After two days of closed training, on the night of August 22nd, the YM club flew to Guangzhou to rest.
On the 23rd, they went to the finals to shoot the promotional video and trash talk.
The Guangzhou International Sports Performing Arts Center was one of the best sports venues in South China. It covered an area of 120,000 square meters and had nearly 18000 seats. It was claimed that every seat had the best view.
The summer finals and the LPL 5th anniversary celebration were held here. Teng Jing rented the right to use the venue for five days and strived to maximize the viewing experience.
In the backstage lounge, Lin Yan saw the glittering Silver Dragon Cup. Three days later, the winner of the finals would pick up this trophy that symbolized the highest glory of the LPL league.
During the promotional video, Lin Yan and Factory Director had the most scenes. The two posed one after another under the direction of the director and cameraman.
Phyllostachys Pubescens and Da Tou's son laughed happily in the audience. Without post-production sound effects and editing, Lin Yan's handsome face and Factory Director's evil smile couldn't save the awkward shooting effect.
When it came to the trash talk segment, the YM members, who had just stepped onto the finals stage, couldn't let go of their hands and feet.
Especially Xiao Ming, who only knew how to giggle when he was nervous. The "trash talk" that came out of his mouth didn't have any lethality at all.
"I'll give you a demonstration first. Watch carefully and learn." As the king of trash talk in the LPL, Factory Director decided to teach YM a lesson.
The effect was excellent. With just two sentences, even the director and the staff were convulsing with laughter.
The originally awkward atmosphere instantly broke.
Xiao Tian didn't want to be left behind. He was the second to go on stage and spit out some harsh words. The effect was very good.
"Yes, yes, yes. Relax. There's no need to be so reserved." The director was very satisfied. "It's trash talk before the competition. There's no need to be so serious."
"That's right. You can say some sarcastic words," Factory Director said with a smile. "We won't mind."
"Then I'll start?" Lin Yan was a bit nervous. "Bear with it."
If you want to talk, why are you driving?
"Brother Jin Gong, cover me. I'm afraid that I won't be able to walk out of the stadium today if I say these words." Lin Yan turned to look at Jin Gong, who was the strongest of the ten people present.
Then, the director signaled for the camera to get ready. Lin Yan pondered for a moment before speaking slowly.
As the factory director listened below the stage, the corner of his mouth that was originally wide open suddenly closed.
What a vicious mouth. Was he trying to break the mental defenses of his teammates?
On the evening of August 25th, YM finished their last training match before the finals at the hotel.
After Hanyi brought them to review the game, she told them to play two rounds of ranked and rest early to ensure that they had enough energy for tomorrow's finals.
Lin Yan played two Solo Ranked matches on the Korean server. His hands were fiery, and his Hero Pool increased as if he was drinking water. Within a week, he had already reached 500 points.
In the last round, he ran into Faker and Defter. Faker seemed to be purposely disgusting Defter. He took out Bull's Head to assist him and played like an actor.
However, Mr. Dai's Little Yellow Hair was used to defend against orphaned teammates. In the early stages, he stayed under the tower as a QDC. In the middle stages, when the Magic Cutter was formed, he cooperated with Lin Yan and Little Temptress to cut into the enemy's formation.
Even if Faker flashed and kowtowed, it couldn't stop them from winning the game.
Lin Yan saw that the Crystal on the opposite side had cracked. He took off his headphones and looked at the bottom right corner of his computer. It was already ten o 'clock at night.
He planned to go back to his room to wash up and rest.
Before he left, Xiao Tian was still staring at the video of the semi-finals on the screen. His calves were curled up and his feet were on the eSports chair. His two arms were in front of him, and his square head was pressed against it.
Lin Yan looked closer. Xiao Tian had dark circles under his eyes, and he looked tired.
"Don't tire yourself out. Go to bed early."
"Yes, I know. Don't worry." Xiao Tian yawned and didn't look back.
Xiao Tian was much more hardworking than the other three teammates of the same age.
He also knew that jungling was the position that benefited the most from the version bonuses. If he didn't seize the opportunity when he encountered a suitable version, it would be even more impossible for him to make a comeback if he changed the jungles on a whim.
The peak period of a professional player was fleeting. How many opportunities were left for him?
On the morning of the 26th, YM and EDG rushed to the competition venue by bus.
The huge stadium was empty. They went through the entrance rehearsal under the instructions of the on-site staff. The main purpose was to familiarize themselves with their positions so that they wouldn't make a fool of themselves.
At noon, the staff was eating lunch at the side. The 13 players in the starting lineup and the substitutes of the two teams could only endure the hunger.
Fat General's face was chubby. He watched the staff open the lunch box and couldn't help but swallow. However, he still didn't dare to eat.
They all knew that they couldn't fill their stomachs at this time. Once they were full, they would feel sleepy. When that happened, their reaction speed would be much slower. They just had to stuff some chocolate to avoid hypoglycemia.
"Hungry guy, give me a Snickers bar." JKL took two Snickers bars from the lounge and walked over to Lin Yan.
The two of them squatted on the ground and watched the people around them. They ate the hard and tasteless Snickers bars while smelling the aroma of food in the air.
"Motherf * cker's kiss. This red braised pork smells so good …" JKL swallowed his saliva and then took a bite of the Snickers bar. "After today's competition, I'm going to eat meat for three days straight. Nobody can stop me!"
In the afternoon, the two teams split into two teams and had their makeup done backstage. Then, they went through two pre-match interviews.
When YM returned to the lounge, Chubby also rushed over. Beside him sat Xiao Ma and the person in charge sent by the investor.
Hanyi held a notebook in her hand and once again emphasized the opening layout for them.
"In the first game, as long as you guys perform well, EDG's early game rhythm will collapse." Hanyi pointed to the Summoner's Canyon on the whiteboard and sketched on it with a marker. "You guys should know what to do in the early game, right?"
JKL and Xiao Ming nodded.
"Go on stage. There's no need to be nervous. Just pretend that the audience doesn't exist. Treat the finals like a training match." Hao patted them on the shoulder.
The five of them took their peripherals and went outside to be checked by the detector. Ning Ze stayed in the lounge as a substitute jungler to watch the game.
…
Su Cheng was stuck in traffic for a while. When she found a seat, it was just four o 'clock in the afternoon. The giant funnel screen in the center of the stadium was already counting down. The audience was noisy and the attendance was ridiculously high.
She held the front row ticket in her hand for a long time before sitting down. Then, she let out a long sigh.
The opening ceremony was a live performance of the Source Project skin. Some of the stiff movements and awkward and childish lines made Su Cheng physically uncomfortable.
However, after the opening ceremony, she immediately tasted the sweetness.
When Lin Yan came out and stood under the spotlight, the audience cheered.
The handsome young man's face appeared on the big screen in front of tens of thousands of audience members. After a summer of accumulation, Lin Yan had attracted a lot of fans. He had forcefully made the "Water Army Mid Laner" into his own unique title.
In terms of popularity, Lin Yan was more popular than Alpaca Deft among the first ten players in the finals. He was only slightly inferior to the veteran Chili Dance.
It could not be helped. He was not only handsome but also strong. As long as he kept winning, he would not even be able to resist the pressure.
Su Cheng looked at Lin Yan waving to the audience in the center of the stage. She could not help but smile enchantingly.
Today's commentary panel was Long-hair, Big Brother Gogoing, and the first scapegoat Pomelo. After the three of them warmed up the atmosphere, they handed the screen to Mille Doll and Remember.
In the middle of the transition, the highly anticipated pre-match trash talk segment finally appeared.
The camera first focused on the Factory Director.
"Hello, 2016 LPL runner-up." The Factory Director started off with a cross-game joke.
"YM's jungler, Xiao Tian, is not as good as me except for being younger than me." The Factory Director pretended to be cold. "In this final, I will let him know who is most qualified to take over F4."
The camera cut and Mongoose's square face appeared on the big screen.
Phyllostachys Pubescens sounded a little helpless. He spread out his hands. "Actually, my F4 belongs to Brother Ran. He will definitely help me get rid of you."
"But I really want to prove who is the best jungler in LPL on the stage of the finals." Xiao Tian began to tear open his wounds.
On the camera, Xiao Ming smiled and did not say anything.
"In my opinion, the opponent's bottom lane is not strong. They were just lucky to beat us. In the finals, I will let them see the top bottom lane in the world." Mr. Dai was quite proud.
"Top ADC?
Are you talking about the S4 team that was beaten to tears by imp? "
JKL scratched his head. "By the way, I am not Ouze. Factory Director, you are a second-level player. This trick is useless against me."
Next were looper and mata's slightly reserved remarks. After that, Jin Gong made a neck threat to the camera.
At this moment, Lin Yan's handsome face finally appeared.
"I don't know much about Scout, but I know that he is a normal person." He was expressionless. "He has no shortcomings."
After hearing this sentence, the EDG fans thought that the previous tension would be diluted by Lin Yan. They did not expect him to add another sentence.
"Of course, he has no merits. I still don't know why EDG chose him as the starter."
The audience was in an uproar. This sentence was very similar to the words of a world-class mid laner in LCK.
"I saw him use Rob in the semi-finals. Scout seems to be very confident in his Rob. Unfortunately, there is no blind selection mode now. Otherwise, I would send Scout to the European garbage dump like Faker to accompany player Ryu."
Scout's face was blank. He was suddenly at a loss for words.
"There should be no suspense in the battle in the mid lane. If I don't change to Fat General, I can crush Scout in three games." Lin Yan added in the last sentence.
The live audience gave their own reactions. There were boos and praises, but most of them were tolerant laughter.
"What does it mean to be a cup type mid laner?"
"I would like to call Ran the king of trash talk in LPL. He is on par with the spicy dancing girls."
"This trash talk has a bit of a European and American flavor. It was originally a show for you to stir up trouble. Two years ago, who were you trying to show off your harmony?"
"Wow, this year's trash talk segment is a bit explosive." Doll in the commentator's seat was the first to speak. "But I think it's understandable that the players have a good relationship in private."
"That's right. The trash talk before the game is mainly used to stir up trouble for us." Mille nodded in agreement. "For example, I'm already studying the opponents of MSI …"
"Let's take a look at the pre-game data first." The big screen began to show the panels of the two teams in the finals.
Remember quickly followed. "These two teams are our top teams in Group A and AB. Their records in the regular season are very impressive."
"EDG has 30 wins and 5 losses in small matches and 15 wins and 1 loss in large matches. The only BO3 they lost was against YM." Doll explained to the audience who had not watched the regular season. "YM has 32 wins and 2 losses in small matches and 16 consecutive wins in large matches."
"And both teams easily defeated their opponents in the semi-finals a week ago with a score of 3: 0," Mille continued. "It can be said that they are obviously a level higher than the other teams in the LPL."
"Let's take a look at the data comparison of each position. The top laner Looper has a better participation rate because Jin Gong tends to choose solo heroes in the second half of the season and rarely participates in head-on team battles …"
"The mid laner Ran's data is as impressive as ever. He is ranked second in the league with a KDA of 7.5. He is ranked first in the mid laner's participation rate with 85%. He is ranked first in all positions with 31 solo kills this season. He is ranked first in the mid laner's damage output per game and is ranked second in all positions …"
"There is no doubt about this year's Best Rookie," Doll concluded. "Whether or not they can go further depends on today's final."
"The BP screen has appeared. This highly anticipated BO5 is about to begin!" Remember to raise your voice.
"Let's see if EDG will be the one to sweep away their slump and return to the top again, or if YM, the new king, will be crowned!"
Below the stage, tens of thousands of spectators raised the support items in their hands, cheering for the strongest team in their hearts!
The stadium was instantly boiling!