League of Legends: League of Unknowns

“Do you guys really have the confidence to beat Team Sky? I heard that even without Blood Eagle, they’re still very strong. Even Team Revelation is no match for them,” said Li Meiqi as they walked back to the university.

As they had been drinking and were on a high from their victory, Team Skycrown had completely forgotten about something important. The fact that all their points had been taken away because of Xiao Bei’s identity problem, causing them to start from zero again. Right now, they only had four points, which would make it a bit hard for them to make the top three.

Of course, not making it to the top three wasn’t really a problem. As long as they could beat Team Sky, then Team Skycrown would immediately gain fame as the team who defeated both Team Revelation and Team Sky. Even if they didn’t manage to participate in Worlds, they would still be a highly influential team within the country.

That would be enough for them. This year, they had made it into the LPL. Just wait until next year when they would be more mature and have more experience. When they aimed for Worlds then, it would definitely be more exciting!

All the well-known professional players had recently been appearing a lot in the media. Let them have their moment in the spotlight while they can, it would be Team Skycrown’s turn soon!

***

Having been away from university for a while, Yu Luocheng needed to catch up with his coursework. It was already dark out and the lights were on all over the university.

“Will you still be playing in the next match?” asked Li Meiqi.

“We’ll see. It’s best if Xiao Bei plays. The tactic we’ve been using was specially developed for the five of them, and they’ve practised with it longer than I have. I might have been able to bring a stronger effect in the beginning, but later on I won’t be so effective. I didn’t train as much as they did after all,” said Yu Luocheng.

“Honestly, it’s such a pity that you’re not playing professionally. Don’t you want to try convincing your family to let you play? I think they’d be so proud to see you being supported by everyone. Everyone knows that studying is not the only way to succeed,” said Li Meiqi.

“My family hardly goes online, they won’t understand all this. In their opinion, online games are like drugs…” said Yu Luocheng, shaking his head.

“That’s because you don’t communicate with them much,” replied Li Meiqi.

Yu Luocheng looked at her and sighed, saying, “You don’t understand my situation.”

“Then tell me, I’ll listen. If you don’t explain it to me, how can I understand?” retorted Li Meiqi.

Yu Luocheng didn’t feel like explaining his home situation, saying, “The situation with my old man is a bit more complicated.”

“How is it complicated?”

“You have to return to your dorm, I’m going back to uni,” said Yu Luocheng, pointing to the high-rise apartment that had an elevator.

Yang Ying used to stay here with his girlfriend, and Yu Luocheng was quite familiar with this apartment. Looking at it, Yu Luocheng couldn’t help but think of Yang Qianqian who he had not seen for about a month.

“Don’t be like that, I was just trying to lend you an ear. Besides, I live alone. Come on up to my place, we can talk through the night,” said Li Meiqi while batting her eyes cutely, speaking in a tone that would give you goosebumps.

Yu Luocheng swallowed hard, sneaking a peek at Li Meiqi’s perky tits.

F*ck, did she have to tempt a pure virgin like him? She had to know that he had a girlfriend!

“Uh… now that you mention it, I am a bit thirsty…” Yu Luocheng croaked.

“Oh, then hurry up and get back to your dorm so you can drink some water!” said Li Meiqi, turning around gracefully.

Her heels made a clacking sound against the pavement as she made her way back to her apartment. She purposely swayed her hips seductively as she walked away to captivate Yu Luocheng who furiously tried to distract himself.

See no evil, hear no evil… the weather today was good, slightly cloudy…

***

Walking into the university compound, Yu Luocheng’s mind was still filled with mixed thoughts.

Part of him could still feel the rush from the dynamic music and the crowd’s passionate cheers. But at the same time, he was haunted by a vision of his own face, staring coldly with a serious expression and judging himself.

Lost in his thoughts, he unconsciously walked into the community area and saw two people standing at the entrance. It was late, most of the students would have already retired for the night, you normally wouldn’t even see a shadow at this hour.

Suddenly, a clear voice rang out, “Dad, go home first. I don’t think Brother will be coming back tonight.”

Feeling like the voice was quite familiar, Yu Luocheng squinted to try and see who was talking. His face paled when he realized who it was.

One person was wearing white, fluffy sportswear that outlined a beautiful and charming figure. This view had become one of the most beautiful sights of Shanghai University, and many knew who she was.

What made Yu Luocheng’s heart race was not the fact that Yu Yu was standing at the entrance, but the middle-aged man standing next to her.

Yu Yu had just finished talking when she saw Yu Luocheng walking in their direction.

“Brother…”

Yu Yu hurried to Yu Luocheng’s side, glaring at him as she whispered, “I kept calling you but you didn’t pick up or read my texts. Dad already knows…”

Yu Luocheng stood there, not moving a single muscle.

Yu Jing also stood there and you could see his chest heaving, as though he was having difficulty breathing. His face was extremely rigid and his eyes were cold and furious. His gaze was laced with disappointment and pain!

This was the expression that Yu Luocheng was most afraid of, he had never wanted to see this look on his father’s face. It felt like a lightning bolt had slammed right into his mind.

Huff huff huff!

Yu Jing’s breaths grew heavier and more laboured. His words of reprimand were stuck in his throat, unable to come out.

Sensing that something was wrong, Yu Yu hurried to her father’s side to support him.

“Dad…are you alright?”

Yu Jing was dripping with sweat, and his face that was red with anger had slowly turned pale white!

Yu Luocheng clearly recalled the previous time this had happened to his father, when they had their big fight about him playing in the professional league. Back then, Yu Jing had also been full of anger that couldn’t be vented, blocked by pain, and unable to speak a word…

Looking back, Yu Luocheng hadn’t known that his father’s damaged liver had been causing him so much pain in that moment!

And now, the same anger, the same pain…

Looking at Yu Jing who couldn’t utter a word and seeing the painful expression on his face with sweat dripping down, Yu Luocheng suddenly realized that his illness was flaring up, and hurried over to help him too.

***

Yu Jing had actually arrived in Shanghai earlier that morning, feeling happy that Yu Yu had given him a reason to hope again. He was also elated by the chance to see the university that both his children were currently studying in…

To him, university held a lifetime full of regrets.

But the whole day of feeling good had been ruined by what went down in the community area…

Since then, Yu Jing hadn’t left the community area. He had been waiting at the entrance all day, waiting for Yu Luocheng to get his sorry ass back to the dorm and explain himself!

Who was the one who had knelt in front of the door, swearing that he would never touch those blasted drug-like online games again?!

Why… why was it that in less than two years, he once again chose to walk this path that his family didn’t want him to be on, and that too without a shred of remorse…

How much had Yu Jing given for the sake of his family? Suffering day and night from his illness. And this child couldn’t even listen to the one thing that was asked of him⁠⁠!

***

For Yu Jing, this was a nightmare come to life.

For Yu Lucoheng, this was also a nightmare unfolding into reality before his very eyes.

Red lights flashed, hurting his eyes with it’s brightness.

The roar of the ambulance siren was also particularly harsh in his ears.

Yu Yu’s voice lingered in his ears, “You bastard, don’t you know why Dad came to Shanghai?!”

***

Li Yun’s crying voice came through the phone, “Cheng, do you really not know or are you just in denial? Even if you can’t let go of the thing that you love, can’t you at least wait until after your father’s surgery…wuwuwu…”

***

Why did it feel like he had been thrown back into the past, when they used sharp shouts, harsh scolding, and a flood of tears to reprimand and stop him from playing?

Just recently during Chinese New Year, everyone was still happily celebrating and enjoying a feast together. They had been teasing Yu Yu about all the suitors she had in university, and saying that Yu Luocheng had accidentally tricked a schoolmate into becoming his girlfriend…

Suddenly all the colors turned into the white walls of the hospital. The scenes of cold lights, crying, and scolding kept replaying in his head.

This was the second time in the year that he stepped foot into the hospital. In his heart, Yu Luocheng was scolding himself for being such an idiot.

Previously, Yu Jing had already spent a big sum of money on his liver surgery. Back when Li Yun had been unwilling to disclose Yu Jin’s condition, Yu Luocheng should have known that his father’s liver was almost useless…

As time passed, Yu Luocheng found that Yu Jing grew more and more quiet. He always wanted to speak but didn’t know what to say. It wasn’t just because there was a big age gap between them, but also because sometimes it was just too painful to talk about anything.

As long as he didn’t go pale and faint, Yu Jing always pretended that he was fine, pretending to be healthier than any of them…

***

“He needs a liver transplant, he won’t last long at this rate,” said the doctor, his cold voice echoing in the hallways of the hospital.

***

“Since you’re a national athlete, your direct relatives receive certain medical insurance benefits. The medical costs of the liver transplant will be covered by the country, but the problem is…”

***

Yu Luocheng sat in the waiting room, not speaking a word.

Seeing him now, you wouldn’t even imagine that just a short while ago, he was enjoying a celebration for an incredible victory. Suddenly, everything came crashing down with one piece of bad news. Now, every breath he took was filled with the bitter taste and smell of the sterile hospital.

He couldn’t do anything but simply wait in silence.

Before all this happened, Yu Luocheng had always been thankful for at least having a warm house and caring family. He was definitely in a better situation compared to Da Luo, Zhou Yan, Lin Dong, and Xiao Bei.

But his household had always been held together with glue, and their deep wounds were just bandaged. One gentle touch and…

It would break again.

Yu Luocheng was like a devil with horns, even if you used brute strength to break the horns, they would unconsciously grow back again…