Pei Qian couldn’t help but feel impressed.

It seemed like Lin Wan had become much more confident since taking over GOG’s international server.

But speaking of which, if Lin Wan was declaring war on IOI, then…

What happened to Eric’s IOI Chinese server?

During a previous meeting, Pei Qian had heard that Eric’s IOI Chinese server had failed twice consecutively. First, they tried working with internet cafés, then with streaming platforms and clubs, but all attempts failed. They had shifted their strategic focus to partnering with peripheral manufacturers to poach players from other games.

Pei Qian had been happy about this at the time and instructed the GOG team to immediately follow along and take advantage of the situation.

But then he got busy with “Struggle” and forgot about it. So far, the people at Shangyang Games hadn’t reported any progress, and there didn’t seem to be any major news about IOI online.

Pei Qian suddenly felt a bit worried for Eric.

Brother, you didn’t just leave quietly, did you?

How I long for the day when you come to Tenda headquarters again, arrogantly demanding to see me. That would mean IOI is doing well again, and I could continue burning money alongside you!

However, when Pei Qian searched online for news about the IOI Chinese server, he found that apart from a few bland manufacturer partnership advertisements, there wasn’t any explosive news.

There were even a few posts discussing whether IOI had already died in the Chinese market.

Compared to GOG’s current popularity, it was truly pitiful.

For some reason, Pei Qian suddenly felt a sense of sympathy. Imagine a high-level executive from a multinational corporation traveling to China, expecting to break through barriers and make great strides, only to discover that IOI, which dominated overseas, couldn’t gain any traction here…

And overseas, it was continuously being eaten away by GOG.

Tragic.

Too tragic.

But then, remembering how the other party had forcibly given him tens of millions of dollars, Pei Qian put aside this sympathy.

Never mind, the Dayark Group was a multinational corporation with deep pockets. How could they be devastated by such a small setback?

Yes, he should trust in their financial strength.

Back to the competition.

Both Tenda Games and Shangyang Games had previous experience hosting competitions, and this time they had also partnered with experienced esports media, so preparations were more thorough in all aspects.

The success of a large-scale event, both in terms of audience experience and smooth operation, depends not only on hardware, network, and onsite coordination but also on crucial details.

For example:

They had to shoot promotional videos for each club and player for warm-up and build-up.

They had to educate players on proper etiquette, like winners actively seeking out losers for handshakes after matches, and bowing to the audience at center stage;

They had to arrange post-match interviews, with a special interview area on the side of the stage for English interviews dedicated to overseas broadcasts;

Players’ mice and keyboards had to be inspected beforehand to ensure no cheating, and two sets of identical peripherals had to be prepared in case of malfunction;

They had to prepare contingency plans for various emergencies, such as the director immediately notifying commentators of the reason for any pause, who would then explain to all viewers without letting awkward silence develop. Of course, pauses should be avoided as much as possible.

Soon, the competition officially began.

It opened with a warm-up video, accompanied by intense background music. Landmarks from Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and other cities flashed by, finally focusing on the competition venue at Yuanda Paradise in Jingzhou.

This was followed by a 10-second countdown, with the entire audience counting down together. After the “one,” amid cheers, blood-pumping electronic music swept through the venue!

On the screen, a huge beam of light descended from the sky, illuminating a giant silver treasure chest below. The chest suddenly cracked, with light scattering through the fissures, transforming into the GOG game map, Gods’ Canyon.

An exquisite trophy hovered above Gods’ Canyon, and around it, silhouettes of iconic GOG heroes flashed one by one, eliciting screams from the audience.

Since the preparation time was relatively short, the opening ceremony was relatively simple, but for audiences without much experience with grand events, it was already exciting enough.

Even Pei Qian felt his blood boiling in this enthusiastic atmosphere.

Then, a trophy identical to the one on the big screen somehow rose slowly from beneath the stage, presenting itself to the audience.

This trophy had been custom-ordered more than a month ago and was only delivered a few days ago.

It stood 35 centimeters tall, made of gold-plated zinc alloy, with intricate dragon and phoenix carvings on the surface, combining both ancient Chinese aesthetics and GOG game elements.

But that wasn’t the main point. The main point was that it weighed 28 kilograms.

Yes, kilograms.

The championship trophy was designed with the intention that all five team members together would be needed to lift it.

Next came promotional videos for all sixteen teams. As the big screen froze on a family portrait of the sixteen team captains, sixteen team banners surrounding the venue lit up one by one. Then, the host loudly called out each club’s team name, and teams came to the stage one by one to make their appearance.

The venue was continuously bathed in thunderous applause and cheers that seemed never-ending!

…

After the host’s warm-up, the competition officially began, with the opening match between two teams.

The opening match was between H4 Club and the foreign FRY Club. Both were veteran organizations, and during the “Star Sea” and “Fantasy War” eras, the star players from both clubs were regular participants in world championships, producing many exciting matches.

It was precisely because these two teams had high international recognition that they were arranged for the opening match.

This grouping wasn’t done by drawing lots but was rather cleverly predetermined: since there were eight domestic teams and eight foreign teams, divided into four groups, the number of domestic teams in each group was 0, 1, 3, and 4, respectively.

This arrangement, rather than ensuring each group had 2 domestic teams, was mainly to prevent all foreign teams from being eliminated after the group stage, which would be very awkward.

If all eight teams in the quarterfinals were domestic, foreign viewers would be upset.

So, Groups A and B had more foreign teams, letting them compete against each other to guarantee three quarterfinalists and one semifinalist, thus maintaining more presence among overseas players.

At the same time, turning the competition into domestic team civil wars too early would make the tournament bland and without anticipation for domestic viewers expecting “China vs. Foreign” matches.

As for those weaker teams drawn into “groups of death,” there wasn’t much to be done. Having eight domestic teams in the first Global Invitational was already preferential treatment, so they shouldn’t ask for too much.

In the future, as various tournaments improved and World Invitational qualifiers were held in different regions, the current issues wouldn’t exist.

Pei Qian relaxed in his chair, drinking a beverage while watching the match.

Since they were in a shopping mall, there were many places for food, drinks, and entertainment. The variety of beverages was extensive and affordable, so the experience was quite good.

Watching the exciting matches and hearing the audience’s waves of enthusiastic applause and cheers, Pei Qian felt content.

So comfortable!

This live spectating experience was incomparable to watching streams. During intense team fights, the commentators’ excited voices combined with the audience’s cheers and screams were enough to make one’s adrenaline surge and blood boil, shouting without restraint.

I have to say, this FRY Club played quite well.

Although these foreign clubs started later, many players had transitioned from “Genesis” and IOI, so they already understood this type of game. Combined with the foundation of veteran clubs and rigorous training, their skill level wasn’t far behind.

And since this was the opening match, H4 was obviously playing more cautiously, with both sides showing some exploratory intent. The European and American style preferred to use some unusual hero picks that weren’t commonly seen, so the match was very exciting and not one-sided.

Both the live audience and stream viewers were thoroughly enjoying it.

This was the charm of different regions clashing. Teams from each region practiced together, so their understanding of strong heroes and the meta tended to converge, but there could be significant differences in understanding between different regions.

When the “specialties” from two different regions collided, you could see which was stronger. So, compared to the previous GOG competition with only domestic teams, this had more points of interest and greater entertainment value.

In the end, H4 Club’s solid strength prevailed as they seized an opportunity for a team wipe and successfully ended the game.

The live audience was very happy, and so was Pei Qian.

Being able to fully immerse himself in enjoying a match from beginning to end without worrying about being backstabbed was truly wonderful!

After all, this competition was meant to spend money. No matter who won or lost, GOG’s popularity wouldn’t increase further. Pei Qian felt there was absolutely no angle from which he could be backstabbed.

Soon, it was time for the post-match interview.

Huang Wang came to the stage to be interviewed by the female host.

As soon as he appeared on stage, the audience erupted in surprise.

Those muscles! They were stretching his team uniform!

Other players were either very thin or very fat, and even among foreign players, those with good physiques were rare.

Huang Wang’s build stood out dramatically among the players!

The interview questions were quite standard, such as the deeper meaning behind hero selection, how to break through stalemates, and messages for fans.

Soon, they came to the final question.

“Finally, I’d like to ask player Huang Wang a question that many fans are curious about. Is Huang Wang really a boxer who transitioned to esports? What prompted you to make this decision?”

Huang Wang raised his muscular arm to scratch his head, looking somewhat helpless. “Actually, that’s just a rumor. Before becoming a professional player, I was extremely weak.”

The host was clearly shocked. “Really? Then how did player Huang Wang achieve his current physique?”

Huang Wang smiled. “Because I was previously in DGE Club, and everyone in our club had mandatory fitness requirements. Those who lost the most had to do extra training, and I did the most extra training.”

The host was even more surprised. “What? The one who lost the most trained the most? Then what about the other team members…?”

Huang Wang nodded. “That’s right, I’m the worst player among the two teams. There are nine people better than me!”

The host asked with great surprise, “Player Huang Wang achieved this physique in just a few months? The results are too impressive! Which gym did you go to?”

Huang Wang smiled. “Tuoguan Fitness, of course!”

Pei Qian: “?”

He suddenly realized that something seemed wrong.

Thinking back carefully, Pei Qian realized that although all DGE players had been sold to various teams, their physiques were too distinctive!

Players from other clubs had also started fitness training, but since they’d only been at it for a short time, the results weren’t visible yet.

But DGE players physically outclassed everyone else! You could spot them at a glance!

Weren’t they all walking billboards?

As the popularity of the GOG Global Invitational continued to rise, whenever a DGE player took the stage, audiences would recognize them at a glance. And if these players happened to perform excellently in matches and win MVPs…

Wouldn’t the recognition of both DGE Club and Tuoguan Fitness skyrocket?

Would sponsors come knocking on DGE Club’s door again?

Tuoguan Fitness was even more dangerous. If even gaming addicts could be trained like this, what about others?

There would definitely be a wave of viewers frantically signing up!

Pei Qian’s hand holding the milk tea trembled slightly as he suddenly realized he might have overlooked a very serious problem.