Draven was stunned and Corki and Braum were attacking him in the middle of the bot lane. Around the bottom ring of the lane were three brushes. Zhang Hao’s Lissandra finished teleporting to the one on the far left, closest to the Blue outer tower. Above the lane, the ground dropped, giving way to a river. Team Guangzhou’s Jarvan IV emerged from here, spear in hand.

Team Guangzhou’s Thresh was caught, awkwardly, on Red team’s side of the bot lane. He’d missed his Death Sentence on Corki and now had to run the distance. He shouted over the team’s voice chat, “Corki! Get the Corki!”

“On it!” Team Guangzhou’s Jungler replied. He pressed down on his E key and then the Q. His Jarvan threw his standard up in the air. It arced over the Corki and planted firmly in the ground. He then stabbed his spear at the standard with Dragon Strike! When the spear and standard connected, they glued together. A strong force pulled on Jarvan IV’s arms and he held on tightly as the standard pulled on the spear.

Zeng Rui’s eyes opened wide. He shouted over the team’s voice chat, “Tang Tang!”

Tang Bingyao moved when the first syllable from Zeng Rui’s cry boomed in her ears. She pressed the W key to activate Valkyrie! The engine of Corki’s helicopter revved up. He gained height and speed as he flew away from Jarvan IV, dropping a trail of bombs behind him. They exploded into a blazing inferno and burned at Jarvan IV’s health bar!

All the while, Zhang Hao’s Lissandra cast Glacial Path. The claw of ice tore through the earth straight towards Seo’s Draven. And when the claw was upon him, Lissandra activated the skill again. She blinked in right when the stun from Concussive Blow wore off. She then raised her hands up in the air and shrieked, “Ring of Frost!” A shockwave of ice blasted out from her and froze Draven stiff again!

Corki’s ultimate skill was called Missile Barrage. He slowly charged up long range missiles which he could then fire. His distance from Seo’s Draven was too great for an auto attack. But it was just in range for a Missile Barrage. The missile flew through the air, narrowly missed two minions, and then exploded on Draven. It destroyed what little remained of his health bar.

《You have slain an enemy!》

Team Guangzhou’s Jungler gritted his teeth, struggling to ignore the shouting and yelling coming from his team’s voice chat. He knew Seo was mad, he didn’t need to understand Korean to hear that. And he knew Goalie was also frustrated. Not just with Seo, but also with him and their Support for not saving Seo. He pressed down on his keyboard harder than he usually would and activated Jarvan IV’s ultimate skill–Cataclysm! His Jarvan IV leaped up above the Corki and then fell back down to the ground. Letting gravity take over, his heavy armour pulling him faster and faster, he slammed down with such force that he terraformed the earth into an arena!

“Jarvan IV! Jarvan IV!” Zeng Rui ordered over the team’s voice chat.

Zhang Hao nodded and had his Lissandra run at Jarvan IV. He stopped at the edge of the arena, pressing against the earthen wall, and cast Frozen Tomb! Spire of ice erupted from the ground and pierced Jarvan IV! They dealt terrifying magic damage and immobilized him! Lissandra followed up with an auto attack and then Ice Shard! A small chunk of ice slammed into Jarvan IV, followed by a far larger chunk. All the while, Tang Bingyao’s Corki unloaded every bomb and missile aboard his helicopter until he claimed Jarvan IV’s life!

《Double kill!》

Team Guangzhou’s Thresh witnessed this all go down. At first he was trying to catch up to Draven, then to Jarvan IV, and finally he realized there was no saving either of them. He ran straight past Jarvan IV while Corki was dealing the last few auto attacks and went for the safety of his outer tower. Until suddenly the ground disappeared beneath his feet. A cold aura seeped in his bones, followed by a terrifying force knocking him up in the air!

Zeng Rui grinned. He’d cast Braum’s ultimate–Glacial Fissure–just in time to stop Thresh from retreating. He ordered over the team’s voice chat, “Thresh! Thresh! Thresh!”

Tang Bingyao and Zhang Hao did as he said. They ran at the knocked up Thresh and attacked him. He fell back to the ground and tried to run. But three enemy Champions were on his heels, missiles and ice slamming into his back and draining his health bar. He reached his outer tower and he thought for a second that he might actually make it out alive, barely. But what followed was a long range missile fired by Corki, claiming his life.

《Triple kill!》

“Triple! Triple! Triple! Triple! Tang Tang triple! Triple!” Su Xue screamed, beyond herself. She looked at Zephyr and then pointed with her head at the monitor, as if asking ‘did you see? Did you? Did you?’. She then leaned back into her microphone and yelled, “WOOOOOOOOOO! TEAM SHANGHAI!”

Zephyr laughed, infected by Su Xue’s excitement, and shouted into his microphone, “WOOOOOOOO! TEAM SHANGHAI FOR THE WIN!”

“WOOOOOOOOO!”

“SICK OUTPLAY!”

“GO TEAM SHANGHAI GO! GOOOOOOO!”

“HOLY SWEET MOTHER OF ALL! STOMP THOSE KOREANS!”

“Gimme some of what those casters are having!”

Su Xue looked at Zephyr and listened to the crowd losing it. I-I… I shouldn’t have been so excited for Team Shanghai! I’m a caster! I need to be impartial! She chewed on her lips, waiting for the cheers to die down a bit, and then analysed, “It was a really well coordinated counter-engage by Team Shanghai.”

“Felt to me like they knew the Jarvan IV was coming for a gank, even though there weren’t any wards to reveal him,” Zephyr chimed in.

Su Xue nodded and continued, “I’ve watched a ton of games from Team Shanghai. Zeng Rui, their Support, he’s really on top of these things. So often he just knows where the opponent is and what he can and can’t do. I’m guessing that he expected the gank and prepared for the countergank.”

Zephyr glanced at the monitor showing Team Shanghai’s soundproof booth and concluded, “That’s some really high level support right there if that’s true. Either way, phenomenal play by Team Shanghai! That Corki is crazy fed now! She’s 4/1! No one’s gonna stop her anytime soon!”

✹

Sun Ruinian sat in the player seating area watching the game on the large LCD screen, stunned. People had always looked up to him for his skills as an ad-carry. His peers lauded him and fans called him the second coming of Shi Hang. They liked to exaggerate. He didn’t believe he was that good. But he did know that he was one of the best, if not the best ad-carry at the Winter Collegiate Cup and that he had a good, realistic chance of going professional. He slowly shook his head and mumbled, “Tang Tang… That… That was something else!”

Zuo Cheng looked at his ad-carry and team captain and said, “I know right! Her Corki is great! I didn’t even know she played that Champion!”

“The level of talent she has,” Sun Ruinian started. “Her feel for the game… You can see her getting better every game! I felt it during our scrims against them, and now I’m seeing it happen ingame.” He glanced at Zuo Cheng and continued, “You saw how she was being pushed back earlier, yeah? That wasn’t for show. She was being pushed back. And then it’s like she flipped a switch. Suddenly we see the Tang Tang who can beat me…”

“Mm-mhm! Mm-mhm!” Zuo Cheng replied, nodding. He added, “That’s probably game. I don’t see Team Guangzhou clawing themselves out of this one.”

“Me neither,” Sun Ruinian agreed.

✹

“What the hell happened there!” Goalie exclaimed in Korean. He turned his head to look at Seo and continued, “We’re here to show these dogs what real players look like! How can you die to them?”

Seo glowered, watching Team Shanghai secure the first Dragon of the game on his dull grey monitor. He argued through gritted teeth, “It’s these damn teammates! How is it my fault that Irelia wasted her Teleport? We gave Lissandra a free gank! And what about you? Why aren’t you carrying harder? You’re going even at best!”

“At least I’m not losing!” Goalie countered. He then looked back at his screen and narrowed his eyes. This Talon… He’s good. I can’t even jump in to deal some poke damage and I don’t think I’ve hit an Ethereal Chain in a few minutes now! He just keeps on dodging them! This wasn’t supposed to go like this! I was going to show him what a real LeBlanc looks like! DAMMIT!

Seo glared at his screen through similarly narrowed eyes. He could come up with a thousand and one excuses, some of which might convince everyone around him. But it wouldn’t convince him. Somewhere deep inside, he knew why he lost that fight. Because he’d been too careless. Lissandra getting the jump on him should’ve never happened. That was all on him. He clenched his fist and resisted the urge to punch his screen, or teammate.

“Whatever,” Goalie said in Korean. “We still need to win this.” He briefly paused, switching to the few words of Chinese he’d picked up during his time in China, then ordered, “Freeze lanes, farm. Jarvan IV, Irelia, gank me!”

✹

At 12 minutes, Irelia slipped away from her lane. She ran down the river, past the Baron pit, and then turned left into Red Team’s topside Jungle. Jarvan IV was already waiting for her there. They walked to the small alcove right next to the entrance into the mid lane. Here they waited for the order from Goalie, who was pushing a minion wave into Red team’s outer tower.

Zephyr leaned in towards his microphone and said, “Looks like we’ve got a 3 man towerdive coming right up!”

“You don’t gank Lin Feng,” Su Xue mumbled. Wait, casting! She smiled and added, “Lin Feng is really good. And he’s on Talon! I’m thinking that he’ll outplay Team Guangzhou and get out ahead in this gank!”

Goalie gave the order. Irelia dashed at Lin Feng’s Talon with Blade Surge and Jarvan IV dashed at Lin Feng’s Talon with his flag-toss combo. From the other side of the outer tower, Goalie jumped in with Distortion! He followed up with Sigil of Malice and completed his combo with a set of Ethereal Chains!

Lin Feng saw the skills as if in slow motion. Two were dodgeable. Ethereal Chains and the flag-toss combo. Those were also the two skills that would kill him if he got hit by them. He flicked his mouse to the side and activated Flash. A veil of light fell over his Talon and carried him a short distance, just far enough to dodge the skills from LeBlanc and Jarvan IV.

Team Guangzhou’s Jarvan IV followed his failed flag-toss combo with his ultimate–Cataclysm! He leaped up above Lin Feng’s Talon and then came down on him with such force that he terraformed the ground into an arena! He locked himself, with Talon and Irelia inside, while Goalie’s LeBlanc could fire her skills from outside.

Lin Feng narrowed his eyes. The outer tower had targeted Irelia, making her his easiest target. I’m coming for you! He had his Talon blink behind Irelia and then slashed her throat! He followed this Cutthroat up with an auto attack, the wounds causing Irelia bleed damage! And then he cast his ultimate. He threw a large number of daggers out around him, using the brief moment of confusion as the daggers cut through all three Champions attacking him to disappear into the surroundings.

“That’s Shadow Assault! Talon’s cast his ultimate!” Su Xue shoutcasted.

Zephyr continued, “Team Shanghai is collapsing on mid! Liss, Grag and Braum are all coming!”

Su Xue glanced at the minimap before quickly focusing back on the fight. She clenched both her fists and said, “This might become another 3-0 for Team Shanghai!”

Goalie stared at his screen, laser focused. “Care!” he shouted over the team’s voice chat. Then he placed a vision ward on the ground. A pink shroud exploded outwards and revealed all that was hidden. Talon’s shadow slowly formed and then the Champion himself did. Goalie smiled and cast Mimic: Ethereal Chains! The illusory chains struck Talong and wrapped around him.

Lin Feng grimaced. Ah, crap! I got hit. Guess I’m still not there for a 1vs3 against these guys. He shrugged the disappointment off and focused on what he could do. Kill Irelia. The energy shots from the tower and his attacks had whittled her health down and the root from Ethereal Chains wouldn’t come into effect for another second. He stopped dodging, stopped trying to survive. His fingers glided over his keyboard as he activated Rake, Noxian Diplomacy, and the second half of his ultimate skill. Talon threw a cone of daggers in front of him. They sliced through Irelia! He followed up by plunging his hand blade into Irelia! And he finished it off by tugging on the strings of all the daggers around him. They came flying back, cutting through LeBlanc, Jarvan IV and Irelia.

《You have slain an enemy!》

《You have been slain!》

“Haaah!” Lin Feng exclaimed, letting go of his mouse and keyboard. He relaxed back in his gaming chair and chuckled. His screen had turned grey and the announcer reminded him that he had really died. But that was fine. He got the kill on Irelia. More importantly, LeBlanc and Jarvan IV were out of position and the rest of his team was collapsing on them. He said over the team’s voice chat, “Get ‘em, boys!”

Zeng Rui focused on the game. He ordered over the team’s voice chat, “Zhang Hao. LeBlanc first! Lock her down!”

“On it!” Zhang Hao exclaimed. His Lissandra was right above the mid lane. Glacial Path! An icy claw tore through the ground and paved the road to LeBlanc! When it was almost upon her, Zhang Hao reactivated the skill. Lissandra blinked towards the icy claw and then cast Frozen Tomb on LeBlanc! Ice spires shot up from the ground and pierced LeBlanc, locking her up within the outer tower’s range!

Goalie started trembling and shaking. His teeth chattered in pure rage. His nose twitched, as did his eyebrows. He clenched his fist and yelled, “Fucking dogs!” But he couldn’t move his eyes away from the screen. He watched Zhang Hao’s Lissandra attack him with an Ice Shard. Then, just as the stun from Frozen Tomb was about to break, Lissandra froze him to the ground with Ring of Frost. The tower’s energy shots were dealing too much damage. “FUCKING DOGS!” he screamed.

《You have been slain.》

“That’s more like it!” Zuo Cheng said. He looked around him, hesitated for a brief moment, then leaped to his feet and shouted, “WOOOOOOOO TEAM SHANGHAI! WIN FENG! WIN FENG!”

Sun Ruinian glanced at his Midlaner and laughed. He said, “You’re right, he won that fight 1vs3. Practically, anyway. He kept them occupied long enough for the rest of his team to collapse on them. The Jarvan IV is also dead.”

“Exactly!” Zuo Cheng replied. He grinned and continued, “This was only to be expected! He beat the cap! What’s this damn Korean compared to the cap? A NOBODY!”

Team Guangzhou’s Jarvan IV was the last one alive. He ran back where he came from, Red team’s topside Jungle. His teammates were screaming in his ears in Korean, Chinese and another language he didn’t recognize. He tried to ignore them and focused on the minimap. There was a large number of wards revealing the surrounding area. He saw the Lissandra and Braum coming from the mid lane. His own Support, Thresh, was running through Blue team’s top side Jungle towards him. He shouted over the team’s voice chat, “Get to the Baron pit and Lantern me out of he–”

An Xin’s Gragas Body Slammed over a Jungle wall into Team Guangzhou’s Jarvan IV and knocked him up into the air. She then drank an entire barrel empty to power herself up and attacked with ferocious might–Drunken Rage! She then retrieved another barrel and rolled it towards Jarvan IV. A moment later, it exploded.

“Hahaha! That Gragas! Jarvan IV had no clue what was coming for him!”

“Jarvan IV was already looking at the Baron pit! Sucks to be him!”

“Team Shanghai turning another fight around!”

“Woooooooo!”

Team Guangzhou’s Thresh arrived in the Baron pit and threw his lantern, trying to help Jarvan IV. But when Jarvan IV started running again, an Explosive Cask sent him flying away from the lantern and towards Zhang Hao’s Lissandra and Zeng Rui’s Braum.

Zhang Hao’s eyes widened in pleasant surprise. He laughed and threw an Ice Shard at Jarvan IV! From beside him, Zeng Rui’s Braum cast Winter’s Bite. He propelled ice from his shield that slammed into Jarvan IV. He then ran up to him and landed an auto attack. An Xin’s Gragas did the same, as did Zhang Hao’s Lissandra. The four attacks activated Braum’s Concussive Blow. Team Guangzhou’s Jarvan IV was stunned. He died seconds later to another Lissandra Ice Shard.

《Double kill!》

“Nice!” Zhang Hao exclaimed. He then turned his head to look at An Xin and added, “Thanks. Couldn’t have done this without you.”

Lin Feng nodded and chimed in, “Yeah! Not bad, not bad at all, BunBun!”

“Not bad? Bad like you with your two deaths?” An Xin countered, laughing.

“Wow! Rude! I got three-man dived, okay?” Lin Feng argued. He then grinned and added, “I did keep them busy long enough for you guys to catch up. That has to count for something.”

✹

Goalie slumped back in his gaming chair. The initial burst of anger dissipated. He was frustrated with his teammates, but more than that, he’d lost. His plan for this game was to pick LeBlanc and stomp Lin Feng. But he’d lost. He’d lost. He stared at his screen, shaking his head. A good gank that was executed well ended in a 1 for 3 trade. Not because they screwed up, but because Lin Feng was better. His opponent was better. He leaned forward and hit the Tab key. Top was snowballing, bot was 4/1 and he wasn’t winning mid either. It’s not supposed to be like this! I was supposed to crush him and show that stupid dog what real skill looks like! We were going to make them all look and feel useless! How… How did it get here? Why are we losing? We haven’t lost anything yet! How are we losing this game so hard!?

Red Team’s outer tower activated. Energy gathered at the top of the tower, locking onto Goalie’s LeBlanc and firing at her! Goalie slammed down on his W key and his LeBlanc retreated back to where she jumped from. He followed up with Mimic: Ethereal Chains! A second set of chains manifested around LeBlanc and shot at Lin Feng’s Talon!

Lin Feng was in his element. This was a battle of mechanics and reaction speed. And when it came to those two things, there was no one in the world better than him! He pushed the D key to Flash. A ball of light wrapped around Talon and carried him through time and space, past the Ethereal Chains, and spit him back onto Summoner’s Rift right behind Goalie’s LeBlanc.

A second chill ran up and down Goalie’s spine. He searched for the F key to Flash back to his outer tower, but Talon’s Shadow Assault came first. A ring of blades swept out around Talon, a number of them slicing through Goalie’s LeBlanc! Fuck! Goalie gritted his teeth, his monitor flashing a dangerous red. He watched his LeBlanc briefly go invisible as her passive activated. Then there were two LeBlanc’s. I need to trick that stupid dog! Throw him his bone! Goalie smiled and had the real LeBlanc stand still while the fake one ran back towards the Blue Team’s outer tower!

Lin Feng looked at the two identical LeBlanc’s and felt it was too easy. You still have Flash and that one running away isn’t using it. Do you think I’m stupid? Come on… make it a little hard at least! He shook his head and then clicked on the LeBlanc that hadn’t moved. His Talon dug a dagger into her!

“Fucking dog!” Goalie exclaimed over the team’s voice chat. He banged his fist on his keyboard. Several buttons were pushed hard enough to activate, including the F key. A mottled flash of light wrapped LeBlanc up and carried her a short distance. She reappeared underneath Red Team’s outer tower. The tower locked onto her and charged up for an energy shot. Behind her, Talon appeared. The energy shot smashed into her face while the cold, hard steel from a dagger plunged into her back.

《You have been slain!》

Goalie stared at his dull grey screen, furious. His stomach clenched and he bit so hard on his lips that he drew blood. Different shades of humiliation dyed his sickly pale face. He breathed in short bursts, glancing at his teammates and then over the rim of his monitor at the cheering crowd in the stands. His mind was a swirling dark mess with only a single coherent thought. THAT FUCKING DOG!

At the caster desk, Su Xue shot up from her chair. She grabbed the microphone and screamed into it, “NICE KILL! NICE KILL!” She slammed her palm on the desk and laughed. Then she added, “That’s Lin Feng for you! He’s the best Midlaner I’ve ever seen! He’s even better than the Korean Goalie!”

The audience stared at the large LCD screen in silence, stunned. They knew how good Goalie was and they believed there was no one else as good as him. Not in the Winter Collegiate Cup, anyway. So when Lin Feng outplayed Goalie from a kill behind, something broke. Their minds needed readjustments and that was exactly what Su Xue offered them. They got up to their feets and started clapping, applauding.

“That Talon actually outplayed Goalie’s LeBlanc! He actually… Oh my god!”

“How did he dodge those chains? They’re like undodgeable! You know how fast they come at you? You know the kind of reaction speed you need to dodge those? That’s… Jesus, that was good!”

“Give us a close up of Goalie’s face! I wanna see him rage and tilt! Pleeease!”

“Woooooo! Team Shanghai! TEAM SHANGHAI!”

Su Xue took a long, deep breath, allowing her to soak in the cheers from the crowd. She gazed at her monitor showing Team Shanghai’s soundproof booth and smiled. Thanks, Lin Feng! That’s exactly what I needed. She leaned closer to her microphone and said, “Lin Feng’s reflexes and mechanics are really the best I’ve ever seen. Even Goalie can’t match up to them!”

Zephyr looked at Su Xue and nodded, impressed. He chimed in, “No doubt about it! That was a shockingly brilliant play by the kid from Team Shanghai. And the mid lane is right back to even! Fighting your way back from behind like that, that’s damn impressive!”

Team Shanghai’s soundproof booth:Lin Feng looked at LeBlanc’s corpse on his screen and grinned. Are you really this stupid? Did you really think I would give up after one death? Did you really believe I would just let you jump on me and kill me whenever you felt like it? How stupid are you! It was so painfully obvious you were coming for me!

“Nice one!” Zhang Hao exclaimed over the team’s voice chat.

Tang Bingyao nodded and chimed in, “Mhm! Good job!”

Lin Feng looked at his teammates, grinning, and said, “Thanks!” He then turned back to look at his screen. He narrowed his eyes and he said, “But I’ve only just begun!”

Team Guangzhou’s soundproof booth:Seo scrunched his eyebrows and asked over the team’s voice chat, “Goalie? What the fuck?”

“Shut up!” Goalie yelped. He glanced at his teammates, all four of them staring at him in shocked surprise, and said, “I hit the wrong button! That’s it! It was just a small mistake! Have you never made a mistake? Now let me focus! I have a dog to kill!” He gazed at his monitor and narrowed his eyes. He’s better than I expected. Better than every other Midlaner I’ve played against in this entire tournament so far! But that’s fine too. It’s good! There wouldn’t be any fun if I just won it all without trying. I need to try a bit and then I’ll still kick this dog’s ass!

✹

At 10 minutes, Lin Feng glanced at bot and top. Tang Bingyao and Zeng Rui were being pushed back towards their outer tower and Zhang Hao had just forced Irelia to recall back to base. Good. Looking good. There wasn’t any immediate danger to the lanes, nothing Goalie could take advantage from. So Lin Feng had his Talon fall back and recalled back to base to upgrade his items.

There were three Blue minions in the top lane left. Zhang Hao had his Lissandra push forward into the empty lane to kill them. The sound of a ping echoed in his headphones. He glanced at the minimap and saw that LeBlanc was missing in the mid lane. I’ve still got some health left. And I’ve also got my Glacial Path. She can come and I’ll be fine. He threw an Ice Shard at the minions, killing two of the three.

There came a second ping. This one was on Zhang Hao’s top lane. He scrunched his eyebrows and was about to argue that he had time to back when he saw it. An Xin’s warning sounded distant as he saw the Teleport animation on the brush behind him. Goalie’s LeBlanc then appeared from the river entrance. There were two enemy Champions between him and his outer tower and his health was below half. When did she place that ward? How did she get that!? ShitShitShit! 

Zhang Hao cast Glacial Path. An icy claw ripped through the ground and carved a straight path ahead. When it was at the end of its power, he reactivated the skill to blink towards the hand. That was a mistake. Goalie’s LeBlanc had waited for that exact moment, that fraction of a second where Goalie knew exactly where Lissandra would be, and cast Ethereal Chains. They shot from LeBlanc and latched onto Zhang Hao’s Lissandra, locking her down!

The teleport finished and Irelia appeared from the brush along the top side of the lane. She dashed at Zhang Hao’s Lissandra and hacked at him with her blades. From the other side, LeBlanc cycled through her other skills. The damage mounted up and before the root from Ethereal Chains broke, Zhang Hao’s Lissandra fell.

Zhang Hao stared at his dull grey screen in surprise. The voice announcer reminded him that he’d overextended. It explained to him in just four words that he’d screwed up.

《You have been slain.》

“Wow!” Zephyr exclaimed. He shouted into his microphone, “What a close match! It’s crazy!”

Su Xue nodded and continued, “LeBlanc has picked up the kill too! She knew how hard it was to get something from mid, so she went and found an opening top! Great play!” She then glanced at the monitor for Team Shanghai’s soundproof booth and mouthed, “Come on, Lin Feng. Kick some ass!”

✹

“Shit! Sorry, guys,” Zhang Hao apologized over the team’s voice chat. He grabbed his hair and added, “I didn’t know she had that ward there. I didn’t see her place it… I should’ve known when you pinged mid…”

An Xin shook her head and grimaced. She said, “It’s a shame we couldn’t get anything back for it either. We should’ve taken Dragon…” She glanced down at the bot lane. Usually, when the opponents sent their Midlaner top and had their Toplaner Teleport to the top lane, it was the perfect time to force a play around the Dragon pit. But Tang Bingyao and Zeng Rui were struggling, and then there was Team Guangzhou’s Jungler who couldn’t be far away. Forcing a dragon play was too risky. She chewed on her lips for a bit and then asked, “Are you two OK in bot?”

Zeng Rui shook his head and replied, “It’s tough. We can’t find any openings to fire back at them.”

“Recall to base and get full health,” An Xin ordered. “We’ll see if we can do something when you two get back.”

Tang Bingyao nodded, and together with Zeng Rui pushed against Team Guangzhou’s Botlaners. They killed the Blue minions and then turned back to their outer tower. There they recalled back to base. When their Champions arrived on the fountain, Tang Bingyao let go of her mouse and shook her hand, biting her lips. It’s hurting… Why does it have to hurt? Can’t it just… stop hurting? I just want to play this series!

Zeng Rui looked at Tang Bingyao, worried, and asked, “You alright?”

Tang Bingyao quickly nodded and said, “Mhm! I’m okay!” She gritted her teeth and put her hand back on her mouse. Then she had her Corki fly back to lane. She moved her pinky finger up and down, pushing the Tab key and forcing herself to look at the game’s stats to try and take her mind off the dull pain radiating from her finger. We’re just over 10 minutes in. I’m at 81 minions and my pinky– She shook her head and blinked the thoughts about her pinky away. Then she focused her gaze back on the game statistics. Seo. That asshole. His Draven is at 84 minions. It’s almost even. We’ve also both got one kill. But he’s got the advantage because of the bonus gold he gets from his passive for a kill. Still, that’s not a lot and my pinky– No! Stop this! Stop thinking about it! Focus on the asshole who did this! You’re playing against him! You need to beat him and make him suffer where it hurts him the most! Mhm! 

“Tang Tang, Zeng Rui, if you guys see an engage, go for it! I’ve got Teleport and Irelia doesn’t!” Zhang Hao said over the team’s voice chat.

Zeng Rui glanced at Tang Bingyao and said, “If you find an opening, go for it. I’ll follow up on your engage.”

Tang Bingyao stared at Seo’s Draven. Glared at him. There weren’t many people she hated–truly hated, but Seo was on top of that list. She wanted nothing more than to make him suffer, and she knew that the best way to do that to him was by beating him in a game of League. He kept going on about his Korean Challenger this and his Korean Challenger that. I’ll show him that his Korean Challenger doesn’t mean shit! Mhm! That’ll show him! A fire lit in her eyes. It blazed determination. She nodded at Zeng Rui and replied, “Mhm! Let’s do this!”

✹

Anger, frustration and all other distracting thoughts had disappeared from Seo’s mind. Right now he was playing League of Legends. It calmed him. He watched his Draven throw the Spinning Axes, mesmerized. How they went round and round in his hand, how they cleaved into minions and how they ricocheted back for him to catch. He would occasionally watch his two opponents. Corki and Braum. But never more than a glance. They simply weren’t good enough to require more than that.

A ping sounded in Seo’s headphones and it flashed on his minimap. He clicked on it and saw Jarvan IV, his Jungler, running down the river. I guess he’s coming for a gank. He really should learn how to say that in Korean. That would make this so much easier. He shook his head and grinned, then focused back on his lane. The ping was, in the end, all he really needed.

Corki and Braum pushed forward. Seo laughed when he saw it. It’s like they’re asking me to kill them! As if they know Jarvan is coming to gank! He scrunched his eyebrows, taking a brief moment to translate what he wanted to say to Chinese, and then said over the team’s voice chat, “Thresh, follow! Not get away!”

“Oh shit!” Zephyr exclaimed. He pointed at his monitor and continued, “Look at that! EveningSnowfall, look! Draven’s going in! That’s Blood Rush and he just activated his second Spinning Axe! And up there in the river, that’s Jarvan IV! Team Guangzhou is coming to finish the job in bot!”

Su Xue looked at the screen that was focused on the bot lane. She then squinted her eyes and searched the minimap. It’s going to be a big fight! She reached for her microphone, nearly knocking it over, and shouted into it, “It’s going to be a big fight! Look up there! An Xin’s Gragas is also running bot AndAndAnd the teleport! That’s Lissandra! HaoBro is coming down!”

Tang Bingyao hesitated. Zeng Rui barked at her over the team’s voice chat, asking her what she was doing. Asking if they were engaging or backing off. That was quickly followed by Zhang Hao saying he was already teleporting and that if she didn’t want to fight, to say so fast so that he could cancel his teleport. She breathed faster. Faster. Faster! A Spinning Axe cleaved into her Corki and Thresh flashed on top of her and Flayed her backwards!

Every last bit of tension suddenly slipped away from Tang Bingyao’s body. She relaxed, the determination in her eyes burning away every trace of worry trying to burrow its way into her mind. She nodded and said, “Mhm! ZengZeng, on me!”

Zeng Rui’s mouse was already hovering over Tang Bingyao’s Corki and his finger on the W key, waiting for Tang Bingyao’s decision. He pressed down and cast Stand Behind Me! Braum leaped at Tang Bingyao’s Corki. Right then, Tang Bingyao’s Corki flashed towards Seo’s Draven. Zeng Rui’s Braum followed after her and landed in front of her, raising his shield to protect her!

“Hoooly shit! The turn around! It’s gonna be a turn around!” Zephyr exclaimed in shock.

Su Xue clenched her fists and shouted, “That’s more like it! Tang Tang is really good at playing aggressively! There is no one who’s better at engaging like this than she is! And the rest of her team knows exactly how to follow up on this! Just look at how Zeng Rui cast Stand Behind Me at just the right time! Their teamwork is immaculate!”

Seo’s eyes opened wide. Something felt wrong. It was a feeling that appeared in the pit of his stomach, slowly whittling its way up. A visceral clenching. Wrong! So wrong! It’s all wrong! She shouldn’t! She can’t! He shook his head, faster and faster! This is all wrong! He flicked his mouse away from Tang Bingyao’s Corki and towards his outer tower, then clicked. I need to get out!

Tang Bingyao smiled and said, “Q! Q!”

Zeng Rui aimed at Seo’s Draven and cast Winter’s Bite! His Braum projected ice from his shield! The chunks slammed into Draven and slowed him! More importantly, it applied the first of four stacks necessary to stun Draven!

Tang Bingyao’s Corki fired an auto attack, triggering the second stack on Draven! She then activated the Gatling Gun on Corki’s helicopter, a hail of bullets piercing Draven, and bombarded Draven with a Phosphorus Bomb! She continued with an auto attack and then fired an empowered missile with Missile Barrage!

Tang Bingyao was a Draven expert. She knew exactly how much damage he could take and how much damage he could deal. There was maybe no one who knew this better than her. Corki’s burst is enough to beat Draven! Especially when we’ve got the stun from Concussive Blow! And with Gragas and Lissandra coming too, it doesn’t even matter if they get a gank! Mhm! We’re winning this! We’re gonna kill that jerk– She suddenly narrowed her eyes and flicked her mouse to the side, then decisively clicked.

Seo was screaming over his team’s voice chat everything he knew in Chinese to get across to his Support and Jungler what it was he wanted. But they didn’t seem to understand him. The Thresh took several more seconds than he should’ve to line up for a Death Sentence. And when he finally did throw it, the Corki had had enough time to sidestep it. Seo looked at the three stacks from Concussive Blow and then at Corki again who was right in front of him. He knew the next auto attack was coming. There was nothing he could do to stop it. He was going to get stunned.

“Stupid girl! Fuck her!” Seo yelled over the team’s voice chat. He then added, “Protect me! Protect!”

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 Guangzhou’s 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 wasn’t 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, “Lin Feng beat cap! I can’t even get anything going against him! There’s no way this asshole from Korea can! It’s all due to that J4 gank! That’s it! Damn gank!”

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. “This is a tough one,” he mumbled. “Goalie can play as aggressively as he wants, and that’s exactly what he’s doing.”

“Screw him!” Zuo Cheng exclaimed. He clenched his fists and continued, “I know how good Lin Feng is! We’ve been scrimming against them! You guys don’t know; you only played him when he was sick. But I’m telling you, he’s so much better than Goalie! I don’t believe for a second he’ll give anything away against that asshole from Korea!”

Qiu Yijie glanced at Zuo Cheng and smiled. He said, “I hope so.”

“You hope so? You hope so!?” Zuo Cheng shouted. He pointed at the large LCD screen and continued, “You see how he’s staying in lane even without Flash? Goalie is trying so hard but he can’t even force Lin Feng to recall back to base! I’m telling you! Lin Feng is the best!”

“Mm-mhm,” Qiu Yijie replied, nodded. “I hope so.”

✹

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 he’d forgotten how difficult it was to defend against it. His entire focus was drawn towards protecting Tang Bingyao’s Corki, rather than landing poke, putting pressure or placing down wards. We’re 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, that’s why Tang Tang loves playing him! Dammit! They’re 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! He’s engaging on me! They’re– 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 Thresh’s Death Sentence.

“Sorry,” Tang Bingyao mumbled over the team’s voice chat.

Zeng Rui forgot to breathe. Every muscle in his body stood tense. He cast ‘Stand Behind Me’ on Tang Bingyao’s 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 Bingyao’s Corki retreated safely. He breathed out and said, “Stay focused. Focus.”

“Mm-mhm! Sorry,” 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 we’re up 1-0. We’re struggling, but we haven’t given Draven any kills yet. There isn’t 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 that’s fine. I can–

Team Guangzhou’s Thresh flashed forward and flayed Tang Bingyao’s Corki and Zeng Rui’s 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 Bingyao’s Corki. Up from the river, Jarvan IV rushed into the lane and dashed at Braum and Corki with his flag-toss combo.

“RUN! RUN!” Zeng Rui hollered over the team’s 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 Bingyao’s 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.

“Oh my god! Did you see that Stand Aside!? Corki is a goner!” Su Xue exclaimed at the caster desk.

Zephyr nodded and continued, “Corki didn’t get anywhere and doesn’t 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 now…”

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.

《You have been slain.》

✹

Lin Feng was struggling in the mid lane. He was behind on two minions of experience, which had happened due to Jarvan IV’s gank earlier. And though he wasn’t at risk of dying right away, his health was dropping lower. He focused on his screen and counted minions. Goalie’s 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. Goalie’s LeBlanc hit Level 6 and cast Distortion. She jumped underneath Red team’s outer tower, on top of Lin Feng’s 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 Talon’s skin. And finally came the Ethereal Chains, fired from point blank range. Lin Feng didn’t have Flash or any other skill to escape. He still tried to sidestep the skill, but he wasn’t fast enough. The chains connected and slowed him. A brief moment later, they locked him down with another pop of damage.

《You have been slain.》

“WOOOOO!” 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 Shanghai’s soundproof booth. Lin Feng was taking a deep breath, but didn’t look upset to her. She then focused on a different monitor that gave a look into Team Guangzhou’s 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!– Shit! I’m casting! She took a deep breath and then cheered, “Woooo.”

Zephyr waited for the audience to quiet down a bit before saying into his microphone, “Team Guangzhou are turning it around! From 0-1 down to 2-1 up! They’re really showing the value of the two Koreans on their team! Goalie and Seo are killing it!”

“Yeah…” Su Xue said, nodding slowly. “This is looking bad for Team Shanghai. LeBlanc and Draven need those early kills to snowball. They’ve now both gotten those kills… This game is going to spiral out of control if it goes on like this.” She clenched her fists until her knuckles were white and stared at the monitor showing into Team Shanghai’s 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! I’ll whoop your ass if you don’t follow through on it! Please! Show everyone the real Lin Feng!

✹

Lin Feng sat behind his computer, grinning. The worried thoughts from Su Xue didn’t 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 could’ve recalled back to base earlier and played it safe, but that just wasn’t 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 Feng’s 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 he’d 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 wouldn’t 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 you’ve got! Make me fight for this! And whatever you do, don’t make it too easy, because I really want to enjoy how hard I’m going to stomp you! I can’t wait to wipe that cocky smirk off your face!

✹

At 8 minutes, Team Guangzhou’s Irelia farmed minions underneath her outer tower. Zhang Hao’s 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 Irelia’s 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 team’s 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 Irelia’s health until it ran empty.

《You have slain an enemy!》

“Nice!” Zeng Rui exclaimed over the team’s voice chat. “Good work!”

Zhang Hao was beaming with joy. He replied, “Thanks! I can’t believe how badly the Irelia played that! Like she thought I wouldn’t towerdive her! She really underestimated me there! I had plenty of damage to kill her and get out of the tower’s range! I only took like two tower hits! That was nothing and I got the kill! Top lane is mine! I’m really ahead now! I’m helping!”

An Xin smiled and said over the team’s voice chat, “Zeng Rui is right, that was a great play. Great job, Zhang Hao!” She briefly paused, panning her camera over the three lanes, then added, “Get ready in bot, I’m coming in a few.”

Tang Bingyao nodded and replied, “Mhm! Okay!”

An Xin finished clearing the Wolf Camp in the bottom half of Red team’s 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 team’s 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 team’s outer tower.

Team Guangzhou’s Botlaners never saw An Xin coming. They were pushing their advantages by pushing the minion waves into Red team’s outer tower and forcing Tang Bingyao’s 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 wasn’t so lucky. He got knocked up into the air, after which the three from Team Shanghai made short work of him.

“Fucking noob!” Seo yelled over the team’s voice chat. He glared at his Support and asked, “Why didn’t you Flash that? Fuck!

《An ally has been slain.》

Team Guangzhou’s Support stared at his dull grey screen. He didn’t know what Seo had said, he didn’t speak Korean, but he could hear the venom in the words. He shook his head and mumbled, “Sorry, my bad.”

“What can I do with a Support like this!?” Seo exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air. He then focused on his screen again and made sure the three from Team Shanghai didn’t continue to chase after him.

At the caster desk, Su Xue jumped up and shouted, “WOOOOO! Nice going, B– An Xin! And Corki got the kill! That’s Tang T– Bingyao for you!”

Zephyr nodded and said, “That was a great gank by Gragas! Team Shanghai’s bot isn’t out of danger yet, but they’re back in fighting shape! I feel it’s safe to say that bot is officially even again! This can still go either way!” He briefly paused and then continued, “But I don’t get why this Gragas isn’t going mid. Team Shanghai’s Midlaner clearly needs help against Goalie’s LeBlanc. Why isn’t Gragas coming to help him…?”

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.

“Yeah… Why is Gragas ignoring mid?”

“I don’t know. Doesn’t make any sense! Their Jungler is a girl and their Midlaner a dude… Maybe something happened and they’re now mad at each other? That does sound like something typical that might happen…”

“They better put their personal problems aside if they wanna win. There’s no way Talon is getting back in this lane after that solo kill from Goalie!”

“Talon was basically screwed the moment Jarvan IV came for that gank at the start. Gragas should’ve been there for the countergank. That’s how they could’ve stopped this. Now they’re just spiralling out of control.”

“Goalie is an A+ player. Maybe it’s just a difference in skill. I don’t know. But Team Shanghai needs to do something before LeBlanc takes off and solo carries this game!”

“LeBlanc’s going in!” Zephyr cried out, interrupting the conversation taking place in the stands. 

“A large minion wave is crashing into the mid lane and she’s going to jump in with Distortion… Now!”

“Mid is dead again…”

“That’s our Goalie, he’s built diff’rent!”

“I STAN TEAM GUANGZHOU!”

Goalie’s LeBlanc jumped underneath Red team’s outer tower with Distortion. The splash damage smacked into Lin Feng’s Talon and set off the Sigil of Malice already on him. The explosion of magic drained Talon’s 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 Feng’s 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 LeBlanc’s body and sapped her health away!

Goalie’s pupils constricted and a chill ran up and down his spine. He cursed, “Fuck!”

Su Xue stared at her monitor in shock. T-that’s… that was supposed to be Lin Feng’s LeBlanc! She mumbled, “He snatched her away…”

Zephyr who was co-casting the series between Team Guangzhou and Team Shanghai glanced at Su Xue and asked into his microphone, “Snatched away? What do you mean?”

“O-oh, right,” Su Xue replied, laughing awkwardly. I’m not streaming. These people don’t know Lin Feng like my viewers do… They probably don’t even know that Lin Feng is super good at LeBlanc! She looked at the microphone and briefly hesitated. It wasn’t quite what she was used to in her usual set up, but it wasn’t all that different either. She leaned in and said, “So Lin Feng, Team Shanghai’s Midlaner I mean, he’s got quite a few Champions he’s good at. But LeBlanc is definitely at the top of that list! That’s why I was a little surprised to see Champion Select go down like this.”

Zephyr looked at Su Xue and smiled. Finally a co-caster who’s done her work! Well done. He then said into his microphone, “Ahhh, I see! So we’ve got two LeBlanc mains here! Lin Feng will know exactly how to counter her then! This could become a very exciting game!” He briefly paused, long enough to let this line of discussion end, and then asked Su Xue, “You’re from Shanghai, right? Have you watched any of the East China Regionals games? Do you know a bit about Team Shanghai? You know, stuff most other people wouldn’t know.”

“Uhhh, yeah, you could say that…” Su Xue replied, hesitantly. She licked her lips and smiled. Know them a bit? I live together with Lin Feng! BunBun has stayed over at our place and Tang Tang has even slept in my bed! I don’t think there’s much I don’t know about these kids! But I can’t say that. That’d be unprofessional. Hehe, Tang Tang did look cute in my Jinx pyjamas! She shook her head and said, “But let’s focus back on Champion Select. Looks like Team Shanghai is replying to the LeBlanc pick with Gragas and… Talon!?”

“Yep, that’s Talon!” Zephyr chimed in. He flipped through a notebook he kept on the caster desk and then continued, “He’s a strong Champion, just like LeBlanc is. But where LeBlanc is ranged, Talon has melee auto attacks. There’s no hiding for him. If he wants to get a high creep score, he’ll have to go all in. This is promising to be an explosive mid lane!”

“Mm-mhm!” Su Xue said, nodding. I’ve seen Lin Feng play Talon before! We played it together on stream! His Talon is so good! It’s right up there with his Zed and LeBlanc! He does all these weird things that don’t make any sense and then suddenly he’s Legendary! She clenched her fist and shouted, “Lin Feng from Team Shanghai is welcoming Goalie’s challenge! This is going to be a great fight!”

“Look at that!” Zephyr suddenly exclaimed. He pointed at his monitor and continued, “Team Guangzhou’s second pick is Draven! They’re really going at it! First LeBlanc and now Draven! They’re both really strong early game Champions that can completely snowball a game! It’s clear that that’s exactly what Team Guangzhou is planning to do in this game!”

Su Xue scrunched her eyebrows and mumbled, “Yeah…” She then took a double-take of her monitor. Something strange is going on here. If it was just LeBlanc, okay. But Draven? I’ve been researching Team Guangzhou and Seo all night last night! I don’t remember him ever playing Draven! But Tang Tang does play Draven. It’s her favourite Champion! Don’t tell me… Are those stupid assholes trying to beat us– uhm, Team Shanghai, with our– uh, Team Shanghai’s favourite Champions? What a bunch of arrogant pricks! Screw them. Seriously, screw them! I hope they get their asses whooped!

✹

Lin Feng sat in a gaming chair in Team Shanghai’s soundproof booth. Zhang Hao and An Xin sat to his left and Zeng Rui and Tang Bingyao to his right. He looked from them back to his screen and then back at them again. He scratched the back of his head and said over the team’s voice chat, “Looks like they’re BMing us right away, huh?”

“Their ad-carry, yes,” Zeng Rui replied. He then shook his head and continued, “But not Goalie. He’s known for his AP assassins, like LeBlanc. Their tactic every game so far has been to gank Mid early and help Goalie snowball, followed by Goalie tagging along with his Jungler to roam around the map. You–”

“Ah, whatever. It’s fine!” Lin Feng interrupted, waving his hand. “It doesn’t matter what they’re going to try, I’ll stomp them all the same!”

Zeng Rui opened his mouth to respond, but then paused. He glanced at Lin Feng and chewed on his lips. The thundering asshole… He’s got that look. I know that look. He nodded and replied, “Okay.”

Lin Feng looked at Tang Bingyao and asked, “Are you ready too? Is the hand all good yet?”

Tang Bingyao reflexively grabbed her hand and winced a bit. Her pinky wasn’t alright. It wouldn’t affect her gameplay too much, but there was damage there that needed time to heal. She gritted her teeth. I won’t give up now! I’m going to beat that jerk! She forced a smile and replied, “Mhm! I’m good!” She then moved her mouse over Corki, a helicopter pilot with unlimited ammo, and locked him in.

✹

Collegiate Cup Round of 16

Team Guangzhou (Blue) vs. Team Shanghai (Red)

Top: Irelia vs. Lissandra

Jungle: Jarvan IV vs. Gragas

Mid: LeBlanc vs. Talon

AD-Carry Draven vs. Corki

Support: Thresh vs. Braum

The large LCD screen showed the lineup for the first game in this best of five series. Su Xue and Zephyr talked the fans through the different Champions and the records each player had on said Champions. The game finished loading. The blues, greens and greys from Summoner’s Rift revealed themselves. The spectator camera focused on Blue team’s base, where the five Champions from Team Guangzhou spawned.

《Welcome to Summoner’s Rift!》

The game got underway. The players bought their starting items and moved down the lanes and into the Jungle. They warded along the river and then retreated back to their own sides. Su Xue watched this happen, her heart beating fast every time opposing Champions got near each other, but nothing happened. She finally grabbed her microphone and said, “Looks like we’re starting without any invades happening. Both Junglers are starting on the bottom side of their Jungle! And in the mid lane… they’re already fighting?”

“Yeah! The minions aren’t even there yet!” Zephyr exclaimed. He raised an eyebrow and added, “LeBlanc definitely holds the advantage at Level 1. Her range just makes the difference. What’s this Talon doing!?”

“Staying even, I guess…?” Su Xue mumbled. She scratched her cheek and analyzed, “LeBlanc indeed has the range advantage. All she has to do is walk away and keep firing auto attacks at Talon. The only way to retaliate for Talon is to jump on LeBlanc, but that’s incredibly dangerous this early on in the game. Without his ultimate, he really has no way to escape if things turn south. All Goalie has to do is land LeBlanc’s Ethereal Chains… But the minions are here! The minions are here! And they’re somehow still even!”

Zephyr nodded along and concluded, “That was exactly what I was going to say! Perfect analysis, EveningSnowfall! One more thing, though. I think we really want to see what the Junglers are going to do this game. If one Midlaner gets a good gank early on, that could decide the lane right there.”

✹

Qiu Yijie, Fudan University’s Midlaner and team captain, sat in the player seating area with his teammates. He relaxed back in his seat and looked up at the massive LCD screen, listening to the commentary from EveningSnowfall and Zephyr. As he listened to them, he started shaking his head. He said to no one in particular, “Wrong. Wrong, wrong. A lot of these ‘counters’ only hold true in lower ranked games. At this level, between LeBlanc and Talon, it comes down purely to skill.”

EveningSnowfall’s voice blasted from the speakers installed all around the stadium. “LeBlanc’s Sigil of Malice and Talon’s Rake have the same range. If she wants to use this skill for poke, which many LeBlanc’s like to do, she will first have to bait Talon to use Rake…”

“Exactly,” Qiu Yijie mumbled. Even at Level 1 Talon isn’t behind. It all comes down to skill. If he can throw his daggers when LeBlanc uses her sigil, he does more damage. But LeBlanc can then follow up with an auto attack which he can’t. And that’s how they end up even. He watched his understanding of the match up play out on the LCD screen, with both LeBlanc and Talon losing a portion of their health. Level 3 should be fun though, when they’ve got their main three skills unlocked.

✹

Goalie sat up straight in his chair and cracked his neck. You’re really disappointing me with your Talon. Show me some skill! When we hit Level 3, I win. Do something like a good Talon would before then! Come on! CHALLENGE ME! He had his LeBlanc move forward, just a bit too far. Do it!

Lin Feng glanced at his experience bar. There was still a bit to go to Level 3. The current minions weren’t enough to get there. He smiled. Let’s have some fun with you! He flicked his mouse over a minion and cast Cutthroat! Talon blinked behind the minion and cut its throat! Lin Feng’s finger was already on the W key. He flicked his mouse over LeBlanc, who was right in front of Talon, and pressed down on the key. Rake! Talon threw out a number of daggers! Then he pulled on the strings attached to them to get them back!

The blink from Cutthroat into Rake was too fast for Goalie to respond to. But the second half of Rake, where the daggers flew back, wasn’t. Goalie cast Distortion! His LeBlanc jumped to the side, just out of reach from the daggers. She then waved her staff and cast Sigil of Malice on Lin Feng’s Talon!

Lin Feng’s Talon was in the middle of enemy minions and didn’t have any escape skills. He had to run back, all the while Goalie’s LeBlanc auto attacked him. The damage was minimal, but it added up. By the time he retreated back behind his own line of minions, LeBlanc had dealt as much damage to him as he had to her.

“That was beautiful!” Zephyr exclaimed from behind the caster desk. “That was a textbook exchange right there! The way LeBlanc dodged the second half from Rake there! That’s how you win this matchup!”

Su Xue nodded, glowering, and chimed in, “Correct. Goalie played that… well. Really well. He baited out the engage, got the dodge with Distortion and from there it’s all LeBlanc. Talon can only run away and eat the damage and hope that he gets back to his outer tower before he dies. It’s really hard for the Talon to beat LeBlanc here early on. He really needs his ultimate! When he’s got his ultimate skill at Level 6, everything changes! But he has to get there without dying…”

“Talon is really lucky there that LeBlanc’s auto attacks don’t nearly hurt as much as, well, Talon’s!” Zephyr said, laughing.

Su Xue glanced at him and nodded. Underneath the table she clenched her fist. Come on, Lin Feng! Don’t let this asshole beat you! I know how good you are! Show it to everyone else as well!

While Su Xue was worrying that Lin Feng might not beat Goalie as easily as he’d made her believe he would, Lin Feng himself was smiling in excitement. He looked at his screen, at the LeBlanc, and laughed. Thank you for making this fun! I won’t underestimate you. And I will smash you!

✹

At 4 minutes, both Midlaners hit Level 3. Goalie had been expecting this, and had been preparing for it by freezing his minion wave outside his outer tower. There was nothing Lin Feng could do about it. Talon’s only ranged attack, which was sometimes the only way to secure the last hit on a minion, was Rake. This was a cone attack. When he hit multiple minions and Goalie’s LeBlanc did not, the minion wave would start pushing towards the Blue outer tower. From there it was an easy feat to freeze the minion wave.

Lin Feng found himself in an awkward situation where he could only watch from a distance as Blue minions died. He got the experience, but he didn’t get the gold. This situation couldn’t persist. Goalie’s LeBlanc would gain the gold advantage, use it to buy items and then kill him. So he gritted his teeth and decided to push. One quick engage to break the freeze and make the Red minions crash into Blue team’s outer tower.

Team Guangzhou’s Jungler, Jarvan IV, was waiting in the brush right above the mid lane. He knew Lin Feng’s Talon had to break the freeze. This was exactly what they’d prepared for in their practice run the night before. So when he saw Talong run up the lane, he briefly waited, waited, then he ran out from the brush and into the mid lane!

Jarvan IV’s reveal was Goalie’s go-sign. He slammed down on his keyboard, linking LeBlanc’s skills together. His Leblanc jumped towards Lin Feng’s Talon, crossing the Red minions. She followed up with Sigil of Malice and Ethereal Chains! The sigil struck Talon and appeared above him, waiting for the Ethereal Chains to set it off.

Lin Feng pressed down on the D key! Light flashed into existence around Talon and carried him a short distance back towards his side of the lane. The Ethereal Chains behind him failed to connect! He started running towards his outer tower.

Jarvan IV was coming from his left and threw his standard landed right in front of Lin Feng’s Talon. Then dashed towards it. Lin Feng smiled, pressing down on the S key. Talon stopped, stood dead still. Jarvan IV flew past him and missed the knock up. “Perfect,” Lin Feng mumbled. He then had his Talon run the last bit back towards his outer tower. He escaped the gank with minimal damage taken.

“Oh my god!” Zephyr exclaimed. He opened his eyes wide and shook his head, mumbling, “What was that… How…”

“That’s Lin Feng for you!” Su Xue blurted out! She grinned and continued, “He had to dodge both the flag-toss combo from Jarvan IV and the Ethereal Chains from LeBlanc to come out alive there! And that’s exactly what he did! The Flash was good, but that pause was brilliant! That Jarvan IV got duped so hard!”

Lin Feng stared at his screen and grimaced. Talon isn’t the best early on, especially with ganks…. And now I don’t have Flash either. I’m gonna have to be a bit more careful. I just have to be patient. When I’ve got Flash back, I’ll also be Level 6. It’ll get really fun then!

✹

While Jarvan IV failed his gank in the mid lane, An Xin ganked the top lane. She had her Gragas run up the river, past a ward. Team Guangzhou’s Irelia spotted her and turned around. She didn’t even last hit a dying minion as she instead ran back towards her outer tower. But An Xin expected this. She kept running and then activated Body Slam! Gragas’ fat frame barreled forward! Irelia was still a good way away. So she flashed. A veil of light fell over Gragas and carried him, as well as his momentum, a short distance. He then slammed into Irelia and knocked her up!

Zhang Hao’s Lissandra cast Glacial Path! A claw of ice broke through the ground and carved a path across the Rift! When it arrived underneath the knocked up Irelia, Zhang Hao reactivated the skill. His Lissandra blinked to the claw’s position and then raised her hands and screeched, “Ring of Frost!”

Team Guangzhou’s Irelia fell back to the ground only to find spikes of ice shoot from the ground into her feet, rooting her! Gragas threw a barrel at her and drank another one empty. The first exploded and the second boosted Gragas’ next auto attack! Team Guangzhou’s Irelia saw her health drop. But the root from Ring of Frost didn’t last long. She still had some health remaining. She flashed away. But right then, just as she appeared on the map again, chunks of ice slammed into her and drained the final bit of her health bar.

《First Blood!》

“Nice gank, BunBun!” Su Xue exclaimed. She pumped her fist into the air and added, “Team Shanghai has got the lead in top now!”

“Yeah, nice gank! Uh, BunBun…?” Zephyr said, confused. He glanced at Su Xue, asking for an explanation with his eyes.

“Oh, uh, right,” Su Xue replied. She coughed awkwardly and explained, “Team Shanghai’s Jungler. I meant An Xin! Yes. Yes! An Xin’s Gragas did a brilliant E-Flash combo to knock Irelia up! From there it was an easy kill. Irelia really wasted that Flash.”

Zephyr grinned and chimed in, “That was a great play indeed! And I have to say, EveningSnowfall, props to you! You’ve really done your homework! You sound like you know everything about Team Shanghai!”

Su Xue laughed uncomfortably and said, “I guess, a bit. It’s nothing, really!”

Su Xue joined Team Shanghai in the player seating area. In person, not in mind. She chewed her lips and fidgeted with her hands, deaf to the people around her. What if I’m a terrible caster? What if I say something stupid? There are so many people here and even more watching online! All of them will see me screw up! Those people are vultures! They’ll jump on it and make fun of me for the rest of my life! I’ll have to quit streaming and move to some hamlet in the middle of nowhere! Her stomach contracted and she felt nauseous. There’s still so much I don’t know about this game. I don’t know anything!

Lin Feng patted Su Xue on her shoulder, pulling her from her spiralling thoughts, and said, “Stop worrying so much! You stream to 50,000 people all the time! This stadium can’t even hold that many people right now! This is going to be easy for you!”

Su Xue looked at Lin Feng and smiled. She replied, “I know, I know. But when I stream it often still feels like before, you know? When I had like 50 viewers? I’m still chatting with everyone and I know so many people! I don’t just know their names but I know who they are! And they know me… That connection is missing here. If I say something stupid…” She shook her head and asked, “But enough about me! Shouldn’t you also be worrying? You’re playing against Goalie! I heard he’s really good!”

“Goalie? He is?” Lin Feng asked, laughing. He shrugged and added, “There’s nothing to it. We’ll go up on stage when it’s our turn, and we’re 3-0ing them.”

“Sure, sure, mister big mouth!” Su Xue replied, rolling her eyes back. She then asked, “You do know they’re like the favourites for the entire tournament, right? I was looking into them yesterday and everyone online is talking about them!”

The large LCD screen above the two soundproof booths up on stage flashed to life. It showed the Champion Select for the first game of the first match of the Round of 16! Zeng Rui told Lin Feng to focus, but he ignored that and continued, “We will win. Easy. And it’s okay, XueXue. You will do great too! Just be yourself. Remember all those times you commentated me playing? For your videos in the beginning and also when I was just playing solo queue? Your viewers loved that! That’s all you have to do here! They will all love you! Just keep doing your thing!”

Su Xue looked into Lin Feng’s dark eyes and focused on the small brown dot just off the center in his left eye. She breathed out a breath she didn’t realize she’d been holding and smiled. Just smiled. He’s right. What am I even worrying about? HuyaTV hired me because I’m good at this! They don’t want just anyone with just any type of casting. They wanted me. I just have to be me! And it’s not like I’m totally in the dark either. I know Team Shanghai better than everyone else! The only thing I don’t know… She asked, “What about my analysis of the game? I’m just not experienced with that…”

“Oh, that? Easy!” Lin Feng replied. He grinned and explained, “So here’s what you do. You tell them that Team Guangzhou is a very cocky, arrogant team who believe that relying on Korean imports will win them the game. Then you go on to say that this is a stupid conjecture made by stupid people. You tell everyone that actual skill decides the game, and that there’s nobody with more skill than me playing this tournament! Then you finish it off by saying that I’ll hard-win mid by the 10th minute and that we’ll destroy their nexus by the 20th minute.” He briefly paused before adding, “Easy, right?”

Su Xue stared at Lin Feng for nearly a minute before her mouth finally moved and a sound came out. She muttered, “You sure sound confident…” She took a long, deep breath and moved her lips around. Then she nodded and said, “Alright, alright. I’ll repeat that, word for word. But if you don’t live up to it, you can bet your tiny ass on it that I’m taking you down with me!”

Lin Feng grinned and pumped his fist into the air. He replied, “It’s fine! I’ll hard-carry these games, I promise!” He turned his head to look at Team Guangzhou’s players and continued, “I already told you. I will teach that guy a lesson he’ll never forget. After today, no one will remember him.”

✹

Ever since entering the Tianhe Stadium earlier in the morning, Seo had been staring at Lin Feng in anger. He glowered and mumbled curses. I don’t even care about that stupid girl. She isn’t even all that pretty! I can do so much better than her! But you, you fucking asshole! How dare you mess with me like that! What you did to me yesterday… that’s unforgivable! I’ll make you regret being born!

Seo glanced at the large LCD screen and watched the first series come to an end. It was one game closer to the Team Guangzhou versus Team Shanghai series. He grinned. I can’t wait to play against your arrogant ass, asshole! I’ll stomp your girl and make her cry just like she did yesterday! And then we’ll have to make sure to also teach you a valuable lesson. Namely that I’m better than you. I am better than you! He nodded at Goalie and said, “Give it everything you’ve got today. Make that asshole wish he was never born!”

Goalie snorted. He didn’t particularly care about Seo’s feelings or his desire for revenge. But he did care about the humiliation he’d suffered at Lin Feng’s hands. He turned his head to look at Lin Feng and narrowed his eyes. Who am I? I’ll show you who I am! You think you’re all that because you beat some has-been second rate idiot like AyDeeCee? Ha! What a joke! I play against Rake in solo queue all the time! That’s the difference between you and me! I play with the best and you play with noobs! Just you wait. When we play, I’ll show you exactly how far apart we are! I’m so much better than you that you can’t even see me from down there!

✹

Su Xue looked across the row of seats at the members from Team Shanghai and said, “This series is about to end. I’m… I guess all of us are up next. I need to go backstage and prepare.” She ruffled Lin Feng’s hair and added, “Goodluck! I want to cast you guys to a win!”

Lin Feng pulled his head away from Su Xue, then smiled. He pounded his chest and said, “Leave it to me! You focus on casting and I’ll make sure we win!”

Su Xue giggled and replied, “I won’t hear any bragging until after the series! Remember, I’m going to say what you told me to! You better not make me regret it!”

“I won’t!” Lin Feng exclaimed, grinning. His teammates wished Su Xue goodluck and she turned around and walked away. He looked after until she was almost out of earshot and then shouted, “YOU GOT THIS!”

Su Xue looked over her shoulder and smiled. She mouthed, “Thanks!” Then she disappeared around a corner. She walked along the long corridors of the Tianhe Stadium and up several stairs until she arrived at a specific door in the backstage area. Behind it was the lobby for casters. I got this! You got this, Su Xue! She nodded at herself and then pushed the door open.

The room was larger and busier than Su Xue expected. There were people from the Guangzhou Esports Association walking around with clipboards, making sure everything was going according to schedule. There was a corner with different outfits and two people hard at work there, there were several visagistes and then there were the other casters. HuyaTV had hired 7 women and 1 man to cast eight games. Su Xue was the only one given two games. On top of that, there were the professional casters hired by the Guangzhou Esports Association. And all of them, except for the two casting the current series, were here.

“Wow!” Su Xue mumbled. There are so many people here! And the girls, they’re all so pretty! She looked around the room again and spotted several people looking back at her. Shit! They know I don’t belong here! I’m not a caster! They can see it! They can… She forced herself to take a deep breath and smile. I’m a caster! HuyaTV hired me. Stop being so miserable, Su Xue! You’ve got this. She nodded at herself and then walked into the room, waving at the people looking at her and saying, “Hi!”

One woman wearing a low cut dress glanced at Su Xue and replied, “Hello. You are…?”

“Su Xue! Nice to meet you!” Su Xue introduced herself. She then raised her finger and added, “Oh! EveningSnowfall I mean!”

Several women perked up and turned their heads to look at Su Xue. But they didn’t greet her, or look especially welcoming. They glared at her and started whispering with each other, making sure that all Su Xue could hear was that they were talking about her. It was the woman in the low cut dress that eventually spoke up. She raised an eyebrow and said, “Is whatever that is …” she pointed frantically at Su Xue’s clothes. “… what you’re wearing?”

“This?” Su Xue asked, confused, pointing at her own outfit. “Yes? Is something wrong with it?” She looked at the women in the caster lobby. They all snickered and she could hear them making fun of her outfit; they made sure of that. She looked down at her outfit, deflated. There’s nothing wrong with my outfit, right? Why are they making fun of it? Zuo You helped me pick it out! She said that I don’t need to wear something super revealing… that something more like me would fit me better… She felt her heart slamming into her ribcage and a prop was forcing its way up her throat. Compose yourself. Compose yourself, Su Xue! They’re just being mean! Don’t listen to them! Zuo You said I look great!

“So…” the woman in the low cut dress started. She walked up to Su Xue and looked her up and down, walking around her. She then asked, “What’s so special about you that Huya gave you two matches?”

“She must’ve slept with some higher up,” another woman chimed in.

“Sucked a big, fat cock!” a third said.

“N-no!” Su Xue yelped. She shook her head frantically and said, “I didn’t do any of that! I don’t know why! They just asked me to do two!” She bit on her lips and sucked back the tears that had appeared in her eyes. The door behind her suddenly felt very close and very safe. She took a step back. I can’t do this! Everyone’s expecting so much from me and I’m not good! I don’t know anything about League! I just sit behind my computer and stream for fun! Not because I know things!

The cheering from the crowd sounded in the distance. One of the Guangzhou Esports Association staff members walked in and announced that the series had ended. He turned to Su Xue and said that she was up next and to get ready. She just stared at him, numb. Her knees felt weak and she wanted nothing more than to walk away. She felt trapped between the vicious glares from the other girls on one side and her boss on the other side. They’re going to make me… And those girls… If I…– Her phone buzzed in the back pocket of her jeans. She took it out and looked at it and breathed.

Lin Feng (12:05 P.M.):「You can totally do this, XueXue! I believe in you!!!」

Su Xue smiled as she pictured Lin Feng’s cheerful expression. She thought about how he’d cheered her on and how he believed in her. Then she started laughing. She laughed away the ugly glares, the whispers and every other form of negativity. It felt liberating. I can do this! And I’m gonna do great! She texted Lin Feng a thank you and then said to the staff member, “Mic me up!”

✹

Lin Feng watched the host walk up on stage, clenching his fists. The audience behind him was still cheering for the 3-1 victory from Wuhan University over Nanjing University. He ignored that. What was coming up next was the only thing he cared about. He kept focused on the host as he said, “It’s our turn! You guys ready? Everyone feeling good? Ready to shock everyone and show them that we’re the team to beat!?”

Tang Bingyao nodded and said, “Mhm! We’re going to win this one!”

The host stopped in the middle of the stage. The multicoloured lights faded away until there was only a single beam of white light illuminating the host. He held a microphone up to his mouth and said, “This edition of the Collegiate Cup is a bit special. For the first time ever, it’s taking place in winter. And much more importantly, for the first time ever, high school teams have been invited!” He paused to let the audience cheer, then continued, “There were many questions wondering if these teams were good enough to compete at the university level. I think all three teams have proven that much. Right now, I think we’re all curious to see just how far they can go! But, unfortunately, for one high school team the road ends here. Today.”

Blue and red lights suddenly flashed around the stadium until focusing on the player seating area. The blue lights illuminated Team Guangzhou and the red lights Team Shanghai. The host shouted, “This is it! We have the high schoolers representing the Guangzhou Esports Association facing off against the high schoolers representing the Shanghai Esports Association! The former esports capital of the world is looking to reclaim its place by beating the current esports capital of the world! Give it up for these 10 phenomenal players! We welcome to the stage TEAM GUANGZHOU AND TEAM SHANGHAI!”

The audience cheered, louder and louder. The players from Team Guangzhou and Team Shanghai rose from their seats and walked to opposite ends of the stage. There they ascended the steps. Each time their feet hit the ground it sounded like the audience found a new breath and screamed and shouted even louder. It carried the players up on stage as they made their way to the soundproof booths. One more moment they enjoyed the sounds, then the players from both teams started entering.

Lin Feng and Goalie were the last two outside the soundproof booths. They looked across the stage at each other. Goalie smiled, confident, and drew a line across his neck with his finger. Lin Feng burst out laughing. He shook his head and walked into the soundproof booth. He then closed the door behind him, cutting off all distracting sounds.

The players from Zhejiang University watched this all happen from their seats in the player seating area. Zhejiang’s Jungler turned his head to look at his teammates, worried, and asked, “Do you think they can win?”

Zuo Cheng laughed. He replied, “Yes, of course I think Team Shanghai can win. I think they will win! That Lin Feng? He’s the real deal. There is no way that that shitty Goalie can beat Lin Feng!”

Sun Ruinian slowly nodded and mumbled, “Whatever happens, this is gonna be a special match.”

✹

The caster desk was separated from the stands, unlike those at the Shanghai 16 School Tournament and the East China Regionals. Su Xue looked through the glass window down at the stage, smiling. Zephyr, her professional co-caster, sat behind her at the caster desk and kept reminding her that there was nothing to worry about and that he’d casted with girls from HuyaTV before and that he knew how to best help her. She didn’t care. All worries about casting were gone. Now she just felt tingles and excitement for what was to come. She was going to cast Lin Feng!

Su Xue walked around the table and sat down next to Zephyr. I’m feeling great! No, better even! I’m feeling better than I ever have! This is exactly what I’ve wanted! Who would’ve guessed! A few months ago I only had a dozen viewers and now I’m going to cast a game for like a hundred thousand people! This is everything I’ve been working so hard towards! And it’s amazing! She took a long, deep breath and then said, “Thanks, but it’s okay. I’m ready for this. Let’s cast the shit out of this series!”

Zephyr glanced at Su Xue and nodded slowly. He replied, “Alright. We’re up in a few. The players are getting in the lobby. Another minute and they’ll be in Champion Select. When that appears on the LCD screen–you can see that on this screen over here–that’s when we start.”

“Right now it is!” Su Xue exclaimed a couple of seconds later. She leaned in towards the microphone and said, “We’re getting ready for Game 1! This is the Champion Select!” She briefly paused, watching the screen, stunned. Team Guangzhou and Team Shanghai fired bans in rapid succession. More surprisingly, they left open several coveted picks. She continued, “That’s odd. Lin Feng and Goalie are both known for their LeBlancs. How come she isn’t banned?”

Zephyr grinned. He grabbed his microphone and shouted, “Obviously because Team Guangzhou is looking to pick her! First pick is for them and they… LOCK HER IN! Goalie is going to play LeBlanc the Deceiver!”

Chu Fang ground his teeth in annoyance. Yin Wei was the exact type of person he disliked. I spent years searching high schools and universities for talented players. Those I found I trained. I gave them opportunities and I helped them find each other! I did everything I could to help raise the Chinese esports scene! And then you’ve got these people like Yin Wei who care nothing about actually improving the Chinese esports scene. All he cares about are his personal victories, and there isn’t a length he won’t go for them! Recruiting those Koreans and defending Seo is just another instance of that. It’s everything that’s wrong with the Guangzhou branch!

Lin Feng took a long, deep breath and said, “I get that a coach wants to defend his players. But isn’t there a line up to which they defend their players? What Seo did…” He shook his head in frustration and continued, “There’s no excuse for it!”

“He is a real piece of work, that Seo,” Chu Fang said, frowning. “We’re not blind. His expression had guilt written all over it, yet he kept denying it! Such a nasty personality… Sure doesn’t help that he’s got Yin Wei and probably the entire Guangzhou Esports Association behind him, enabling this behaviour. Who cares that he’s a guest from Korea? That doesn’t mean you’ve got a free pass to being an asshole! If all Koreans were like that…”

Lin Feng shook his head and replied, “I’ve met quite a few professional players from Korea back in Season 1. None of them were like Seo. They were easy to get along with and down to Earth. Even Han Seho…” He briefly paused, pushing down the powerful emotions intertwined with this name, and continued, “Even he isn’t a bad person. People see him and they think he’s an asshole because of the way he looks at others. But that’s not true at all. It’s just that he knows he’s better than everyone else and has pride in that. That’s perfectly normal! But beyond that? The person behind the player? He’s a cool dude! When I lost… When I lost to him, we shook hands and he told me that I was the first person who really pushed him. What I’m trying to say is that he showed respect, something these two Koreans from Team Guangzhou are clearly lacking.”

Chu Fang chuckled and said, “It’s like with dogs. When a small one sees a big one, they start barking. They jump up and try to look big and scary. But in the end, they’re small and weak. All they’ve got is their big mouths–” He suddenly laughed and added, “Which reminds me of Season 1 Worlds. Remember that European Midlaner? What was his name again… Well, anyway, remember how he was trash talking you to everyone who would listen? And then you gave him the option to apologize or the ‘I’ve remembered your face, and I’ll make sure no one else will after I’m done with you’! Just like today!”

“And then I beat him the next day!” Lin Feng chimed in, laughing.

Chu Fang laughed loudly and said, “You completely stomped him! I still remember that sour look on his face by the end of it all. Oh, right! You were gone so soon after that that you might’ve missed the fallout. So, his teammates were actually really upset with him, as was the management. They kicked him off the team and no other team has accepted him since. You really made sure no one recognizes him anymore!”

Lin Feng scratched the back of his eyes and asked, “Did I really do that…?” He squinted his eyes and tried to think really hard, but the memory wouldn’t come back to him. He then shrugged and said, “Anyway, I really do hope we get to play against Team Guangzhou in the Round of 16!”

✹

“FUCK!” Seo yelled. He squished a plastic cup in his hand and then threw it against the wall of their practice room at the Guangzhou Esports Association headquarters. “FUCK!” He glared at the people around him, his teammates, the interpreter and coach Yin Wei and cursed in Korean, “These fucking Chinese donkeys! How dare that ugly ass demand me to apologize! And in front of so many people! I DIDN’T EVEN DO ANYTHING! FUCK HIM!”

Seo heaved in loud bursts, infuriated. He slammed his fist down on the dark leather of the couch and continued, “People were pushing into me and I was just pushing back! I never even touched that girl! I NEVER EVEN TOUCHED HER! How can they blame me for that? I didn’t do anything! And what were they even bitching about? There was nothing wrong with her! Just a few scrapes! Who the fuck cares! She probably didn’t even feel it!”

The Chinese players from Team Guangzhou looked at the interpreter, trying to figure out what Seo was saying. But the interpreter just shook his head and mouthed, “Please don’t ask. Please don’t ask.”

Seo narrowed his eyes and said with a chuckle, “That ugly kid will remember my face, huh? Of course he will! Look at me!” He ground his teeth in anger and continued, “And then he said he’ll make sure no one else will remember my face? Ha! As if! Screw him! Fuck! I really wanna play against him now! If we do get matched up against him, I’ll smash that stupid whiny bitch in bot and then go mid and camp his ugly ass until he’s 0/20!”

Goalie didn’t hear Seo’s outburst. He was stuck in his own head, listening to Lin Feng’s voice echoing in his mind. And you are? And you are? And you are? He gritted his teeth and narrowed his eyes. You really had to go and pretend you don’t know who I am, huh? I’m the best Midlaner in this entire tournament! There is not a single worthy opponent here! YOU KNOW THAT! But that’s alright too. You want to play it like this? Okay. Okay. I’ll show you the vast chasm that separates scrub like you with first rate talents like me!

Yin Wei sat behind his desk, playing with his phone. He’d made several calls and sent a couple of texts to employees working on the Winter Collegiate Cup. Now he had to wait, patiently, something he wasn’t great at. Those rude, snot nosed brats! And the biggest brat is that Brat Fang! Just because he’s a little bit more important than me, because for some stupid reason the Shanghai Esports Association is ‘better’, he thinks he can shove me around! He clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white. I’ll show him! No one pushes me around! I really hope the draw is a success! We’ll play your stupid Shanghai team and beat them! And on the back of that I’ll become more important than you! I’ll have you fired and make sure you never do more than making coffee ever again!

The phone buzzed in Yin Wei’s hands. He slammed his thumb on the device and unlocked it. He then opened the message and read it. His lips curved up. Followed by laughter. The others in the room all turned to him, but he didn’t notice. He was laughing until tears ran down his face. It wasn’t until a few minutes later that he pointed at his phone and shouted, “Now that’s what I call sweet karma! We’re playing them! We’re playing them!”

✹

Chu Fang was watching Lin Feng play on his CN•HOOK2 account when his phone buzzed. He felt around inside his pockets, trying to find the device without missing a moment of what was happening on screen. Lin Feng was playing Yasuo in the mid lane against Twisted Fate. The game was still relatively. The lag is really a big handicap! I don’t think I could play at half my normal skill with it, yet he’s still playing in Challenger! It’s insane! He glanced at his phone before looking back at the laptop screen, then turned back to look at his phone.

“The brackets are out!” Chu Fang exclaimed a brief moment later. “And we’re playing Team Guangzhou! It really happened!”

Lin Feng briefly paused; he stopped breathing, his hands stopped moving and every thought stopped. Then he moved. He flicked his mouse over a minion and cast Sweeping Blade on it. His Yasuo dashed through it and then also through the next minion Lin Feng clicked on. He followed up by thrusting his katana forward, cutting through two minions! Wind particles gathered at the top of his blade, a storm brewing. He needed one more Steel Tempest before he could unleash the storm.

Twisted Fate ran back towards his outer tower and activated Pick a Card. He then chose the Gold Card, a single target stun. When Yasuo was almost upon him, he turned back around and threw the card.

Lin Feng’s Yasuo swept his blade up in front of him. The wind gathered around it and burst upwards to form a wall! The Gold Card slammed into the wind wall and lost its power, fluttering up and then falling down to the ground. Yasuo then thrust out with Steel Tempest again. The storm brewed at the top of his blade. STEEL TEMPEST! He swept his blade forward. A tornado appeared in front of him and carved a path through Summoner’s Rift!

Twisted Fate couldn’t escape in time. The wind lifted him off his feet, after which Yasuo blinked on top of him with Last Stand and kept him suspended in midair. A flurry of strikes cut away at his health bar, until the last one–powered by the winds–slammed him down to the ground! All the while, the unquenchable fires from Ignite burned on his skin. When his feet touched the ground, his knees buckled and he collapsed. Dead.

Lin Feng chuckled and mumbled, “Good.”

✹

The players from Team Beijing also received the news that Team Guangzhou and Team Shanghai were playing against each other in the Round of 16. The Winter Collegiate Cup was a tournament for the best university team, but this time it was also a contest between the three main branches from the China Esports Association to see who had the best players. This was going to be the first showdown for that. And Team Beijing was skipping straight to the finals of that contest.

Yu Ping, Team Beijing’s main Midlaner, sneered and said, “What luck. Now we don’t have to take the trash out ourselves! Team Shanghai is better than I expected, but it would’ve still been a waste of my time to play against them.”

Coach Fan Yuan chuckled and added, “It’s quite a coincidence. I wasn’t expecting this matchup until the quarters or even semifinals.” He then turned to look at Zhang Hongyi and continued, “You must be disappointed, though. Didn’t you want to face that Zeng Rui yourself?”

Zhang Hongyi shrugged and replied, “Doesn’t matter to me. I just want to see that bastard lose.” Though it would’ve been great if I could be the one slapping that bastard out of the tourney. I’ll have to settle for watching him get slapped.

✹

Chu Fang gathered everyone from Team Shanghai while Lin Feng completed his game of League. When everyone, including Su Xue, was in the room, he shared the news. Team Shanghai was going to play against Team Guangzhou in the Round of 16.

“That’s… awesome!” Zhang Hao cried out. He grinned and continued, “We actually drew them! This is perfect! We can teach them a lesson for what they did! Shit! I’m still so angry for what they did to Tang Tang!”

Zeng Rui smiled and said, “Good. Good. It’s about time we go all out. We’re going to teach them some humility.”

Chu Fang noted, “You’re all pretty pumped up, huh?”

Tang Bingyao nodded and replied, “Mhm! I hate them! I’ll do my best at bot! My hand doesn’t really hurt too much anymore either!”

An Xin smiled and said, “Seo is their ad-carry. You better show him what real skill looks like!”

Tang Bingyao nodded and replied, “Mhm! I will!”

Lin Feng grinned and shouted, “That’s the right attitude! We’re going to give it our all tomorrow and crush Team Guangzhou!”

The initial burst of excitement from learning about their next opponents died down a bit. Su Xue spotted this and coughed to get everyone’s attention. She then said, “I’ve got something to report too. Huya got back to me and informed me I’m casting two matches in the Round of 16. One of them is yours.”

“No way!” Lin Feng exclaimed. “Today is full of coincidences!”

✹

The sun had yet to rise above Guangzhou’s skyline when a long line of people gathered outside the Tianhe Stadium. The Round of 16 was starting a little later and no one wanted to miss out on this. They pushed through the six entrances, bought breakfast at the concession stands, and found a place high up in the stands. Down on the field were the more expensive seats, but even those were filled well before the first game started, as was the player seating area.

When the sun finally rose over the rim of the Tianhe Stadium, bathing the field in golden rays, the Guangzhou Esports Association posted the brackets for the Round of 16 online. Most of the biggest names didn’t play each other, though there were still several matchups that promised an exciting fight. One of them in particular. Team Guangzhou versus Team Shanghai.

A buzz went through the Tianhe Stadium. Scattered voices grew in power and number. Everyone discussed this matchup. Not just because of the fact these were two high school teams that both looked like they could become the first high school team to win a university tournament, but also because of what happened the day before. The incident between Seo and Tang Bingyao itself hadn’t been filmed, but the fallout afterwards had been. And most fans in the stadium had watched the replay of it at least half a dozen times by now.

“First they have that whole thing yesterday and now they’re playing each other?”

“Looks like a lot of coincidence! But all the better! We get a real match!”

“They’re both pissed, so they’ll both really want this win! It won’t just be tactics, it’ll also be that something extra!”

“I wonder who’s going to win this one…”

“Who cares? It’s gonna be a real show! We’re getting a real show!”

“I’m so happy I bought tickets for today! This is going to be one of the best series all tournament!”

The discussions leaked from the audience to the other competing teams in the player seating area. All of them looked in the direction of Team Shanghai and Team Guangzhou, whispering amongst each other about which team they believed would win. Or rather, which team they wouldn’t have to prepare for in the next round.

After a lot of arguing and going back and forth, most teams reached the same conclusion. They really wanted to see Team Guangzhou getting knocked off their high horses. But at the same time, Team Guangzhou clearly had the skill to sit on their high horses. Odds were they were going to win and Team Shanghai would go home early.

The deciding argument for a lot of teams went: “Team Guangzhou’s got Goalie and Seo. Who does Team Shanghai have?”

Zeng Rui gritted his teeth in anger. Those fucking assholes! He looked at Lin Feng who was seething with rage. Su Xue had stepped forward and was holding him back. I was already losing my temper! And I’m the calm one! He noticed Chu Fang stepping forward and stepped towards him. This is gonna spiral out of control if something doesn’t happen soon! Keep your cool, Zeng Rui! Come on! Be the leader! He exhaled sharply and then said, “Tang Tang is right. He…” he pointed at Seo, “… pushed the guy behind Tang Tang on purpose. Look at Tang Tang! This isn’t normal! And all we asked for was an apology! But that’s already too much for that asshole!”

Chu Fang knitted his brows. He looked at Team Guangzhou’s coach and said, “Coach Yin, right? What’s going on here?” He then turned his head to look at Tang Bingyao. There were four people huddled around her, blocking him from seeing the full extent of her injuries. But he judged by their reaction that she wasn’t too hurt. Still, this isn’t great. Far from it! We’ve got to play the Round of 16 tomorrow! If nothing else, the shock of this might hamper her! How could it have gotten this far!?

“Vice President Chu,” Coach Yin said, smiling. Keep smiling. Keep smiling. Seo made a mistake, but that’s besides the point right now. We’re playing tomorrow and the team needs to be in optimal shape for that. Take the pressure away from him. Let him focus. I’ll let Chu Fang be mad at me. Just need to be a bit careful. I need to show him some respect. He briefly grimaced before pushing forth an apologetic smile. He explained, “You saw how busy it got here. The organizers really didn’t think it through. We were all just trying not to get shoved to the ground and fighting for our own spot. Seo just got caught by someone else, lost his balance and that’s how all of this happened. Now let’s not make a big fuzz out of it. We’ve both got games to play tomorrow, let’s focus on that instead.”

Chu Fang scratched his head and replied, “You heard what my players are saying. They seem to think Seo did it on purpose, and I don’t know them as liars.” He nodded at Seo and continued, “Plus, he does look guilty.”

The smile disappeared from Coach Yin’s face. He pushed his chest forward and narrowed his eyes. Nice approach won’t work, huh? Go figure. Idiots from Shanghai! But this needs to end here. We’re not going to bow down in front of so many people! He said through gritted teeth, “You just got here. You haven’t the faintest idea what happened! Stop listening to those damn kids trying to act like something happened here. I’m telling you, my team members didn’t do anything wrong. I’m done with this charade.” He turned to his team members and ordered, “We’re going.”

“Wait, wait, one more thing,” Zeng Rui interjected. He looked at Coach Yin and chuckled in rage. You piece of shit! He took a deep breath and said, “You didn’t see it either. You weren’t here. All you know is what Seo told you–”

Chu Fang put his hand on Zeng Rui’s shoulder and shook his head. He whispered, “Enough.” He then looked back at Coach Yin and said, “You’re right. I wasn’t here. I didn’t see it happen. Fortunately, we’ve got CCTV recording everything happening here. Let’s go to the backroom and watch back the footage of what happened. We’ll take it from there. Sound acceptable?”

Coach Yin narrowed his eyes further and tried to come up with an argument, but couldn’t think of one. He then turned to look at Seo, who was following the conversation through the interpreter, and asked with his eyes if he really had pushed Tang Bingyao. Seo’s violent reaction to the mention of the CCTV footage said it all. Shit. SHIT! Why does this have to happen? Dammit! I can’t let this go on. We can’t have this show in front of so many people! Dammit Seo! Why did you… He took a deep breath to calm himself down. Then he smiled at Chu Fang and said, “There’s no need to review the footage for something so small. Seo here didn’t mean for any of this to happen. He was just feeling anxious and he might’ve–in his panic–pushed the people around him away. Claustrophobia is a serious issue. We shouldn’t take it lightly. Now, please, drop it. This isn’t helping any of us.”

“Look at her,” Chu Fang said, pointing at Tang Bingyao. “Look at her! You tell me, does that look normal to you? Is that something that just happens? You want me to drop this? How? We’re going to have to take her to a doctor most likely!”

Coach Yin raised both his eyebrows and asked, “What do you want me to say? I just told you. It was an accident, and accidents happen. It is very unfortunate for your player that this happened to her, but that’s really not one of my concerns. What else do you want me to say?”

“That you’re sorry!” Zeng Rui interrupted. “I want your ad-carry to say that he’s sorry for what he did to my teammate!” He turned to look at Seo and added in English, “Tell her you’re sorry!”

Seo glared at Zeng Rui and shouted back, “FUCK YOU! I told you it was an accident! Fuck off, whiny bitch!”

Coach Yin reached out to Seo and shook his head. He mouthed, “Quiet.” He then turned his head to look at Zeng Rui and glared at him before saying to Chu Fang, “Let this go, Chu Fang. The Guangzhou Esports Association invited Seo to play for us. He’s from Korea and our guest here in China. If you’re going to keep forcing this issue, there’ll be a lot more people unhappy with you than just me. Nothing happened here. Now stop making a scene. It reflects poorly on all of us.” He waved around him, showing that all of us included the fans who’d gathered around them.

The fans weren’t expecting to be pulled in like that. Nor did they like it. It was very obvious that Coach Yin insinuated that forcing this issue would reflect poorly on all Chinese people. They started voicing their disagreements.

“My big fat ass! What the fuck is wrong with you? All we want is an apology!”

“I’ve seen people getting protected before, but this? Holy shit! You guys are cunts!”

“Who the fuck cares if he’s Chinese, Korean or Dutch? He fucking shoved that girl to the ground! He needs to apologize for that! Stop fucking acting like nothing happened! WE ALL SAW IT HAPPEN!”

“Are you trying to give him immunity or something? What’s next? Are you going to say he needs to get a free win each series because he’s special like that?”

“STOP BUTTFUCKING YOUR PLAYERS!”

“Coach Yin, Coach Yin, his heart is a trash bin!”

“COACH YIN, COACH YIN, HIS HEART IS A TRASH BIN!”

Su Xue had redirected Lin Feng’s anger into care. Care for Tang Bingyao. He held her hand and lightly pushed to see where it hurt the most. She kept a straight face until he touched her pinky finger on her right hand. She grimaced and recoiled. He then inched closer to her face and searched for where the blood was coming from. It was a small cut just above her eyebrow and it had already stopped bleeding. He wiped away the blood with his shirt and then turned his head to look at Seo. His anger came rushing forth again. He slowly asked, “Are you really not going to apologize?”

Tang Bingyao tugged on Lin Feng’s arm and said, “Please, Lin Feng… I-I’m fine. I just want to go home. Let’s go back to the hotel…”

An Xin held Tang Bingyao and added, “Don’t do anything rash, Lin Feng. Please.”

“Don’t worry. I won’t,” Lin Feng assured. He let go of Tang Bingyao and walked up to Coach Yin and asked, “Your guest?”

Coach Yin frowned and replied, “Yes. He’s our guest. Treat him with some respec–”

“I’ve traveled to quite a few countries myself. The people there? They never gave me any kind of special treatment,” Lin Feng interrupted. He turned his head to look at Seo and said, “You think being a guest means the rules don’t apply to you? That you can just do whatever you want and not face the consequences? What’s next? Do we need to fall on our knees and thank you for your presence? Of course we won’t!”

Lin Feng bit on his lips and closed his eyes for a brief moment. He then opened them again and looked at Coach Yin. He continued, “Relationships aren’t one way streets! Yes, he’s a guest here and we’re the host. You’re completely right! We should be polite and welcoming. But him? That piece of shit over there?” he pointed at Seo “He should be respectful. He should be everything he’s not. And nothing of what he is. I’ve met many foreigners and I’ve become good friends with plenty of them, including Koreans. You know what they all have in common? They’re decent, better than decent human beings who know how to show each other respect. But you were talking about something reflecting poorly on us. Please, enlighten me. What exactly is reflecting poorly on us, all of us? The fact that you’re being a Class A asshole, or that he’s a Triple S-hole?”

“Y-y-you little brat!” Coach Yin yelled. His jaw trembled in rage. He pointed at Lin Feng and shouted, “Who taught you your manners!? You need to learn to respect your elders! This is no way to talk to me!”

“My parents taught me my manners,” Lin Feng countered. He looked Coach Yin in the eyes and said, “They taught me to only show respect to those who deserve it. You? You don’t. I will ask you again. Will you, both of you, apologize to my friend?”

Coach Yin was caught completely off guard by Lin Feng’s eruption. His mouth moved but there weren’t any words coming out. This gave the interpreter enough time to translate the exchange to Seo, whose expression turned progressively venomous. He glared at Lin Feng and said in English, “Fuck off! I don’t apologize to trash like her or you!”

“Alright. So be it,” Lin Feng said. He then suddenly looked Seo straight in the eyes and added, “You better hope you don’t draw us in this tournament. I’ve remembered your face, and I’ll make sure no one else will after I’m done with you.”

Chu Fang’s eyes went round. Oh crap! Don’t start threatening them! I know you mean inside the game, but not everyone knows you only think about League! He hurriedly said, “Come, come, let’s go! They’re not worth it.” He then turned around and started walking away.

“Wait,” Goalie said. He stepped out from behind Coach Yin and looked at Lin Feng. He then said through his interpreter, “You’re Team Shanghai’s Midlaner? I hope you have the skill to back up those big words.” He licked his rose lips and added, “Plus, you’ll be playing me, not Seo.”

Everyone recognized Goalie. The fans started whispering about who he was and about how high he’d climbed the Korean Challenger ladder. Even Zhang Hao couldn’t stop himself from taking a step back. Goalie was a legend at the Winter Collegiate Cup, the Guangzhou Esports Association had made sure of that. But all of this went lost on Lin Feng. He looked at Goalie, raised an eyebrow and asked, “And you are?”

Goalie’s pale face looked even paler than normal. His eyelids twitched and he clenched his fists in anger. He moved his lips, trying to fire back at Lin Feng but failing to come up with the words to do so. The silence was painful. It thundered in Goalie’s mind. He felt the stares from the fans around him. They were burning on his skin. And still no words would come from his mouth. Coach Yin eventually put a hand on his shoulder and pushed him towards the exit. He walked away with the rest of his team, still furious, still thinking about a rebuttal.

“Ooooooooh snap!”

“Holy damn! And here I thought Goalie was cocky! Hahaha!”

“What a burn! Oh my god! That must’ve hurt so bad! Oh my god!”

“Fucking satisfying as fuck! Did you see his expression!? Haha!”

“He’s still going to feel those burns tomorrow!”

✹

Team Shanghai returned to the hotel and took the elevator up to their rooms. Tang Bingyao and An Xin went to their room while the rest gathered in Lin Feng’s room. There they discussed what they were going to do the rest of the day. Chu Fang promised to lodge a complaint against Seo but warned them that the Guangzhou Esports Association was hosting the event and that odds were that nothing would come from it, and Zeng Rui briefly went into possible training sessions which all depended on how Tang Bingyao felt.

It was half an hour later that Tang Bingyao opened the hotel room door and walked in. Five pairs of eyes focused on her and everyone in the room asked, “How are you?”

Tang Bingyao smiled and said, “Mhm, I’m okay. Thanks”

An Xin frowned and interjected, “You’re not fine. The scrapes aren’t a big deal and it doesn’t look like you’ve got a concussion. But your pinky finger is not alright. That’s definitely going to affect your gameplay! You should really see a doctor for it!”

Tang Bingyao shook her head and argued, “I-it’s fine. Really! It won’t affect my gameplay too much! It’s just my right hand! I don’t need to use that finger–”

“But it will affect your gameplay,” Zeng Rui interjected. He took a deep breath, going over their options, and finally decided, “Tang Tang, you’re going to take it easy during practice tonight. I want you to rest your hand as much as possible. Hopefully it’s just a scare and you’ll feel better in the morning.”

Zhang Hao banged his fist on the table and cursed, “Fuck! It’s all Seo’s fault! That asshole wouldn’t even apologize! Tang Tang said she was fine, so I didn’t worry too much. But if I’d known this…” He raised his fist and continued, “I would’ve given him the same handicap!”

Su Xue nodded and added, “And it’s not just Seo! It’s their entire team! Their coach, interpreter, that kid that looks way too pale, all of them are scumbags!” She then turned to Lin Feng and continued, “You really got through to them at the end there, though. That was nice to see.”

Lin Feng nodded and glared at the wall. He said, “It’s nothing. I just told them the truth. If we draw them, I’ll make them regret everything they’ve done!”

“What Lin Feng says,” Zeng Rui agreed. He nodded and said, “We’ll teach them a lesson they’ll never forget.”

✹

Zeng Rui decided that Team Shanghai was going to take the afternoon off to give Tang Bingyao some time to rest. He explained to the others that a little bit of rest could do wonders and that if it didn’t, she could still go and see a doctor then. Either way, practice was off. Everyone returned to their own rooms leaving Lin Feng and Chu Fang behind.

Chu Fang closed the door and then turned around to look at Lin Feng. He frowned and said, “The Guangzhou Esports Association is always like this. They’re the most competitive out of all three main branches from the Chinese Esports Association. But they’re also unscrupulous. Winning is the only thing they care about, and it doesn’t matter how many toes they have to step on to get there. That’s also why they bought those Korean players rather than nurturing their own talents. It’s a terrible habit.” He briefly paused before adding, “That coach we met earlier? His name is Yin Wei. He’s one of the worst when it comes to that. I heard he’s also the one who went to Korea to convince both Seo and Goalie to move to China just to help him win this tournament.”

“I see,” Lin Feng said. He shook his head and chuckled. “So he’s one of those people, huh?”

Screams and shouts rang out at Exit #1 at the Tianhe Stadium. That day, there weren’t enough fans to fill the stands. But the Guangzhou Esports Association still had a broadcast to air. So they’d gathered everyone together in one section, right between Exits #1 and #2. The former was the fastest way to reach the car park and also to get to public transit, and it was also the exit through which the players left. So when the day’s matches came to an end, everyone coalesced here.

Fans hurried off the grass into the exit hallway. From up the stairs, the second group of fans flooded Exit #1. And then there were also the players from 18 teams looking to leave. They pushed into the hallway and crowded it. People couldn’t walk normally anymore. They had to slow down, speed up, jump aside. Their discomfort quickly grew into annoyance, small outbursts of aggravation happening left and right.

“Hey! Watch where you’re walking!”

“Stop pushing me!”

“Coming through! Coming through!”

“Calm down dude! Can’t you see how busy it is? Just stop shoving me!”

“My bus is leaving in five! Let me through please!”

“STOP PUSHING ME!”

Chu Fang looked over his shoulder at Tang Bingyao and Zeng Rui, then back ahead at Lin Feng and An Xin. Fuck! We’re getting split up! This is going to be annoying! He shook his head and rushed after Lin Feng, shouting, “LIN FENG! LIN FENG!”

Lin Feng scrunched his eyebrows and stopped. Two people bumped into him from behind, cursed at him and pushed past him. He ignored them and looked over his shoulder. Who’s calling my name?– Oh! Chu Fang!

“What a mess!” Chu Fang complained. He reached Lin Feng and An Xin and said, “Come, let’s go back and find the others. I don’t want to lose anyone in this big mess and we’ve already lost them! Whose brilliant idea was it to lead everyone to the same exit?”

“Yeah, there really are so many people!” Lin Feng exclaimed. “And they all look so annoyed! At us?”

An Xin rolled her eyes and replied, “Because we’re standing still in the middle of the exit. How about we do what Chu Fang says and find the others?”

“There you guys are!” Zhang Hao exclaimed. He pushed past a few more fans and then stopped next to Lin Feng before he continued, “You two were suddenly gone! It was impossible to keep up! I saw Lin Feng’s birdnest hair stick out here and…” He paused to breathe and then concluded, “that’s how I found you!”

“Hey!” Lin Feng blurted. He ruffled his hair and said, “This isn’t birdnest hair! It’s fresh out of bed!”

An Xin looked at Lin Feng and raised her eyebrow, smiling. She said, “Really? Huh, who knew! Anyway, it’s really packed here. Zhang Hao, do you know where the others are?”

Zhang Hao nodded and replied, “Yeah, they’re a bit back there.” He waved in the direction he came from.

Chu Fang looked at the trio and said, “Let’s go find them.” He then took the lead, pushing against the flow of people.

✹

The members from Team Guangzhou were also trying to leave the stadium through Exit #1. But just like everyone else, they were caught up in the jam. The coach yelled that they were the players from Team Guangzhou and to please give them some space. But everyone was screaming and complaining and no one was listening.

Goalie looked at all the people around him. I hate this. There’s too many people! He tapped on his interpreter’s shoulder and told him to walk in front of him, and to have his other teammates walk around him. They did what he asked of them, creating a small space in the crowded exit where he could walk freely. Good. This is more like it.

While the three Chinese players from Team Guangzhou were helping Goalie, Seo was off on his own grumbling. He hated it that random strangers were touching him and were bumping into him. After a particular hard shove in his back, he cursed in broken Chinese, “Get the hell out my way! Assholes!”

“Piss off, idiot!”

“You move away!”

“Hurry up already! My god! So fucking slow!”

Seo shook his head in frustration. Everywhere he looked people looked mad and annoyed. And the more he looked, the more it felt they were mad and annoyed with him. As if they were all glaring at him. The hell is wrong with all these people!? Can’t they tell it’s too busy? They should let the teams leave first and the fans come after! What idiot came up with the idea to let the teams exit with the normal people? We’re better than them! Fuck it! Fuck it all! I don’t care anymore! If they wanna shove me, I’ll shove them! He picked up his speed, broadening his shoulders and preparing for impact, and yelled, “Move! Walk faster! Legless!”

A couple of people in front of Seo were the trio Tang Bingyao, Zeng Rui and Su Xue. They were struggling to keep their feet on the ground, the wave of fans nearly lifting them off their feet and carrying them through the exit. Tang Bingyao was struggling the most with this. Everyone around her was taller and bigger. She wasn’t anywhere near strong enough to stand up to them. The best she could do was expect the push or shove and react to it in advance.

Zeng Rui glanced at Tang Bingyao every couple of seconds and asked, “Tang Tang, are you okay? Is there something I can do to help?”

Tang Bingyao looked up at Zeng Rui and nodded. She said, “Mhm! It’s fi–” A sudden shout rang out from behind her. Then she felt two hands firmly press against her back and push her forward. Huh!? Her upper body moved but her legs didn’t follow. The ground was getting closer. She reached out with her hands and they hit the stone tiles. They scraped over it as her elbows buckled and she fell. Her head banged on the ground, but it was a burning sensation on her palms that she felt first. Then came a sudden shock from her pinky finger–first from a foot standing on it and then from that foot pushing off of it.

Tears appeared in Tang Bingyao’s eyes. She pulled her hand back and caressed it closely to her chest. Another foot hit her, this time against her shoulder. I’m going to die! This is it! I’m going to die! They’re… I’ve seen this on television! People fall in a crowd and they get trampled! She instinctively wrapped her hands around her head as thick, large teardrops rolled down the side of her face onto the stone tiles on the ground. I never did tell Lin Feng…

Zeng Rui jerked his head to the side when he heard the screams. He saw a push and Tang Bingyao falling to the ground. He stopped dead in his tracks, three people bumping into him. They cursed at him, but he didn’t hear it. He pushed them aside and forced his way back to where Tang Bingyao was lying on the ground. “TANG TANG!” He reached down and grabbed her by her arm, then lifted her straight up. He said, “Tang Tang! Come on! Help me here! Stand up!”

“WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH ALL OF YOU!?” Su Xue screamed. People finally paused. They looked at her and then at Tang Bingyao. It was as if they only now realized someone had fallen. Su Xue pushed her way to Tang Bingyao and yelled, “Are you all fucking blind? Can’t you see she fell? What the fuck are you all doing? Help her up! Jesus! What’s wrong with you people?” She then turned to look at Tang Bingyao and asked, “Are you okay, Tang Tang?”

Tang Bingyao wiped away the tears from her eyes and mumbled, “I-I’m fine.”

Su Xue looked Tang Bingyao up and down and said, “How is this fine? Your knees are open, there is blood all over your face, your hands are a mess… This isn’t fine!” She grabbed Tang Bingyao and felt around her face. The blood came from a small cut on her eyebrow. She then moved down to the hands and knees, checking everything and making sure Tang Bingyao really was fine.

Zeng Rui let go of Tang Bingyao and turned his attention to the crowd that was gathering around them. He shouted, “Who did that? What idiot pushed her? Where did he go?”

“Sorry. I’m sorry,” a man apologized. He rubbed his back and continued, “Someone hit me in the back and I stumbled on my feet. I didn’t mean to shove her to the ground. It was an accident, I swear! It was the guy behind me. He shoved me!”

Zeng Rui knitted his brows. I did hear someone scream before Tang Tang did. That could be… He looked past the guy who’d just apologized and narrowed his eyes. There he spotted someone who was looking around with wide, round eyes and trying to push his way through the crowd and away from Tang Bingyao. That’s him! Zeng Rui shouted, “Hold it! Don’t even think about slipping away after what you did!”

Seo met Zeng Rui’s eyes and bit on his teeth. Dammit! SHIT! I just got a bit annoyed! It was just a little shove! This was nothing! I didn’t do anything wrong! It was just that stupid bitch’s fault for being so tiny! Fuck it! FUCK THEM ALL! I don’t deserve this! I did nothing wrong! Right. I did nothing wrong. He straightened his back and broadened his shoulders. Then he snorted. Stupid Team Shanghai. They got what they deserve.

Zeng Rui had locked onto Seo and recognized him right away. He narrowed his eyes and he said in English, “So it was you, Seo.”

“What do you want?” Seo asked in English.

“What do I want? What do I want!?” Zeng Rui said. He looked at Seo and continued, “You just pushed someone! Tang Tang here could’ve been seriously hurt! And you just want to leave?”

Seo briefly paused, considered his options, then shrugged and replied, “Did you see me push anyone? I didn’t. It was busy, very crowded here. I was just trying to stay my ground, like everyone else. Are you telling me I can’t do that?”

The man who bumped into Tang Bingyao glared at Seo and shouted, “Dude! You were literally just behind me! You fucking pushed me! What are you lying about? It was clearly you! Everyone here saw you do it!”

There was a growing group of people who’d stopped trying to leave the Tianhe Stadium and had gathered in a circle around Tang Bingyao and the others. They started whispering, murmuring, growing louder and louder as they tried for their voices to be heard.

“Isn’t that guy they’re pointing at the ad-carry from Team Guangzhou?”

“He definitely is. I think he’s the only one with that colour hair!”

“Can’t you see? He’s obviously Korean. There are like only two in the entire tournament!”

“And he shoved that girl? Jesus! What a fucking asshole!”

“Some people…”

“Can’t believe he won’t even admit it. What a piece of shit!”

“It not my fault!” Seo shouted in his broken Chinese. He didn’t understand the language perfectly. But the fingers pointing at him and the tone in which the people were talking said plenty. He knew they were blaming him. He shook his head and said in broken Chinese, “Someone push me! From behind. Not my fault. Accident!”

Zeng Rui snorted and replied, “That’s why you were trying to run away, right? Because you are innocent. That’s what all innocent people do. They run away from the crime.”

Seo glared at Zeng Rui and said in English, “I told you, it was an accident. I can’t help it if you don’t believe me. That’s very much a you problem. Now piss off!” He flicked his hair and smiled at the people who’d gathered around him in what he believed to be a show of his innocence. Why does this guy have to make such a big deal out of it? Nothing happened! Plus it’s her own fault for not eating enough. If she had just a bit more meat to her bone, she wouldn’t have fallen there! Or she could’ve gone after the initial group of people left! Yeah, this isn’t my fault! It’s her fault! She shouldn’t have been there!

Zeng Rui took a long, deep breath. He then looked Seo in the eyes and said, “I want you to apologize to my friend.”

Seo snorted. He asked, “Apologize? For what? I didn’t do anything! It was an accident! I told you that! Or is your English so bad that I need to repeat it for you? Maybe you’re just deaf! Go back to school or something!”

“Seo,” Goalie said. He’d finally arrived with the rest from Team Guangzhou. He continued in Korean, “What’s going on?”

Seo nodded at Zeng Rui and replied in Korean, “This idiot is bitching about an accident. Says he wants me to apologize. I told him I didn’t do anything wrong, but he just keeps bitching about it!”

Goalie listened and then shrugged. He turned to his interpreter and said, “Tell the coach he can handle this. It’s not worth our time.” He then looked at Seo and added, “Those kids are just scared of how good we are. They know they can’t beat us on the Rift, so they’re trying to get us disqualified. Don’t let it get to you.”

Team Guangzhou’s coach listened to a quick explanation from the interpreter and then turned to look at Zeng Rui. He said, “Seo explained to us that it was an accident. It was crowded. Things happen. No one meant it. How about we just drop this and move on?”

“An accident?” Zeng Rui asked, laughing incredulously. He continued, “Did you see it happen? It’s like me punching you in the face right now and then calling it an ‘accident’!”

“Hey, that’s not how you talk to me,” Team Guangzhou’s coach interjected. He said, “Seo explained what happened. He wouldn’t lie. I say we put an end to this charade and move on with our day.”

Su Xue had been standing to the side, tending to Tang Bingyao rather than arguing with Seo. But she’d heard it all, and she’d had enough. She pointed at Team Guangzhou’s coach and yelled, “Put an end to it? What’s wrong with you! Your guy screwed up! He pushed her to the ground! All we asked for is an apology and that’s too much?”

Team Guangzhou’s coach looked at Su Xue and said, “Seo is a special guest from Korea. Are you really going to do this? Make his first experience in China terrible by accusing him of something he didn’t even do? He got pushed, lost his balance, and in the process your little girl fell. Boohoo. Now let’s all be civil here and stop making a scene.”

Zeng Rui stared at Team Guangzhou’s coach, incredulous. Boohoo, be civil? What…? Anger was bubbling within him, metaphorical steam rising from his head. He was about to explode when a voice sounded out behind him.

“Sorry! Make way! Make way! Coming through! Let me through!” Lin Feng yelled as he pushed through the crowd, leading An Xin, Chu Fang and Zhang Hao to Tang Bingyao.

When they got inside the circle that had formed around Tang Bingyao, An Xin rushed up to her friend and asked, “Tang Tang, what happened?”

Tang Bingyao wiped her eyes with her sleeve again and took a deep breath. She then pointed at Seo and said, “He pushed the guy behind me who then bumped into me and I fell to the ground…”

Lin Feng looked around at the situation, half-listening to Tang Bingyao until she said she’d fallen on the ground. He finally turned to look at her and noticed everything that was wrong. The scrapes on her knees, the blood on her face and hands, and the way that she was holding her pinky finger. A jolt went through him. Like the shock of being stabbed–or the feeling of suddenly coming awake in an unfamiliar place, frightened by a sudden noise. A visceral clenching of the stomach. A sudden racing of the heart. Every piece of you alert, looking for justice. He said in a voice unlike his own, cold and forced, “What did he do?”

Lin Feng flicked his mouse and pressed a quick combination of keys on the laptop’s keyboard. An Xin’s question barely registered in his mind, and the hesitation in her voice escaped him entirely. He had his Ryze kill another minion while also dodging a skillshot from Ezreal and then said, “Yeah. Didn’t you say you liked the Ashe plushy? That’s why I wanted to get you it.”

An Xin stared at Lin Feng, her eyes round and wide. She chewed on her lips, hesitating, and eventually mumbled, “I just kinda said it…”

“But I promised you I’d get it, so I have to get it,” Lin Feng replied, his gaze locked on his monitor.

An Xin felt the corners of her lips tugging upwards. She put her hand on Lin Feng’s shoulder and rested her head on it, her heart racing in her chest. You idiot. Only when you’re playing League do you not have the spare space of mind to think of something stupid to say. She took a deep breath and said, “I would’ve really liked it–”

“Ah! So close! Damn delay!” Lin Feng exclaimed. His Ryze had just hit Level 6. He’d activated his ultimate and engaged on the Ezreal. But there was a short delay between each of his skill activations. He got the initial root on Ezreal, but the subsequent gap meant that he couldn’t complete his usual damage combo before the root broke and Ezreal flashed away. Lin Feng shook his head and focused back on farming minions. He then replied to An Xin, “Yeah. I really tried too. Just isn’t my day I think. Look at how I’m playing! It’s so bad…”

“You big idiot,” An Xin said, her voice soft.

Lin Feng glanced at An Xin and he yelped, “Hey! What are you doing!? Why are you leaning on me! And why am I an idiot? What did I do!?”

An Xin sat up straight again and narrowed her eyes a bit. She replied, “You’re a big idiot because I say you are. What? Are you going to tell me I can’t call you a big idiot?”

“You’re bullying me! You’re a bully!” Lin Feng exclaimed.

“So what? Are you gonna stop me?” An Xin asked.

Lin Feng looked at An Xin and suddenly chuckled. He nodded at his laptop and said, “Want to duo with me? The net here is so bad… It’d be way easier to carry these games together!”

“No way!” An Xin replied. She shook her head and added, “I already took a shower. I’m going to bed soon.”

Lin Feng recoiled in surprise. He mumbled, “Showering? What does that have to do with League? Can you only play it dirty?”

“It’s got everything to do with League and with everything!” An Xin replied. She wagged her finger at Lin Feng and continued, “After I shower I go to bed! That’s just how it works! Speaking of which, you should also go to bed. We still have to get up early tomorrow to watch the two games!”

“I’m fine, I’m fine!” Lin Feng said, waving An Xin’s suggestions away. He looked at her, searched her body, then scratched the back of his head and asked, “I thought you brought your laptop? Where is it? Go and get it! Let’s play a game! Just the one!”

“Nope!” An Xin said. She crossed her arms and added, “Don’t wanna!”

✹

Zhang Hao looked at the wall separating his room from Lin Feng’s room and chuckled. He turned to look at Zeng Rui and Chu Fang and said, “Wow! Those two are really going at it.” He briefly paused before adding, “Again.”

Zeng Rui knitted his brows and noted, “Are they talking about duo queuing? Are they playing League? Why?”

“They always remind me of a married couple…” Zhang Hao mumbled. He looked at Chu Fang and asked, “They’re childhood friends, right? Have they always been like this?”

Chu Fang nodded and replied, “Yes. They met in kindergarten or something. But I only met them back in Season 1. Lin Feng was, well, Maple. Team captain and Midlaner of his team. BunBun was the coach.” Chu Fang chuckled as he thought back to those times. He continued, “Those two would argue like this all the time back then. We always joked about how they were like a married couple. I guess some things never change.”

Zhang Hao laughed and said, “I know right! When we first met them, well like met them, you know? Not when we played them in the school tournament but when we got onto the same team. When we met them then, Zeng Rui and I both thought that they were a couple!” He scratched his head and added, “And then we’ve got Tang Tang added into the mix…”

Zeng Rui nodded, staring at the wall. Those three and their weird love triangle… I just hope there won’t be any broken hearts during this tournament. I don’t want them suddenly playing poorly. But it’s been going well so far. I’m sure they can keep going for a bit longer. All they have to do is not fight! Like they are… He chewed on his lips. It’s so hard to tell if they’re actually mad with each other or just messing around! BunBun slaps him all the time too… So annoying! I wish they would just make a decision already.

Chu Fang chuckled and replied, “Tang Tang is also falling for Lin Feng? That boy sure is lucky. I wonder who he’s going to choose. Or if he ends up marrying the game.” He laughed for a bit before adding, “Probably the last one.”

✹

It was early the next morning. Su Xue walked out of her hotel room and took the elevator down to the floor where Lin Feng and them were. When the doors opened, she heard screams coming from the far end of the hallway. She scrunched her eyebrows and followed the sounds. Is that… Lin Feng? What’s gotten into him?

“I don’t wanna get up! Why do we have to get up so early to watch these matches? Can’t we just watch the replays later? We aren’t even playing! I’m tired! Let me sleep! I just wanna sleep for another 15 minutes! I’ll join you guys later!” Lin Feng cried out. He grabbed his covers and pulled them over his head before continuing to shout, “Just go without me! It won’t make a difference anyway! I’ll carry you guys to the next round!”

Su Xue walked into the room and saw everyone gathered around Lin Feng’s bed. An Xin was trying to pull the sheets off and telling Tang Bingyao to go get a basin filled with cold water. Tang Bingyao in turn stood there, stuck in place, hesitating. Su Xue looked at Zhang Hao and asked, “What’s going on…?”

“He won’t get up,” Zeng Rui replied. “Played League all night and now…” He shook his head.

“Oh! Here, let me,” Su Xue said. She brushed past Tang Bingyao and stopped next to Lin Feng. His head pushed against the blanket. She tapped there and asked, “Hey, Lin Feng? Do you want me to go and get a cleaver from the kitchen?”

“I’m up! I’M UP!” Lin Feng shouted. He let go of the blanket, causing An Xin to lose her balance. But he ignored her curses as he jumped out of bed and pushed past Tang Bingyao to the bathroom. “I’ll be ready in a minute! Just a minute!”

The others from Team Shanghai turned to look at Su Xue, surprised. She scratched her head in response and explained, “He doesn’t like to go to school either…”

✹

Team Shanghai ran up the walkway to the Tianhe Stadium half an hour later. Zeng Rui took the lead, yelling over his shoulder that they were going to be late and that the first game was starting in only a couple of minutes. At the back, lagging a good bit behind the rest, Lin Feng complained that he was still tired and that he wanted to go back to bed.

Su Xue paused and waited for Lin Feng to catch up to her. She then walked next to him and said, “Who told you to stay up so late? I keep telling you you have to go to bed earlier! It’s like this every morning! Here.” She gave Lin Feng a steamed meat bun and added, “You always forget to eat in the morning, somehow. You’re lucky you’ve got me.”

Lin Feng grabbed the bun from Su Xue and sunk his teeth into it. He chewed on it and swallowed it, letting everyone hear his satisfaction. When he’d worked away the food, he looked at Su Xue and grumbled, “I still don’t get what’s so important about these matches. Why do we have to watch them? I won’t learn anything from watching them play! It’s a waste of time!”

Zeng Rui stopped at the entrance to the stadium and turned around to look at Lin Feng. He said, “We will learn from watching them play. We’ll know their tactics, which we can use in later rounds. Now hurry up.” He then walked into the stadium straight to their seats in the player seating area.

The Tianhe Stadium wasn’t even half-filled. Lin Feng looked around the stands and complained, “Even the fans aren’t here! No one cares about these two matches! They’re between four bad teams!”

“There are no bad teams. Now sit down and shut up. We’re going to watch,” Zeng Rui concluded. He sat down and looked up at the large LCD screen. It was showing the Champion Select for the first game.

✹

The player seating area was almost entirely full. Every team competing had come to watch this ‘in-between’ round in which the remaining 18 teams were reduced to 16. More specifically, they’d come to find out who they might play in the next round. Any and every bit of information could help them find the perfect tactic and strategy to beat their next opponent. So too Zhejiang University.

Zuo Cheng looked at his teammates and said, “I just hope we don’t end up facing Team Shanghai. That Lin Feng…” He shook his head and continued, “Anyone else and we’ll be fine. But them? No.”

“Yep,” Sun Ruinian replied. He nodded and added, “It’d be some really bad luck if we have to play them. Our scrimmages against them were plenty proof of that.”

“I know!” Zuo Cheng exclaimed. “That Lin Feng! I don’t think I even went even against him in a single match! Even when I got help, I still lost! The way he plays… I don’t know. There’s just something about it that makes it impossible to play against! And it looks so easy, right? It doesn’t look all that special! Until you have to play against him. Then you suddenly realize that it’s impossible to beat him…”

“You think he’s better than Goalie and Yu Ping? Those two from Team Guangzhou and Team Beijing?” Zhejiang’s Jungler asked.

Zuo Cheng nodded and replied, “Definitely. 1,000,000 per cent!”

Sun Ruinian smiled bitterly and chimed in, “He did beat Shi Hang… Honestly, I’d rather face U-Tech Beijing or one of the other big ones than any of the three high school teams. Those kids are just insane!”

✹

The players from Fudan University were also watching the games at the Tianhe Stadium. They were in quiet discussion about the teams they could draw for the next round and which ones they wanted to play against. Their team captain, Qiu Yijie, didn’t participate in this discussion. He wasn’t even listening. He stared past his teammates at the group from Team Shanghai. At their Midlaner. Lin Feng.

Qiu Yijie had received a call from Aurous a couple of days ago. Aurous was also a student at Fudan University and had played on the university’s esports team before going professional. He told me to be careful about Team Shanghai. That we should pray that we don’t meet them and that if we do that we have to give it our all… And that the rest depends on luck… What was that about? We beat Team Shanghai in the East China Regionals finals. I know they didn’t look quite on their game, and their Midlaner was sniffing, maybe sick, but that can’t make that much of a difference, right?

“Yo, Captain, what do you think? You wanna play Team Shanghai?” Fudan’s Toplaner asked.

Qiu Yijie looked at his teammates and shook his head. He replied, “No. Aurous sounded serious. He wouldn’t tell me why, or rather he said that he didn’t know either. But he did say that Shi Hang knows something and that it has to do with Team Shanghai’s Midlaner. There is something about that kid. I’m not sure if we want to find out what that is by playing against them. Let’s just hope we don’t see them again until we reach the finals.” He turned his head to look back at Lin Feng again. Aurous said that Shi Hang values the kid higher than he does Aurous! That’s just… What’s so special about that kid? He glanced at the players from Team Guangzhou and then the players from Team Beijing. I thought those two teams were going to be strongest at this tournament, but from the way Aurous was talking… I don’t know what to think anymore. He took a long, deep breath. If Aurous takes the effort to call me just to warn me about this Lin Feng… Yeah. That’s serious. I’ll take him seriously. We’re going to be watching Team Shanghai.

✹

The other university teams still competing didn’t have the information the players from Zhejiang University and Fudan University had. They judged Team Shanghai on the games they’d seen and concluded that Team Guangzhou and Team Beijing were simply better. But there was one thing everyone agreed on. The high school teams weren’t here to gain experience, they’d come to win.

Fan Yuan was the coach for Team Beijing. He looked at his players and said, “It’s best if we don’t meet Team Guangzhou this early on in the tournament. We’re a strong team, true. But with their two Korean imports, they’re really strong too. I rate them at at least A grade. They’ve also got the home field advantage. The crowd basically counts as the 6th man on their roster.” He paused briefly and then continued, “But if we do end up drawing them, I want you guys to be careful. Any other team, you guys can do whatever. But against Team Guangzhou, I want you guys to be careful.”

Zhang Hongyi, Support for Team Beijing, nodded and replied, “There’s no way they’ll make the real finals match happen this early. I just hope we get matched up against Team Shanghai.” He looked towards Team Shanghai’s section in the player seating area. He then sneered and added, “I’m itching to knock those noobs out.”

There was a similar conversation happening in Team Guangzhou’s camp. Team Guangzhou’s coach got the attention of the players and said, “Your only real opponent in this tournament is Team Beijing. They’ve been hiding their best players, so we don’t even know just how strong they are. I don’t want you guys to hold anything back against them!” He then chuckled and added, “I, of course, have complete confidence in our team. I don’t think Goalie and Seo won’t have any problems carrying us to an easy win. Still, I’d rather we draw a weak opponent for the next round.”

Goalie grinned and replied, “No need to worry. All teams here are weak.”

Seo nodded and mumbled, “Yeah.” He then looked in the direction of Team Shanghai, narrowing his eyes. He slowly said, “I just hope that the weak opponent is Team Shanghai. Getting rid of a high school team will be great for the Guangzhou Esports Association, and that team is the obvious first target. I’ll stomp them! Easy win for us!”

✹

Lin Feng listened to Zeng Rui explaining to the rest of the team that they didn’t want to face Team Guangzhou or Team Beijing in the next round. He scratched the back of his head, confused. A few minutes later, he couldn’t keep listening any longer. He asked, “Why are you worrying so much about playing them in the next round? We’re going to win the whole tournament, so we’ll play them at some point anyway. Why not just get them out of the way?”

Zeng Rui sighed loudly and explained, “Because if we play against an easier opponent now, we can hide more of our tactics for stronger opponents at a later stage of the tournament. For example, if Team Beijing and Team Guangzhou get matches against each other, we only have to beat one of them. That’s one less opponent for us to make a specialized tactic for. Then there’s also–”

“Who cares! We’ll win anyway!” Lin Feng interrupted. He pumped his fist in the air and added, “You guys have got me!”

An Xin giggled and said, “When you talk like that, we only start to worry more.”

Tang Bingyao nodded and said, “Mhm! What BunBun says.”

“Hey! What does that mean!?” Lin Feng exclaimed.

Su Xue rolled her eyes and explained, “That whenever you go off on one of your rants, you end up screwing up something. That’s the joke… and the truth. God, this really isn’t any fun when you’ve got to explain it. Just laugh next time!”

✹

The two matches finished at noon. Lin Feng was already itching on the edge of his seat, rubbing his stomach and shouting, “Let’s go! It’s lunch time! I’m hungry! There’s this restaurant that Fatty and I talked about that has the perfect lunch for when you’re really hungry! Their sizes are the biggest in all of Guangzhou!”

Su Xue looked at Lin Feng, speechless, and finally muttered, “But I got you several meat buns already… How are you hungry again?”

“I just am!” Lin Feng exclaimed. He got up from his seat and started walking towards the exit, just like everyone else in the stadium. Su Xue got up in practiced motion and followed closely behind him, as did Chu Fang. But the others weren’t as fast. Chu Fang looked over his shoulder and saw them mixed with several other teams. He then turned to look at the other seats on the grass and the stands above. Everyone was being led to the same exit. Shit! It’s going to get way too crowded! He shouted after Lin Feng, “Hey! LIN FENG! Slow down! Wait for the others! It’s going to get really crowded! Let’s go as a group!”

Seo trailed behind his teammates as he walked down the stage at the Tianhe Stadium. His gaze was locked on Tang Bingyao and An Xin. He slowly went down the steps while scratching his throat and smiling. I’ll get you two bitches! You’re dead! Both of you! When we play, I’ma show you what it means to be a Korean Challenger! You’re gonna learn why everyone says we’re the best! And then… His smile grew wider. Then I’ll have you beg on your knees for me to take you!

Lin Feng sat with his teammates in the player seating area. He’d been looking at Goalie’s pale face, excited. Now he glanced behind Team Guangzhou’s Midlaner at the rest of their team, until he finally noticed Seo. He scrunched his eyebrows and said, “What’s that guy doing? Does he have an itch or something? And why’s he smiling like that at us? He looks like a creep!”

Tang Bingyao nodded and mumbled, “Mhm!”

“He’s Team Guangzhou’s ad-carry. Seo,” An Xin explained, smiling. She then turned her head to look at Lin Feng and added, “But don’t worry about him. You just focus on Goalie.”

Lin Feng nodded slowly. Then he clenched his fist and pumped it up in the air. He shouted, “No need! He’s clearly challenging us! I’ll take his challenge! I’m going to stomp Goalie and him both! Actually…” he ruffled his hair. “… I can play ad-carry too. There’s something about his face… I just wanna stomp him!”

“No,” Zeng Rui interjected.

“What Zeng Rui says,” An Xin said. She then turned her head to look at Tang Bingyao and asked, “You want to beat him, right?”

“MHM!” Tang Bingyao replied, nodding fervently. She stared at Seo and narrowed her eyes. I’ll show him! Mhm! His Korean Challenger status doesn’t mean anything! I’m better than that!

Zeng Rui massaged his temples and sighed. That Seo is definitely better than Tang Tang. But not by much, and Tang Tang is getting better. If she has a good game, anything is possible! More importantly, their Support is B+ at best judging from these two games. That’s far worse than me. Worst case, we go even in lane. Best case, BunBun comes around for a gank and we carry the entire game before the thundering dumbass can! He took a long, deep breath and said, “Bot is for me and Tang Tang to worry about. You stay away from it.”

Lin Feng scratched the back of his head and mumbled, “Are you guys sure? I mean… I can ad-carry a game. I’m really good at–”

“SHUT IT!” An Xin yelped. She glared at Lin Feng and lectured, “Goalie is Team Guangzhou’s best player. By far! You’re going to focus on the mid lane and beat him! I don’t want to hear another word about bot coming from you! Mid! MID!”

“Ok, ok!” Lin Feng replied.

✹

Team Shanghai had dinner at the third ranked restaurant on the list Lin Feng and Fatty had created. The main reason for this high ranking was the chicken cutlet, a must have dish for any restaurant Lin Feng visited. He ordered it as hors d’oeuvre, appetizer, salad, main course and dessert. And when the waiter came around to ask if they were enjoying the food, he asked if his main course portion could be bigger and if they could add a scoop of chicken cutlet flavoured ice with the chicken cutlet.

No one else was especially hungry watching Lin Feng eat. They prodded their food with their chopsticks and took a couple of small bits. When Chu Fang’s phone vibrated, he gladfully grabbed it and checked it. His eyes lit up as he read the message. He then looked up at the team members from Team Shanghai and said, “I just got a message from the organizers. We are not drawn for the next round, which means we get to skip straight to the Round of 16!”

Zeng Rui nodded and said, “The four teams that got drawn will play tomorrow–”

“AWESOME!” Lin Feng exclaimed. He grinned and said, “That means we’re free the whole day tomorrow! We can go and explore Guangzhou! I can get the Ashe plushy! And there’s still so many restaurants I have to visit! You know this is only the second best chicken cutlet place!?”

Zeng Rui’s eyes grew wide. Calm, calm. He said through gritted teeth, “Stop. Even if we don’t play, we’re still going to watch the teams that do. And I also want to get in some practice. There won’t be much free time.”

Su Xue’s phone started buzzing and flashing with lights, pulling everyone’s attention towards it. She grabbed it from the table and looked at the message. She then sighed and complained, “That was a message from Huya… They’re saying that I have to wait another day. They’ll tell me when the match ups for the next round are announced. So tomorrow afternoon I think?” She groaned. Just get it over with! Make this suffering end! If you’re going to make me cast some game between two teams I don’t know, just tell me so I can start cramming! I’ll learn their players and their champions and the way they play and with Lin Feng I can ask him questions and then maybe I won’t… Argh!

✹

Lin Feng dragged everyone out of the restaurant and down a busy street. He’d spent the last 10 minutes convincing them that they could take a night off and that they could continue practicing the next day. He argued that a rest day was just as important, if not more important than a training day. It was when An Xin nodded to this argument that Zeng Rui accepted that they wouldn’t go practice with Zhejiang University again.

Lin Feng looked around him at the buildings rising high up into the sky. I think it was left here, or right? Uhm… He glanced over his shoulder at An Xin, who smiled and pointed right with her head. He grinned and shouted, “We’re turning right here! It’s right over here!”

The group walked into the commercial district of Guangzhou. There were shops on both sides of the street. Vendors were announcing their goods and flashy boards drew many eyes. But Lin Feng ignored all of this. He walked straight towards a small shop at the far end of the street. Outside of the shop stood a claw machine with League of Legends plushies inside.

Zeng Rui shook his head and asked, “Did we really skip training so that you could get a plushy…?”

“Wow…” Su Xue mumbled. She looked at Lin Feng and asked, “How old are you? Are you really this excited about a claw machine…?”

Lin Feng wasn’t listening to what the others said. He grabbed a bill from his pocket and waved it in the air. He said, “I came prepared! I brought enough for 10 tries! That Ashe is mine!”

The group gathered around the claw machine and watched Lin Feng operate the machine. They watched him grab nothing, grab one of the few plushies that wasn’t League of Legends themed and grab two League of Legends themed plushies. But neither was Ashe. They then saw his shoulders drop, his smile turning upside down.

Lin Feng let his head drop forward and quietly asked, “Any of you guys got some spare change?”

Zhang Hao shook his head, Zeng Rui ignored Lin Feng and walked over to Chu Fang to discuss something related to the Winter Collegiate Cup and An Xin just shook her head. Su Xue pulled out some money and smiled. But she didn’t let Lin Feng play. She pushed him aside and gave the machine a try herself. She failed at both her attempts and gave up. Finally, there was just Tang Bingyao left. Lin Feng looked at her, expectantly.

Tang Bingyao looked at Lin Feng and pushed her lips together. He really seems to want this. And I’ve got… She grabbed her purse and checked how much money she had left. I still have a bit. Should I…? She glanced at Lin Feng and saw the hope in his eyes. She bit on her lips, something swirling in her stomach. Mhm. For him. She took out the money and said, “Here. This is all I have.”

“Thanks!” Lin Feng exclaimed. He grabbed the money and added, “I’ll get you one!”

Lin Feng failed the first time. And the second time. But on his third attempt he got a League of Legends themed plushy. It was a small Lulu. He grabbed it, frowning. Sulking. He gave it to Tang Bingyao and muttered, “Here…”

Su Xue looked at Lin Feng with large eyes and said, “Woah! Nice! You got four of them! I never get any from these stupid machines! Those claws are rigged!”

Lin Feng frowned and complained, “But I didn’t get the Ashe. I really wanted the Ashe…”

Zhang Hao leaned in for a closer look and said, “You were trying to get the Ashe? Dude… She’s in the corner! Those are impossible to grab! You’re never going to get that one!”

Tang Bingyao stepped closer and looked through the glass panels into the claw machine and nodded. She said, “Mhm. Zhang Hao is right. You can’t get that one.”

“Really?” Lin Feng asked. He kicked against the machine and complained, “That’s the only one I wanted…”

An Xin shook her head. That idiot. Why is he still thinking about that? I told him it’s fine! She breathed out loudly and said, “Let’s look around some more! There is so much to do here!”

✹

Lin Feng had forgotten about the Ashe plushy shortly after leaving the claw machine behind and spent the next hour having fun with his teammates. Now, back at the hotel, he was entering his gaming mode. He looked at Chu Fang and asked, “Do you have a laptop for me? I need to rank.”

“Rank? Now? Isn’t it about time to go to bed?” Chu Fang replied, confused. He added, “Weren’t you the one saying you guys needed a rest day? You were whining about it every second you didn’t have food in your mouth during dinner!”

“For the team, yeah,” Lin Feng said. He shrugged and added, “But I made a promise to One and I will keep it. If I don’t, he’ll get mad at me again.”

“One?” Chu Fang blurted. He stared at Lin Feng and repeated, “One?”

Lin Feng nodded and said, “Yeah, One! I promised to climb the Korean ladder. Do you have a laptop for me?”

“Yeah, yeah I do,” Chu Fang replied. He walked over to his suitcase and retrieved a laptop from it. Promised to climb the Korean ladder? What does he want Lin Feng to do? Get to Challenger? No, that’s too easy, right? This is One! The best player ever! He won’t be satisfied with Challenger. How high does he want Lin Feng to go…?

Lin Feng grabbed the laptop from Chu Fang and sat it down on the table. He then sat down behind it and booted it up. The screen flashed to life and he was already moving the mouse to start the League of Legends client.

Chu Fang sat down next to Lin Feng and looked at the screen. At the username Lin Feng typed out. CN•HOOK2? Oh shit! That’s… He said, “That’s One’s account!”

“Yup!” Lin Feng replied. He glanced at Chu Fang and continued, “One is lending me his account. But he told me the account is mine if I can get it to top 5 in Korean Challenger!”

“Top 5?” Chu Fang muttered, his eyes wide in shock. “That’s insane! I don’t think there’s a single Chinese player who’s ever managed to get to the Top 5 yet! We’ve had a few who got high up there, but Top 5? That’s right next to… next to him.”

Lin Feng scratched the back of his head and said, “I think it’s doable. The only big constraint is time. There isn’t much time left.”

“Is that so…” Chu Fang replied. He chuckled and shook his head. Other Chinese players are all talking about their skill and how it’s too hard to get to the Top 5, yet this kid here is talking like it’s just a matter of time… Well, then again he is Maple. If anyone is good enough to get that high, it’s him. And with how far he’s already come… He might really get up there! How amazing would that be!? We can finally make those Koreans shut up for once! Show them that we’ve also got some really good players!

✹

Lin Feng played on the Korean server from China. From a hotel. The internet wasn’t great and the distance meant that the connection was always going to be worse. He played with a rather high latency. But he didn’t let that get to him. He played Ryze, a Champion that didn’t rely on skillshots, and won the first game with great ease. He mumbled, “Not great, but I can make this work. Just a bit of lag. I’ll just ignore it.” He then clicked on the Play button and queued up for a second game.

A soft knocking sound came from the door. Lin Feng glanced over and said, “Chu Fang, can you check who it is?”

Chu Fang grinned. Delegating, huh? He said, “Yes, sir!” Then got up from his chair and opened the door to An Xin.

An Xin had just gotten out of the shower. Her hair was still damp and she smelled of lavender. She wore the hotel’s bathrobe and a pair of slippers. She smiled at Chu Fang and said, “Hi!”

“BunBun?” Chu Fang said, surprised. “You’re not sleeping either?”

An Xin giggled and replied, “I just got out of the shower. Tang Tang is already sleeping and I’m not feeling tired yet, so I figured I’d come and see if you guys were still up.” She pointed past Chu Fang at Lin Feng and added, “That guy never sleeps.”

Chu Fang chuckled and said, “That sounds about right.” He then nodded at Lin Feng and continued, “He just got into another game. You join him. I’ll go walk down the hallways for a bit.”

An Xin’s eyes went round and her cheeks burned red hot. She yelped, “Chu Fang!”

Chu Fang just grinned and brushed past An Xin. He said over his shoulder, “You two have fun. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do!”

“Yeah, See you,” Lin Feng said, absentmindedly. His focus was on his monitor, which was displaying Champion Select.

An Xin closed the door of the room behind her and walked up to Lin Feng. She looked over his shoulder at the screen and asked, “What are you doing? Playing ranked?”

Lin Feng nodded and replied, “Yeah. Getting into my second game.”

“Oh?” An Xin mumbled. She pointed at the Korean characters on the client and asked, “Is this the Korean server? And that name… Wait, this is One’s account! You’re still doing that?”

“Yeah,” Lin Feng replied. He then shook his head and grumbled, “The internet here sucks though. It’s almost impossible to play with this ping!”

An Xin sat down next to Lin Feng and replied, “Take it as a handicap. It’ll be good training for you.”

“But it makes climbing so much harder,” Lin Feng argued.

“But it’s good for you,” An Xin argued back.

Lin Feng glanced at her and started, “But–” But stopped when he saw her shaking her head. He bit on his lips, holding back the arguments that were appearing in his mind, and finally asked, “Right, didn’t Five give you her account? Did you play on it yet? I’ve checked it a few times, but I never see you on it. I think I’ve got you on my friendslist too!”

“Uhh…” An Xin muttered, caught off guard. I still didn’t tell him about my… condition. It’s been okay lately, but I really can’t do anything extra, like playing on that account. Do I… She closed her eyes and said, “The internet at home is pretty bad lately. I can’t play with that much ping.”

“Damn internet,” Lin Feng replied. He shook his head and continued, “If only it would work like it should for once! If it wasn’t for my promise to One, I wouldn’t be forcing through this damn ping either! Like, look at that! It’s over a hundred!”

“Are you going to complain about that all game long?” An Xin asked.

Lin Feng nodded and said, “Probably, yeah. Look at that ping! Would you not? I’m telling you, I can stomp this Ezreal without this latency. But now? Now I’ll have to actually try to stomp him!”

An Xin watched Lin Feng’s Ryze walk from the fountain to the lane. Watched him land every single last hit, despite the high latency, and saw how he was forcing the Ezreal back. He’s still too good. Except earlier… She turned her head to look at Lin Feng and paused. He was trying so hard for that Ashe… She finally said, “Lin Feng?”

“Hmm?” Lin Feng replied.

An Xin took a deep breath and then asked, “At the claw machine earlier, were you doing that for me? Getting the Ashe, I mean.”