CS: I’m Only 16, and You Want Me to Stage an Old Veteran Comeback?

Jiang Yang carefully considered the "Buy Now, Pay Later" option. Although he’d still need to pay eventually, it could indeed work in his favor.

If he could snag something good, he could purchase it first and pay for it bit by bit, allowing him to experience the effect of the items in the shop beforehand.

It was a pretty good deal for him.

However, since it could only be used once, he had to carefully consider how to use it.

He couldn’t buy anything too expensive; otherwise, it’d take forever to pay off. But buying something too cheap would feel like a waste. He needed to strike the right balance.

Although he really wanted to get that butterfly knife, Jiang Yang held back.

Then, he heard his cousin’s frustrated voice beside him: “WGNLS, queue, queue, queue!”

After losing another match in PL, Ma Xixi clicked to start matchmaking but didn’t get into a game right away. He analyzed: “It seems like they’ve stopped playing.”

Unlike regular ranked matches, 5E PL is a specialized server that only matches players within the PL pool. If fewer than ten PL players are queuing at the same time, matchmaking simply won’t work.

【The moment you said you’d queue, everyone canceled their matchmaking.】

【Why not play a matching puzzle game instead?】

【Xixi’s so good he’s become the Grim Reaper of PL.】

【The kids didn’t expect Xixi to keep hunting them down.】

【They’ve been playing casual CS all afternoon; their brains are fried.】

【Terrible but addicted to playing.】

【Damn, has Xixi become someone the other PL players avoid at all costs?】

Normally, Ma Xixi was pretty good-natured, but after a string of PL losses, he was already on edge. The sarcastic comments in the chat only added fuel to the fire, and he snapped back at them:

“If they’re not playing, then I’ll just end the stream. No PL games, no stream!”

“This is boring. I’m calling it a day.”

“I’m going out for drinks.”

Hearing this, Jiang Yang curiously leaned over and asked, “What’s going on?”

When he saw his cousin approaching, Ma Xixi vented his frustrations: “I’m telling you, every time I play PL, there’s always a group of randoms trolling me.”

“This time, I even changed the stream title to ‘38-Year-Old Man Dominates PL.’”

“But these randoms still came in and started with their nonsense—why not use utility? Why aren’t you getting kills?”

Jiang Yang added on the side, “So why aren’t you getting kills? Is it because you don’t want to?”

The veteran viewers in the livestream burst into laughter:

【That’s a killing blow, straight to the heart!】

【Cousin is killing me with laughter.】

【So, Xixi, why aren’t you getting kills? Is it because you don’t want to?】

【How about Xixi goes for a drink, and Cousin streams instead? We want to see Cousin have some fun at Rank C+!】

【Xixi can’t play PL, can’t drink—just let Cousin take over.】

Jiang Yang’s words left Ma Xixi momentarily speechless.

It wasn’t that he was angry; most of his frustration was directed at the situation, not the people. Plus, Jiang Yang’s knack for entertaining on stream was impressive.

Ma Xixi noticed a couple of conspicuous messages on the second monitor:

【Cousin is too funny!】

【Support Cousin! Let him stream! WOW~】

The sender’s ID was CSBOY, which meant it could only be one of three people: himself, Jiang Yang, or CaptainMO.

Hearing his partner venting, Ma Xixi shouted, “If you’re here, why not start your own stream?”

“MO, all you do is lurk and talk trash. I asked you to team up with me to stream your perspective, but you’ve been dodging me all the time!”

“Fine, let Cousin stream instead! One day, Cousin might just overshadow you!”

Ma Xixi sounded genuinely frustrated.

Jiang Yang comforted him: “Relax, bro. The more you argue with the chat, the happier they’ll get.”

“Yeah, and there’s no point arguing with CaptainMO. You know he’s not serious about anything.”

Ma Xixi’s mood improved slightly. He stood up and said, “Alright, take over for me for a bit. I don’t want to play anymore.”

“I can’t. I don’t know how to stream,” Jiang Yang instinctively declined.

“Just stream anything! Play some Perfect C+ or whatever. They’d love to see you. They’re all asking for you to stream!” Ma Xixi was still fired up, arguing with the chat.

“Anything?” Jiang Yang asked tentatively. “How about we do an outdoor stream instead?”

Not just Ma Xixi, but even the chat fell silent at Jiang Yang’s out-of-the-blue suggestion.

What does outdoor streaming have to do with playing CS?

Seeing Ma Xixi’s puzzled expression, Jiang Yang explained: “Think about it, streaming the same thing all the time can get repetitive. No matter how good the food is, if you eat it every day, you’ll get tired of it.”

“Let’s switch it up with some outdoor content. It’ll give them a break and make them appreciate our CS streams even more!”

Ma Xixi laughed at Jiang Yang’s wild idea. “So, what do you suggest we stream outdoors?”

When he asked this, Ma Xixi felt a sense of foreboding—he couldn’t predict what quirky idea Jiang Yang would come up with next.

Sure enough, Jiang Yang suggested, “How about we go for a 5-kilometer run?”

“As top-tier streamers, we should set good examples for our fans. You know, most CS players overseas are super fit. We don’t need to go that far, but we should maintain some good habits.”

Ma Xixi froze. When was the last time he’d run?

Jiang Yang continued enthusiastically: “Bro, we need discipline! Look at you—staying up late, drinking, and getting so out of shape. If you keep this up, you’ll turn into a blob!”

Hearing this, Ma Xixi couldn’t help but feel a bit self-conscious. He glanced at the chat.

【Cousin is a genius!】

【Running 5 kilometers in this heat? Only Cousin could come up with that!】

【I’m afraid he’ll be the death of Xixi.】

【Blob Xixi, lol.】

Despite the sarcastic chat, Ma Xixi was now considering the suggestion seriously. “But how would we even do an outdoor stream? I’ve got the equipment, but how would you manage the filming?”

Jiang Yang thought for a moment. “I could hold the camera, but it might not be very steady…”

“Oh, I have a classmate who lives nearby! I’ll call him over to help us hold the camera like an assistant.”

Given Ma Xixi’s general lack of fitness, Jiang Yang figured the camera wouldn’t shake too much since Ma Xixi probably couldn’t run very fast anyway.

CaptainMO chimed in from the background, adding fuel to the fire: “What’s wrong, old man? Can’t even handle 5 kilometers?”

The idea was starting to appeal to Ma Xixi. His routine had been terrible for a long time, but having Jiang Yang’s enthusiasm pushing him made him want to give it a try.

Still hesitating, he felt Jiang Yang tugging him toward the door.

“At least let me change clothes first! You want me to run outside in shorts?” Ma Xixi protested.

“Alright, Steel Helmets (viewers), we’re ending the stream for now. See you all in a bit!”

To avoid revealing their home address, they went to a nearby riverside park. Jiang Yang called his classmate to come over and act as the cameraman. Running 5 kilometers wasn’t a big deal for Jiang Yang, but he wanted to help Ma Xixi develop better habits.

Once they arrived, Ma Xixi opened the stream app again, muttering, “Damn, running in this heat. What the hell am I doing?”

He handed the phone to Jiang Yang, who greeted the audience with a grin: “Alright, Steel Helmets, today’s mission is to make sure Xixi finishes 5 kilometers. Let’s show the world that the CS community is full of strong men!”

But the chat ignored his pep talk and instead focused on his appearance:

【Holy crap, where did this male model come from?】

【Is Cousin really this handsome?】

【That face, and he’s doing this for Xixi’s summer gig?】

【Keep the camera on Cousin!】

【I’m drooling.】

【Cousin, I’m Xixi. Don’t turn around.】

Seeing these comments, Ma Xixi glanced at the chat and scoffed, “What? I looked just as good when I was younger.”

The audience collectively fell silent.

Looking at Ma Xixi’s current unkempt appearance, it was hard to reconcile it with Jiang Yang’s sharp features. Jiang Yang, even bare-faced, could easily rival celebrities.

Still, Jiang Yang knew Ma Xixi wasn’t lying. Back in the day, Ma Xixi wasn’t as striking as him but still had decent looks.

Ma Xixi originally brought Jiang Yang on as a summer helper because he worried Jiang Yang might go down the wrong path. Being too good-looking and too young, Jiang Yang could easily end up in trouble if he strayed into shady work environments.

Handing the camera to his classmate, Jiang Yang did a quick warm-up before starting his run. He barely broke a sweat, while Ma Xixi was already gasping after a few steps.

“I can’t! I feel like my lungs are going to explode!” Ma Xixi panted.

“That’s just 500 meters! Bro, you’ve got to push yourself!” Jiang Yang encouraged him, slowing his pace so Ma Xixi could keep up.

The viewers were thoroughly entertained. While most of them didn’t exercise themselves, watching Ma Xixi suffer felt oddly satisfying, like “cyber exercise.”

At the 2-kilometer mark, Ma Xixi once again declared he couldn’t go on. Jiang Yang didn’t bother with encouragement this time; he simply grabbed Ma Xixi’s hand and pulled him along.

“This is insane! Why did I agree to this outdoor stream?” Ma Xixi grumbled.

Despite his complaints, he kept running. The chat’s sarcastic comments had gotten under his skin, and now he wanted to lose weight and prove he could reclaim some of his former glory.

With Jiang Yang’s relentless urging, Ma Xixi managed to complete the 5 kilometers.

At the finish line, Jiang Yang caught his breath and advised, “Don’t sit down immediately, or you’ll get dizzy. Drink some water and take it easy.”

The viewers were just as astonished as Ma Xixi:

【Holy crap, he actually got Ma Xixi to finish 5 kilometers.】

【Honestly, watching them run outdoors was surprisingly fun.】

【Admit it—you just liked seeing Xixi suffer.】

【We won’t point out the obvious.】

【Cousin is so entertaining.】

Many viewers began to genuinely like Jiang Yang. Handsome, full of energy, and with a positive vibe—it was hard not to be charmed.

After catching his breath, Ma Xixi insisted on taking a selfie with Jiang Yang to commemorate the moment. “Man, this 5 kilometers nearly killed me. I have to post this to my social media!”

Jiang Yang leaned into the shot, pulling his classmate into the frame as well. The three of them posed for a photo to mark the accomplishment.

For someone nearing 40 and with years of poor habits, completing 5 kilometers was no small feat. Though Ma Xixi felt like dying during the run, he had to admit he felt more refreshed afterward.

Just as he was beginning to feel a sense of pride, Jiang Yang said, “Alright, we’re doing this again tomorrow!”

“What? Tomorrow?!” Ma Xixi’s vision went dark.

“Of course! Running needs consistency,” Jiang Yang replied matter-of-factly.

As he spoke, familiar small text appeared in front of his eyes:

【Daily Task: Run 5 kilometers. Reward: Random Comeback Point.】

【Congratulations! Old Veteran has earned 369 Comeback Points...】