Chapter 413: Fans Arranging a Fight
The Professional League Forum was a highly influential platform where important news about the professional leagues could always be found.
Coincidentally, as the league season drew to a close, it was already roughly clear which clubs performed well and ranked high, and which performed poorly and ranked low.
Armchair critics loved to play Monday morning quarterback here, analyzing the reasons for these clubs' rise or fall, listing numerous points.
You might say, at first glance, these reasons seemed quite plausible. Newcomers to the forum would definitely worship them, thinking it was the analysis of some tactical genius.
But veteran forum users knew that these reasons were all reverse-engineered from the results—pure nonsense. With a keyboard, anyone could spout a list of reasons. The key was that many reasons were vague, and even if some felt problematic, they couldn't be proven right or wrong.
As the league season approached its end, the selection for certain titles was underway, with MVP being the most important among them, naturally generating the highest discussion heat.
However, the vast majority of users discussed the First Division League MVP because of its high popularity and several ceiling-level players with comparable strength, leaving room for heated debate.
Unlike the Second Division League, which inherently had lower popularity, and the trend of Gan Lin winning MVP was quite obvious. Based on current data, he had absolutely no rivals!
But just then, a post popped up claiming that Gan Lin winning MVP was flawed and imperfect. The original poster (OP) even spent money to boost its initial visibility, so the post quickly rose to the top.
Although the title of this post questioned Gan Lin winning the Second Division MVP, it didn't deny his strength, popularity, or win rate. The language seemed highly respectful of Gan Lin, and reading between the lines, the poster "seemed" to be a fan.
However, the OP argued that Gan Lin winning this season's MVP had a slight imperfection because Gan Lin had defeated the second-highest win rate holder, Shang Shan, but had never defeated the Rookie King, Basalt.
As a ten-year league fan, the OP believed it would be more appropriate for Gan Lin to defeat Basalt before claiming the MVP trophy, hoping Gan Lin would carefully consider this suggestion.
This argument quickly gained approval from Gan Lin's fans.
After all, Basalt joined mid-season and showed immense potential, being one of the MVP candidates with no lack of strength or popularity; he carried weight.
Gan Lin's MVP crown shouldn't have any flaws!!!
But just then, a discordant argument appeared.
While Gan Lin's fans were celebrating, Basalt's fans showed up to mock them.
"Gan Lin's MVP definitely has flaws, but whether they can be fixed is hard to say. Because if Gan Lin faces Basalt, he might lose! Do you think our Sandslash King is easy to bully?"
Unsurprisingly, this comment triggered mass mockery from Gan Lin's fans.
"Basalt is nothing, just a sophomore brat who hasn't even grown hair yet! Is he qualified to be mentioned in the same breath as Gan Lin? I suspect you're delusional!"
"Everyone says Basalt's Excadrill is strong, Drill Run undefeated in one hit. Aren't you afraid of biting your tongue in the wind? If it meets Gan Lin's Haxorus using Outrage, it'll probably be rubbed into the ground!"
"Agreed with the above. Basalt's Pokémon lineup is no match for Gan Lin's, okay? Basalt fans, please look at Gan Lin's main lineup: Haxorus, Lucario, Dusknoir, Charizard, Kingdra, Serperior—which one isn't battle-hardened? Look at Basalt again; he even has a goofy Numel. Hilarious!"
As the mocking replies increased, the post's heat rose higher and higher until the administrator pinned and marked it as a featured post.
Before long, Basalt's fans arrived late, and unsurprisingly, both sides started a flame war.
"Haxorus and Lucario are worth showing off? Funny! Can they compare to a pseudo-legendary? Can they compare to the Fossil Pokémon Cradily?"
"Damn, there are idiots mocking Basalt for being young? Don't you know the younger, the greater the potential? I remember Gan Lin is already twenty-four, right? Excuse me, Gan Lin, aren't you ashamed to be playing in the Second Division at twenty-four? Proud of bullying the young? I'm truly impressed!"
"Supplementing the above: A secret for Gan Lin fans—Basalt is going to the First Division next season, and it's with the Sanctuary Club! Excuse me, which club did Gan Lin sign with? Does he have a 20 million annual salary? Hee hee!"
"And in terms of strength, Basalt really isn't necessarily weaker than Gan Lin. Have you noticed that Basalt hasn't used 'Sandstorm' in recent matches for a long time? As everyone knows, Basalt runs a Sandstorm team. This shows Basalt hasn't used his full strength recently. Look at Basalt's record again—fifteen consecutive wins!"
In terms of sarcasm and mockery, Basalt's fans were not to be underestimated.
Plus, both Gan Lin and Basalt had significant fan bases. Once the flame war started, they couldn't help but call friends to join in, making the post even more explosive.
Consequently, some neutral forum users also joined in.
Their viewpoint was straightforward: a thousand words aren't worth one actual battle. Since the Saints Club and the Golden Armor Club still had a match to play, let Basalt and Gan Lin have a real fight.
Basalt's fans actually felt a bit weak about this idea. Because on paper, Basalt was indeed slightly weaker. But after arguing for so long, if they backed down now, how could they show their faces on the forum?
Crucially, they had already prepared an escape route. Basalt's advantage was his youth—his super amulet and death-exemption gold medal. If he won, Basalt was a one-in-a-million genius trainer; if he lost, Gan Lin was bullying the young, a hollow victory. If Gan Lin's fans didn't accept it, schedule another match next year. Both Basalt and Gan Lin would enter the First Division, giving them chances to face off. But by then, would Gan Lin still be Basalt's match? Anyone could figure that out with their butt!
Thus, fans from both sides dispersed and frantically tagged Basalt and Gan Lin.
In the Golden Armor Club, Gan Lin, a handsome young man with a bit of a bad-boy vibe, was training. Hearing his Pokédex ringing incessantly made it impossible to focus. Opening it, Gan Lin was stunned. 999+ private messages left him at a loss. Clicking in, he saw his fans' petition: time, place, opponent—hoping Gan Lin would fight with all his might.
They had already arranged the fight; he just needed to show up on time and start fighting. Talk about considerate!
"Basalt?"
Gan Lin raised an eyebrow, then narrowed his eyes slightly, a sharp glint flashing within.
Although slightly dissatisfied with fans arranging a fight for him, the OP's idea coincided with his own. Basalt's recent limelight was too bright. If not for Gan Lin's deep accumulation and decent popularity in the Second Division, he might really have been overshadowed.
If conditions allowed, Gan Lin felt they should indeed fight, defeating Basalt fair and square to silence all doubts. If all competitors were defeated by him, who would dare question him? Who could question him? Only such an MVP would be truly well-deserved.
Taking a deep breath, Gan Lin called the club's head coach, hoping he would facilitate this.
On the other end, the Golden Armor Club's head coach hesitated. "Gan Lin, your proposal is good, but the Saints Club probably won't agree, right?"
In his view, Basalt's foundation was too thin, and he would likely lose against Gan Lin. Putting himself in their shoes, if he were Jiang Jun, he definitely wouldn't agree either. Because a loss would be a significant blow to Basalt's popularity.
But avoiding the battle would be fine. The opponent could use "never fought" as an excuse. Since they hadn't fought, there was no winner or loser, leaving room for argument.
"Won't agree? Then we'll publicize the reason widely: Basalt is cowardly avoiding battle. This would be a bigger blow to Basalt and the Saints Club."
Gan Lin smirked slightly, saying eerily, "I believe they will agree."
Hearing this, the head coach frowned slightly, feeling it was a bit inappropriate. But on second thought, if this battle could boost Gan Lin's popularity, his transfer fee might rise again. For the club, this was all benefit and no harm. After all, clubs existed to make money.
"Alright, I know what to do!"
The head coach hung up.
"Basalt, I hope you don't disappoint me!"
Gan Lin's eyes flashed coldly, but his face showed anticipation.
On the other side, Jiang Jun at the Saints Club soon received the challenge. After some "hesitation" and "declining," he finally "half-heartedly" agreed.
"Done!"
Hanging up, Jiang Jun chuckled. "Not in vain did I create so many alt accounts, pretending to be Basalt fans, then Gan Lin fans, then impartial third parties, and even onlookers stirring the pot. This job really isn't easy; almost tired me to death!"
It turned out the forum post was made by none other than Jiang Jun.
Having mixed in the professional league for so many years, Jiang Jun had studied fan psychology specifically. So with a little trick, he played them in the palm of his hand and achieved his goal. And neither side would suspect him.
Awesome!
Learning the whole story, Basalt was stunned for a moment, secretly giving Jiang Jun a thumbs up, lamenting, "Coach, you've really figured out the traffic game!"
That night, both the Saints Club and the Golden Armor Club announced through their official accounts the upcoming battle between Basalt and Gan Lin, hoping fans from both sides would come to cheer.
Instantly, fans from both sides reached a collective climax, followed by another massive flame war.
With the rising heat, more and more people began to learn about this battle.
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