The team was facing an economic dilemma, forcing Steel Helmets to make a tough decision.
âForce buy or save?â Su Di asked.
MO took a deep breath. âLetâs save. Just buy small weapons to play around with. Next round, Biao Di will have the AWP, and weâll have full weapons and utility. Weâll have a better shot at turning this around.â
Jiang Yang checked his economy. After some thought, he decided to buy a no-armor Scout.
âSu Di, help me jump mid in a second. Iâll try to take a shot,â Jiang Yang said.
There wasnât much strategy to this roundâjust an attempt to get trades with small weapons. MO didnât set any strict requirements, giving them the freedom to play as they saw fit.
Jiang Yang positioned himself near Dust, clearly planning to take a mid shot.
On the other side, Danking had an AWP. Although Jiang Yang was using a Scout, he still wanted to test his luck.
As the countdown ended, Jiang Yang moved toward mid.
A burst of sparks erupted from Su Diâs head as he hit the ground, enjoying an early nightâs rest.
But Jiang Yang didnât let his sacrifice go to waste. The moment Su Di jumped, Jiang Yang peeked through his scope and spotted Danking retreating behind cover.
With a flick of his wrist, he fired.
"Bangâ"
[young headshotted Danking with an SG 008.]
âBoth snipers dueling at midâthose reflexes are insane!â
âBut Biao Diâs side actually comes out ahead. Since they had no money this round, an even trade is actually an advantage for them.â
Wan Ji Qi continued analyzing the situation. âRight after getting the kill, Biao Di threw a smoke at B Tunnels and held mid for a bit.â
âTyloo responded with an Xbox smoke, playing it slow to take control. Meanwhile, Biao Di rotated back to A Platform to hold. Tyloo is setting up for an A Long and A Short split push. Now, letâs see if this Scout can get another pick.â
Jiang Yang stood at A Platform, his Scout aimed steadily at A Long.
Brother Xiaosa had been scouting ahead and saw no enemies near Pit, so Jiang Yang hugged the wall, waiting for the enemy to make their move.
Then, a smoke grenade landed at Pit.
Shortly after, a T-side player suddenly jumped up from behind A Longâs wall to scout ahead.
His exposed hitbox was tiny, but Jiang Yang took the shot anyway.
"Bangâ"
[young headshotted Summer with an SG 008.]
The shot stunned everyone watching the livestream.
âHoly sh*t! He actually hit that?! That was a CY1 jump peek!â
The chat exploded with question marks, everyone shocked at Jiang Yangâs reaction speed.
For a regular player, CY1 wouldâve gathered the info and backed off before they could even shoot.
But Jiang Yang not only reacted, he landed a perfect headshotâan absurd feat.
Seeing Jiang Yang secure another kill, MO got pumped.
âLock and DD, cover A Short for Biao Di. Donât let them push in. Iâll push B2 and try something.â
MO had a clear plan. With an initial mid trade, the match was now a 4v4.
This meant the Ts couldnât execute a tightly packed push.
And since Jiang Yang had already taken out one player at A Long, if they still intended to hit A, theyâd need to concentrate their forces.
Sure, MOâs aggressive push was risky, but they were already at an economic disadvantage. Taking a gamble to turn things around was completely reasonable.
Jiang Yang remained patient on A Platform, waiting for his teammates' intel.
âNo one at B2⦠B1 is clear too!!â MO suddenly shouted over comms.
âTheyâre coming A Short!!â He yelled. âLock and DD, hold onâbait them for me!â
But sometimes, plans donât go as expected. The Ts pushed A Short aggressively, but DD and Xiaosa instantly double-teamed with their Desert Eagles and shut them down.
âLast two at A Long!!â MO called out. âHold this one down, weâve got it in the bag!â
Just as he finished speaking, Jiang Yang found himself under attack. Tyloo dry-peeked him, and Baicai took him out.
âI tagged Baicai with my Scoutâone shot, one kill!â Jiang Yang reported. He had done all he could. Now, it was up to his teammates.
The remaining opponents were one full-health and one low-health player.
With a 3v2 advantage, DD grabbed an AK-47, and MO even looted an AWP from T-spawnâs underpass.
Their odds of winning this round looked great!
âThey double-smoked CT and are flashing over. Tyloo is forcing their way in, but Xiaosa is tucked behind Triple Boxes. He hears them coming, peeks out, and lands a clean Deagle headshot!â
âBaicai trades him out, but DD immediately finishes him off!!â
Seeing DD clutch up with his AK, Jiang Yang clenched his fist.
Even though they had the advantage, post-plant scenarios were always unpredictable.
âGreat job, guys!â Jiang Yang hyped them up in voice chat. âStay focusedâweâve got the economy back on track!â
With this round win, the score was now 13:14âjust one round behind Tyloo!
And if they could take three more rounds, Tyloo would be sent packing.
After some thought, MO made a call. âLetâs run a double-AWP setup. Iâll hold B. They wonât expect us to bring out two snipers.â
On Dust2, a CT side without an AWP was like a savings account with no fundsâbarely functional.
A double-AWP defense was an even bigger curveball, capable of shutting down key plays.
MO wasnât the best sniper, but if he picked the right angle at B, he could still be effective.
Meanwhile, Jiang Yang bought his own AWP. Instead of focusing on A Long, they made some adjustments at A Short.
âSomeone cover me at A Short. Iâll hold B Tunnels and try to catch SLOWLYâhe defaults to B1 a lot.â
As the round started, Su Di and Xiaosa boosted Jiang Yang onto A Short.
DD went to A Long, ready to contest.
If Tyloo wanted to take A Long control, DD would back off instantly.
Dust2âs spawn positioning mattered a lotâif the Ts didnât spawn near A Long, DD could take control with just a Molotov.
Jiang Yang and Xiaosa steadily took A Short. Jiang Yang scoped toward B1 while Xiaosa watched the left-side passage.
A Long was secured without resistance, meaning the Ts were likely spread between Mid and B2.
Realizing this, Jiang Yang focused his attention.
âSLOWLY is coming out of B1, but does he expect a double setup at A Short?â
âSLOWLY pre-aimed, but Biao Di easily took him down with a single shot!â
After the kill, Jiang Yang jumped down from Xiaosaâs position and lobbed a grenade at B1.
âIâm moving, Lock, A Short is yours.â
Since he had already fired from A Short, staying there was pointless. Instead, he rotated to A Long, swapping places with DD, who had used up most of his utility.
At the same time, the B-site duo applied pressure on B Tunnels.
Su Di burned out a corner, forcing Danking into the open. As he tried to escape, MOâs AWP was waiting for him.
âNice shot, captain!â Jiang Yang praised. â5v3 now!â
MO was thinking fast. Typically, when Danking was alive, Tyloo would play around him as their main attacker.
But now that he was dead, Tyloo seemed hesitant.
MO gave a command: âKeep an eye on Dust! We donât need mid controlâjust hold both sites.â
âIf they try to split B, weâll trade kills and you guys can retake.â
Hearing MOâs call, Xiaosa quickly threw some utility to stall A Short and repositioned to A Ramp.
At this point, it was confirmed that Tyloo didnât have an AWP, meaning they had more room to maneuver.
Seconds later, Xiaosa heard a smoke land at A Short. He quickly tossed a grenade and repositioned to sniper spot.
âThat grenade landed perfectlyâTyloo barely has any utility left. Theyâre setting up a double-peek push!â
âWill they check this angle?â
Baicai jumped forward first, but Jiang Yang was already set up on Blue Car, watching the cross.
As soon as Baicai entered his crosshair, Jiang Yang pulled the trigger.
"Bang!"
Baicai walked straight into his shot. A free kill.
But there was no time to celebrate. Jiang Yang quickly threw a flashbang toward Double Stack.
The moment the flash popped, Xiaosa swung out.
A full spray, taking out CY1 hiding behind smoke, then finishing off the last T who had no time to react.
âNice flash, Biao Di!!â Xiaosa cheered. âWe just slaughtered them!â
DD laughed from A Long. âI was gonna help, but you guys handled it.â
With the round secured, the score was now 14:14.
MO immediately made a judgment call. âTyloo has no money. If we just play it safe, weâll win!â
âWe need A Long controlâonce we have it, weâre halfway to victory.â
Everyone focused up. With the score so close, they couldnât afford a mistake.
As the countdown ended, Jiang Yang and DD headed to A Long. Since his spawn wasnât ideal, Jiang Yang just tossed two flashbangs to support DDâs push.
DD blind-peeked A Long but saw no movement. âNo action here, watch for a B hit!â
The moment he spoke, MOâs panicked voice came over comms.
âTheyâre force-buying! I just got wallbanged through smoke! Get ready to rotate!â
Jiang Yang checked the kill feed.
[Danking headshotted CaptainMO through smoke with an AK-47.]
âDanking found an insane timing. He gathered intel before the B smoke bloomed and took the shot, instantly killing MO!â
âTyloo is rushing B! Su Di is the only one thereâcan Steel Helmets hold on in this crucial round?â
The A-site trio sprinted toward B, but they were far away.
As they ran, two kill notifications appeared at the top right.
[Karsa headshotted Danking through smoke with an AK-47.]
[Karsa headshotted CY1 with an AK-47.]
[SLOWLY headshotted Karsa with a Galil.]
Su Di managed to trade two kills, making it a 3v3.
Jiang Yang was the closest to B and got vision of B Doors first.
Thatâs when he noticed a crucial detailâTylooâs B Doors smoke had a gap.
Jiang Yang immediately realized it was an opportunity. Without hesitation, he aimed down scope.
SLOWLY was running toward the site, trying to plant the bomb.
He noticed the smoke misplacement but figured the CTs were too far to react.
He was wrong.
"Bang!"
A bullet pierced through the door and into SLOWLYâs chest.
[young headshotted SLOWLY through wall with an AWP.]
âNice shot, Biao Di!!â DD shouted. âWeâve got a 3v2!â
Right after that, Tyloo finally dropped a proper B Doors smoke.
Jiang Yang called it out: âThey smoked it offâweâll have to push in from the front.â
He swapped to his pistol and moved toward B Doors.
As he entered, he quickly checked the close mid-box cornerâempty.
But DD had been moving silently behind him.
A few moments later, an enemy peeked from mid.
Tyloo knew they were at a disadvantage, so somebody tried to make a move.
However, DD was watching.
[DD headshotted somebody with an AK-47.]
âNice!!â MO roared in voice chat. â3v1! The last guy is on siteâwait for the smoke to fade and rush him together!â
âStay calm!â Su Di added.
The three of them positioned at B Doors, waiting.
Inside the site, Baicai was panicking.
He tried fake-planting to bait them out, but when nobody peeked, he knew they had already pushed up.
Now, if he attempted the plant, they could easily rush him.
With no choice left, he decided to go for kills instead.
Baicai silently jumped into Window, pre-aimed his crosshair, and peeked aggressively.
"Bang!"
The moment he exposed himself, Jiang Yangâs AWP was already waiting.
He didnât even get a chance to fire.
[young headshotted Baicai with an AWP.]
"Nice!!!!!"
"Holy sh*t, we actually won!!!!"
"Brothers, we are insane!!"
"Biao Di, I love you! Youâre so f*ing clutch!!"
The entire Steel Helmets voice chat erupted into cheers.
Meanwhile, the livestream chat was absolutely exploding.