC looks so pitiful.]

Pitiful? Xu Zhouye didn’t find them pitiful in the slightest. Remembering how GC’s captain had mocked Shen Man in the restroom made his molars grind in fury.

Both The Hanged Man and Blood Shark were peerless executioners for fountain-camping, dishing out damage so astronomical that the fountain’s regeneration couldn’t keep anyone alive.

The five ACE players stood outside the fountain like an insurmountable wall, slaughtering GC’s champions the instant they revived, over and over again.

Taunting emotes flashed constantly above their heads, payback for GC’s arrogant provocations, and retribution for Shen Man’s blood-soaked right arm.

“End it,” Shen Man finally spoke, bringing the match to a close.

During the fountain-camping, the casters hadn’t dared utter a peep, thoroughly perplexed. ACE was renowned as a team with exceptional competitive manners, rarely flashing unnecessary emotes, let alone against an underdog like GC. Did some unknown grudge exist between them? The two casters exchanged a bewildered glance.

Outsiders remained oblivious, but those within the scene knew Shen Man’s code: he never picked a fight unless provoked first.

Today, every member of ACE had acted like they swallowed a barrel of gunpowder, utterly terrifying.

After camping the fountain for several minutes, they finally tore down the Nexus, allowing everyone to breathe a collective sigh of relief.

However, when it came to the post-match handshakes, ACE offered GC zero face. Protocol dictated that the winning team walked over to shake hands with the defeated side out of mutual respect.

ACE did not go. Without a word of discussion, all five turned on their heels and walked straight off stage, leaving GC sitting in their chairs in utter humiliation.

Fearing the situation would blow up, the broadcast director cut the camera feed immediately.

Simultaneously, word reached domestic fans:

[Something happened! Insider sources say someone injured SLOW’s hand right before the match!]

[Someone? Who? Not GC, right?]

[Their staff member collided with SLOW, not sure if deliberate or an accident.]

[For real? SLOW’s hand was injured again?!]

[Good heavens, is it serious?]

[No wonder his performance in those two games looked so off!]

The series MVP went to Shen Man. His condition was undeniably poor; when the post-match interview camera focused on his face, the audience was stunned.

Shen Man was deathly pale, faint traces of cold sweat glistening on his forehead. Standing beside the host, his voice sounded ethereal and faint.

The host asked a few routine questions. He answered succinctly without a trace of joy, looking less like someone who had just won a match and more like a patient dragged out of a hospital bed.

Sharp-eyed viewers quickly spotted something amiss:

[Does ACE’s jersey have red on it? Why is SLOW’s sleeve soaked in red?]

[Holy shit, it really is red! Right on his right forearm! He was genuinely hurt!!]

[Heavens, the blood soaked right through the fabric, and he still pushed through all five games…]

[I apologize. I was cursing SLOW for bad sportsmanship earlier, turns out I was the one lacking decency.]

[Honestly, with a worse temper, people would have thrown hands backstage already.]

Xu Zhouye had noticed the bloodstain on Shen Man’s sleeve the moment they walked off the stage. His breath hitched. Watching Shen Man turn to head toward the interview stage, he reached out to grip his cuff: “Ge…” He wanted to tell Shen Man not to go, but his lips trembled, managing only: “Come down quickly.”

Shen Man’s cool gaze softened considerably. Letting out a quiet sigh, he said nothing, reaching out to gently ruffle Xu Zhouye’s messy hair before turning away.

Fortunately, the organizers had briefed the host beforehand. They didn’t press him hard, wrapping up the interview with a few brief questions.

“How’s the hand? Take the jacket off and let me look!” The moment he reached backstage, his teammates swarmed around him, the manager shouting in panic.

Shen Man: “…”

“Hurry! What are you standing there for?” The manager poked his head forward: “We’re all guys, what are you acting shy for?”

Shen Man ignored him, walking into their private lounge. Out in the hallway stood not only his teammates but passing tournament personnel; stripping down there felt like being a monkey put on display at a zoo.

The viewers hadn’t seen wrong: Shen Man’s sleeve was soaked through with blood.

The makeshift bandage earlier had barely held. Through the gauze, dark crimson was plain to see.

Blood had trickled down the cuff onto his wrist. It was fortunate his peripherals were black, otherwise red stains would have been glaringly visible across the gear.

Shen Man let his arm hang limp, like a bird with a shattered wing.

The lounge fell dead silent. Everyone’s eyes were glued to Shen Man’s arm, their faces weighed down with solemn dread. Finally, Xu Zhouye couldn’t take it anymore: “What are you all standing around for? Let’s get to the hospital right now!”

“Right, right! To the hospital!” The manager snapped back to reality.

“No need for everyone to go, I’ll accompany ge,” Xu Zhouye said. “The rest of you head back to the hotel.”

“I’ll come along too,” the manager said anxiously.

“No need. He’s enough,” Shen Man said.

The manager opened his mouth to argue, but Shen Man merely gave Xu Zhouye a nod, and the two walked out together, completely bypassing the fretting group left behind.

“Wait a second, when did those two get this close?” The manager couldn’t quite wrap his head around it, feeling the bizarre sensation of his kid having grown up overnight.

Zhao Rui sighed, patting his manager’s shoulder: “Do you have any thoughts regarding our fifty-thousand-yuan Jungler abducting our fifty-million-yuan Marksman?”

Manager: “?????”

Thoughts? What thoughts?! Was the cheapest item truly the most expensive?! And what did he mean by ‘abducting’?! If Xu Zhouye jumped ship and took Shen Man with him, wouldn’t his boss hire a thousand internet trolls to curse him into an early grave?!