The last two seasons of League of Legends had some interesting lore between China and Korea. No player from China had managed to climb into the ranks of the Top 10 on the Korean Challenger Ladder. It had turned into a pride-motivated gauntlet for Chinese players. A few players had come close, but no one had ever shattered that ceiling. At least, no one that the League fans and enthusiasts in China had heard about.

Then came CN•HOOK2. When he first started to climb, it generated some mild interest. But nothing significant. Over the years, others had started out strong and fizzled out as they got closer and closer to that impenetrable ceiling. But then something new happened. CN•HOOK2 didn’t slow down at all. If anything, he accelerated as he moved through the Korean Challenger Ladder. Faster and faster, until he was pressed up against that ceiling at Rank 11. A single step away from making it into the Top 10. That got everyone’s attention. There was suddenly a Chinese player who had a realistic shot at breaking into the Top 10 of the Korean Challenger Ladder. The first one in two seasons! This charged up every League fan in China and filled them with sweet anticipation!

CN•HOOK2 smashing through the ceiling was the cherry on top of this already exciting day. AyDeeCee’s LeBlanc earlier in the day was enough to get most of the fans hyped. Regardless where they felt he belonged on the tier list, he was another strong Midlaner. That was enough to make everyone happy and excited. Another strong Midlaner meant that the LPL as a whole would be stronger.

A stronger LPL could do much better and prove that China was a region to be feared on the world stage when they clashed against North America, Europe and Korea! And that’s what made CN•HOOK2’s climb even more exciting and worthy of attention. The match between HoG and Team Rapids was only a clash between two domestic teams.

CN•HOOK2, on the other hand, was single-handedly challenging the dominance of the Koreans! He was taking on some of the strongest players in the world and winning! And now he would be facing the current crop of the best players in the world in an attempt to plant China’s flag atop that mountain!

This wasn’t just a single guy climbing to the top of an ELO ladder for the Chinese fans. This was a battle of David against an army of Goliaths!

✹

But there was more to the story of CN•HOOK2. Obviously, there was some regional pride tied into it. And everyone wanted to see an underdog win. But there was an aura of mystery surrounding the player behind the moniker of CN•HOOK2. No one knew who he was beyond the Rift. No one knew where he had come from, what his goal was, or anything else about him beyond what was available on the CN•HOOK2 profile page. He had simply appeared and started climbing. In the beginning, his climb was a passing rumor. Then it gained steam and interest. But more people watching and talking about CN•HOOK2 provided no new answers. Just more speculation.

It was a hotly debated topic on the Chinese League of Legends forums. Fans poured over highlight videos and tried to determine who he was by comparing his decision-making and playstyle to other well-known players. Others attempted to dissect CN•HOOK2’s in-game messages to find clues to his identity. There were countless theories, blind guesses, and confidently incorrect statements made. Entire video channels had popped up to discuss the theories, conspiracies, and recap all the posts that were made on the various channels. It was also a constantly featured segment for streamers on HuyaTV. But no one had come close to unmasking CN•HOOK2’s identity. 

One of the streamers determined to discover the truth of CN•HOOK2 was Lightless Heart. He felt that he was on the edge of discovering the truth and blowing the whole mystery wide open.

At 7:03 PM, Lightless Heart went live on his stream. But he wasn’t planning on playing any League at all today, Ranked or otherwise. He immediately logged into his Korean account on League of Legends and scrolled over to CN•HOOK2 on his friend list.

“Tonight’s a special night, guys. We’re not playing. We’re just going to spectate CN•HOOK2’s games and watch him do the impossible! CAN HE DO IT? I DON’T KNOW BUT I’m GOING TO FIND OUT WITH YOU GUYS! Who’s excited?” Lightless Heart declared to 200,000+ viewers.

His stream chat erupted with excitement as messages of support flooded in, along with even more viewers. A truly pleasing twist of fate had made it so that Lightless Heart was the only streamer that had CN•HOOK2 added as a friend! When the news got out, many people on the forums abandoned the walls of text that they were crafting and flocked over to Lightless Heart’s stream!

It was obviously way more exciting to watch CN•HOOK2 play rather than waiting and refreshing a static page of game stats.

For Lightless Heart, this day was special. He didn’t care about the viewers or the numbers. None of his excitement or enthusiasm was played up for the audience either. On this night, for this stream, Lightless Heart wasn’t a League streamer. He was a fan, watching a pivotal moment in history unfold. Especially after he’d gotten a clue that led him to what he believed was CN•HOOK2’s identity. Lightless had zero doubts in his heart or mind that this truly legendary figure could break into the Top 10 on the Korean Challenger Ladder.

I wonder how high he’s going to climb? If it really is him… Top 10’s a low estimate. He’s going to get there and keep going. All the way to the t—! Lightless stopped himself from finishing the thought. He didn’t want to even say the words in his head, for fear of jinxing it. He didn’t want to guess and be disappointed. He wanted to watch and savor the anticipation of what was going to happen.

✹

Around the same time, Hermes and Nightsong were sitting in front of a computer in the HoG Gaming house. Even though they had lost their match today, neither of the two pros looked demotivated or dejected. It was honestly too trivial for them to bother with. They were top players who played on the world stage a couple of months ago. The loss against Team Rapids wasn’t enough to shake up their mental. 

But they did look restless and excited as they watched Lightless’ steam. Even Hermes and Nightsong wanted to watch CN•HOOK2 play and climb. There was something about him that called out to both Hermes and Nightsong. And both of them thought they knew the player behind CN•HOOK2. The two of them had started playing professionally in Seasons 2 and 3, after carving their own paths through the esports scene. Both of them knew the stories and lore behind China’s most legendary player. And as they watched CN•HOOK2 play, they saw the stories coming to life. 

The answer was so shocking that the two didn’t dare to confirm it.

Nightsong sucked in a breath of cold air. “Fuck me with the Emperor’s Dragon dick! It can’t be, right? You really think it’s… him?

Hermes nodded once. Then in a solemn, almost reverent voice, he said. “He’s using the tag CN•HOOK2. I’m at 90% that it’s him.” Even China’s current number one Midlaner watched with an awe reserved for divinity, his eyes shining brightly. I can’t believe he plays League too! What a god! He’s actually good enough to reach the top of the Korean Challenger ladder! And… he’s a Midlaner! Like me! I need to see how good he is… I need to see how good I can become! I’m going to remember this night forever!

✹

Aurous, on the other hand, was lucky enough to have a friend who knew the identity of the player behind the CN•HOOK2 account. Unlike Lightless, Hermes, and Nightsong.

That same evening, Aurous dropped by the Team Rapids Gaming House to visit Shi Hang, and started looking for him. The other members on Team Rapids were busy playing ranked games or their own streams. The entire gaming house was filled with the din of random screaming, communication, and hyped up exclamations. 

After walking into the house and popping into random rooms to say hello to the other members of Team Rapids, Aurous found Shi Hang sitting in front of a computer in the corner of a room and walked over to him. 

“Aurous! When’d you get here?” Shi Hang said as he noticed Aurous walking in. He pulled a chair over for Aurous and motioned for him to sit down. “Come on, come on, sit!” 

Aurous sat down in a huff and asked, “Yes, yes, I’m here! But this is a little… confusing. You had me biting my nails in suspense the entire way over here, now you’re excited to see me… but you’re telling me to sit down in a chair. You sure we wouldn’t be more… comfortable on a couch? Or a bed? I could help you celebrate your comeback with a “comeback” of my own, you know? If that’s not the surprise you called me over for, I don’t know what is.”

Shi Hang facepalmed and glared at Aurous. Then he asked, “Have you not been paying attention to the forums?”

“What? The forums? You asked me here to talk about what’s going on in the forums…? Sweet Shi Hang, you really don’t know how to pick ripe fruit, do you? But yes, I do have a smidge of an idea what you’re talking about. Are we going to talk about CN•HOOK2 climbing the Korean Challenger Ladder?” Aurous replied. Then he lowered his voice to a whisper and got much more serious, “I talked to Nightsong about it earlier today. He and Herm think the person playing the account is One. They’re probably watching him play on Lightless’ stream right now. ”

Aurous paused for a moment, then looked at Shi Hang. “Is that the surprise you wanted to tell me? No… that can’t be right. You were talking to me about CN•HOOK2 before the forums popped off about him! Wait! Do you know something else!?”

Shi Hang shrugged and smiled. “I do. Nightsong and Hermes are right. That account belongs to On—”

“Wait! WHAT!? REALLY!?” Aurous gasped. 

“Let me finish before you blow your load. Like I said, the account belongs to One. At least it used to,” Shi Hang continued. “But right now, someone else is using it. You know who he is, since you just watched him play. The person climbing the Korean Challenger Ladder on that account right now is Maple.”

✹

Lin Feng rolled his shoulders and cracked his neck. A few more hours is all I’ve got! I need to win! I can only win dammit! Time to break the limiter! He grinned and opened the League client. CN•HOOK2 was currently at 11th in the ranking. He needed to climb 6 more ranks before the end of the day. “ALRIGHT!” he shouted. “LET’S PLAY!”

A burning desire sparked a fire and a desire to play that Lin Feng hadn’t felt in years. Everything fit. His opponents tried to ban his Champions, they camped his lanes and did everything they could to stop him from climbing any higher. It even felt like his teammates didn’t want to win; that wasn’t to say they wanted to lose, they just didn’t play like they wanted to win.

Lin Feng played Fizz in the first game. It was one of his favourite Champions and one he felt incredibly comfortable on. He knew exactly how much damage he could deal, how much he could take, and how to make his cooldowns work just right for him. He showed this in the third minute of the game when he picked up first blood with a solo kill on his opponent in the mid lane. An early kill for an assassin like Fizz was all he needed to win the game. He pushed his advantage and only got further ahead. After claiming kills on his lane opponent and their Jungler, he started roaming. The Toplaner died twice to him in the laning phase and he picked up five kills in the bottom lane. That was also when the game ended, because the opponent surrendered.

The second game was much like the first. The only real difference was that Lin Feng chose to go with Zed in this game instead of Fizz. But while Zed and Fizz were very different Champions with very different skills, they were both assassins with high mobility. More importantly, they both relied heavily on the mechanics of the summoner. Lin Feng used his mechanics to set himself apart from the nine other players on the Rift. He first beat his opponent in the mid lane and then started roaming across the map again. No one was safe from him. Each kill gave him more gold which sponsored his high cost items, items his opponents couldn’t afford.

Lin Feng took a slightly different approach in the third game. He felt like playing Viktor, so he did. Viktor wasn’t quite as strong in the early game, though with Lin Feng playing it was hard to tell. He got the early kill just like he had in the previous two games. The big difference was that Viktor didn’t really start shining until the mid game. So Lin Feng allowed the game to get to that stage for the first time. Both teams gathered in the mid lane 25 minutes into the game and fired skillshots at each other. Lin Feng observed this and waited patiently for his opponents to move too close to each other. When they did, he flashed towards them and hit them with the area of effect stun. He threw his area of effect ultimate on top of that and fired his single target skills at the high health targets. The voice announcer didn’t even have the time to call the triple and quadra kills before she got to scream, “PENTA KILL!”

Three games and three wins. Lin Feng leaned back in his chair and grinned. He clenched his fist and mumbled, “Nice going! I finally did it! Top 10! 9th even! Just a few more places to go! I got this! I just have to win everything! WIN! WIN! WIN! I GOT THIS! HECK YEAH!” He squared his shoulders and put his hand on the mouse again. He then moved it until it hovered over the play again button and pressed it. “I hope you’re watching me, One.”

The Collegiate Cup had ended and the Stadium emptied. Team Shanghai decided to celebrate their victory with a meal, and they went straight to the restaurant from the Stadium. And so, later on that evening, the members of Team Shanghai found themselves gathered around a traditional Beijing style Hot Pot.

But there was no yelling around that table, no splashing of hot broth, no stealing of various bits of meat from each other’s plates. The atmosphere was strangely subdued. They didn’t look like a group of people who were celebrating winning a major tournament. If anything, Team Shanghai looked like Team Beijing. It was not a dinner ravished with the vigor of victory. They were eating like this was their sad consolation prize for having gotten all the way to the Finals and losing. Everyone on Team Shanghai picked up meats and vegetables and placed them into the broth. They took out bits of cooked food and put it on their plates. And they ate whatever food was on their plates. But every action was stiff and mechanical. Not a single person savored the food, or looked like they were enjoying the company. An awkwardness hung heavy over the entire team, and they were all stealing glances at Lin Feng before looking at each other. No one said anything. 

The elephant in the room was, obviously, more of Lin Feng’s backstory that was revealed during the Awards Ceremony. No one on Team Shanghai understood how to process it or what to make of the revelation. The President of the Chinese Esports Association was Lin Feng’s Uncle! It was hard to believe and beyond shocking!

Zeng Rui, Zhang Hao, and the others were still shook and reeling from trying to put  all of this together. This entire day felt like an odd dream to them. First they won the Collegiate Cup, then they learned more of Lin Feng’s incredible history. Not only was he Maple, one of the giants who built the Chinese Esports scene, but his Uncle was the President of the Chinese Esports Association. Lin Feng apparently belonged to some enormous and secret Esports Dynasty! The sheer coincidence was inconceivable. 

Zeng Rui and Zhang Hao looked at each other, at the complex mixture of emotions and questions swirling in each other’s eyes. Every day revealed new information and raised new questions about Lin Feng. But foremost was the relationship between Lin Feng and Lin Songshi. 

Zeng Rui gave Zhang Hao a strong look and slightly shook his head to say no. Don’t bring it up, Zhang Hao! I want to know about what’s going on between Lin Feng and Lin Songshi too, but not now. Don’t do it! The way they talked to each other at the Awards… that was not normal. There’s obviously bad blood between them and we don’t know enough about this situation or how it affected Lin Feng to bring it up. Don’t say anything! Zeng Rui moved his head from side to side again while staring at Zhang Hao the whole time.

Zhang Hao nodded. He’d understood what Zeng Rui was trying to communicate, and started eating whatever food was in front of him again.

Tang Bingyao noticed Zeng Rui and Zhang Hao looking at each other and nodding. She knew what they were thinking about because she was thinking the exact same thing. She looked at Zeng Rui and then quickly looked at An Xin, and back to Zeng Rui. He nodded back. Tang Bingyao, Zeng Rui, and Zhang silently agreed that they’d go find An Xin later to learn more about Lin Songshi and Lin Feng.

On the other side of the table, Chu Fang was mulling over the same thing. Lin Songshi and Lin Feng… this could explain a lot of what happened during the Season 1 World Championships. But Lin Feng is clearly mad at Lin Songshi for something, and Lin Songshi wasn’t particularly warm towards Lin Feng. There’s a lot more to this story… I need to figure it out before it becomes a problem. Lin Feng… no. Maple is coming back and that’s going to change everything for us! I need to talk to Fang Hao and find out what he knows about the situation between Lin Feng and Lin Songshi. He already knew something like this was going to happen. I need to find out what I can to make sure nothing gets in Lin Feng’s way!

Everyone around the table continued to eat quietly while glancing at each other from time to time, and then looking at Lin Feng when they thought he wouldn’t notice. This elephant in the room had become an unofficial and unasked for member of Team Shanghai.

The elephant was clearly making everyone uncomfortable. Except for Lin Feng. He was calm but quiet as he ate his food. It was out of character for him, but in a different way from everyone else. Lin Feng didn’t look disturbed or angry or upset. He didn’t even notice everyone else’s expressions or their quick glances and silent conversations. He didn’t even notice them looking at him. By all appearances, Lin Feng didn’t seem to notice that the elephant in the room existed and made no attempts to elaborate on what happened at the Awards Ceremony or answer the questions swirling around in his teammates’ minds. He just quietly buried his head in his food and ate quickly.

And that was the weirdest part of the night. Lin Feng always ate quickly, but he ate with gusto and joy. None of that was present at this moment. None of Lin Feng’s customary delight at eating delicious food was on display. He wasn’t yelling or celebrating. It didn’t even look like he knew what he was eating. This was one of those rare few moments where food was not important to Lin Feng. He was not eating because the flavors tickled his taste buds and warmed his heart. He was eating today to replenish his energy. Because he had one more difficult task to accomplish before this night ended.

Lin Feng still had to climb the Korean Challenger Ladder and make it into the Top Five. That was the only thing on his mind during this dinner. He glanced at a clock while reaching for some more food, and his chopsticks paused for a moment in mid-air. Pure unadulterated intensity flashed in his eyes for a moment as he thought, Not much time left! But I gave One my word that I’d get this done, so I’m going to get this done! I don’t break promises!

✹

Team Shanghai returned to their hotel immediately after dinner. Chu Fang dropped them all off and left to finish the final few administrative details required for the end of the Collegiate Cup. Lin Feng went straight to his room. It was 7 PM. Lin Feng sat down in front of his laptop and logged into the CN•HOOK2 account on the Korean Server. He clicked on the profile page for the account and checked his ranking on the Ladder. He was still sitting in 11th place. A single step away from the Top 10. 

Lin Feng closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Then he exhaled slowly and opened his eyes. He was completely focused now, and the intensity in his eyes continued to grow sharper. Alright. Let’s get started!

Lin Feng clicked on the play button and started his final summit to the very top of the Korean Challenger ladder.

✹

6 PM. League of Legends players across China were all glued to their screens, talking on every League forum and chat about the LPL match that had just taken place that afternoon. Obviously, the focus of the conversation revolved around Team Rapids and AyDeeCee. 

AyDeeCee’s second match after his return to the LPL created a complex swirl of emotions in all of these League enthusiasts. An old player, someone who hit his prime four years ago and retired from the Esports scene had come back and proven that he was just as good today as he was back then! The veterans in the community glowed in nostalgia and pride that one of their own had come back, and the newfrogs couldn’t help themselves from developing a new respect for AyDeeCee and the rest of the players from that era. 

That said, it was only a single match. The victory didn’t have much impact on the fate of either team over the course of the entire Spring Split. But that wasn’t the important thing here. No one on the League forums really cared much about the outcome of the match or the Spring Split. 

The important thing was that they had witnessed the return of another top player! There was another star Midlaner in the LPL now, and the overall competitiveness of the LPL would rise! None of this was up for debate. 

But there was a question related to it that was currently being hotly debated on the forums. Exactly how good was AyDeeCee? As far as the tier list went, Daybreak Hermes was at the top. He was S-Tier, China’s number one Midlaner. There was no one else up there with him. In the A-Tier, there were a few Midlaners from the other top LPL teams. 

That tier system was the center of the debate. According to one camp, AyDeeCee logically belonged to the A-Tier. But there was a newly emerged camp that believed that AyDeeCee belonged in the S-Tier, right alongside Hermes. An even more vocal faction within that camp argued that the title of China’s Number One Midlaner now belonged to AyDeeCee because he now appeared to be even better than he was four years ago.

Unfortunately, these people were in the minority. After all, this was only one game. It was too early to tell anything. Even if AyDeeCee had played an amazing LeBlanc today, that was far from enough to earn him the title of Number One.

Hermes had only earned the title after proving himself to the entire world and becoming China’s sole King..

And so, the debate between these two camps raged endlessly across the League Fan Sphere. Interestingly enough, there was a neutral faction between both camps that came to a common understanding. They believed that AyDeeCee had proven that he was one of the top Midlaners in China, and that he was possibly close to, if not already at, the same level as Daybreak Hermes. This was the ultimate Fence-Sitting Faction.

The entire night would’ve been devoted to this debate. If something more interesting didn’t happen at 7PM that distracted every League enthusiast, fan, and player across China.  

「CN•HOOK2 IS ONLINE AGAIN!」
「EVERYTONE COME WATCH!」
「CN•HOOK2 IS CONTINUING HIS CLIMB ON KOREAN CHALLENGER!」
「WHAT ARE YOU ALL WAITING FOR? HE’S STARTING HIS FIRST GAME ALREADY!」

“Thanks, Uncle.” 

That was the last thing that Lin Feng said to Lin Songshi. Lin Feng had said those words with no emotion whatsoever just as the audience erupted into a final round of applause and cheers. The din from the crowd was more than loud enough to drown out the words. But the words, however muted, exploded when they hit the rest of Team Shanghai’s ears. 

Zhang Hao, who had only just recovered from the odd conversation between Lin Feng and Lin Songshi and returned to his senses, was once again floored. This time, his eyes didn’t glaze over. They closed. Whatever it was that just happened at this Award Ceremony, it was too much for Zhang Hao’s mind to handle and he shut down. He swayed back and forth slowly before finally leaning over and resting against a stony Zeng Rui, eyes still closed. 

Zeng Rui did not notice Zhang Hao. He was playing back everything that just happened and trying to piece it all together. Uncle. Uncle! Now everything makes sense! That thundering dumbass… how many more secrets is he hiding from me? I didn’t know he was Maple… and apparently, I didn’t realize that Lin Songshi was his Uncle. The President of the Chinese Esports Association! Lin! Lin Songshi and Feng. Why is this a surprise to me? It should’ve been obvious from the minute they were on stage together! But what’s with all the friction? I can understand why Lin Songshi is a little upset with Lin Feng over leaving after Season 1. That’s logical enough. But what happened between them that pissed Lin Feng off to this degree? I need to research everything that happened during the Season 1 World Championships! Hm… Why… why is Zhang Hao sleeping on my shoulder? 

Tang Bingyao’s jaw dropped. Then closed. Then she waved at Lin Songshi and said, “Bye Uncle!”

The briefest look of confusion showed up on Lin Songshi’s face when he heard Tang Bingyao calling him Uncle. But he politely smiled and waved farewell back. 

Chu Fang’s eyes glimmered with disbelief for a few seconds. And then his body language completely changed. Uncle! Of course! Chu Fang’s shoulders relaxed as exhaled every last drop of tension. His expression was peaceful. This revelation, shocking as it was, seemed to be enough for Chu Fang to attain enlightenment. This is what Fang Hao meant when he said everything would sort itself out organically! HE KNEW! HE KNEW THAT LIN SONGSHI WAS LIN FENG’S UNCLE! That’s why he wasn’t worried about the Beijing Esports Association figuring out that Lin Feng was Maple! Because the President of the Chinese Esports Association already knew Lin Feng was Maple! 

The only one on Team Shanghai who was unperturbed by all of this was An Xin. She stood there calmly with the same smile on her face the entire time. She already knew about Lin Songshi, and none of this was a surprise to her.

Lin Songshi finished waving goodbye to Tang Bingyao after she called him “Uncle”. He gave her a fleeting puzzled glance and then motioned to the Host that it was time to conclude the Awards Ceremony and declare the end of the Collegiate Cup. Then he turned to look at the audience and gave them a goodbye wave before walking off the stage. 

That was it. Team Shanghai had the Collegiate Cup trophy, and Lin Feng had the MVP medal around his neck. The Awards Ceremony had ended. 

The Host walked back onto the stage and screamed out to the crowd, “Let’s give our new Champions one last round of applause! Congratulations, Team Shanghai! You’ve done it! You’re the new Champions of the Collegiate Cup! There were a lot of people who doubted you. Many who dismissed each of your victories on luck or circumstance or trickery. But you proved all of them wrong and advanced step by step until there was no one left!” 

The entire stadium erupted into cheers, applause, random cries of ‘WIN FENG!’, and odd monkey noises from a corner of the stadium. 

It had been a long month and a half for Team Shanghai. From the local qualifiers to the regionals and then finally the main tournament. And in between, they had to take their exams. The last few weeks had been a blur of endless practice sessions, strategy meetings, late night chicken cutlets, and high-tension league matches against the best teams and players outside the professional scene. But it had finally ended, and now they could go home with victory in their hearts. The Collegiate Cup was finally over, and Team Shanghai had seized the championship!

✹

Just as the Finals for the Collegiate Cup wrapped up at the Chaoyang Sports Centre in Beijing, an important LPL match also concluded in Shanghai.

Team Shanghai had stunned countless spectators by defeating Team Beijing and claiming the Collegiate Cup Championship. But the LPL Season 6 Sprint Split match that had just taken place at the Hongkou Stadium in Shanghai left half the players in all of China in shock. 

The match was between Team Rapids and HoG. The game was a fierce 37 minute clash between the two teams.

Team Rapids and Hand of God were evenly matched in most lanes. The Toplaners fought all through the laning phase but no clear winner came out and Nightsong threw his big dick around, yet couldn’t get the edge he needed to carry the game. It all came down to the mid lane, where AyDeeCee played against Hermes. It was a pure skill matchup in LeBlanc versus Zed. Both Champions were assassins and both champions relied entirely on the mechanics of their summoner.

The early laning phase had no clear winner. Shi Hang and Hermes threw everything they had at each other, they made the most breathtaking plays, but ultimately neither side could get the all important first kill. Because that was what they needed. Both their Champions didn’t really start shining until they got a few kills under their belt. It was eventually Shi Hang’s LeBlanc in the 8th minute who picked up the first kill. Hermes stepped away from his minions and got punished for that right away. Ethereal Chains rooted him to the ground, after which a full damage combo from LeBlanc killed him.

That first kill set the tone for the rest of the match. Shi Hang’s LeBlanc got the items she needed before Hermes’ Zed. Shi Hang used this to his advantage, pushing Hermes around and forcing Hand of God’s Jungler to come to the mid lane. All the while, he had his Jungler hiding near his Outer Tower, waiting for the countergank. It was a perfect outplay by Team Rapids. They got the countergank, played it perfectly, and two more kills went to Shi Hang’s LeBlanc. From there on out, it was a stomp. He’d gained such an advantage in gold and items that Hermes’ Zed was forced to abandon the mid lane. And every time Hermes’ Zed tried to return to the mid lane, Shi Hang killed him.

Shi Hang showed everyone in China that he was still at the top of his game. He proved all the naysayers wrong. That he still had a lot left to give. By the 15th minute of the game, he’d gotten his 5th kill. 10 minutes after that, his LeBlanc was declared Legendary. Hand of God was struggling to defend, because Shi Hang’s LeBlanc could jump their backline whenever he felt like it. And there was nothing they could do to stop him. He dealt too much damage and LeBlanc was far too mobile to be locked down.

At the 35th minute of the game, Hand of God pushed their lanes out and rushed the Dragon in a final desperate attempt to make something work. They engaged the Dragon and tried to kill it, until the voice announcer informed them that Nightsong had died. They moved their cameras and found Nightsong’s corpse, with no sign of his killer. LeBlanc had jumped in and then back out again. She then waited for her skills to come off cooldown again while her teammates ran over, before fighting the 5 versus 4 and winning it convincingly.

Team Rapids breached Hand of God’s base 10 seconds after scoring an ace. They destroyed the Mid Lane Inner Tower, then the inhibitor behind it, and one of the Nexus towers. Then they took a small break to kill Nightsong, who had just respawned, once again. After that, they took out the second Nexus Tower. Once the tower was down, Team Rapids started attacking Hand of God’s Nexus. And they destroyed it just as the remaining Champions from Hand of God respawned. It was a decisive victory led by Shi Hang and his LeBlanc. Shi Hang had just beaten the King Hermes.

✹

Team Rapid’s Coach had watched the entire game backstage. And when his team won, he lost his mind from the sheer overwhelming joy. He jumped around screaming “OH MY GOD! WE DID IT! WE DID IT! WE WON! IT WAS AMAZING! DID YOU GUYS SEE SHI HANG? I CANNOT BELIEVE THIS IS ACTUALLY HAPPENING! IS THIS A DREAM? NO! IT CAN’T BE! THE LAST TIME I FELT THIS MUCH JOY IN A DREAM WAS WHEN I DREAMED THAT MY WIFE DIDN’T LEAVE ME AND THAT DIDN’T FEEL AS GOOD AS THIS DOES! THIS IS REAL! WE WON!” 

The Coach had dedicated his life to ESports, and specifically League of Legends. He poured everything he had into Team Rapids. So much so that his wife had left him. She declared that their marriage wasn’t a real one since he’d spent the last 8 months sleeping at the Team Rapids headquarters. It had devastated him, but changed nothing in his resolve to push Team Rapids to new heights. He’d bet everything on Shi Hang and brought him back into the professional scene and Team Rapids. Even then, the Coach wasn’t certain about Team Rapid’s chance for victory in this match against HoG. But all doubt had vanished now! This victory was the turning point for Team Rapids and himself! He was so delusional with joy that he convinced himself that his wife might take him back.

“WE WON! Hahahah! I TOLD YOU ALL THAT AYDEECEE WAS A FORCE TO BE RECKONED WITH! WE WON! SHE’LL LET ME COME HOME AGAIN NOW! We actually did it!” Team Rapid’s Coach cried out. He wasn’t just happy for himself or for his team. Most of his joy came from the fact that his old friend of many years, Shi Hang, had done well. The debut game that Shi Hang played for Team Rapids against KG had not gone well at all. Team Rapids had lost. But the worst part was that his performance in that game was average at best. Shi Hang was forced to bear an onslaught of criticism from fans to commentators to analysts to critics. 

But Shi Hang proved all of them wrong with this victory! He’d shown every single person who called him a hasbeen that he could hold his own, even against China’s current number one Midlaner and the only King in the country, Daybreak Hermes!

Team Raid’s Coach wanted to call and message every single person who claimed that Shi Hang was well past his prime and couldn’t compete in today’s professional scene. But he couldn’t, so he settled for yelling at one of the assistants backstage responsible for technical maintenance. “YOU STILL HAVE THE BALLS TO CLAIM THAT AYDEECEE IS A RELIC? You want to keep talking about how Shi Hang peaked in Season 1 and can’t compete with the professionals in Season 6? LISTEN TO ME! Someone like Shi Hang, who managed to claw his way to the top back in those days, you can’t underestimate them! My wife underestimated me, and now she’s probably twisting the bedsheets in regret! AYDEECEE IS BACK HOME NOW AND SOOON I WILL BE TOO!”

Among the cheers and applause of the audience, Team Rapids’ members walked down from the stage.

Shi Hang had just returned backstage, when Aurous, who had also come to watch today’s match, ran over and slung his arm over his shoulder. “Hahaha! WAY TO POP OFF, QUEEN! You even beat Hermes! How’s it feel to be you again?”  He was clearly happy and excited for his old friend.

Shi Hang shrugged his shoulders. “I did alright. Hermes… eh, he was careless during the early game. Probably didn’t think he needed to try against me after that game with KG. If he was really going all out from the start, it would’ve been way tougher to win today’s game.”

Aurous laughed and pinched Shi Hang’s cheek. “So modest and coy! If you keep this up, you’ll catch the eye of some CEO’s son and he’ll come sweep you off your feet! What does it matter if Hermes underestimated you and played carelessly at the start? This is Hermes we’re talking about! Even if he played carelessly, how many players do you think there are in China who could’ve caught that and taken advantage of it? Be proud, sweet AyDeeCee! Even if you don’t have a real bust, your booty more than makes up for it! You snowballed your advantage and hard-carried the game!”

Shi Hang smiled. God damn Aurous! I can’t tell if I’m laughing at his nonsense or if I’m happy about winning today’s game now. But it was a good day. I’m back!

With this match, Shi Hang had proved that he was one of China’s top Midlaners. He’d finally announced his return.

Shi Hang suddenly stopped smiling and grew thoughtful. He looked at Aurous and asked, “Hey. Do you know if the Collegiate Cup ended?”

Aurous was puzzled by the question. This sweet untouched chrysanthemum just beat a King… and he wants to know what’s going on at the Collegiate Cup? Aurous looked at Shi Hang for a brief second before replying, “Yup. It just ended. Team Shanghai beat Team Beijing 3-0.” He waved his out dramatically and continued, “But why are we worried about what’s going on in some tournament for the next generation? They’re still ripening, forget about them. We should be talking about you! Everyone said that you’d gone rotten. And then you go an win against HoG! You, my friend, are still very ripe and plump. With how amazing your LeBlanc was today, I’d even say that you’re… bursting with springtime firmness. Hahahaa! I’m 100% sure that anyone and everyone who plays League in China will be talking about your LeBlanc. You’re going to be just as hot on the forums are you are in real life!”

Shi Hang bonked Aurous on the head to calm him down a little. Then he raised an eyebrow and smiled at his friend. “I’m not so sure about that.”

Aurous stared at Shi Hang, baffled by the turn of events. “What? Something else happened? What do you know? Tell me everything! ”

Shi Hang turned around to look at the stands. At all the spectators still cheering. His eyes flickered with a strange light as he took it all in. Then he said, “You’ll find out later tonight.”

Maple. That name held a special significance to everyone who was involved in the Chinese Esports scene back during the League of Legends Season 1 World Championships. That name was enshrined in all their hearts. 

Back then, Maple was the unquestionable number one Midlaner in all of China. He was also the Captain of the strongest competitive League of Legends team in China. He was the first to lead a Chinese team all the way to the World Championships. Once there, he defeated many powerful European and North American teams to make it all the way to the Finals. Teams who were all considered real contenders for the Finals and the eventual Championship. During these battles, Maple proved that he was truly a world class player who could go toe-to-toe with Han “Rake” Seho, and other players of that caliber. Maple broke records, won titles, and had a nearly endless laundry list of accomplishments. 

For all of the old Chinese players who were around to witness his meteoric rise, Maple represented hope. Especially these days, when China was still suffering from a string of defeats in the most recent World Championships. Maple was a dream, an idle fantasy that many of these old players ruminated on frequently these days. They wondered if China could rise again, if the genius Midlaner Maple would return to once again create a miracle.

When people like Chu Fang, Fang Hao, and Shi Hang saw Lin Feng’s return, saw Maple’s return, they were both ecstatic and brimming with anticipation to watch him pull off another miracle. Maple was the herald of a new and glorious era of Chinese Esports. Which is exactly why Chu Feng was so concerned about someone prematurely figuring out who Lin Feng was prior to the Finals of the Collegiate Cup. And also why Lin Songshi’s question and tone completely threw Chu Feng off. 

None of the tension up on stage was apparent to the audience members below. They were still cheering and screaming “WIN FENG!” as they celebrated the end of a truly electrifying Collegiate Cup. Lin Songshi wasn’t wearing a microphone, so no one could hear his conversation with Lin Feng besides the members of Team Shanghai who were standing on stage with them.

The tension and awkwardness between Lin Songshi and Lin Feng intensified as the question hung in the air between them. Lin Feng looked at the ground again as he considered how to answer. Why did I come back? I didn’t want to come back. For years. I didn’t want to be back at all. But… I have a dream now! I have a reason for all of this! Lin Feng was silent as he considered everything that happened since the Season 1 World Championships to this moment. And then he finally had an answer to Lin Songshi’s question. He looked up with fire in his eyes and said, “To rise! I’m going to climb over my regrets, my mistakes, my past, and everyone else in my way! I’m going to get to the very top and grab my dream!” His tone was calm, but the determination in his voice was unmistakable. After he finished answering, he raised his fist into the air. 

The audience, still completely unaware of what was going on stage, went wild and cheered Lin Feng on even more as they saw the gesture. 

　　✹

Rise above his regrets? 

Zeng Rui, Tang Bingyao, Zhang Hao, An Xin and Chu Fang all heard Lin Feng’s answer, and that was the single thought on all their minds. They heard Lin Feng say he wanted to rise above his regrets, and they thought they understood what that meant. Lin Feng regretted his defeat at the hands of Han “Rake” Seho back during the Finals of the Season 1 League of Legends World Championships. The Finals where he lost 2-3. As far as they understood, what other regrets could a player like Maple have? It was simple and straightforward in their minds. 

Lin Songshi, on the other hand, understood something completely different from Lin Feng’s answer. He looked down into Lin Feng’s eyes with a thin, mocking smile and asked, “Oh? You think that this is your moment to take to the skies? That you’ll prove yourself and rise? You think you can make them remember you and rise? You think you can push through hell and rise?” 

Zhang Hao’s eyes widened out of shock when Lin Songshi first started speaking. But they narrowed and flickered with rage by the end. He didn’t know much about the President of the Chinese Esports Association, but any respect he had for Lin Songshi was on the verge of disappearing. What the fuck is this guy on? He should be happy that Lin Feng is coming back! Instead, he’s standing there making fun of MAPLE like a douche!

The lines on Zeng Rui’s forehead grew deeper and deeper with every word that came out of Lin Songshi’s mouth. He’s crossing the line here… President of the Chinese Esports Association or not, he’s definitely way over the line… But something isn’t right here. Why would someone of Lin Songshi’s position and status speak to a player like that? Especially during an Awards Ceremony in full view of the public? He’s responsible for maintaining the image of the Chinese Esports Association. Not to mention his own. I’m missing something here.

The same thoughts ran through Chu Fang’s head at the moment. As far as he knew, Lin Songshi was someone that conducted himself with the utmost grace to avoid disgracing the name of the Chinese Esports Association. More importantly, everything I’ve heard about Lin Songshi from the old days to today always talked about how supportive he was to players. I can’t think of a single time when Lin Songshi talked down to someone like this! SOMETHING IS VERY WRONG HERE, CHU FANG! DO SOMETHING!

✹

Lin Feng and Lin Songshi continued their conversation, ignoring the reactions of everyone else up on the stage.

After Lin Songshi’s biting words, Lin Feng paused. Then he shook his head slowly, “I’m not sure-sure,” he answered honestly. He paused for a brief half a second, then added, “But I’m still going to try!” His tone contained unwavering determination and confidence.

Lin Songshi’s mocking smirk turned even more severe, and the look in his eyes turned sharp and piercing. “Oh? Because you won this… Collegiate Cup Championship? Now Maple is back and ready to knock down Rake?”

Lin Feng continued looking Lin Songshi right in the eyes and replied, “Of course not. Just keep watching. You’ll see!” 

The tension in the air between them continued to intensify. But the initial awkwardness shifted towards aggressiveness. The heat was palpable. This was most definitely not a conversation between someone receiving an award and someone presenting an award. Everything about this exchange was strange. It looked more like an argument between a disapproving elder and a rebellious teenager than a very public award ceremony on a stage in front of a roaring crowd of spectators.

Chu Fang and the other members of Team Shanghai were stunned and confused. But it was clear enough that they didn’t have enough information to butt into this situation, so they stayed out and continued to let it play out. 

Lin Songshi’s eyes narrowed as he glared down  at Lin Feng.

Lin Feng met Lin Songshi’s gaze without backing down, his eyes filled with a rare intensity and the stubbornness apparent on his face.

After a few seconds of this, Lin Songshi blinked and looked over at the other members of Team Shanghai. All traces of the mockery and anger from a few moments ago were completely gone and he had a kind and polite smile on his face. “All of you played fantastic in your games today! Congratulations on winning the championship! You absolutely deserve this victory and trophy!”

Zhang Hao,  Zeng Rui, and Tang Bingyao were taken aback by this sudden shift and warmth. They quickly mumbled out thanks and fell silent. 

Then Lin Songshi look at An Xin. His expression softened, and his smile became wider as he said, “BunBun, your Lee Sin in that last game was fantastic.”

An Xin smiled. “ You’re flattering me, Uncle Lin! But thank you!.”

Zeng Rui, Zhang Hao, and Tang Bingyao were shook. All three of their eyes popped open at the same time. And they all had the same exact thought running through their heads. BunBun and Lin Songshi know each other?!?

Lin Songshi smiled and continued addressing An Xin, “I must say, I was very surprised to see you here. Never would I have expected to see you playing in this tournament.”

An Xin smiled. “Haha! Yeah, Lin Feng. He dragged me into this, and someone needs to look after him.”

Lin Songshi turned his attention back to Lin Feng. His expression relaxed a little, and he asked, “Would you like to come to dinner with me tonight? We can catch up and continue discussing your… plans.”

The twists and turns and surprises from this brief Award Ceremony were too much for Zhang Hao. His eyes turned vacant and glazed over. He had fainted standing up.

Tang Bingyao’s jaw dropped.

The vein on Zeng Rui’s forehead throbbed violently and his eyelid started twitching again.

Chu Fang’s expression was also filled with shock.

Lin Feng had gotten into an intense exchange with Lin Songshi, one that had not been resolved or explained, thirty seconds ago. And now the President of the Chinese Esports Association was inviting him to dinner! As far as most of Team Shanghai understood, they understood nothing of what happened in the last few minutes. Nothing made sense!

Lin Feng’s eyes sparkled after hearing the word dinner. The thought of food had completely changed the atmosphere between him and Lin Songshi. But then he quickly shook his head and said, “I’d never turn down a meal… but I’m already going to go get hotpot with BunBun and the rest of the team. We always celebrate winning with a meal!”

Zhang Hao’s eyes almost popped out of his sockets. My god! Lin Feng,  you actually refused an invitation from the President of the Chinese Esports Association! That takes some balls! Shit, I hope he doesn’t get offended…

Lin Songshi politely chuckled at Lin Feng’s refusal and smiled, “That’s completely fine. My apologies. I should have considered that you’d want to celebrate with your team and made plans already. But aside from that, you still won the Collegiate Cup Championship. Congratulations on this victory.”

Lin Feng politely nodded and replied, “Thanks, Uncle.” His tone held no sincerity or warmth. 

Chu Fang, Zeng Rui, Zhang Hao, and Tang Bingyao were floored again. U-UCNLE!? The word exploded in their ears and minds like a bomb.

Lin Songshi walked out onto the stage amid thundering applause, cheering, and chants of “WIN FENG!” There were two prizes that he needed to award. The first was the Championship Trophy for the Collegiate Cup. The second was the MVP award. When Lin Songshi walked out onto the stage, he already had the Championship Trophy in his hands. He held it out to the crowd to hype them up even more, and they responded with even louder cheering and applause. 

And as the cheering of the crowd reached a crescendo, Lin Songshi delivered the Championship Trophy into the waiting hands of Chu Fang.

Chu Fang accepted the trophy and made a respectful bow. “Thank you, Mr. President.” 

Chu Fang wanted to jump up and down with the trophy held high. He wanted to scream and cheer. But he had to contain himself and remain somewhat stoic. The person standing in front of him was Mr. Lin Songshi, the President of the Chinese Esports Association. The highest authority in the Association and the most respected. Even Chu Fang’s boss, Fang Hao, needed to be respectful in front of Lin Songshi. 

The respect that Lin Songshi commanded didn’t just come from his position as President of the Chinese Esports Association. It was hard earned through accomplishments, work, and seniority. Lin Songshi was several tiers above Fang Hao in the Chinese Esports Circles. 

Lin Songshi was essentially the behind-the-scenes counterpart to One. Just as One was considered the greatest player in the history of Chinese Esports, Lin Songshi was considered the greatest person working behind the scenes. From DotA to League of Legends, Lin Songshi worked tirelessly to lay the foundation of Chinese esports and then build it up to the heights that it had reached today. It was not an exaggeration to say that without Lin Songshi’s efforts, there would be no Chinese Esports scene today.

For all of these reasons and more, Chu Fang had just as much respect for Lin Songshi as he did for Fang Hao. If not more. Which is why Chu Fang stood on that stage with the Championship Trophy in his hands, trying not to dance around with joy like a giddy school boy. Unfortunately, the struggle of containing that much exuberance was taking a toll on Chu Feng, who stood there looking like he was severely constipated in the lights of the stage and the flashes of cameras. 

Lin Songshi looked at Chu Fang, who was starting to turn red from attempting to contain his joy and excitement, and smiled. Chu Fang is truly going to regret all of the pictures from this event in the morning. He smiled again as he thought about all the memes this moment would generate on the discussion boards for League of Legends. Then he warmly clapped Chu Fang on the shoulder and said, “You picked an excellent team. Well done!”

“Thank you for the kind words, Mr. President!” Chu Fang said, deeply moved by the compliment. Today could not have gone any better for Chu Fang, and he basked in the joy for a brief moment. A very brief moment. What Lin Songshi said next sucked all the air out of Chu Fang’s lungs, the joy from his heart and the warmth from his blood. 

Lin Songshi looked past Chu Fang at the five players on Team Shanghai for a second, before looking at Chu Fang again. “Hm. Hm… I must say that your choice of players was… a surprise. Yes. Very surprising. ” He smiled amicably after saying those words, and he clapped Chu Feng on the shoulder again. But there was something in his tone and the way he chose his words so carefully that left Chu Feng feeling very uneasy.

A surprise? What does he mean? Chu Fang’s eyes widened as his brain kicked into turbo to figure out the hidden meaning behind Lin Songshi’s words. Lin Feng! It’s gotta be that! Did he figure out who Lin Feng is already? Does he have enough information to figure it out? It’s possible! Even though Lin Songshi hadn’t formally taken over the Chinese Esports Association  in Season 1, Maple was too famous not to know. The thin veil hiding Lin Feng’s true identity had been pierced! Even though Maple/Lin Feng disappeared for many years and hadn’t been heard of or spoken about among the newfrogs, his legacy lived on among those important enough to remember. Lin Songshi definitely knows that Lin Feng is Maple! There’s no way he wouldn’t know!

✹

Right before travelling to Beijing for the Finals of the Collegiate Cup, Chu Fang and Fang Hao sat down for a serious conversation. Chu Fang was concerned that there were several people in the Beijing Esports Association who were capable of figuring out that Lin Feng was Maple. So he decided to ask Fang Hao what to do to try and prevent that. And also what to do if Lin Feng’s identity was leaked out regardless.

The reply that he got from Fang Hao over these concerns was strange. Fang Hao laughed it off and looked amused that Chu Fang was even worried about this. Fang Hao reassured Chu Fang by saying, “You don’t need to worry about this at all. You’ll see. Everything will sort itself out organically once you get to Beijing.” Then Fang Hao chuckled again.

Chu Fang was utterly confused by this bizarre and cryptic reply. He could not understand what Fang Hao was saying or why Fang Hao didn’t seem to care.  If we don’t worry about it, who will? 

✹

That entire conversation and Fang Hao’s odd nonchalance flashed through Chu Feng’s mind as he stood on that stage. Is this what Fang Hao meant? That Lin Songshi would sort everything out? But if that’s the case, why do I feel so uneasy about Lin Songshi’s words? Something isn’t right here…

But before Chu Fang could fully process his thoughts, the awards ceremony moved on. After the Championship Trophy, there was still the MVP Award that needed to be handed out. An MVP Award that unquestionably belonged to Lin Feng. There were no doubts about that in anyone’s mind.

It was Lin Feng’s skills that made Team Shanghai’s victory possible in the Finals today. His performance was spectacular in all three games. And on all three champions that he played. There literally was not a single person that could say that his Varus, Twisted Fate, or Yasuo had been anything short of spectacular.

Even the players from the other university teams, such as U-Tech Beijing and Shenyang University, all agreed that Lin Feng was already at the level of LPSL player. Perhaps even higher than that! Some even claimed that he was at the point where he could go toe-to-toe with the real professional players in the LPL!

The audience also unanimously agreed that the MVP Award deserved to go to Team Shanghai’s Midlaner. There were so many flashy plays from Lin Feng in the Finals that they couldn’t even remember all of them. But the ones that stood out as particularly special even among all his god-tier plays were the runaround Varus triple kill and the stunning Yasuo split-push double kill in Top lane. Those two plays alone were so fantastic they could make it into the Top 10 plays, if not Top 3 plays, of all time in the history of the Collegiate Cup.

When Lin Feng was declared the MVP of the game, the audience stood up to stomp their feet and cheer even louder. 

“WIN FENG!”
“WIN FENG!”
“WIN FENG!”
“WIN FENG!” 

“WIN FENG!”
stomp-stomp
“WIN FENG!”
stomp-stomp
“WIN FENG!”
stomp-stomp

They chanted and cheered so loudly that the entire arena echoed with cries of “WIN FENG!” This was the greatest acknowledgement that any player could receive. 

✹

Lin Songshi walked up to Lin Feng with the MVP medal on beat with the thundering chorus of WIN FENG. The hype was indeed real, and the air fizzled with electricity. 

Up on the stage, however, things were different. The air was thick, but not with hype or adrenaline or joy. The air was thick with tension and awkwardness between Lin Feng and Lin Songshi. And that tension grew exponentially with every step towards Lin Feng that Lin Songshi took. Until they were right in front of each other. Lin Songshi looked down at Lin Feng.

Lin Feng was looking down at the ground for a few seconds. Then he cleared his throat and raised his head to look Lin Songshi in the eyes. He forced an awkward smile, knowing that there were hundreds of eyes on them right now. 

Lin Songshi’s expression didn’t change when he met Lin Feng’s eyes. He put the medal around Lin Feng’s neck and patted him on the shoulder. Then he said, “So. You’re back now, eh?”

That was all the confirmation Chu Fang needed. His eyes started twitching violently. He knows! He knows Lin Feng is Maple!

Zeng Rui, Tang Bingyao, and the rest of Team Shanghai didn’t find this turn of events surprising at all. They already knew that Lin Feng was Maple. As far as they were concerned, it was more than expected that the President of the Chinese Esports Association knew who Lin Feng was and would recognize him.

Except for An Xin. She stood there watching the interaction between Lin Feng and Lin Songshi with the corners of her lips curving up into a faint knowing smile.

Lin Feng’s expression froze at the question. Then he slowly nodded, “Yeah, I’m back.” His body language and demeanor was nearly identical to how it was when he reunited with Fang Hao. 

Lin Songshi calmly stared into Lin Feng’s eyes and asked, “Oh? What changed?  Why did you come back?”

That question took the members of Team Shanghai by surprise and left them completely stunned. 

Huh? Zhang Hao’s eyes went wide in shock.

Zeng Rui’s face turned to stone as he started analyzing everything about Lin Songshi and Lin Feng.

Chu Fang was beside himself with confusion and concern. Why are you asking that!? What do you mean by that!? 

FourEyesChan stood up from behind the caster desk and grabbed his microphone from its stand. He then walked towards the monitor that showed the final moments of the Championship game between Team Shanghai and Team Beijing. “This is it,” he started. “The final moments!”

“Take us through them!” Cherry cheered.

FourEyesChan looked over his shoulder at Cherry and smiled. He then pushed the microphone to his lips and shouted, “The last few moments! Team Shanghai has scored an ace! A perfect one! Five kills, zero deaths and four perfect ultimates!

“They’re taking down the tower in t-minus 3… BOOM! IT’S DOWN! ONTO THE INHIBITOR!

“ANOTHER BOOM! GOD THIS IS GOING FAST! THEY’VE TAKEN THE SECOND INHIBITOR!” He paused for a moment to catch his breath and then continued, “That’s the second inhibitor. It’s the point of no return, and it really looks like that in this game! Team Beijing is all dead! They’ve got more than 20 seconds left to respawn! AND TEAM SHANGHAI KEEPS PUSHING!

“SUPER MINIONS FROM THE TOP LANE AND NORMAL ONES FROM THE BOT LANE ARE TAKING TOWER AGGRO FROM THE TWO NEXUS TOWERS! AND TEAM SHANGHAI KEEPS PUSHING!

“ONE TOWER DOWN AND THE SECOND ONE… FOLLOWS NOW! IT’S JUST THE NEXUS LEFT! A FEW MORE SECONDS AND THEN WE’VE GOT OUR NEW CHAMPIONS!

“THE NEXUS HAS EXPLODED! THAT’S THREE IN A ROW! WE’VE FOUND OUR NEW COLLEGIATE CUP CHAMPIONS! TEAM SHANGHAI WINS 3-0 FROM TEAM BEIJING IN THE GRAND FINALS OF THE WINTER COLLEGIATE CUP! GIVE IT UP FOR THEM! GIVE IT UP FOR THEM!”

Cherry pumped her fist in the air and screamed, “WOOOOOOOOOO!”

The audience was slow to follow. They’d come into the series expecting Team Beijing to win, and though the games they watched suggested the opposite there was still a part of them that believed Team Beijing would turn it around. But Team Beijing didn’t turn it around. The series was over. Team Shanghai had won.

“It’s over. Huh?”
“I thought Team Beijing was supposed to be… better?”
“An off day maybe?”
“Something else?”
“They beat U-Tech! How can they be bad?”
“I don’t get it…”
“How did this happen…?”

FourEyesChan looked from the casterbox out over the stands and saw the confused reaction from the audience. He shook his head and smiled. I get how you guys feel. All my research showed Team Beijing would win. We were all… None of us were expecting Team Shanghai to be this good. But they were… Are. And they deserve loud applause! He put the microphone to his lips again and shouted, “I CAN’T HEAR YOOUUUU!”

A part of the audience recovered from the surprising conclusion of the grand finals and started cheering. But many more were still arguing with each other about how it was possible that the series had ended like this. FourEyesChan focused on those people and shouted louder than before, “I CAN’T HEAR YOOUUUU!”

It was the push that the audience needed. They briefly discussed the plays they’d cheered for over the past three games, most of which were for Team Shanghai. More specifically, for Lin Feng. They all agreed that his performance was of such high quality that there really wasn’t anything Team Beijing could’ve done. He was just that much better. After that discussion swept across the stands, people rose to their feet and cupped their hands around their mouths. They started shouting,

“TEAM SHANGHAI!”
“TEAM SHANGHAI!”
“TEAM SHANGHAI!”
“WIN FENG!”
“WIN FENG!”
“WIN FENG!”
“WIN FENG!”
“WIN FENG!”

Up on stage were the two soundproof booths. Team Beijing sat in the one to the right. The five team members were silent. They sat behind their monitors and stared at their screens, trying to understand what just happened. From the moment they became aware of Team Shanghai many months ago until the start of the Grand Finals a few hours ago, they never once considered the possibility of losing.

“I knew they were good,” Team Beijing’s Jungler mumbled. “But this good…?”

Yu Ping rested his head in his hand, defeated. I was looking for a challenge. All tournament long, I’ve been demanding a challenge. I’ve been looking down on every other Midlaner. And why shouldn’t I have!? I beat them all! All of them, except him. His stomach clenched so hard that it hurt. He bit on his teeth and tried to move his head up and look at the audience, but he couldn’t get himself to do so. Shame pushed down on him and it took everything he had not to collapse. I got what I asked for. A challenge. A real one. And I wasn’t anywhere near ready for it. Maybe… Maybe Goalie was the challenge I should’ve been looking for…

“What do we do now?” Team Beijing’s ad-carry asked meekly.

Zhang Hongyi turned his head and looked across the stage at Team Shanghai’s soundproof booth. Those assholes are celebrating and… GODDAMMIT! He replied through gritted teeth, “We go out on stage and we congratulate those bastards. Fucking Zeng Rui and his stupid luck! It’s like solo queue all over!”

“Yeah, congratulate,” Yu Ping mumbled.

The second soundproof booth belonged to Team Shanghai. The mood inside was entirely different from Team Beijing. After the victory emblem appeared on his screen, Zhang Hao pushed his gaming chair back and leaped at Lin Feng. The two fell to the ground, but Zhang Hao didn’t care. He had tears of joy in his eyes and screamed, “WE WON! WE WON! HAHA! YOU SAID WE WOULD AND WE DID! WE BEAT THEM! WE FUCKING WON!”

Lin Feng yelped in surprise, just for a moment. He then looked up at Zhang Hao and the rest of his teammates and grinned. “Of course we won!” he exclaimed. “We’re the best!”

Tang Bingyao looked at Lin Feng and Zhang Hao on the ground and chewed on her lips. Butterflies were flying around in her stomach and a sudden force of impulse made her drop to her knees and join the hug. She cheered, “Mhm! We won! We really did!”

Zeng Rui looked at the three on the ground and fought against the voice in the back of his mind telling him to join them. He hesitated long enough for An Xin to walk over to him and put a hand on his shoulder. He looked up at her, confused. 

“Good work,” An Xin said with a smile. “I know how hard you’ve worked. And I want you to know that all of this…” she waved around the soundproof booth and then at the audience in the background. “… none of this would’ve been possible without you. You made it work.”

Zeng Rui smiled, a tear in his eye. He looked out through the windows of the soundproof booth at the audience. They’re cheering for us! We did it! We really did! He stood up and replied, “Thanks. I appreciate it. We all work—”

“ZENGZENG! COME IN HERE!” Lin Feng exclaimed. He’d gotten back up to his feet at some point and now jumped at Zeng Rui and hugged him. “We did it! WE WON!”

Zeng Rui let it happen. Lin Feng first and then Zhang Hao and Tang Bingyao next. And finally An Xin joined in. He jumped with the four of them, going against every instinct in his body, and enjoyed every second of it.

✹

Team Shanghai went through the motions of the post game sportsmanship habits. They left their soundproof booth and walked up to the middle of the stage, where Team Beijing was waiting for them. The ten players bowed to each other, after which they bowed towards the audience to thank them for their support. When this was all done, both teams left the stage.

Chu Fang was waiting for his team at the bottom of the steps. He gave them a thumbs up and said, “You guys did great! I’m so proud of all five of you! And it was super extra sweet because Fan Yuan was super salty! You guys should’ve seen his face! It was priceless! Actually, you know what? WE’RE CELEBRATING!” He nodded at Lin Feng and asked, “You’ve got the list. Where are we going!”

Lin Feng pulled a piece of paper from his pocket and traced his finger down a list of options. He stopped at one halfway through and said, “This one! It’s got hot pot! I want hot pot! Oh, oh! This one is a special hot pot because it’s the traditional coal-fire Beijing-style hot pot! Let’s go, go, goooo! I wanna eat it right now!”

“Uh, Lin Feng…” Zhang Hao interjected. He licked his lips and then said, “There’s still the award ceremony…”

An Xin put a hand on Lin Feng’s shoulder and winked at him. She asked, “There is indeed. Don’t tell me you forgot? You remember, the President of the Chinese Esports Association is presenting us with the trophy!”

Lin Feng turned stiff. He scratched the back of his head and mumbled, “Uhh, but celebrating…”

Chu Fang scrunched his eyebrows and asked, “Is something wrong?”

“You don’t want the trophy?” Zeng Rui added.

Lin Feng forced a grin on his face and replied, “No, no! I want the trophy! I just forgot! Haha! Yes, that’s it! I forgot! Totally forgot! Trophy, yeay!”

✹

The award ceremony began half an hour later. Zhou Wei, Vice President of the Beijing Esports Association, walked up on stage and introduced the shared third ranks Fudan University and U-Tech Beijing. Both teams walked up on stage and accepted a medal and thanked the Chinese Esports Association for hosting the event and the audience for coming out in such numbers to support them.

Zhou Wei gave the two university teams a couple of minutes with the microphone before taking it back and thanking them for participating. He then introduced Team Beijing and congratulated them with their second place. But Team Beijing wasn’t looking all too happy. The time they had to wait for the award ceremony to begin was long enough for the adrenaline to subside. They felt the pain of the loss, made worse by Fan Yuan who’d yelled and screamed all the way up until they walked back on stage. Zhou Wei looked at them and grimaced. Fan Yuan will get over it when he finds out who Lin Feng is. Bloody Maple. Of course they were gonna lose!

After Team Beijing left the stage, Zhou Wei brought the microphone to his mouth and said, “For this next part, we’ve got something a little more special.” He pointed at Team Shanghai and instructed, “Team Shanghai, come up on stage please.” He waited for them, under the loud applause of the audience, to walk up on stage and then continued, “This edition of the Collegiate Cup was special in several ways. We felt like it’s only appropriate that the award ceremony reflects that! That is why I won’t be the one offering the trophy to our Champions, but the President of the Chinese Esports Association will! Let’s give a warm welcome to Lin Songshi!”

Zhang Hongyi spoke through clenched teeth, “Welp. That was our top inhib. Great!” He turned his head to look at his Jungler who sat a few seats over and asked, “Tell me! What do we do now?”

“We defend bot,” Yu Ping said before Team Beijing’s Jungler could. He looked at his screen and grimaced. They got our top inhibitor. Super minions are going to spawn, so we can’t defend our Inner Tower. We’ll have to try and keep our base… He took a deep, long breath and ordered, “We’re too weak to defend our Inner Tower. Let’s try our best to defend our base. We’re going down fighting!”

Team Beijing’s Jungler looked at Yu Ping and smiled. He nodded and added, “What Yu Ping says. These are the Finals! Fuck giving up! Never surrender! And all that stuff. You know… Anyway, let’s just try and have a bit more fun playing this game while it lasts.”

Yu Ping snorted and shook his head. He said over the team’s voice chat, “Fun. Right.” He then looked over the edge of his screen at the crowd in the stadium and added, “We’re not going to keep playing for the fun of it. There’s nothing fun about this. But there are people sitting out there PAID to watch these Finals. For them… We gotta put on a show for them! Or as much of one as we can manage.”

The other four from Team Beijing all looked over their screens at the audience who were for the most part up on their feet, cheering. They knew Yu Ping was right. But it was difficult to keep playing and give the audience something to watch when they knew deep down that the series was already lost. When they knew that it was a single player was demolishing them. Instagibbing them, even.

FourEyesChan sat at the caster’s desk and leaned towards his microphone. He said, “Team Beijing has no answer for Team Shanghai’s Midlaner! But it doesn’t look like they’re giving up quite yet! They’re sitting in their base, but they’re very clearly not giving up!”

Cherry was the co-caster. She sat next to FourEyesChan and followed up by saying, “We all know the rule of thumb: A game isn’t lost until two inhibitors have fallen. In 99 percent of games, that’s the point of no return.”

“Cherry here is right!” FourEyesChan said. He smiled and continued, “Team Shanghai might have the Yasuo-Lee combo. They might have Lissandra and Leona for insane crowd control. Heck, they even got Kalista who despite not having done anything worth mentioning is getting pretty damn strong!” He scrunched his eyebrows and mumbled, “I’m not sure what point I was trying to prove…”

Cherry giggled a bit uncomfortably and replied, “Me neither…”

“A MIRACLE!” Fan Yuan shouted at the speaker nearest him. He sat right below the stage, grounding his teeth in frustration and anger. His team was losing and was worse, far worse, was that Chu Fang sat next to him. Stupid Chu Fang with his stupid grin! I want to smash that grin into the ground! Make him regret… Fucking dipshit Chu Fang! Asshole supreme! He breathed in, hoping the fresh air would calm his nerves, and then turned his attention towards Team Beijing’s side of the stage. He clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white and mumbled, “Come on, guys! Yeah it might take a miracle, and then another, and maybe one more. And then Team Shanghai also has to screw up a couple of times… in a row. But it’s not over! Our Nexus still stands! We can still win this! We can still get back into this series and win! I can still beat Chu Fang and show that dipshit that I’m the best!”

“How you enjoying the series, Fan Yuan?” Chu Fang shouted from a couple of seats over.

Fan Yuan felt his eyelids twitch and his nostrils flare. It took him every bit of self constraint to keep his eyes on Team Beijing’s soundproof booth. I will not entertain him. I won’t let him see me like this. I won’t! He flexed his stomach and chest and forced the muscles in his face into a smile. It looked fake and uncomfortable, but it was the best he could manage. He turned his head to look at Chu Fang and replied, “Your team is doing well, Chu Fang. Congratulations on finding such a talented bunch.” His stomach contracted and he swallowed down the sour taste of bile. I won’t give him the satisfaction. I WON’T!

✹

Team Shanghai gathered in the bot lane at Zeng Rui’s order and waited for a minion wave. When the Blue minions marched towards Team Beijing’s inner tower, they followed along. They found the inner tower undefended and between Lin Feng’s Yasuo and Tang Bingyao’s Kalista took it down in a couple of seconds. The five from Team Shanghai then pressed on towards Team Beijing’s inhibitor tower. This was where they found all five members from Team Beijing hiding behind their tower.

Lin Feng glanced at Zeng Rui and asked, “What do we do now? Fight!?”

Zeng Rui nodded slowly. He observed how Team Beijing was defending and said over the team’s voice chat, “See how Gragas keeps going top to clear the Super minions?” When his teammates replied affirmative, he continued, “Alright. So, when he gets back, they all huddle around their tower. And we’ve got Zhang Hao on Lissandra and me on Leona. Here’s what we’re doing…”

Zhang Hao’s Lissandra ran into the fog of war right on the edge of Team Beijing’s base. Team Beijing tried to place a ward there, but it was destroyed by Team Shanghai. Zhang Hao waited for Gragas to return to the bot lane and help his team defend against Team Shanghai. This was his cue. He cast Glacial Path! A claw of ice tore through the ground and towards Team Beijing’s Inhibitor Tower! Team Beijing didn’t see it until it suddenly appeared right beneath them. It was already too late by then as Lissandra blinked towards the claw and cast her ultimate on herself! Spires of ice shot up from the ground and locked her up in a Frozen Tomb, slowing the Champions from Team Beijing!

This engagement that Zhang Hao just pulled off had two goals. The first was to apply the slow effect and the second was to serve as a distraction. Because while Team Beijing was trying to react to Lissandra’s Frozen Tomb, Zeng Rui had his Leona call down a Solar Flare! Slowed and distracted, Team Beijing failed to respond to it. All five of them were caught in the blast radius and stunned.

An Xin was up next. She had her Lee Sin punch out a pressurized blast of air that connected with Janna! She followed up with Resonating Strike, dashing at Janna, and then placed a ward behind Janna and hopped towards it with Safeguard! Standing behind all five Champions from Team Beijing who were huddled so closely together, she positioned for the perfect angle and then activated Dragon’s Rage! Lee Sin hit Janna with a roundhouse kick that sent her flying into the four other members from Team Beijing, knocking them all up into the air!

Next up was Lin Feng. Yasuo’s ultimate skill was only available on airborne Champions. But the more important aspect for this particular fight was that when there were multiple Champions knocked up in a small area, his ultimate skill gained an area of effect element. Lin Feng cast Last Breath! Yasuo blinked towards the five Champions from Team Beijing and suspended them in midair! He followed up with a flurry of strikes before raising his katana high up above his head and hacking down with the power of the wind!

The entire time, Tang Bingyao’s Kalista was hurling spirit spears at the Champions from Team Beijing. She’d bought an item that turned all of her auto attacks into attacks that hit all nearby enemies, which meant that all Champions from Team Beijing had a large number of spears sticking from their bodies. When they came back down to the ground, she pulled those spears out with Rend! Two Champions died right away, and three more followed shortly after when Lin Feng hit them with a single Steel Tempest!

《Aced!》

FourEyesChan adjusted his glasses and said into his microphone, “Oof. Oof.”

Cherry looked at him and raised her eyebrows. She then grabbed her microphone and shouted, “TEAM SHANGHAI! WOOOOOOOO! IT’S A 5-0 ACE! THEY ACED TEAM BEIJING INSIDE THEIR BASE! WOOOOOOOOOOO!”

“HOLY MOLY CAMERONI!”
“WOOOOOOOO!”
“THAT WAS CRAAAAAAZY!”
“THAT’S GAME! GG! TEAM SHANGHAI CHAMPIONS!”
“MY GAWD! THAT WAS AMAZING!”
“FIVE MAN ULTIES INTO FIVE MAN ULTIES! DAYUM!”
“SIIIIICK!”

Qiu Yijie chuckled and said, “I feel like a broken record here, but that’s game. It’s over now. Just a few more seconds. They can finish this before Team Beijing even respawns!”

Sun Ruinian breathed out through his mouth and replied, “Not just this game. It’s been like this all tournament. Sure, it sometimes looked close. But was it really? I don’t think so. It was never close. Whenever Lin Feng plays… And I mean actually plays and not just goof around… Well, yeah. You guys get it.”

“We certainly do!” Zou Cheng exclaimed in excitement. He pumped his fist in the air and shouted, “WIN FENG IS THE BEST!”

Qiu Yijie nodded. He then turned his head to look at Team Beijing’s soundproof booth and added, “Gotta give it to them, though. They kept fighting till the end.”

Yu Ping started laughing. He threw his hands up in the air, hopeless, and exclaimed, “Fuck me and fuck us all! What the fuck!”

“Focus!” Team Beijing’s Jungler shouted over the team’s voice chat. “You two can still kill him!”

“Tell me how. Please,” Yu Ping countered. He raised his shoulders and added, “Because I really don’t know.”

Team Beijing’s Toplaner suddenly shouted, “GOT HIM!” He then pressed on the R key as Yasuo dashed through a minion at him. An Explosive Cask appeared and tumbled around in the air for a brief moment before falling down towards the ground. The pink liquid within bubbled, looking to escape. The cask then hit the ground right as Yasuo hit his third cast from Steel Tempest, sending a tornado at Yu Ping’s LeBlanc.

Cherry’s eyes opened wide and she screamed, “THEY GOT HIM! THEY GOT HIM!”

“KILL HIM!”
“GET HIM!”
“FINALLY A KILL!”

The pink liquid exploded from the cask with such force that it lifted Yasuo off his feet and sent him flying backwards! But Lin Feng didn’t worry about that, nor did he worry about Gragas running at him. His eyes were focused on the tornado from Steel Tempest. It carved a path across the ground before it slammed into Yu Ping’s LeBlanc and knocked her up into the air! Gotcha! Lin Feng waited for his Yasuo to hit the ground and then cast Last Breath! Yasuo blinked above LeBlanc and suspended her in midair! He let loose on her a flurry of strikes before one final hack sent her crashing down towards the ground!

LeBlanc’s health dropped to critical levels causing her passive to activate. She briefly disappeared from the Rift as a mirror image took her place. There was just one second during which LeBlanc was invisible; it was the timeframe Lin Feng had to distinguish real from fake. He threw down a vision ward to reveal the invisible LeBlanc. GOTCHA AGAIN! He laughed and stabbed at her with his katana.

《Unstoppable!》

Yu Ping shook his head, laughing helplessly. He turned his head to look at his teammates and pointed at his grey screen. He then said, “See? Haha! I can’t even be mad anymore! This is just stupid. This guy is taking our towers and then beating us 1 versus 2! What’s there left to do? He could win this entire tournament by himself! Is he even a high schooler? He looks like a damn pro! I’m telling you guys, this is just stupid.”

Team Beijing’s Jungler glanced at Yu Ping and said, “Stop this. Gragas is still alive and we’re still trying to hold on in mid. Let us focus!”

“Yeah, yeah,” Yu Ping replied.

Team Beijing’s Toplaner grimaced and cursed, “Fuck! FUCK!” He gritted his teeth and muttered, “He attacked me first. He already had me down… FUCK!”

Lin Feng’s Yasuo never stopped dashing through minions and attacking, even after killing LeBlanc. He was playing a 1 versus 2 and he wouldn’t stop until he’d killed both. The fight had started with him attacking Gragas and throughout the fight he’d used Gragas to jump around and build up stacks for Steel Tempest. That had brought Gragas down to a quarter of his full health bar. On top of that, Gragas had used all of his skills except for Flash.

Lin Feng narrowed his eyes when the mottled flash of light carried Gragas away towards his base. You ain’t going anywhere! He glanced at his own base and saw a new wave of minions spawning. Perfect! He then had his Yasuo run after Gragas and waited for the new wave of Red minions to come. When he got in range of them, he dashed through them to close the distance to Gragas. He ignored the inhibitor tower and caught up to Gragas deep inside Team Beijing’s base.

“AND ANOTHER ONE, AND ANOTHER ONE, ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST!” Lin Feng loudly sang over the team’s voice chat as he dashed through Gragas and hit him with Steel Tempest. A storm brewed at the tip of his blade. The cooldown on the skill was only a few seconds. Lin Feng waited it out, allowing Gragas to run away again, and then send the tornado after Gragas.

《Double kill!》

“OH MY GOD!” Cherry shrieked from the caster desk. “HE DID IT AGAIN!”

FourEyesChan adjusted his glasses and said into his microphone, “I sound like a broken record, but… Wow! WOW! FUCKING WOW! He chased Gragas into Team Beijing’s base! IN THE FINALS OF THE WINTER COLLEGIATE CUP!”

Cherry threw her hands up in the air and screamed, “WOOOOOOOOOO!”

“WIN FENG, WIN FENG, DOES WHAT NOBODY ELSE CAN!”
“WOOOOOOO!”
“HOW THE FUCK DOES HE KEEP DOING THIS!?”
“THIS IS INSANE!”
“MAD SKILLS!”

✹

Lin Songshi leaned on the handrail in the skybox, watching the game through the glass windows. Zhou Wei stood next to him and muttered, “This Yasuo… Where did he come from? He’s amazing! The way he’s dodging and kiting and killing and… And… He’s so good!”

Lin Songshi glanced at his employee and then turned his focus back on Team Shanghai’s soundproof booth. He replied, “That kid, yep, he’s still got some of that old spunk.”

“Huh? What?” Zhou Wei asked in surprise. He looked at Lin Songshi and narrowed his eyes. You sound like you know him… Where do you— His eyes grew round and wide. Don’t tell me… Lin Feng and Lin Songshi… Lin, Lin, Lin… OF COURSE! “YOU’RE FAMILY!” he shouted far more loudly than he intended to.

“That we are,” Lin Songshi replied. He briefly paused and then added, “He’s my nephew.”

Zhou Wei stared at Lin Songshi in shock. “Y-your nephew? Why didn’t you…” He shook his head. Don’t argue with the President. He’s still my boss. Keep your calm. He took a deep, long breath and tried to think of something to say. Something professional. But his mind was blank. He finally asked, “Since when do you have a nephew who plays League at this level? Why didn’t you tell us anything about him!? Imagine what he could’ve done for Fan Yuan if you’d brought him to Beijing! We would’ve won this tournamen—”

“When did you start getting into League of Legends?” Lin Songshi interrupted.

Zhou Wei scratched the back of his head, counting back the years he’d spent on League of Legends, and said, “I think it was halfway through Season 2 when I made the switch from DotA.”

Lin Songshi turned his head to look at Zhou Wei and smiled. He said, “You probably know who my nephew is then. Think about it. You’ll figure it out.” He then focused back on the game between Team Shanghai and Team Beijing and added, “This should be about done.”

✹

Lin Feng had his Yasuo retreat from Team Beijing’s base and said, “See? Nothing to worry about!”

An Xin smiled and replied over the team’s voice chat, “That was nice!”

“That was great!” Zeng Rui added. He smiled and continued, “Good job! You actually got both of them! That makes this next part so much easier!” He nodded at Zhang Hao and said, “You teleport top and help push for the inhibitor tower!”

Zhang Hao panned his camera towards the top lane where the Blue minions were already attacking the inhibitor tower. He clicked on the one taking the energy shots from the tower and cast Teleport! The Blue minion was frozen in time and space as Lissandra locked onto him and started teleporting. This had as a bonus effect that while the inhibitor tower kept firing energy shots at it, the minion didn’t take any damage. It made it that much easier for Team Shanghai to take the inhibitor tower down. All the while, An Xin, Tang Bingyao and Zeng Rui made sure that the three remaining players from Team Beijing couldn’t recall back to base to protect their tower.

Team Beijing was forced to watch on as Lin Feng and Zhang Hao destroyed the inhibitor tower followed by the inhibitor. Team Beijing’s base was breached! More importantly, Team Shanghai’s Nexus received a boost which allowed it to start spawning super minions in the top lane.

Qiu Yijie sat in the stands and said to his teammates from Fudan University and his friends from Zhejiang University, “I’m going to sound like a broken record, but that’s got to be game.”

Zou Cheng from Zhejiang University turned his head to look at Qiu Yijie and asked, “What do you think? Are they going to surrender?”

Qiu Yijie nodded and replied, “You usually never surrender in competitive play. But when it’s going like this… They might, yeah.”

Zeng Rui pressed the Tab key and looked at the game score. Lin Feng is so far ahead… Hmm… This might be perfect for a split push. He’s got everything to make it out alive, and he’s Maple… Zeng Rui nodded at himself and then said over the team’s voice chat, “Let’s do a split push. Lin Feng, you push the top lane. Everyone else, come mid. We’ll pressure ‘em there.”

“Okay!” Lin Feng replied. He recalled back to base and spent the gold he gained from his most recent double kill. He then moved his camera towards the top lane and took stock of the situation. Both Towers are still standing and there’s no one there to defend them. That’ll be easy enough. He grinned and clicked in the middle of the lane, ordering his Yasuo to start running there.

Over in the mid lane, the four other Champions from Team Shanghai gathered. They had Zhang Hao’s Lissandra, An Xin’s Lee sin and Zeng Rui’s Leona for crowd control, and then there was Tang Bingyao’s Kalista to deal damage. This lineup was tanky enough that as long as Team Beijing didn’t get the drop on Tang Bingyao, they could fight a prolonged battle. This was crucial for Zeng Rui’s split push strategy.

Zeng Rui watched his teammates follow his directions and smiled. Good. He then panned his camera towards Red Team’s Outer Tower and paused there, waiting for Team Beijing’s response. A couple of seconds later, all five Champions from Team Beijing revealed themselves in the mid lane. He grinned and said over the team’s voice chat, “It’s working! Lin Feng, do your thing on top!”

Lin Feng’s Yasuo arrived in the top lane. He engaged the minions that were fighting in the middle of the lane. With his high level and quality items, Yasuo tore through the minions. His minions continued their march towards Red Team’s Outer Tower, which was down to half health. Lin Feng had his Yasuo follow behind them, making sure that a minion stepped within the Tower’s range first. So long as a Champion didn’t attack another Champion underneath a Tower, the Tower would target the first minion or Champion to walk within its range.

FourEyesChan adjusted his glasses and said into the microphone, “Yasuo is an attack damage Champion. You can see that on the Top Tower right now! Just look how much damage he’s dealing to it! Three more hits and it’s… It’s down! Top is down!”

“Team Shanghai’s got the Outer Tower in the Top lane! And their Yasuo isn’t stopping! He’s pushing towards the Inner Tower!”

Lin Feng glanced at the game timer as he approached the Top lane’s Inner Tower. Only 16 minutes? Man I’m fed! They really went all out in giving me everything I could ever need in this game! Heh! But let’s take this up a notch. He grinned and clicked beyond the Inner Tower. His minions got within the tower’s range first and drew its aggro. They then started attacking it. But Lin Feng had his Yasuo run past them and didn’t stop until he reached the edge of Team Beijing’s base. There he waited for the next minion wave from the Red team to arrive. And when they came, he killed them. This strategy saw his minions dying to the tower, which was missed experience for Team Beijing, while he was getting full experience for killing the Red minions. All the while, the Tower lost health.

Cherry pushed the microphone against her lips and said, “Team Beijing can’t let this go on! They’re being pressured in mid but they have to do something or they’ll lose their base to Yasuo!”

FourEyesChan adjusted his glasses and explained, “There’s two things a team can do in this situation. The first is to force a fight in mid. Now, you don’t need me to explain how bad that plan is for Team Beijing right now. Between Lissandra, Lee Sin and Leona, Team Shanghai’s got all the crowd control they need. That leaves Team Beijing with only one course of action. They’ve got to send someone top to deal with Yasuo. The question is, who?”

Zeng Rui closely followed every movement made by Team Beijing. He spotted it when their LeBlanc and Gragas disappeared into the fog of war and counted the seconds it took for them to reemerge. When those seconds drew on, he warned over the team’s voice chat, “Lin Feng, two coming top for you. Gragas and LeBlanc. Be careful. You can retreat if you need to.”

Lin Feng turned his head to look at Zeng Rui and grinned his usual grin. “Dontcha worry!” he replied. “They can’t kill me! Not those two alone. If that’s all they’re sending, I’ll just take this tower down and get a double kill!” He then focused on his screen and had his Yasuo abandon the assault on the Red minions. Yasuo ran over to help his Blue minions destroy the Inner Tower. Its health steadily dropped, one attack at a time. Lin Feng scrunched his eyebrows and scratched his nose. “They’re taking forever,” he mumbled.

《A turret has been destroyed!》

The Inner Tower lay in ruin and Lin Feng’s Yasuo stood next to it. Lin Feng looked towards Team Beijing’s base and then down at their Jungle. “Uh, ZengZeng?” he asked over the team’s voice chat. “Where they at?”

Zeng Rui looked at the top lane, confused. They should be there by now. Or are they trying to flank us in mid? Hmm… That doesn’t make any sense eith—

“Oh! They’re here!” Lin Feng exclaimed. He grinned as he watched Team Beijing’s Gragas run out from the Jungle while a new Red minion wave arrived next to Lin Feng’s Yasuo. Lin Feng narrowed his eyes and mouthed, “Whatcha gonna do, whatcha gonna do…” Lin Feng flicked his mouse to his left and clicked. Yasuo ran to the side and sidestepped Gragas’ Body Slam. He followed up with Sweeping Blade, dashing through Gragas who’d thrown a Barrel Roll at his previous location.

FourEyesChan moved his head forward, incredulous. He slowly shook his head and muttered into his microphone, “How…? How does he keep doing that? He just dodged two skills again!”

“It happened so fast that I almost missed it!” Cherry exclaimed. “That Barrel Roll… He dodged it before it even came! That was crazy!”

Yasuo stabbed out with his blade and pierced Gragas—Steel Tempest! The winds generated by this attack coiled around the length of his blade. He continued with an auto attack when Yu Ping’s LeBlanc ran out from the Jungle. Lin Feng narrowed his eyes and flicked his mouse to the other side of his Yasuo. There were a couple of minions there. He selected one and dashed through it just in time to dodge LeBlanc’s Distortion!

“That’s 3! He’s up to 3 already!”
“IS HE GONNA DO ANOTHER MICROGODPLAY!?”
“SHOW US THE MICROGODPLAY!”
“WOOOOOOOOO!”

Lin Feng licked his lips. Gragas and LeBlanc were both at full health when they started this fight. Two attacks later and Gragas had only a bit more than half of it remaining. But there were still many skills between Gragas and LeBlanc that all had the potential of killing Lin Feng’s Yasuo. Which only made it more fun for Lin Feng. He grinned and cast Wind Wall! His Yasuo’s blade slashed out to form the barrier. LeBlanc stood behind him and fired a Sigil of Malice at him. Just in time, heh! Lin Feng had his Yasuo dash through the Wind Wall. The Sigil of Malice followed behind him, but when it made contact with the Wind Wall it disintegrated. More importantly, he was back in front of Gragas again. STEEL TEMPEST! Yasuo stabbed Gragas with his katana again. The intensity of the winds coiled around the length of his blade grew. 

Yu Ping’s LeBlanc recast Distortion to return to her original location on Gragas’ side of the Wind Wall. He gripped his mouse as tightly as he could, the plastic groaning, and aimed at Lin Feng as best as he could. He then narrowed his eyes, trying his best to ignore his heart slamming into his chest. He knew this was going to be it. If he hit the Ethereal Chains, they could win this fight. But if he missed, then all of their crowd control was basically gone. Stop jumping around so much! Stand in front of me, dammit! He chewed on his lips and kept moving his mouse around, until his finger pushed down on the E key. Chains manifested in the air around LeBlanc and shot towards Lin Feng’s Yasuo!

When LeBlanc started casting Ethereal Chains, the left side of her body jerked forward. Lin Feng spotted this tiny detail and reacted to it before the chains had even materialized. He took one step to the other side from Gragas and then cast Sweeping Blade! His Yasuo dashed through Gragas and arrived on the other side of the Wind Wall again! Behind him, the Ethereal Chains hit the Wind Wall and disintegrated. And another, and another, and another bites the dust, “YEAH!”

FourEyesChan took his glasses off and started cleaning them with his shirt, mumbling, “How? Someone explain to me how he’s doing this? It doesn’t make sense. It doesn’t! How is he dodging these skillshots!? Nothing, nothing has hit him yet. NOTHING!”

“He’s just that good,” Cherry mumbled.

Yu Ping knew that Lin Feng would outplay him. He’d hoped that Rengar’s gank could help his LeBlanc get back into the lane, but he’d played enough against Lin Feng in the last two games and the start of this third game to know that the chance of success was slim. What he didn’t expect was for An Xin’s Lee Sin to be waiting in the brush below the mid lane for a countergank. His eyes grew round and wide and he cursed, “Fuck! Help me!”

An Xin sat behind her monitor and glanced at her right hand. One big play. I got this. She focused back on her monitor and took a deep, long breath. Playtime is over! She clicked on a nearby minion and cast Safeguard! While her Lee Sin dashed towards the minion, her fingers glided across her keyboard and she flicked her mouse towards Yu Ping’s LeBlanc. Sonic Wave! Lee Sin fired a pressurized blast of air at LeBlanc! But instead of dashing at her, he Flashed towards her! He followed up with his ultimate skill, kicking LeBlanc away from her Outer Tower! To close the distance to LeBlanc this time, Lee Sin used Resonating Strike! Lee Sin came in with a strong flying kick! His foot slammed LeBlanc in the face and reduced her health to the last few drops. Then he gracefully landed and slammed his palm on the ground! 

《You have slain an enemy!》

Yu Ping’s mouth fell open. He stared at the different shades of grey on his screen and mumbled, “What the…” He looked around the soundproof booth at his teammates and continued, “What the fuck was that?” But his teammates didn’t have the answer. They looked back at him and shook their heads, incredulous.

At the casters desk, FourEyesChan leaned towards his microphone and shouted, “SHE KILLED HIM! LEE KILLED LEBLANC! THAT WAS SO FAST! WOW!”

Cherry clasped her hands over her mouth and said, “Oh my god! That combo!”

“How the fuck did Lee do that!?”
“LeBlanc couldn’t do anything! She was dead before it even finished!”
“I BLINKED AND MISSED IT! SHOW A REPLAY ON SLOW MOTION PLEASE!”
“WOOOOOOO!”
“Was LeBlanc bugged? Where is her passive…?”
“LEE KILLED HER SO FAST THAT HE BROKE THE GAME!”
“GOOD GAME TO TEAM SHANGHAI! JUST FF, YU PING!”

Zou Cheng from Zhejiang University scratched the back of his head and asked Sun Ruinian, who sat next to him, “How did BunBun do that? Why didn’t LeBlanc’s passive work?”

“It did work,” Sun Ruinian replied with a sigh. He shook his head and chuckled, then explained, “You saw how she held her Q second-cast and Flashed towards LB?” He waited for Zou Cheng to nod and then continued, “The Sonic Wave marks LeBlanc, which makes her passive practically worthless. That ultimate kicked most of the health out from LeBlanc’s health bar, which did proc LeBlanc’s passive. But because of the Sonic Wave, BunBun knew exactly where the real LeBlanc was.”

Qiu Yijie leaned forward to look at Zou Cheng and chimed in, “It was really a fantastic play.”

“Watch!” Fudan University’s Jungler interrupted.

Back in the game, Lin Feng had used the time An Xin needed to kill LeBlanc to strike Team Beijing’s Rengar with a Steel Tempest. It was the second one, and the winds danced along his blade. He paused, briefly, just long enough for An Xin to kill LeBlanc. But not so long that Rengar could escape. He then activated Steel Tempest for a third time. Yasuo swung his blade and unleashed a tornado upon Summoner’s Rift! The strong winds chased down Rengar and knocked him up into the air! This was the opening needed for Yasuo’s ultimate skill–Last Breath!

The instant Rengar got knocked up, Lin Feng hit R. Yasuo vanished and appeared right next to the Rengar, who was just hitting the peak of the knock-up and about to fall back down to the ground, a leap so fast that it was invisible to the naked eye. Yasuo unleashed a flurry of strikes with his katana into Rengar’s flesh, each one keeping him in the air a little bit longer. Every slice of the blade cut deep into Rengar’s health bar. Then to top it all off, Yasuo unleashed a powerful slice right into the middle of Rengar’s body that sent Rengar plummeting back down to the ground! And into the arms of a waiting Lee Sin, who added a few brutal auto-attacks to Rengar as he staggered back up. Lin Feng’s Yasuo jumped down to the ground and also started auto attacking Rengar. His blade that cut Rengar’s last ties to life.

《You have slain an enemy!》

FourEyesChan clicked his tongue and said into the microphone, “Damn, that’s rough. Team Beijing gets hit again with a massive setback! Their gank in mid ended with both their Jungler and Midlaner dying, and on the back of that Team Shanghai picks up an uncontested Dragon. It’s really becoming hard here to see Team Beijing making a comeback.”

Cherry sighed loudly into her microphone and chimed in, “LeBlanc needs to win those early trades. If she doesn’t have her core build finished by the end of the laning phase, she’ll have a very difficult mid and late game.” She grimaced and added after a brief moment, “I mean, if she can’t burst down the important targets, then what use does she really have?”

“Well, let’s not give up so quickly,” FourEyesChan argued. He moved his head around for a bit before continuing, “Alright, so it’s looking pretty bad for Team Beijing. But, very importantly, it isn’t all bad. Their LeBlanc has a decent creep score and Team Shanghai’s ad-carry isn’t doing all that outstanding herself. It’s gonna be hard. But if LeBlanc plays this perfectly, then she should technically have enough damage to burst down Team Shanghai’s Kalista.”

Cherry giggled and shook her head. She looked at FourEyesChan and calmly waited for him to finish his analysis. When he did, She leaned towards her microphone and said, “And then there’s Yasuo.”

FourEyesChan grimaced and nodded. “Yep. Then there’s Yasuo,” he said.

✹

The game was going for 14 minutes when An Xin turned her head to look at Lin Feng and said, “Come, we’re going for a walk.”

Lin Feng looked back at An Xin and scrunched his eyebrows. He replied, “What? A walk? We’re playing…”

An Xin shook her head and smiled, then pinged on the Jungle entrance right below the mid lane. “Here,” she said. “We’re going to walk here.”

“Oh!” Lin Feng exclaimed. “Why didn’t you say so!” He then had his Yasuo retreat to the far edge of Yu Ping’s vision and started recalling. He timed this perfectly with a new wave coming. They pushed a bit towards Red team’s outer tower and killed the vision of Lin Feng’s Yasuo right before the recall ended. He then cancelled the recall and followed An Xin into Red Team’s bottom side Jungle.

An Xin said over the team’s voice chat, “Push them to their Tower.”

“Already on it,” Zeng Rui replied. He looked at the bot lane. They’d been pushing Team Beijing back for the last couple of minutes already. The new wave that arrived pushed the lane towards the middle a bit, but after Tang Bingyao killed the first few minions with her Kalista, the lane started pushing into Team Beijing’s tower again.

An Xin and Lin Feng arrived in the brush right behind the bot lane outer tower. An Xin nodded at Lin Feng and said, “You wait here and be ready.”

“Aye aye!” Lin Feng replied, grinning. He theatrically raised his finger and added, “Ready to press the button!”

“Good,” An Xin said with a smile. She then focused on her screen and breathed out through her mouth. Another time! For good measure! She smiled a bit brighter as she ran into the bot lane. Team Beijing’s Jinx retreated a step too far behind her Outer Tower. An Xin reacted to this with a perfectly timed and aimed Sonic Wave! She followed up with Resonating Strike! Her Lee Sin kicked Team Beijing’s Jinx in the face, then stepped behind her and hit her with a roundhouse kick! There was so much power behind this last attack that Jinx flew backwards!

Lin Feng grinned when he saw Jinx flying. He didn’t activate his ultimate right away. The reason being that Jinx was on a collision course with Team Beijing’s Janna. “BOOM!” Lin Feng exclaimed, laughing. He then cast Last Breath! Jinx and Janna were in the air right next to each other when Yasuo blinked next to them and suspended them in midair! He unleashed a flurry of strikes on them, slashing away at their already dwindled health! He then hacked them down to the ground and finished his combo off with a Steel Tempest that pierced both Champions!

《You have slain an enemy!》

《Double kill!》

Zou Cheng jumped to his feet and screamed at the top of his lungs, “WIIIIIIIIN FENG! WIIIIIIIIN FENG!” He was so loud that it sounded over all the other cheers and shouts, and then it gained in volume as the other people in the audience started copying him.

“WIN FENG! WIN FENG!”
“WIN FENG! WIN FENG!”
“WIN FENG! WIN FENG!”
“WIN FENG! WIN FENG!”
“WIN FENG! WIN FENG!”
“WIN FENG! WIN FENG!”
“WIN FENG! WIN FENG!”

Sun Ruinian looked around him at the audience and shook his head, smiling. “Incredible,” he said. “Simply incredible.”

Qiu Yijie nodded and added, “That’s got to be game.”