Valorant: I Am Still the World's Best

When EDG led 9-3 in the first half, some fans were already popping champagne.

But then, in the second half, PRX rallied to score three points, putting all the CN fans on the edge of their seats.

In all competitive sports, the gap in strength is certainly important.

However, when the gap between the two sides is not large enough, that sense of momentum becomes extremely important.

For a team like PRX, whose members are all skilled gunners, momentum has a huge impact. If they get into a good position, each of them could potentially unleash a signature shot.

Fortunately, PRX was able to find a breakthrough and suppress it as soon as it gained momentum, thus securing the first map.

In the live streams of various secondary commentators, the chat was as lively as if it were Chinese New Year.

[We've won the first picture! Could it be that we can really advance to the quarterfinals as the group winner?!]

[We've crushed PRX's deep-sea power head-on! We are the world's number one deep-sea fighter! Can you feel it, brothers?]

[You know what, you really can't believe it. Neon Town, a major industrial city, a pearl of the deep sea... EDG now has three strong maps!]

[We've taken down the opponent's chosen map, now look at map two! We've easily secured our chosen Hermitage!]

In Da Dongyan and Ye Lian's live stream, the two of them connected for commentary right on time.

Despite the generally optimistic attitude of the comments section, Ye Lian poured cold water on it.

"It's really hard to say about picture two... PRX must have some reason to dare to release the Hermitage."

"EDG has consistently performed poorly on this map even when Haodong was on the team. Raven has only been a substitute for two weeks, which is far too short! No matter how hard they train, there's always a focus in their map pool, and I suspect EDG hasn't practiced this map much."

There are seven maps in the pool. Excluding the Lotus Ancient City which is permanently banned, there are six maps to practice on.

EDG has already brought out new lineups and new tactics on three maps. Judging from their performance in the game, they have definitely put in a lot of effort and hard work behind the scenes.

For each map, I probably practiced running through it hundreds of times.

However, a person's energy is limited.

In Ye Lian's opinion, these three pictures probably encapsulate the essence of EDG's recent tactical changes and training.

For the other maps, at most the old tactics can be used.

In the live stream, many people were dissatisfied with Ye Lian's analysis, feeling that his judgment was too arbitrary.

But in the next match at the Hermit's Training Grounds in Figure 2, things developed exactly as Ye Lian had predicted.

The hermitage is a three-point diagram of ABC.

The reason EDG can't play this map well is the same as the reason they always ban Lotus Ancient City.

These three-point diagrams severely test a contestant's fundamental skills in various aspects, including efficient communication, seamless teamwork, and quick repositioning.

Teams that excel at these types of maps are generally disciplined and academically trained teams skilled in map control.

For example, Fnc.

—In the São Paulo preseason invitational, Fnc Hermitage boasts a 100% win rate.

—At the Tokyo Masters, Fnc Lotus Ancient City boasts a 100% win rate.

They are the rightful lords of Lotus Ancient City and the directors of the Hermitage this year.

Unless they can find some kind of comfort zone, EDG's team style means they really can't play these three-point maps well.

For the Hermitage map, EDG chose a lineup of Raven, Nobody, Smoggy, CHICHOO, and Zmjjkk.

"This lineup is designed to make Kang Ge and the young player feel comfortable, there's nothing special about it." Da Dongyan also realized that EDG wasn't prepared.

Fortunately, PRX, which is also a muscle-bound brand, didn't fare so well in this picture either.

But at least they had prepared a few surprise tactics. The attacking side took a 6-0 lead at the start, catching EDG off guard.

But soon, the EDG players unleashed their amazing individual skills.

Young player Raven continued to unleash his full potential, while Zheng Yongkang's performance in the second picture was mediocre. However, Qiuqiu, who had been struggling in the first picture, suddenly became swollen and managed to save several clutch situations, becoming the best at saving clutch situations and endorsing "Qiu Shen Diapers".

After the two teams went back and forth, in the later stages of the game, it all came down to individual ability.

Ultimately, the score was 11-13, with EDG narrowly losing the second map.

"What a pity."

Although Ye Lian made a prediction, she still hoped that EDG could create a miracle. She sighed and said, "If it weren't for those 6 points lost at the beginning, I feel like we could have really won! Xiao Jiang and Qiu Qiu are both burning with passion this game."

[The young player got 24 kills, and Qiuqiu got 25 kills; together they got almost 50. What were the remaining three doing?]

[I have absolutely no skill with the sniper rifle, but I really need to practice with this one, right? You can't expect to have a sniper rifle every match! My positioning is terrible; I'm just mindlessly firing and staying still every time, playing like my old friend.]

[Wang÷ only knows how to play Skye now? He managed to get by in Black Dream last time, but this time he went 5/20 in Hunter Owl? Is he even human?]

[Zhang Zhao really doesn't understand how to play the Vanguard. 24 rounds, 7 assists, Iron Arm, oh my god.]

-----------------

Inside the EDG lounge.

Although he had expected the second result to be a failure, Su Ming was still somewhat unhappy when he actually got the result.

"I didn't perform well. If I were a little stronger..."

Su Ming reflected.

If the maximum score is 100, I only managed to score 70 points in the last round.

Although the whole team didn't play comfortably on this map and didn't have a deep understanding of it, Su Ming was the main duelist and the carry who consumed the resources of the two vanguards, yet he only managed to kill 24 people, which is really unacceptable.

Losing a game inevitably brings some emotional reactions.

But EDG quickly recovered.

At this point, they were just a dark horse with some fame in the world competition. They were an underdog who had pulled off an upset, and they would not lose their fighting spirit because of the defeat.

On the contrary, everyone was harboring a burning anger inside.

Old Nine understood this psychology better than Coach After. He smiled slightly, stepped forward, and said, "Brothers, the other side came prepared for map two, but they still almost lost to us. This proves that we've pushed PRX to the brink!"

"We've been training intensively for three days on the Suspended City of Asia in Figure 3, so now it's our turn to come prepared!"

-----------------

The halftime break ended quickly.

Amidst the shouts of anticipation, excitement, and tension from the audience, the selection process for Figure 3 began.

PRX once again selected their unique lineup.

Jingg (Razor), Something (Rina), d4v41 (Skye), f0rsakeN (Poseidon), mindfreak (Viper).

This lineup made the analysts and coaching staff of the European and American teams watching the game frown and exclaim that it was "abstract".

But the most abstract part is yet to come.

Raven (捷风), Zmjjkk (芮娜), Nobody (Sky), Smoggy (烟男), CHICHOO (幽影).

"Huh?" Ye Lian was stunned when she saw EDG's lineup.

"This..." Da Dongyan quickly suppressed a smile and asked strangely, "Brother Lian, what do you think of this?"

【? ? ? 】

[This lineup is amazing! I'd eat it!]

[What the heck? Both teams are doing research.]

[This is a lineup that's incredibly rare, even in the bottom three ranks of the Chinese server.]

[No fur, the lower three sections contain a wet nurse.]