"Congratulations to YM for defeating RW 2-0 and continuing to lead the Western Conference standings!" Ze Yuan announced loudly.
On the long LED screen behind the players' seats, black and red lights intertwined to form the word "Victory". The YM logo above it was extremely eye-catching.
The audience below the stage was still cheering non-stop. From time to time, they would say a few words of support so that the group of professional players who had taken off their headphones could hear their own voices.
Lin Yan took off his headphones and helplessly picked up the two paper cups beside him.
"We won too quickly, brothers," he complained. "I haven't even finished my drink. How did we end up with a draw?"
Jack heard this and could not help but say, "You're really good at pretending now. You're even better at pretending than us."
"In the past, Yu Wenjiu killed Hwa Xiong. Today, Brother Ran killed Chivalry with herbal tea, right?"
Mongoose made up a random story on the spot. Other than the fact that the two sentences had the same number of words, it was difficult to find anything in common.
"Be careful with what you say." Jin Gong had already left his seat and walked over to them. "The other team has taken off their headphones."
Hearing this, the YM players fell silent.
Lin Yan drank all the iced red tea in his paper cup. He glanced at the output panel and found that his output was about the same as that of Shiba Inu's Sindra. Satisfied, he stood up and shook hands with the other team.
"YM's current record is 8 wins and 0 losses. They've widened the gap between them and the second place, EDG, by two wins." Remember was still chattering on the commentary platform. "You should know that EDG didn't participate in the Intercontinental Championship this year. They even played one more BO3 than YM."
"If YM can maintain this form, they'll probably lock in the top spot in the regular season again!"
Due to the fact that YM and RW had fought side by side in the Intercontinental Championship, their relationship was quite good. Lin Yan smiled and shook hands with the prophet. He even patted his old teammate on the shoulder to encourage him.
Jin Taixiang looked very tired. He usually juggled training, competitions, and live streaming. He only rested for five to six hours a day. He was practically an iron man. He did not even take a break after the Intercontinental Championship.
In addition, he was thin to begin with. Now, he looked like he had been squeezed dry.
Lin Yan wondered if Doinb's body could withstand it.
As he carried his peripherals off the stage, Xiao Yu, today's host, stopped him.
"Brother Ran, Brother Ran, there's an interview later!"
As Little Yu spoke, she handed over a microphone.
Lin Yan originally wanted to slack off, but he didn't expect to be dragged along. He had no choice but to pass the mouse pad to Mongoose, take the microphone, and wait at the backstage entrance with the host.
Xiao Yu, who had finished interviewing the rookies at the end of the last BO3, was glowing and full of energy. She wrote down the content of the interview on her card and handed it to Lin Yan to take a look.
"Is there anything wrong?"
She was afraid that she would raise some questions about the audience when she went on stage.
"… Yes." Lin Yan glanced at it and did not find anything wrong.
Most of the LPL hosts were very smart. They would not ask questions that were slightly more in-depth about the understanding of the game. Most of them would ask about their feelings after winning or the psychological activities of a certain operation at that time. The players had more space to express themselves freely. They could say whatever they wanted, and the hosts would not be scolded by the audience.
Only then did Xiao Yu relax. After taking back her card, she stood at the side and chatted happily with Tengjing's staff.
Lin Ran could hear the loud and powerful voice of the commentator from where he stood.
"The MVP of this round is still … Ran!"
There was a television connected to the live broadcast at the entrance of the backstage entrance. Lin Yan could see his MVP picture.
The wild Olaf was muscular and had a fierce face. Coupled with the sharp axe in his hands, he did not look like someone to be trifled with. On the other hand, his makeup in front of him looked gentle.
"1013 battle damage ratio, 34.4% damage ratio, opponent economy difference + 5500!" Ze Yuan said loudly. "It can be said to be a perfect performance by Olaf!"
He chatted with Remember for a while more. Then, Xiao Yu received a notice from the director to prepare to go on stage with Lin Yan.
"Welcome contestant Ran to our interview …" Before Xiao Yu could finish speaking, she was interrupted by the screams of the audience below the stage. She could only wait for the noise of the fans to die down.
After Lin Yan introduced himself as usual, she asked her first question.
"First of all, congratulations to YM for defeating RW Team 2-0 in the first match after returning from the Intercontinental Championship. Brother Ran also took all the MVP awards of this regular season. What are your thoughts on this?"
"It's quite normal …" Lin Yan and Xiao Yu looked at each other. They maintained the politeness and respect they had when talking to people. "It's within my expectations."
When he said this, his expression was calm. His tone was calm as if it was natural.
Xiao Yu tilted her head in shock.
I already told you the question in advance, and this is how you answer me?
However, the reaction of the fans below the stage was very emotional. Not only them, but the audience watching the live broadcast was also the same. One after another, the bullet screen expressed their emotions.
[Awesome, awesome, very arrogant.]
[Let's be honest, Brother Ran's performance in today's two matches was indeed outrageous.]
[I can't refute him. This is the most infuriating.]
[The main thing is that he had solo kills in both matches. In the team battle, he cut in like a monster. The visual effect can only be described as' quite explosive. ']
"Then the next question. We all saw it today. In the second match, you used Olaf to score two solo kills." Xiao Yu glanced at the card in her hand. "But before these two kills, the opponent's health was quite healthy. What were you thinking before you made the move?"
Lin Yan didn't hesitate. "At that time, I pushed the minions forward … But the opponent didn't return to the city with full health, so I killed him."
In the barbeque shop, Si Jiayan slightly bent her arm and wrapped it around Su Cheng's neck. She even snatched her roommate's Bluetooth headset. At this moment, when she heard Lin Yan's interview, she immediately blurted out:
"Wow, this sentence is too … domineering."
Si Jiayan originally wanted to say that he was faking it, but when the words reached her mouth, she swallowed them back.
Although she had just drunk a bottle of Tsingtao beer, this amount of beer wasn't enough to make her drunk. At most, she was a bit more excited than usual.
In her opinion, it wasn't a good thing to ridicule a girl's boyfriend in front of her best friend.
"You can just say that he's faking it. There's no need to find such an adjective, because I also think that Lin Yan is faking it … Then, can you let go of your arm first?"
Su Cheng tried to pull Si Jiayan's arm away from her neck, but after several failed attempts, she could only resentfully give up.
Why is this person like my idol, Lego Gong, always interested in people's necks?
"Let's take a picture together, come come come!"
Si Jiayan took out her phone, her face flushed red as she called out to her two roommates sitting across from her at the dining table, "The next time we meet up in our dorm will be at the start of our fourth year!"
Fudan's overseas exchange programs were as numerous as the hairs on an ox. The only problem was whether or not the students wanted to go. As long as their grades weren't too bad, they would be able to get a chance to go on an overseas exchange program.
Her other two roommates had applied to the University of California, Los Angeles' exchange program at the start of spring this year. They would go when their third year started and would only come back during the spring semester. Si Jiayan was going to the faraway Toronto.
After they came back, Su Cheng would go to the National University of Singapore (NUS) for an exchange program in the spring. The four of them just happened to miss each other.
The Tianjin girl, who was taller than Su Cheng, stretched out her long arms to hug her roommates. She complained, "Chengzi, you have so many autumn programs, why do you have to go in the spring?"
"That's right, I remember that NUS has a lot of places for the autumn program, right?" The Chengdu girl echoed.
Generally speaking, most schools would only open their exchange programs during the autumn semester. Especially for American universities, there were very few programs during the spring semester. Only Singapore, Australia, and some European universities could choose.
Speaking of this, Su Cheng had a helpless expression. "… I have to go to Jakarta in August. I can't go to Southeast Asia without resting."
"Moreover, I didn't do any preparation work during the entire summer break. Going straight to class?
Then I might as well not go. "
"That's right, Jakarta!"
The Tianjin girl suddenly remembered this matter and immediately puffed out her chest. "Our dorm can also produce an Asian Games champion!"
"That's right, can we get extra credits for this championship?"
"Can we get a postgraduate recommendation?"
The three girls laughed like old hens.
"First of all, before the competition ends, I can't guarantee that I'll be the champion. Secondly, this competition doesn't count in the medal rankings, so there's no need to even think about getting extra credits …" Su Cheng explained one by one.
"Alright, shut up!"
The roommates hurriedly covered Su Cheng's mouth. "Look at the camera, look at the camera!"
The four girls gathered together and showed a sweeter smile than a peace sign.
Zhengda Plaza.
Lin Yan was still being interviewed. Little Yu glanced at the card in his hand again.
"One last question I want to ask Brother Ran. In today's two games, both sides brought out a mage in the bottom lane. This is a bit different from the ADC we're used to. What's the specific reason?"
This question was a bit in-depth and slightly involved the team's strategy and layout.
It wasn't a sudden idea that Little Yu came up with on the spot. Lin Yan had seen the content of the card in his hand at the backstage tunnel entrance, but he didn't raise any objections.
This was because whether it was the official competition or the mock competition a few days ago, Lin Yan found that most teams were using mages to replace the ADC position.
Except for RNG.
Ouze had never used mages to pave the way. Even though he had played mid units in the past and had a good grasp of many mages, he was still used to playing archers after returning to his original job.
The popularity of mages in the bottom lane was enough to prove that the professional team's coaching staff already knew the answer to Little Yu's question.
Since that was the case, Lin Yan didn't need to hide it. He might as well answer the confusion of some of the audience who didn't know what was going on.
"There are many reasons, I guess. The main reason is that the ADCs' equipment is too expensive. Only when the third piece drops endlessly will they be able to fight. Before that, they're just pendants. Furthermore, the attack speed effect of the Goat Blade Hurricane has been nerfed. Kesha, Big Mouth, and Verus are not as strong as before."
"On the other hand, mages are much more popular in the bottom lane. [Luden's Echo] has combat power once it's made. At most, they only need to add a Ghost Book and they can participate in team battles. Their equipment takes shape a bit earlier than the ADC."
This was the first time Lin Yan had spoken so much in a live interview. He sorted out his thoughts and spoke tirelessly.
"Especially in the current version, the pace of the game is very fast. The first large-scale team battle will start at the vanguard of the canyon in eight minutes. At this time, it's very difficult for the ADC to have any combat power. Characters like Lucian and Verus are exceptions, but it's different for mages.
"Death Song, Sindra, Raven … These are all heroes that have a qualitative change in their combat power once they have their ultimate skills. They're much more useful in team battles than archers. They might even be able to change the outcome of the battle.
"Moreover, it's becoming more and more common for ADC heroes like Sword Magician, Swordsister, and Yasso to be in the middle lane. Mages in the bottom lane can make up for the damage that the team lacks."
Lin Yan concluded. "Overall, the ADC is still too weak. Mages, on the other hand, can contribute to the team. At least they're more useful than archers. That's why there are more and more mages in the bottom lane."
As soon as the interview ended, the various e-sports forums were filled with Lin Yan's explanation of the mages in the bottom lane. The netizens began to surf the web for 24 hours.
[I was wondering why everyone suddenly stopped using ADC. So that's why.]
[Edisi Player's Daily Cries (1/1)]
[You're just a hypocrite who plays ADC. Why didn't you have enough of being a father last year during the Censer Monster?
Four people worked like a horse for you during the ranking competition. Now that you're feeling a little aggrieved, you're starting to cry?]
[9494, I think the junglers in S6 all play Olaf and Leopard Lady. In S7, they play Piggirl and Princes as tools. I don't see many junglers complaining. Why is it that you're the only ADC that's noble?]
[No, any Warrior now has high damage output and high tankiness. Swordsister, Yasso, and Sword Magician, those three dogs. They'll charge straight at you in a team battle. If an ADC can survive for five seconds, it's either you're not worthy of being targeted, or the opponent is too weak to look at you. Is this a river?
You don't even allow me to complain, right?]
However, Blaustoise, who was far away in Santa Monica, Los Angeles, definitely couldn't see these complaints.
He slumped in his engineering chair. His entire body was sore and powerless. The LPL English stream's post-match interview was broadcasted on the tablet beside him. Jin Gong was still speaking with assurance. His voice echoed in the slightly empty room.
Blaustoise's attention wasn't on this.
Half an hour ago, he had just decided to work with the other designers to give Sword Magician a full reboot. He even had a lot of ideas that he was going to discuss with his colleagues on Monday.
He was just about to go to sleep when he saw Lin Yan take out a new toy, Olaf.
At the time, Blaustoise felt that something was wrong.
He subconsciously watched the match for a while. His heart kept falling, straight into the abyss.
Who played the game like that?
Crocodile had big moves and Flash. He also had Shen Zai providing long-range shields. Want to eat ice under the tower with full health.
What was wrong with that?
The cruel executioner Olaf killed without blinking!
In the last team battle, Olaf, who charged forward like a wild dog, became the straw that broke the camel's back.
Blaustoise leaned back so that his body was against the back of the chair. He looked at the bright lights on the ceiling.
He felt that if he continued to be tortured by Lin Yan and YM, he would probably have to work overtime every day and wouldn't even make it through the year.
However, this feeling of fighting with others aroused the boundless fighting spirit in his heart.
"You're really something," he muttered to himself. "I don't believe that today …"
"The designers can't teach you how to play the game?!"
Before he started, Blaustoise first looked at the time displayed on the bottom right corner of the computer.
Four o 'clock in the morning.
Unfortunately, there were no crabapple flowers. The famous Los Angeles blacksmith had already retired.
Now, how many people could see the sun at four o 'clock in the morning in Los Angeles?
Blaustoise was quite proud of himself.
There probably aren't many people in the history of Fist who work as hard as I do!
Although staying up late is bad for the body, I'll just stay up all night!
He pulled out a document and recorded all the thoughts that emerged in his mind for backup.
The night was dark outside the window. The darkness before dawn enveloped the land.
…
Lin Yan yawned and pushed open the door to enter the training room.
The victory over RW had been four days ago. Yesterday, they had arrived at LGD's home ground in Hangzhou. Lin Weixiang was the starting ADC. There were some twists and turns during the process, but they still took down the opponent with a score of 2: 1.
Hangzhou was only a two-hour drive from Shanghai. After the game, they returned to Shanghai the same day.
YM's training department, who had rushed back to the base, watched the World Cup finals on the big screen. France, who was good at raising the white flag, did not hesitate in the green field. They defeated Croatia with a score of 4: 2 and picked up the World Cup.
The game ended around one o 'clock in the morning, but because Guo Hao ordered a lot of fried chicken, Lin Yan ate a lot. He couldn't go to sleep immediately, so he could only stay up for an hour before lying down.
So he simply slept in and didn't get up until noon.
His teammates were already in their seats, waiting for the zookeepers to start eating. Jack, Liu Qingsong, and Lin Weixiang, the three lazy dogs, claimed that if they started a ranked game now, they wouldn't be able to eat hot food for too long. They might as well start slacking.
The diligent Jin Gong didn't care so much. He started a game first.
Lin Yan took a bottle of ice water from the mini fridge, unscrewed the cap, and took a sip. He used the cold air to wake himself up.
He turned on the computer and connected to the accelerator. He opened the Korean server and found that it was about to be updated.
"Version 8.14?" He saw the version notification appear at the corner of the client.
"Yeah, Swordmeister and Sword Magician were both hacked. Brother Ran, you have to get used to it quickly," Jack said gloatingly.
There weren't many changes to the bottom lane in this version. The Sorcerer and Lucian were still dominating. Shiba Inu's familiarity with these heroes wasn't low. He could get the hang of it after practicing for a while.
The three positions that were most affected were the top, middle, and jungle.
Lin Yan and Jin Gong not only had to familiarize themselves with the revised Swordmeister and Sword Magician, but they also had to practice with the new top and mid laners. Since these two heroes were hacked, there would naturally be other characters to replace them.
Mongoose's Rock Sparrow was hacked, so he had to practice with other heroes.
While the Korean server was still updating, Lin Yan opened his phone and browsed through it.
Coincidentally, his girlfriend sent him a few messages.
Chengzi, Not Tangerine: [I've settled the move!]
[Picture] [Picture] …
[What do you think? Am I strong?
Hmm?]
Ignoring Su Cheng's praise, Lin Yan clicked on the picture first.
In the first picture, his girlfriend and Si Jiayan's faces were covered in dirt, as if they had changed careers to become civil engineers. The two of them were lying on the sofa and facing the camera with a 'V' sign. The next few pictures were much more normal, as the camera captured the tidy room.
Coca Cola, Salty and Spicy Tofu Pudding, Sweet Rice Dumpling, and Sweet Mooncake: [How much is it?]
Chengzi, Not Tangerine: [7K per month. It's a little smaller than the previous one. It has two bedrooms and two living rooms, 100 square meters. Is it okay?]
The rent was indeed not as high as before. Lin Yan felt that the price was quite reasonable.
There seemed to be some problems with the accelerator today. The Korean server's update speed was not fast. After running for a while, it was only at 22%.
Lin Yan left the training room and made a video call to his girlfriend.
She quickly picked up.
"Eh? Aren't you playing ranked?"
Su Cheng was lying on the soft bed. Her pair of slender legs swayed in the air. Her bright smile carried a hint of surprise.
In her impression, her boyfriend should be fighting in the Summoner's Canyon.
"… I stayed up late with them to watch the World Cup. I just woke up. The Korean server is still updating, so I have nothing to do." Lin Yan explained the reason clearly. Then, he asked, "Have you carefully read the contract?"
"Yes, no problem. The landlord is a senior from the same college who is more than 20 years older than me." Su Cheng could not wait to share this news with her boyfriend.
"More than 20 years?" Lin Yan was shocked. He calculated the landlord's approximate age in his mind.
"Yes, she said that she had seen Mr. Su Buqing before …" His girlfriend's eyes were sparkling. She was full of longing. "I'm so envious."
Lin Yan was silent.
After a while, he changed the topic. "Where's your roommate?"
Su Cheng glanced back to confirm Si Jiayan's position. "She's in the living room catching up on your match yesterday. Jin Gong seemed to have done well?"
"One match against Swordsister, and the other against Captain. He died once in both matches," Lin Yan replied. "Que Shi was pretty good."
Su Cheng got up from the bed. Perhaps it was because of her thin figure, her clothes were a little loose. Her movement was a little too big, and her short sleeves were slanted, revealing a section of her snow-white collarbone and grey shoulder straps.
She pretended as if nothing had happened and hurriedly adjusted the position of her clothes. Then, she raised her phone and excitedly went to the bedside.
"The apartment I rented is very close to the previous one. Can you see where it is opposite?"
Lin Yan looked over. Through the phone's screen, he could see the same floor of the building not far away …
It was his rented apartment in Tongji North Court.
"Hehehe …" Su Cheng made a strange sound. "After that, I'll be able to peek at you with binoculars."
"… You're dating the wrong person, aren't you?" Lin Ran paused. "Shouldn't I be the one visiting you at night?"
"Also, I have thick curtains in my room. You won't be able to see anything."
"Then I'll come back and help you change the curtains." Su Cheng said in all seriousness.
The two chatted for a while before Su Cheng was called out for dinner by Si Jiayan. Lin Yan hung up the phone and returned to the training room. He found that the Korean server hadn't been updated yet.
He had no choice but to surf the Internet.
The Tieba forum was very lively.
Lin Yan glanced at it and found that the Korean server's 8.14 update had caused a lot of discussion.
In comparison, there was not much discussion about the changes to the test suit.
After all, a lot of content in the beta server would not survive to the official server. Only a few gamers would pay attention to such content.
However, when the highly anticipated Korean server officially launched Version 8.14, it also meant that the Chinese server would soon have these updates installed!
It could be said that a stone stirred up a thousand ripples, and hot posts emerged one after another.
[This is really f * cking ridiculous. Both Saber Sister and Sword Demon were killed?]
[Yatox's Charged E is gone. How is he going to do a combo?
Wouldn't he be walked around like a dog?]
[My Sword Demon, sob sob sob, my Sword Demon …]
[Rock Sparrow was also slashed half to death. Parker's treatment was similar. I'm really laughing.]
[I don't think I need to tell you who brought these heroes up first, right?
Main culprit YMESPORTS Club, come out and take a beating!]
[No matter how you slice it, YM can win. Bock bock bock …]
[What's the point of weakening it like this?
Brother Ran's proficiency in the Three Lives Sword Demon is right there. After you slice it, he can probably still play. Not to mention, there's still Mad Dog Olaf. Do you have the ability to slice it all?]
Lin Yan saw the last comment and suddenly panicked.
This feeling was fleeting.
"Time to eat!"
The zookeeper called at the dining table. Lin Yan put away his thoughts and ran to the rice cooker to scoop a big bowl of rice for himself.
"You ate so much?" Xiao Tian ran over and saw the rice in Lin Yan's bowl.
"I didn't eat this morning. Now that I'm half starving, I need to eat more."
Lin Yan felt that his theory was correct.
In the end, he ate too much and his brain didn't have enough blood supply. He started to feel sleepy in the afternoon, and his concentration and reaction were both on the decline.
Lin Yan had arranged for a B5 training match with Griffin, who had just entered LCK in the summer. He was a little careless, and in the first round, he was soloed three times by Super Mighty Blue Cat with Little Temptress.
Chovy was very excited. He repeatedly typed in pinyin in the public chat: [Rangewozhende you zhemeqiangma?]
(Brother Ran, am I really that strong?)
Lin Yan was puzzled. It was one thing for Reanimator to know Chinese, but why did Griffin's people know Chinese as well?
He couldn't pretend to be aloof. After soloing, he was full of anger, but he could only send two ellipses.
After being soloed by Chovy, Lin Yan's desire to win was aroused. He opened a can of Red Bull to replenish his energy. Since he had more or less digested the food, his reflexes were back to peak condition.
In the second round, he and Super Mighty Blue Cat were evenly matched. From the third round onward, he had a slight advantage. In the last two rounds, Lin Yan used his rich experience to crush his opponent.
Chovy was stunned by this fierce attack. He could only hide under the tower and flash the French flag with his emoticon function.
After the B5 match, Lin Yan soloed Chovy six times and won by a narrow margin.
"What do you think of the opposing mid laner?"
Red Rice stood behind Lin Yan and asked.
"… Not bad. His lane is quite strong." Lin Yan squeezed his palms to recover from the high-intensity operation. "I just like to be trapped in the middle lane."
He felt that his evaluation of Chovy was quite accurate.
After playing professionally for three years, Lin Yan had seen strong lane players. Faker, BDD, and Rookie were all of this type.
Chovy was indeed very talented in lane battles. Excluding the first round, he soloed Lin Yan twice.
His sword was very sharp. However, once he was suppressed in lane, he could not find the rhythm to counterattack.
Moreover, he liked to laze around in lane. He was a typical example of a player who would send signals when the opposing team roamed and kill his teammates when they were caught.
In one round, Lin Yan obtained a kill by roaming around. When he returned, he used his economic advantage to replenish his equipment. Only then did he manage to solo kill Chovy.
"Sometimes, he'll team up and go shopping." Phyllostachys Pubescens stretched. "I think he likes to watch from the side. You don't know what he's doing."
"I think so too." Jack laughed. "In the last round, I stood in front and started the team with my body. He didn't attack at first and let me use my Blink."
Hong Mi gathered the opinions of his teammates and wrote them down in his little notebook.
The notebook recorded the tactical characteristics and playstyles of many players.
Red Rice would record down any team that could become YM's imaginary enemy. In the future, they might encounter each other in the international competition. This content would provide YM with a lot of help.
"I'll review this B5 match. Everyone will practice as usual. EDG has canceled the training match tonight. We'll run through the tactics twice and prepare for RNG."