Losing Money to Be a Tycoon

The competition continued.

The second match was between SUG Club and the first team in Group A. The overall strength of SUG was obviously slightly worse, but the match was abnormally tight. It filled out the entire set of 'best-of-five' matches.

Ding Gan was so nervous that he broke out in cold sweat.

He had spent a long time working with his team after the competition yesterday. He had told them to focus all their energy on preparing for today's first match and strive to win the first match directly.

There were two main reason for this arrangement:

First, the opponent of the first set of 'best-of-five' matches was confirmed. The opponent of the second set of 'best-of-five' matches was uncertain. What if FV lost? The opponent of the first set of 'best-of-five' matches would be easier to deal with.

Second, the first match was when the players were the most energetic. The chances of winning were higher. The next set of 'best-of-five' matches would be even harder once they lost.

Thus, Ding Gan had given his team members a lot of motivation yesterday. At the same time, he had instructed the coach to make all sorts of targeted tactical arrangements for the familiar team in Group A. Today, they had indeed achieved great results.

However, things did not develop as Ding Gan had imagined.

There was still a gap in strength between the two sides. The players of SUG fought five rounds, but they still lost.

Ding Gan, who was seated below the stage and watching the entire game, nearly fainted. However, he did not have any other good ideas. He could only take the opportunity to comfort his players at the back stage and get them to continue preparing for the next set of 'best-of-five' matches.

…

At the same time, Pei Qian was browsing his cell phone in boredom.

The competition schedule was too tight. The break was longer this time in order to allow the players and the audience to take a break.

It was confirmed that FV club would be able to enter the international competition after they had won the first set of 'best-of-five' matches. Pei Qian's hopes had been dashed.

However, as the saying went, he was already here.

He had traveled all the way to Shanghai, and the competition had been quite exciting. He had to finish watching the last two matches before leaving.

Today's demonic competition had been going on from morning to afternoon. There were two sets of 'best-of-five' matches, but what was more terrifying was that there were two more sets of 'best-of-five' matches.

Many of the audience could not take it anymore. Their stomachs were rumbling and their voices were almost hoarse from shouting.

Some viewers were very smart. They brought a lot of snacks and drinks and kept ordering food . Those who did not bring snacks were more awkward. They had no choice but to leave midway to buy burgers and sandwiches to fill their stomachs.

Of course, Pei Qian would not go hungry. He sneaked back to FV Club's lounge and had a good meal.

Thus, Pei Qian was full now. He swiped his cell phone while waiting for the competition to start.

There were many unread messages on his cell phone. They were all from Zhang Yuan, Lin Chang, and the others.

"Boss Pei, how are things in Shanghai? Do you need our help?"

"Boss Pei, there's a lot of news about you on the internet. It might have been released by Long Yu Corporation. They're trying to ride on your popularity while stepping on GPL. Should we fight back?"

Obviously, everyone on the internet knew that Pei Qian had been 'caught' by the director at the IOI Qualification Competition.

Pei Qian did not reply. Instead, he scrolled through the popular comments on his cell phone, looking pleasantly surprised.

Long Yu Corporation was not bad!

The intelligence gathering was not bad, and the tempo was brilliant!

At the moment, there were two main topics being discussed on the internet. The first was that the FV Club was a club that Tengda had spent a huge sum of money to build. It was aiming to build the strongest IOI team. Boss Pei was very concerned about that. The second was that Boss Pei had personally come to the competition venue for the IOI qualifiers. Obviously, the IOI qualifiers were more popular than the GPL's pre-season competition.

This was a very standard killer technique.

First, they would use fake reviewers to create hype, saying that FV Club was established by Tengda and was a dream team. They were determined to win the championship, and their excessive praises would arouse the disgust of passers-by. At the same time, they would attract more attention.

That way, as long as FV Club lost in the competition, the fake reviewers could immediately change the direction of the game and trample on FV Club until it was worthless.

The classic left-to-right fighting, setting targets and hitting them with their own actions which would have a precise strike effect. The targets were naturally FV club, Boss Pei and Tengda Corporation.

As one could imagine, once FV Club lost, comments like these would immediately spread across the internet:

"Isn't Tengda very good at e-sports? They spent so much money to build a warship in the Milky Way just to be beaten up?"

"It has been proven that IOI is greater than GPL. Boss Pei, who was the authority in GOG, cannot play well in IOI. He can only be beaten up!"

"So what if the GPL is so gaudy? Didn't Boss Pei come all the way to Shanghai to watch his own club being tortured?"

Long Yu Corporation would have a lot of space to make use of as long as he could muddle the waters.

Of course, it would not affect GOG's dominance in the country. However, IOI would definitely take away some of its popularity.

Zhao Xuming had made use of Boss Pei to increase the traffic flow and build momentum for the IOI World Finals that were about to begin. That would be a huge contribution to Finger Games.

Pei Qian could not help but give a thumbs up in his heart.

Well done!

The FV Club had won a series of consecutive victories and had even obtained the qualifications for the IOI World Competition. Pei Qian's heart had been heavy at first, but he could not help but feel comforted after seeing that Long Yu Corporation was finally working.

That way, the internet would be filled with negative comments as long as FV Club lost in the competition for the top seeded team.

As for whether FV Club would lose or not? Pei Qian felt that there was a high chance of that happening.

They had made ample preparations for SUG to win the entire set of 'best-of-five' matches. FV Club was not that well-prepared. On the contrary, the other party must have studied FV's playing style.

What's more, the other party had just won the set of 'best-of-five' matches. Both their morale and state were at their peak. It was highly likely that they would win against FV in one go.

Pei Qian and Zhao Xuming were in the audience and backstage of the recording studio, patiently waiting for FV Club to fail.

…

The competition continued as the audience cheered and shouted.

In the first round, FV Club's playing style seemed to have been figured out by the other party. The players were not in the right state either, and their performance was a little abnormal. They resisted symbolically for a while before being flattened.

Zhao Xuming was overjoyed. He asked the fake reviewers on the internet to work harder on FV Club and Tengda.

In the second round, FV Club changed to a new tactic that they had never used before. They won through a surprise attack. They managed to get back at them even though there were some twists and turns in the middle.

FV Club made a small mistake and was caught by the opponent in the third round. They lost by one move and the opponent won two points.

In the fourth round, FV Club fought for close to fifty minutes. In the end, they narrowly won.

After four rounds, both sides arrived at the deciding round.

Pei Qian looked at his watch. It was already past eight in the evening. The audience had already entered a state of hopelessness. All of them slumped weakly in their chairs, occasionally shaking the empty drinks cup in their hands. They licked their dry lips and helplessly put them down.

They had no choice, they kept cheering until their throats were hoarse.

Some of the audience could not take it anymore and wanted to leave. However, they gritted their teeth and persevered considering that it was already the fifth game.

Pei Qian could not help but want to leave. However, on further thought, he was already here. He had watched four rounds of 'best-of-five' matches. He had to finish watching the final round, right?

He suppressed his restlessness and watched the fifth round patiently.

The commentator might have changed, but the new one was already parched and hoarse.

Even so, they tried their best to liven up the atmosphere.

"Alright, the final deciding round is about to begin. Everyone, please clap and cheer for the team you support!"

"I have to say that today's competition is worth the price of tickets. Everyone could enjoy watching three full sets of 'best-of-five' matches at a shot."

"Many viewers might not be able to hold on much longer. For the players, reaching this stage is no longer just a competition of skills and tactics. It is a competition of willpower."

"Indeed, we can see that many contestants don't look too good. They are taking advantage of every moment to recover their energy."

"Let me explain to everyone here. Players would not dare to eat too much during competitions because their blood would be directed to their stomachs after eating. That would cause their brain to run out of blood and slow down their reactions. For professional players, a single reaction would usually determine the outcome of a competition. Thus, we can see that the players on both sides did not eat too much. They only ate high-calorie food like chocolate and candy to replenish their energy."

"My heart aches for our players. They have been playing competitions from morning until night. Each team has already played nine games. Most of them have reached their physical and mental limits. I hope that they can withstand the final deciding game and risk an exciting competition for us while not leaving any regrets…"

Pei Qian was stunned when he heard the commentator's words.

He realized that something was amiss!

He took a closer look at the expressions on the screen.

The players of the FV Club were all rubbing their hands together. While it was obvious that they were tired as well, they were still in high spirits.

He looked at the opponents again. Some of them were slumped in their E-Sports chairs, resting with their eyes closed. Some of them had their heads lowered on the table. Those who were still struggling to keep their eyes on the computer screen were pale as well. They were chewing their chewing gum to refresh themselves.

The physical difference between the two parties was obvious at this moment!

E-Sports mainly relied on brain power. Under normal circumstances, physical fitness would not have that much of an impact. For a competition like the GPL, a team could at most play one set of 'best-of-five' matches. Therefore the players' competitive state could be maintained at a relatively good level.

However, the situation in the invitational tournament this time was special. It had become a tag-team battle. Both sides were in a deadlock. In the end, it became a set of 'best-of-ten' matches. Naturally, the players on the other side could not take it anymore.

On the other hand, the members of the FV Club had been working out every day at the GPL Club. Their physical fitness had improved greatly. They were also very tired now, but they were in much better condition than their opponents.

This difference could very well determine the outcome of the competition!

Pei Qian felt his limbs turn cold.

This is bad!

The final game officially began as Pei Qian was in a state of worry!

Both sides already knew each other very well by now. Moreover, they did not dare to use any risky moves in the deciding match. They only wanted stability. In the end, the battle became a contest of willpower.

Both sides began to make mistakes, but it was obvious that FV Club was in a better state and were more focused. After seizing a few opportunities, the scales of victory gradually tilted towards FV Club, and the economic gap between the two sides grew bigger and bigger…

"Let us congratulate FV for obtaining the first seedled team qualification for IOI's global finals!"

The commentator's voice echoed throughout the entire stadium. FV's players jumped up and hugged each other excitedly.

"You're really something!"

"We did not let Boss Pei down. We did it!"

"International competition, here we come!"

The audience was not stingy with their applause and cheers. The entire venue was filled with enthusiasm.

SUG might still have one B5 that had not been played and the last slot had not been decided at the moment, but at that moment, FV Club was the absolute focus of attention!

…

Zhao Xuming sat paralyzed in his chair, looking like he had nothing to live for in the backstage of the recording studio.

That was it?!

In the end, FV Club still won?

Wouldn't all the preheating and preparations he had made earlier go to waste?

Zhao Xuming's mind went blank.

The director frowned. "This is bad, Boss Zhao. Many viewers are leaving!"

Zhao Xuming looked up. Indeed, a large group of audience was leaving the venue!

Many viewers finally persevered and finished watching this set of 'best-of-five' matches. It was almost 9 PM. Many people could not take it anymore and left the stage to go home even though there was still another set of 'best-of-five' matches to be played.

Zhao Xuming had a good plan originally when he was arranging the competition schedule.

If there was a weakling team, they would be able to play less rounds and it would have ended at about nine.

He saved the last place for the final battle so that the suspense would linger till the last moment. He could hold an expedition ceremony once that was done. That would be perfect.

However, all the previous arrangements were messed up with FV shaking things up!

Now the last set of 'best-of-five' matches had yet to start but it was already very late. The audience could not take it anymore and wanted to leave. Would the audience still be left for the last match later?

Zhao Xuming stared blankly at the ceiling feeling that the situation in the IOI qualifiers had completely gone out of his control!