After the group stage, the league gave all players three days off, and Xie Mingzhe and Yu Ke also engaged in intensive pre-match training.

In previous doubles matches, Yu Ke always used output-type joker cards such as Qiao Sheng, Lian Cheng, and Gongsun Jiu Niang, while Xie Mingzhe was in charge of controlling the game. Now that he has to change his style of play, Yu Ke must change his thinking. He can no longer just rush forward, but must look at the overall situation, take care of himself while also taking care of Xie Mingzhe's cards. This change in style made it difficult for Yu Ke to adapt for a while.

As the competition approached, Yu Ke was lacking confidence and was always worried that he would hold Ah Zhe back. Qin Xuan saw this and encouraged him privately, "You are still using the familiar cards, but you are just focusing on a different aspect. There is no need to be too nervous."

He understood the principle, but Yu Ke had never played a support role before, so it was normal for him to worry that he couldn't play well. Unlike Qin Xuan, who had been a support since his debut, he must have a much better understanding of support than himself. Thinking of this, Yu Ke pulled him and begged: "Qin Xuan, why don't you teach me privately! I worked with Azhe all day today, and I always feel that I can't keep up with his pace..."

It was already past 11pm, and Xiao Ke personally begged him. As a teammate, he couldn't just sit there and watch. Qin Xuan thought about it and simply agreed to his request for "extra training". He took Xiao Ke to the simulation training room and explained the skills of playing assist in detail.

Qin Xuan accompanied him in practicing joker cards while patiently explaining: "You have always played the output role before, and habitually stared at the opponent's cards, but the focus of the support is different. You need to pay more attention to your teammates' cards, and prepare to add blood immediately when the health is lower than 50%... It is also very important to predict when playing support. When the opponent is about to use a key control skill, you have to think of a corresponding strategy in advance, open invincibility to block it, or seize the opponent's skill vacuum period to counter-control..."

This teammate usually doesn't talk much, but he talks a lot about his experience as a support player. Everything he says is very useful, and it's obvious that he takes supporting very seriously. It was also the first time that Yu Ke realized that this unknown teammate beside him actually worked harder than anyone else in private. Qin Xuan played an indispensable role in Nirvana's successful qualification for the first half of the team competition.

In the past, Yu Ke only thought from his own perspective, and felt that he was super powerful if he could kill the opponent in one wave. Now, after hearing what Qin Xuan said, he clearly realized that the support standing in the back also played an important role in the victory of every team game. If Qin Xuan had not used control skills in time and restored the health of his teammates in time, how could he have output without any worries?

——Assistance is the most reliable backing for the entire team.

——And next, in the round of 16, he will be Xie Mingzhe's backup.

He wanted to be a reliable supporter of Xie Mingzhe, rather than an unreliable pig teammate, so Yu Ke listened carefully to every point Qin Xuan shared, took notes seriously, and pondered them over and over in his mind, more seriously than when he listened to the teacher's lectures as a child.

Before they knew it, the two had been practicing until three in the morning. Qin Xuan noticed that Yu Ke was still energetic, so he suggested, "Go to sleep first. You can't digest so much all at once. Starting tomorrow, we will practice privately every night, and I will teach you in detail."

Yu Ke said gratefully: "Will this be too much trouble for you? You also need to prepare for the match with Brother Chen..."

Qin Xuan's voice was very calm: "You're welcome, we are teammates. Brother Chen and I have little chance of winning the next round, so we all hope that you and Azhe can win, and at least one team from Nirvana will make it to the quarterfinals."

"..." Yu Ke felt a little uncomfortable. It would be too difficult for Brother Chen and Qin Xuan to win against the boss duo Nie Yuandao and Shan Lan in the next round. Therefore, he and Xie Mingzhe almost shouldered the hopes of the entire Nirvana team.

There will definitely be no problem with Azhe, the key is still himself - Yu Ke doesn't want to become a weakness targeted by his opponent, so in the next few days, he will practice the joker assist seriously even if he doesn't sleep.

After making up his mind, Yu Ke was full of motivation. During the day, he and Azhe worked on the new deck, and at night he found Qin Xuan to open the stove and learn auxiliary skills.

Perhaps it was God's blessing, the schedule for the round of 16 was announced very quickly. The matches were not played in the order of Group A to Group H, but were randomly drawn - two matches were scheduled for Group B and Group G on August 19, Group E and Group D on the 20th, Group C and Group F on the 21st, and the match between Group A and Group H on the 22nd.

This way, he and Xie Mingzhe had four more days to practice, which added up to a full week.

A week's time to go from output to support is more than enough for a top-level professional player. Experts usually have a strong sense of the overall situation and comprehensive awareness, and can handle any position with ease. Xiao Ke has formed an inertial thinking of output, but Qin Xuan is with him, teaching him every day. Xiao Ke is not stupid, and he is very familiar with the jokers before, so he can get started right away.

After three days, he and Azhe's cooperation became smoother and smoother. After five days, they could be called tacitly integrated.

Xie Mingzhe praised him generously: "Xiao Ke learns really fast, good job!" Qin Xuan also said: "It's almost there, pay more attention to the opponent's key skills during the game, think of ways to deal with them, and don't panic."

Listening to his teammates' encouragement, Yu Ke gained more confidence in himself.

***

On August 21, all members of Nirvana came to the competition venue again, because today there was a match between Chen Xiao and Qin Xuan vs. Nie Yuandao and Shanlan.

The round of 16 was a best-of-three match. It was thought that Nie Lan would crush Chen Qin 2:0, but the audience underestimated the resilience of Chen Xiao and Qin Xuan. After losing the first game, they gritted their teeth and won back a game, making the game 1:1. Although they were quickly defeated by Nie Lan in the final deciding game, Chen Xiao was already very satisfied to get 1 point from the boss, and his face was very relaxed when he returned to the backstage.

Chen Qianlin asked: "We were eliminated in the round of 16 in the doubles competition. Do you have any regrets?"

Chen Xiao smiled and shook his head: "Don't worry, brother. I know my own strength very well. This doubles match is just like cooperating with Qin Xuanlian. We have gained a lot, and I am already very satisfied."

Chen Qianlin felt relieved when he saw that he didn't seem to be pretending and really didn't mind.

The younger brother has grown up. He is no longer the little Chen Xiao who would be sulking for a whole day after losing a practice match. He has the burden of Nirvana on his shoulders. Now he is a responsible man who can shoulder the burden of the club together with Azhe.

Chen Qianlin patted his brother's shoulder, turned around and looked at his apprentice and said, "You and Xiao Ke don't have to worry too much about winning or losing. Gui Sirui and Liu Jingxu are first-class players. It's not shameful to lose to them. Relax and play well in the next game."

Xie Mingzhe nodded seriously: "I understand. This is just a bold attempt. Just do your best. Winning or losing doesn't matter."

***

On the evening of August 22, the knockout round of 16 for Group A and Group H will officially begin at 7pm.

Since these two groups have many super popular players, the venue was packed with fans of Pei Jingshan, Ye Zhu, Gui Sirui, and Liu Jingxu occupying most of the venue. What surprised Xie Mingzhe was that many fans made support peripherals and put up huge cheering banners at the venue, with Q-version avatars of him and Xiao Ke on them.

Yu Ke clenched his fists excitedly: "With so many fans coming, we must fight hard!"

Xie Mingzhe was very calm. He smiled slightly, patted Yu Ke's fist and said, "Relax, don't put too much pressure on yourself."

Yu Ke took a deep breath, loosened his fist, clenched it, and loosened it again. After repeating this several times, he finally calmed down.

——It’s no big deal. Anyway, he’s assisting today, and he’d love for Gui Sirui to come and kill him! He just needs to do his best to protect Azhe’s cards and let Azhe play.

After the commentator introduced the two players at the front stage, the official staff asked them to get ready.

Xie Mingzhe stood up and walked towards the stage with Yu Ke. In the corridor, they met Tang Muzhou who had been waiting there for a long time. The man smiled and hugged Xie Mingzhe, saying, "Come on."

Xie Mingzhe hugged him back: "I will."

After the two separated, Yu Ke, who was walking behind Xie Mingzhe, took the initiative to come to Tang Shen, expecting Tang Shen to give him an "encouraging hug". As a result, Tang Muzhou had no intention of hugging him at all. The two stared at each other for 3 seconds. Facing Xiao Ke's expectant eyes, Tang Muzhou could only pat his shoulder with a smile and said, "You should do your best too."

Encouraged, Yu Ke immediately showed a brilliant smile on his face: "Don't worry, I will definitely not hold Azhe back!"

Xie Mingzhe and Yu Ke came to the big stage, sat on the familiar swivel chairs, and put on their helmets together.

Wu Yue said excitedly: "The match between Xie Mingzhe, Yu Ke and Gui Sirui, Liu Jingxu is about to begin. Let's take a look at the pre-match predictions - 55% of the audience support the Gui-Liu combination to win, and 45% support Xie Yu to win. Is this ratio reasonable?"

Liu Chen said: "More people tend to think that the Gui Liu combination will win. The key reason is that Gui Sirui and Liu Jingxu are both veteran players who have been teammates for four years. Xie and Yu are both newcomers who have not been together for long. On the surface, it seems that Gui Liu has a greater chance of winning."

"Moreover, Yu Ke is best at the flexible joker, while Gui Sirui is the founder of the joker. His understanding of the joker must be much deeper than that of Yu Ke, a newcomer. I think this is also the key reason why the audience thinks Gui Sirui is more likely to win!"

"Not necessarily." Su Yang suddenly interrupted.

"Senior?" The two looked at Su Yang at the same time and asked doubtfully, "Do you think Xie Yu is more likely to win?"

"I just think we can't use common sense to judge Xie Mingzhe." Su Yang smiled, with a hint of admiration for Xie Mingzhe in his eyes. "Xie Mingzhe's tactical thinking is very novel. Xiao Ke's awareness may not be as good as Gui Sirui, but if Xie Mingzhe arranges special tactics, he may have a chance of winning. Before the game is over, no one can say what the final result will be."

"That's right. Unexpected scores often occur in league matches. Although Xie Yu is a newcomer, their performance in the group stage is enough to attract the attention of veteran players. I think Gui Sirui and Liu Jingxu dare not underestimate these two opponents."

“The game is about to begin. Let us look forward to the exciting match!”

As soon as the commentator finished speaking, a selection box appeared on the big screen.

Since Xie Mingzhe and Yu Ke are ranked first in Group A, and Gui Sirui and Liu Jingxu are ranked second in Group H, in the round of 16, the team ranked first in the group has the priority to choose the map, and the first game will be Xie Mingzhe and Yu Ke's home court.

Which map will they choose? The audience was full of curiosity.

Xie Mingzhe did not hesitate and quickly submitted the map - Xia Pi was flooded.

This scene map was only used once in the regular season in the first half of the year. It is not very famous in Nirvana's map library and its design is also very simple. The entire Xia Pi City is square, and there were originally two moats outside the city. Because Guo Jia gave Cao Cao a plan to dig the moat to flood Xia Pi City and force out the enemy, after the game started, the two moats would have gaps, and water would continuously flow into Xia Pi City.

The sky over Xia Pi City is overcast with rain, and with the influx of water from the moat, the water on the ground will accumulate more and more as the game goes on. All cards in the scene will be affected by the "slowdown" due to the water accumulation, and this effect will continue to increase.

For every 1cm rise in the water level, the deceleration effect increases by 10%, up to 90%. When the water in the city exceeds 1.5 meters in depth, all the cards in the scene will be flooded, losing a lot of blood in a short period of time, and eventually suffocating to death - of course, that is in the late stage, usually before being drowned, the game is over. If it is not over, the victory or defeat will be calculated based on the time when both cards are drowned.

This map is a negative buff map. The continuously increasing slowdown will make the cards' movements slower and slower, until the final slowdown is 90%, turning them all into snails, making it difficult for them to move.

When Xie Mingzhe took out this map, its effect on the ghost hell was also very obvious.

Wu Yue quickly understood Xie Mingzhe's intention and said, "Ghost Hell's famous harvesting card, 'Ghost Eater', is a melee card that needs to appear in the late game to devour corpses to increase its attack power. However, in the 'Flooded Xia Pi' map, in the late game when the Ghost Eater appears, the water in the city is already very deep, and the movement speed of all cards is reduced by almost 90%. The Ghost Eater cannot move in place, so naturally it cannot harvest."

Su Yang praised: "This map is indeed a good choice. It targets the melee cards of Hell very thoroughly. Not only the Ghoul, but also melee ghost cards like the Headless Doll and the Hungry Ghost are also difficult to play on such a map."

Liu Chen said: "According to Xie Mingzhe's idea, this map is more suitable for long-range confrontation. Long-range cards do not need to move a lot, and can be used to attack from the spot. In addition to several famous melee jokers, Gui Sirui also has a lot of long-range cards, so it is difficult to kill him with just the map."

Wu Yue nodded in agreement: "Yes, this map can only limit Gui Sirui's melee jokers such as the Ghoul and the Headless Doll. But the problem is that Yu Ke's jokers also have a lot of melee. Qiao Sheng, Lian Cheng, and Hei Wuchang are also difficult to play on this map. So in this game, Xiao Ke is likely to use the long-range turret Gongsun Jiuniang, the functional output card Judge, and the flexible Nie Xiaoqian!"

Wu Yue stared at the big screen expectantly, waiting for both parties to announce their card decks.

She felt that her speculation made a lot of sense and she wanted to applaud herself.