The player seating area was split up between regions, which meant that Fudan University and Zhejiang University were sitting right next to each other. The players from both teams were rooting for Team Shanghai, and right now were applauding Zhang Hao for picking up first blood on Team Guangzhouâs Irelia in the top lane. But then their joy fell flat again. They turned their attention back to the mid lane and furrowed their brows. Lin Feng wasnât winning. In fact, the gank earlier by Jarvan IV had put Goalie in the driving seat.
Zuo Cheng slammed down on the armrest of his chair and shouted, âLin Feng beat cap! I canât even get anything going against him! Thereâs no way this asshole from Korea can! Itâs all due to that J4 gank! Thatâs it! Damn gank!â
Qiu Yijie glanced at the Midlaner from Zhejiang University and slowly shook his head. He then turned back to look at the large LCD screen and scrunched his nose. âThis is a tough one,â he mumbled. âGoalie can play as aggressively as he wants, and thatâs exactly what heâs doing.â
âScrew him!â Zuo Cheng exclaimed. He clenched his fists and continued, âI know how good Lin Feng is! Weâve been scrimming against them! You guys donât know; you only played him when he was sick. But Iâm telling you, heâs so much better than Goalie! I donât believe for a second heâll give anything away against that asshole from Korea!â
Qiu Yijie glanced at Zuo Cheng and smiled. He said, âI hope so.â
âYou hope so? You hope so!?â Zuo Cheng shouted. He pointed at the large LCD screen and continued, âYou see how heâs staying in lane even without Flash? Goalie is trying so hard but he canât even force Lin Feng to recall back to base! Iâm telling you! Lin Feng is the best!â
Zeng Rui sat behind his computer, staring at his screen, every muscle tense. Draven and Thresh was a combination he often played with Tang Bingyao. He knew exactly how to attack with that duo, how to play the lane to his hand. But heâd forgotten how difficult it was to defend against it. His entire focus was drawn towards protecting Tang Bingyaoâs Corki, rather than landing poke, putting pressure or placing down wards. Weâre losing it like this. Their Jungler was in mid, but did he go top? Or is he coming bot? I need to find an opening and check, but Tang Tang is squishy right now and Draven hurts. He always hurts, thatâs why Tang Tang loves playing him! Dammit! Theyâre good.
Tang Bingyao sat next to Zeng Rui. She glanced at her pinky finger and winced. Stop hurting! I need to focus! She looked back at her monitor. They were in the middle of the lane fighting over last hits. She suddenly noticed that the Red minion she was hiding behind was about to die. Behind that minion stood Thresh, already winding up his Death Sentence. She glanced at Draven and saw the blue swirl beneath his feet and the crimson hue around his hands. Blood Rush! Heâs engaging on me! Theyâreâ She flicked her mouse to the right, her pinky finger dragging over the mouse pad. She yelped in surprise and pain, then clenched her teeth and flashed. The mottled flash of light carried her Corki away from Threshâs Death Sentence.
âSorry,â Tang Bingyao mumbled over the teamâs voice chat.
Zeng Rui forgot to breathe. Every muscle in his body stood tense. He cast âStand Behind Meâ on Tang Bingyaoâs Corki. His Braum jumped to Corki and raised his shield just as a Spinning Axe came flying at Corki. It cleaved into his shield but the damage was negligible. Behind him, Tang Bingyaoâs Corki retreated safely. He breathed out and said, âStay focused. Focus.â
âMm-mhm! Sorry,â Tang Bingyao repeated. She had her Corki go back into the laning, glancing at the game clock at the top right corner of her screen. 6 minutes in and weâre up 1-0. Weâre struggling, but we havenât given Draven any kills yet. There isnât really a problem unless Draven gets a kill. Her Corki fired a missile from his helicopter, claiming the life of a Blue minion. I lost a few minions, but thatâs fine. I canâ
Team Guangzhouâs Thresh flashed forward and flayed Tang Bingyaoâs Corki and Zeng Ruiâs Braum backwards with his scythe and sickle. Draven was following right behind him, boosted by Blood Rush. A Spinning Axe was already hurling through the air, aimed at Tang Bingyaoâs Corki. Up from the river, Jarvan IV rushed into the lane and dashed at Braum and Corki with his flag-toss combo.
âRUN! RUN!â Zeng Rui hollered over the teamâs voice chat.
Tang Bingyao was already doing as much, straining her right hand for a second time in a minute. She activated Valkyrie! Corki went into overdrive, flying a short distance and dropping bombs to create a trail of fire behind him! The bot outer tower came closer, closer! Until an axe knocked Tang Bingyaoâs Corki out of his skill. Tang Bingyao deflated. Seo had just used her trick of using Stand Aside to knock someone out of a gap opener/closer against her.
âOh my god! Did you see that Stand Aside!? Corki is a goner!â Su Xue exclaimed at the caster desk.
Zephyr nodded and continued, âCorki didnât get anywhere and doesnât have Flash either! Jarvan IV is on him and auto attacking and Thresh will have his Death Sentence back in a moment! Draven is also just free hitting her right nowâŚâ
Tang Bingyao stared at her monitor. It was still vibrant shades of blue, green and grey. But she knew that was going to change. At the corner of her screen, she saw Zeng Rui running back to the outer tower. He knew too. She bit on her lips and clicked on Draven. Her Corki fired a missile, dealing a little bit of damage. A final Spinning Axe then cleaved into her Corki. Her screen faded to a dull grey. The voice announcer boomed through her headphones.
ăYou have been slain.ă
âš
Lin Feng was struggling in the mid lane. He was behind on two minions of experience, which had happened due to Jarvan IVâs gank earlier. And though he wasnât at risk of dying right away, his health was dropping lower. He focused on his screen and counted minions. Goalieâs LeBlanc was going to hit Level 6 soon. When she did, she could kill him. He had to be ready for that moment and thread the thin line between recklessly giving away a kill and staying as even as possible with LeBlanc.
Lin Feng miscounted by a single minion. Goalieâs LeBlanc hit Level 6 and cast Distortion. She jumped underneath Red teamâs outer tower, on top of Lin Fengâs Talon. She followed up with Sigil of Malice into Mimic: Sigil of Malice, the second one setting off the first one. The unquenchable flames from Ignite started burning on Talonâs skin. And finally came the Ethereal Chains, fired from point blank range. Lin Feng didnât have Flash or any other skill to escape. He still tried to sidestep the skill, but he wasnât fast enough. The chains connected and slowed him. A brief moment later, they locked him down with another pop of damage.
ăYou have been slain.ă
âWOOOOO!â Zephyr screamed into his microphone, followed by the audience cheering until their lungs gave out.
Su Xue watched this, stunned. She glanced at a screen showing Team Shanghaiâs soundproof booth. Lin Feng was taking a deep breath, but didnât look upset to her. She then focused on a different monitor that gave a look into Team Guangzhouâs soundproof booth. Goalie was grinning. She gritted her teeth and clenched her fists. What is this! You were going to stomp your lane by minute 10!â Shit! Iâm casting! She took a deep breath and then cheered, âWoooo.â
Zephyr waited for the audience to quiet down a bit before saying into his microphone, âTeam Guangzhou are turning it around! From 0-1 down to 2-1 up! Theyâre really showing the value of the two Koreans on their team! Goalie and Seo are killing it!â
âYeahâŚâ Su Xue said, nodding slowly. âThis is looking bad for Team Shanghai. LeBlanc and Draven need those early kills to snowball. Theyâve now both gotten those kills⌠This game is going to spiral out of control if it goes on like this.â She clenched her fists until her knuckles were white and stared at the monitor showing into Team Shanghaiâs soundproof booth. You promised me! You promised me that you were going to stomp those arrogant assholes! Make them pay for what they did to Tang Tang! Iâll whoop your ass if you donât follow through on it! Please! Show everyone the real Lin Feng!
âš
Lin Feng sat behind his computer, grinning. The worried thoughts from Su Xue didnât reach him, nor did the cheers from the crowd or the analysis brought by the casters. He knew he was dead the moment LeBlanc hit Level 6. It was a small mistake, but one he knew was possible and he was willing to make. He couldâve recalled back to base earlier and played it safe, but that just wasnât his style. Goalie played aggressively and was forcing Lin Feng to match him on mechanics. That was a challenge Lin Feng was happy to take.
The dull grey colours faded away from Lin Fengâs screen. Vibrant blues, greens and greys replaced it. Lin Feng moved his head to the rhythm of a song stuck in his head, grinning. Goalie was an A+ player. Goalie was one of the most talented players and could become one of the top few players in the world given time. But Lin Feng was better. He knew he was.
The gank from Jarvan IV was expected to Lin Feng. An Xin had even asked him if he wanted her to stick around mid and help him out, but heâd refused that. Falling behind a bit before Level 6 was fine. After getting his ultimate skill, everything was going to change. Goalie LeBlanc could be up a kill and some CS, it wouldnât change a thing. When he hit Level 6, the lane was going to be his.
Lin Feng laughed. When it comes down to mechanics, no one beats me. No one. Come at me, Goalie! Show me everything youâve got! Make me fight for this! And whatever you do, donât make it too easy, because I really want to enjoy how hard Iâm going to stomp you! I canât wait to wipe that cocky smirk off your face!
âš
At 8 minutes, Team Guangzhouâs Irelia farmed minions underneath her outer tower. Zhang Haoâs Lissandra had taken full advantage of the bonus gold from first blood. He had the item advantage and range advantage and used this to whittle Ireliaâs health down to below a quarter. Right now, he was watching her while keeping an eye on his skills. More specifically, on Glacial Path. He counted down the seconds until it came off cooldown. When it finally did, he cast the skill.
A claw crafted from ice broke through the ground, smashing up rocks and dirt! It carved a path straight ahead towards Blue teamâs outer tower! When the claw reached Irelia, Zhang Hao cast the second half of the skill. His Lissandra blinked to the claw and then cast Frozen Tomb on Irelia! Spires of ice ruptured from the ground and pierced Irelia, locking her up! He followed up with an Ice Shard and Ring of Frost! The freezing temperature and chunks of ice drained Ireliaâs health until it ran empty.
ăYou have slain an enemy!ă
âNice!â Zeng Rui exclaimed over the teamâs voice chat. âGood work!â
Zhang Hao was beaming with joy. He replied, âThanks! I canât believe how badly the Irelia played that! Like she thought I wouldnât towerdive her! She really underestimated me there! I had plenty of damage to kill her and get out of the towerâs range! I only took like two tower hits! That was nothing and I got the kill! Top lane is mine! Iâm really ahead now! Iâm helping!â
An Xin smiled and said over the teamâs voice chat, âZeng Rui is right, that was a great play. Great job, Zhang Hao!â She briefly paused, panning her camera over the three lanes, then added, âGet ready in bot, Iâm coming in a few.â
Tang Bingyao nodded and replied, âMhm! Okay!â
An Xin finished clearing the Wolf Camp in the bottom half of Red teamâs Jungle. She then moved towards the Jungle exit that led into the river. There was a ward near the Dragon pit and another one closer down to the bot lane. Those were the ones she knew about. She stayed above them, hovering dangerously close to a ward at the mid lane, and snuck into Blue teamâs bottom side Jungle. She then had her Gragas run along the back of the Dragon pit until she arrived in the tri-brush right above Blue teamâs outer tower.
Team Guangzhouâs Botlaners never saw An Xin coming. They were pushing their advantages by pushing the minion waves into Red teamâs outer tower and forcing Tang Bingyaoâs Corki to miss last hits. When they finally spotted An Xin, she was already right behind them, Body Slamming towards them! Seo activated Flash just in time. The veil of light fell over him and carried him past the Body Slam and back towards his own outer tower. But the Thresh wasnât so lucky. He got knocked up into the air, after which the three from Team Shanghai made short work of him.
âFucking noob!â Seo yelled over the teamâs voice chat. He glared at his Support and asked, âWhy didnât you Flash that? Fuck!
ăAn ally has been slain.ă
Team Guangzhouâs Support stared at his dull grey screen. He didnât know what Seo had said, he didnât speak Korean, but he could hear the venom in the words. He shook his head and mumbled, âSorry, my bad.â
âWhat can I do with a Support like this!?â Seo exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air. He then focused on his screen again and made sure the three from Team Shanghai didnât continue to chase after him.
At the caster desk, Su Xue jumped up and shouted, âWOOOOO! Nice going, Bâ An Xin! And Corki got the kill! Thatâs Tang Tâ Bingyao for you!â
Zephyr nodded and said, âThat was a great gank by Gragas! Team Shanghaiâs bot isnât out of danger yet, but theyâre back in fighting shape! I feel itâs safe to say that bot is officially even again! This can still go either way!â He briefly paused and then continued, âBut I donât get why this Gragas isnât going mid. Team Shanghaiâs Midlaner clearly needs help against Goalieâs LeBlanc. Why isnât Gragas coming to help himâŚ?â
The Team Shanghai fans in the audience had been asking themselves the same question. But it was now that Zephyr had said it out loud that others also started joining in. A murmur swept through the crowd, quickly gaining momentum.
âYeah⌠Why is Gragas ignoring mid?â
âI donât know. Doesnât make any sense! Their Jungler is a girl and their Midlaner a dude⌠Maybe something happened and theyâre now mad at each other? That does sound like something typical that might happenâŚâ
âThey better put their personal problems aside if they wanna win. Thereâs no way Talon is getting back in this lane after that solo kill from Goalie!â
âTalon was basically screwed the moment Jarvan IV came for that gank at the start. Gragas shouldâve been there for the countergank. Thatâs how they couldâve stopped this. Now theyâre just spiralling out of control.â
âGoalie is an A+ player. Maybe itâs just a difference in skill. I donât know. But Team Shanghai needs to do something before LeBlanc takes off and solo carries this game!â
âLeBlancâs going in!â Zephyr cried out, interrupting the conversation taking place in the stands.
âA large minion wave is crashing into the mid lane and sheâs going to jump in with Distortion⌠Now!â
âMid is dead againâŚâ
âThatâs our Goalie, heâs built diffârent!â
âI STAN TEAM GUANGZHOU!â
Goalieâs LeBlanc jumped underneath Red teamâs outer tower with Distortion. The splash damage smacked into Lin Fengâs Talon and set off the Sigil of Malice already on him. The explosion of magic drained Talonâs health down to below half! Goalie smiled. Ethereal Chains into Mimic: Ethereal Chains to finish the kill and show everyone what a stupid noob this dog is! He pressed down on his E key. LeBlanc waved her staff, chains materializing around her and firing towards Talon!
Lin Fengâs fingers were paused on his keyboard, waiting for those chains. When they came, he started linking together his skills. He started with Cutthroat! Talon blinked behind LeBlanc, dodging the Ethereal Chains, and dug his dagger into her back. He followed up with Rake! A volley of daggers cut through LeBlanc, then he tugged on the strings attached to the daggers to pull them back. He then finished his combination with an auto attack and Ignite! Unquenchable flames blazed to life on LeBlancâs body and sapped her health away!
Goalieâs pupils constricted and a chill ran up and down his spine. He cursed, âFuck!â