Lu Xiangyang returned to normal that very day.
Except that one morning, when Shen Kuangye had just put on his team uniform, he unexpectedly caught him secretly drinking an unknown black liquid in the first-floor kitchen.
Lu Xiangyang clearly didn't like the taste. He frowned slightly, then quickly washed the cup and put it back.
He stuck out his tongue and muttered softly, "Why is it so bitter?"
Shen Kuangye walked over silently and sniffed the air. It smelled like traditional Chinese medicine.
"What are you drinking?" he asked.
Lu Xiangyang was startled by Shen Kuangye appearing out of nowhere and felt a chill down his back.
He paused slightly, then said casually, "I've been feeling a little tired lately, so I went to the hospital. The doctor said it's because my body runs cold. A few doses of medicine and I'll be fine."
Shen Kuangye didn't quite believe it. "That's all?"
Lu Xiangyang nodded. "Yeah. It's not like I'd randomly take medicine."
That was true.
Shen Kuangye reluctantly suppressed the suspicion in his heart.
"Ready? We're heading out!"
Yi Shui walked around the lobby while speaking, making sure everyone was present before leading them onto the team bus.
During the ride he briefly went over the competition rules and reminded them not to be nervous, just play with the most relaxed mindset possible.
The venue for the regular-season matches wasn't far from their base, so they arrived quickly.
Shen Kuangye and the others entered through the back door, where hardly anyone could see them.
As soon as they reached the backstage waiting room, they ran into several very familiar faces—
his so-called teammates from his previous life.
One of them, a decent-looking guy, looked Shen Kuangye up and down with an extremely mocking and disdainful expression before letting out a snort.
Shen Kuangye met his gaze without fear, his eyes icy cold.
The two groups brushed past each other.
Li Shu had never been someone who could tolerate things quietly. He complained angrily, "Seriously, what kind of look was that jerk from ShenGui giving just now? If we weren't forbidden to argue backstage, I'd have already cursed him out."
Cheng Rang patted his shoulder lazily. "Relax. That skinny dog always looks at people like that—you know that."
"Ugh. What's so great about winning a championship?" Li Shu grumbled.
Then he suddenly fell silent.
For a moment, no one spoke.
The feeling was a bit like being looked down on by the top student in middle school—annoying, but when you remember you're ranked last, you can't help feeling frustrated and unwilling.
"So what?"
Lu Xiangyang suddenly spoke.
His eyes shone brightly as he looked at them.
"We can win a championship too."
Even the youngest member of the team said that, so Li Shu and the others, as the older "brothers," regained some confidence.
That's right!
If someone like ELLA could win a championship, they could too!
But they also knew today's opponent was very strong—the third-place team from last season's Abyss tournament: ZOE. And today was their home court.
ZOE's survivor team was extremely strong. They would definitely send their survivors first to build a score advantage.
That meant Lu Xiangyang would have to go up first and face the pressure.
Before the match, Lu Xiangyang looked calm.
While the commentators were still entertaining the audience outside, he sat alone in the spectator chair, silently staring at the big screen.
Shen Kuangye walked over and touched his palm.
It was covered in sweat.
A rookie hunter facing a professional powerhouse team on his first appearance would naturally feel immense pressure—especially someone like Lu Xiangyang, who was sensitive and prone to overthinking.
If he played well, that was one thing.
But if he didn't… he'd probably hide somewhere alone, blaming himself while crying and reviewing the game.
"Just do your best," Shen Kuangye said.
Not knowing how to comfort him, he added, "You still have me."
But Lu Xiangyang shook his head and looked at him seriously.
"No, Brother Kuangye. I can't treat you all as my safety net. I have to grow on my own. If I keep thinking someone will cover for me, I'll never improve. When I said earlier that we'll win the championship, I wasn't joking. I'll work hard to become stronger."
Shen Kuangye paused, then smiled faintly.
"Mm. I believe you."
When Lu Xiangyang was about to go on stage, Li Shu and the others were still comforting him.
Their message was roughly: don't be nervous; it's okay if your first match isn't great.
Yi Shui also said beside him, "Relax today. Catching even one survivor counts as a win, okay?"
Watching from the side, Shen Kuangye suddenly remembered his own first match.
Not a single member of ELLA had said a word to him.
Yet he still secured three eliminations.
When he returned to the viewing room with a smile, everyone had only given him cold glances before turning their attention back to the big screen.
It was a stark contrast to how Lu Xiangyang was being treated now.
But this was good.
At least Lu Xiangyang wouldn't have to experience those hardships again.
"Alright! Next, please welcome EAR's hunter—SUN—to the stage!"
The female host's voice echoed outside.
Lu Xiangyang put on his jacket and waved to them.
Shen Kuangye watched the usually gentle and obedient boy now wearing a look of sharp determination.
He heard him say:
"I'll catch more."
"Wait for me to come back."
---
All the cameras outside the stage pointed toward the entrance, waiting for the rookie to appear.
The live broadcast chat was already exploding.
[Ahhhh when is Sun coming out?! I'm dying of impatience!]
[I've waited so long for this!]
[He's out!!! He's out!!! Ahhh baby looks both cute and handsome!]
[Why does he look even better in real life than in photos?]
Lu Xiangyang calmly walked to the hunter's seat and put on his headset to prepare for the match.
The cameraman clearly understood the assignment and gave him a close-up shot.
His flawless, handsome face appeared on the big screen.
[Such a cool kid!]
[Is he a rookie? I've never seen him before.]
[EAR's new hunter. Ranked #1 on the ladder for years.]
[How can someone be this good-looking and good at games?]
[Good at games? Are you sure? Isn't EAR last place?]
[At least he's a pro player. Why don't you try? You probably aren't even Tier 6.]
[Anyone can trash talk.]
[To the EAR supporters above, do you dare predict they'll win in-game?]
[I checked predictions from commentators and streamers. Not a single one thinks EAR will win.]
[This feels like a hallucination before food poisoning.]
[Who says it has to be a hallucination? What if they actually win?]
[If they win, I'll send a Carnival gift in their livestream.]
…
"This is the first match of Week 1 of the Autumn Season! Today's match features ZOE vs. EAR. I'm your host Leng Yue—welcome to the exciting match ahead!"
The commentators began introducing the statistics of ZOE's survivors.
Meanwhile, Lu Xiangyang quietly adjusted his equipment, looking slightly unfamiliar with the setup.
When the commentators finally talked about him, the chat exploded again.
Commentator A:
"Now let's take a look at EAR's new hunter, Sun. Everyone should be pretty familiar with him—he's been the number-one hunter on the Identity V ladder for two years. Although his professional data is currently zero, we can see from ranked play that his most-used characters are Opera Singer, Disciple, and his signature Joseph. Hopefully he can show his strength in this match and help his team achieve good results."
Just after Lu Xiangyang wiped the sweat from his hands with a tissue, he realized the camera had zoomed right in on him.
After hesitating for a moment, he slowly raised his hand and waved at the camera.
The chat instantly exploded.
[Ahhhhh so cute!!]
[Baby you're adorable, kiss kiss kiss!]
[His skin looks that good even in a close-up?! I'm jealous.]
[Thought he'd be a cool guy, turns out he's a sweet kid.]
[SUN is really gentle. Even in ranked he never swears.]
[If we're talking cool guys, it's probably Wild. He's the cold kind of cool.]
[He only seems soft with SUN though. He talks to him really gently and even smiles.]
[Our Xiangye shippers are thriving again lol.]
[Start already! I can't wait!]
---
The Identity V regular season uses a BO3 format, and the home team is determined by drawing lots.
BO1: Home team chooses the map. Away team bans a map and selects which side goes first.
BO2: Home team bans a map. Away team chooses the map.
BO3: Home team chooses the map. Away team cannot ban.
Tiebreaker: Away team chooses the map. Home team cannot ban.
For the first round, ZOE banned Eversleeping Town, and EAR selected Leo's Memory.
Lu Xiangyang used his first two bans on Seer and Acrobat.
ZOE first picked Prisoner and Antiquarian.
Commentator B hesitated slightly.
"Antiquarian was left open? That could make things difficult for the hunter this round. We can see Sun's next two bans are Coordinator and Fire Investigator. ZOE then selected Wildling as the rescuer, and the fourth pick is Gardener. Everyone is clearly preparing to play against the Opera Singer."
Commentator A nodded.
"Exactly. Let's see what Sun chooses. It'll most likely be Opera Singer. Leo's Memory is actually a pretty good map for her."
At that moment, the silhouette of the Opera Singer appeared on the screen—and was locked in.
Commentator B continued:
"Now let's look at the spawn selections. Since ZOE dared to pick Prisoner, they must have prepared their 'purity playbook.' If the Prisoner spawns near the Antiquarian, when Opera Singer chases him he'll just kite, and if he can't kite anymore he'll run toward his teammates."
Commentator A laughed.
"Yes. We can see the Prisoner spawned in the main building, Antiquarian at mid-field, Gardener near Moon Gate, and Wildling near Christmas Tree Gate. Meanwhile, Opera Singer has chosen the closest spawn to the main building. Let's see who he decides to chase. Prisoner in the main building is definitely hard to catch, so he might go to Christmas Tree Gate to force out Wildling's boar, or directly chase the Gardener."
After the pre-match BP phase, the screen displayed the talents each character carried.
Opera Singer: Trump Card + Detention
Gardener & Wildling: Tide Turner
Prisoner & Antiquarian: Flywheel + Borrowed Time
"Alright! The match between ZOE's survivors and EAR's hunter is about to begin. Commentary will be brought to you by Zui Ying and Aurora, delivering live IVL match analysis!"