"Congratulations to YM for getting the first win!"
Excited voices echoed in the Dalian Central Stadium. "First win for the LPL division!"
The three commentators looked at each other. This hearty victory soothed their slightly anxious mood. Although LCK's lineup before the match was somewhat unexpected, YM was still their sharpest knife, easily piercing through the opponent's defense line.
YM's members were also relaxed.
This match was undoubtedly a good start for the other brotherly teams.
Lin Yan took off his headphones, letting the noise from the tens of thousands of spectators hit his eardrums.
"Brother Jin Gong!" He raised his voice, attracting Jin Gong's attention amidst the noise.
Seeing Tokumukon's head move forward, past Mongoose's body and into his field of vision, Lin Yan smiled brightly and gave him a thumbs up with his right hand.
"Well played, Jin Gong!"
Hearing this, the Xiba player grinned happily. His thick, helmet-like black hair swayed along with his head, fluttering softly. He looked like he could be a spokesperson for a shampoo commercial.
Tokumukon accepted Lin Yan's praise calmly.
His voice was really loud in this match.
At level 3, he teleported to the top lane to help the Little Temptress block Crow E's Never Come Back. He single-handedly killed Thal twice to create a breakthrough …
Jin Gong's presence in this match was at its fullest.
"Stop chatting here, hurry up and shake hands," Jack said gruffly.
If one had to pick out a member from YM who had the least gaming experience, it would be Shiba Inu.
He had been developing in the early stages and had even been caught by Li Xianghe. In the last team battle in front of SKT's fountain, he had moved too close to the front in order to deal more damage and was killed by the fountain's laser.
Basically, he was an outsider.
"Can't you just lie down and win?"
Lin Yan guessed Jack's mood. He got up and left the player area, hugged Shiba Inu's big head and rubbed it. "Then I'll let you carry from now on?
We'll play a 4v1? "
Jack imagined that scene. It was simply too beautiful.
The corners of her mouth curled up slightly, but then she thought of something and smiled again. "… Then I think the current situation is pretty good."
Liu Qingsong and Phyllostachys Pubescens laughed mercilessly.
Shiba Inu's white and chubby face instantly turned red when he saw his teammate's reaction.
"It's not that I can't C," he hurriedly defended himself. "It's the version that's not good enough!
It's because of the version! "
Now that critical hit and attack speed equipment were so expensive, and Kesha had been weakened, it was really difficult for Edisi to stand out. He felt more and more like a thigh accessory.
"Okay, okay, okay. It's a problem with the version."
Lin Yan patted Shiba Inu's shoulder in a perfunctory manner. He walked across the stage to SKT's seating area and greeted Li Zaiwan, who was closest to him.
The wolf cudgel duo looked calm and did not express any obvious disappointment at this loss.
The two of them had lost so much that they were numb.
They had lost more matches in the spring and summer competitions this year than they had in the previous three years.
It was undeniable that their fighting spirit for victory was fading. If they could not enter the global finals this year, they would have to leave Korea. They had to earn some money before they had to serve in the military.
Lin Yan shook hands with the two of them. Li Xianghe was still slumped in his chair. His eyes were red, and his fingers were unconsciously twirling his curly hair. His hair had long lost the beauty of his makeup, and it made him look very pathetic.
The loss of this match made Li Xianghe feel powerless.
In the S6 and S7 seasons, even though his SKT team had lost to YM in the end, Li Xianghe could feel that the gap between the two teams was not that big. It was just that they had not handled certain details well, or that they had been tricked by the black technology of Commanding Flag.
Today was completely different.
The top laner, Thal, had failed to clear the tower because he did not push his creeps in. For the next 20 minutes, he had gone through a cycle of solo kills and gank kills.
Especially in the middle of the game, Li Xianghe had sacrificed his own growth to supplement Thal's finances. In the end, he had gone out like an idiot, fearing that Lin Yan's kill book would not be high enough.
Xiao Hei's performance was also indescribable. After giving away his first kill, he did not initiate a wave of attacks. He was passively taking hits. Faker missed the other jungler with the surname B very much.
What made Li Xianghe feel even more pained was that he realized that it was getting harder and harder to beat Lin Yan.
There were always loopholes in the top laner, and Faker knew that these two loopholes would be difficult to fill — the 96th lane was too old.
In the League of Legends circle, age meant competitiveness. Old monsters like Sect Leader An and Marin were too rare.
SKT had been the runner-up two years ago, and had made it to the top four in the international competition last year. This year, they were already on the verge of entering the S-Ranked competition.
Even if their players were in top form and made it to the international competition, what kind of results could SKT achieve?
Break through the team's lowest record and make it to the top eight?
Or could they not even make it to the group stage and make it to the top sixteen?
In the end, they would probably end up in the top four, top eight, and top sixteen, getting stronger with each passing year.
As the 96th lane's strength gradually declined, the strong top laners and junglers in Korea would not even consider SKT, because they could not see the future at all.
Last year, SKT had recruited the top top laner, Huni, from Europe, and found the rising star, Little Peanut. In the end, their results in the international competition were not satisfactory. Both of them performed poorly, and their reputation plummeted.
Especially Huni, during the S7 Summer League, he had almost lost all the value he had earned from Thief and Esports' Yuan Shao.
After this top laner duo left the team, there were even fewer strong reinforcements willing to join SKT. After all, they had learned from their mistakes. If they performed poorly, they would lose more than just time.
Thus, the fall of the Double Champion SKT was completely foreseeable.
Without strong reinforcements, how could the team compete against YM, who had not yet gone downhill?
Could they rely on Thal and Xiao Hei?
Last year, Little Peanut and Huni were occasionally sick, but they were no match for YM. Now that Thal was no longer useful, these two could no longer be called "occasionally sick". It would be more appropriate to call them "occasionally sick".
Thinking of this, Li Xianghe despaired.
Would he not have a chance for revenge in this lifetime?
Lin Yan looked at Faker, who was still deep in thought. He had wanted to say that he had played well, but seeing Li Xianghe's expression, he swallowed the words back into his stomach. He did not want to stab him in the heart again.
"… See you at the Asian Games." He took the initiative to extend his hand.
When Faker heard this, he suddenly looked up, his eyes shining brightly.
Wasn't the Asian Games the best chance for revenge?
The strongest teammate, the strongest coach, he could stand on that stage and compete with Lin Yan!
Thinking of this, Li Xianghe's fighting spirit instantly soared.
"See you at the Asian Games." He replied in standard Korean English, and shook Lin Yan's hand with force.
Both of them reached out their left hands at the same time, and patted each other's right shoulders.
This scene was captured by the camera, and projected onto the big screen in the stadium.
The audience in the stands was very excited. They did not expect such an exciting scene after the exchange between the two champions.
[I didn't expect their movements to be so synchronized.]
[This is the tacit understanding from the First High School.]
[Brother Ran and Brother Li both know how to pat each other's shoulders while shaking hands. I can do it too. ○ I = Ran = Faker.]
[Why does it look so funny?]
"Eh …" Su Cheng said in an exaggerated tone, and goosebumps appeared on her forearms.
Si Jiayan had just finished ordering her fried chicken. She handed her phone to her roommate and teased, "Chengzi, what do you think of this scene?"
"Ha," Su Cheng said disdainfully, "It's just touching his shoulders. When Lin Yan comes back, I can touch him wherever I want, and he won't dare to say no."
Si Jiayan pondered for two seconds. Seeing that Su Cheng had chosen a cheese flavored fried chicken, she asked, "… Is it the kind of touch I'm thinking of?"
"Yeah." Su Cheng looked down at her phone and admitted bluntly, "It's the kind of touch you're thinking of. It's very exciting when the lights are off."
Now that she was driving with her roommate, her ears didn't even turn red.
Si Jiayan didn't expect such an answer. Being single since birth, her face was as red as a tomato.
"Are you a pervert?"
Si Jiayan, who had started the conversation, complained first. Her face was red as she hugged her Totoro pillow and rolled away from Su Cheng.
There was a crisp sound.
The sound was melodious, and even echoed.
At this moment, it even covered the buzzing of Miss Dong's air conditioner.
"Roar ~!" She covered her forehead with tears in her eyes. Through the gaps between her fingers, she could see the red marks on her fair skin.
The two of them were originally lying on the bed. Although Si Jiayan had a delicate body and a thin waist, the dormitory was equipped with single beds. Lying side by side, the small space was still cramped. There wasn't much room to move, and when Si Jiayan turned over, she bumped into the guardrail.
"Hahahaha!"
Su Cheng let out a merciless laugh, and then waved her hand. "Come, let me touch you. Just a touch will do."
Si Jiayan remembered her roommate's dirty talk and didn't want to let her touch her. She immediately threw the chubby Totoro at Su Cheng's face, and the two of them started a fight.
Thousands of miles away in Dalian.
Lin Yan handed the peripherals to Mongoose, and went to accept Yu Zhen's stage interview.
"Congratulations to YM for winning the first round of the finals …" She smiled gracefully. "Brother Ran, would you like to say hello to everyone?"
The live audience's reaction was quite enthusiastic. The two of them on the stage could hear the screams of a small group of female fans.
Lin Yan held the microphone and didn't show any fear. After he introduced himself in a calm tone, he heard Yu Zhen's first question.
"Today, when you met SKT again, YM also achieved a crushing victory. Do you have any thoughts?"
"… It was alright. The overall direction of the match didn't deviate from our expectations. We won as expected," Lin Yan answered with a smile.
Yu Zhen nodded, and glanced at the question he had recorded on his card. "This match was also another duel between you and Faker, because both of you are top-notch midlaners. Brother Ran, how do you rate your opponent's performance today?"
"I think …" Lin Yan hesitated for a moment, and after thinking about his answer, he answered, "My teammates are much stronger than him, especially Jin Gong. His performance today was simply amazing."
He didn't answer Yu Zhen's question directly, and didn't answer Yu Zhen directly.
The main reason was that no matter how he answered this question, there would be a hint of a change in the rhythm of the battle. Lin Yan felt that Li Xianghe deserved his respect, so he changed his perspective.
When Yu Zhen heard this, he blinked his eyes in understanding.
Due to the tight pace of every small match in the finals, she didn't have time to inform Lin Yan about the stage interview.
However, she still had a bit of EQ. Looking at Lin Yan's attitude, she knew that he didn't want to answer.
Hence, Yu Zhen decisively switched to the next question.
"Just now, after the end of the first match, we also found out about the two teams for the next match …" Yu Zhen asked while looking at the card in her hand.
Lin Yan was very interested in this.
LPL's coaching team had initially planned to send RNG, but he didn't know if Red Rice would make any changes after discovering that LCK didn't play according to the rules.
Yu Zhen continued, "LPL's second-seeded team, RNG, will be facing LCK's third-seeded team, KT!"
"Brother Ran, what do you have to say …"
Lin Yan frowned.
After listening to both teams, he realized that something wasn't quite right.
It was different from what he had expected. LCK had actually sent their strongest team, KT!
This was the fun of the game between the two teams.
LCK had lost the first match. If they lost the second match, they would be at the edge of a cliff with a score of 0-2. Even if they won two matches in a row and entered the final match, it would be difficult for them to beat YM, who had obtained the right to play again.
Hence, for LCK, it was most reliable to win the second match steadily.
However, there were many things that they had to consider. LPL knew that LCK had to win the first match. Hence, it was very likely that RW would be sent in for the second match. They would use their weaker team to trick LCK's stronger team, giving them a taste of their own medicine. It would be a repeat of YM and SKT's match in the first match.
If LPL really used RW to trick KT, then the strongest and weakest teams in each division would be eliminated. LPL, who was stronger overall, would have an advantage.
For LCK, sending in KZ, who was above average, was a good choice. Even if they were replaced by RW, they would still be able to obtain a victory.
The LPL's coaching team, which was formed by the four teams, could also guess this.
They directly sent RNG to suppress their opponents.
The original plan was to let RNG pick on the weaker team. Compared to RW, who was average, and IG, who would use crazy knives at every turn, RNG's ability to win points was more stable.
It was obvious that KZ's Xuanming Elders would not be able to withstand the Uzi's bombardment. As long as Karsa protected the Uzi, they would be able to break through the first line. Their chances of winning were very high.
However, they did not expect LCK to not play by the rules and directly send in their trump card!
It could only be said that LCK had predicted LPL's prediction and stood above the atmosphere.
Lin Yan hastily ended the on-stage interview and returned the microphone to the punching staff. When he went down the stage and returned to the lounge, he saw RNG's team member walking out with his mouse and keyboard.
Ouze was already chewing gum. His fat face was red, and his expression was visibly anxious.
The boss of the team was not in a good mood, and the entire team was shrouded in low pressure.
It was obvious that they were not prepared to face KT.
"Do your best, don't feel too much pressure." Lin Yan hurriedly comforted him. "Do your best."
"At most, we'll lose. It's not like we can't afford to lose. We still have two brothers behind us."
Ouze's expression cleared up, and the surrounding atmosphere became much more relaxed.
Lin Yan's close friend put on his tactical goggles. He, who had transformed into Baiji, nodded and said in a hoarse voice, "I'm going to teach UCAL a lesson today!"
"Don't let yourself get killed, Li Yuanhao." Xiao Ming laughed. "Bring out Zhonya's Banshee Mercury Shoes. Show them a new way to play solo."
Although he was young, he was a world champion, so he had a lot of confidence when talking to people.
Shi Senming looked like he was going to beat him up, but Shi Senming was skinny. Like a loach, he slithered behind Lin Ran and used his former teammate as a shield.
Mi Dehu wanted to chase after him, but Winston grabbed him and told them to hurry up the stage.
Lin Yan, on the other hand, returned to the waiting room.
The familiar low pressure came again.
Hong Mi and the other coaches stared at the television screen, looking a little nervous.
YM, who had just won the match, didn't dare to celebrate. Xiao Tian pulled at the strands of hair on his head and yawned in boredom.
They were destined to rest for three small matches.
If the three brothers could win two of the three matches, Lin Yan could go on stage and lift the trophy, just like last year.
If there were any accidents, YM would have to wait until the fifth match.
Lin Yan grabbed a pair of spicy wings from Kaifeng's emergency delivery bag to fill his stomach.
The match between RNG and KT didn't take long. The BP match was progressing very quickly.
Under the camera, Mr. Dai and Big Quail were smiling, as if they had thought of something happy.
RNG sent Aun to letme, hoping that he could withstand the pressure from SMEB in the top lane, while the duo in the bottom lane was Kesha and Luo.
"Isn't this laning ability a bit bad?" Hanyi felt that RNG's early laning was a bit too disadvantageous.
"There's no difference." Jack swallowed a mouthful of smooth and fragrant egg tart. "Anyway, it's a four-man team. The bottom lane is good enough to control. The laning disadvantage doesn't affect the overall situation. As long as it's not Vayne and Luo against Policewoman Morgana, it's acceptable."
Aun was definitely selected to withstand pressure. Casa had no reason to go to the top lane to help, so his activity area was basically locked in the bottom half.
So Ouze's selection of a disadvantageous laning was out of the question.
Even if they lost lane control, Mr. Dai didn't dare to push forward. After all, he had to worry about Casa, who could appear at any time.
"I understand what you mean." Hanyi had a different opinion. "But the problem is that RNG's lineup can't compete for the early neutral resources at all. Lil 'Dino and Vanguard have to be let go."
"Can they withstand such a big disadvantage in the early game?"
Han Yi's words caused many people to be deeply worried.
Just as he said, it was now the early version. RNG's lineup didn't have a pillar in the early and middle stages. The development time was too long.
Heart rushed back after finishing his BP on the stage. His expression was a little strange.
Sure enough, in the early game, Score used Olaf's strength and three lane control to invade the jungle and beat Casa badly.
Then, he used Blink to cooperate with Smeb and forcefully killed Letme, helping the top lane to establish an advantage.
In the bottom lane, RNG didn't have a good time either.
Mr. Dai showed his skillful laning skills. He had accumulated a lot of experience fighting Ouze during his years in the LPL. Moreover, his strength hadn't deteriorated yet. His pulling and swapping skills were as beautiful as a painting.
The support Mata Chuan had also partnered with Ouze before and had mastered many of Jane's laning details.
It was hard to find a player in the entire LCK who was more familiar with Ouze than the two of them.
Jane was proud of being suppressed 10 times in just five minutes.
Lin Yan felt that things were not good.
It could only be said that RNG was too confident in Ouze. They were even a little careless.
From spring until now, the bottom lane combination of Ouze and Shi Senming had always been successful. No matter which bottom lane team they chose, they could at least reach the bottom lane. There were even many matches where they chose to suppress their opponents in the bottom lane.
However, using the Kesha + Law duo to fight against Mr. Dai and Big Quail was like trying to catch a blind man. There was no effect.
Xiao Ming called Cass over. He was so impatient that he wanted to start a group battle and kill Mr. Dai first.
However, KT was obviously prepared. Ucal and Smeb's double teleportation forced RNG to cancel this plan.
Score also didn't rush to the top lane. Instead, he chose to crouch in the bottom lane and help Mr. Dai.
This time, Casa completely lost his rhythm.
It was difficult for him to kill Smeb's Gnar with the help of a herbivore and jungler like Aun. Even if they killed him, it was useless.
He had no choice but to farm in the jungle and occasionally come to the bottom lane to protect his teammates.
"It's over, it's over …" Heart's face was ashen.
This was the disadvantage of four players protecting one player. Once the strong player lost his advantage, it would be difficult for the others to stand up and turn the tide.
Heart didn't expect Ouze to lose in the bottom lane.
8 minutes later, KT's bottom lane changed lanes and went to the canyon vanguard to fight for the neutral resources.
RNG chose to let go of the vanguard to buy some time for Ouze to develop.
However, it was still too slow.
KT, who got the vanguard, immediately helped Mr. Dai to destroy the top tower of Letme and took out the bounty.
The economy of this tower was equivalent to 20 to 30 minions.
Even if Ouze ate all three lanes, he wouldn't be able to catch up.
The snowball was getting bigger and bigger. Shi Senming quickly supported the flanks and tried to fight with numbers. However, KT's support was much faster than him. In the blink of an eye, three or four people had gathered at the same time.
Big Quail's Sunshine Girl controlled Law and used a set of skills with her teammates to kill him.
In just 15 minutes, RNG's three outer towers were all destroyed. The economy gap was as high as 5k.
KT's strong early game ability was revealed in this match.
"Next match … IG." Red Rice didn't think there was any suspense in this match. He was already studying his opponent for the next match.
"Okay, leave it to us!"
King Ning couldn't wait any longer. When he heard that he was going to play, he immediately rubbed his hands together.
Before Red Rice and the rest of the coaches could discuss tactics, they heard RNG's team voice suddenly become urgent.
"Shi Senming, get him!
Get him! "
Ouze roared. The signal mark was on top of Mata's head!
Xiao Ming instinctively used his big move. He blinked and picked up the lone Leona in an instant!
Purple Phantom traveled through space and arrived at the edge of the battlefield. Aacasia's Torrential Rain combined with a basic attack easily completed the kill!
This time, the players and coaches in the LPL lounge suddenly saw a turning point. They all stared at the screen intently.
RNG decisively went to activate Dragon. This was their last chance!
However, Smeb stood up.
Gnar, who had perfect Rage, teleported to the back. He blinked into the field and used his R skill to go straight for Kesha!
It had to be said that Ouze's reaction was really fast. In the nick of time, he used Blink to dodge Gnar's key big move!
However, he was immediately entangled by Smeb and couldn't attack the opponent's backline for a short time.
In the end, Mr. Dai went crazy.
After a wave of four kills, they took down Dragon. The suspense of the match was completely gone!
The torrential enthusiasm that had just surged in the lounge was instantly extinguished.