Delta: The First Person at the Peak

Chapter 283 "River Breeze"

Just as Peter Ho's voice of support went viral, another video suddenly appeared.

Hualong Esports.

This account, known for its in-depth analysis of esports figures, posted a long video titled "Jiang Feng".

There are no flashy titles or copy, no sentimental background music, only a cool and almost cruel visual language.

The screen opens with a black screen.

A line of white text slowly appeared:

Who will be the hottest person at the start of 2025?

Then, the black curtain receded, and the scenes changed—

That night at West Lake, in other people's photos, Jiang Feng walked proudly through the parted crowd, with cell phones held high on both sides, like a shimmering sea of ​​stars.

During yesterday's preview livestream, he stared directly into the camera with a piercing gaze that seemed to cut through the screen.

The two intersecting lights and shadows are like two sides of fate, perfectly overlapping in the same person.

"I think the answer is beyond doubt."

The commentator's voice slowly rose, carrying a calm that transcended the hustle and bustle.

"That's right, it's that boy who's not even twenty years old yet—Jiang Feng."

At the beginning of the year, he bravely intervened on the shore of West Lake, preventing a major public safety crisis with an over-the-shoulder throw, which topped the trending search list.

Last night, he again used his most resounding voice to question the various problems plaguing the Delta in front of tens of millions of viewers worldwide.

The scene shifts to a silhouette of Jiang Feng angrily rebuking someone in front of a blackboard, his words as he ended the stream: "TX doesn't care about you guys, but I will," and the chat room flooded with messages of "Protect Jiang Feng."

"A figure as brilliant as a shooting star."

"He suddenly rose to prominence in mid-December, and then, with unparalleled momentum, became the absolute number one in this currently hottest tactical shooter in just half a month. It's incredible."

"Even more unbelievable is that he did it last night..."

The screen suddenly froze and went black.

"This approach is bold and straightforward, challenging the development team of a hottest game and the capital empire behind it."

"Jiang Feng's half-hour live stream yesterday caused Delta's online viewership to plummet, and a boycott protest swept across the entire internet."

"Let's not discuss who's right and who's wrong in this matter."

"This is not a question for us to judge, nor are we qualified to do so. Time, and the millions of players, will provide the final answer."

"A question mark has always lingered in my mind—"

"Jiang Feng, why did you do that?"

"Where did a boy not yet twenty years old get his courage and motivation?"

"Hualong Esports likes to be a 'friend of time.' We are used to telling the stories of esports players' coming of age, ups and downs, and hardships, piecing together a complete person over a long period of time."

"But we've known Jiang Feng for far too short a time. In just half a month, he's suddenly appeared out of nowhere, bringing a whole host of mysteries into this circle."

"His growth is anything but conventional, completely different from the growth trajectory of the players we are familiar with, which has also made Jiang Feng a completely different person."

"Coincidentally, just before this storm hit, we conducted an in-depth investigation and research on contestant Jiang Feng in order to make a video."

"And so, this video came to be."

The screen lit up again, showing a yellowed old photograph—Jiang Feng as a child, standing at the South Gate of Mount Tai, making a clumsy V-sign at the camera, his smile as pure as sunshine.

"Now, let's temporarily set aside those trending topics, those controversies, and that massive amount of traffic."

"First, let's take a look at Jiangfeng's growth."

"Jiang Feng was born on March 10, 2005, in Laizhou, Shandong, a small county town on the coast of the Bohai Sea."

"Yexian, an ancient city with a history of over a thousand years, is located on the Jiaodong Peninsula. Its people are simple and honest, and their straightforwardness is ingrained in their very being."

"Jiang Feng's parents are both middle school math teachers, a typical dual-teacher family. He grew up in a well-off and harmonious family."

The conversation abruptly shifted to a screenshot of a Douyin comment.

Jiang Feng replied to a user with the ID "Yanran" under a video: Stop kidding, this is really my mom.

Following this is an audio recording of a telephone interview, dated December 28, 2024.

"It's worth mentioning that we contacted Jiang Feng's mother in this comment section."

The commentator's voice softened a bit.

"On the phone, Ms. Ji's tone was very gentle. She said:"

"From a young age, our philosophy was to teach our children to study hard and be upright individuals. Jiang Feng has always been obedient and has his own opinions."

"After finishing the college entrance exam, he said he wanted to go to the south to see the world, and we fully supported him. Our child is grown up now and has his own life to live."

"We don't know much about games or live streaming, but we know he hasn't done anything wrong or wronged anyone. We will always support him."

"It's easy to see that this is a family full of love and respect."

The scene changes, and another interview audio begins.

"We also contacted Jiang Feng's high school homeroom teacher."

"The teacher who taught Jiangfeng for three years gave him a concise evaluation: down-to-earth, disciplined, and intelligent. Unfortunately, he suddenly developed gastroenteritis on the day of the college entrance examination and was unable to perform to his full potential, thus missing out on a place in a 985 university."

"As for Jiang Feng's current achievements, the teacher said he was 'shocked, but also reasonable'—'that child never does anything he's not sure of.'"

Finally, there was a group interview recording with several high school classmates, filled with the cheerfulness and banter characteristic of young people.

The screen showed photos of Jiang Feng from elementary school, junior high school, and high school, looking youthful and clean.

"Old Jiang, my deskmate in high school! He looks honest, and he really is. (Laughter)"

"He never played games back then. His mom was strict, and he never even went to an internet cafe. We used to laugh at him for being a 'good boy'."

"Yes, yes, he preferred playing basketball back then and never played online games. He only played strategy games like Civilization, Stellaris, and Anno 1800, and he could sit there for a whole day."

"If we had known he had this talent earlier, we should have recruited him to play Variant and League of Legends back then. Maybe Chinese esports would have risen to prominence much earlier!"

The scene suddenly cut back to the interview, and the narrator's voice had a more gossipy tone.

"We also asked some other interesting questions."

"For example—did Jiang Feng receive love letters from girls during junior and senior high school? Did he ever have a puppy love relationship?"

A burst of laughter immediately came from the audio.

"I can say that, but you have to mute my voice completely!"

"Definitely never been in a relationship! A complete lifelong single!"

"Old Jiang received a lot of love letters. He even went to a tutoring class during the summer vacation. After more than half a month, he was confessed to by female students from other schools."

"But Lao Jiang's family is strict and says that early relationships are not allowed, so he really didn't agree to any of them and returned them all. He even advised them to study hard. Sigh..."

"That's right! Lao Jiang and I grew up like brothers, I know all his secrets! He's definitely never been in a relationship!"

The screen dims, and the video, "Jiang Feng (Part 1)," ends.

A line of white text appeared in the center of the screen: To be continued. Next episode: Jiang Feng's university life.

The moment the video ended, the comments section exploded.