"Previously, it was all about wishing Kuangzai victory in the KPL and further glory. Now, it's a wish for him to advance through the qualifiers, which strangely feels like raising a second child."
"Hahahaha, raising a second child is perfect."
"That previous '#yLsTeam2021kPLAutumnSplitGoodLuck#' doesn't count, let's try again: '#WelcomeBack#'"
In less than ten minutes, '#WelcomeBack#' had already surged to the top of the trending list.
Whether it was Sheng Kuang's Weibo or the official yLs Weibo, the retweets in the popular section visibly transformed into '#WelcomeBack#'.
Lin Jing had been on Weibo since she entered and hadn't left, browsing between several accounts just like the general netizens.
Tonight's Weibo updates were one after another, stimulating her. Lin Jing's emotions felt like a roller coaster, a mix of excitement, passion, and anticipation… and then the hilarious awkwardness of the public realizing yLs wasn't currently qualified for the KPL Autumn Split.
After the laughter subsided, she watched as more and more people reposted the Weibo, attaching the '#WelcomeBack#' hashtag. She felt a strange sense of emotion.
It was just four simple words, nothing particularly special, very ordinary, yet Lin Jing found them more touching than any lengthy, sentimental post.
Two years. A full two years.
She didn't know what Sheng Kuang had gone through in these past two years, but as someone who had followed him online, she had seen all sorts of people questioning and negating him.
The most frightening thing for a person isn't climbing from the starting point to the peak; it's falling from the peak to the bottom and never being able to return. Su Dan Novel Network
The psychological gap is too large, and before the outside world can crush you, you've already crumbled from within.
In this world, there are people who can get back up after falling.
But such people are rare, extremely rare. The vast majority of people who fall cannot get up; they remain down.
Professional players inherently have short careers, their lifespan is very brief. Two years might not seem like much to an ordinary office worker, but for an esports professional player, two years can be a lifetime.
There are too many professional players in this circle who, after just one season, never recover. They achieve one glorious moment and then never return to their previous form, or even start declining before they've had a chance to step onto the competition stage.
No one can predict how long they can compete, no one can be sure they can continue playing indefinitely.
Therefore, many of Sheng Kuang's fans, while still following him, began to waver as time went by. They wondered if the bright, shining youth on stage would ever return, if the faith and star they once chased had forever been frozen in the summer of 2019.
Many fans said they would wait for Sheng Kuang to return, many fans exclaimed that Sheng Kuang was the greatest in their hearts, but in reality, everyone knew that times had changed. The Sheng Kuang they were referring to was no longer Sheng Kuang yyds, but rather "the greatest in my heart."
In my heart…
Lin Jing felt a lump in her throat, a slight discomfort.
Regardless, he was back.
Even though it had taken quite a long time to return.
Even though it was uncertain if he could achieve glory again.
But fortunately, he was back.
Returning was always better than not returning.
Lin Jing looked at the endless stream of '#WelcomeBack#' as she scrolled down, her eyes becoming slightly moist.
She pursed her lips, exited Weibo, and sat in the quiet room for a while before picking up her phone again.
She tapped on WeChat and saw Lan Tingting's string of [Tears] emojis, her nose stinging again.
She clicked on her Moments feed. After refreshing, she saw Lan Tingting's post from ten minutes ago: Welcome back [Tears].
Perhaps it was the mood of the moment, perhaps it was genuine emotion, but Lin Jing was infected and also posted on her Moments: Welcome back.
Two seconds later, she deleted it.
Ten minutes later, she posted a new update.
@Xiao Jing Jiang:
The stars had no light until I met you.
You are a miracle.
We will meet at every match and witness this shining tomorrow.
Welcome back.