Game two.
Selina Shi went for a fast push, rallying her peasants in a farmer uprising, planning to crush Evan Lin in one wave.
But Evan Lin held off her attack with just a single hero and three footmen, turning a disadvantage into an advantage through sheer micro. Catching an opening, he launched a counterstrike, seized the initiative, and then snowballed his lead until he took the second game.
Two to zero.
Hank Chu and Ken stared at the victory screen on Evan Lin's monitor, unable to snap out of it for a long while.
Those opening moves, where Evan Lin danced three footmen and a single hero around, were so precise they could only be described as terrifying.
It was straight-up professional level.
"Lost again?" Allen Ju muttered, staring at Selina Shi’s monitor, then turned to look at Evan Lin with an even stranger expression.
Whoa.
Selina Shi, after losing two games, showed no trace of disappointment on her face. Her gaze was calm as she stood up, looked at Evan Lin across the table, and said, "I lost. I owe you a meal."
"You should eat that meal with Ken instead," Evan Lin shook his head.
As soon as he said it, Selina Shi's brows knitted slightly, Allen Ju's lips curled up, and Warren Wu made a sarcastic comment: "Who would've thought someone would actually turn down a meal with Selina?"
Selina turned her head, eyes flashing, and stared at Ken sitting next to Evan Lin.
Ken felt her gaze and his face changed instantly. Remembering how she kicked that street punk out earlier, his heart skipped a beat and he nearly cried. He kicked Evan Lin’s calf hard and quickly shook his head: "No, no! I didn’t beat you, so I shouldn’t be the one eating with you."
"Evan won, so he should go. Hank, don’t you agree?" Ken looked over at Hank Chu, eyes pleading for help.
"Uh, yeah, I think so too," Hank Chu nodded. He actually felt Evan Lin was the only one who could handle a girl like Selina Shi.
"Hear that?" Selina Shi turned to Evan Lin, her gaze carrying a hint of warning.
It was obvious that being refused by Evan Lin had really gotten under Selina Shi’s skin.
"Hey, do you even know who you just beat?" Allen Ju looked at Evan Lin, hesitated a moment, then finally spoke up.
Hank Chu and Ken immediately turned to look at Allen Ju.
Allen Ju finally spoke: "Back when Selina Shi played WCG, she qualified first in the online prelims, but didn’t attend the offline finals. That was about three years ago."
"All the War3 players called her Empress."
As soon as Allen Ju said that, Hank Chu was still confused, but Ken froze for a second, then jumped up, eyes wide, staring at Selina Shi and stammering: "Empress? The Human player who killed Ghost God Lucifer and could go sixty-forty against Sky?!"
"And didn’t people online always say Empress was probably a transvestite?!"
Ken looked completely dumbfounded. As soon as he blurted that out, he realized it sounded bad and quickly shut his mouth.
"You’re the transvestite," Selina Shi shot back, rolling her eyes at Ken.
Hank Chu, hearing Ken’s words, suddenly remembered: "Holy crap! The one who set up a three-day challenge room on VS, crushed countless pro players, and bragged on the War3 forums about toppling the whole community?"
"Man, after hearing all those legends, I can’t believe I’m actually meeting her in real life today!"
Hank Chu shook his head, feeling like the whole thing was surreal.
Listening to them, Evan Lin finally remembered hearing about someone like that before. Back then, he was just a Warcraft newbie, and a figure like Empress was on a monster level—those legendary clashes between gods and monsters were something he could only look up to from afar.
"Then you’re really impressive," Evan Lin finally squeezed out after Selina Shi stared at him for a long time.
Jason Jiang stood behind them, his gaze lingering on Evan Lin for a long moment, full of complicated meaning.
Meanwhile, downstairs at the Leisure Net Café.
Out front.
Five motorcycles roared over from the far side of the street.
Each bike carried two punks, gripping steel pipes and bricks, sporting wild-colored hair and sleazy looks. On the lead bike sat the bowl-cut street punk Selina Shi had kicked flying just moments ago.
All five bikes screeched to a halt in front of the Leisure Net Café.
"Dog, was the woman who beat you really that pretty?" The man with a Guan Gong tattoo on his bare arm—Mad Dog—asked coldly as he parked his bike and looked back at Dog.
"Super pretty! Killer body! Way better than those high school bad girls! Mad Dog, I swear, I’m not lying!"
Dog thought about Selina Shi’s looks, feeling a mix of fear and excitement.
In a backwater place like Whitewood County, most girls weren’t much to look at, but Selina Shi was clearly from the city—her figure, her vibe, her looks, all top-tier.
Even though Dog had just been kicked flying by Selina Shi, he couldn’t help feeling weirdly excited—he almost wanted her to beat him up again.
After getting beat up, Dog went straight to Mad Dog. Mad Dog had graduated from Whitewood Vocational High, never learned much, and became a full-time thug, leading a pack of punks, pulling petty crimes, and harassing schoolgirls for fun.
Normally, Mad Dog wouldn’t bother if Dog got beat up—riding bikes costs gas money, after all. But as soon as Dog mentioned a gorgeous girl, Mad Dog instantly showed his brotherly loyalty, rounded up his punks, and sped over to back Dog up.
"Alright!" Mad Dog nodded sharply, tossed his head coolly, and shoved open the Leisure Net Café’s door. "Let’s go! I want to see who dares to mess with my little brother!"
The café owner saw the door open and instinctively put on a fake smile, about to ask for a few yuan for computer time, but Mad Dog just spat at him: "Wipe that stupid grin off your face! Always smiling like an idiot!"
"Damn it!"
Mad Dog cursed a blue streak, then swaggered upstairs with his whole crew in tow.
They headed up, Mad Dog leading the way with Dog at his side, looking fierce.
On the second floor, Mad Dog scanned the room and instantly spotted Selina Shi glaring at Evan Lin—his eyes lit up.